Chapter 3926 — The Spirit Beast Tournament
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 2
The Welcome Pavilion's rules were explicit that newcomers dueling one another must never employ any weapon—but never once had it been said that their spirit pets could not be armed.
This time Meng Zhou had slipped through a loophole in the rules, and no one could say a word against it.
Leaning on the dark-iron staff with one hand, the black-backed staff ape merely stood there, and the domineering aura that leaked from its body was enough to send a chill through every newcomer present.
Facing the black-backed staff ape one-on-one, to say nothing of the spirit pets they had subdued, even if the great majority of those present took the field themselves, they would likely not be the ape's match.
A spirit beast of formidable battle talent was already stronger than human cultivators of the same rank; add to that the advantage of a weapon, and crossing ranks to challenge these Heaven-rank grand-completion experts was hardly any difficulty at all.
Compared with the imposing, domineering black-backed staff ape, the prizes the other Qingyun Pavilion newcomers had won were pitifully outmatched. A glance around showed not one that had reached the Heaven rank—not one that could pose the slightest threat to the black-backed staff ape.
Of the dozen or so newcomers present, four had not even managed to subdue a spirit pet at all. The low-grade spirit-beast talismans given them had, after all, a success rate that was none too high once they encountered any beast of even modest strength.
"Why haven't the others shown up? Too ashamed to bring their pets out for people to see, because they're so second-rate? A pack of cowards who can't face the world!" Meng Zhou threw back his head and laughed unrestrainedly, one hand resting on the black-backed staff ape's shoulder.
At this moment, besides Meng Zhou himself, the other personages among the Qingyun Pavilion newcomers had yet to arrive. Not only had Wei Zhao's group not appeared—even Murong Zhen and Li Zhengming were still conspicuously absent.
Yet even with these people missing, the black-backed staff ape's fighting strength made it well-nigh invincible at the Heaven rank, and Meng Zhou could scarcely wait to see it unleash its might.
After a spell of waiting, these people finally began to appear one after another. The first to come into view was Li Zhengming.
"Heh heh, the brat probably has no spirit pet and is too ashamed to show his face, that's why he's so late!" Watching Li Zhengming come alone, Meng Zhou sneered with malicious glee.
Because he had subdued the black-backed staff ape so early, Meng Zhou had already returned half a month ago, among the very first batch of newcomers.
But Li Zhengming, whom he had fleeced so thoroughly, had fared miserably. Word had it he had not dragged himself back until yesterday, and no spirit pet had been seen with him either.
Meng Zhou had foreseen this outcome back when he snatched the other man's spirit-beast talisman—or rather, he had been looking forward to this very scene from the start, to watching Li Zhengming make a fool of himself before everyone.
Never mind whether Li Zhengming had the nerve to rob another newcomer of a talisman—even if he did, the other newcomers had long since scattered like birds and beasts, and in the vast outer reaches of the back mountain he would be hard-pressed to stumble on one. And even if luck favored him and he caught someone, he might not have the fortune to subdue a powerful spirit beast.
And from the look of things now, Li Zhengming stood alone, having indeed subdued no spirit pet at all. This spirit-beast trial was already doomed to a zero—a weakling through and through. R1152