Apotheosis – Ascension to Godhood

Chapter 467: A Bully Is Always A Coward

“I'm telling the truth. I am really here to participate in the Martial Arts Contest. If you're still doubtful, I can simply show you my token to prove it,” Zen insisted, about to bring out and show him his token.

But in spite of that, the steward didn't even bother looking at the token at all. The only thing he did was let out a contemptuous smile.

Then he said, “Throughout the years that I've been a steward, I've had plenty of chances to meet jerks just like you, but I have never come upon a person at the Illuminating Soul Realm who had the guts to try and fool me. You're the very first person to ever do so.”

Zen's eyebrows were deeply knitted from hearing the steward's words. Silently standing still, he had been deep in thought, looking for an effective way to get the steward to believe him. Coming to the realization that Zen was intent on staying there, a devious smile crept onto the steward's face. Turning his back on Zen, he yelled over to someone at the arena, “Monkey! There's a stupid idiot right here looking for some trouble. Would you be so kind as to teach this guy a lesson and shove him away?”

A towering and seemingly strong man darted out of the arena at breakneck speed. He looked so intimidating standing eight feet tall, much like an iron wall. Each time he would stomp on the ground, the earth would shake as a result.

“Who has the audacity to stir up trouble for the World Commercial Alliance? You're merely bringing forth your own demise,” declared the strong man being referred to as Monkey upon dashing out of the arena. On his arrival, he didn't waste any time and instantly glared at Zen. With a jeering laugh, he quickly stretched out his hands, trying to get a hold of Zen

But because Zen had already strengthened his body with primordial energy, he possessed exceptional agility.

That being said, without even having to use life vitality, he swiftly moved and dodged the massive fan-like hands of the strong man without breaking a sweat.

“Eh!”

the strong man exclaimed, with astonishment written all over his face. Zen had been as slippery as an eel. The strong man really thought he had him in within his grasp, but in the end he wasn't able to catch him. As a matter of fact, he couldn't even so much as graze his clothes.

Meanwhile, as the strong man had been left dumbfounded, Zen had already positioned himself without delay to his side with a knife in his hand, shimmering much like frost and snow. He then pointed it at his ribs. “I've told you, I came here for the Martial Arts Contest. If I may say so, the old fellows of the World Commercial Alliance were not bad in worldly wisdom, but ones like you on the lower ranks couldn't hold a candle to them,” Zen remarked.

The old fellows, the higher-ups of the World Commercial Alliance were really as sly as foxes, such as, Michael Mo. Even those three fatties of the World Commercial Alliance whom he got acquainted with upon his return from the Dragon Soar Arena didn't have the nerve to force him to spill the beans regarding the secret of the Dragon Soar Arena. As they were dealing with Zen, they were still holding back a little, leaving some room for possible future negotiations.

In contrast, these understrappers appeared to be quite the degenerates by virtue of the World Commercial Alliance itself.

The World Commercial Alliance was a grand alliance that could be on equal footing with the Ethereal Spirit Sect, boasting with a greater number of understrappers. Although those of the top brass of the alliance had a tendency to lay low, there was just no way for them to train every single one of their men to act the same way.

It wasn't until the minute the steward witnessed everything firsthand that he finally realized he might have underestimated the capabilities of Zen. Considering the tone of his voice, he suddenly thought that what Zen was telling them could possibly be the truth all along. He really didn't come here to stir up trouble, and this guy who was merely at the Illuminating Soul Realm might actually be qualified for the main draw match.

“Could... Could you please bring out and show me your token, sir?” the steward stuttered, forcing out a disgusting smile.

Hearing his request, Zen shot the steward a dull glare. But afterwards, he pulled out the token from his pocket, swinging it in front of the steward's very eyes and then quickly taking it back and leaving.

The dangling token was gleaming into his eyes, so much so that he couldn't take a good hard look at the inscription on it. In spite of that, he didn't bother prying any further about it and ultimately decided to just leave him be. ř𝐚ꞐôᛒËṠ

The Martial Arts Contest took quite a significant amount of time, even months long, to be carefully organized, that even the tiniest details of the contest had been truly well-planned. For that reason, as soon as Zen had entered the lobby, an elder noticed him in an instant, walking over to him and asking, “Have you passed the pre-qualifying match for the contest? Put out your token and show it to me.”

Right away, Zen handed the token over to the aforementioned elder. The elder grabbed the token, meticulously inspecting Zen's identification which was also specified in a register he was holding. After a few moments, he bobbed his head as if to confirm the description, and motioned over to Zen, “Follow me.”

Zen walked closely behind the elder and headed toward the arena, the gathering place for a crowd of fighters who had successfully made it through the pre-qualifying match.

The pre-qualifying match took place in a span of about a dozen days, with only three people on each day who would get an opportunity to participate in the main draw match. That being the case, the martial artists who could proudly stand there could be considered some of the most remarkable martial artists among the hundreds of people who originally took part in the pre-qualifying match, and the strength of every single one of them, in no way, should ever be underestimated.

As Zen moved closer over to the group, the martial artists who had gotten there before him shifted their gaze at him, appearing to be quite astounded.

The majority of the martial artists who were entitled to participate in the main draw match were at the Internal Elixir Realm. And among those warriors, only two were currently at the ultimate level of the Illuminating Soul Realm.

One of them was Owen, the man who took part in the pre-qualifying match along with Zen on the very same day, and then the other was someone unfamiliar to him.

So far, it was already quite an unusual occurrence for a martial artist at the ultimate level of the Illuminating Soul Realm to have the chance to enter the main draw match. All things considered, a substantial difference existed between warriors in the Internal Elixir Realm and the ultimate level of the Illuminating Soul Realm in terms of their strength. That being said, it would be a gargantuan task for them to even make it through the pre-qualifying match.

Prior to then, they had already been amazed that two such disciples appeared up there, thinking that the fact they got qualified was so incredible.

And now, who would've ever thought that a guy merely at the fourth grade of the Illuminating Soul Realm would also arrive at the waiting area alongside them? They thought their eyes had been playing tricks on them, causing gossip to spread amongst the other competitors.

“How on earth could a guy who is merely at the fourth grade of the Illuminating Soul Realm have been admitted to the main draw match? The second he steps foot onto the arena, I'm afraid he'll be turned to mincemeat in the blink of an eye.”

“I wonder how he even managed to get qualified at all. At his level of strength, there's no doubt that he wouldn't be able to pass the pre-qualifying match, but in actuality, he has gotten himself into the main draw match. That's kind of weird!”

“So what if he somehow managed to receive the qualification? With the amount of strength he has, entering the arena would be virtually the same as diving at the jaws of death.”

In the midst of the uproar, a wave of laughter made its way through the martial artists. The audible laugh was originating from the disciple of the Platanus Sect. He stated in a roaring voice, “I know just how this man was able to get his qualification.”

Those words were more than enough to draw everyone's attention. “How did he pull it off?” asked one of the warriors.

“I was there when he had his pre-qualifying match. We actually took it on the same day. During the second stage of magic array examination, would you believe me when I say, he had a twelve-level pagoda to his name?! A twelve-level tower could be comparable to twelve strong men at the Virtual Tribulation Realm. Having such an impressive pagoda, without a doubt, he could pass the pre-qualifying match with such ease even if he simply slept throughout the pre-qualifying match,” exclaimed the disciple. The truth was that he had actually coughed up more than a hundred supreme life vitality crystals just to acquire a spot in the main draw match, causing him to bear ill will against Zen.

“Would you be able to stand against something like that?”

“Could that possibly mean the World Commercial Alliance has been giving him some kind of a special treatment?”

“That's just so unfair. I'm having a hard time believing the World Commercial Alliance would be capable of pulling a stunt like that.”

Seeing that a handful of the warriors were hesitant to trust the validity of his statement, that disciple went ahead and remarked, “So, you don't believe the words I say? Then go ahead, come to that man and ask him about it.” With that utterance, he motioned over to Owen, who looked quite standoffish and quiet, with his machete handy.

With their eyes deeply fixated on him beaming with curiosity, Owen had no choice but to nod along and say, “Indeed, he owned a twelve-grade pagoda, but whether the World Commercial Alliance has been giving him some kind of special treatment is something I'm not really sure about. If I may say so, I honestly think he possesses a great amount of strength.”

Hearing those words loud and clear, Zen held genuine admiration for him deep inside and regarded him as an opponent of great importance. It should be in his best interest to keep an eye on him when the time came.

Despite the fact that Owen was just at the ultimate level of the Illuminating Soul Realm and looked as though he could possibly be the weakest one amongst the independent martial artists, Zen could tell at a glance that Owen had actually been blessed with quite a powerful mind which was far more superior to simply having strength. He held no resentment against him for his conduct, however, he seemed to have such a cool-headed disposition at all times. And it was clear as day that only those who believed and had faith in themselves could always stay composed and possess a strong mind.

And that was the main reason why he thought that he should keep an eye on him.

But as for that martial artist from the Platanus Sect, Zen simply paid him no heed, much like an insect that merited no respect. It was just as the saying went, “A bully is always a coward.” He might have acted as though he were a triumphant hero, but that was far from the truth, for he was but a vulnerable weakling. 'This guy seems to be dimwitted and can easily burn with intense hostility. I guess it's safe to say that he's probably raring to beat me to a pulp now.'

Just as Zen was deep in thought about this, the said disciple walked over to him, threatening him with a cold-blooded grin, “Boy, I hope you haven't forgotten how you've messed with me in that magic array. I'm gonna get you for that. Make dang sure. For now, I would suggest you enjoy the last few moments of your pitiful life. Make no mistake about it! I'm gonna beat the garbage out of you on the arena!”

Zen showed him a lack of concern and didn't bother humoring the martial artist's scornful remarks with a response, but a glint of a cunning smile popped up in his eyes.

Despite all of his taunting, Zen still did not trouble himself into responding at all.

“You sanctimonious jerk!” the martial artist resorted to using profanities, looking at Zen's contemptuous eyes. This infuriated him so much that he clenched his fists, producing a grating sound. He was so fuming with anger that he was already willing to tear Zen to pieces for two pins. Setting aside Zen's tricks in the magic array a couple of days ago, up until now, he couldn't fathom how a meager junior at the Illuminating Soul Realm would have the guts to look down upon a man of his stature, who was at the middle level of Internal Elixir Realm, and also the most prodigious disciple of the Platanus Sect for the past hundreds of years.

Sad to say, it was truly a shame that Zen had utterly disregarded his burning rage.

Witnessing everything that had transpired with his own eyes, Owen smiled softly, “This Martial Arts Contest could end up being quite interesting.”

At the end of the intermezzo, an elder of World Commercial Alliance suddenly yelled out, “The Mysterious Luna Hall is about to arrive.”

Upon hearing those words, people saw a huge coffin come within sight up in the sky, making its way, much like a cannonball dashing toward the arena.

Zen's eyes widened just a little bit, with a smile creeping onto his face. The major players of the Martial Arts Contest were coming!