Enlightenment: Beginning as a Disposable Warrior

Amid the crowd, Baili Hongtang’s whole body trembled; her eyes burned as she looked at Wang Chan on the stage, muttering under her breath.

"But if this person survives this battle without dying... there really is a chance he’ll open the path to Grandmaster ahead of time. Since he can take part in the grand competition, his age must be under thirty..."

"That would be a Martial Arts Grandmaster not yet thirty."

"But there’s no need to insist on challenging Tao Jidong!"

At Baili Hongtang’s side, Gu Xue’Er blurted out in some agitation. She too had been shaken by Wang Chan’s move just now; Baili Hongtang’s eye for people was indeed sharper than her own—she had not misjudged him.

But earlier Wang Chan had crippled Tao Xinglie, and just now he had spoken rudely, directly provoking the Tao Family, practically sweeping the Tao Family’s face into the dust.

And Tao Jidong was notorious for his narrow mind and vicious methods; earlier he had already shown signs of wanting to act against Wang Chan. Tao Jidong had been worrying over not having a pretext to strike.

Now Wang Chan had handed Tao Jidong an excellent opportunity to make a move openly and aboveboard—was this not a lamb entering a tiger’s den?

What was more, in Gu Xue’Er’s view, the Li Family did not lack for experts who could lend Wang Chan a hand, giving him pressure to temper his Martial Dao. She simply could not fathom why Wang Chan had to act so madly.

"A great talent under heaven thinks what others dare not think, does what others cannot do... This is the gap between us and Wang Chan. Perhaps he deliberately set his sights on this grievance with Tao Jidong, hence chose Tao Jidong."

Baili Hongtang’s gaze grew ever more scorching. At this moment, in her eyes, the black mist around Wang Chan writhed like claws and fangs, as though about to blot out the sky—yet if one looked closely.

That ferocious, sky-filling black mist was gradually condensing into the shape of a dragon at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The wind follows the tiger, the clouds follow the dragon.

The black mist was transforming into a dragon, undergoing a complete metamorphosis step by step. Once he overcame today, Wang Chan might well soar into the heavens, great Destiny descending upon him, rising to prominence on Bai Jiao Mountain with an invincible bearing.

"Good lad... the embryonic form of an invincible aura has already taken shape. This boy may truly be a stroke of fortune for my Li Family!"

At the foot of the mountain, an old man in ragged clothes, mingling within the crowd, uncorked his wine gourd and tipped his head back for a swig, yet could not conceal the shock in his eyes.

In the guest seats, aside from the Tao and Zhou families, the big figures of the various major powers of Donglai County all had gleams in their eyes. The Donglai Scholar, Gu Dongcheng, who presided over the county academy, walked the path of the Confucian Sect.

The Confucian Sect cultivates the self, orders the state, and brings peace to the world; its Dao is tightly bound to the Destiny of the Dynasty. At this moment, he could faintly feel a surging tide of mighty Power of Fortune roiling upon Wang Chan’s body.

"Knowing full well this is a great peril yet still stepping forward of his own accord—no wonder this boy can reach such heights at such an age."

"In temperament, in courage, in talent, this child is all first-rate under heaven, truly an unparalleled prodigy. Even if he is not a man of our Donglai County..."

"If we can see him fulfilled, it would not be a bad thing for Donglai, a fine tale that might be passed down through the ages alongside Bai Jiao Mountain."

Gu Dongcheng did nothing to hide the admiration and favor in his eyes. He looked solemnly toward Lord Governor Song Yuanshan.

"What does Lord Governor think?"

Song Yuanshan was likewise filled with amazement in his heart, and he also knew that if a fine tale could be forged, it would be advantageous to him, the current Governor of Donglai. In time, when Wang Chan walked out of Qingzhou, the name of this Governor Song Yuanshan would also be sung through later generations.

It was, in truth, all benefit and no harm.

His thoughts spun quickly, and Song Yuanshan nodded at once.

"A hundred years ago, the young Lord State Preceptor once shone forth upon Bai Jiao Mountain. Today, you and I may have the fortune to witness the birth and rise of yet another prodigy.

Then let us see him fulfilled. During the battle later, let us keep a close watch; remember, we must not allow Wang Chan to suffer grievous injury."

"Mm, this child is indeed extraordinary."

A few Elders of the Pill Cauldron Pavilion nodded. The Elders of the Li Family, including Li Linfeng, were all inwardly aghast; they had never imagined that Wang Chan could come this far.

Not only had he crushed his opponents in the grand competition to seize first place, he now meant to step across ranks to challenge Tao Jidong.

For a moment, many Elders at Li Linfeng’s side secretly nodded, inwardly impressed by this Patriarch Li Linfeng. As expected of the Patriarch, his eye was venomously sharp, to have found such a monster as Wang Chan.

"We absolutely cannot allow anything to happen to Wang Chan!"

Li Linfeng naturally had no idea what the Elders beside him were thinking at this moment. His gaze now held three parts shock and seven parts resolve.

After the brief shock of the entire venue, most people gradually came to their senses, understanding what lay in Wang Chan’s heart.

Their eyes toward Wang Chan shifted from seeing him as arrogant, to disappointment, to sudden realization and confusion, and finally to deep, heartfelt respect.

He was using Tao Jidong, the Law Enforcement Hall Master of the Tao Family, as a whetstone to temper his own Martial Dao.

Among the younger generation of Donglai County, the only one who dared to think so—and truly dared to act on it—was Wang Chan alone.

Tao Jidong had also figured out the game Wang Chan wanted to play. His eyes were icy to the extreme, yet the corner of his mouth lifted in a faint smile, like a venomous snake fixing its gaze on its prey.

Wang Chan was a monster, but Tao Jidong was no mediocrity either. He had once been the foremost of the Tao Family’s geniuses, suppressing his peers from youth and growing to where he stood today.

"Boy, as you wish."

Tao Jidong walked toward the Martial Arts Arena with a smile, shedding his earlier gloom for a mild tone. "Your courage is commendable, but don’t blame me for not warning you in advance."

"The Sage has said: ’If in the morning I hear the Way, I may die in the evening.’ If you should carelessly die on the stage later, do not hold it against me."

"Elder Tao, rest assured, this junior has long been mentally prepared."

As Wang Chan spoke, he was not looking at Tao Jidong, but at Song Yuanshan and Gu Dongcheng in the guest seats.

The two exchanged a glance and could not help but elevate their opinion of him. They guessed that Wang Chan meant to borrow the pressure of their presence, forcing Tao Jidong not to strike a killing blow later. They themselves had already intended as much, and so quickly nodded.

"Very well. Since neither side has any objections, we shall no longer intervene."

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