Chapter 140: Arriving for the Tryst

Early the next morning, Xiao Ye wore a pair of sunglasses, with Red Dragon and others following closely behind him.

After dealing with Dabiao's affairs yesterday, he had returned to his villa to focus on recuperating.

Today, after all, was a major event.

Rat had nearly blown up his phone yesterday; with Dabiao killed, the entire underworld had once again plunged into turmoil.

Originally, Rat was just a minor member here, but now, with Xiao Ye's protection, Rat's ambitions naturally began to grow.

Xiao Ye ignored him, harboring his own thoughts, though he hadn't fully calculated them yet.

Two tigers cannot share the same mountain—this principle was not lost on him.

"King Xiao, do you have any plans for today's visit?"

Red Dragon interrupted Xiao Ye's train of thought from behind.

"Let's see what the situation is first. After all, none of us know much about this so-called Yu Han."

Red Dragon nodded. The group boarded a private jet and, following the address provided by Yu Han, flew directly to the designated martial arts tournament venue.

This was a mountain retreat in the distant suburbs. Looking from afar, Xiao Ye initially mistook it for a specially constructed private estate.

Two large characters, "Sturdy Pine," were carved into the outermost roof beam.

This place did not belong to any single faction; it was established specifically to handle such martial arts assemblies.

Its routine maintenance and repairs were funded by powerful entities like Mount Longhu!

After getting out of the car, there was still half an hour left before the tournament began.

Xiao Ye decided to take a stroll around the vicinity, as new ideas for his future path had begun to take shape in his mind.

"If I could buy a mountain like this and spend some money to renovate it, it would truly be a wonderful place for quiet cultivation."

Xiao Ye looked at the dense vegetation all around and spoke thoughtfully.

The entire tournament pavilion was surrounded by thick forests. From the inner courtyard, one could see the scenery of the distant mountains, and the air was filled with a refreshing crispness.

If not for his current lack of familiarity with these martial arts factions, Xiao Ye would have had the impulse to buy the place right then and there.

While the two were still looking around the courtyard, the sharp screech of braking tires sounded from outside the gate.

Xiao Ye looked into the distance and saw a black extended limousine.

A man stepped out of the car. He exuded an ethereal, Taoist charm, his long robes fluttering in the wind, giving him very much the appearance of an enlightened master.

This person was none of the others—it was Yu Han.

Yu Han, accompanied by a large contingent of people, swaggered through the entrance and the corridors, finally arriving right before Red Dragon and Xiao Ye.

"You two have arrived. I didn't expect that after such a long time apart, your complexions look quite good. It seems life has been treating you well lately."

Yu Han twirled the prayer beads on his chest, a calm smile on his face as he spoke to Xiao Ye.

"Master Yu doesn't need to put on a hypocritical act. Since everyone has their own intentions today, we can dispense with the polite pleasantries!"

The moment Xiao Ye opened his mouth, he shattered the superficial cordiality between them, his words thick with the smell of gunpowder.

Upon hearing this, the Yu Han before him did not get angry; instead, he laughed and said to Xiao Ye, "Hahaha, Brother Xiao is truly bold and heroic. With martial arts as formidable as yours, logically speaking, people like us should be one big family!"

"I won't trouble Master Yu to worry. I am still quite capable of seeing certain things clearly."

Xiao Ye patted Yu Han on the shoulder and said with a smile.

Both men burst into laughter simultaneously, and Yu Han walked toward the venue.

The atmosphere between the two just moments ago had been stretched to the absolute breaking point. Had there not been so many people watching nearby, Yu Han would have long since drawn a weapon and pressed it against Xiao Ye's neck.

"King Xiao, the tournament is about to start. Let's head inside."

Red Dragon said respectfully to Xiao Ye beside him.

Inside the stadium, all the facilities were fully equipped. The martial arts ring erected in the center was obviously prepared for those competing in the matches.

Because Rat had won second place last year, Yu Han now sat on the opposite side of him, creating a standoff of rivaling factions.

As soon as Xiao Ye and his companion stepped into the venue, the previously noisy arena suddenly fell silent.

Knowing that today's main event involved these two heavyweights, the crowd naturally wanted to watch a good show.

Faced with these two colossal forces, no one dared to speak out of turn, which was ample proof of their immense influence.

Yu Han also cupped his fists in a salute from afar toward Xiao Ye, a gesture that reeked of provocation.

An elderly-looking man wearing training attire walked up onto the stage.

According to what people around were whispering, he was a renowned senior figure from the former martial arts association.

To escape the karmic retribution of his past misdeeds, he had come here for quiet cultivation.

"Those who have come to our martial arts association tonight are all old acquaintances. Before this begins, I must still remind you all: remember not to indulge in violence and fierce rivalry out of a desire for glory."

The old man spoke earnestly to the crowd below. He clearly possessed immense authority, as not a single person in the venue dared to speak haphazardly.

"I declare the tournament officially begun!"

Following the old man's command, the martial arts tournament slowly curtained up.

The opening matches were, naturally, struggles between minor factions.

Yu Han and his peers were finale-level existences; there was no reason for them to fight right off the bat.

After several matches, aside from one bout where both sides were evenly matched and somewhat exciting, the remaining matches were uniformly one-sided slaughters.

In Xiao Ye's eyes, they were no different from children fighting—completely devoid of interest.

The organizers had prepared tea, dried fruits, and pastries for the spectators just to add a bit of amusement to the tournament.

Without these refreshments, Xiao Ye probably would have fallen asleep right at the start.

Forcing himself to stay awake, Xiao Ye watched dozens more matches and suddenly noticed a pattern: organizations with slightly greater strength almost always encountered factions with very small territories, resulting in one-sided domination across the board.

Xiao Ye suddenly understood why Yu Han attached so much importance to this tournament.

To a certain extent, this competition was merely the survival of the fittest within the martial arts association.

They were immensely cruel to many of the subordinates below; those eliminated today would likely be stripped of their names by tomorrow.

In this way, Mount Longhu could expand its strength to an even greater degree!

There was no helping it—in any situation, the ones who always got hurt were those at the very bottom!

About an hour and a half later, Xiao Ye's people were finally about to step into the arena. Their opponents in the opening round would naturally be Yu Han's subordinates.

"You fellows better put in a good effort. Win, and there will be heavy rewards!"

Red Dragon told the few men behind him. At the tournament, he could certainly be considered strict and clear with rewards and punishments.

After all, he couldn't afford to lose face for Xiao Ye.

Over the past few days, Red Dragon had put them through hellish training.

They could clearly feel that they were now brimming with confidence!

In this round of matches, they needed to face Yu Han's disciples in five successive bouts, after which both sides would select their most powerful fighter to decide the ultimate victory or defeat through a final arena duel.

Even if all the first five rounds were won, losing the final arena showdown would still result in the opponent being judged the victor.