Chapter Thirty: The Life-and-Death Pact

The commotion here had clearly drawn the attention of those nearby. Disciples from various sects who had been sparring and exchanging pointers, as well as students from other halls of the Vastness Sect, all crowded around.

Watching the gathering crowd around the arena, Wang Peng felt a surge of secret triumph. He thought to himself, "Today is the day I make a name for myself! That guy opposite me only has the cultivation of the early Foundation Establishment stage. While I can't kill him in front of everyone, I can certainly humiliate him thoroughly!"

With this thought, he pulled a long sword from his storage ring, pointed the three-foot blade into the air, and declared, "Qin Die, draw your weapon!"

Upon hearing this, Wan Yi could not help but burst into laughter. He then shouted loudly, "What did you just say? My hearing isn't great; I didn't quite catch that!"

Wang Peng roared, "I said, Qin Die, draw your weapon and fight me!"

His voice was powerful and resonant, echoing throughout the entire plaza and ringing in the ears of the onlookers. Immediately, the crowd below erupted into laughter.

Zhou Tong and Zhou Zihao, who had been nervous, felt their hearts settle significantly after Wan Yi's antics. Zhou Tong whispered, "Little Yi, this is no time for jokes!"

Meanwhile, the disciples of the Alchemy Peak felt a sense of satisfaction. The three Li brothers from the Alchemy Cauldron Gate, however, were turning blue with rage, silently cursing Wang Peng for being a fool.

On the stage, Wang Peng realized he had been mocked. With a shrill cry, he prepared to charge at Wan Yi. "You brat, I’m going to slaughter you!"

But just as he moved, Wan Yi barked, "Stop! I have something else to say!"

Stunned by the shout, Wang Peng gripped his sword, eyes bulging with fury. "You wretch, what else could you possibly have to say?"

Wan Yi shook his head and sighed, "My dear son, I know you want to kill Qin Die! But hold your horses—your dear father here wants to kill you, too. However, this arena is meant for sparring, not life-or-death duels. How about this: let's sign a death waiver. We settle the score and decide who lives or dies. That way, neither of us will have any trouble afterward!"

As soon as these words left his mouth, the crowd below exploded. While it was common for disciples from different sects to spar, signing a death waiver was rare unless a grudge had reached the point of no return.

Suddenly, someone in the crowd shouted, "I remember who he is! Isn't this the 'Manure-Carrying Lackey' who handles the waste? Just yesterday, he slapped Zhu Peng’s face right in front of the Peak Master of the Handsome Peak! Peak Master Lin is a Great Emperor, and this guy actually dared to slap his disciple in front of him!"

The Vastness Sect disciples finally understood. "No wonder he's so arrogant!"

Zhou Tong and Zhou Zihao were frantic, but since Wan Yi was already on the stage and the words had been spoken, they were powerless to stop him.

In contrast, Wang Peng on the stage was overjoyed. He had been looking for an excuse to finish off the guy in front of him, and he never expected the brat to seek his own death! Without hesitation, he took a scroll from his storage ring, pressed his bloody handprint onto it after imprinting it with his magical seal, and tossed it toward Wan Yi.

Taking the death waiver, Wan Yi sneered, "It seems you crooked people were well-prepared!"

Stung by the mockery, Wang Peng snorted, "Hmph! So what if I was prepared? Once this is signed, even your Sect Master can't save you today! What, are you scared? If you're afraid, kneel and beg for mercy, and I might consider letting you off!"

Their exchange caused another stir in the crowd. The feud between the Alchemy Cauldron Gate and the Alchemy Peak of the Vastness Sect was an open secret. Everyone had assumed it was just petty squabbling between disciples, but no one realized it had reached this point.

The Li brothers looked at Wang Peng with rage, cursing him as a brainless idiot. Some things were simply not meant to be said aloud!

Meanwhile, Wan Yi had already signed the waiver and flicked it, pinning it to a prominent stone pillar beside the arena. He looked at Wang Peng coldly, "You, letting me off? Are you a horse-herder?"

Before the words faded, killing intent surged. His body transformed into a blur, and he shot toward Wang Peng like a bolt of lightning!

When the afterimage dissipated and the crowd regained their focus, Wan Yi was standing where Wang Peng had been. Wang Peng, however, was held high in the air, impaled by Wan Yi’s spear.

The tip of the Gluttonous Gold-Chasing Spear had pierced through Wang Peng's chest, not only destroying his dantian and sea of energy but instantly extinguishing his life force. A stream of pure spiritual energy surged along the spear and into Wan Yi’s body.

It all happened so fast that before anyone could process what had occurred, Wan Yi had already finished him off. As the spear absorbed the energy, Wan Yi feared others might notice the anomaly, so he shook his arm. A massive force traveled along the spear, shattering Wang Peng’s corpse into pieces!

Only when the rain of blood and flesh fell onto the arena did the surrounding crowd snap out of their daze. They gasped in unison, exclaiming, "So fast! So ruthless!"

No one had expected that a lowly manure-carrier could be so vicious and decisive. Even more shocking was that Wan Yi, with only early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation, had effortlessly killed Wang Peng, who was at the Great Perfection stage of Foundation Establishment. They couldn't help but wonder, "How did he do it?"

After the shock, the Vastness Sect disciples erupted in thunderous cheers. The disciples of the Alchemy Cauldron Gate, however, were livid, screaming at the stage, "You coward! You used a sneak attack! Brother Wang wasn't even ready—do you have no shame?!"

Wan Yi looked at them with disdain, pointing his spear at the crowd. "From the moment we signed the death waiver and stepped onto this stage, it was a fight to the death. He was careless and less skilled—who can he blame but himself? If you aren't satisfied, come up and fight! But be warned: if you step onto my stage, we settle the score and decide who lives or dies! Do you dare?!"

His words were filled with overwhelming dominance. Zhou Tong and Zhou Zihao were ecstatic, never imagining that Wan Yi, having just broken through to the Foundation Establishment stage, could be this fierce. They didn't know that Wan Yi had achieved a "Perfect Foundation Establishment," and with his current strength, he could even hold his own against early-stage Golden Core cultivators.

The Foundation Establishment disciples of the Alchemy Cauldron Gate were ready to storm the stage, but the three Li brothers remained silent. They didn't dare act rashly.

The brothers were communicating via secret transmission. "Big brother, that kid is strange! Should we send someone else up before we figure out his background?"

Li Guang narrowed his eyes and snorted. "Strange? Then send someone else to test him and see exactly what's so strange about him! The people of our Alchemy Cauldron Gate cannot die in vain!"

Following his orders, a burly man among the Alchemy Cauldron Gate disciples leapt onto the stage. "Brat, I'm going to carve you into a thousand pieces to avenge Brother Wang!"

To be continued...