Chapter 154 Dragon Soul Challenge Order

"Go on in, you are the last one," the white-figured man said to Zhang Xiaofan.

Zhang Xiaofan nodded, then stepped onto the steps. Yue Hen wanted to follow him up, but was stopped.

"You are not qualified to enter yet, wait here," the white-figured man's voice was deep and filled with majesty.

"Yue Hen, wait here for me," Zhang Xiaofan turned his head and said to Yue Hen, who nodded in response.

Zhang Xiaofan walked up. There were no guards stationed at the entrance—perhaps guards were not needed here at all. He gently pushed open the antique double doors.

Walking inside, he found a very spacious main hall. In the middle of the hall was a passage paved with ancient stone bricks. Around the hall stood eight golden pillars, carved with five-clawed golden dragons that looked remarkably vivid, as if they had come to life, exuding an immensely powerful aura of oppression.

At the head of the hall sat a magnificent dragon throne, also carved with dragon motifs. Two golden dragons coiled up along the armrests, their heads held high and proud.

On the platform beneath the dragon throne, four chairs were placed on each side, eight in total. These too bore ancient carved patterns, but rather than dragons, they featured fierce black tigers roaring at the sky.

This reminded Zhang Xiaofan that the one entitled to sit upon that dragon throne was none other than the Master of Dragon Soul!

Known to the world as the Dragon God!

And the eight black tiger seats belonged to the Eight Tiger Kings of Dragon Soul!

Not to mention the Master of Dragon Soul, the strength of the Eight Tiger Kings alone was unfathomably profound. Even those at the Void-Breaking Realm were not qualified to sit on a tiger king's throne, which showed just how terrifying the power of the Eight Tiger Kings truly was.

Dozens of people stood on either side of the hall. Zhang Xiaofan was strangers to most of them, but he spotted Du Yuefeng standing in the second row. Those standing alongside Du Yuefeng in the second row were of similar age, a few of whom Zhang Xiaofan recognized. The third row was occupied by the leaders of the Heaven, Earth, Mysterious, and Yellow divisions.

As for the front row, Zhang Xiaofan could sense that their auras were exceptionally formidable, pressing down on him with a deep sense of weight. He had only ever felt this kind of intense pressure recently from Li Jun of the Beast-Taming Sect.

Clearly, those in the first row were very likely powerhouses of the Void-Breaking Realm!

This was the first time Zhang Xiaofan had seen so many top-tier experts since joining Dragon Soul, and the immense strength of the organization once again shattered his perceptions.

It was precisely this formidable power that kept all the ancient martial arts factions in check and deterred any enemy daring enough to violate the borders of China.

As Zhang Xiaofan stepped inside, numerous gazes from the hall converged upon him, most of them calm and indifferent.

Among those many glances, two carried a distinct chill: naturally, Qin Tianyu standing in the front row, and Cao Li standing in the penultimate row.

The seating arrangement made hierarchy clear at a glance, based entirely on strength and status.

Indeed, no matter where one went, strength was everything; only with strength came dignity and status.

Clearly, those permitted to enter the Hall of Asking Heaven all possessed considerable capability, and even someone as self-righteous as Cao Li could only stand in the second-to-last row.

Seeing Zhang Xiaofan, Du Yuefeng stepped forward and said, "Dust, stand in the back for now."

Upon entering this place, Du Yuefeng only addressed Zhang Xiaofan by his Dragon Soul codename.

"Understood," Zhang Xiaofan nodded, walking slowly to the side to wait.

To be honest, Zhang Xiaofan did not care too much. He simply stood alone in the very last row, continuing to observe the Hall of Asking Heaven with keen interest.

At that very moment, however, a sarcastic and shrill voice rang out.

It was Cao Li sneering, "Even a piece of trash can enter this place and stand in the back row. I feel it defiles the majesty of the hall."

*What the hell? I wasn't even looking for trouble with you, yet you come looking for trouble with me?*

*Do you really think you're hot stuff just because you're at the late stage of the Spirit-Opening Realm?*

*Am I still the same person I was back then?*

Zhang Xiaofan's temper flared instantly. His gaze turned abruptly cold as he locked eyes with Cao Li and shouted directly, "What the hell kind of thing are you?"

Zhang Xiaofan's outburst caused the people in the hall to pause, clearly caught off guard that this newly arrived young man would be so hot-headed.

As for Qin Tianyu, he merely sneered. If Zhang Xiaofan had managed to restrain himself, Cao Li would truly have had no justification to make a move.

Since things had come to this, Cao Li could act. Beating up this little punk in front of so many members of Dragon Soul sounded quite pleasant, even though in his eyes, Zhang Xiaofan was nothing more than an ant.

"Hehe..." Cao Li's expression darkened with inner rage, but he forced a cold laugh. "Little piece of trash, getting quite bold now, aren't you? Do you really think you're all that just because you managed to take one punch from me?"

Zhang Xiaofan simply looked at him indifferently and said, "Why are you acting like such a moron? I issue a Dragon Soul Challenge to you. Do you dare accept?"

Cao Li was stunned, wondering if he had misheard. This little piece of trash was actually issuing a Dragon Soul Challenge to him?

Internal killing was strictly prohibited within Dragon Soul, which was why Cao Li had originally only planned to teach Zhang Xiaofan a minor lesson. Yet this brat actually dared to issue a Dragon Soul Challenge?

Under a Dragon Soul Challenge, as long as neither party was killed, anything went.

Du Yuefeng was equally astonished. For Zhang Xiaofan to issue a Dragon Soul Challenge to Cao Li meant he must possess the strength to fight Cao Li, who was at the late stage of the Spirit-Opening Realm.

As for the others, they merely adopted the attitude of spectators. There were no lack of martial artists at the late stage of the Spirit-Opening Realm in the hall, but even among peers at the same realm, vast gaps in power existed—sometimes even to the point of complete suppression.

Cao Li was among the weaker ones of the late-stage Spirit-Opening Realm practitioners present in the hall.

Yet the one issuing the challenge appeared even younger, leaving them all curious as to whether this young man was acting out of reckless bravado or possessed genuine strength.

If he truly had the strength to back it up, then possessing such prowess at his age made his talent rather terrifying.

Apart from a few younger individuals, most people in the hall were advanced in years.

Cao Li burst into laughter, unable to hold it in any longer. "Little piece of trash, looks like you're asking for a beating."

"Why are you talking so much nonsense, you moron? Are you going to accept or not?" Zhang Xiaofan looked at Cao Li as if staring at an absolute fool.

Infuriated, Cao Li snapped, "Damn it! Come on then, I accept your challenge! Today, I'm going to cripple you, you little piece of trash!"

At that very moment, a group of people emerged from the side hall, having naturally overheard the commotion in the main hall.

There were nine people in total. At the very front was a man who looked to be only in his fifties, but those who knew him were aware he was already over two hundred years old. He was none other than the Master of Dragon Soul, Xiao Ruoli.

Walking beside him were eight individuals—the Eight Tiger Kings.

"Sir, I'll go stop them. How dare they start a fight inside the Hall of Asking Heaven? Their audacity is getting out of hand," one of the Tiger Kings said in a deep voice.

Xiao Ruoli, the Master of Dragon Soul, smiled and said, "That young man—didn't you sense anything unusual about him?

"Pure righteous energy and extremely refined spiritual fluctuations. He must be Zhang Xiaofan. No wonder I keep hearing news about him lately; this young man is indeed quite interesting. Given his age, his talent is probably no less than Qin Tianyu of the Qin family...

"Let them fight. I'd also like to take a good look at how much strength this young man truly possesses. Perhaps on this upcoming trip to Kunlun, he can play a pivotal role."

"Yes, sir," the Tiger King replied respectfully.

"The Spirit Mysterious Sect of Kunlun was a tremendously powerful entity a thousand years ago. Even with the essential blood provided by the Su family, we can probably only manage to crack open a gap in the barrier. The world inside that barrier is bound to have its own rules of power, and I'm afraid we won't be able to enter. Hopefully, Void-Breaking Realm martial artists can get inside; otherwise, relying solely on Spirit-Opening Realm practitioners, our Dragon Soul's strength is truly too meager compared to the major ancient martial arts families and secluded sects," Xiao Ruoli said with a hint of helplessness.

"Sir, aside from the Su family, should be no one else knows about this, right?" one of the Tiger Kings asked.

"You underestimate them. Once we make a move, they will find out. But that's fine—just how dangerous the enemies of that sect might be is something none of us know. Having more people around might not be a bad thing. Once we get inside, it will all come down to individual fortune," Xiao Ruoli said.

At that moment, Cao Li stepped into the center of the hall, hooking his fingers at Zhang Xiaofan with a heavy air of provocation.

Zhang Xiaofan walked over slowly. Facing Cao Li's taunts, he merely offered a cold smile. Although his strength had not yet reached his own satisfactory standards, he no longer needed to endure Cao Li.

This was the very reason he issued the Dragon Soul Challenge. Cao Li was merely the first step for him; once he trampled Cao Li underfoot, his next target would be Qin Tianyu!

And this time, he would unleash his absolute peak strength!