Chapter 136 Great Zhou Warrior

Chapter 136: The Great Zhou Warrior

A horn blast split the air, followed by the pounding of drums that thundered in people's ears.

Alutai stood on the western platform, casting a contemptuous glance at Zhou Mingqi, and sent forth a burly warrior.

"Here's a man of the Northern Di. Is there anyone in Great Zhou brave enough to face him?"

Before the words had faded, a towering Northern Di brute, eight feet tall, had already leaped into the arena, shaking the ground beneath him.

His face was brutish and full of coarse flesh, and three copper rings dangled from his right ear. This man was none other than the famed Northern Di warrior, Batur.

"Look at that build—he could crush two of you with one butt cheek," Yang Guanlan whispered slyly into Cheng Ge's ear.

Cheng Ge tilted his head with a look of disdain. "That's a joke…"

"I'll take him!" The deputy commander of the Imperial Guard, Wang Zheng, slammed the table and rose.

But...

"Ahhh!" Within ten exchanges, Batur slammed him with a shoulder throw, slamming Wang Zheng hard onto the ground. The crunch of bones was clear.

The entire arena fell silent.

"Ha ha ha ha!" Alutai threw his head back in laughter. "So this is the best of Great Zhou? Not even as good as the women back home in the Northern Di!"

Another two military officers stepped forward to challenge him, only to be lifted by Batur and hurled a full thirty feet away.

Five Great Zhou military officers fell in succession, the worst of them suffering a broken arm. The imperial physicians were running off their feet.

On the Northern Di delegation's side, they had already started singing and dancing, with some even raising their wine skins toward the imperial seats and drinking freely.

Batur stepped on the cloak of a defeated general, shouting in broken official speech, "An-y-one else?"

For a moment, no one dared to respond. The crowd held their breath.

Zhou Mingqi's expression was unreadable, his hand gripping the tabletop tightening involuntarily.

At that moment, a young man in a black form-fitting outfit slowly walked onto the arena, his face still bearing a hint of youthful innocence.

Cheng Ge watched the youth step onto the platform, his eyes flickered with recognition.

If he remembered correctly, this young man was a distant relative of the Cui family, named Cui Jing.

Cheng Ge remembered him: back when Cui Ji was in the Cui residence, he came to ask for martial arts lessons.

Though from a collateral branch, Cui Jing had trained in martial arts since childhood with great dedication.

Cui Jing stood firm, clenched his fists, and locked eyes with Batur.

Batur grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth, and lunged at Cui Jing ferociously.

Cui Jing dodged nimbly, causing Batur to lunge at air.

Seizing the opportunity, he executed a sweeping kick, causing Batur to lose balance and nearly fall.

The Northern Di onlookers' laughter abruptly stopped, their expressions grew tense.

Enraged, Batur attacked again, his powerful punches whistled through the air.

Cui Jing calmly evaded, ducking and weaving, searching for a chance to counter.

Suddenly, he saw an opening and landed a straight punch to Batur's abdomen.

Batur grunted, his body swaying and he stumbled slightly. Cui Jing pressed his advantage, unleashing a series of kicks at Batur.

Batur was pushed back, stumbling.

The crowd rose to their feet, hopeful eyes fixed on the figure in the arena.

But just when it seemed Cui Jing was about to win, Batur suddenly grabbed his ankle and flung him aside.

Cui Jing tumbled through the air several times before crashing heavily to the ground.

Puffing heavily, Batur approached Cui Jing again, ready to deliver the final blow.

Cui Jing rolled off the fighting platform and vomited a mouthful of blood, which splattered onto the ground. The hearts of the Great Zhou people sank.

Yet this was not unexpected; Cui Jing looked only thirteen or fourteen, still growing.

To have held out this long against Batur was already quite an achievement.

Seeing this, the Northern Di grew even more arrogant, rising to toast each other in full view of everyone.

"Who else wants some?" Batur's provocative voice rang out again.

But after the earlier defeats, no one dared to step forward anymore.

All the military officers looked at each other hesitantly, eyes downcast.

"What, without Cui Ji, you're all just a bunch of cowards?" Alutai's words cut through the silence.

Silence blanketed the hall.

Cui Ji was now stationed at the Northern Frontier, yet no one back home could match the enemy. Great Zhou seemed lacking capable successors.

If something ever happened to Cui Ji, the realm would be reshaped.

The Northern Di were probing, and also sending a warning to Cui Ji far away in the north!

Cheng Ge's eyes narrowed slightly, his hand gripping the porcelain spoon gripped tighter.

Alutai's gaze swept around, finally landing on the eastern section where the civil officials sat, staring intently for a moment.

"Recently, I have heard of a Great Zhou warrior, a martial arts prodigy, invincible against ten thousand. I wonder if I might have the fortune to spar with him today!"

These words were like a stone thrown into a still pond, leaving everyone bewildered, exchanging confused glances.

"Who?" someone asked suspiciously.

"No idea," another shook his head in confusion. "We have a martial talent like that in Great Zhou? I've never heard of him."

"To earn such praise from Alutai, he must be extraordinary!" someone said excitedly.

The crowd began whispering among themselves, wondering who the Northern Di were talking about.

Even Zhou Mingqi was now curious who Alutai was referring to.

"Who is it? Do you know?" Yang Guanlan jabbed Cheng Ge's arm.

Cheng Ge had just opened his mouth, ready to eat the goji berries he had picked out from the soup.

Unexpectedly, Yang Guanlan's poke sent the goji berries straight back into the soup bowl.

Cheng Ge looked at the soup in front of him, his expression dark and stern, truly starting to get angry.

Seeing that no one dared to respond, Alutai decided not to dawdle any longer.

Since this person dared to publicly injure his Northern Di warrior, today he would make sure this person left never to return alive.

"Where is the warrior Xie Mingyuan?" Alutai's voice echoed over the drill ground. "Could it be that this warrior intends to act like a coward today?"

"Pfft!" Cheng Ge spat out a mouthful of soup, nearly choking.

On the civil officials' section, the tea cup in Xie Mingyuan's hand clattered to the ground.

His face turned pale, fine beads of sweat breaking out on his forehead — when did he become the "Great Zhou warrior" spoken of by the Northern Di people?

The Great Zhou people present were even more stunned, their gazes quickly turning to Xie Mingyuan.

This... was this really normal?

Zhou Mingqi had been somewhat expectant, but at the sound of that name, his hope completely vanished.

Xie Mingyuan's Adam's apple bobbed as he reluctantly stood up, the hem of his official robe caught the tea set, knocking it over.

The teapot rolled to the floor, making a crisp sound in the silent drill ground.

"Your... Your Majesty, this Prince Alutai must be mistaken. I am but a mere civil official, how can I go to the drill ground!"

Zhou Mingqi furrowed his brows, knowing full well that Xie Mingyuan indeed had no martial skills, and turned to look at Alutai.

Alutai looked at Xie Mingyuan, also frowning, his eyes sweeping up and down.

He couldn't help but wonder, this person didn't seem like someone skilled in martial arts.

But he had seen the world; some people didn't look like it but were highly skilled in martial arts.

Remembering what his brother had instructed, he demanded loudly, "Are you Xie Mingyuan, Vice Minister of the Dali Court?"

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