Chen Kong

Seeing Mo Qingkuang constantly evading him, Li Sheng's expression turned unpleasant. "Junior Brother Mo, are you trying to disrespect me?" 

His entourage chimed in, fanning the flames. "Brother Li, it seems like he's scared. The so-called hero of the empire, the Lotus Prince? He's just a coward." 

These remarks went unchecked by Mo Qingkuang, but they caused Han Yan's face to flush red. She couldn't tolerate others speaking about Mo Qingkuang like this. 

Just as she was about to speak up in defence of Mo Qingkuang, a calm voice interrupted, "Li Sheng, why don't you give me face and let Junior Brother Mo go first?" 

Everyone turned to see a young man of eighteen or nineteen, dressed all in black. His long black hair fell loosely around his pale, stern face, his eyes dominating his features with their dark intensity. 

Han Yan was delighted. "Brother Chen Kong!" 

Chen Kong approached Mo Qingkuang and Han Yan, nodding at Mo Qingkuang. "Junior Brother Mo, I am Chen Kong." 

Mo Qingkuang hastily returned the gesture. "Greetings, Brother Chen." 

The newcomer was none other than Chen Kong, the previous martial arts champion, and the favourite disciple of Principal Fu Qing, the head of the Imperial Academy. He was known as one of the greatest talents of Tianxuan. 

Mo Qingkuang didn't know much about Chen Kong, but he didn't refuse his help either. After all, Chen Kong had received the favour of both Fu Qing and Zheng Tao in the past, so his character should be above reproach. 

"Chen Kong? Why are you meddling in now?" Li Sheng's face darkened as he spoke. 

Chen Kong turned to face him; his peculiar pupils fixed on Li Sheng. "Give me some face, Li Sheng. How about it?" 

Li Sheng and his companions had already attracted the attention of many disciples around them with their earlier confrontation with Mo Qingkuang and Han Yan. 

"Chen Kong, are you really going against me?" Li Sheng's face grew even darker. 

After losing to Chen Kong in the martial arts competition, Li Sheng had never accepted his defeat. Upon entering the inner courtyard, he had aligned himself with Prince Han Kongming's faction, constantly urging Han Kongming to deal with Chen Kong. 

Unfortunately, despite Han Kongming's efforts, Chen Kong remained unfazed. Over time, Chen Kong's strength grew rapidly, and with the guidance of Principal Fu, his true combat power remained extraordinary. 

Chen Kong was now the only super genius in the inner courtyard who was ranked on both the Young Qilin Ranking and the Hidden Dragon Ranking. He was the pride of the Imperial Academy, even more so than Han Kongming, who ranked first on the Qingyun Stele. 

Therefore, even though he was the Sixth Prince of the Tianxuan Empire, Han Kongming was still powerless against Chen Kong. 

As for Mo Qingkuang, Li Sheng's provocation stemmed not only from his dislike of Mo Qingkuang trying to gain fame by stepping on him but also from Han Kongming's instructions. 

First, it was to test Mo Qingkuang's strength. In the future, Mo Qingkuang might become an important figure in the empire, so a thorough understanding of him would be necessary to deal with him in the inner courtyard. 

Secondly, it was also to test Mo Qingkuang's character. If he was only attracted by beauty, Han Kongming also had ways to recruit him under his command. 

Chen Kong, focused on cultivation and straightforward by nature, explained, "Chen Shi was crippled by Lin Yang, and it was Mo Qingkuang who defeated Lin Yang, saving face for the whole empire and mine. Consider it a debt I owe him. I don't like owing people favours." 

With this explanation, everyone suddenly understood. Normally, there should be no connection between Mo Qingkuang and Chen Kong, so Chen Kong's sudden intervention surprised many inner courtyard disciples. Now that Chen Kong had made his intentions clear, it was reasonable. 

Chen Kong cherished Chen Shi deeply. When Chen Shi was crippled, Chen Kong couldn't seek revenge due to the rules. He had even challenged Lin Yang before, only to be brought back by Principal Fu. If Chen Kong had seriously injured or killed Lin Yang during the martial arts competition, it would have brought great shame to the Tianxuan Empire. 

Although Mo Qingkuang hadn't managed to kill or cripple Lin Yang, he had disrupted Lin Yang's plan to win the competition, which was a relief for Chen Shi. Chen Kong's intervention this time was understandable. 

Hearing Chen Kong's explanation, Li Sheng couldn't find any excuses to refute him. He could only glare at Chen Kong with resentment, unwilling to speak. 

Li Sheng couldn't see through Chen Kong's strength anymore. A year ago, he had fought Chen Kong once. With his strength as a seventh-rank martial master at the time, he couldn't even last three moves against Chen Kong. Now, after another year had passed, he had no idea how much Chen Kong's strength had improved. 

In the inner courtyard now, perhaps only Han Kongming could confidently suppress Chen Kong in terms of strength. However, Han Kongming had also spent several extra years cultivating. Under the same age circumstances, anyone would believe that Han Kongming wouldn't be Chen Kong's match. 

But letting Li Sheng give up like this, there was also some unwillingness in his heart. With so many people watching, he had come over in a big way, only to be rebuffed by Chen Kong's words. In the future, Li Sheng might never be able to hold his head up high in the inner courtyard. 

Others might think that he was afraid of Chen Kong, scared off by just a few words. 

Suddenly, Li Sheng's eyes lit up, and he spoke, "Since Brother Chen has spoken, I must give you this face. Besides, Junior Brother Mo is still young, and it's indeed bullying for me to challenge him on the platform." 

"As long as you're aware." Chen Kong nodded, expressionless, whether stating a fact or being sarcastic was unclear. 

Surprisingly, the onlookers from the Imperial Academy were somewhat surprised. 

Li Sheng's personality was somewhat known throughout the entire inner courtyard. How could he soften so easily and even say things like taking advantage of someone smaller? 

However, Li Sheng didn't disappoint them. "But, when it comes to Junior Brother Mo, I am intrigued." 

"After all, on the platform, fists and kicks have no eyes. If our Lotus Prince were to get hurt somehow, it wouldn't be pleasant," Li Sheng said seriously. "I heard that Junior Brother Mo is extremely fast. How about we have a race?" 

"This way, there won't be any physical contact, and it will also satisfy me." 

Li Sheng walked to a stone platform beside the Qingyun stage, where a map of the inner courtyard was engraved. 

"The Registration Office is where Junior Brother Mo is preparing to go. We'll depart from the Qingyun stage and see who arrives at the office first. This way, it won't delay Junior Brother Mo's registration, right? Brother Chen, how about you be the referee?" Li Sheng pointed to a building on the map and chuckled.

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