Effortlessly Winning Fights

...…

'It looks like rumors about me have already spread throughout most of the Yang Sect. The horrified looks on everyone's faces are evident enough of that fact.'

Realizing this, Azmodeus didn't even bother meeting their fearful gazes. To him, they were nothing but a bunch of cowardice trash unworthy of his attention. Instead of giving them the attention, he turned his gaze up to the announcer stands, waiting for the announcer to signal the beginning.

Luckily, he didn't have to wait for long. The announcer did a quick headcount and confirmed that all the Outer Sect Disciples in the Top 100 had gathered in the arena.

"Is everyone ready for the Inner Sect Competition!? A competition in which the sect will decide who is best suited for the Inner Sect through a series of bouts that will commence in a short bit!"

HOOORAAH!

The crowd erupted in cheers and screams, their excitement clear. Yet, the majority of them seemed to be looking in the direction of an adorable boy who stood with a blank expression in the center of the arena.

"I see you all are eager to see the competition begin, so why don't we look at the matchups for the Inner Sect Competition!?" The Announcer questioned with a boisterous voice.

A few minutes later, after the matchup announcements, each participant was directed to their respective sections of the now-divided arena.

Unlike the Outer Sect Admittance Test, the Inner Sect Competition required every contestant to fight all others at least once, until a final winner was ultimately decided.

Fights between Outer Sect Disciples usually end quickly, so going through thousands of fights doesn't take too long. That was especially the case when there were exactly 100 smaller arena blocks made from the original large one.

As for Azmodeus, he found himself on the other side of a fighting ring, facing a scrawny young man around fifteen years old.

However, despite the vast difference in size between the two competitors, it was the taller fellow who shivered like a jittery bug. On the other hand, Azmodeus's eyes wandered toward a certain location of the Yang Arena with varying emotions flickering past his irises.

'It seems like a few rather distinguished guests have made their way up into the VIP stands…'

Azmodeus narrowed his gaze and focused his eyes on the dozen or so VIP guests that were sitting up in the VIP stands. Among the several figures up there, a few Outer Deacons were present, including Elder Dong, Elder Yong, Elder Bin, and a few others.

However, it wasn't the Outer Deacons that put him on edge. Instead, it was the Inner Deacons, Outer Elders, and Inner Elders, who had decided to grace everyone with their presence.

In particular, it was the 40% Tempering Marrow and 60% Tempering Marrow Outer and Inner Elders that were conversing with each other while their eyes remained fixed on him.

'These old coots definitely want to use me as a bargaining chip to appease the Black Tiger Family's wrath. That much I can clearly see from the sinister looks on their faces…'

Although Azmodeus thought things like this, the truth was that he completely understood why they were plotting against him.

After all, in the world of cultivation, benefits were power, and the number of benefits they could obtain from a powerful family like the Black Tiger Family would likely be immense.

All in all, Azmodeus couldn't blame these elders for scheming behind his back. He would probably have done the same if he had been stuck in the same cultivation realm for so many years.

But regardless of how much he related to their frustration, they would still die if they dared to go through with their sinister thoughts.

He showed no mercy when it came to those who wished to take his life, no matter if they were elders or not.

'If they have the guts to go against the Sect Leader and conspire with the Black Tiger Family, then I will take it upon myself to uproot not only the Black Tiger Family but also see that the Yang Sect is eradicated as well…'

With these thoughts, Azmodeus turned his cold, emotionless gaze back down to his opponent.

"!!!" The young man facing him nearly pissed himself the moment he saw the look in the young boy's pitch-black eyes.

"I-I surrender!" he shouted without a second's hesitation.

"Very well! Please leave the arena and wait for your next match to begin!" The announcer spoke with a loud voice, gesturing in a certain direction for the young man to follow.

Without taking a glance behind, the young man hurried out of the arena like his life depended on it!

"…"

Left alone on the stage, Azmodeus observed the receding figure of the young man in the Viscera Training Large Success Stage.

'Doesn't a single one of these Outer Sect Disciples have even the slightest shred of courage…? Well, at least they're intelligent enough to know when not to fight...'

He let out a light sigh before shifting his focus to the ongoing fight involving someone he once called a friend.

Yang Xiao had never really been much of a fighting type, so Azmodeus was quite surprised that the fellow had participated in a competition like this on his own accord.

'Maybe he feels guilty about what he did to me that day and is trying to change himself for the better…?'

That thought lingered around for a moment before Azmodeus shook his head and softly murmured, "There's no way that conniving bastard would ever think of anyone but himself."

He discarded the topic of Yang Xiao from his mind after reaching this conclusion. He didn't feel like wasting any more of his brainpower thinking about that lousy bastard.

_____

Hours passed by as thousands of matches began and came to an end.

Azmodeus won every match he was thrown into without even needing to lift a finger. His mere presence was enough to intimidate those that were far weaker than him, mostly attributed to the passive effects of a few of his traits that seemed to have some sort of intimidation effect.

Growing bored of his effortless winnings, Azmodeus nonchalantly took out a chair from his storage ring and sat on the fighting ring with a bored look on his face, waiting for the matches to keep on concluding.

A few more hours forever disappeared from the echoes of time as the Top 10 were finally chosen from all those who competed in the Yang Arena.

None of them were particularly outstanding. Just about everyone here was someone lucky enough to get past the preliminaries without crossing with the monster that was known as Azmodeus.

Furthermore, of the last 10 standing, seven were at the Viscera Training Large Success Stage, while the other two were in the Viscera Training Small Success Stage.

There were also a few cultivators in the Altering Muscle Stage. They had high hopes that they'd win the entire competition; however, when faced with 'The Monster' in the arena, all of them immediately gave up without a fight.

Finally, the moment came when the announcer called out the matchups, and unsurprisingly, every contestant who was matched up against Azmodeus forfeited their matches on the spot.

However, there was one boy who actually had the courage to go against the monster without running away.

That boy was Yang Xiao, otherwise known as the only person Azmodeus had ever called a friend…

...…