I Pick up a Lost Godhood

Chapter 185 - 183: Decisive Battle: Thunderlight

Thousands of disciples from the various Sub-Halls had poured into Hengshan Hall’s grounds. Though Hengshan Hall was used to a lively atmosphere, they had never experienced anything quite like this.

Needless to say, every single disciple from Thunderlight Hall was there to cheer. This might be the most glorious moment for their Sub-Hall in decades, and every one of them wanted to bear witness.

But... the disparity in numbers was staggering.

Hengshan Hall was already large, and that was before adding so many "visiting fans..."

"Go Thunderlight Hall! Beat Hengshan!"

"Go, Wang Meng!"

"Hu Jing, I love yoooou~~~~"

...

Thunderlight Hall hadn’t even started cheering, but disciples from the other Sub-Halls beat them to it.

Frankly, the Thunderlight Hall disciples were still a bit nervous. This was Hengshan Hall’s home turf, after all. The disciples from Hundred Herbs Hall and the other Sub-Halls had all been defeated by them, and they’d probably come to watch Thunderlight Hall get annihilated. Who would have thought they’d actually be cheering for them?

A considerable number of disciples from Hundred Herbs Hall, Beast Hall, and Fire Cloud Hall had come as well. They weren’t just here to watch the spectacle. Although Thunderlight Hall had defeated them, on some level, they were now carrying the hopes of all the disciples from the Lower Three Halls.

Disciples from Hundred Herbs Hall were called "wild medicine peddlers," and those from Beast Hall were "horse grooms." Deep down, their status wasn’t much better than Thunderlight Hall’s. Hengshan Hall was the great divider.

If they could defeat Hengshan Hall—even if it was just a sliver of hope—it would be a victory for their dreams, too!

In this moment, in this place, they hoped Thunderlight Hall could achieve the impossible.

Song Zhong was there, too. Even though Thunderlight Hall had halted Fire Cloud Hall’s advance, deep down, he hoped they would win—despite knowing it was impossible.

And yet, strangely, he felt there was still a sliver of hope, a slim possibility. It was this feeling, almost a gamble, that had brought him here.

Thunderlight Hall had crushed Fire Cloud Hall’s hopes, but most of the Fire Cloud Hall Disciples surprisingly still hoped Thunderlight Hall would win.

Hengshan Hall was the type to thrive on adversity; they didn’t care how many outsiders showed up.

The battle hadn’t even begun, but the two sides were already locked in a confrontation, and it was a genuine stalemate.

A part of the crowd remained exceptionally calm: either the female cultivators of Flying Phoenix Hall or the disciples from the Upper Three Halls.

The disciples of the Upper Three Halls, who saw themselves as the elite, remained particularly aloof, looking down on such a ruckus.

They were concerned with whether Thunderlight Hall could actually break the record. But of course, they were really here to see Thunderlight Hall get crushed.

If such a garbage Sub-Hall set a new record, it would be a disgrace to them as elites.

That was secondary; a garbage record was still garbage and didn’t really count. What truly bothered them was how this Wang Meng had the qualifications to become an Elder!

A number of prominent figures had indeed shown up for this battle. This was the second one Yang Ying of Flying Phoenix Hall had attended. Of course, as the one being challenged next, it was only natural for her to be here.

Mingren from Lingyin Hall and Liangyuan from Immortal Origin Hall had arrived as well, which was a rare sight. For two Seniors from the Upper Three Halls to show up was a great honor for both sides of the Hall Battle.

Immortal Origin Hall and Lingyin Hall had a clear and deep-seated rivalry. They had always been opponents. Ever since Immortal Origin Hall’s crushing defeat at the hands of Li Tianyi two years ago, they had been forced to keep a low profile. Their disciples would give Lingyin Hall’s members a wide berth, avoiding any conflict. They had been swallowing their pride for far too long, and this Hall Battle was their chance for a comeback.

It was time to get back up where they had fallen!

Liangyuan and Immortal Origin Hall had both matured quite a bit. Failure was indeed the best teacher.

BOOM...

The ground trembled as an explosive sound, like a crack of thunder, rang out.

"What’s all the racket! You sound like a flock of ducks! My ears are about to go deaf from all your squawking!"

A huge figure appeared. It was Gang Lian.

The Hall Battle disciples of Hengshan Hall took the stage.

Led by Tang Wei, the Hengshan Hall disciples shouted in perfect unison: "Hengshan—Invincible!"

Their voices were loud and domineering, adding to their imposing might.

Tang Wei stood with his head held high and his chest puffed out. ’A dream of so many years... it all starts from this moment.’

He slammed his Horse-Cutting Saber onto the ground. "Let us welcome Elder Hong Pan!"

Hong Pan was Hengshan Hall’s chief Elder and the foremost Body Cultivator among the Elders. It was said he was the Body Cultivator most likely to inherit Thunderbolt’s mantle, though he had no actual connection to Thunderbolt.

Hengshan Hall’s current success was largely due to his contributions. He had single-handedly discovered Tang Wei and the others and had pushed past all objections to make Tang Wei the Senior. This same Elder Hong had shouldered the blame for all the trouble Hengshan Hall had stirred up, which had allowed them to reach their current standing.

To outsiders, Hengshan Hall acted like a bunch of hooligans, but internally, they were incredibly respectful, especially toward their Elder and their Senior.

"Greetings, Elder!"

The Hengshan Hall disciples bowed in unison.

Hong Pan’s gaze swept over the crowd. "The match between Hengshan Hall and Thunderlight Hall begins!" Having said his piece, he stood off to the side, as stern and cold as a stone statue.

Thunderlight Hall: Wang Meng, Hu Jing, Zhang Xiaojiang, Zhou Qian, Suo Ming.

Hengshan Hall: Tang Wei, Shenn Tu, Gang Lian, Guo Rongjin, Huang Feng.

"It seems Hengshan Hall is taking this seriously. They even called back Gang Lian and his group," Yang Ying said with a small smile.

As Hengshan Hall’s greatest rival, Yang Ying naturally knew them quite well. They were old adversaries.

"That’s the least of our worries. I’m more concerned about Elder Hong Pan," Mingren said, glancing at the expressionless Hong Pan.

Hong Pan was famous for being fiercely protective of his own. Hengshan Hall’s reputation as hooligans wasn’t exactly a glorious one; in truth, their competitiveness had gone too far, and that had a lot to do with Hong Pan.

In Fire Cloud Hall, Elder Zhu could guarantee absolute impartiality. But in Hengshan Hall, you couldn’t expect that much; you’d be lucky to get relative fairness.

Yang Ying hadn’t considered that. Hearing Mingren’s words, she grew a little worried. She’d been feeling very conflicted lately, unsure of what she truly wanted. ’Do I want Thunderlight Hall to win, or to lose?’

She had made an agreement with Wang Meng back then, assuming it would just quietly fade into obscurity. But who could have predicted that Thunderlight Hall would cut through all opposition to make it this far? As a result, their once-fading connection had once again become a hot topic of gossip.

"That’s Wang Meng?"

"He looks pretty average, doesn’t he? And going by his build, he doesn’t have the ideal physique for a Sword Cultivator. He’s a bit too stocky, and his eyes aren’t sharp enough."

"He’s just an ordinary male cultivator. How did he win Senior Sister Yang’s favor? He must have used some underhanded tricks, right?"

"This is getting interesting. I heard Tang Wei has secretly been in love with Yang Ying for a long time. Last year, when Hengshan Hall lost to Flying Phoenix Hall, it was pretty obvious he threw the match."

"Heh, every Holy Hall Disciple knows that. Tons of guys have a crush on Senior Sister Yang. It’s a miracle this Wang Meng is even still alive."

"Heh, if you were Tang Wei, would you let him off easy?"

"This is a great chance to prove himself."

"Hu Jing isn’t bad-looking either. I hear that Ma Tian’Er is related to the Ma Family."

"What? Getting ideas?"

"Tch. I’m not the only one."

The battle hadn’t even begun, but the Holy Hall Disciples were already buzzing with excitement. The crowd was surprisingly divided: they were either here to see Thunderlight Hall perform a miracle or to see Thunderlight Hall—and Wang Meng in particular—get put back in their place.

(To all my readers, you guys are awesome!!!!) (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote with recommendation tickets and monthly passes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)