Meng Jingzhou was taken aback upon hearing this, his mind racing through a rapid analysis. With Lu Yang disguised as him, various techniques would be restricted, causing his combat strength to plummet drastically. However, when the bastard transformed into him, he had also borrowed a portion of his power. If they really fought, the outcome would be anyone's guess!
In that case, the answer was obvious!
The real Meng Jingzhou struck first, kicking the fake Meng Jingzhou straight down from the tree.
Seeing this, Zhong Yi was the first to make a judgment and shouted, "A sneak attack! Only Lu Yang could do something so wicked!"
Meng Jingzhou: "..."
Did I do something virtuous in my daily life that made you all think my moral character was so high?
He immediately leaped down from the tree and stood side by side with his fake self, making it impossible once again for the crowd to tell who was who.
"What do we do?"
"Hit them both together! Even if we hit the wrong one, it's not like we lose out!" Luo Wushuang shouted.
The crowd thought about it and found it made total sense. If anything, this was the perfect excuse to beat Meng Jingzhou.
Fighting Lu Yang or taking him as their big brother was an order from their elders, but thrashing Meng Jingzhou was a desire straight from the bottom of their hearts.
"Old Lu, you bastard, you dragged me down with you!"
"We're both about to get beaten up, and you're still acting?"
"Acting my ass! I'm clearing my name!"
The two Meng Jingzhous bickered incessantly, but it no longer mattered. The crowd didn't care which one was real and which was fake anymore.
Oh, wait, actually it would still be best if they could tell which was the real Meng Jingzhou—that way, they could put a little more muscle into their hits.
Meng Jingzhou realized this as well. Lu Yang transforming into him was an outright open scheme. Even if they could tell real from fake, the crowd would collectively turn blind and pretend not to notice!
How utterly sinister!
"Brothers, charge! Overthrow Meng Jingzhou... Ah, no, overthrow Lu Yang and rescue Young Master Meng!"
"Charge!"
Seeing two Meng Jingzhous, the crowd's spirits surged, their moves far fiercer than before.
"Wait, Old Meng, you really draw way too much hatred. After I turned into you, their attacks leveled up an entire notch," one Meng Jingzhou suddenly said. The crowd instantly caught on—this was the fake Meng Jingzhou!
Then ignore the fake for now and go beat the real Meng Jingzhou!
All the techniques originally aimed at this Meng Jingzhou swiveled straight toward the other.
"Old Meng, do you have any fucking shame, impersonating me!" the other Meng Jingzhou cursed loudly, acting as if he were the real Lu Yang.
The crowd hesitated once more, uncertain of the truth.
"Fellow Daoists, since we can't tell them apart, let's stick to the original plan and hit both together!"
On the other side, An Nan'er quietly slipped out of the fray, leaping into the tree canopy to sit beside Meng Jingyu.
"Sister Jingyu, which one do you think is your brother?"
Meng Jingyu was munching on fruit with her head down. Hearing An Nan'er's question, she looked up and offered an innocent smile.
"Both of them are my brother."
***
"Arhat Fist!"
"Arhat Fist!"
The two Meng Jingzhous seemed like carbon copies, their movements executing the Arhat Fist in perfect unison.
This was only natural, as it had been Meng Jingzhou who taught Lu Yang the Arhat Fist in the first place.
"Which side lost hair?"
The beaten young masters frantically checked their heads, only to find their hair completely intact—not a single strand had fallen.
One Meng Jingzhou had an epiphany and pointed at the other. "I've got it! You brat used the Arhat Fist and the Longevity Art at the same time!"
"Bullshit! You're clearly the one who used the Arhat Fist and the Longevity Art, and now you're trying to pin it on this young master!"
Both Meng Jingzhous desperately wanted to prove they were Lu Yang.
Lu Yang had considered reverting to his original appearance, but the moment he switched back, he feared the crowd would lose their excuse to target Meng Jingzhou, and in the end, he would be the only one suffering.
"Heaven-Shaking Six Forms!" one Meng Jingzhou bellowed. His entire aura surged to another level, the earth beneath his feet trembling and churning violently.
Although Lu Yang didn't know the Heaven-Shaking Six Forms, it didn't matter. None of the others had ever seen what the real Heaven-Shaking Six Forms looked like either.
The Heaven-Shaking Six Forms was the Third Elder's ultimate technique. How could the juniors have ever witnessed it? Only the older generation had experienced it—while getting thrashed by him.
Lu Yang used his fist as a sword, his momentum similarly climbing a notch and his fist technique growing equally sharp. "Heaven-Shaking Six Forms!"
Even with Meng Jingzhou dragged in as a scapegoat, Lu Yang's situation remained far from optimistic. There were simply too many people. Had he not frequently sparred against his Invincible Nascent Soul, he would have been overwhelmed by the concentrated assault long ago.
"Humph, you forced this young master's hand!" Meng Jingzhou was enraged. He summoned his twin Nascent Souls and merged them, transforming into a three-headed, six-armed divine figure.
Three Heads and Six Arms was Meng Jingzhou's ultimate trump card, one he rarely deployed. When Daoist Buyu told stories, he refrained from giving away all of Lu Yang's and Meng Jingzhou's techniques out of safety concerns, so the crowd had no idea that only Meng Jingzhou could use Three Heads and Six Arms.
"Heaven-Shaking Six Forms!" Unleashing the technique in the Three Heads and Six Arms state multiplied its power several times over. Among peers of their generation, not a single person could block this punch.
Zhong Yi swiftly made his judgment. "This strong? Then he must be Lu Yang! Concentrate our strength and hit the other one!"
The real Meng Jingzhou felt the pressure on him drastically lift, yet he didn't know whether he should be happy or upset.
What did he mean by 'the stronger one must be Lu Yang'?
Seeing this, Lu Yang knew things were going south and hurriedly drew the Green Blade Sword to meet the enemy.
Although Lu Yang rarely used a sword, his identity as a sword cultivator was known to all. The moment the crowd saw the Green Blade Sword drawn and witnessed such extraordinary swordsmanship, they knew this was definitely not something Meng Jingzhou could fake. Turning on their heels, they charged straight back toward the real Meng Jingzhou.
Of course, they couldn't make their bias against the real Meng Jingzhou too obvious, so a third of the group remained to besiege Lu Yang. Someone even shouted, "To think Eldest Young Master Meng's swordsmanship is so superb as well! This humble one is thoroughly impressed!"
The real Meng Jingzhou cursed their ancestors in his heart. When the hell did I ever know swordsmanship?
Subjected to concentrated fire and drained of a portion of his strength by Lu Yang, Meng Jingzhou's stamina quickly ran dry. Under the collective beating, he finally collapsed.
Seeing his scapegoat go down, Lu Yang reverted to his original appearance and returned the borrowed strength to Old Meng.
When the crowd saw that the one who had fallen was indeed the real Meng Jingzhou, their expressions shifted dramatically, and they flurried to help him up.
"Oh my, Eldest Young Master Meng, you should have told us sooner that you were the real one! Otherwise, we wouldn't have hit you so hard."
At these words, the others chimed in one after another. "Right, exactly! We all thought you were Lu Yang, which was why we didn't hold back."
Meng Jingzhou: "..."
I've only been away from the Imperial City for a little over five years. How did every single one of you become so shameless?
The second round of the First Lu Yang Championship was still underway. As the prize, Lu Yang continued his stubborn last stand, refusing to concede defeat.
With Meng Jingzhou no longer acting as his scapegoat, the crushing pressure on him returned to its original state.
Inside the spiritual space, the Immortal Fairy sat upright upon her imperial throne. Drawing out her voice, she asked leisurely, "Little Yangzi, do you need this Immortal's help?"
Lu Yang thought to himself, *Fairy, if you want to fight, just say so. You're not even bothering to hide that eager look on your face.*
Lu Yang bowed deeply. "I request Your Majesty's assistance."
Back in reality, standing right at the center of the crowd, Lu Yang opened his eyes. His gaze was ancient and weathered, as if spanning countless eons.
He swept his gaze across the crowd, then spoke slowly: "You mere mortals are nothing more than straw dogs. Having the fortune to behold this Sovereign, why do you not bow?"
Chapter 913