Chu Liuyue coughed. I didn’t know things would turn out that way. Moreover, I did suffer quite a bit at the start—the wounds on my body aren’t even fully healed yet.
After hearing what Chu Liuyue said, Qiang Wanzhou’s expression relaxed a little.
When Chu Liuyue returned to where Weichi Song and her seniors were, everyone welcomed her with warm enthusiasm. “Liuyue, I didn’t know that you’re such a skilled Xuan Master as well! How come I never heard you mention it before?”
“Exactly! Just look at how embarrassed Meng Jing was!”
“Wanzhou seems to have gotten even stronger than before too! That sword of yours is really impressive!”
As Weichi Song looked at the duo, he couldn’t help but feel emotional. Although he knew that his new disciples were exceptional, he had never expected them to win the matches so speedily. They totally crushed their opponents.
When his gaze swept past Qiang Wanzhou’s Cloud-Sky Copper Sword, he was shocked to find three silver lightning bolt-like lines on its hilt. Didn’t Liuyue refine this sword to give it to Wanzhou? But those three lines… Don’t they only appear when one triggers heavenly lightning?
His expression turned serious. Those injuries on Liuyue… Were they caused by the heavenly lightning? I can’t seem to find any other logical explanation than that, but the question is: How did she do that when she’s not even a stage-five warrior?
Countless questions surfaced in his mind, and he couldn’t help but want to pull her aside immediately to ask her about it. However, this was clearly not the time to do so. Besides, if his guess was right, then her injuries were likely to be much more serious than he expected.
Seeing how Weichi Song fell deep in thought as he stared at the Cloud-Sky Copper Sword, Chu Liuyue could tell that he had probably figured out something. It’s just as well. I have no intention of hiding the truth from him in the first place, so it’s only normal that a knowledgeable person like him can guess it.
“For the upcoming ninth warrior match, we have Xie Lingyang from Jiu Xing Alliance!” announced the judge all of a sudden. “Elder Song, have you decided who you’ll be sending for this match?”
Snapping back to his senses, Weichi Song looked at the arena, where a handsome lad was walking up the stage. The latter had a sturdy build and tanned skin, and everything about him screamed cocky. As it turned out, he was also a beginner stage-six warrior.
Doubt flashed across Weichi Song’s mind. Since when did Jiu Xing Alliance have so many stage-six warriors? Although they aren’t weak and have many outstanding disciples, they weren’t capable to this extent. With this lineup, they’re almost comparable to Dragon Teeth Mountain! It seems that many of Jiu Xing Alliance’s disciples have suddenly progressed a lot in this past year.
“Elder Song?” The judge reminded Weichi Song once more when he received no response from the latter.
Weichi Song frowned. We don’t have many disciples in the first place. Excluding those who have already participated, there aren’t many people left. Of those remaining, almost none can fight against Xie Lingyang.
“Since there aren’t many choices left to choose from, it should be very easy for you to pick someone. However, you still haven’t made a decision, Elder Song? Could it be that… there’s no suitable candidate?” Zhang Hua naturally would never miss this chance to mock Weichi Song and the rest of Chong Xu Cabinet. “If my memory serves me well, Qiang Wanzhou is the last stage-six warrior you have. Since he already had his turn earlier, you can’t pick him anymore. In my opinion, it doesn’t make any difference who you pick from the remaining lot, so why don’t you just pick someone at random?”
The Chong Xu Cabinet disciples were incensed after hearing that. “I haven’t had my turn, Cabinet Master. I’ll go!”
“Same here! Although our cultivation levels aren’t as high as Xie Lingyang’s, it doesn’t mean that we’ll lose! We’ll give it our all!”
As Weichi Song swept his gaze over them, he felt heartened and bitter at the same time. These kids… They’re all good children. Even though they know that they have no chance of winning, none of them is retreating from the fight. Still… I can’t bear to see them go up and get bullied…
He then heard a familiar voice saying, “I’ll go, Master.”
His eyes widened slightly. “What did you say, Liuyue?”
“I’ll go instead, Master,” Chu Liuyue repeated herself while smiling slightly. When Weichi Song was just about to refuse, she blinked her eyes and said softly, “Don’t you know best how capable I am, Master?”
Weichi Song froze as the memory of the Messed Yuan Gravel entering her body came to mind. She does have a powerful trump card. Among the remaining disciples, she’s truly the only one who can go against Xie Lingyang!
“But—”
“No buts.” Chu Liuyue shook her head as her eyes crinkled gently in determination. “I’ll help you and the seniors to safeguard Chong Xu Cabinet’s position! No matter what, I won’t let anyone trample on Chong Xu Cabinet!”
Weichi Song felt a pang in his heart. After a long silence, he finally nodded. “Alright! I’ll leave everything… in your hands!”
The other disciples were surprised to hear that, but upon seeing the determination on Weichi Song’s face, they no longer fought to take part in the match. Instead, they cheered Chu Liuyue on. “We’re counting on you, Liuyue!”
“Just do your best, Junior!”
“We’ll await your return!”
“Don’t worry, everyone. I won’t let you down.” Chu Liuyue smiled and nodded at them before turning around to walk over to the arena.
A hushed silence fell over the crowd when they saw that Chu Liuyue was competing again, and they looked at each other with baffled expressions.
Zhang Hua furrowed his eyebrows. “Didn’t Chu Liuyue already compete earlier? Why is she competing again?”
“What I took part in earlier was the Xuan Master competition. The rules state that everyone only has one turn in each event, but it doesn’t state that we can’t participate in several events.”
The judge mulled over her words for a moment before nodding in agreement. “You’re right. There’s no such rule.”
“You’re full of tricks!” Zhang Hua nearly choked when he heard what Chu Liuyue said. So what if she’s competing? I don’t believe a mere stage-four warrior is a match for a stage-six warrior. Even if she has the ability to fight beyond her level, she won’t gain the upper hand when fighting with a stage-six warrior!
Who cares what he’s saying? Let’s talk after I win this match! Chu Liuyue merely smiled and turned to face Xie Lingyang. “Chong Xu Cabinet’s Chu Liuyue accepts your challenge!”
Xie Lingyang gave her the once-over. Chu Liuyue’s name is everywhere in Xi Ling lately. Everyone is saying that she’s talented and formidable, having beaten a stage-five warrior back when she was still a stage-three warrior and emerging as the Wan Zheng Competition’s final victor.
“You do have some skills,” said Xie Lingyang arrogantly. “However, a stage-six warrior is on a completely different level compared to a stage-five warrior. You might be able to win against a beginner stage-five warrior, but that may not be the case against someone at the advanced stage. There’s a huge gap between the fifth and sixth stages. It’s not a good thing for youths to have competitive streaks at—”
Before he could finish his piece, Chu Liuyue suddenly waved to Jiu Xing Alliance’s Ning Zhiqing—who had already stood on-stage, preparing for the last heavenly doctor match. “I’m also taking part in the last heavenly doctor match! Please wait for me for a bit! You can start first! I’ll be there in a jiffy!”
