According to this competition’s rules, if a martial artist lost their weapon, others could not intervene to help. With empty hands and not daring to use his flesh and blood body to take the hits directly, Qu Buyang could only dodge since he couldn’t attack—fortunately, Zhou Qin’s qinggong was more mediocre than he’d imagined, so his darting about was still relatively composed.
To others, although Zhou Qin’s staff techniques showed some clever skill, they weren’t particularly outstanding. How could Qu Buyang, as one of Western Xia’s supreme masters, only flee without counterattacking? It was truly incomprehensible.
Naturally, no one knew that Zhou Qin’s every strike and swing used the brute force of hammering iron. If he actually got hit, he’d absolutely end up with broken bones. Qu Buyang didn’t want to be injured in the very first match, so he chose to endure. After all, no matter how capable this little girl was, she couldn’t possibly drag this out endlessly.
Fu Yanyang didn’t see this layer and only felt that Qu Buyang’s jumping around really lacked any master’s bearing. “Does a blade master’s combat power really drop this much without a blade?”
“This Qu Buyang deeply understands the way of dodging staffs,” Changling’s eyes flickered slightly. “He’s waiting for Zhou Qin’s opening.”
Indeed, as she predicted, Zhou Qin attacked with effort in every move, missing every time, and finally revealed some signs of fatigue. In a moment of inattention, her staff circle slowed down. Qu Buyang had been waiting for precisely this moment. His figure flashed, dodging toward the life gate, and at the same time, his hands gripped and lifted—he actually managed to grasp the other end of the staff with his bare hands!
Fu Yanyang suddenly stood up. “That’s allowed!?”
The corner of Qu Buyang’s mouth lifted—once the staff was seized, how could she continue to run wild?
He steadied his lower body, channeled his full internal energy, and pulled. However… it didn’t budge.
Zhou Qin gritted her teeth tightly as a cold true energy transmitted through the staff. She summoned all her strength to grip her long staff tightly. Qu Buyang’s heart jumped. Unable to seize it with one pull, he actually swept his leg horizontally in a direct attack.
Zhou Qin instantly lost her composure and nearly tripped several times. Even so, she still refused to let go, looking as if she were determined to weld her hands to the staff.
How could Qu Buyang give her a chance to escape? He pressed forward, forcing her to retreat step by step. Seeing they were about to reach the edge of the competition platform—if she didn’t release her grip, she’d be pushed off; if she released and handed over her weapon, she’d surely lose.
The Eastern Xia martial students watched as the two of them each held one end of the staff, deadlocked at the edge. They were so nervous that cold sweat broke out. Suddenly, Changling stood up and called out loudly: “Switch to blade!”
What did “switch to blade” mean? Others naturally couldn’t understand, but they saw Zhou Qin’s long staff rotate with a click. The next instant, the staff head section separated completely. The original pulling force reversed onto Qu Buyang at that moment. With a splash, the famous Western Xia blade master inexplicably fell into the lake water while gripping the staff shell.
All the spectators: “…”
This seemingly frail little girl had actually won this supposedly unwinnable first match!
At this moment, everyone looked at the staff in Zhou Qin’s hand that had shed its shell to reveal a gleaming steel blade. For a time, they were speechless. Even Fu Yanyang forgot to cheer and instead asked Changling awkwardly: “M-Master… when you forged this weapon for Little Qin, you weren’t planning for this day, were you?”
Changling said: “Oh, that—purely coincidental.”
Seeing their first round ace lose so confusedly, the Western Xia martial artists couldn’t accept it. Murong Sheng was so angry her face turned red. “How can this be… she, she’s cheating!”
“A-Sheng, sit down.” Wei Shaoxuan spoke: “The competition rules only prohibit hidden weapons. There are no restrictions on other weapons. Since we lost, we should accept defeat.”
Qu Buyang climbed back up from the lake water, looking incredulously at the half iron staff in his hands, then his gaze returned to Zhou Qin.
Zhou Qin felt somewhat guilty, standing three paces away from him. “Uh, I know you might not be convinced, but… this match’s outcome is already decided. Even if you’re not convinced, you should still return my weapon to me.”
Not only did Qu Buyang not show any resentment, he actually stepped forward to return that half iron staff, saying: “I lost. I lost by judging by appearances, by underestimating my opponent.”
Zhou Qin accepted it in a daze. With a “click,” she sheathed the blade. When both returned to the shore, she suddenly heard Qu Buyang call after her: “Miss, you’re called Zhou Qin, right? In the future, if there’s an opportunity, I hope to spar with you again.”
With those words, Qu Buyang had already turned back to the Western Xia camp. Before she could react, Fu Yanyang rushed forward and gripped her shoulder, laughing directly: “That surprise attack you landed was brilliant! We’re definitely going to win today—I’ll add an extra chicken leg for you at lunch!”
Fang Zhuyi said coldly: “There are still four matches to go. How do you know we’ll definitely win?”
The reason naturally couldn’t be stated plainly. Fu Yanyang offered a smile and pulled Zhou Qin back to her seat, quietly turning to ask Changling: “Sister Ting, will you go up next round?”
Changling glanced at Zhou Qin with slight vexation and said: “I originally only wanted Little Qin to occupy one of their expert slots. I didn’t expect her to actually win… If we win another match, Murong Fei will definitely go up early. What should we do?”
These three words “what should we do” were directed at Ye Qi. He smiled and said: “How hard can it be to lose?”
Fu Yanyang and Zhou Qin were both confused. “Lose? What do you mean?”
Western Xia had failed in the first round, so logically they should be more cautious in the next round. Unexpectedly, the second match also sent up an unfamiliar young man, surnamed Tan, given name Jiu. He was neither tall nor short, neither handsome nor ugly—the type of passerby one would forget even after multiple glances.
Eastern Xia had originally planned to lose this match, so Ye Qi simply selected a martial student of middling aptitude to go up. Who knew that just as the gongs and drums sounded, that Eastern Xia martial student was directly swept into the lake—most people hadn’t even seen clearly how Tan Jiu had made his move.
Everyone was dumbfounded. This Eastern Xia martial student clearly had solid martial fundamentals. What technique had Tan Jiu used to be able to slap someone flying with just one move?
Old Man Shu was somewhat astonished. “This person’s martial arts clearly surpass Qu Buyang’s, yet we’ve never heard of him before…”
“Good thing Little Qin won,” Ye Qi clicked his tongue twice. “Who could have guessed they were also raising a dark horse?”
Seeing Western Xia’s faction had hidden dragons and crouching tigers, Changling’s heart actually relaxed—only teams with real strength had value for exploitation. She turned her head. “Do you need me to go up next round?”
“No rush. Even if you go up, Murong Fei will only observe your depths from below.” Ye Qi leaned forward and patted Wang Xun’s shoulder. “Young Master Wang, I’ll have to trouble you to make a trip up there. Remember, you must maintain your fine tradition—it’s best to resolve it quickly.”
Wang Xun’s brow furrowed. He didn’t understand but was too lazy to ask more. He casually picked up his long spear, tapped his foot, and floated onto the competition platform.
“Fine tradition?” Fu Yanyang asked strangely. “What tradition does First Senior Brother have?”
A graceful figure flew across the water, landing lightly on the competition platform. Ye Qi raised an eyebrow with a smile. “The tradition of being oblivious to romantic feelings.”
The one going up was Murong Sheng.
She held a completely jade-green treasured sword. Her slender fingers lightly stroked the scabbard as she looked at Wang Xun with abundant charm and smiled: “I’ve long heard that Young Master Wang is Qingcheng Academy’s head disciple—not only are your martial arts formidable, but you’re also uncommonly handsome. Meeting you today, you truly live up to your reputation.”
Wang Xun maintained that pure-hearted and ascetic face, nodding politely once. When the gong sounded, without another word, he swept his spear horizontally, not avoiding her face just because the opponent was a girl with a pretty face.
Murong Sheng’s face changed color slightly. She drew her scabbard and calmly blocked. The bells on her hand tinkled pleasantly. Her movements were light and graceful, like an enchantress treading on clouds, circling around Wang Xun. From a distance, it didn’t look like combat but more like a mutually infatuated couple feeding each other moves.
Fu Yanyang stared intently at the competition platform. “No wonder Young Marquis mentioned being oblivious to romance. You already predicted they’d send Murong Sheng up…”
Zhou Qin muttered: “Actually, if we’re talking about being oblivious to romance, Second Senior Brother is also a master among masters.”
Mo Chuan’s sharp ears turned his head back, but seeing Zhou Qin turn her head away and point forward: “This Miss Murong dances beautifully, but I wonder what her actual strength is?”
Changling observed a few more times and only felt that although Murong Sheng’s sword techniques were exquisite, when used in her hands, they ultimately lacked a certain ruthlessness. Presumably, this young miss was pampered and spoiled, and her daily martial practice ultimately lacked some tempering. She stated bluntly: “Good aptitude, just needs a beating.”
Ye Qi smiled. “I’ve heard that Miss Murong recently mastered the Manor Lady’s Sound Enchantment skill. This technique aims to disturb an opponent’s state of mind with musical notes, especially effective on young men… I guess the bell chain in her hand must have some hidden mystery. However, few people know of this…”
Changling asked: “If few people know, how do you know?”
Ye Qi’s eyes rolled, and he immediately shifted everyone’s attention back to the battle platform. “Look quickly!”
Wang Xun on the competition platform seemed completely unaffected. His spear moved with lightning speed, pivoting at the waist, the spear tip surging out ferociously, giving Murong Sheng absolutely no room to breathe—
With a clang, the long sword fell to the ground with a responding sound. Wang Xun pointed his spear directly at Murong Sheng’s throat. Victory and defeat were clear at a glance.
Murong Sheng stared with her watery eyes, her lips barely moving: “Impossible. How could you not be affected at all?”
Hearing the judge raise the victory flag, Wang Xun finally withdrew his spear. Without a single extra word of nonsense, he leaped down from the competition platform.
“This is precisely why I didn’t let Young Master Mo take this match,” Ye Qi squinted his eyes, watching Wang Xun approaching calmly. “Young Master Mo Chuan is merely impartial, not a person without feelings or love. But Young Master Wang…”
Already having a beloved in his heart, after that beloved’s passing, he had severed all emotion and love. How could a mere Sound Enchantment skill shake someone so resolute, someone with hatred in their heart?
Mo Chuan understood the young marquis’s implied meaning: “Having fought to this point, that Murong Fei must go up now. I see Young Marquis still has no intention of sending Miss Changting up yet, correct?”
Ye Qi nodded with a smile. “Young Master Mo deeply understands my intent.”
Seeing Murong Fei had already stood up, Mo Chuan also raised his sword and turned back: “I have no confidence in defeating Murong Fei. Seeing the Marquis balance the battle situation like this, you probably don’t want me to win either. I’ll just go up and test the waters… I wonder if Changting has any requirements?”
“No requirements. Regardless of how Murong Fei fights this match or what moves he uses, he definitely won’t repeat the same tricks next match. Rather than being misled by him, Second Senior Brother, you might as well play freely without distractions,” Changling said. “Most importantly, preserve your strength and avoid injury. If you don’t want to play anymore, you can just jump off the platform directly.”
Mo Chuan knowingly slung his sword over his shoulder and cooperatively said: “Understood.”
The gongs and drums on the competition platform sounded once again. Having sat for a long time, Changling’s legs were a bit stiff. Thinking that the final match would fall to her, she twisted her neck to loosen up a bit. In a momentary glance, she seemed to see a familiar profile in the crowd.
Changling’s heart jumped. She saw that person’s back had already ducked into the rear, about to disappear into the crowd.
Ye Qi saw Changling suddenly stand up. Before he could ask, he saw her feet slide and she left her seat, apparently chasing after someone.