Since the contestant who had disrupted the rules had already been punished, Wen Ruowei’s matter was considered settled.
The spectators in the stands were more concerned with whether anyone would step onto the stage and register for a challenge today. They hoped it would not be another repeat of yesterday, wasting half the day waiting.
Most of the contestants below the stage, however, were watching Yu Qing and Long Xingyun. In particular, many looked at Long Xingyun with suspicion.
It had been Long Xingyun who claimed that Yu Qing was seriously injured, saying it would take at least one or two months for him to recover.
No one had expected Yu Qing to appear again so quickly. Shouldn’t Long Xingyun seize the opportunity to challenge him?
Yu Qing also glanced at Long Xingyun from time to time. By the time the sun was almost overhead, Long Xingyun still showed no reaction, and did not even seem interested in looking at him. Left with no choice, Yu Qing walked over, stopping in front of him, and asked quietly,
“What do you mean? Are we fighting or not?”
Sensing something was off, Kui Kui squeezed in behind them to eavesdrop. In truth, everyone nearby had their ears perked up.
Long Xingyun glanced around before saying only one sentence.
“I won’t take advantage of you. We’ll talk again after you’ve recovered.”
The scene felt strangely familiar to Yu Qing. He replied,
“My injuries are already healed. We can fight right now.”
Long Xingyun swept his gaze over the crowd watching them, opened his folding fan, waved it calmly, and said,
“I don’t need you teaching me how to handle my affairs.”
Yu Qing was speechless. Hadn’t this fellow agreed perfectly well yesterday? What was he playing at now?
The other contestants gradually began looking at Long Xingyun differently. They had already realised something.
As many spectators grew bored while waiting, they also noticed that some important guests were missing. The VIP seats were empty, with none of the distinguished guests present.
At that moment, the highest ranking guest, Empress Yan Yi of the Yin Kingdom, sat upright in the main hall of the residence, her face cold with murderous intent. She had no mood to watch any competition today. Instead, she stared icily at Xiang Lanfeng, who was walking in through the door.
Xiang Lanxuan nervously glanced around. She always felt somewhat anxious whenever she came to see Yan Yi. Before every meeting, she would even wipe off all her lipstick, afraid her attractive appearance might displease the Empress. Today, however, she was especially tense. She had already realised what this was about.
As she entered the hall, she saw several of her trusted subordinates standing to one side. Their clothes were tattered, covered in blood, and they had clearly been tortured. None of them dared meet her eyes, lowering their heads one after another. She immediately knew that what she had feared had finally happened.
When she discovered last night that her people had disappeared, and heard they had been taken away by the Empress, she had already guessed why.
Subconsciously, she glanced at Mi Yunzhong.
Standing beside the rear seat awaiting orders, the Outer Guard Commander Mi Yunzhong looked somewhat embarrassed. But he was helpless. Some things simply could not be concealed.
After reaching the appropriate position, Xiang Lanxuan stopped and bowed.
“Greetings, Your Majesty.”
Yan Yi let out a cold laugh.
“How polite. This palace hardly deserves such courtesy.”
At this point, Xiang Lanxuan knew there was no avoiding the matter. She quietly took a deep breath, steeled herself, pointed towards her tortured subordinates, and asked,
“Your Majesty has dealt with them in this way. What offence have they committed?”
Yan Yi asked,
“Are you questioning this palace?”
Xiang Lanxuan lowered her head.
“I wouldn’t dare. They are members of the Directorate after all, and they are my subordinates. I cannot simply ignore what has happened to them.”
Yan Yi said,
“Are you using the Directorate to pressure this palace?”
“I wouldn’t dare.”
Yan Yi rose to her feet and slowly walked towards her.
“Did I not warn you never to interfere in Chaoyang’s marriage again?”
The moment she mentioned this, not only did her tone change, even her expression changed. She was genuinely furious.
Her daughter had been encouraged by the Emperor for years, stubbornly insisting on marrying that so called Top Scholar. For various reasons, Yan Yi had never agreed. Later, after Tie Miaoqing, who had once had an affair with the Top Scholar, became her younger brother’s wife, it became even more impossible.
She had finally managed to divert her daughter’s attention by using the Chaoyang Tournament, persuading her to give up pursuing the title of Number One Scholar and instead seek the title of Number One Martial Champion.
Yet after going around in circles, the man her daughter had now set her sights on as the likely martial champion was still that very same Top Scholar. What kind of absurdity was this? The coincidence had nearly choked her with anger.
Especially after learning that Xiang Lanxuan had once again become involved, she was absolutely furious. It was simply too much.
At the mention of the matter, Xiang Lanxuan also looked embarrassed. She glanced at her miserable subordinates, then saw the Empress steadily approaching. Nervously retreating while waving both hands, she said,
“Your Majesty, this really is a misunderstanding. I was afraid Your Majesty might misunderstand, so I intended to secretly force A Shi Heng to withdraw from the Chaoyang Tournament. Who knew it would backfire…”
Back then she had only made everything far more complicated. At this moment, she did not even know how to explain the details clearly.
Hearing this explanation only enraged Yan Yi further.
“Afraid this palace might misunderstand? Am I such an unreasonable person?”
She had already extracted the entire truth from those who had been tortured. They had intended to use Long Xingyun to drive A Shi Heng away, but instead Long Xingyun had ended up persuading A Shi Heng to stay.
After learning the truth, she became even angrier.
“What are you implying? That I can’t tell right from wrong? That all this happened because of me?”
Xiang Lanxuan stammered miserably. She realised she had guessed correctly from the beginning. She absolutely could not let this woman know that she had any connection whatsoever with that Top Scholar. No matter what she did, it would always be wrong.
“So meddlesome.”
As she spoke, Yan Yi suddenly struck.
Smack.
Her slap flashed as swiftly as lightning, landing squarely across Xiang Lanxuan’s face with a loud, crisp crack.
The sound alone was enough to make people jump. At the very least, Outer Guard Commander Mi Yunzhong visibly flinched.
Xiang Lanxuan’s head snapped sideways. She tried to dodge but failed. A bright red handprint instantly appeared on her face, while a thread of blood trickled from the corner of her mouth.
Before she could even straighten her head, another shock came. She tried to evade again, but once more failed. Her neck tightened, and she instantly found herself unable to breathe.
Yan Yi had seized her by the throat, lifting her entire body into the air with one arm. A faint mist floated around the fingers gripping her neck.
“Your… Your Majesty…”
Xiang Lanxuan tried to beg for mercy, but with her throat being crushed she could not speak properly. Blood filled her open mouth. Her legs kicked frantically as both hands desperately tried to pry Yan Yi’s fingers away, but Yan Yi’s cultivation completely suppressed her. She could not move them at all. Terror filled her heart as she feared the woman might snap her neck at any moment.
“Don’t think that having my fellow disciples backing you means I don’t dare kill you. Once is acceptable, twice is tolerable, but never a third time. If this happens again, no one will be able to save you.”
With that, the five fingers gripping her throat instantly became an open palm. The faint mist surrounding it transformed into rings of energy, and the palm struck Xiang Lanxuan’s chest with the force of thunder. The concentric energy rings followed one after another like golden hoops, crashing repeatedly into her body as she was blasted away.
Xiang Lanxuan desperately activated her magic to defend herself, but she shot backwards like a cannonball. With a deafening boom, she smashed through a centuries old tree outside, snapping it clean in half before crashing to the ground and coughing up blood.
Moments later, she disappeared beneath a cloud of dust.
Yan Yi turned around and swept her cold gaze across the trembling, ragged prisoners.
“Get out.”
The tortured group immediately felt as though a heavy burden had been lifted. Keeping their heads lowered, they hurried outside, quickly dug Xiang Lanxuan out of the rubble, and carried her away for emergency treatment.
Outside the gates of the residence, Kunling Mountain Sect Master Zhao Dengzi and the others had been waiting for an audience. They were wondering in surprise what the commotion inside had been, when they suddenly saw the unconscious Xiang Lanxuan, beaten into a miserable state, being carried out by a group of ragged people. They looked at one another in astonishment.
Among the pavilions and towers, Li Chenghu was leisurely accompanying the Princess Consort as they admired the mountain scenery. Their relaxed manner drew envious glances from afar, making others sigh that wealth and status could be no better than this.
Before anyone officially initiated a challenge at the competition grounds, these distinguished guests had no interest in sitting there waiting. Once a match was confirmed, someone would naturally come to inform them, and the officials overseeing the competition would delay the start until they arrived.
Beside a terrace, the Prince’s estate steward hurried over and stood respectfully with folded hands.
When Li Chenghu reached a fork near the terrace, he smiled and exchanged a few words with the Princess Consort, sending her ahead while he turned towards the terrace and asked the steward,
“I heard an explosive disturbance from the residence just now. What happened?”
The steward replied,
“The Grand Executive Xiang from the Directorate was beaten unconscious. Among those over there, the only person with both the strength and the courage to attack her was probably Her Majesty.”
Li Chenghu clasped his hands behind his back and gazed into the distance.
“My imperial sister in law has confined her own daughter and now injured Xiang Lanxuan as well. She must have become furious out of embarrassment. It seems she has also learned the true identity of Zhang Zhichen. Grand Executive Xiang must have been meddling in Chaoyang’s marriage again. She really has no fear of death.”
At this point, even he could not help laughing. Turning to the steward, he said,
“Make the arrangements. We shall pay Grand Executive Xiang a visit. We cannot let her stand alone. I still hope she can continue bringing about Chaoyang’s marriage.”
The steward hesitated.
“Your Highness, wouldn’t it be inappropriate for us to go immediately after Her Majesty’s actions?”
“Nothing inappropriate about it. Chaoyang marrying A Shi Heng would be most suitable. Besides, A Shi Heng has only just injured Zhong Ruochen. It is better if my sister in law and her fellow disciples continue clashing. Otherwise, both my imperial brother and the Jin Kingdom would be uneasy. I will take responsibility for everything. Go make the arrangements. Also, arrange something for Zhang Zhichen. The Princess Consort wishes to meet this old friend.”
Li Chenghu strode away after the Princess Consort, waving his hand behind him as he gave the final instructions.
“Yes.”
The steward bowed and accepted the order.
There were no battles at the Chaoyang Tournament today. It was another dull day.
The most disappointed were naturally the spectators.
However, they had at least come to understand the competition rules. As they left, they discussed tomorrow, knowing that the first three day deadline would arrive then, meaning there would definitely be fighting.
Yu Qing also grabbed hold of Long Xingyun, preventing him from leaving. He intended to wait until everyone else had gone before asking exactly what he was planning.
After most people had left, however, an unexpected visitor appeared.
Yin Shanhe flashed over in a few quick movements.
Under the surprised gazes of the two men, Yin Shanhe removed the tobacco pipe from his mouth and said to Long Xingyun,
“The Pavilion Master has sent an urgent message. You are to return immediately. It cannot be delayed. Go back to your residence at once and pack your things.”
“What urgent matter?”
Long Xingyun asked in surprise, reaching out.
“Let me see the message.”
Yin Shanhe tilted his head towards Yu Qing, indicating that it was inconvenient with an outsider present.
“I’ll show it to you later.”
Long Xingyun immediately shook off Yu Qing’s grip on his sleeve with renewed confidence and said gravely,
“I was planning to win first place in this year’s Chaoyang Tournament. What does it mean for me to leave now?”
Yin Shanhe replied,
“The Pavilion Master has given his orders. Whether you want to return or not, you are returning.”
Long Xingyun sighed.
“Fine. I won’t compete with you for first place anymore. Take your time and enjoy yourself.”
With that, he turned and walked away.
How could Yu Qing let him leave so easily? He immediately grabbed his sleeve again and pulled him back.
“What about the agreement between us?”
Yin Shanhe put the pipe back into his mouth.
“We have urgent business that cannot wait. Consider it your victory.”
Yu Qing stared.
“Then will the promise be honoured?”
Yin Shanhe replied,
“From this day forward, all grudges between you and our Young Pavilion Master are wiped clean. The Young Pavilion Master guarantees he will never trouble you again over old grievances.”
He then turned to Long Xingyun.
“Young Pavilion Master, what do you think? Shall we settle everything here, or leave it for another fight in the future?”
Long Xingyun’s lips twitched slightly. Pointing his folding fan at the sleeve Yu Qing was still gripping, he said,
“Family matters come first. I can’t be bothered arguing with you. Everything from the past is settled. Let go.”
Yu Qing’s eyes lit up.
“You really mean that?”
Long Xingyun snorted disdainfully.
“I, Long, am no petty man who breaks his word. Let go.”
Yin Shanhe added,
“I guarantee it.”
Only then did Yu Qing release him. He finally felt a huge weight lifted from his heart. The burden he had carried for so long had finally disappeared. These past few years, that bastard had truly made his life miserable.
And so Yin Shanhe left with Long Xingyun.
Yu Qing remained standing where he was, suddenly feeling rather lost.
He had entered the tournament only because Long Xingyun had forced him into it. Now that Long Xingyun had left, what exactly was the point of continuing after coming this far?
On the officials’ platform, Qin Fujun, who had been preparing to leave with her fellow disciples, also noticed the scene. She was especially curious about the white haired man. She remembered seeing him before.
After leaving the grounds, Long Xingyun reached out to Yin Shanhe again.
“What urgent matter? Where’s the message from my mother?”
Yin Shanhe replied,
“There is no message.”
Long Xingyun stopped in his tracks, astonished.
“Uncle Yin, why did you lie about receiving a message?”
Yin Shanhe continued walking leisurely ahead with the pipe in his mouth.
“If you think you can beat him, you’re welcome to stay.”