The sun was setting fast and the final battle of the tournament’s first day was about to begin. Many clans and sects called Xiamen city home, and between them were countless rivalries, but the Feng Clan and the Qin Clan had a hatred that spread generations. However, despite the large number of open confrontations, major conflicts between the two were rare.
Hierarchies were complicated in large cities and it was unusual for a clan or sect to start a storm after they had firmly established themselves. With most weaving an intricate web of alliances and connections that spanned from governments to shop vendors, a small grudge could easily turn into a citywide war. The losses generally outweighed the gains.
The old man showed very little interest in any of the previous matches, but at the announcement of the final fight, he walked quickly towards the stage. Since parting with Fairy Xu, he was unusually quiet and held his chin as if he was deep in thought while walking aimlessly around the arena with Liang in tow.
During their brief conversation with her, Liang was rarely able to lift his head and say anything. Fairy Xu was exactly as he remembered her, only this time, instead of seeing her from a distance, she was standing right in front of him. Slightly shorter than him with black flowing hair and flawless skin, the memory of the auction replayed repeatedly in his mind and nearly brought him to tears in embarrassment.
The old man put on a show but the interaction felt awkward to him. Fairy Xu was extremely interested in how the old man cured him and asked dozens of complicated questions Liang did not understand. However, the he dodged most of them and created outlandish stories that became less believable the longer the conversation went on.
Although Fairy Xu appeared to believe most of the old man’s tales, it was clear her mood changed when she heard the story of the mystery doctor. With only 12 silver needles a mystery doctor holding a white banner and banging several pots and pans was able to cure Liang of everything but his impotence, which the old man said even the Triple Yang Rebirth pills failed to fix.
As the old man went further into the details, Liang’s face felt like it was on fire and he was certain Fairy Xu was trying to distance herself whenever his supposed impotence came up. Still, he thought the most outrageous lie came when she asked how Liang was able to gain so much strength since they last met.
The old man explained how a nameless expert came to him in his dreams and taught him many techniques that could strengthen even the most mentally and physically disabled fighters. The story was so unrealistic Liang was certain nobody would believe it and when he peaked at Fairy Xu face; he could see a small frown had formed.
In the end, she was unsatisfied with his answers so they agreed to meet again before the second round of the tournament began the next day. The two guards standing behind her never said a word, but the looks on their faces showed they were relieved that the awkward encounter was over.
After they arrived at the stage, Liang was no longer able to keep his thoughts bottled up and asked, “Master, why do you keep creating stories and lying to Fairy Xu? Telling her things like I’m impotent and we’re on a tireless journey to find a cure. Now whenever she sees me that’s all she is going to think about.”
The sudden question startled the old man who took a few moments to process what Liang said, but shortly after he started laughing so hard a few people around them turned to see what was happening. Liang instantly regretted speaking so loud when he heard people whispering about his incurable disease.
It took several breaths time before the old man calmed down, but after wiping the tears from his eyes, he told Liang, “Is that what’s bothering you boy? Indeed my disciple understands the finer things. But isn’t that a good thing? Maybe she’ll help you find a cure. Forget about that for now though, that little girl doesn’t believe me anyways. But something with her is strange.”
Just as he was about to elaborate, the gong rang and the two on the stage raced towards each other with their weapons drawn. Two heavy swords slammed into each other with a deafening clang and both stumbled backwards several paces. From the exchange, it was clear the Qin boy and the Feng boy were evenly matched.
Both clans were practitioners of heavy sword arts and famous far beyond the reaches of Xiamen City. However, neither was able to dominate the other and countless rumors claimed the Feng Clan stole the secret arts of the Qin Clan. Nobody knew if the rumors were true, but the techniques were very similar and both relied on a combination of rigid attacks with bending defense.
As the battle wore on, small wounds accumulated on the both fighters, but the Qin member was close to collapse. His knees were trembling and he was no longer able to lift the sword properly to guard himself. His loss was clear, but he did not want to shame himself on such a large stage.
He gathered his strength and tried to raise his sword one last time, but before he was able to lift the blade into the air, he felt a sharp, searing pain tunnel its way into his stomach. He stumbled back several steps then fell to his knees in confusion. After clearing his thoughts, he looked up and his eyes widened at the appearance of his opponent.
The Feng Clan member left his heavy sword behind and raced forward piercing his opponent’s stomach with a long thin blade. Blood filled the Qin Clan member’s mouth making it difficult to understand, but everyone was able to tell he was trying to forfeit. Unfortunately, the Feng Clan member ignored him.
An elder from the Qin Clan broke through the Qi barriers and rushed to the stage; however, he was unable to prevent the final attack from happening. When he arrived, he placed a pill in the young man’s mouth to heal his injuries, but as he examined the boys wound’s, his face changed from white to red and back to white.
He stood up and turned towards the Feng Clan member in extreme hatred shouting, “You little animal, if I don’t kill you today then I swear I am no longer human” before racing towards him. However, when he reached the boy an elder from the Feng Clan blocked him and an intense battle of words ensued.
The city lord examined the Qin boy and in the end, disqualified the Feng Clan member from the competition. The Qin boy, a potential heir to the family lay on the ground in tears until the elder picked him up and removed him from the stage. Because the clans were both major powers, the city lord decided not to interfere any further and instead left the decision for additional punishment to them.
Rubbing his chin and humming, the old man turned towards Liang and continued from where he left off ignoring the fight. “Something is strange about that little girl. She was with that Wang boy at the auction last time and was wearing robes that had a stupid white bird on it. This time she wasn’t wearing her robes and those two guards were wearing silver robes with a crest.”
He looked up into the cloudless sky for a moment then continued in a deep, hushed voice, “I think those guards aren’t there to protect her, they’re there to watch her. Hmmm…, looks like that little girl played her honey trap too many times and now she’s the one that got caught.”
An almost sinister smile crept across the old man’s face like the idea of her plan backfiring amused him, but before he could break into a laugh, Liang asked if they were going to help her. He had a favorable opinion of Fairy Xu, but the old man shook his head no.
“Don’t be stupid. We’re not here to rescue every little girl in the world boy. We have our own problems. I wouldn’t worry too much though. Girls like her are always scheming. She probably has her own ideas. Never mind, you need to fix a few things before tomorrow’s matches.”
Although he felt a little disappointed, what the old man said was true. He had his own goals, and for now, there were things he needed to focus on. Thinking about the match and its bizarre conclusion, he asked the old man if he knew why the Feng Clan member continued after the Qin boy was forfeiting. Liang thought that even if they were enemies, it was very stupid to do what he did in the open.
With a slight chuckle the old man responded, “Some people are bored with life boy. They’re not happy unless people are trying to kill them, chasing them through the fields and forests. People like that shatter the dantian of their opponents in tournaments. Guess that kid was looking for some excitement.”
The two left the arena and walked into a shop where they bought a few things to cook then exited the city. The first round was not very challenging, but Liang did not believe the second would be so easy. He would be fighting the sect geniuses soon, so he needed to make sure he used every moment he had to train for them.
