Chapter 308: Facing the Challenge with Composure, Defeating Void Cloud

It was a long time after landing on the ground before Long Qi reacted; he truly could not believe that he had actually been kicked flying while completely off guard—it was simply inconceivable.

Just a moment ago he had been thinking of slaughtering all sides, yet now, in less time than it takes to drink half a cup of tea, he had lost the match, and to such a frail-looking boy at that. This... this...

This was just too embarrassing...

For a moment, Long Qi did not know what he should do; lying on the ground, he felt that neither rising nor staying down was right, and he was so mortified he wished he could crawl into a crack in the ground. Fortunately, Xin Yi walked up to him and helped him up, so he was not left too awkward.

Lingxiang, however, showed no particular reaction; she was neither disappointed nor angry, but merely stood to the side in deep thought, seemingly pondering a countermeasure or perhaps ruminating on something, her brows tightly furrowed and not saying a word.

In reality, at this moment, Lingxiang's thoughts were not on Long Qi at all, nor even on this competition; she glanced at the sun, calculating that Luoli's Ever-Bright Lamp should be nearly finished.

It was at this moment that Chengkai stepped forward and bowed, interrupting Lingxiang's train of thought, and only then did Lingxiang remember that now was not the time to be distracted.

Lingxiang waved her hand to signal him to proceed, and Chengkai turned and left; when he met Long Qi, he even patted his shoulder to offer comfort, though this gesture only made Long Qi feel even more disgruntled.

When he reached Lingxiang, Long Qi stammered, not knowing what to say, but Lingxiang waved her hand.

"This is not your fault; it is also because my own considerations were insufficient."

Lingxiang truly thought so; after all, the Void Cloud Sleeping Zen Technique was no ordinary technique, let alone the fact that no one in Yuanqing practiced it. To be caught off guard upon suddenly seeing something strange was only human nature, and there was nothing wrong with losing; even she had not expected the Taishang Sect to teach its disciples such a technique, but...

"But even so, you were also at fault. If you had not been arrogant and underestimated the enemy, rushing into action without probing the reality of the situation, you would not have ended up in such a sorry state. Impulsive actions are the easiest way to ruin things; remember this well."

Lingxiang had previously been unable to find an excuse to dampen Long Qi's arrogance, and now was a good opportunity; by bringing it up now, he would be less likely to find future setbacks difficult to accept.

Hearing this, Long Qi stopped hesitating to speak, though it was unclear whether he had taken Lingxiang's words to heart or not.

As for the Taishang Sect, having won a round, they were immediately met with a burst of cheers, which did not stop even when Chengkai took the stage. Compared to the Taishang Sect, the Yuanqing side appeared rather miserable, each one of them dejected, like defeated roosters.

However, despite the low morale, Chengkai did not seem to be affected; he walked onto the stage with his head held high and eyes fixed forward, looking full of spirit.

Seeing him like this, a smile appeared at the corner of Lingxiang's mouth; she truly had not misjudged Chengkai.

The reason Lingxiang did not use Liu Xia was precisely because she had considered this point. Based on her understanding, Liu Xia had a straightforward temperament and his emotions were easily swayed; once he encountered such a situation, he would very likely be discouraged. Chengkai was different; he had been accustomed to the slaughter of the Chenjian martial world since he was young, and his character was already resilient—to him, winning or losing was merely a matter of fighting another round.

It had to be said, the eye that True Person Zhaoming had for people was truly sharp.

Lingxiang had appreciated Chengkai from the start; this person was courageous, resolute, and steady in character, with his only flaw being that he was overly concerned with black and white. Fortunately, he was open-minded and could take others' words to heart and reflect upon them; after listening to Lingxiang's advice, he had indeed changed for the better.

Although she did not know what Dao rank Chengkai was at now, based on this point alone, Lingxiang was certain that Chengkai could win this round. After all, the Martial Dao competition did not involve techniques or Talisman Arrays and had nothing to do with cultivation, and Chengkai had always had his own way of dealing with enemies, never dragging things out; no matter how well Baiqing could mimic others, he would have no chance.

Long Qi was somewhat unconvinced in his heart, but the fact that he had lost was undeniable. Seeing his dejected appearance, Lingxiang comforted him: "Do not dwell on the win or loss of a single match; victory and defeat are common occurrences for a soldier. What is important is not why you lost, but what you gained from this defeat."

Lingxiang had spoken with earnest, heartfelt advice; she could only say so much, and she hoped Long Qi could understand her intentions.

Now, seeing that Baiqing had secured the first victory, Huiyan was very pleased and deliberately waited for the Taishang Sect disciples to stop cheering before calling for the second round to begin.

Chengkai was tall and burly with a rugged appearance, possessing a sturdy physique; many people, upon seeing him, would think he was a bold and unconstrained person, and the Taishang Sect disciples under the stage thought the same.

But unfortunately, a child who had grown up licking blood from the edge of a blade was, in his conduct, actually the most careful and steady; if he were not, how could he have survived until today?

Just as the Taishang Sect members felt that Chengkai was also an impulsive person, they saw Chengkai on the stage sit down on the ground, facing Baiqing, his eyes slightly closed, forming hand seals and reciting the Heart-Cleansing Mantra.

Amidst Chengkai's rhythmic chanting of the Heart-Cleansing Mantra, the people under the stage looked at each other in dismay, especially the Taishang Sect members, who were whispering among themselves.

Faced with this action from Chengkai, Baiqing was stunned for a moment, then returned to normal, resuming his half-asleep appearance and lying down on the Yanwu Stage.

The two remained motionless; if not for the whispering under the stage, it would have been as if time had stopped.

"This... is not quite in accordance with the rules..." Seeing this, Huiyan stood up and bowed, saying to Lingxiang with a troubled expression.

"How is it not in accordance with the rules?" Lingxiang said with a smile, cracking pine nuts, looking as if it were only natural: "It was agreed beforehand that the Martial Dao competition must not involve techniques or Talisman Arrays, but it was never said that one could not recite a mantra."

Hearing this, Huiyan was momentarily unable to refute her.

Lingxiang looked at the Yanwu Stage with delight, cheering inwardly—Chengkai was competing in patience with Baiqing!

Although the Void Cloud Sleeping Zen Technique was extremely strange, it had a fatal flaw: it required the opponent to strike first, after which it could hide behind the opponent's actions. Chengkai had seen through this point, which was why he had taken this action.

If the enemy does not move, I do not move; if the enemy moves, I wait for the opportunity to act.

This match was quite something; until the sunset slanted low, the two remained as they were—one sitting and reciting the Heart-Cleansing Mantra, the other lying horizontally on the Yanwu Stage—neither having made the first move.

How long was this going to take?

Huiyan did not know what to do for a moment, but then he discovered that Lingxiang had long since fallen asleep, resting her head on her hand. He hurriedly spoke up to remind her: "For your sect's disciple to be so passive in meeting the enemy, I fear it is also not quite in accordance with the rules..."

"Not in accordance with the rules?" Lingxiang's hand slipped, and she woke up with a start. "It is merely a strategy to meet the enemy; how is it against the rules? Furthermore, you say my Yuanqing disciple is passive, but what about your Taishang Sect?" As she spoke, she asked Huiyan with a curious expression:

"I find it strange; the Yuanqing disciple on the stage is sitting upright, reciting the Heart-Cleansing Mantra without stopping, while the Taishang Sect disciple has been sleeping from start to finish. Which one do you call passive? At the very least, we are moving our mouths, whereas looking at your Taishang Sect disciple, that is truly being passive!"

"This..."

If one had to put it that way, it was indeed reasonable, but why did Huiyan always feel that Lingxiang had planned this all along?