Chapter 234: Forked Road

Below the arena.

The two who had just decided the outcome walked toward the edge of the field.

"What was the killing move the Young Sect Master was hiding in her hand? It must be very powerful," Seeing Pei Ye said with a smile on the side. "It's a pity I didn't see it, it's really a pity!"

Li Piaoqing looked straight ahead: "I don't talk to people who play dirty."

Seeing Pei Ye widened his eyes: "Where did I play dirty?"

"You used the sword from my side."

"..." Seeing Pei Ye was speechless for a moment.

The young girl indeed only used "Yellow Jade," while he used both "Wind Yao Chapter" and "Yellow Jade," and it was indeed because of this joint that he won.

"Nothing to say, right?"

"... No, there is no such rule at all! This is a martial trial, not sparring."

"But you clearly knew I wouldn't use 'Wind Yao Chapter,' and you still used 【Stepping on Water to Pick Scales】, it's simply unfair," Li Piaoqing said earnestly. "And I didn't even tie my sleeves well."

"You don't know how to use 'Wind Yao Chapter,' that's because you're weak."

"..." Li Piaoqing took a deep breath, her cheeks slightly bulging. This was a common bickering, and she couldn't help but want to laugh. But at this time, the young girl looked up slightly, and the boy had an expression of looking down on her, which made her stunned for a moment. She remembered that she had clearly admitted defeat on the arena, and he had deliberately broken her posture, which suddenly made her feel some inexplicable grievances.

"Nothing to say, right?"

"..." Li Piaoqing lowered her head and stopped talking.

Seeing Pei Ye didn't realize anything, until the girl beside him whispered in a muffled voice: "Seeing Pei Ye."

"Hmm?"

The young girl lowered her head: "If I don't know how, can't you let me win?"

Seeing Pei Ye usually would sneer, "Li Piaoqing, who plays house with you on the arena," but at this time, the girl's light and soft voice made him notice that there was indeed some genuine grievance in it.

Seeing Pei Ye was stunned for a moment, his heart suddenly softened by something, he turned his head to look at the young girl, his eyes softened, and his mouth was already opened helplessly: "Ah... I..."

This expression made the young girl's mood rise immediately. She raised her head, her clear eyes looking at him, biting her lower lip slightly, a smile already overflowing, but her face was still tense with some grievances.

It was this situation that made Seeing Pei Ye's heart jump again, his gaze shrank back like an electric shock, and the pressure that was twisted into a ball rose from his heart again, blocking his happy mood. He pursed his lips and looked straight ahead.

He pretended not to discover anything: "What let—oh, that, I'll go see what's wrong with Junxue."

"..."

—

Seeing Pei Ye walked two steps before feeling his pace was a bit fast. He tried hard to restore his normal pace and walked to Zhang Junxue.

This was not entirely an excuse. Everything that happened on the arena during the first match had been reflected in Seeing Pei Ye's eyes. Watching Zhang Junxue walk down, Seeing Pei Ye wanted to find a chance to ask.

At this time, the young woman was still sitting alone at the edge of the field, wiping her big blade bit by bit.

Seeing Pei Ye walked to her, sat on the side, the boy's thoughts hadn't completely calmed down, and he just asked the prepared words: "Did something happen last night?"

Zhang Junxue's movements paused.

She had always been like a dull stone, but today her temperament had a clear sharpness.

In fact, she, who usually couldn't see her face clearly, hadn't lowered her head since entering the martial field today. But at this time, she looked at the boy, but couldn't help but look down at the ground again.

"..."

"What's wrong? Is there anything you can't say? Aren't we good friends?" Seeing Pei Ye organized his emotions and smiled.

But this smile didn't infect the young woman. Seeing Pei Ye was stunned by her silent expression. The young woman still lowered her head, her voice deep and light: "Seeing Pei Ye... I shouldn't have made friends with you."

"... What?"

"Because I think... if there is a hatred that must be completed in the heart, one shouldn't get involved with others... that's just the weakness of being greedy for gentleness."

Seeing Pei Ye was really stunned, unable to distinguish who they were talking about for a moment, and his emotions almost returned to the pressure just now.

But soon he reacted that it wasn't the same thing, and frowned: "What are you talking about?"

Zhang Junxue continued to wipe the blade calmly, earnestly stating her thoughts: "Because, to get along friendly and happily, everyone has to seek common ground while reserving differences. But when it doesn't touch the deepest things, everyone can help each other and be harmonious. But hatred must go to the extreme."

"..."

"When it reaches the extreme, no one is really on the same goal as you, so everyone will have differences... and even opposition," Zhang Junxue whispered. "So, people who carry deep hatred can't make friends... even relatives won't work."

"... What kind of crooked logic are you thinking about every day?" Seeing Pei Ye listened to a bunch of inexplicable things. "Am I not your friend?"

"Yes, but are you willing to put down everything you have and go in the same direction as my hatred?"

Seeing Pei Ye was even more inexplicable: "Why should I put down everything I have—is your hatred killing me?"

"..." Zhang Junxue looked at him and lowered her head. "If you don't want to chat, forget it."

"..." Seeing Pei Ye was indeed deliberately playing dumb, because he had already realized the young woman's thoughts, and some irritability rose in his heart.

Because before today, he had discussed the problem of revenge with the young woman several times, and the young woman was almost persuaded by him, but now he didn't know what happened last night.

Seeing Pei Ye sighed lightly and looked at the young woman seriously: "You are thinking wildly... I ask you, do you want to kill Qijiao Shang Huaitong on the arena by yourself again?"

Zhang Junxue didn't speak.

"Didn't we agree before? We should use a better way to kill him. After that, you can properly pursue your blade path."

"... We said at the time, try to kill him off the stage, if we didn't kill him... I would strike on the stage."

"Yes, but isn't there no chance? Since that night, Luo Defeng has gone down the mountain, and he and Qijiao Shang Huaitong have been inseparable."

"So only on the arena are they separated."

"No, things are different now. We have Tianshan," Seeing Pei Ye said warmly and earnestly. "At that time, we thought of assassination, but now the Cuiyu Sect and Tianshan will crush the Seven Serpents, and we can wait for the opportunity from a calm position."

"But Qijiao Shang Huaitong will go to the Sword Academy." The young woman was silent like a stone, and stubborn like a stone. "This martial trial is the last chance."

"I said he can't go."

"But he believes he can definitely go."

"... Who do you believe?" Seeing Pei Ye looked at her, removing his smile.

He had indeed thought about this matter. As the last way out for the Seven Serpents, the Cuiyu Sect would definitely coordinate with Tianshan to prevent this, and they indeed had powerful enough weapons—the involvement of the Huan Si Building hadn't been investigated clearly, and it wasn't impossible to link it to Qijiao Shang Huaitong.

Finally, if these efforts all failed, Seeing Pei Ye would even think of ways to ask Ming Qitian, who had returned to Bowang—Yunlang Mountain was the highest level of the Dao Enlightenment Meeting and had the second influence on the Sword Academy after the Great Tang imperial court.

In short, this matter could definitely be solved perfectly off the stage. For the past two days, letting Qijiao Shang Huaitong be invincible in front of his eyes, the Cuiyu Sect and other friends seemed a bit angry and anxious, but Seeing Pei Ye was not a person who was easily angered.

He had sufficient patience and could tolerate Qijiao Shang Huaitong's occasional cold eyes. He just wanted to fight his long-awaited martial trial peacefully and happily. If he won, he won; if he lost, he lost. Qijiao Shang Huaitong was not in his eyes.

This was also the advice he gave to the young woman—fighting for life on the arena, regardless of victory or defeat, was really not worth the loss.

"... Then you mean, if I run into Qijiao Shang Huaitong, I should admit defeat to him?"

"Is there anything wrong with that?"

"How is that possible, Seeing Pei Ye?" The young woman was annoyed for the first time.

"... This matter is not important, Junxue."

"This matter is very important."

"This matter is not important!"

"..." Zhang Junxue looked at him and lowered her head to continue wiping the blade. "Very important."

The two were silent for a moment.

"Very important, Seeing Pei Ye," the young woman repeated, her voice stubborn. "If this is not important, what else is important?"

Seeing Pei Ye took a deep breath and calmed his emotions.

—

Regardless of what they chatted about, the people who stepped down from the stage would no longer attract the audience's attention. After the boy and girl decided the outcome, the first round of the championship reached the last match.

However, for this match, the enthusiasm of everyone slightly subsided, because this was exactly one of the two matches that were almost without suspense—one had Qijiao Shang Huaitong, and the other had Zhang Zongyuan.

The only two Sixth Life had to meet in the finals.

Xu Sigong's familiar voice had spread throughout the field again: "The fourth match of the championship, the stick is carved with a tiger because of fear, and there is no door under the blade—Qiyun's Zhang Zongyuan, Dingyun's Yang Yan!"

On the viewing platform, Zhang Dingyun grabbed his wrist fiercely, and Fang Jidao beside him screamed in pain: "Eh, eh, eh, eh—"

"Ah, sorry, sorry," Zhang Dingyun let go hurriedly. "Forgot you have no cultivation."

He rubbed the slightly bruised wrist of the scholar, but his gaze never left the field below, muttering with tension and sorrow:

The only two at the Sixth Life Realm were destined to meet in the finals.

The familiar voice of Commandant Xu had already spread across the entire arena once again: "The fourth match of the championship, 'The Tiger Carved on the Stick of Fear, No Gate Beneath the Blade of Crossing'—Qiyun's Zhang Zongyuan versus Dingyun's Yang Yan!"

On the spectator stand, Zhang Dingyun suddenly gripped his wrist tightly, and Fang Jidao beside him let out a pained cry: "Eh, eh, eh, eh—"

"Ah, sorry, sorry." Zhang Dingyun hurriedly let go, "Forgot you have no cultivation."

He rubbed the scholar's slightly bruised wrist, but his gaze never shifted from the arena below for even a second, and one could hear the tension and lament in his muttering: "Brother Yang... Sixth Life Realm, oh Brother Yang..."

"I remember when Yang Yan just replaced Chang Yue, you boasted to me that he was a lock for the top four this year," Fang Jidao recalled.

"Times change, who knew there would be so many fierce people this year," Zhang Dingyun sighed, "But even so, I feel Brother Yang could still make it. It's just a pity there are only two at the Sixth Life Realm, and he had to be the one to draw him."

He gritted his teeth again: "Drawing Qijiao Shang Huaitong would have been fine, losing to Qiyun is just infuriating!"

Fang Jidao did not know how to comfort him; he was completely powerless, and watching the martial arts competition was just for the spectacle.

But Zhang Dingyun did not seem to expect his comfort at all. One second his two chubby hands were still twisted together, and the next, he had already stood up, waving his arms and shouting: "Dingyun, must win!!! Yang Yan, invincible!!!"

He shouted like this four or five times in a row, which did attract quite a few gazes, but it didn't stir up even a ripple.

"If you lose, you must lose with spirit," Zhang Dingyun sat down, panting as he said.

Below in the arena, the two had already stood upon the platform.

One cannot blame the audience for being indifferent; the situation in this match was indeed too stark—Yang Yan had always been compared alongside Zhang Mozhu. How long did Zhang Mozhu last under Zhang Zongyuan?

Three moves.

The Sixth Life Realm and the Fifth Life Realm were a gap of sixty-four meridians versus thirty-two. Moreover, Zhang Zongyuan was not like some old man who had scraped his way up, useless in everything but cultivation. He was in the prime of his life, and his "Tiger-Rejecting Stick" could force a Sixth Life Realm expert to avoid its edge even when he was only at the Fifth Life Realm.

Such a Sixth Life Realm expert, daring to fight and struggle, with seasoned experience, and weapons and techniques that were uniquely unorthodox, was precisely the most difficult type to deal with.

Yang Yan was, of course, a rare powerhouse among the Fifth Life Realm, but after all, he was only at the Fifth Life Realm.

And he was only fifteen years old.

The youth stood upon the platform, his gaze landing on the person opposite him.

This was his first time facing this man head-on. The man stood quietly gripping his stick, his body showing no signs of building momentum, and there was no expression on his face, yet Yang Yan felt as if a fierce tiger was slowly crouching low before him.

In reality, Yang Yan saw something in this man that was the same as in himself—they were both outsiders, neither participating in nor caring about any of the grudges or grievances here. Bearing unique arts, they had only one goal: to fight in the arena, to seize the championship, and to win every victory with the most resolute attitude.

Now, two such people had collided.

Yang Yan took a deep breath of the cool autumn air and slowly gripped the hilt to draw his blade.

He remembered the match where Zhang Mozhu was defeated, and recalling the man's violent strikes, his body slowly tensed up.

Zhang Zongyuan, however, did not have many thoughts. A youth at the Fifth Life Realm could in no way make him feel as if he were facing a formidable enemy, but the man did not show the slightest contempt. To him, it was just another case of a lion fighting a rabbit.

Under the gaze of the entire arena, the sun was high and the wind fell, and the sound of the tripod rang out suddenly.

Zhang Zongyuan stretched into a blurred shadow.

In the three days, this was his first time taking the initiative so proactively and so unexpectedly to strike first. Exclamations had already sounded from the spectator stand.

Yang Yan was also startled, but his body had not relaxed for even a moment. At this time, the stick, with its imposing momentum and whistling wind, pressed toward his brow. Yang Yan received it with his blade held horizontally, but at the very first moment of contact, all his preparations were destroyed like dry wood.

The violence of the man's stick and his calm expression were pulled to two complete extremes. Although they were completely unfamiliar opponents, there was no probing in the opening move; the first strike was a completely overwhelming explosion.

This was a classic move of buried force, where the power was firmly restrained within the stick, only exploding completely at the moment of collision—or rather, it was the collision of the weapons that punctured this balloon filled with force.

The most sudden killing move in the "Tiger-Rejecting Stick," 【Startling the Grass】.

Facing this strike, Yang Yan retreated a step to brace himself, first blocking with his blade, then tilting the blade to discharge the force, and then retreating in a state of collapse. Finally, he had no choice but to turn his long blade, using "Swallowing the Sea" to submerge this force.

In the very first round, the battle between the two had already entered its most intense stage.

(End of chapter)