Chapter 49: Victory and Unconsciousness

The gaze falls back onto the battle in the arena.

Qi Hao's wrists were already trembling slightly; the power of that lightning just now was truly immense, forcing him to exhaust all his strength to dodge it.

Su Changqing was not feeling very well either at this moment. The lightning technique was one he had only recently comprehended and was not yet proficient in, yet he had used it with all his might, consuming more than half of the spiritual energy in his body in a single strike.

However, neither was willing to concede defeat even now. Instead, after catching their breath for a few moments, they exchanged glances again, and two figures flashed and clashed once more.

For half a day, the two fought for a full half-day. The arena had long since been shattered by their divine abilities, and they had moved directly into mid-air, trading blow for blow. They had exhausted every kind of divine ability and technique; in the sky, snow drifted and lightning fell, with hundreds of lights flickering one after another, leaving everyone gasping in amazement.

Is this the battle between heaven-gifted geniuses? It is truly terrifying! Until the very last moment, after one final exchange, one of them finally plummeted straight down from the sky, but because of the blinding light, the crowd could not see who it was at all.

"Is it Junior Brother Su, or Senior Brother Qi!"

The crowd shouted and speculated one after another.

The Disciples could not see clearly, but the various Masters on the high platform saw it perfectly. True Person Cangsong took a step forward, flew rapidly toward the falling figure, and grabbed them, allowing them to descend slowly.

Only when they landed on the ground did everyone see clearly that the person who had fallen was actually Qi Hao.

Qi Hao's face was deathly pale, and his whole body was already exhausted and powerless. After coughing painfully in Cangsong's grip, he said with sorrow and frustration: "Master, I have lost."

"You have already given your all; this is not your fault."

Although Cangsong was furious inside, after seeing the heavy injuries Qi Hao was suffering from, the scolding he had been about to utter remained unsaid, turning into a word of comfort in the end.

"Senior Brother Qi Hao has lost! It is actually Senior Brother Qi Hao who has been defeated!"

"Wow! Junior Brother Su has won again, defeating Qi Hao to become the champion of this Seven Peaks Martial Arts Tournament!"

"I knew it! I knew we couldn't underestimate Junior Brother Su. I'm going to get rich! I'm going to turn my life around! This was at odds of one to twelve!"

The crowd looked up.

Su Changqing was still standing proudly high in the sky. Although his face looked tired and pale and his figure swayed slightly, he still stood straight. The gentle breeze blew his lapels; he truly looked like a powerhouse of the current age!

Upon receiving the news that Qi Hao had been defeated, Su Changqing slowly flew down from the sky. As soon as he landed, he could not stand steady and had to use his sword to support himself to barely remain upright.

"Junior Brother!"

From the viewing stand set up by Xiaozhu Peak, a series of concerned calls rang out. A white-clad figure flew out from among them and landed beside Su Changqing, wanting to support him.

Su Changqing waved his hand to indicate he did not need support, a smile appearing on his weary face: "Senior Sister Lu, don't worry, I am fine."

Immediately after, someone also flew down from the Masters' viewing stand, eyes filled with concern as they looked at Su Changqing and walked slowly toward him.

"Master, I won!"

Su Changqing said to Shuiyue with a confident smile.

"Mm, you won!"

A rare, beautiful smile appeared on Shuiyue's cold face, though her eyes held concern for Su Changqing that she could not hide: "Stop talking for now, get some good rest!"

With that, Shuiyue flicked a finger, and a strand of spiritual energy landed on Su Changqing's brow. Su Changqing could no longer hide his fatigue; he closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep just like that. The last thing he saw was Shuiyue holding him in her arms; as for what happened afterward, he knew nothing at all. When he woke up again, Su Changqing opened his eyes to see several senior sisters busy around him, and a steaming medicine pot, from which the bitter smell of medicine drifted from time to time, as if they were decocting some kind of medicine.

"When Junior Brother was standing proudly in the sky, he was simply dashing!"

"More than just dashing—fighting for so long without losing, standing tall, the breeze blowing his robes, he looked just like a true immortal descended to earth!"

"This time, Junior Brother has truly brought glory to our Xiaozhu Peak!"

"By the way, Senior Sister, today is my turn to feed Junior Brother his medicine, don't you dare fight me for it."

"Why do I remember it being my turn!"

Listening to their self-absorbed chatter, Su Changqing smiled helplessly and rubbed his forehead slightly. He sat up silently from the bed and asked the senior sisters: "Senior Sisters, you..."

"Junior Brother, you're awake?!"

"Quick, quick, quick! Our Junior Brother is finally awake. I'll go notify Master and the others first; you all take good care of Junior Brother here."

These senior sisters were still chatting when they suddenly heard Su Changqing's voice. They all turned their heads abruptly, and upon seeing Su Changqing awake, they were both pleasantly surprised and concerned.

"Senior Sister, how long have I been asleep?"

Listening to their meaning, Su Changqing gathered that after he fell asleep that day, he must have slept for quite a while, but he was not clear on exactly how many days.

"Three days, Junior Brother, you have slept for three whole days!"

A senior sister replied to Su Changqing.

Three days?! Su Changqing shook his head silently. He had originally thought he would sleep for a day or two at most; he had not expected to sleep for three full days.

"Then, Senior Sisters, what are you doing?"

Su Changqing cast his gaze back to the medicine pot and asked them curiously.

"Brewing medicine for you. Junior Brother, you were unconscious for these three days, and Master said you have internal injuries that need careful recuperation, otherwise she fears there might be lingering complications later."

"That's right, we senior sisters have been taking care of you for these three days, decocting spiritual medicine and feeding it to you while you were unconscious. You don't need to thank us; just give each of us a kiss and we'll call it even."

The senior sisters bloomed with smiles and teased him.

"Cough, cough, Senior Sisters, you are just teasing me."

Su Changqing coughed twice. Fortunately, having stayed at Xiaozhu Peak for a long time, he had grown accustomed to the bold remarks that this group of senior sisters would occasionally blurt out.

Having obtained the information he wanted, Su Changqing used his spiritual energy to check his internal condition. The battle that day had truly been hard on him; his spiritual energy was depleted, and his whole body felt as if it had been pulverized, with every part aching intensely.

But looking at it now, his whole body felt comfortable and completely free of the pain from that day. He did not know if it was thanks to the powerful breathing and recovery ability of the Boundless Profound Clarity Dao he practiced, or the effect of the medicine his senior sisters had decocted for him, or perhaps both working together that allowed him to recover so quickly.

Hmm? As he continued to probe, Su Changqing discovered a strange point within his body.

That was, in his dantian, a golden round bead had appeared. It lay quietly in the dantian, standing firm and motionless. All the spiritual energy in his body flowed toward it, and after being refined and nourished by it, this spiritual energy became even more refined and pure.

(End of chapter)