“What’s the rush? No need to worry. With that Ling Xiao, a mere invincible ninth-level Mortal Realm cultivator, even I could easily defeat him, let alone Senior Brother Bei. I don’t know what you’re all worried about,” one disciple said.
“Yeah, that overconfident fool is definitely dead. A life-and-death duel? He’s just asking for it,” another added.
Not only did the disciples of the three southern sects think this way, but even the neutral martial artists shared the same view.
Yuehua Sect had declined so rapidly in recent years that no one took the sect seriously anymore. As for its top core disciple, they were even less noteworthy.
Only Ba Tianhu and Chen Meng, who had faced Ling Xiao before, looked solemn.
Though they believed Bei Duanchang could win, they didn’t think it would be too easy.
“Heh, it looks like my reward will indeed go to Bei Duanchang. I told you to let him challenge the Silver Jade Demon Elephant, but that Ling Xiao wouldn’t listen,” Zhao Yu, the Crown Prince of Beihan Kingdom, said as he stood, addressing the crowd. “Are there any Yuehua Sect disciples among you? Go back and tell your sect leader to stop letting their disciples come out to die for no reason.”
There were indeed Yuehua Sect disciples in the crowd, both outer and inner sect members, all hanging their heads, wishing they could tear off their sect badges.
It was too humiliating.
They felt utterly ashamed to be Yuehua Sect disciples at that moment.
They didn’t dare speak, only lowering their heads in silence.
But finally, someone stood up.
“Your Highness, the fight isn’t over yet. I don’t believe Senior Brother Ling will lose,” said a young man, recently promoted to an inner disciple of Yuehua Sect.
He was very young, and Ling Xiao might not even know his name, but he had always idolised Ling Xiao.
To him, Ling Xiao was the one who could change Yuehua Sect and restore its glory.
“Kid, you’re dreaming,” Zhao Yu said with a scornful laugh.
“You’re the one dreaming,” a loud, icy voice suddenly rang out from the dust, making everyone in the arena tremble.
“Didn’t Chen Meng tell you? She was defeated by me in a single move. What makes you think that Bei Duanchang can beat me?” the voice continued.
In the haze, a figure waved a hand, and the dust cleared rapidly, revealing the entire beast-fighting arena to the crowd.
Ling Xiao stood there, smirking at Zhao Yu.
In his hand, he held the lifeless body of Bei Duanchang.
Thud.
Ling Xiao tossed the corpse at Zhao Yu’s feet. The sound of it hitting the ground was soft, but to the spectators, it felt like an earthquake.
The fight was over.
But the one alive wasn’t the favoured Bei Duanchang, but Ling Xiao, underestimated by almost everyone.
A disciple from a sect everyone looked down on.
A rising star who had only recently emerged.
A figure many had never even seen before.
Yet, in the capital of Beihan Kingdom, in front of all these people, he had killed the third-ranked core disciple of the three southern sects.
Ling Xiao’s face even carried a mocking smile.
If Bei Duanchang hadn’t ambushed him from behind, the outcome might not have been so drastic.
Yuehua Sect had been too timid in recent years, but some sects had grown too arrogant, forgetting that in the world of martial artists, it’s like rowing against the current: if you don’t advance, you fall behind.
“Senior Brother Bei is dead?” the disciples of the three southern sects gasped.
They were utterly shattered, unable to believe the scene before them.
It had happened in the blink of an eye.
Before they could even swallow, the Senior Brother Bei they admired and revered was dead.
“The top core disciple of the Poison King Sect? Hmph, nothing special. His mouth was impressive, but his skills were lacking,” Ling Xiao said, sneering provocatively at the disciples of the three southern sects.
His words made their pupils shrink, their faces burning with anger.
This was blatant provocation.
Absolute humiliation.
An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.
They had just insulted Yuehua Sect and Ling Xiao, and now they were merely receiving the same treatment.
The disciples of the three southern sects glared at Ling Xiao. If looks could kill, he’d have died hundreds of times over.
“Who knows what underhanded tricks you used? Are Yuehua Sect disciples all so smug and arrogant?” Zhao Yu said, seemingly feeling the need to step in.
After all, he had dealings with the three southern sects and even the Holy Son from the distant Heavenly King Sect. He had to stand up for Bei Duanchang.
Ling Xiao smiled faintly, wondering how someone so shameless could become Crown Prince. But on second thought, it made sense. Without thick skin and cunning, one couldn’t hold such a position.
“What, does Your Highness want to try me too?” Ling Xiao asked, looking at Zhao Yu with disdain, his face full of mockery.
Zhao Yu was so startled by the question that he plopped back into his seat, swallowing hard.
He was only a Martial Vein Realm cultivator, far inferior to Bei Duanchang. How could he dare fight Ling Xiao? That would be suicide.
“I, I wouldn’t stoop to fighting someone like you,” he stammered after a long pause, managing only this feeble retort.
“Hmph, no courage to fight me, yet you still run your mouth? Keep your tail tucked and behave,” Ling Xiao said with a cold snort. “You seem to have forgotten something. In the Mysterious Realm, power speaks, not status.”
Zhao Yu trembled all over.
No one, absolutely no one, had ever humiliated him like this. Who was this Ling Xiao from Yuehua Sect, and how dared he?
“Who will take this kid’s challenge for me? If you win, I’ll reward you with a million mid-grade spirit stones, plus high rank and lifelong wealth,” Zhao Yu shouted, trembling.
He was desperate, forced to appeal to the crowd in the stands.
Though the reward was generous, compared to their lives, people knew what mattered more. Most lowered their heads, avoiding Ling Xiao’s and Zhao Yu’s eyes.
“Hahaha, all of you with your silver tongues, so quick to insult, but when it comes to fighting, you’re all cowards? Is this the three southern sects? Pathetic. You dare insult Yuehua Sect? From now on, when you see Yuehua Sect disciples, you’d better keep your heads down, lest you be laughed at,” Ling Xiao said.
He was always one to return a slight tenfold. If others left him alone, he wouldn’t bother them. But if they provoked him, he’d repay it a hundredfold.
He had heard every word they said earlier, each insult worse than the last. Now, it was time to collect the debt.
