Yu Qian did not join them for breakfast the next day, though Yu Mao, Yu Chenguang, and his two wives did.

“Big sister and big brother are so strong!” Yu Mao squealed excitedly. “I had no idea you two were so strong! I bet you’ll beat up everyone in this tournament!”

“Maybe. There are a lot of strong opponents this year,” Hou Jingshu said with a little smile. She seemed rather happy about Yu Mao’s confidence in her.

“We have been watching your matches quite closely. You’ve become incredibly strong, Your Highness. I have no doubt that you’ll do well,” said Liu Heifeng.

“I bet you’ll kick all their asses,” added Li Hua.

“No cursing in front of our daughter,” Yu Chenguang chided, causing Li Hua to blush.

They left for the arena after breakfast and separated from Yu Chenguang and his family. The waiting room didn’t have nearly as many people now as it used to. Only eight people if you included them remained inside of the large room, making it feel quite empty. Mei Xilan and Xian Fei were in one corner. Húndàn Wang and Hou Gun were in another. Ye Chun and Jia Xinyue were spread further out and doing their own thing.

Wu Jian almost did a double take when he noticed how rabid Ye Chun seemed. His eyes were bloodshot and his expression looked like a man on the verge of violence. The agitated glare in his eyes as he looked at everyone like they were a piece of meat made him feel wary. There was definitely something wrong with this man.

Does dual cultivation increase your strength at the cost of your sanity? No. Maybe it’s because he uses a fire cultivation method.

Hua Xue had told them that people who used a fire cultivation method were all hot headed, and that made a kind of sense. Fire was often seen as a sign of passion, but just like many things, there was a light and a dark side to fire. The fire element provided warmth, enthusiasm, and creativity. Conversely, an excess of fire could bring aggression, impatience, and impulsive behavior. If Ye Chun’s cultivation was unstable, it was possible that his fire cultivation technique was having a negative influence on his psyche.

His thoughts were interrupted when Húndàn Qie began speaking.

“Welcome to the last day of the Shang Kingdom National Tournament. Are you all excited?” A cheer met his announcement. He let the cheers go on for some time and subside naturally, then began speaking again. “There are only three rounds today. Round 1 will consist of four matches, the semi-finals will consist of two, and the finals will be the last round between the two semi-finalists. There will be a single break between the semi-finals and finals, so use that time to go to the restroom, grab a bite to eat, or hedge your bets. Now, if all of you are ready, let us see who is fighting first today!”

The head elder once more swung his sword to create a screen in the sky, and the screen displayed two names.

Jian Wu vs. Ye Chun.

“Looks like I’m right from the start,” said Wu Jian.

“Good luck,” said Hou Jingshu, kissing his mask. Húndàn Wang glared when he saw this, but Wu Jian paid him no mind.

“Thanks.”

Wu Jian and a crazy-looking Ye Chun went up to the platform. They stood apart from each other, and he once more studied his opponent. Ye Chun was practically foaming at the mouth now. He looked seconds away from trying to rip Wu Jian’s limbs off with his bare hands.

“Are both fighters ready? Bow to your ancestors, bow to me, and now to each other.” Wu Jian did as instructed, but Ye Chun did not. The elder glared at the boy. “Are you listening to me? I said to bow.”

Ye Chun blinked several times before responding. He bowed, but it was clear that he was struggling. It was like his mind wasn’t completely there. Still, he bowed, showing that he had managed to retain some sanity. The elder had to know something was wrong with him. Shouldn’t he stop this match, or was he allowing it to continue because he wanted to see what would happen?

“The match will begin on the count of three, two, one… fight!”

Wu Jian summoned Pale Moon as Ye Chun launched himself at him. His arms and legs caught fire as he spun through the air and came down with a powerful heel kick, though Wu Jian caught the attack on the flat of his sword. Flames jetted from the other man’s feet as though trying to attack him. However, Wu Jian used his superior strength to push the man away.

Ye Chun didn’t look phased as he swung his arms like he was slinging rocks, but instead of rocks, what flew at Wu Jian was fireballs. Despite Pale Moon’s incredible weight and unwieldy size, he swung the sword around. Small spatial distortions appeared along the blade’s edge as he sliced through each fireball.

A crackling sound and intense heat from above caused Wu Jian to look up. Ye Chun had raised his hands toward the sky as though appealing to the heavens. High above him was a massive ball of flames that resembled a miniature sun--except this was bright blue.

Wu Jian narrowed his eyes.

A flame's color was often used to denote its power. Normal flames were orange, then came yellow, and finally, blue. Blue was the strongest flame available.

Of course, this only included normal flames. It did not include unique flames, which often came with their own unique properties.

Ye Chun obviously had a normal flame. His flames were originally orange, the weakest type of flame, but now they were bright blue. How had his fire changed so much in such a short amount of time? The only answer was the boy had taken something.

I should end this quickly. Whatever he took is obviously dangerous.

Wu Jian took a deep breath as he channeled more chi through Pale Moon. He placed one foot forward, the other behind him, and held the weapon slightly behind him, the tip lightly caressing the ground. He channeled more chi into the weapon, causing it to glow a bright silver.

Ye Chun swung his arms forward and down, and the giant ball of flame came down as well. The heat became even more intense. Sweat poured down Wu Jian’s face, chest, and back. The glare from the fireball was so bright that he almost had trouble looking at it directly. He narrowed his eyes and focused power into his sword.

“Cut through it!!”

[Spatial Folding]

Wu Jian did not use Spatial Severing, the unique ability those who understood the Dao of Space could use to cut through any and all substances. Instead, he folded the space his sword cut. Pale Moon grazed against the fireball’s outer shell. The area in front of it became distorted and began moving inward. Everything was being sucked toward a single point. It wasn’t long before the fireball shrank to the size of a human torso, then a head, then a fist, and then it disappeared altogether.

Ye Chun chose that moment to race toward Wu Jian. His fist was encased in bright blue flames. He threw a punch at Wu Jian’s unprotected flank, but his fist phased right through Wu Jian’s body.

Whether Ye Chun was surprised or not, Wu Jian did not find out. He swung Pale Moon with a good deal of strength. His attack slammed into Ye Chun so hard that his body sped through the air, crashed into one of the pillars on the stage, then broke right through it. Debris exploded from the pillar as Ye Chun came out the other side and tumbled across the ground. The remaining upper portion of the pillar crashed into the lower stump, cracks spreading as it toppled over.

Quiet descended on the audience.

In the silence that followed, the elder raised his hand.

“The winner of this round is Jian Wu!”

***

Yi Fu glared down at Jian Wu as he walked off the stage. He tapped his finger agitatedly against the armrest.

The Burning Hands Sect had their own VIP booth, which, while not as luxurious as the one belonging to the Saintly Sword Sect or Ice Phoenix Sect, was still nice. All the furnishings were top quality. The red carpet was rich and soft. Even the chair upon which he sat felt like a pillow.

Of course, this luxury was nothing compared to what he could have back at the Burning Flame Pavilion.

This boy is definitely going to be a problem. His strength is unfathomable and he’s only at the Ninth Subrealm of the Asura Realm. Letting him grow any stronger would be a mistake.

Jian Wu had abilities and strength that exceeded his cultivation, and while there were others who could do the same, the strength he possessed was unnatural. Yi Fu did not doubt that this man was the true dark horse of the tournament. He didn’t think Húndàn Wang would be able to defeat him, though maybe Mei Xilan could.

That girl is another anomaly, but I don’t think I’ll have many opportunities to kill her. The Ice Phoenix Sect lives in seclusion. Getting there is arduous enough, but if the rumors are true, their sect is protected by both a powerful sealing array and a divine beast.

Divine beasts were similar to magical beasts, but they contained traces of a god’s divinity, making them many times more powerful. Not many divine beasts existed. They were so rare that you’d have better luck finding a unicorn’s horn or phoenix feather.

From the intelligence they had gathered on the Ice Phoenix Sect, the divine beast protecting it was an ice phoenix. That was where the sect’s name had come from. All the phoenixes that their sect rode were birthed from the ice phoenix.

They had yet to gauge the strength the ice phoenix possessed. That was a problem. If it was at the Human Limit Realm, they would be fine, but what if it was at the Deva Realm or higher? What would they do then?

We might not be able to discover anything until the war begins… but it might be too late to stop by then. Maybe we can appeal to the Ice Phoenix Sect and convince them to not attack us when we begin our conquest of the Shang Kingdom?

He didn’t know enough about their sect master to know if she would be amenable to forming a non-aggression pact with them. That was something they would have to think about later.

I should do something about that boy before too long.

He would have to kill Jian Wu. He wouldn’t do so now. He couldn’t afford to attack them while they were at the Saintly Sword Sect, but perhaps he could once they left. The only problem was he needed to kill him in such a way that it didn’t incriminate the Burning Flame Pavilion. He wasn’t afraid of the Shang Kingdom’s retaliation, but he was afraid of what the Heavenly Sword Sect might do if the Shang Kingdom appealed to them.

I might have to stay inside the Shang Kingdom longer than anticipated.

Yi Fu wasn’t originally meant to stay in the Shang Kingdom past the tournament, but it was clear there were threats they needed to clear if their plan was to succeed.

***

The next battle was between Mei Xilan and Húndàn Wang. This was a match that Wu Jian actually found himself interested in.

He and Hou Jingshu stood near the viewing window to watch the fight. Both fighters were already standing across from each other. Húndàn Wang looked more determined than ever to win. Mei Xilan, on the other hand, appeared completely unconcerned. Maybe it was just because he couldn’t see past her veil. He wondered what she looked like underneath it.

“I never expected these two to fight each other,” said Hou Jingshu.

“Neither did I,” Wu Jian confessed. “It’s unfortunate since I wanted to fight Húndàn Wang myself.”

“Then you think Mei Xilan will win?” asked Hou Jingshu.

Wu Jian smiled behind his mask and shrugged. “Don’t you think the same? I think it’s obvious who will win by looking at their fights so far. Húndàn Wang has been forced to reveal a lot more of his hand than she has. Every battle she’s fought ended in a single move. Meanwhile, Húndàn Wang has been forced to expend more energy and techniques to win his battles.”

“I was thinking the same thing.”

“So you just wanted to confirm your thoughts?”

“Yes.”

Húndàn Wang appeared to be saying something to Mei Xilan. Wu Jian channeled chi into his ear, hoping to enhance his hearing enough that he could pick up what was being said.

“I know that you are strong, but I’m afraid you’re going to lose here. Please do not blame me for going all out. I know better than to hold back against you,” the young man was saying.

“You need not worry about me. Fight with everything you have,” said Mei Xilan, her soft voice like the gentle tinkling of wind chimes.

Wu Jian felt a little conflicted. Húndàn Wang, for all his dislike toward Wu Jian because of his relationship with Hou Jingshu, didn’t actually seem like a bad person. He was just… obsessed with the Shang Kingdom’s princess. And it wasn’t like Wu Jian could blame him. Hou Jingshu was gorgeous.

Beauty might not trump strength in importance to a cultivator, but it was far more important in a romantic partner. Whether you were a man or a woman, nobody wanted an ugly spouse. That was a sad truth and a reason why so many female cultivators went to such great lengths to maintain their beauty even as they aged.

Not everyone held the same concepts of beauty, but some things were considered universal, and Hou Jingshu was definitely someone who would be universally attractive. Wu Meiying and Zhou Lihua were also like that. They were possessors of nation toppling good looks. It made Wu Jian realize how fortunate he was.

Then again, perhaps this was good karma balancing out the fact that his entire clan had been destroyed.

“Are both fighters ready?” asked the elder. Wu Jian shook his head and focused once more on the arena floor. “Bow to your ancestors. Bow to me. Now bow to each other. Very good.” The elder raised his hand. “You may begin on the counter of three, two, one… fight!”

The elder chopped his hand, signifying the beginning of the battle between the two participants with the highest cultivation.