Chapter 1654: Something Fishy

“Ah!” Shi Dingtian exclaimed. He had never expected her to actually do that! He clutched his eyes and screamed miserably.

Forget about him, even the spectators clutched their eyes in pain. Ah, we’re going freaking blind!

Qiu Honglei seized the chance to attack. Shi Dingtian was blinded and in intense pain. He could only instinctively brandish his fists to protect himself, but how could that kind of passive defense be enough? He quickly suffered several attacks from Qiu Honglei before ultimately, a ball of light slammed into his body with a huge explosion. He could no longer hold on and fell from the stage.

The whole sequence of events happened too quickly. By the time the spectators recovered from the powerful light, they saw Shi Dingtian lying on the ground. Everyone on Golden Peak was speechless. They had expected an evenly-matched competition and hadn’t expected it to be decided so quickly. However, this Peng Wuyan’s way of winning was just too… despicable.

Sure enough, Cave Master Mu couldn't take it anymore. He slammed the table and got up, glaring furiously at Qiu Honglei as he screamed, “Shameful! How can you fight like that?!”

Qiu Honglei said disapprovingly, “I was already lenient, or else his injuries would be more serious.”

She had actually held back because of this foolish kid’s simple nature, deciding to strike with her fists instead. Otherwise, there wouldn’t be a single shred of skin intact on Shi Dingtian’s body, and he would be just like Liang Ling from a few days prior.

Cave Master Mu choked. He naturally knew that she had held back, but he was more concerned about what she had done beforehand. He said, “You already agreed to not use that blinding skill, so why did you immediately use it to trick him?”

Before Qiu Honglei could speak, Yun Jianyue quickly stepped forward to protect her disciple. She retorted, “Don’t you know that all’s fair in war? Who cares whether you believe them or not on the battlefield? You’d just end up dying without even knowing how.”

Cave Master Mu shouted angrily, “This isn’t the battlefield, but an arena!”

“See how dumb your disciple looked? He’d probably be the same on the real battlefield too. Suffering a bit and learning a lesson today is better than him losing his life in the future, right?” Yun Jianyue said, clearly not agreeing with Cave Master Mu’s logic.

“You’re making such a despicable thing sound so proper and up right. Are you part of the righteous sects or the Devil Sect?!” Cave Master Mu roared angrily.

Yun Jianyue was clearly upset as she shot back, “A loss is a loss; if you can’t take it, then don’t compete! The junior loses, so the elder steps forward? You’re even beneath the Devil Sect at this point!”

Now, Guan Chouhai, Elder Xu, and the others’ expressions became unpleasant. Why the heck are we getting caught up in the collateral damage too?

Cave Master Mu slammed the table and got up, yelling, “Peng, I’ve already endured you for a long time!”

Yun Jianyue also erupted with fury, shooting back, “What, do you want to fight? This old one will keep you company!”

Both of them began rolling up their sleeves. The disciples below didn’t really mind, as they weren’t involved and actually wanted to see the elders really start fighting.

However, as the official host, Wang Wuxie couldn't let that happen. He quickly stepped forward to say, “Please calm down, both of you. Harmony is a virtue, harmony is a virtue.”

Cave Master Mu said, “Brother Wang, you have to distinguish between right and wrong here! Isn’t this one from Emptiness Isle going too far?”

“Uh…” Wang Wuxie trailed off. He also felt that Peng Wuyan’s actions were a bit despicable. However, there was nothing in the rules prohibiting what she had done, so he couldn't really openly condemn it. After some time, he looked toward Tranquility Temple’s Master Jian Huang and said, “Master, you are a person of virtue and prestige. What does your distinguished self think about this matter?”

Blame can never catch up to me as long as I shift it fast enough!

“Amitabha buddha~” Master Jian Huang said as he brought his hands together. “This is an internal dispute within the daoist sects. This old one belongs to the Buddhist sects, so I fear that it is not my place to intervene.”

What, do you think I don’t know how to shift the blame too?

Wang Wuxie cursed him for being an old fox. He could only ask the other judges now. However, no one present was stupid. They had just been watching the drama; which one of them would want to draw all of the hate?

Wang Wuxie started to feel a headache coming on. If the others didn’t say anything, he would have to. In the end, he would be the one to draw ire.

However, his gaze suddenly landed on Zu An. His eyes couldn't help but light up as he asked, “Sir Zu, do you have any opinions on this matter?” This kid still looks young and vigorous. He’s not as cunning as those old foxes. Can’t I just use him as a shield?

Zu An looked at all the other judges. He sneered, as he could more or less guess what they were all thinking. However, he wasn’t scared of things getting out of hand. When he heard that, he replied, “Lady Peng was indeed a bit shameless earlier.”

Cave Master Mu immediately stuck out his chest when he heard that. For the first time, he felt that this kid didn’t look so gad.

Yun Jianyue and Qiu Honglei’s expressions changed a bit. Could it be that Zu An was going to speak for the other side?

Before they could even get mad, however, Zu An already seemed to have changed his perspective, continuing, “Still, the rules are still in place and nothing has been violated. So, even though it doesn’t really align with the nobility of the daoist sects, nothing about it deserves punishment. As such, there’s nothing I can do to reprimand her either. In fact, Cave Master Mu should be more concerned with something else. It’s a good thing that Shi Dingtian’s nature is pure and honest, but those who are too pure can easily be exploited.”

Yun Jianyue and Qiu Honglei’s feelings changed from worry to joy. They thought to themselves, As expected of the one we favor! He always takes our side no matter what.

Zu An couldn't help but feel a bit of regret when he sensed the passion in their eyes. Is my charm a bit too great? If I help them, what if they can’t help but fall in love with me?

Sigh, I just can’t seem to learn how to keep some distance from women.

When he heard Zu An support Emptiness Isle, Cave Master Mu surged with anger. However, when he heard the rest of the statement, he had a pensive expression. This was indeed a big problem… That child Dingtian was too simple.

Meanwhile, Wang Wuxie tried to appease Cave Master Mu, speaking up about some of Shi Dingtian’s outstanding points to flatter him. When the others heard that, they also pitched in some words of praise. Cave Master Mu’s anger thus gradually settled.

…

As the day’s fights had concluded, Feng Wuchang gave a small speech, then declared that the next round would be held on the following day. However, before then, they would draw the lots for the battle.

There was only one winner, and there were three people left. Both Righteous Sun Sect and Emptiness Isle’s disciples hoped to get the bye. If they got it, they would have more time to rest, and they could only use Pei Mianman to wear out the last opponent.

As for Pei Mianman, they all already assumed that she would have to fight. After all, competitors who got the bye twice in a row were already rare in the history of this daoist competition. Getting it a third time was even more unheard of.

Even Pei Mianman thought the same way. Elder Huo Ling even helped her analyze her opponents, and they discussed whether Wu Xiaofan or Peng Wuyan would be a better opponent for her.

Wu Xiaofan was likely stronger, so their first thought was that Peng Wuyan would be a better choice. However, considering that Peng Wuyan was of the light element, which could counter the darkness element a bit, facing her wouldn’t be that easy either.

In contrast, Wu Xiaofan and Wan Guiyi had really beaten each other up badly today, so it was more important to eliminate Wu Xiaofan before he recovered. Otherwise, even if Pei Mianman won against Peng Wuyan, she would have to face Wu Xiaofan later, who would practically have recovered after some rest. That made victory seem more difficult.

Pei Mianman nodded, feeling that defeating the seriously injured Wu Xiaofan would be better. Apart from that, she had a strange sense that this Peng Wuyan seemed to have some mysterious hostility against her. She had never met that woman before, nor had they ever interacted before meeting at Violet Mountain. She couldn’t have offended Peng Wuyan in any way, right?

𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

If she hadn’t seen the other woman’s looks, she would have suspected that Peng Wuyan had a thing with Zu An. However, no matter how much of a skirt-chaser Ah Zu was, his standards were rather high. He wouldn’t stoop so low as to have a relationship with that kind of person…

She walked onto the stage, and was just about to draw her next opponent when she ran into Zu An.

“Lady Pei, you should eat the other half of this pill too,” Zu An said as he unfolded his hand and handed her the other half of the Fortune Pill with a smile. After all, the pill had a time limit. It had likely already passed over the course of the two fights, so Pei Mianman had to take it again.

Pei Mianman was stunned. However, she didn’t doubt him and ate it.

Elder Huo Ling was too late to stop her. She couldn't help but give her disciple a glare. Does this stupid lass have no memory? Why is she eating whatever a man gives her again? Then, she gave Zu An an unkind look and asked, “What did you give her now?”

The others also looked at Zu An curiously. Why was this Zu An always feeding Pei Mianman things to eat? More importantly, why was Pei Mianman playing along so obediently?

“Treatment medicine. Didn’t I already tell you earlier?” Zu An replied with a smile.

Elder Huo Ling frowned and asked, “Didn’t she already eat it once?”

“This medicine of mine is a bit special. It needs to be eaten in multiple doses within a short amount of time. That’s why I broke it in half earlier,” Zu An lied without batting an eyelid.

Wan Guiyi almost choked on his own breath when he heard the explanation. What the hell was I thinking before? That he would give me the other half?

Hmph, this bastard is definitely after junior sister Pei’s beauty. Still, can looks put food on the table? Being strong is the most important thing! I suddenly feel that Peng Wuyan is much more attractive than junior sister Pei.

Elder Huo Ling was also left speechless by Zu An’s reply. She couldn't find anything else to retort with and could only harrumph. She stood by her disciple to prevent him from feeding her any other strange things.

The drawing of lots quickly concluded. When the results came out, there was another uproar.

Pei Mianman had actually drawn another bye!

“There’s definitely something wrong!” Yun Jianyue cried out as she slammed the table and stood up. She quickly shifted her focus and glared at Zu An, asking, “Just what did you feed that woman?”