140. Wuji Takes the Stage, Dazzling the Crowd; The Serpent Fairy’s Eyes Sparkle with Adoration

Following the victory of Dongmen Jianhao, Li Wuqiong emerged triumphant in the second round by defeating Ling Yunqi, allowing the Jixian Sect to regain its standing. It was, however, a hard-fought battle; Li Wuqiong had to exhaust his full repertoire of techniques to overcome Ling Yunqi, largely due to the latter’s two spirit beasts.

The disciples of Beast King Mountain generally eschew absorbing spirit essences to bolster their own power, preferring instead to forge spiritual bonds with beasts, turning them into combat companions. Ling Yunqi’s two beasts were exceptional specimens among Earth-tier creatures, yet they were still defeated, clearly demonstrating that Li Wuqiong’s prowess was a cut above.

"Hahaha! Sect Leader Xifeng, I accept your concession. It seems the disciples of my Jixian Sect are indeed a notch superior!" Li Qianjun burst into loud laughter.

Xifeng Lie cast a sidelong glance at him and scoffed, "If my disciple hadn't been severely injured in a previous match against the lead disciple of the Bengshan Sect, resulting in a stalemate, do you think he would have lost to your son?"

"Regardless, a win is a win." Li Qianjun was visibly smug. Having been overshadowed by the Beast King Mountain faction earlier, he was delighted to have regained his footing.

Over at the Danxia Sect, however, the mood was far from joyful. Setting aside the bedridden Baili Qingyan, the others were frantically searching for Xie Wuji.

"Could this brat Wuji really be afraid to fight?" Yang Hongliu asked, leaning against a corner after regaining some of her strength.

By now, the third round of the tournament was underway. Hao Lang of the General’s Mansion was facing Xu Lang of the Myriad Demon Palace. With names so similar, their fighting styles were equally flamboyant, filled with flashy maneuvers that drew gasps of amazement from the crowd.

Hao Lang’s triple-thrust horse-reining technique and Xu Lang’s "heavenly maiden scattering flowers" poison darts dominated the stage. Both seemed intoxicated by their own performance, unable to stop. As they clashed, Xu Lang suddenly hurled several soul-suppressing nails from the Myriad Demon Palace, striking Hao Lang and knocking him unconscious, which drew a chorus of boos from the surrounding crowd.

The audience began to curse Xu Lang for his underhanded tactics, hurling vicious insults his way. The members of the Myriad Demon Palace, however, were unfazed by the gossip and felt quite proud; after all, a win is a win. Even though only one member of the Myriad Demon Palace remained, the other sects were not faring much better.

When it came to the match between Qie Ge of the Demon Sound Pavilion and Yue Xianchen of the Crescent God Sect, the battle was a one-sided slaughter. Yue Xianchen was deaf and mute, and while Qie Ge’s sound-based martial arts were undoubtedly among the best in his pavilion, they were rendered useless against an opponent who could not hear them.

Yue Xianchen was a straightforward soul; unable to hear anything, she simply unleashed a flurry of strikes upon Qie Ge. With no other skills to rely on, Qie Ge began to beg for mercy and concede. But his pleas were lost on Yue Xianchen. She beat him until he lost consciousness, leaving the fallen Qie Ge weeping even in his state of oblivion. The audience could not help but pity him, for Qie Ge had simply chosen the wrong opponent.

By the fifth round, the Snake Fairy had already taken the stage, but she saw no sign of Xie Wuji. A wave of disappointment washed over her. Could she have overestimated him? Was Xie Wuji truly a coward, afraid to face her?

The audience began to buzz with speculation. "Is he really afraid? He was so brilliant before—why would he turn coward now?"

"Do you think someone from Snake Island sabotaged him? They aren't exactly known for their integrity."

As the whispers intensified, the Head Eunuch stepped onto the stage holding an incense burner. "If Xie Wuji does not appear within the time it takes for this incense to burn, he will be judged as having forfeited, and the Snake Fairy shall be declared the winner!"

A roar of shock swept through the crowd. Meanwhile, Xie Wuji was feeling incredibly stifled. Trapped inside a cage forged of thousand-layer steel, he had tried every trick in the book to no avail. He had reached the end of his rope and sat squatting inside the cage.

In his boredom, Xie Wuji looked up at the sky and happened to see Shi Zhentian passing by in the distance. Since the spot was not far from the arena, Shi Zhentian was within earshot. Upon seeing Xie Wuji, Shi Zhentian was overjoyed. "Haha, look who it is! Do you know that the incense is burning down on the arena? You’re about to be disqualified by default! Isn't that a surprise?"

Xie Wuji’s eyes darted around, and he immediately feigned great relief. "That’s wonderful! In another stick of incense, I won't have to fight the Snake Fairy!"

"What?" Shi Zhentian was stunned. He never imagined Xie Wuji would be so happy. Seeing Xie Wuji locked in the cage, he wondered if he hadn't been captured by someone else, but had locked himself in.

Shi Zhentian put his hands behind his back and said righteously, "Ahem, Senior Brother Xie, if you don't show up, you're making the whole world think the Danxia Sect is full of cowards."

"I... I don't want to go! I absolutely won't! The Snake Fairy’s cultivation is profound; how could I be her match? Besides, I accidentally peeked at her bathing earlier—she’ll definitely kill me if she sees me! I don't want to die, I don't want to die!" Xie Wuji cried out in terror.

Seeing Xie Wuji so frightened, Shi Zhentian grew even more smug. "Tsk, tsk. Do you think you're safe just because you locked yourself in there? Let me tell you, before joining the Danxia Sect, my brother Shi Zhenxiang and I were famous master thieves in the Huaibei region. There isn't a lock in this world we can't open!"

"Stop bragging! This is thousand-layer steel; you could never open it, no matter what you do, hehehe..." Xie Wuji chuckled. "I’m not going, I’m not going! I’d rather not. If I fight, I’ll lose my life—it’s not worth it!"

Thinking of how Xie Wuji had led him on a merry chase, Shi Zhentian grew indignant. A burst of hot-headedness gave him an idea. Looking at the cage, he said, "Heh, don't be so smug. This cage is indeed thousand-layer steel, but it isn't welded shut. It uses a nine-grid lock mechanism... hmm, it seems to be a Nine-Palace Lock that requires nine keys to open simultaneously. It seems you really were scared out of your wits to lock yourself in like this!"

"You... what are you doing? Get away! Get lost, you bastard, get lost right now! Don't open the cage... I don't want to go to my death!" Xie Wuji shouted in panic.

The more panicked Xie Wuji became, the more smug Shi Zhentian felt. "Although I've never tried a lock this difficult, there's a first time for everything. And I know the principles of the Nine-Palace Lock; one simply opens the latches in the correct order."

With that, Shi Zhentian took out a small bag of lime powder and blew it onto the nine latches, revealing the indentations of fingers. "Didn't expect that, did you? Your grandfather here has the skills!" He took out nine wire picks, inserted them one by one, and with a series of precise movements, the Nine-Palace Lock clicked open.

Xie Wuji couldn't help but marvel. Regardless of Shi Zhentian's low power, his lock-picking skills were truly remarkable. "Thanks, Junior Brother Shi Zhentian!"

"Wait! Hey! What... what do you mean by that?" Shi Zhentian suddenly realized that Xie Wuji had been using reverse psychology to get him to open the cage, and he had been foolish enough to do it!

Like an arrow released from a bow, Xie Wuji bolted, whistling into the sky. Far away, the Flaming Spirit Chicken heard his call and immediately took flight from the arena grounds.

At that very moment, the incense was burning to its end. The Snake Fairy’s brows were tightly knit. She sighed, thinking she might have misjudged him; Xie Wuji was not the brave man she had imagined.

Just then, the sound of wings flapping echoed over the entire arena. Everyone looked up to see a massive phoenix carrying a young man, descending slowly onto the stage.

"Wow, what an incredibly stylish entrance! Only Xie Wuji could pull that off!"

"Tsk, tsk, he waited until the very last second on purpose!"

"Good heavens! An entrance like that—descending from the heavens—he’s completely overshadowed all the other disciples!"

As the crowd marveled, the Snake Fairy stood frozen. A phoenix descending from the sky bearing a handsome, dashing man—it satisfied every fantasy a young girl could have about her future partner.