Chapter 211: Second Round Group Matches
"It seems you must have encountered some extraordinary person that allowed you to be reborn—that is also your own fortune." Chu Yueli nodded slightly. "In that case, I believe Qingyue will also be more at ease. However…" Her gaze turned icy cold. "I hope you do not forget Qingyue's status as a disciple of the Bing Yun Fairy Palace, and even more so, do not forget why our Bing Yun Fairy Palace allowed her to marry you. I do not want you to develop any improper thoughts now that you have shed your crippled state."
Yun Che smiled faintly and said, "Senior, rest assured. Your disciple only has boundless admiration and endless gratitude for Qingyue. I will never do anything that would put her in a difficult position."
Although these words were a response to Chu Yueli's remark, there was another layer of meaning hidden beneath them… he would not do anything that would make things difficult for her, but as for things that wouldn't make things difficult for her…
Chu Yueli glanced at Chu Yuechan. She knew that Chu Yuechan was inherently cold and aloof, never liking to stay long with outsiders, so she said, "Let us go."
"Yuanba, take good care of yourself and Father." Xia Qingyue spoke softly to Xia Yuanba, her beautiful eyes sweeping across Yun Che's face before she turned and left with Chu Yuechan and Chu Yueli.
"Ahh… Sister, I still have so much to say to you!"
Yun Che grabbed Xia Yuanba, who had been about to chase after them, and shook his head. "Alright, Yuanba, don't go over there. Ever since she entered the Bing Yun Fairy Palace, she is no longer a part of your Xia Clan; she belongs to the Bing Yun Fairy Palace. The Bing Yun Fairy Palace is not like our Cangfeng Mystic Palace. Once you enter, you are a member of the Bing Yun Fairy Palace for life. Even if you die one day, you will only be laid to rest within the palace."
"Oh." Xia Yuanba nodded as if he understood, then grinned widely. "It doesn't matter. At least Brother-in-law is still here. Sister has only been there for less than two years and has become this strong. She must be very happy."
"…" Xia Yuanba's thick-headedness would often leave Yun Che speechless for a long time.
"I heard that this time, the Bing Yun Fairy Palace is led by Ice Lotus Fairy Chu Yueli and Ice Cicada Fairy Chu Yuechan, who has rarely shown herself for a long time. The one beside Chu Yueli should be Chu Yuechan herself, who once made countless young talents dream of her." Cang Yue walked over and said, "Pity she's wearing a veil. I really want to see just how beautiful the 'Number One Beauty of Cang Feng' that my imperial father has been talking about for half his life truly is."
"This Ice Cicada Fairy is indeed as cold and aloof as the rumors say. Just a few glances at her make me feel like my soul is about to freeze. I simply lack the courage to go up and speak to her." Cang Yue lightly patted her chest. Chu Yuechan's unmatched cold demeanor left a deep impression on her. She cautiously added, "But it's strange. Rumor has it that she usually stays in the Bing Yun Fairy Palace, often going years or even more than a decade without coming out. It's harder for others to see her than to reach the heavens. So why did she come to this ranking competition?"
"… Perhaps she got bored staying in the Bing Yun Fairy Palace and wanted to come out for a change of scenery," Yun Che said casually. Then, he let out a soft sigh inwardly. Just now, he had kept looking at Chu Yuechan, hoping for even a hint of eye contact, even if her gaze was cold and emotionless, devoid of any feeling… But Chu Yuechan never once glanced sideways, as cold as an ice sculpture. Her snow-white face beneath the veil was perfectly calm, completely ignoring his existence.
This kind of disregard was even more ruthless than ruthlessness itself.
"But somehow, I feel like Chu Yuechan has been secretly looking at you the whole time," Cang Yue suddenly said.
"Secretly looking… at me?" Yun Che's mouth fell open. "She was standing there without moving at all. How did you know she was secretly looking at me?"
Cang Yue tilted her head, thought for a moment, then answered with a serious face, "A woman's intuition."
Yun Che: "Pfft…"
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"The boundless world truly has wonders beyond belief. A person who was utterly crippled, and in less than two years, he actually shines so brilliantly in this ranking competition. It seems that in all my years at the Bing Yun Fairy Palace, I have indeed been a frog at the bottom of a well."
Chu Yueli sighed. Clearly, Yun Che's transformation had caused her great shock.
"Sister, do you know if there is any method in this world that can completely restore a person whose profound veins have been crippled since childhood?" Chu Yueli asked Chu Yuechan. But she waited for a long time without receiving an answer. Chu Yuechan stared straight ahead, her eyes as still and lifeless as a pool of stagnant water, as if she hadn't heard a word.
"Sister?"
Chu Yuechan still gave no response.
Chu Yueli did not speak again… Ever since Chu Yuechan suddenly left the palace and returned after half a year, it was as if she had become a different person. Even as her most understanding younger sister, she could no longer fathom what she was thinking.
Behind her, Shui Wushuang and Wu Xuexin were huddled on either side of Xia Qingyue, whispering to each other.
"Junior Sister Xia, is that really your younger brother? The difference between you siblings is so huge. You're so soft and delicate, yet your brother is like a little giant."
"That Yun Che is the one you married? How astonishing to run into him here. But he is rather good-looking… Junior Sister Xia, the reason you insisted on marrying him — is it because you actually like him a little?"
Xia Qingyue gently shook her head. "I married him only to fulfill my father's promise from back then, and to repay the life-saving grace of his father. Since I have already entered the Bing Yun Fairy Palace, how could I develop feelings for him?"
As she said this, an image flashed through her mind of when she first saw Yun Che, walking closely with a girl dressed in palace attire, with an elegant demeanor and extremely beautiful features. A trace of discomfort arose in her heart… but it was very slight, fleeting, and after that, it never appeared again.
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On the second and third days, the first round of group matches for the Cang Feng ranking competition continued.
In this round of group matches, Yun Che was indeed quite fortunate. Among the fifty people in his group, not only were there no disciples from the four great sects, but even the strongest was only at the Spirit Xuan Realm, Level 5. However, he didn't encounter any of the six sect disciples at that level. Over three days, he fought twelve matches, with his strongest opponent being at Spirit Xuan Realm, Level 4… He advanced with a perfect record of twelve wins, entering the top three hundred and making it to the second round of group matches.
This achievement left everyone stunned.
"Holy crap! I admit this True Xuan Realm guy is way stronger than expected, able to challenge those above his level, but making it to the second round with a perfect record… This is way too exaggerated!"
"This guy is just too lucky. His strongest opponent was only at Spirit Xuan Realm, Level 4. Why aren't I that lucky? I keep running into a bunch of freaks. If I were in his place, I'd have a perfect record too."
"Give me a break. You try fighting someone at Spirit Xuan Realm, Level 3 or 4 when you're at True Xuan Realm, Level 10!"
"…"
Xia Qingyue and Ling Yun also finished the first round with perfect records without any suspense. In their twelve matches, more than half of their opponents simply surrendered. The efficiency couldn't be higher.
After the first round of group matches ended, Xia Yuanba cheered with raised arms, Cang Yue smiled happily, and Qin Wushang was grinning from ear to ear, unable to contain his joy. Although he had absolute confidence that Yun Che would make it to the second round, he still couldn't suppress his excitement when the moment arrived… because this was the first time in the history of the Cangfeng Imperial Clan that they had entered the second round! The first time a disciple had made it into the top three hundred!
"I'll immediately send a sound transmission to His Majesty. When he receives this news, he will surely be very happy. Perhaps in his great mood, his illness might even take a turn for the better." Qin Wushang said with immense excitement, then hurried off to a corner to send the transmission.
"Junior Brother Yun, this is wonderful. You've made history for our Cangfeng Imperial Clan in the ranking competition. When Father learns of this, he will be overjoyed. If you can even make it into the top hundred, Father will have few regrets even if he passes away… Junior Brother Yun, thank you so much." Cang Yue's face was flushed. She lightly grasped Yun Che's hand, her beautiful eyebrows curving into lovely crescent moons in her joy.
Yun Che was about to speak when he suddenly felt a faint trace of killing intent brush across his face. His smile did not waver as he held Cang Yue's hand back and said gently, "Then… Senior Sister, how will you reward me?"
"Ah? What kind of reward do you want?" Cang Yue blinked her beautiful eyes.
"I want Senior Sister to… kiss me." Yun Che slightly turned his cheek and said with a smile.
"Huh? Here?" Cang Yue glanced around, a delicate pink gradually spreading across her stunning face. Her lips pouted slightly, then she suddenly leaned forward, quickly kissing Yun Che on the cheek, before hastily lowering her head, her heart pounding like a startled deer.
Not far away, Fen Juecheng, who was watching Yun Che and Cang Yue, heard a "crack" as the second armrest of his seat was crushed under his furious grip.
"Big Brother, what's wrong?" Fen Juebi turned back at the sound.
Fen Juecheng's facial muscles twitched. His originally handsome face was now twisted with ferocity, his eyes filled with a venomous malice that was chilling to behold: "I will… tear Yun Che, that little bastard, into a thousand pieces!!"
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On the fourth day of the Cang Feng ranking competition, the second round of group matches officially began. At the same time, the twelve hundred disciples eliminated in the first round transferred to the secondary arena in the back mountain to compete for rankings after the top three hundred. However, the battles in the secondary arena attracted very little attention, and the quality and atmosphere could not compare at all with the main arena.
The second round of group matches was also held on thirty small sword platforms. Although the number of disciples had been compressed to three hundred, each person had to fight a full fifteen matches! At the same time, although this round was still called "group matches," there was no longer any grouping. Each person's opponents were no longer limited to a small range, but were randomly selected from among all the disciples who had entered the second round. This ensured fairness to the greatest extent possible.
But fairness was never absolute. Although the second round was not grouped, which opponent you drew for each match still depended on luck. If someone had the strength to enter the top hundred but was unlucky enough to have all fifteen opponents be from the four great sects, all they could do was weep bitterly with no place to appeal. Another person might be only mid-tier in strength, but if all their opponents were at the bottom, they might even manage a perfect record.
Of course, the probability of these two extreme scenarios occurring was very small. With fifteen matches per person, the overall process remained quite fair and just.
"First match of the Seventh Sword Discussion Platform: Cangfeng Imperial Clan's Yun Che — versus — Thunderclap Thunder Pavilion's Lei Zhentian!"
The matches on thirty sword platforms were proceeding simultaneously. Yun Che's first opponent was already standing before him. This man was extremely burly, only twenty years old but looking like a sturdy man in his forties. His weapons were two round giant hammers.
Yun Che, who had shocked everyone by advancing to the second round with a perfect record and as a dark horse, naturally attracted even more attention in this round. When they saw his opponent, everyone thought the same thing: This time, Yun Che is definitely going to lose.
He could defeat Spirit Xuan Realm, Level 3, and Spirit Xuan Realm, Level 4… but there had to be a limit to his monstrousness. Lei Zhentian was the young pavilion master of the mighty Thunderclap Thunder Pavilion, which dominated the northwest! His profound strength was as high as Spirit Xuan Realm, Level 6! His Thunderclap Dual Hammers could shatter a boulder into pieces. If they smashed into a person's head, they would crush it to pulp.
"Junior Brother Yun, go for it…" Cang Yue clutched the hem of her clothes, whispering nervously.
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