Chapter 167: Two Long Battles
Someone saw Tang Thirty-Six hand a piece of paper to Zhe Xiu, but no one connected it to a banknote, because the wolf tribe youth’s impression on the world could never be linked to something like money. Even Luo Luo and Xuan Yuan Po, who witnessed this scene firsthand, still found it hard to believe.
Zhe Xiu walked into the Dust-Washing Pavilion. Zhe Xiu walked out of the Dust-Washing Pavilion. His opponent did not walk out. Like Gou Han Shi, he once again achieved an undisputed victory, but apart from the result, the process was far more controversial than Gou Han Shi’s, because his opponent was once again severely injured and unable to rise, directly sent out of the academy.
The examinees’ gazes followed him as he descended the stone steps and came to the forest’s edge before the National Academy’s few people.
Tang Thirty-Six was somewhat speechless and said, “You registered as a student of Star Picking Academy, and you’re still using the fake name Zhang Ting Tao. That fellow counts as your schoolmate. Did you have to go that hard?”
Zhe Xiu was silent for a moment, as if he didn’t quite understand why he cared about such a thing, then said, “I said I would fight properly.”
Tang Thirty-Six’s banknote had satisfied him greatly, so earlier he had rarely nodded to someone and promised to fight properly. To the wolf tribe youth, who neither understood nor cared to understand so-called human relationships, fighting properly meant fighting with all his strength. Then his opponent’s fate could be imagined.
“So what are you doing here now?”
The examinees’ gazes were focused on the forest’s edge, putting some pressure on Tang Thirty-Six. He didn’t want the transaction between the National Academy and Zhe Xiu to be known, which had nothing to do with honor but purely with keeping this secret—the secret that Zhe Xiu could be bought with money.
Zhe Xiu was now essentially the National Academy’s mercenary. Such a powerful mercenary was best kept unknown.
“To negotiate the price,” Zhe Xiu said.
Tang Thirty-Six understood he meant the next match.
Without any surprise, Zhe Xiu was matched against Gou Han Shi.
Luo Luo and Xuan Yuan Po looked down at the grass twigs on the ground, saying nothing, to conceal their embarrassment.
Chen Chang Sheng did not, because this was his affair. If people would mock him afterward, he thought the target of mockery should be himself, not Tang Thirty-Six.
“What you want, I can’t guarantee… whether I have it, but I will try my best to get it for you,” he said, looking at Zhe Xiu.
Zhe Xiu stared into his eyes, his expression indifferent, and said, “You must have it.”
Chen Chang Sheng said, “If I have it, I’ll give it to you.”
Zhe Xiu was silent for a long time, then said, “Agreed.”
Then he looked at Tang Thirty-Six and was silent for another long time before saying, “Triple?”
Tang Thirty-Six was stunned for a moment, then came to his senses, forcibly suppressing his ecstasy, and said calmly, “No problem.”
Zhe Xiu nodded to him again, turned, and walked out of the crowd.
“It seems this guy only knows how to kill, he has no idea how to negotiate at all.”
Tang Thirty-Six looked at his back and sighed with emotion.
Fighting Gou Han Shi only cost three times the price of fighting that Star Picking Academy examinee. Zhe Xiu’s opening price really surprised him.
Then he remembered something, turned back to Chen Chang Sheng, and frowned, asking, “Do you know what he wants?”
Clearly, the wolf tribe youth was desperately short of money, but that was only part of the reason he was willing to help the National Academy. The most important reason was that he wanted something from Chen Chang Sheng.
Chen Chang Sheng glanced at Luo Luo and said, “I can probably guess what he wants, but I’m not sure if I can help him.”
The last match of the top eight was between Luo Luo and that Huai Academy youth scholar, Zhong Hui.
As expected of the ninth-ranked genius on the Azure Cloud List, Zhong Hui displayed extremely strong true essence cultivation and swordsmanship in the Dust-Washing Pavilion, successfully… lasting half an incense stick’s time.
After the Li Palace priest announced the result, Zhong Hui silently left the Dust-Washing Pavilion.
Watching the somewhat lonely back of this Huai Academy youth scholar, Luo Luo felt nothing. She quietly watched the door, waiting for her next opponent to arrive.
She did not leave the Dust-Washing Pavilion. She demanded to fight the first match of the top four. The big shots on the second floor had to give her that face.
The door of the Dust-Washing Pavilion closed. After a while, it opened again.
Hearing that creak, Luo Luo walked over, then carefully helped her opponent in.
Her opponent in this round was Chen Chang Sheng.
The ground, washed by the rain, still had some damp sand. The stone steps against the circular building’s walls were fairly clean and dry.
Luo Luo helped Chen Chang Sheng sit on the stone steps, handed him clear water, and fed him a sip, asking, “How much longer until the medicine’s effects spread?”
Chen Chang Sheng looked at the strand of golden thread wrapped around his left ring finger and said, “It’s already a bit better. Don’t worry. If it’s still not enough later, I’ll think of something.”
Luo Luo said, “Master, then rest a while longer.”
Chen Chang Sheng looked up at the second floor, thinking, would this be appropriate?
The Dust-Washing Pavilion was the venue for the Grand Examination battles. Once examinees entered the building, their minds were all on the fight, and they rarely had a chance to observe the building’s appearance.
He could take a good look now.
But still, he felt somewhat uneasy.
“People will talk, won’t they?” he asked Luo Luo.
Luo Luo wanted to say she wasn’t afraid of gossip, but thinking of his cautious nature, her eyes flickered slightly, and she said, “Then let’s just chat a bit.”
What to chat about? Had the big banyan tree in the National Academy grown thicker? Could you still see the grocery store at the entrance of Baihua Lane from the tree’s branches? Had the snow in the National Academy last winter been thick?
“Master, how did you beat Zhuang Huan Yu?” Luo Luo asked a question everyone was curious about.
Chen Chang Sheng thought for a moment and then carefully recounted the previous battle, leaving out almost no details.
Luo Luo was naturally very surprised and said with lingering fear, “Thank goodness for that rain…”
Chen Chang Sheng nodded. Thinking back now, if that cold rain hadn’t fallen from the sky, even if he hadn’t been burned to death by the starlight, he would have been severely injured by the high temperature.
Where had that rain come from?
“The academy is within His Holiness the Pope’s Green Leaf World. Only His Holiness the Pope can make it rain here.”
Luo Luo didn’t know what she was thinking, but she was silent for a long time before saying, “Master, this matter seems to be getting more and more complicated.”
Chen Chang Sheng remained silent. If the one who caused that autumn rain was truly His Holiness the Pope, how could it be explained?
He and the National Academy were the key cultivation targets of the old faction of the State Religion.
Everyone knew that the old faction of the State Religion, or rather, those big shots loyal to the Chen imperial clan, were targeting Her Holiness the Empress and His Holiness the Pope.
Why would His Holiness the Pope help him? More precisely, save him?
The entire continent knew that the National Academy’s new students and the Archbishop’s announcement concealed many problems.
As the person involved, Chen Chang Sheng naturally knew this even better, but he had never thought about it before.
First, because he didn’t want to think about it. His goal had always been the top rank in the Grand Examination. What the big shots in the capital did had nothing to do with him.
Second, because he couldn’t figure it out. The thoughts of those big shots were not something a youth like him could guess.
“At least, for now, it seems beneficial to me,” Chen Chang Sheng said, trying to comfort the solemn-looking Luo Luo.
Luo Luo said, “I think, perhaps we can leverage the situation.”
Chen Chang Sheng was puzzled and asked, “How do we leverage it?”
Luo Luo’s gaze fell on the several sword wounds on his chest and abdomen, and she said, “When we fight later, take as many risks as possible.”
Chen Chang Sheng understood her meaning.
If it were up to Luo Luo’s own wishes, she would never suggest such a thing, but since Chen Chang Sheng was determined to get the top rank, he had no choice.
She and Chen Chang Sheng didn’t know what those big shots were thinking, but they knew what those big shots had already done.
Many big shots wanted Chen Chang Sheng to fail, and many big shots didn’t want Chen Chang Sheng to die.
His Holiness the Pope could make it rain once in the academy; he could make it rain many more times.
So Chen Chang Sheng should take risks, seek life in the face of death. Only then could he leverage the power of those big shots, or perhaps borrow a few more rains from His Holiness the Pope.
This so-called leveraging was going with the flow.
Luo Luo said uneasily, “But you must be careful.”
Chen Chang Sheng reached out and touched her hair, saying, “Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”
Luo Luo’s expression was somewhat dejected as she said, “Sorry, I couldn’t help Master much today.”
She had begged His Holiness the Pope for one night to participate in the Grand Examination. Rankings meant nothing to her. What she had to do was escort Chen Chang Sheng. For example, by defeating Zhong Hui in the previous round, Chen Chang Sheng could now rest on the stone steps instead of facing Huai Academy’s ultimate techniques with a severely injured body.
But in her view, this was nothing.
Her targets were Tianhai Shengxue and Gou Han Shi.
Tianhai Shengxue had withdrawn because of her, but Gou Han Shi remained.
The Dust-Washing Pavilion was very quiet.
Outside the Dust-Washing Pavilion, however, it was very lively, because no one cared about the outcome of the battle inside. Everyone knew what Her Highness Luo Luo would do. The examinees gathered in small groups, discussing the previous battles, speculating on possible rankings, and guessing how strong Chen Chang Sheng really was and how many moves he could last against Gou Han Shi.
But as time passed, the Dust-Washing Pavilion remained quiet. That door never opened. The examinees grew bored waiting, and some even started to get drowsy.
Guan Fei Bai looked at the tightly closed door of the Dust-Washing Pavilion and said angrily, “What kind of logic is this?”
Liang Ban Hu looked towards the forest’s edge, shook his head, and sighed, “Even someone like Tang Tang finds this shameful. How can Her Highness bear it?”
Gou Han Shi remained silent, thinking that the National Academy was using every means possible to let Chen Chang Sheng win the top rank. The final battle would probably not be simple.
At the forest’s edge, Xuan Yuan Po was squatting on the ground, looking at who knows what. The one squatting with him earlier, Luo Luo, had now been replaced by Tang Thirty-Six. Countless gazes fell on them, putting them under immense pressure. They didn’t dare look up, didn’t even dare to speak, and could only hum and sing songs.
“What is this supposed to be?”
Inside the Dust-Washing Pavilion, by the window on the second floor, the Holy Church Archbishop looked at the young man and woman on the steps, his expression extremely grim.
Chen Chang Sheng and Luo Luo were chatting, master and disciple huddled together, whispering. The scene was actually quite beautiful, very youthful and touching.
The problem was, this was the Dust-Washing Pavilion, the solemn venue for the Grand Examination battles, not the pondside of the National Academy or under the melon trellis of the Hundred Herbs Garden.
Xue Xing Chuan frowned slightly and said, “This… isn’t appropriate, is it?”
Prince Chen Liu wanted very much to laugh, but for the sake of the people present, he held it in.
Mo Yu stood expressionless, quietly watching Chen Chang Sheng and Her Highness Luo Luo, but a hint of irritation was hidden between her brows.
Everyone knew what Her Highness Luo Luo’s intention was. She wanted to turn this battle into rest and recovery time for Chen Chang Sheng, so the longer, the better. But now the entire continent was anxiously waiting for the final ranking of the Grand Examination. Did she and Chen Chang Sheng think they could rest as long as they wanted, and the world would just wait?
The most troublesome problem was that there were no rules in the Grand Examination to constrain this. Who said the two sides in a battle had to fight to the death from the start? Who said opponents couldn’t have a friendly chat? Luo Luo and Chen Chang Sheng had countless reasons or excuses to delay time and turn the battle into a conversation.
That Holy Church Archbishop said angrily, “Tell Her Highness to hurry up. If they still don’t fight, rule them both as passive and disqualify them directly.”
The Li Palace priest accurately conveyed the Archbishop’s meaning to the young man and woman chatting on the stone steps.
Luo Luo was very angry and said, “Can’t you see we’re gathering our momentum? Who dares to disqualify us?”
That Li Palace priest wanted very much to roll his eyes and say, Your Highness, do you think the whole world is blind? Who gathers momentum for half an hour, the two of them leaning shoulder to shoulder? But he didn’t dare say anything.
With a soft creak, the window of that room on the second floor was finally pushed open for the first time.
Xue Xing Chuan came to the scene, walked up to Luo Luo, smiled, and whispered a few words.
Luo Luo still refused to get up and leave.
Chen Chang Sheng said, “I’ve rested enough. Let’s go out together. Don’t make things difficult for the adults.”
Luo Luo always listened to him, and she knew it was impossible to occupy the Dust-Washing Pavilion for too long. She helped him stand up and walked out of the building.
Xue Xing Chuan watched the backs of this young man and woman, couldn’t help shaking his head, looking very helpless.
And so, the first match of the Grand Examination’s top four ended.
Her Highness Luo Luo, as everyone imagined, directly conceded, while buying Chen Chang Sheng extremely precious rest and recovery time.
Chen Chang Sheng entered the Grand Examination finals.
He was one step closer to that goal once mocked by the entire continent.
But the process seemed somewhat absurd.
However, he didn’t care.
Luo Luo didn’t care either.
The further the Grand Examination battles went, the faster they progressed. Because the strength of the combatants grew stronger, even if the gap was only a hair’s breadth, victory or defeat was decided in just a few moves. After the second round, each battle took very little time; otherwise, they couldn’t have reached the final moment so quickly.
The battle between Chen Chang Sheng and Luo Luo took a full half hour, longer than the previous ten battles combined. Of course, everyone knew this was a special case, and only someone with Her Highness Luo Luo’s special status could do this.
But just when everyone thought this was probably the longest battle of this year’s Grand Examination, the second top-four match between Gou Han Shi and Zhe Xiu once again brought endless shock to everyone, because this battle lasted a very long time, and judging by the situation, it seemed it would continue, very likely exceeding half an hour.
Listening to the terrifying sounds occasionally coming from the Dust-Washing Pavilion, Tang Thirty-Six’s expression grew increasingly grave, and the respect in his eyes deepened.
He turned to Chen Chang Sheng and said seriously, “Besides his life, whatever that wolf cub asks from you, just give it to him.”
(I’m truly exhausted and settled. I’m asking you for a few recommendation votes. Just give them to me…)