Chapter 50 Who is the Winner?
“Princess, I have something I'd like to say to you privately.” Yan Chongyan clenched his fist, and after speaking, he turned and walked towards the shade of a tree not far away, ignoring Ning Xi’s reaction.
Ning Qi pouted and squeezed Xiao Sui's hand: "I'll be back in a bit."
Xiao Sui nodded and quickened her pace to catch up with Yan Chongyan.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
Yan Chongyan turned around, looked down at her, his light eyes gleaming coldly, and asked her, suppressing his anger, "Are you deliberately trying to embarrass me?"
Ning Qi was baffled, "I didn't..."
Before she could finish speaking, Yan Chongyan interrupted her, "I have never done anything inappropriate in our marriage, nor have I ever acted inappropriately with any other woman. But what about you? Holding another man's hand in public, are you trying to make this marriage a laughing stock?"
"A laughingstock?" Ning Qi asked incredulously. "Who dares to laugh at me?"
“They’ll laugh at me,” Yan Chongyan said angrily, “laugh at me for being even worse than that good-for-nothing, for not being able to hold onto your heart…”
“I won’t allow you to talk about Xiao Sui like that,” Ning Qi said seriously. “He’s not a good-for-nothing.”
"Heh, you're really protecting him." Yan Chongyan's lips curled into a cold smile. "Whether he's a piece of trash or not will soon be clear. I actually hope he can hold out a little longer so we can run into each other. I think he's probably not afraid of getting a few more wounds in his body, given his appearance."
Ning Qi looked at him in disbelief, "I never thought you were this kind of person. I really misjudged you before."
"You forced me to do this." Yan Chongyan left these words behind and returned to the competition venue.
Ning Qi quickly walked to Xiao Sui's side and told him to be careful of Yan Chongyan.
It's better to part amicably; perhaps she should ask her father to cancel the marriage.
Ning Qi was led by the cultivator to the spectator seats and sat in the best position with a close view, her eyes fixed on Xiao Sui in the crowd.
The guide sat down beside her and explained the competition rules: "The demon-slaying competition has a large number of participants, with a total of 256 people participating this time. After entering the venue, the participants will be separated by an array in the first round. Within a certain time limit, they must independently defeat a puppet with combat power equivalent to a level one demon beast. Successful participants will enter the second round, where they will be randomly formed into teams of two to three people to defeat level two demon beasts. Points will be awarded based on the location of the hit. Only the cultivator who delivers the fatal blow to the demon beast can enter the third round."
"The rules for the third round are the same as for the second round. Teams of five to nine people will be formed to face level three monsters. The winner of each team will advance to the fourth round to fight against level four monsters. The final winner will be determined in the fourth round, which will be the biggest highlight of this competition."
Ning Qi's gaze sharpened, which meant that throughout the process, the participants not only had to exorcise demons, but also compete with their teammates.
The monk also told her that the number of participants would be greatly reduced in each round, and according to past practice, 30% of the contestants would be eliminated in the first round.
Ning Qi nodded. She didn't need to worry at all about the first round. She still remembered the scene of Xiao Sui killing the lizard with one sword.
As expected, after Xiao Sui entered the arena, he drew his longsword. The sword light flashed only twice before the puppet collapsed to the ground. He immediately used a small teleportation array to enter the next round and wait for his teammates to appear.
Ning Qi then looked in Yan Chongyan's direction. The two were moving at about the same speed, but they had not yet teleported to the same place.
As the others were teleported in, the puppets of level-two demonic beasts entered the arena.
Ning Qi nervously gripped Qian Yu's hand. Before her heart could even beat a few beats, Xiao Sui had already approached the demon beast with lightning speed, plunging his sword directly into its neck, becoming the first cultivator to enter the third round.
His outstanding performance immediately attracted everyone's attention, and there was an uproar around them, as everyone was very surprised by this strange cultivator who had suddenly appeared.
"Who is this person? I've never seen him before."
"I don't know either, are you a newbie?"
"A newcomer can be this good? And he's blindfolded! He's a monster!"
"Yeah, he's too strong. Anyone who was grouped with him had no competition experience at all and was eliminated without scoring a single point."
Ning Qi was secretly pleased with herself, unable to suppress the smile on her face, as if someone were praising her.
In the third round, only 54 people remained, who were divided into nine groups of six.
Xiao Sui and Yan Chongyan were not assigned to the same group.
Once a monster reaches level three, it is no longer a puppet, but a real monster gathered by the Huaguang Sect, and it can cause harm.
Zhizhi brought Ningqi lunch, but she didn't have much of an appetite and ate only a few bites.
"This is dried roasted fish that Young Master Xiao specially prepared for you. Please have some," Zhizhi said.
Ning Qi looked down and saw the familiar grilled fish. Her heart warmed. "How did he still have time to prepare all this?"
“Young Master Xiao got up in the middle of the night to do it,” Zhizhi said.
"Ah..." Ning Xi looked at Xiao Sui's back on the field, her heart felt like it was being soaked in warm water. She bit into the grilled fish and felt that it tasted several times better than usual.
The third round began soon.
Discussions came from not far behind: "That newcomer definitely won't have it as easy as before. Everyone who makes it to this round has some skill."
"That's right. Based on my years of experience watching competitions, no one can defeat a level three monster alone. Teamwork is essential. Those who rush in recklessly are usually the first to be eliminated. In my opinion, the best approach is to pretend to follow the crowd and wear down the monster's stamina. Once your teammates are exhausted, then find an opportunity to charge in and strike..."
Before he could finish speaking, Xiao Sui had already headed straight for the direction of the monster.
"Ugh, what a greenhorn," the man remarked.
Xiao Sui moved with graceful ease, quickly approaching the tall and agile cheetah.
The cheetah reacted extremely quickly, immediately realizing that someone was approaching it. Its eyes were fixed on the dark figure, and it opened its fangs to bite Xiao Sui's neck.
It was too fast and too close; there was no way to dodge it.
Some people were already looking towards the referees, hoping they would intervene to save Xiao Sui's life.
Ning Qi held Qian Yu's hand tightly, staring intently. Just as the cheetah's teeth were about to touch Xiao Sui, he deftly flipped in the air, his longsword leaving a trail of afterimages.
The next instant, the cheetah's body fell to the ground, and only then did the crowd see the bloody hole in its neck, causing a chorus of gasps in surprise.
It was a single, fatal blow!
"That's incredible! Who is he?"
"He looks kind of familiar... like we took classes together... What was his name again... Xiao Sui?"
"Xiao Sui? The particularly reclusive one? When did he become so powerful?"
Xiao Sui remained unmoved by the sounds around him, calmly sheathed his sword, and walked toward the next teleportation array.
After waiting inside for a full hour, all the other winners finally entered the fourth round. At this point, only seven people remained, and two groups had no one advance from the third round.
Yan Chongyan and Xie Xiyue were among those who advanced.
They finally ran into each other, and Ning Qi was a bit annoyed, hoping that Yan Chongyan wouldn't cause any trouble.
The level four monster entered the arena with its head held high. It was a giant deer with a tall body. One of its antlers alone looked to be three meters long. Its whole body was covered with a thick layer of keratin, making its body look incredibly hard.
"This is not easy to deal with. Its body has hardened, making it practically impervious to blades and bullets," someone behind him said.
"Speed alone is no longer enough."
One of the female cultivators had already thrown an explosive talisman at Giant Deer.
The giant deer nimbly dodged, but it was already enraged. It charged at the group with its long antlers raised, making a rapid "clattering" sound.
Most people quickly dodged away, but Xiao Sui fearlessly reached out and grabbed the giant deer's antlers, then flipped over and sat on its back.
The longsword pierced its neck, but only made a "clang" sound, and its skin was only slightly bruised.
The giant deer grew even angrier, leaping up and running wildly across the field, waving its antlers in an attempt to throw Xiao Sui off.
Xiao Sui's long arms clung tightly to its neck, yet it still bounced him off its back.
While Julu was dealing with him, the other contestants threw different attack talismans at him. Xie Xiyue was no exception. There were explosion talismans, burning talismans, and smoke talismans. They exploded in a crackling sound, almost engulfing their figures.
"They're taking advantage of my vulnerability and have no regard for Xiao Sui at all!" Ning Qi said angrily.
At this moment, Yan Chongyan flew towards the direction of Julu with his sword in hand.
The sword was clearly useless against the deer, so his purpose in doing this was not the giant deer at all, but rather that of Xiao Sui!
Ning Qi's heart was in her throat, but the smoke obstructed the audience's view, making it impossible for them to see what was happening in the arena. They could only hear the clanging of swords and the roar of the giant deer.
She was so anxious she wanted to jump down and see what was happening.
As the smoke slowly dissipated, people could finally see what was happening on the scene: Xiao Sui, gripping his longsword in his backhand, had plunged it deep into Julu's eye.
Julu went berserk and charged recklessly. Yan Chongyan had no choice but to temporarily dodge and throw an explosive talisman at Xiao Sui, who was barely managing to steady himself.
The explosive talisman nearly exploded on his body, sparks igniting the hem of his clothes. Xiao Sui remained unfazed, tightening his grip and plunging the longsword deeper. The giant deer let out a long cry, struggled a few times, and then fell to its side on the ground.
Xiao Sui jumped off its back, sheathed his sword, and extinguished the flames on his body.
After a brief silence, the crowd erupted in cheers and applause.
"He actually got first place so easily?"
"Too strong! He even outshone Senior Brother Yan! He's definitely the dark horse of this competition."
"He was so handsome just now!"
Ning Qi breathed a sigh of relief. After the examiners announced the scores and Xiao Sui was undoubtedly number one, he immediately jumped off the spectator stand.
As soon as she moved, Xiao Sui left the area to greet her.
The two met quickly. Ning Qi wanted to rush up and hug him, but feeling the gazes of many people around her, she didn't want to affect him because of her status, so she could only stop half a meter in front of him.
"Xiao Sui, congratulations!" she said happily.
Xiao Sui's outstretched hand grasped nothing, and he lowered his head. "Princess, I haven't disgraced you, have I?"
"No, you did exceptionally well." Ning Qi gazed at him, completely satisfied, and whispered, "I'll reward you when we get back."
Xiao Sui's brows immediately relaxed, and he finally showed a happy expression.
Honestly, he wasn't particularly happy when he won the game, but he was overjoyed when it came to the reward.
Ning Qi couldn't help but laugh.
Yan Chongyan stared at the two of them with a gloomy expression, gripping the hilt of his sword tightly.
Xie Jingyan walked over and patted him on the shoulder, his face displeased. "Losing to him is really beneath your standards."
Yan Chongyan immediately replied, "This disciple is incompetent."
"You've had it too easy all the way. Compared to Xiao Sui, you lost because you weren't willing to fight hard," Xie Jingyan commented casually. "I don't want to see you lose to him again."
"Disciple understands." Yan Chongyan gritted his teeth.
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Author's Note: Xiaoqi: Being in the spotlight isn't good either; I can't just kiss anyone anymore.
Xiao Sui: (Looking wronged) Why didn't we even get to hold hands after winning the game?
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