Chapter 18: Humiliation
As he spoke, Chen Qing's hands suddenly formed into eagle claws, his expression instantly sharpening. Sensing the change in Chen Qing's aura, Wang Xihai shook his head. He recognized this Fist Technique: Dragon Claw Hand. It was a Low-Level Battle Skill famous for its speed, precision, and ruthlessness, yet incredibly difficult to master. Gritting his teeth, Wang Xihai formed his own hands into claws and began a rapid exchange of attacks with Chen Qing.
Parrying and countering, they exchanged blows. One fought like a ferocious tiger, savage and unstoppable; the other, like a soaring dragon, cunning and sharp. The pace of their battle quickened. To the casual observer, they seemed evenly matched, but a discerning eye could tell Wang Xihai's stamina was already failing. Fine beads of sweat dotted his forehead. In contrast, Chen Qing was completely unaffected, his breathing only slightly heavier.
Sure enough, after holding on for a few more moments, Wang Xihai staggered. Chen Qing immediately seized the opportunity, shouting, "Wandering Dragon Tail!"
His sharp fingers slashed straight down Wang Xihai's chest. SLASH! Two long, red gashes appeared on his chest. The wounds were deep, and crimson blood quickly stained the front of his robes.
Wang Xihai grunted. Struck by the eagle claw, his stance was already unstable. A moment later, a kick from Chen Qing sent him sliding right off the stage. Wang Junyao and the other Wang Family disciples rushed forward to support Wang Xihai, then led him back to the Wang Family's rest area.
"The winner is Chen Qing." Elder Yan grabbed Chen Qing's hand and raised it high.
"Chen Qing! Chen Qing! Chen Qing!..."
In the plaza, the Chen Family disciples all roared with excitement. The voices of several hundred people were enough to shake the entire plaza. However, in contrast to the elated Chen and Li Families, the members of the other families all wore extremely sour expressions.
It was obvious they favored Chen Qing over the others. Chen Qing's face flushed with excitement, but the color slowly faded after a moment. He took a deep breath and remained on the stage. 'My name is definitely going on the Xuanling Imperial Academy's recruitment list,' he thought.
He wasn't wrong. Yan Ruoshui had already written his name in the column for official academy students. However, there were a total of five slots on the form. The first was filled with Chen Qing's name. The second was not Wang Xihai, but the red-robed young woman who had been fighting evasively with her Body Technique earlier, Wang Junyao.
After a moment of consideration, at a signal from the black-robed elder, Yan Ruoshui also wrote down Wang Xihai's name. This time, however, she placed it in the section for "Probationary Special Recruits."
"Heh heh, Brother Wang, your family's genius doesn't seem all that great, does he?" a mocking voice drifted from the right of the patriarchs' seating area.
The speaker was none other than the Head of the Li Family, Li Zongtang. Wang Mo's already grim expression turned even darker. He frowned and retorted, "What of it? A true man knows when to bend and when to stand tall. A loss is a loss, and a win is a win. Besides, Xi Han lost to Chen Qing, not someone from your Li Family. What do you have to be so smug about? If you've got a problem with it, call up your Li Family's Li Ze for a match against my Xi Han."
Though annoyed by Wang Mo's retort, Li Zongtang had to admit that no one in the Li Family could truly match Wang Xihai. Still, he had a comeback. "He's my son-in-law, so why can't I comment? If you're so capable, go find a good son-in-law for yourself."
Wang Mo sneered, closed his eyes, and fell silent. The man had played the son-in-law card; what more was there to say? It was Mu Gutian, sitting between them, who wore the most troubled expression. He wasn't trying to be humble; in all honesty, he had absolutely no confidence in his own family's chances.
Mu Chen's gaze, however, wasn't on the stage. It had shifted to the spectator stands, where Yan Ruoshui was deep in thought. Suddenly, she felt a gaze upon her. As a Martial Spirit, her senses were incredibly sharp. She instantly locked onto Mu Chen, but all she saw was a youth with his eyes tightly closed. The boy looked very ordinary and was rather thin and small. Vaguely, she felt she had some impression of him. After thinking for a moment, the image of a youth fleeing in a panic surfaced in her mind.
'It's him?' Yan Ruoshui murmured softly.
Tang Hao, who was beside her, heard her mumble and asked in confusion, "Ruoshui, what did you say?"
Yan Ruoshui was startled for a moment, then said calmly, "Nothing. I was just wondering if there are any more outstanding people."
After she spoke, Yan Ruoshui glanced out of the corner of her eye in that direction, only to find the skinny youth was gone. She couldn't help but freeze. 'Was I just imagining things?' she wondered.
…
Mu Chen was speechless. 'I can't believe her senses are that sharp.' He had only glanced over casually—and with his eyes closed, no less—yet she'd pinpointed him instantly. He'd had no choice but to leave his seat. Once he was away, however, he wasn't sure where to go. As he looked around, he saw a figure in white waving a slender, fair arm at him.
Mu Chen smiled slightly and slowly walked down. In the past, he would never have dared to walk down so openly under the gaze of so many people, but things were different now. The recovery of his Dantian, the appearance of the Profound Old Ghost, and the Extreme Spirit Pearl had all given him immense confidence. With his eyes closed, as if treading a familiar path, he arrived at the Mu Family's rest area. The one who had been waving was Mu Bingling.
Mu Bingling had just happened to turn around and saw someone stand up in the viewing seats. A curious glance revealed it was Mu Chen, so she waved to greet him, not expecting him to actually come down.
At this, the surrounding disciples of the Wang and Mu Families all stared wide-eyed at the one-armed youth. For a moment, everyone was stunned.
"What does that good-for-nothing want?" a Mu Family disciple said in astonishment.
The people beside him all shook their heads in confusion. "No idea."
"What are you doing down here?" Seeing Mu Chen walk down, the first person to speak wasn't Mu Bingling, but Mu Rongxuan, who was standing beside her.
As for Mu Xiaotian, he only glanced at Mu Chen before turning his gaze back to the stage, his expression unreadable. Mu Chen smiled slightly. "Is that any of your business? It's not like I came to see you."
"You..." Mu Rongxuan was furious, his face instantly darkening. 'Did this guy take the wrong medicine today?' he wondered. The kid who never dared to speak to him this way before was actually talking back to him now.
Mu Chen didn't even spare a glance for Mu Rongxuan, whose face was as black as the bottom of a pot. He turned to Mu Bingling and said with a smile, "Sister, be careful in your match later."
Mu Bingling shook her head. "I'll be fine. But you, why are you still keeping your eyes closed? Aren't you afraid you'll trip and fall?"
"Heh heh, I told you, it's not a problem. Everything around me is clear in my mind."
"Hmph… I don't know what to do with you. But..." At this point, Mu Bingling slowly brought her stunningly beautiful cheek close to Mu Chen's ear and whispered, "You seem... different."
Mu Chen was taken aback for a moment, then the corners of his mouth lifted. "Oh, really? It's probably because I got more handsome, so I'm more confident now."
"Pfft, since when did you become so vain?" Mu Bingling smiled enchantingly, instantly leaving the surrounding Wang Family disciples dumbstruck. Some of the less composed ones were already drooling on their collars.
"This is the clan tournament! Get back! Haven't you embarrassed our Mu Family enough already?" Mu Rongxuan's face was ashen as he watched the two of them chatting as if no one else was there.
His words immediately drew agreement from many. However, at that moment, Mu Xiaotian, who had been looking elsewhere, let out a cold snort and barked, "Enough, Mu Rongxuan! If you have so much extra energy, then go up on that stage and defeat Chen Qing to let our Mu Family hold its head high. If you can't, then shut your mouth."
Mu Rongxuan was stunned. He never expected Mu Xiaotian to speak up for Mu Chen. He said coldly, "Fine. I will."
At that moment, both Mu Chen and Mu Xiaotian looked at Mu Rongxuan's reaction in surprise, making a mental note. They knew that when Mu Rongxuan matured, he would be someone to be reckoned with.
On the stage, Chen Qing swept his gaze across the crowd below and said in a low voice, "Next."
However, after his call, no one responded. It was no surprise. After all, even a genius like Wang Xihai had lost. The Li Family had always been subservient to the Chen Family, so the next challenger had to be from the Mu Family. But the Mu Family's performance in recent years had been lackluster, always trailing behind the other three great families. Therefore, everyone believed the final winner of this competition would undoubtedly be Chen Qing.
Seeing that no one was coming up, Elder Yan said, "If no one else comes up to challenge, then I will consider the other families to have forfeited."
"Wait, I'll go!"
Just when everyone thought there would be no more challengers, a calm voice rang out. Mu Chen's expression was complicated. He hadn't expected Mu Rongxuan to actually go up. Everyone had seen the cautionary tale; Chen Qing had single-handedly defeated the Wang Family's champion, which was more than enough to display his strength. No one would have said a thing if the others didn't go up. But if someone did go up and lost, they would surely be ridiculed.
"If I lose, none of you are to go up." After leaving behind these cool words, Mu Rongxuan turned and walked onto the stage.
"Mu Family, Mu Rongxuan," he said calmly, a sharp, cold light glinting in his eyes.
"Someone from the Mu Family actually dared to go up?"
"Even Wang Xihai lost. What can the last-place Mu Family possibly do?"
"Tch, how clueless."
As soon as Mu Rongxuan stepped onto the stage, the Li and Chen Families started chattering. Chen Wenfu, sitting in the patriarchs' area, began to laugh. "Truly, a newborn calf isn't afraid of a tiger. Your Mu Family really isn't afraid to lose."
Mu Gutian frowned. He had initially blamed Mu Rongxuan in his heart for being impulsive, but now he suddenly felt that Mu Rongxuan had done the right thing. He turned and smiled, "You're right, we certainly aren't afraid to lose. A man must have the courage to fight. Even if it means death, one must not retreat. Unlike some people who, after becoming dependent on others, don't even dare to fight anymore."
Mu Gutian's words were filled with insinuation, quickly shifting the focus to the Li Family. Li Zongtang was furious and about to explode but was stopped by Chen Wenfu. Chen Wenfu chuckled and said, "Yes, one must dare to fight. I just wonder how long this disciple of your Mu Family can last against my grandson. Heh heh. Oh, that's right, I heard the Mu Family also has a good-for-nothing. I wonder if he also dares to fight."
"Haha, just a piece of trash. If a disgraceful piece of trash like that appeared in my family, I would have kicked him out long ago to save myself the embarrassment." Li Zongtang, sitting to the side, didn't miss a single chance to mock Mu Gutian.
Mu Gutian was about to retort but was pulled back by Wang Mo, who then gestured for him to look at the stage.
By now, the match on the stage was already over. The entire exchange, from the patriarchs' banter to the end of the fight, had lasted mere moments, but the outcome was decided. Mu Rongxuan had been utterly defeated. His body was covered in wounds from the Dragon Claw Hand, and his blue robes were torn to shreds, hanging from his body in tatters. Mu Rongxuan lay on the ground, his expression still indifferent as he struggled to stand. Chen Qing, in contrast, was grinning.
"The Mu Family? What's that? Do we even have a family like that in Luofeng City?" Chen Qing laughed contemptuously.
"Oh, right, I have heard that your family does have one person who is quite famous in Luofeng City. 'Mu Chen the Trash,' was it?" Chen Qing continued.
"Hmph." Mu Rongxuan grunted. The pain radiating from all over his body made him feel too weak to even stand, but he couldn't allow himself to fall.
Chen Qing sneered, "Oh? Still got some backbone, huh?"
After speaking, Chen Qing's expression suddenly changed. He took a single stride and sent a flying kick straight for Mu Rongxuan's face. The kick was incredibly fast. It wasn't hard to imagine that if this blow landed, Mu Rongxuan would be knocked unconscious.