Chapter 6925 Li Wujiu
“Brother Long, why are you here?” Li Chenggang asked, pleasantly surprised to see Long Chen join them.
The other disciples with him lit up when they saw this legendary figure. Their worries about losing two matches in a row quickly faded.
On the other hand, the disciples from the Painting Sect were curious when someone new walked in. But when Li Chenggang greeted him, they realized it was the famous Long Chen, and their hearts skipped a beat.
“Watching from the sidelines just wasn’t enough for me, so I talked to both sides, and they agreed to let me in!” said Long Chen.
Li Chenggang didn’t know all the details, but he doubted it was really that easy for an outsider to join such an important match between two major sects. There had to be a reason.
Just then, an opposing voice rang out.
“Long Chen? The number one junior expert of the nine heavens? What big words.”
The speaker was a strange-looking man. He was handsome, but his eyes were rather frightening—one was pure black and the other pure white. Staring at him made people feel like their souls would be pulled away.
“Ah, please try to control yourself. If you don’t watch your words, I might lose my temper and slap you. I’ve already slapped one of your elders,” Long Chen said confidently, gesturing toward the senior he had slapped.
Outside the martial stage, the slapped man gritted his teeth so hard they nearly cracked. Why did this bastard have to keep bringing it up?
However, the people inside the barrier of the martial stage were mystified by what Long Chen had just said. Inside the barrier, it was like a separate world, cut off from the outside to keep the matches fair. So, the disciples inside had no idea what was happening outside.
“Cut the crap. The last match didn’t count, so we will continue with the third match. Long Chen, are you here to fight for the Calligraphy Sect? In that case, I’ll take you on!” challenged the strange-looking man.
Long Chen shrugged and said, “I’ve placed a bet against your vice sect master. If the Painting Sect wins at least one of the next three matches, I’ll entertain you. The only question is whether you have what it takes.”
That black-and-white-eyed man raised his head and laughed.
“Hahaha, we’ve won two matches in a row. If our disciple hadn’t been momentarily careless in the last match, we might have won that one too. Our objective isn’t just to win a best-of-five series, but to win all five matches. We will demonstrate with total strength that the Calligraphy Sect's path is outdated and abandoned by the times.”
“You don’t need to make excuses. Just send someone to fight. If you’re afraid of losing, send yourself!” Long Chen shouted arrogantly.
“I, Li Wujiu, refuse to waste time on nameless trash! Even if you, Long Chen, personally come, you'll have to defeat a few of my junior apprentices first before you are qualified to challenge me! Of course, you and your followers are welcome to step forward and fight. My Painting Sect isn’t afraid of you!” Li Wujiu declared confidently.
After that, he turned around to his fellow disciples and exclaimed, “Whoever wants to fight can step forward for the next match!”
It was obvious they were looking down on the Calligraphy Sect’s experts, just sending out anyone for the challenge.
Just like he said, even if Long Chen wanted to fight, he’d have to prove himself before Li Wujiu would face him.
One man immediately stepped forward onto the martial stage.
“Senior apprentice-brother Wujiu, junior brother Zhang Qinian wishes to fight!” he shouted.
Zhang Qinian instantly gave off a sharp aura that startled the Calligraphy Sect’s disciples. He was even stronger than the last three opponents.
“How sneaky. They kept their real experts in the back to make it look like the earlier ones were stronger,” Xin Yu whispered.
Xin Yu was very sharp, probably the most perceptive here after Long Chen and Zi Nuo.
“Boss, why not let me go this round?” Yan Li asked, itching for a fight.
Li Wujiu’s words had fired him up. Since he had declared that Long Chen could send anyone now, Long Chen’s earlier deal with vice sect master Ling Yan didn’t matter anymore.
“This fight is for the Calligraphy Sect. You should wait on the sidelines,” Long Chen said, shaking his head.
Originally, Li Chenggang was supposed to select the disciples. However, once Long Chen arrived, Li Chenggang delegated the task to him. The other Calligraphy Sect disciples were confused, expecting Li Chenggang to handle it, but he was waiting for Long Chen’s command.
Although some disciples wanted to volunteer, they hesitated because the matter concerned the sect's honor. They didn’t want to act impulsively.
Long Chen finally looked at one disciple of the Calligraphy Sect and asked, “Little sister, what’s your name?”
That young lady was baffled, but she timidly stepped forward and bowed.
“This junior is Liu Qianer.”
“You will face that fellow,” Long Chen said, smiling.
“Brother Long, Liu Qianer is immensely talented, but she hasn’t yet reached her full potential. She’s also timid. I’m afraid she won’t be able to unleash her true strength in this situation!” Li Chenggang transmitted hastily.
Li Chenggang hadn’t brought Liu Qianer to fight, but to let her experience the pressure of real experts. It was meant to help her grow.
Now, Liu Qianer was extremely nervous. She didn’t have much fighting experience and had never faced real danger before. Representing the Calligraphy Sect in such an important match made her even more anxious.
However, Long Chen walked over to Liu Qianer, put his hands on her shoulders, and whispered something to her.
While gritting her teeth, she stepped onto the martial stage. She was still clearly nervous—her steps were unsteady, making everyone else anxious for her too.
“Brother Long, are you sure about this?” Li Chenggang asked, his confidence starting to flag.
After all, Liu Qianer looked so nervous that she couldn’t even walk straight. Could she really win?
“So what if she loses? Don’t be so nervous!” Long Chen said, trying to reassure them.
Hearing this, Li Chenggang was speechless. If it were just his own loss, he wouldn’t mind, but this would affect the whole Calligraphy Sect. Losing now would be a huge blow.
However, Liu Qianer was already on the martial stage, so there was no point in worrying now. They could only hope for the best.
“Hahaha!”
Zhang Qinian couldn’t help but laugh when a timid girl approached him, her aura in disarray from nerves.
“Does the Calligraphy Sect lack fighters? Since you are sending a girl to her death, don’t blame me for being ruthless!”
The sound of a bell rang out, initiating the start of the match.
Liu Qianer gritted her teeth, drew her sword, and charged at Zhang Qinian. Her movements were unskilled, like a rookie with no combat experience.
“Idiot.”
Zhang Qinian smiled cruelly as he watched Liu Qianer rush at him, with openings all over.
“One step...”
“Two steps...”
“Three steps...”
Lei Qianer was counting as she charged over. On the third step, all her power suddenly converged into her sword.
At that moment, Zhang Qinian’s body blurred slightly.
Without even looking at him, Lei Qianer spun around and swung her sword. Countless immortal characters lit up along her blade, and then thousands of sharp swords tore into the sky.
“What...?”
Everyone was baffled. Had Liu Qianer gone crazy? Zhang Qinian was clearly right in front of her, but she suddenly tore gaping holes in the space behind her.
As everyone was stunned, blood suddenly started pouring down. They saw a figure wounded by those swords.
“What?!”
Everyone was startled.
Zhang Qinian had somehow ended up behind Liu Qianer. He fooled almost everyone with his move, but Liu Qianer saw through it.
Liu Qianer stabbed her sword into the ground. Countless runes lit up across the ground and transformed into sharp swords piercing the sky.
Liu Qianer spun again, sending a beautiful arc of Sword Qi that split the sky.
All three moves were fierce and flowed together perfectly. After these attacks, Liu Qianer’s energy was completely spent.
Actually, the last two moves didn’t matter. After all, Zhang Qinian had already been killed by the first attack.
Liu Qianer’s hand trembled as she looked around, still scared and searching for Zhang Qinian.
The whole place went silent. Was Zhang Qinian really defeated just like that? His death was completely meaningless. He didn’t even have the chance to release his aura before he died.
“Damn fool, he was too careless!” Li Wujiu cursed, his expression exceedingly ugly.
In terms of real strength, even a hundred Liu Qianer couldn’t beat Zhang Qinian. But he was still the one who lost. All of this was thanks to Long Chen.
The moment Long Chen saw Zhang Qinian, he knew Zhang Qinian would attack her from behind if she charged at him. He would take advantage of her lack of combat experience.
Having anticipated Zhang Qinian’s tactics, Long Chen instructed Liu Qianer to launch three of her strongest attacks consecutively right from the beginning.
Long Chen wasn’t sure which technique she would use. He simply told her to use the ones with the greatest attack range and killing power. If she didn’t win in these three moves, she would die, so Liu Qianer did not hold back at all.
Zhang Qinian knew that if he fought Liu Qianer directly, despite her lack of combat experience, she could still display astonishing strength. If that happened, he would be injured.
Therefore, Long Chen believed Zhang Qinian would choose to use a movement technique to ambush her, as that would be much more humiliating for the Calligraphy Sect.
However, Long Chen didn’t anticipate that Zhang Qinian would be so oblivious to danger that he would be killed in a single attack. The other two attacks only struck empty air.
The most ironic thing was that Liu Qianer was still nervously scanning for her opponent. She couldn’t find him. She couldn’t believe Zhang Qinian was already dead, fearing he might unexpectedly strike a lethal blow.
Just then, the mechanical voice of the martial stage announced, “The third match has concluded, Liu Qianer wins!"
Liu Qianer froze and looked at Long Chen in shock. He then smiled and winked at her.
Liu Qianer hurried back, stumbling on the way. If Li Chenggang hadn’t caught her, she would have fallen. Liu Qianer’s current state was a stark slap in the face to the Painting Sect, as it was a humiliating blow that one of their elite disciples had been killed by someone like this.
The Calligraphy Sect’s side was cheering loudly, as this was the most crucial battle. The victory immediately boosted their morale.
Just then, Long Chen shouted, “Hey, little friend, are you sleeping? Who are you sending out for the fourth match?”