CHAPTER 744: CHAPTER 749: THE FINAL VICTOR (1)

Seeing Ling Chen fall outside the boundary of the arena, everyone’s heart finally sank with him.

Ling Chen was out, and the martial arts competition was finally over. Although Ling Chen lost, the looks in people’s eyes were filled with appreciation. For a mere practitioner on the Dragon List to endure for so long against Wang Hao was no easy feat.

Indeed worthy of being Su He’s disciple, it was indeed remarkable. If it were someone else, they probably wouldn’t have lasted half as long.

"Ling Cheng!"

"Ling Chen!"

At this moment, porridge girl and Qiu Yong and others hurried over, helping Ling Chen up from the ground. Seeing his pale face and his breath weak as threads, porridge girl’s beautiful eyes brimmed with crystalline tears, hurt by the situation, her little hand gently stroking Ling Chen’s cheek, she chided him with concern, "You’re too stubborn, you should have conceded earlier. Why push yourself to this extent?"

Ling Chen slightly raised the corners of his mouth, managing to squeeze out a wry smile, "It’s okay, I’m not going to die."

"Ling Chen, are you okay?"

At this time, Su Mei, accompanied by an elder, walked over from the side, her tone worried.

Ling Chen shook his head lightly, replying: "I’m fine."

"That’s good to hear." After finishing her sentence, Su Mei looked up at Wang Hao on the stage, then continued, "I’ll announce the results soon, and afterwards, I’ll have the best doctor from Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion take a look at you."

With that said, Su Mei stepped onto the stage.

Watching Su Mei step up to the stage, Qiu Yong and a few others helped Ling Chen stand. However, because his injuries were too severe, Ling Chen couldn’t muster any strength. He couldn’t even speak loudly, let alone stand.

"Hmph! To think of defeating Wang Hao, how utterly delusional."

Suddenly, a mocking voice came from the crowd.

Porridge girl frowned, following the direction of the voice, only to see the words were from Tong Nan; how he got there, no one knew.

Xia Yue retorted discontentedly, "At least my Ling Cheng had the qualifications to challenge Wang Hao, while you didn’t even have that. I don’t know who was defeated by my Ling Cheng, and now you have the face to criticize him. I always thought my Ling Cheng had a thick skin, but you’re even more audacious. At least my Ling Cheng has some shame, while you have none at all."

Upon hearing this, Ling Chen almost couldn’t resist laughing aloud. How had he failed to notice before that Xia Yue had such a way with words, skillfully insulting someone without using a single swear word.

Tong Nan snorted coldly, "Had I not been careless, he would not have gained an advantage."

"You might as well shut up; we’re not interested in squabbling with a defeated underling."

As Xia Yue’s words fell, before Tong Nan could speak again, Wang Hao’s voice suddenly came from the stage: "Ling Chen, what I said before still stands. As long as you deliver the Nine Elements Pill to Elder Su and explain my intentions, I can offer you some benefits. If you don’t want the benefits, that’s fine too. Consider it a favor you can call in whenever you need help in the future. What do you say?"

These words stirred a buzz of discussions among the crowd.

Although Wang Hao wasn’t an elder of Yangxin Pavilion, everyone was well aware of his strength; receiving a favor from him could be considered quite an opportunity. There seemed to be no reason for Ling Chen to refuse such an offer.

As Wang Hao’s words reached Ling Chen, he touched his nose, silent for a long while, making everyone wonder what he was thinking about.

Seeing Ling Chen’s delayed response, Wang Hao calmly spoke, "Take your time to think it over, and let me know once you’ve decided."

"That’s enough!"

At this moment, Su Mei, standing beside Wang Hao, spoke up. She glanced over the crowd below the stage and declared, "Today’s competition concludes here, and there’s no need for me to announce the outcome, as everyone has already witnessed it. As per tradition, the victor has the rights to dispose of the Nine Elements Pill. Now, please bear witness."

After saying that, the elder beside her passed the exquisite wooden box to Su Mei.

"Wang Hao, this is the Nine Elements Pill. You are aware of its value without me needing to elaborate, I trust you will use it wisely." Having spoken, Su Mei held up the wooden box with both hands and presented it in front of Wang Hao.

"Thank you, Pavilion Master!"

Wang Hao bowed with a fist, ready to take the wooden box.

"Hold on!"

But, just at that moment, a voice suddenly came from the crowd.

Everyone turned to look and saw Du Kang, followed by a few elders from Yangxin Pavilion, quickly approaching from the stands.

"Elder Du, do you have something to say?"

Du Kang glanced at Su Mei and said, "Pavilion Master, please wait a moment." Then, ignoring the crowd’s baffled looks, he walked directly to the left side of the arena and picked something up from the ground.

Everyone noticed that Du Kang was holding the very object Ling Chen had thrown, which was later tossed off the stage by Wang Hao.

Watching Du Kang closely inspect the item in his hands, everyone’s curiosity piqued; they also wanted to know what it was and why Ling Chen had thrown it at the last moment.

Amidst the confusion, Du Kang lifted his head, looked at Su Mei on the stage, and stated, "Pavilion Master, you might need to revise the outcome."

These words shocked everyone present.

Revise the result of the competition?

Could it be... that Wang Hao wasn’t the winner? But everyone had clearly seen that Ling Chen was knocked out of the arena by Wang Hao and landed outside. According to the rules of the competition, those who leave the boundaries of the arena are immediately deemed to have lost.

Su Mei, puzzled, asked Elder Du, "Elder Du, everyone saw, the winner is Wang Hao, why do you...?"

"I say this because I have my reasons." With that, Du Kang lifted the item in his hand and lightly waved it in front of everyone, saying, "I think most of you are unfamiliar with this item, it’s no wonder, as this hidden weapon has been lost for many years, known to very few. Today is a rare opportunity, so let me enlighten you. This weapon’s name is the Blood Dripping Device, and I’m sure the name is not alien to those present, though it’s rarely seen."

The Blood Dripping Device?

Upon hearing Du Kang’s explanation, everyone was taken aback. They had heard of the infamous Blood Dripping Device but had never seen one.

It was said to be an extremely vicious weapon, used to take people’s lives, and had been abandoned many years ago. No one expected to see it again today.

"Just now, everyone saw that Wang Hao’s head was covered by the Blood Dripping Device; if it weren’t for Ling Chen’s mercy, Wang Hao’s head would have been severed. Therefore, the winner of this competition isn’t Wang Hao but Ling Chen. Does anyone disagree?"

With even Elder Du speaking up like that, no one else had any objections, although some looked at Wang Hao with pity. In such a short time, he had fallen from grace, a true loss of face.