CHAPTER 53: CHAPTER 53: EVERYONE WHO GETS IT, GETS IT

When the name "Ye Qingzhou" was uttered from Nan Gongyi’s mouth, not only were the two commentators stunned, but the audience also found it unbelievable.

"Ridiculous, if Ye Qingzhou can win the championship, I’ll livestream myself eating shit while doing a handstand!"

"I admit Ye Qingzhou is good, but his martial bone is not fully formed, and the gap between him and Zhu Jinfeng and Liu Dingjian is too big. He can’t even make it to the finals, let alone win the championship?"

"Exactly, the Phoenix Wing Golden Bone of the Danxia Zhu Clan and the Sword Bone of the Star City Liu Clan provide enormous support to physique and inner breath. How is Ye Qingzhou supposed to win?"

The comment section was in an uproar. If not for Nan Gongyi being from a wealthy family, people would suspect he’d taken a bribe to speak for Ye Qingzhou.

The female commentator Xin’er couldn’t hold back her curiosity and asked Nan Gongyi, "Could you tell us why you, God Yi, believe in Ye Qingzhou’s winning?"

Nan Gongyi shook his head, "Conflicting interests and classified matters, I can only say those who know, know. It’s inconvenient for me to say more to those who don’t."

Ye Qingzhou’s killing of the Heart Evil Stream’s Zhan Lie was still under investigation, and divulging it might alert others.

No one knew if Zhan Lie had other accomplices lurking in Star City.

And Ye Qingzhou being able to take down a professional sixth-rank martial artist like Zhan Lie head-on was proof of his capability. Although Zhu Jinfeng and Liu Dingjian were excellent, they’d struggle to escape from a martial outlaw like Zhan Lie.

Therefore, it’s logical to conclude that Ye Qingzhou’s potential to win the championship was unstoppable.

In the competitors’ seats of the Qian District, everyone’s gaze focused on Ye Qingzhou, especially Zhu Jinfeng and Liu Dingjian. Both were curious why Nan Gongyi was so sure Ye Qingzhou could become the champion.

Leon was also curious, "Damn, Master Ye, what earth-shattering thing did you do this time?"

"Nothing."

Ye Qingzhou took a hush money of two million, so he was committed to professional ethics and revealed nothing about killing Zhan Lie.

Unless Leon agreed to pay more.

"No way, Master Ye, you must be hiding something from me."

Then Leon’s gaze shifted between Ye Qingzhou and Xu Yuebing, testing the waters as he asked, "Master Ye, I’ve heard that the Joyful Union Sect’s sect’s ultimate skill, the Yin Yang Convergence Divine Skill, can harmonize Yin and Yang through the divine communication technique to quickly enhance inner breath cultivation with a secret replenishing technique. You guys wouldn’t be..."

"Leon, shut up!"

Upon hearing "divine communication," Xu Yuebing seemed to be hit where it hurt.

Amid laughter and chattering, the top sixteen battle soon began.

"Contestant 004 from Nanshi University Affiliated Middle School, Liang Sheng, against contestant 021 from Linjiang First High School, Xu Yuebing."

Xu Yuebing stood up and walked to the stage.

On the way, Ye Qingzhou whispered a reminder to her, "Remember, you only have one chance, you must catch him off guard."

Hearing this, Xu Yuebing nodded seriously. In this match, she must win!

While the two contestants were still in the preparation stage, the commentator "Wandering Son" took the opportunity to introduce the two competitors’ identities and strength levels to the audience.

"In this match, Nanshi University Affiliated Middle School’s Liang Sheng holds an absolute advantage. His Illusion Sword remains undefeated so far."

Xin’er then talked about Xu Yuebing and was surprised to say, "In this year’s top sixteen battles, there are actually four contestants from Linjiang First High School."

Hearing this, even Nan Gongyi showed a look of surprise, because usually, the top sixteen in the Sword Fighting Competition gather Swordsmanship geniuses from all over Xiang Province, and even some from out of province who come to compete.

Therefore, it’s rare for a single school to have two contestants in the top sixteen.

Having four people break into the elimination stage was simply unheard of.

It even included a civilian contestant like Ye Qingzhou, who had the strength to win the championship, making it even more incredible.

"Wandering Son" laughed and said, "In recent years, the country has been vigorously promoting martial arts and nurturing civilian martial art talents, and now it seems truly farsighted, with abundant results."

Although Nan Gongyi came from a martial arts family, he was also happy to see the flourishing of martial arts, so he laughed and said, "If Ye Qingzhou wins the championship this year, then civilian martial artists of Xiang Province will truly rise."

The whistle blew.

The match officially began.

"Let’s see what exciting match Liang Sheng and Xu Yuebing can bring us."

Liang Sheng moved first, seizing the initiative to attack.

Among the Six Techniques, he was proficient in Wind Force and mastered in Yin Skill. His specialty was to hide his presence, then disrupt the opponent’s perception and judgment for a surprise victory.

Zheng~

Layers of glaring sword lights enveloped Xu Yuebing, intertwining truth and illusion, making it hard to distinguish real from fake.

Under Ye Qingzhou’s special training, and through telepathy technique, Xu Yuebing was awarded the Heart Sword Secret Technique. Her cultivation soared, already mastering Wind Force and being proficient in Yin Skill, not far behind Liang Sheng in foundation.

What she lacked were battle skills and competition experience.

Therefore, Ye Qingzhou’s strategy for her was the "First Strike Kill"!

The outcome was decided in one move!

If the match got into a stalemate, then Xu Yuebing, who lacked in skill and experience, would definitely lose!

At this moment, Xu Yuebing closed her eyes tightly, focusing her senses on hearing, finding her opponent’s true location through sound.

Zheng~

In the darkness, only the buzzing sound of the longsword was heard in her ears.

"Got you!"

Xu Yuebing activated her inner breath as the Clear Wind swept up the flying sand, sprinkling towards Liang Sheng.

This move was something Ye Qingzhou created, based on Wind Force, named Flying Sand.

To put it bluntly, it was the infamous dust sprinkling trick known in the martial world, though it was considered crass, it had brought many famous masters to disgrace, proving to be timeless.

"Ah!"

Liang Sheng, suddenly struck while mid-air, had sand thrown into his face unexpectedly.

"Now’s the time!"

Xu Yuebing drew her sword, integrating all her strength with the Dragon Subduing and Tiger Suppressing skill, supplemented by the Sword Qi from Wind’s Inner Breath, and thrust forth with Dragon-Pointing precision!

Puchi~

The longsword pierced through the chest, deliberately avoiding the heart. Even so, Liang Sheng suffered severe injuries and fell to the ground unable to stand.

"Xu Yuebing wins!"

"Call for Divine Doctor Zhong immediately!"

Ye Qingzhou had already grasped the essence of the Illusion Sword, then smiled knowingly as Xu Yuebing approached him, "Not bad with that sword, you only made four mistakes."

Originally smiling joyfully, Xu Yuebing immediately put on a stern face, glaring at Ye Qingzhou with gritted teeth, "You could have skipped the last half of that sentence!"

"Just didn’t want you to get conceited."

This unexpected result of the match sparked widespread discussion and debate among the audience, mainly because Xu Yuebing’s Flying Sand move was too dirty.

As a result, many young people watching the broadcast online were considering focusing on Wind Force.

If you can’t beat them, join them.

Soon, Ye Qingzhou’s first top sixteen match formally began with the referee’s announcement.

"Contestant 019 from Xiangtan Iron Middle School, Lii Wei, against contestant 404 from Linjiang First High School, Ye Qingzhou."

Seeing Ye Qingzhou walk onto the stage unscathed, Lii Wei cursed his steward in his heart for being useless, unable to handle even this small matter.

Facing Ye Qingzhou, he knew he had no chance of winning, but under the gaze of so many people, he couldn’t perform the Golden Dragon Earth Escape act.

’Damn civilian, continue being pleased with yourself for now. After the competition, I’ll make you regret it for life!’

Lii Wei vowed silently, obviously not giving up the idea of hiring someone for a hit.