Volume Two: Travels in the Qi Kingdom Chapter 111: Bonding Through Martial Arts

More and more arrogant prodigies arrived.

The prodigy Huang Yan of the Spirit Wing Palace, Chen Hao and Wang Ying of the Blossom Union Sect, Chi Ying, the young sect master of the Nether God Sect, Wu Ba, the young manor lord of the Heavenly Feather Manor, and the itinerant cultivator Qin Ming—these were the most closely watched geniuses, and the crucial figures in this imperial capital tournament.

To think they had all actually come.

Qi Xuan truly had considerable influence. If it had been anyone else, he likely would not have been able to invite all these proud geniuses.

The ordinary cultivators were also secretly searching for opportunities, wondering whether they might curry favor with one of the prodigies.

Almost everyone had arrived, and the gathering was about to begin.

At that very moment, an unexpected figure appeared at the doorway.

Mu Wanqing of the Spirit Wing Palace.

Not only Qi Xuan, but Zhang Heng as well, and everyone present, was astonished. Although Qi Xuan had sent an invitation to Mu Wanqing, he also knew she was naturally cold and aloof, and was unlikely to attend. Yet to his surprise, she had actually shown up.

At that instant, all the male cultivators in the hall fixed their eyes on Mu Wanqing. They had all heard of the name of the Spirit Wing Palace’s greatest prodigy. This was a true genius: a twenty-year-old Ninth Stage Golden Core cultivator, and the most likely person to claim first place in this imperial capital tournament. Perhaps she might even become the youngest Void Return cultivator within the State of Qi.

What was more, Mu Wanqing was breathtakingly beautiful, tall and graceful, a genuine ice-cold goddess.

The men knew they had no chance, yet they could not help themselves from staring.

Zhang Heng was momentarily stunned as well. Had this girl suddenly changed her nature?

Qi Xuan hurried to rise and welcome her, but Mu Wanqing ignored him. Her beautiful eyes swept once across the crowd before settling on Zhang Heng.

Without any surprise, under the jealous, envious, and resentful gazes of all the male cultivators, Mu Wanqing walked toward Zhang Heng with light steps.

Ignoring what Zhang Heng and Qi Sisi thought, Mu Wanqing sat down on the other side of Zhang Heng. Throughout, she remained icy and silent, saying nothing.

Qi Xuan, standing in the center of the hall, gave an awkward smile.

Then he loudly declared, "It is our honor that Fairy Mu has come. Very well, I shall say no more. Our gathering now officially begins."

"Today, I, Qi Xuan, have invited all of you geniuses here in hopes of taking this opportunity to meet with you and let everyone get acquainted..."

Qi Xuan droned on in the middle of the hall, but Zhang Heng could not be bothered to listen. It was nothing more than polite chatter and ceremonial fluff. Listening to him prattle on would be less worthwhile than eating a little more to replenish his strength.

So he simply went on eating the food on the table. Before long, the full spread had been completely devoured by Zhang Heng. Helplessly, Zhang Heng raised a hand and summoned a maidservant. He said casually, "The food here tastes pretty good. Bring me another full serving of everything."

The maidservant, though puzzled, did not ask further.

The others had strange expressions, but Zhang Heng was utterly unaware and kept eating at will.

Seeing the others staring at Zhang Heng, Qi Sisi sitting beside him lowered her head in shame. So embarrassing. Where was your image as the cool and aloof male idol?

Quite a few geniuses snorted in disdain.

"Where did this bumpkin come from?"

"We geniuses are gathering here, so how did this piece of trash slip in?"

Zhang Heng turned and glanced at Mu Wanqing, who was seated quietly nearby. Then he glanced at the other cultivators and suddenly thought of an even more infuriating way to provoke them.

"Miss Mu, long time no see."

Zhang Heng leaned toward Mu Wanqing and greeted her. The two of them were separated by only the slightest gap, and to outsiders it looked as if they were pressed right together.

Mu Wanqing ignored him.

"It seems the pill I gave you was useful after all," Zhang Heng said lightly.

Back in the ancient tomb, the girl had injured her face, but now Mu Wanqing bore no scars at all. Her skin was so smooth it seemed to drip with moisture. It appeared that the pill really had been excellent.

"Thank you."

Mu Wanqing turned her head and spoke those two words coldly.

"Miss Mu, why have you come here?" Zhang Heng asked.

This truly was strange. By rights, this girl should not have liked such a setting, yet she had appeared here of all places.

"And why have you come?" Mu Wanqing did not answer him, but asked in return.

"I came here for the food, of course." As he spoke, Zhang Heng again frantically stuffed the dishes on the table into his mouth.

"I came here to eat too," Mu Wanqing said coldly. Then, imitating Zhang Heng, she picked up the food on the table and began to eat.

"That's kind of amusing."

Zhang Heng laughed, because the effect he wanted had already been achieved. At this point, most of the male cultivators in the hall were glaring at him with fire in their eyes.

Earlier, even if they saw Mu Wanqing seated beside Zhang Heng, they had not thought much of it. They had only assumed that Mu Wanqing happened to notice an empty seat there.

They had not connected Zhang Heng and Mu Wanqing at all.

But now, by the look of things, Zhang Heng was chatting merrily with the goddess in their hearts, and the two were sitting so close together. Most importantly, Mu Wanqing did not seem displeased at all. One had to suspect that Mu Wanqing had truly come for Zhang Heng. At that thought, the flames of jealousy in their hearts burned even hotter.

To be fair, Zhang Heng's cultivation was among the lowest in the hall. Which one of them was not stronger than he was?

They were all surrounded by fellow male cultivators, while Zhang Heng sat sandwiched between two stunning beauties—one the noble princess of the State of Qi, the other the state's foremost beauty. Anyone would feel unbalanced at such a sight.

They were all thinking of giving Zhang Heng a severe lesson later.

And that was precisely the result Zhang Heng wanted.

According to Qi Xuan's original intention, everyone would sit together, exchange insights, and broaden their horizons. But now all eyes were on Zhang Heng, so where was there any mind left for discussing the Dao?

At last, someone could not hold back and stood up.

"Your Highness, what's the point of discussing the Dao like this? The Dao is forged through practice. If we cultivators want to improve our cultivation, we still need more sparring with our peers. Right now, all these geniuses are gathered together. I am sure everyone is already itching for a contest and wants to show their skills. Why don't we arrange a friendly martial exchange so everyone can learn from one another? What do you think?"

This man was Liu Hai, the third young master of the General's Manor. He rose and bowed deeply toward Qi Xuan before making his suggestion.

As soon as he said this, he immediately won the approval of the various geniuses. They all knew that a sparring session would take place tonight; it only needed someone to say it aloud.

Besides, some of them had wanted to teach Zhang Heng a lesson for quite some time.

One by one, the crowd voiced their support, urging Qi Xuan to allow a martial contest.

Qi Xuan had no choice but to agree.

He slowly stood up and said loudly, "Since all you geniuses are so interested, I would be failing to meet your enthusiasm if I refused. Fortunately, since we have gathered together so rarely, let us hold a martial exchange. You may spar with the peers you admire. However, to avoid hurt feelings, we shall stop at the point of restraint."

"Thank you, Your Highness," Liu Hai said, bowing.

"Yes, yes," the other geniuses echoed.

"In that case, please move to the martial arena," Qi Xuan said.

After taking a few steps, Qi Xuan looked back at Mu Wanqing and Zhang Heng, then continued, "If there are any geniuses who dislike fighting, you may remain here and rest, or leave first. I, Qi Xuan, will not force anyone."

As he spoke, all the geniuses gradually headed toward the martial arena.

Before long, only Mu Wanqing, Zhang Heng, and Qi Sisi remained in the hall.

Zhang Heng stood up. "Ladies, I would also like to go have a look. Please excuse me for now. Make yourselves at home."

With that, he ignored their reactions and directly used his movement technique to slip out from between them.