Volume Two: Travels in the State of Qi - Chapter 157: Conclusion

Inside the Royal Arena of the Qi State, during the ultimate showdown of the Imperial City Grand Tournament, two supreme prodigies were actually drinking alcohol on the combat stage. If word of this spread, it would not merely shock the entire world; it would at least astonish the Qi State and its neighboring countries.

At this moment, hundreds of thousands of pairs of eyes were fixed on Zhang Heng and his companion.

Some were puzzled by this stunt, some envied them for possessing such poise and state of mind, while others wished they could tear them to pieces.

However, Zhang Heng and Mu Wanqing completely ignored all of this. At this moment, there was no Imperial City Grand Tournament in their hearts, nor were there the millions of spectators.

There was only the spirit wine and the spiritual fruit.

There was only each other.

Zhang Heng was drinking to his heart's content, but a short while later, he realized something was amiss because this young lady Mu Wanqing was an absolute heavyweight drinker.

He still had more than half of the wine left in his flask. Yet Mu Wanqing had already finished hers, and now a pair of phoenix-shaped eyes were staring straight at him.

Zhang Heng had originally thought that since Mu Wanqing was a woman, she wouldn't know how to drink. That was why he had proposed deciding the victory through a drinking contest.

However, if things went on like this, he was bound to lose.

Zhang Heng put away his wine flask and looked squarely at Mu Wanqing.

Mu Wanqing wore a look of utter confusion.

"Miss Mu, you're drunk," Zhang Heng shamelessly declared.

"Zhang Heng, I'm not drunk," Mu Wanqing shook her head. Although she didn't usually drink alcohol, she could still tell the difference between being drunk and sober.

"You are drunk," Zhang Heng said with absolute conviction.

Mu Wanqing looked around their surroundings in a circle, then silently nodded. "Right, I'm drunk."

Naturally, she understood Zhang Heng's intentions. She also knew that Zhang Heng had proposed settling the victory through drinking because he didn't want to hurt her. Since Zhang Heng wanted the first place in the Imperial City Grand Tournament, she naturally wouldn't be so tactless as to compete with him over it.

Then, Mu Wanqing suddenly closed her beautiful eyes, and her delicate body gracefully tipped over in the direction of Zhang Heng. Zhang Heng gently caught her, inwardly praising her performance to the highest degree. This girl's acting skills were top-notch! If she were placed in the modern era, with her acting talent, figure, and beauty, she would undoubtedly be a best actress award winner.

Just as the two of them were putting on an act on the stage, fierce curses erupted from the audience below.

"This is going too far! Zhang Heng, you shameless bastard, do you take us for non-existent?"

"I can't忍 it anymore! Let me up there; I'm going to teach this brat Zhang Heng a proper lesson."

Seeing Zhang Heng holding Mu Wanqing in his arms, the hearts of all the male cultivators shattered.

"Scoundrel, let go of Fairy Mu!"

"Zhang Heng, get down here! I'm going to fight you to the death!"

"Ah, my goddess, how have you fallen?"

Even the Emperor of Qi on the second-floor balcony was extremely astonished upon seeing this scene. These two youngsters really showed him zero respect. This was the Imperial City Grand Tournament, after all! Even if you wanted to put on a show, could you please act with a little more sincerity?

Looking at the reactions of the spectators in the arena, the Emperor of Qi felt a massive headache coming on. How was he supposed to clean up this messy situation?

Ling Tian was also stunned when he saw this. Wasn't Mu Wanqing known for her aloof and detached nature? How could she actually join that brat Zhang Heng in putting on an act? He had taken a huge loss this time! Not only could he not teach Zhang Heng a lesson, but he might even end up losing a junior martial niece.

The big shots of the other sects exchanged blank stares, utterly unable to comprehend this. The title of the number one of the younger generation—what supreme glory was that? Their own disciples fought desperately to win it yet failed, yet these two treated the day of the final battle as a mere child's game, not even bothering to act convincingly.

Only Wu Hong was laughing heartily. Fair is fair, this young girl Mu Wanqing was truly exceptional. Aside from being a bit cold, she had practically no other flaws and was more than a match for Zhang Heng.

The people below were still hurling abuses.

"Shameless Zhang Heng! Did you actually drug Fairy Mu?"

Hearing this, Zhang Heng froze.

People needed to be reasonable, right? Winning first place through this method might not be entirely appropriate, but when on earth did I drug her? Which of your eyes saw that? Clearly, this young lady was willing of her own accord to play along with my act!

However, Zhang Heng only dared to grumble these thoughts in his heart; right now, it was best for him to remain silent. If he were to refute these people, he feared he might genuinely get beaten up.

At that moment, Zhang Heng shouted loudly toward Wu Hong on the second floor, "Master Wu, would you say I won this match?"

Zhang Heng was barely holding his ground against the pressure, so he had no choice but to drag Wu Hong down into the water with him. Wasn't this old man insanely powerful? Let him come and settle this.

As soon as Zhang Heng said this, the crowd below began arguing once more.

"Protest! Protest! It doesn't count!"

"That brat Zhang Heng couldn't possibly beat Fairy Mu in a real fight."

"That's right! He definitely drugged the wine."

"We demand a rematch!"

"That punk Zhang Heng is too shameless! If he has the guts, let him actually fight Fairy Mu properly."

Because Zhang Heng's actions were simply too shameless, the popularity he had painstakingly accumulated over the past few days vanished completely. At this moment, almost everyone was denouncing him.

Before long, Wu Hong flew down and landed on the stage.

The spectators immediately cried out in unison.

"Master Wu, you must handle this with absolute impartiality!"

"That punk Zhang Heng definitely used some underhanded methods."

"Master Wu, just disqualify that brat Zhang Heng straight away!"

Wu Hong, however, ignored them entirely and directly announced, "The first place in this Imperial City Grand Tournament goes to Zhang Heng. Mu Wanqing, due to being unable to hold her liquor, takes second place."

Seeing that Wu Hong had declared Zhang Heng the winner of first place, their arguments grew even more heated.

At this moment, Wu Hong cast a cold, sweeping glance across the entire audience and shouted sternly, "What? Are you questioning this old man?" Wu Hong's voice was infused with surging spiritual energy, echoing throughout the entire arena.

This voice was like a basin of cold water, instantly extinguishing everyone's passion and snapping them back to reality.

A chill ran down everyone's spine, and they all said with trembling voices,

"N-no, we wouldn't dare."

They had gotten carried away earlier and actually dared to oppose Wu Hong.

How could they ever dare to oppose Wu Hong? Wu Hong was a tier-five alchemist, after all, and a tier-five alchemist of the Pill Pavilion at that.

Inside the entire arena, whether they were cultivators of the Void Return Realm or the Tianyuan Realm, whether they were rogue cultivators or big shots from various major sects, or even the Emperor of Qi himself—not a single one of them dared to utter a word of dissent.

Of course, what they feared wasn't just Wu Hong alone.

Although Wu Hong was a tier-five alchemist with a noble status, he alone wouldn't be enough to make all the sects within the borders of the Qi State bow their heads.

What these people feared was the Pill Pavilion—that truly colossal and terrifying behemoth.

"Since no one has any objections, I declare that the Imperial City Grand Tournament has now concluded. The top eight contestants of this tournament will obtain the qualification to enter the Immortal Spirit Spring. Everyone else may now disperse."

Upon hearing this, the spectating cultivators hurriedly left, not daring to linger for even a fraction of a second.

Seeing this, Zhang Heng could not help but admire that when Wu Hong put on airs of authority, he truly possessed an overwhelming presence.

Zhang Heng finally understood why this old man Wu Hong had rushed over to preside over the Imperial City Grand Tournament. He must have been worried that Zhang Heng would be bullied by others during the tournament; he was here to hold down the fort, or rather, to help Zhang Heng bully everyone else.

Now, the only ones remaining inside the arena were the imperial forces of the Qi State and a few major sects. This Imperial City Grand Tournament had been held many times before, and those sects were familiar with the rules, so they simply waited quietly in place.

After the others had left, Mu Wanqing hurriedly broke free from Zhang Heng's embrace and quickly turned her head away, seemingly afraid that others would see the panic and shyness on her face.

Zhang Heng felt extremely awkward because the big shots from those major sects were all staring directly at him. With no other choice, Zhang Heng could only pretend as if nothing had happened and stood there with a nonchalant expression.

To be honest, Zhang Heng's appearance at this moment was exceptionally punchable. If not for their status, those major sect big shots probably would have already stepped forward to teach him a lesson.

Zhang Heng did not leave either, because he knew what was supposed to happen next.