With the bad feeling increasing by the second after Song Fei turned away and didn't even look at him as if she had no idea who he was, Yang Shen cautiously got onto the stone platform.
Maybe all of this is just a misunderstanding and I'm just further worsening the situation?
Smiling wryly at how it was useful for him to think about such things after things came so far, Yang Shen waited for Hao Lin to come up on the stage.
Silently calling for the system and making sure that it was still on the page where items could be purchased from, Yang Shen sighed in relief that as long as he selected 'Yes' the transaction would go through and he'd obtain the item he wanted.
A special talisman worth 200 Points which would teleport him five thousand kilometres away. As for which direction he would be teleported in, that was completely random and couldn't be decided by Yang Shen.
This was the item which Yang Shen placed all of his trust on, and was the reason he dared come here.
Not his own strength, or his so called lucky star which would save him from his death.
As long as he felt things were turning worse and he'd die, Yang Shen would buy the talisman and immediately escape.
And if he ended up winning, there was no longer any reason to buy it or bother escaping.
After all, from what Yang Shen found out, even though both the Hao Clan and Song Clan were strong in their own rights, no force dared to commit murder on the streets in fear of the Queen taking action against them.
Therefore, regardless of what the result of the duel was, Yang Shen was confident in not losing his life for the time being.
Now all he had to do was…. Fight and Win!
…
Was the fight avoidable? Yes.
In fact, Yang Shen could simply not choose to show up for the fight and instead focus on secretly growing stronger while paying attention to Hao Lin and Song Fei whom he considered as a means to find out about his past.
But why didn't he do so?
Because he didn't want to sneak around while trembling from fear and run away every time he saw someone from the Hao or Song Clan.
Because he was worried that he would let down Song Fei who was in love with him.
Because he did his research and learnt that Hao Lin wasn't very strong and ranked among the weakest ones among the Clan's direct descendants.
Because he could purchase the special talisman and escape any moment he wanted to.
And because in none of the webnovels he read, the one who apologizes and runs away is never destined for greatness.
With so many reasons to back his actions, was there any way that Yang Shen couldn't show up?
Yes!
If we were to get real and speak honestly, all of the above reasons were clearly stupid and came up by Yang Shen to 'convince' himself into appearing today.
In that case, what was the real reason?
In short, it was his immaturity coupled with a hidden God complex.
Yes.
To Yang Shen who was the same age on Earth when he arrived in this world, his mentality was not just easily moldable by almost everything, but very one dimensional as well.
Adding on the fact that he considered himself the only Heavens Favoured Son due to possessing the Lecherous Cultivation System, Yang Shen never once considered defeat as a possibility.
However not to worry. It is only out of such rash and stupid decisions that everyone suffers setbacks and start maturing.
Now all that's left to be seen is when Yang Shen would end up swallowing the bitter pill of regret, unwillingness, and despair, which would serve as the first step for him to mature and begin his real journey in this world.
After all, every one of us can agree that everything that happened until now was simply the prologue to his real adventure.
Right?
…
Holding onto the hilt of the five feet long and two feet wide greatsword which was shaped like a fang, Yang Shen who saw Hao Lin climb up the stage started using the special tactic he prepared specially for this fight.
The TTC tactic which was destined to show results against his enemy who was a teenager just like him.
"You've finally come up. I thought you were going to run away and hide between your mother's legs."
Trash talk.
"Come! I'll only use one arm to fight against you."
Taunting.
"I promise to not move from where I stand as well."
Deceit.
Even though in a fit of nervousness Yang Shen didn't actually use the TTC tactic to the best of its ability, his immature skills were more than enough to trigger Hao Lin who was a walking hormonal beast just like most of the other teenagers.
"YOU'RE DEAD!!!!"
Screaming loudly and rushing towards Yang Shen with red eyes, Hao Lin looked like he would use his spear to pierce all the way through his enemies body.
Seeing this, Yang Shen who faced no trouble in following Hao Lin's movements with his eyes grinned widely and used his other hand to grab onto the hilt as well.
Noticing this, Hao Lin turned even angrier but surprisingly didn't stop his furious charge.
After all, so what if Yang Shen wasn't a man of his words? He was going to be a dead man soon enough!
Use both hands to wield the sword!
Your biggest strength is weight and momentum!
Add speed to your power, and you'll become a tiger with wings!
There's no need for petty tricks! Swing your sword straight at your target! Destroy everything that comes in between!
Remember the words he learnt from the Beginners Guide to any Weapon of your Choice, Yang Shen looked very serious as he raised the sword which weighed at least three hundred kilograms.
Given how Hao Lin was rushing towards him in a straight line and wasn't even using a battle skill due to how overconfident he was, Yang Shen could feel his confidence further growing which in turn turned his stance better and provided his arms with even more power.
One swing.
Clang! BOOM!
With the sound of metal striking against metal sounding first, followed by something heavy crashing into stone, the duel was finished in a single instant.
Still holding onto the spear with his hands which were bleeding due to having tried his best to bear the impact of the greatsword, Hao Lin was in an almost fainted state as froth was escaping his mouth.
Two fractured arms, a completely crushed chest, and a shaken will, that was the result of Hao Lin's reckless actions.
If only he had thought things through and didn't rush forward like a crazed bull. While the final result of the battle might not necessarily be different due to the huge difference in quality between his and Yang Shen's cultivation technique, his defeat at least wouldn't have been so bad and embarrassing.
Smiling proudly, as the victor who won in such an overbearing manner, Yang Shen ignored the shocked eyes of everyone around him and turned towards Song Fei.
Now that he had won, wasn't it time for the beauty to reward him with a kiss?!
Sharing the same expectation was everyone among the spectators who didn't belong to either of the two clans.
But what happened next turned out to be more shocking than Yang Shen's single slash victory.
"Hao Lin!!!!"