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The next opponent Qi Tian has to challenge is Huang Yaozu, and his moon-duel at Huangque Hall is still two rounds away. Qi Tian arrived early by the sixtieth dueling platform to prevent Huang Yaozu from taking the stage ahead of time and missed the scheduled duel time.
Currently, two young girls were dueling on the platform. One of them was Yuan Dan, who appeared as a challenger, and the defender was a young girl named Zhang Mingming. She ranked four hundred and twenty-sixth on the Sparrow List and had reached the Qi Cultivation Second Level. she was a year older than Qi Tian, but younger than Yuan Dan, which put her ranking ahead of Yuan Dan's.
Yuan Dan has long been dissatisfied with Zhang Mingming's ranking. When it came time to choose a challenger, she chose Zhang Mingming without hesitation, determined to defeat her and take the honor that she believed was rightfully hers.
Yuan Dan, wielding a Middle-grade Human Grade Yue Nu Sword, constantly attacked Zhang Mingming with the flashing runes on the sword edges. Zhang Mingming also held a Spirit Military sword although it was of lower grade, only Low Grade Human Grade. Its runes were fewer and less bright than Yuan Dan's Yue Nu Sword. Combined with her slightly weaker cultivation stage, she was clearly being suppressed in this sparring match.
With the upper hand, Yuan Dan appeared a little cocky and kept saying: "Junior sister, I've always said your Sparrow List ranking is too high and does not match your actual strength. As we can see now, you're out of your depth. If you know what's good for you, admit defeat, or face humiliation later."
Zhang Mingming clenched her lips, her face filled with obstinacy and her eyes burning with defiance. Though she was struggling, she showed no sign of begging for mercy.
Qi Tian, seeing Yuan Dan getting the upper hand, chuckled. Then he started to swing the Flying Flame Meteor Hammer in his hand. He was on the opposite side from Yuan Dan, while Zhang Mingming had her back to him.
Qi Tian cleared his throat loudly, drawing the attention of Yuan Dan. As she stole a glance at him, her attacks didn't slow but in fact accelerated a bit. She wanted to outshine him, this man she disdained, and win for herself and Zhou Kunlin.
"Oh no, I slipped," said Qi Tian. His grip on the Flying Flame Meteor Hammer suddenly loosened, and it seemed to fly out directly towards Yuan Dan.
Yuan Dan saw it and jumped aside, disrupting her attack rhythm. Zhang Mingming seized this chance to intensify her attack, shifting from defense to offense, pressing Yuan Dan hard.
The two had barely any difference in strength. With the reversal of roles in attack and defense, Yuan Dan quickly found herself embroiled in a tough duel.
What nearly made Yuan Dan burst into rage was not this, but the fact that she saw Qi Tian's Flying Flame Meteor Hammer didn't come over at all. Somehow, after they slipped, Qi Tian dragged them back again. What's more frustrating was that Qi Tian's timing was so precise that the Flying Flame Meteor Hammer didn't cross the boundary of the platform. In other words, she could totally ignore it in the first place, but she mistakenly believed it was real and fell into Qi Tian's plot, as he did it on purpose.
Qi Tian gave a grin at Yuan Dan. Her anger skyrocketed at the sight. She wished she could rush out and behead Qi Tian on the spot, forgetting she was still in the middle of a duel.
Just then, Yuan Dan felt a sudden pain on the back of her hand. The sharp pain made her lose grip of the Yue Nu Sword, and the Middle-grade Human Grade Spirit Military weapon fell on the ground. Immediately afterwards, she felt a chill at her throat.
"Senior sister, you lost," Zhang Mingming uttered, panting heavily.
"Zhang Mingming wins, Yuan Dan loses," the referee stepped onto the platform and announced loudly.
"I don't accept it. It's all because of him. If he didn't disrupt me just now, how could I have lost?" Yuan Dan glared fiercely at Qi Tian, flames seemingly shooting out of her eyes. If it hadn't been for the many onlookers and the need to maintain her ladylike composure, she would have charged him already.
The referee furrowed his brows, glanced at Qi Tian, and saw all his little trickery just now. To tell the truth, Qi Tian's behavior was quite off bounds, but strictly speaking, he didn't violate any rules of the moon-duel, as he had retrieved the slipped Flying Flame Meteor Hammer in time and kept it within the boundaries of the platform. "Young fellow, any explanation?"
Qi Tian respectfully greeted the referee. "Well, brother, it was unintentional. Just now, I merely lost my grip, which Yuan Dan should understand quite well. A few days ago, one of her companions nearly lost grip and hit me with a hammer, but today I managed to retrieve the Flying Flame Meteor Hammer in time, without letting it go beyond the line. Please keep this in mind, brother. Also, I want to point out that as cultivators, we may encounter all kinds of sudden situations. Let's not mention others and just talk about the weather, such as sudden wind and rain. You can't blame your mistakes on these sudden changes, right? Even when mountains crumble in front of you, you should remain calm. That is what we at the Imperial Master Mansion aspire to be. Just like what brother showed us just now, that's the true character of a hero."
The judge nodded his head.
Yuan Dan was nearly driven mad. Why had she not realized before how good Qi Tian was at arguing?
After a brief contemplation, the referee said, "Although what you said makes sense, the duel between Yuan Dan and Zhang Mingming did indeed encounter some changes due to your influence, and therefore, you should bear some responsibility. Shall you accept a beating or a penalty? If you choose a beating, I will detain you in Yingya Hall for three days for admonishment. If you choose a penalty, you will be fined one thousand taels of silver. Make your choice."
Without a second thought, Qi Tian responded, "I don't have silver on me. May I pay with this Middle-grade Human Grade Flying Flame Meteor Hammer?"
"This Flying Flame Meteor Hammer is worth three thousand taels, and you're sure you want to use it to pay off the fine?" The referee looked at Qi Tian in disbelief.
"As long as I don't put my senior brother in a difficult spot, I am fine with anything." Qi Tian didn't care about the Flying Flame Meteor Hammer at all. He had forcefully obtained it from Ling Mu without spending a cent, so he would not feel heartbroken if it was gone.
The referee gave a nod but without uttering a word; he simply took the Flying Flame Meteor Hammer from Qi Tian and stowed it away. "Apprentice Sister Yuan Dan, Qi Tian has accepted the penalty. Do you have anything more to say?"
"Senior brother, I fully accept your punishment. But my ranking on the sparrow list..."
The referee snorted coldly, saying: "The duel results are final and cannot be changed. Instead of complaining here, you should go back and introspect on your own issues. Go on, don't delay the following matches."
What more could Yuan Dan say? She could only glare at Qi Tian, vowing that she would make Qi Tian pay for today's events.
Qi Tian completely ignored Yuan Dan, and a resentful Yuan Dan left.
At this moment, Zhang Mingming walked over and bowed to Qi Tian, saying, "Thank you, Mas..."
Zhang Mingming initially wanted to address Qi Tian as senior brother, but upon closer inspection, she found Qi Tian was younger than her and seemed to have a lower cultivation level. She couldn't bring herself to call him senior brother, so she vaguely continued, "Thank you for your help earlier. If it weren't for you, I certainly would not have been able to defeat Yuan Dan and maintain my current ranking on the sparrow list."
Qi Tian waved his hand and said, "I wasn't helping you, as I said before, it was an accident."
Zhang Mingming, being clever, said, "Yes, my mistake. I wrongly accused you. I am also willing to accept a penalty quite like you and compensate for your reputation loss. I have twenty Middle-grade Essence Qi Pills that may not be sufficient to compensate for your loss. For everything else, I will find a way."
Zhang Mingming clearly wanted to make up for the value of the Flying Flame Meteor Hammer.
Qi Tian nodded in satisfaction. Zhang Mingming was not an ungrateful person and thus a worthwhile acquaintance. He came up with an idea and said, "If you trust me, go to the Lucky Gambling House and bet these twenty Middle-grade Essence Qi Pills. In a bit, I have a match with Huang Yaozu; bet on me to win, and bet all of it. Afterwards, we can split the winnings fifty-fifty."
Zhang Mingming was taken aback. Of course, she knew who Huang Yaozu was, one of the undeniable well-off among the lower-ranked disciples in the Sparrow List with a rank as high as 200th. As for Qi Tian, she hadn't heard of him before. However, she had intended to compensate Qi Tian with those twenty Middle-grade Essence Qi Pills. Since Qi Tian had helped her, she couldn't let him lose a three thousand taels worth Flying Flame Meteor Hammer for nothing. Since Qi Tian didn't want the Essence Qi Pills and insisted on betting on his victory, she would do as he requested. If she lost, she wouldn't seek repayment from Qi Tian anymore. "Alright, I'll get going."
Zhang Mingming didn't have another duel scheduled, Yuan Dan was her last and most powerful opponent. The others either lacked strength compared to her or chose not to challenge her, a young girl. So, she was free to leave.
After Zhang Mingming left, the next challenger stepped on stage, and once he successfully defended his rank, the referee called up Huang Yaozu to defend his rank.
Huang Yaozu climbed onto the stage amidst the screams of a group of young girls. He was handsome, with a slender figure, picturesque and graceful. To put it in terms of Earth, he was a dashing young male star, and a top-grade one at that. However, as a cultivator, one doesn't really take a man's appearance into account. What truly made Huang Yaozu so popular was the equipment he wore.
Huang Yaozu's silk robe, jade belt around his waist, flat-bottomed boots, and all the defensive jewelry he wore on his hands, neck, and head: everything amounted to over a dozen Spirit Military items, of which at least five were Middle-grade Human Grade.