"Thank you. Only..."
"Only?"
"That technique you used. The one that cleared the curses you set. It was supposed to finish me off, wasn't it?"
"Yeah. That technique was the biggest Contribution investment I've ever made in the sect. You're only the second ever to force me to bust it out before you reached a point where I was certain it would get me the win. The first was Qiao Li, five years ago. He's a member of the Sacred Qiao Family, and he became a Core Disciple a year ago."
By now, we were away from the dueling court we'd just used and nearly out of the Challenge Hall. "You don't lose duels often, huh?"
"Well, I have a handful of losses where I was outmaneuvered and failed to weaken my opponent with curses or fluster then with the Hundred Shadow Fists. But it's not like you lose often either! I don't think even the Ice King could take us 2-on-1."
