Chapter 122

Chapter 122

With a resounding bang, the staff struck Qi Tiansheng’s head. His body crumpled onto the arena floor and lay still.

Ling Fang spun the staff in a one-handed flourish, tucked it under his arm behind his back, and stood firm.

As he did so, the divine ability gradually faded from both External Doubles in the arena, and they vanished.

The outcome was settled.

The entire arena was silent. For a moment, no one spoke.

It had been utterly spectacular.

Especially that surprise Turnback Thrust, that beautiful Turnback Thrust, followed by the ferocious final counterattack. The whole sequence flowed without a break, deciding victory and defeat, strength and weakness, in the blink of an eye.

On the dais, Fu Zihua lowered his eyes toward Ling Fang’s seat and murmured, “That lad Ling Fang. What a pity…”

He had been fine timber, exquisite jade. But heaven had refused to cooperate, and fate had toyed with him.

Fierce as Ling Fang had been just now, he had shown less than half his former prowess.

Hearing Fu Zihua’s words, Ye Chaoyun also shook her head helplessly and sighed.

–

In their seats, Xie Qingling and Shen Huaizhou were both rather quiet.

Their shock was stronger than anyone else’s.

In their work and daily lives, they had seen Ling Fang immobilized by his curse countless times: frequently paralyzed, unable to move freely, helpless in anyone’s hands.

Whichever version of him they recalled, he was utterly different from the Ling Fang they had just seen.

He had been unstoppable in the arena. His swift counterattack offered a glimpse of a fraction of his skill back then.

Xie Qingling could roughly picture how magnificent he must have been when he set up a challenge alone and declared that he would take on the other Operations Squads.

If… if the current Ling Fang were still the Ling Fang of the past, he might have physically dealt with her more than once since she joined the department. Like Shen Huaizhou, when someone made a mistake, he would simply beat them into submission, she thought privately.

His temper was so mild now that she could no longer tell whether the years had worn away his edges, or whether he had compromised with his frail body and been forced to hide his sharpness.

At that moment, Tang Yuanxiao smacked his lips, still wanting more. “If they’d used something other than staffs, Ling Fang could have taken Qi Tiansheng down in a single exchange. The staff isn’t his strong point.”

He continued to himself, “Ling Fang used to favor a guandao. But it’s too heavy, so he doesn’t touch it anymore. His weapon’s in the armory. Nobody’s used it for years. Last time I went to exchange points for things, I saw that his blade had rusted.”

That exchange had naturally been for the traps he intended to set for Xie Qingling. He had gone to get a heap of traps that triggered once placed.

At the thought, Tang Yuanxiao felt his whole body begin to hurt again.

For a while, none of the three spoke. They sat in silence, each occupied with their own thoughts.

Then Ling Fang opened his eyes.

The first thing he saw was Tang Yuanxiao. Giving him a sidelong look, he asked in a faint, breathy voice, “Why are you here? Didn’t you find us so annoying?”

“…” So annoying!

Tang Yuanxiao glared fiercely at him, then left without looking back.

Ling Fang moved his hands and stretched his body a little. A deeply contented expression appeared on his face.

That lad Qi Tiansheng had deliberately made him enter the arena… It must have been deliberate, Ling Fang thought.

His thumb kept rubbing his leather glove as he reminded them, “Qi Tiansheng’s own External Double won’t hurt him. But if someone else gets injured while controlling a double, their real body will suffer some backlash too. Be careful when you enter later. It’s best not to get hurt.”

“Understood!!” Xie Qingling and Shen Huaizhou answered together.

Both were exceptionally respectful toward Ling Fang now.

“There’s a limit to how many times a day Qi Tiansheng can use External Double for other people, so the Selection Tournament can only hold five matches a day.” Ling Fang continued explaining matters he had not yet covered. “He’s already used it once today, so there will only be four more matches before the first day ends. Watch carefully and gain experience to prepare for your later matches.”

Now fully recovered from his beating, Qi Tiansheng leaped into the arena again. With his staff across his shoulder, he was still grinning cheekily, as though he had not been the one beaten flat just now.

“I imagine everyone now has a good idea of how the Selection Tournament works. Let’s get straight to it, without wasting words, and begin the first match.”

Qi Tiansheng took out a palm-sized electronic display, glanced at it, and announced, “The first competitors are Hu Xiaotian and Yang Ruoyu. Will the two competitors whose names were called please prepare to enter the arena.”

Yang Ruoyu.

She had not expected Yang Ruoyu to be in the very first match.

Recalling what Xie Qingling had said in the Medical Department’s Director’s office, Shen Huaizhou turned to look at her. “Yang Ruoyu is opening the tournament. I wonder how she’ll perform.”

There was tremendous pressure in an opening match.

The person leading the charge needed great mental composure, or it would affect their performance.

A good performance naturally seized the initiative. A poor one meant failing right at the crucial moment.

“She should be fine,” Xie Qingling said. “Never underestimate anyone who’s reached the end of the road.”

Shen Huaizhou nodded and fell silent again.

Only after they had finished did Ling Fang interject, “Whether Yang Ruoyu wins or loses, Hu Xiaotian will only fight this one match. He won’t enter the next round.”

“Why?”

“Because Hu Xiaotian isn’t an Innate Spirit. He’s from the Technology R&D Department, an Automaton Crafter who specializes in Mechanical Puppet Arts. He was pressed into service because only thirty-seven Innate Spirits entered. They had to find another newcomer to make up the numbers.”
As Ling Fang finished, the extravagantly dressed Director of the Technology R&D Department on the dais – a woman whose real name was Wangsun Huahua – suddenly raised her hand and waved vigorously. “Go, Xiaotian! Charge, Xiaotian! You mustn’t embarrass our Technology R&D Department!” she shouted.

Xie Qingling: “…”

She really did do whatever she pleased.

Someone took great exception to Wangsun Huahua’s conspicuous behavior and immediately frowned at her. “Huahua, stop making a fuss. Watch quietly.”

The speaker was none other than Yang Baduan.

Wangsun Huahua gave a soft snort. She did stop talking, but rolled her eyes at him without the slightest restraint, then turned to tease the cat in her lap. Her manner said, “Not listening, not listening – preach all you want, you turtle.”[^turtle-taunt] It made the veins on Yang Baduan’s forehead twitch and twitch.

His solemn face showed the helplessness of someone who had endured this for far too long. Angry but suppressing it, he looked slightly livid. His features, especially the area around his brows and eyes beneath the gold-rimmed glasses, seemed a little contorted.

After restraining himself again and again, Yang Baduan ultimately said nothing.

Wangsun Huahua was always like this. Whatever the occasion, she did exactly as she pleased, fearless. She was precisely the sort of undisciplined, improper person Yang Baduan disliked most of all.

She could always crack his composure with ease.

Not a single person at headquarters was unafraid of Yang Baduan. He was a cold, ruthless surveillance camera in human form. Once he caught you doing something wrong, there was no escaping self-criticism reports and copying out the handbook. Even the bravest fighter against ghosts might turn timid at the sight of Yang.

Seeing Wangsun Huahua show him so little respect, while he merely suppressed his anger without daring to erupt, quite a few people looked astonished. But intimidated by his fearsome reputation, they dared not discuss it freely.

By now, both opponents had entered the arena.

Facing the murderous expression on Yang Ruoyu’s face, Hu Xiaotian felt a considerable headache coming on.

The moment he entered, he felt the pressure coming from the girl opposite him. For some reason, he had a vague premonition that he had arrived at a very unfortunate time. The girl radiated an air of ruthlessness, as though she would spare not even her own family. He might get a savage beating from her.

But he was here now. Throwing matches and cheating were forbidden in the arena. He could only fight with everything he had.

“I won’t go easy on you!” Hu Xiaotian said.

“Bring it on.” Yang Ruoyu’s face was cold as ice, her tone emotionless.

Hu Xiaotian circled the arena once. Yang Ruoyu, however, remained motionless in place, seemingly planning no attack. She had not even taken a defensive stance.

Unable to tell what trick she was planning, Hu Xiaotian struck first.

“Wooden Oxen and Flowing Horses!” he shouted, tossing seven palm-sized objects onto the ground.

After touching the arena floor, the objects gradually grew larger, becoming wooden oxen and horses.

The Wooden Oxen and Flowing Horses charged forward without stopping, like warhorses charging across a battlefield.

With the wooden oxen’s speed and force, a head-on impact might send a person flying outright.

Yang Ruoyu still did not move, seemingly unaware of the approaching danger.

Facing the imposing charge of those seven Wooden Oxen and Flowing Horses, built with mechanical arts, she lightly touched her toes to the ground and simply floated up. Suspended in midair, she evaded their rush.

Xie Qingling stared for a moment. It made no sense to her. Yang Ruoyu had not even pushed off the ground to gain momentum; she had simply risen into the air.

Unable to work out why just then, Xie Qingling kept watching with wide eyes.

Yang Ruoyu rushed toward Hu Xiaotian as though riding the wind through the air.

Though airborne, her body was as steady as if she stood on solid ground, without the slightest wavering or unsteadiness.

It was so strange.

She seemed to be… supported by something beneath her feet, something that could neither be seen nor touched. Xie Qingling had never actually fought Yang Ruoyu and could not work it out just then.

Hu Xiaotian had clearly been left frowning by her flashy maneuver too.

Yang Ruoyu closed on him rapidly, sweeping a longsword horizontally toward him. Hu Xiaotian immediately dodged aside.

Her sword techniques grew fiercer and fiercer. Hu Xiaotian gradually found it harder to fend them off, and beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

He had meant to wear her down and force her out of the air. But after dozens of exchanges, she showed no sign of fatigue. Clearly, a battle of attrition had no effect on her at all.

As an Automaton Crafter, Hu Xiaotian specialized in control techniques. He possessed little fighting skill himself and was entirely unsuited to facing an opponent head-on.

After a few lightning-fast exchanges, Yang Ruoyu’s longsword slashed straight toward him. This time, he could no longer fend it off.

Unable to counter her move, he could only take the blow.

Just as her sword was about to pierce him, a sudden cracking sound rang out in the arena. A wisp of smoke drifted past, and a puppet the same size as Hu Xiaotian stood where he had been.

At that critical instant, he had released a puppet to take the strike for him, while he himself retreated swiftly.

Clang. Yang Ruoyu’s sword struck the puppet, missing her intended target. Hu Xiaotian was unharmed.

He recalled the rampaging Wooden Oxen and Flowing Horses and focused on controlling the puppet through the threads between his ten fingers. “Try my puppetry!”

[^turtle-taunt]: A childish Chinese taunt comparing someone’s lecturing to a turtle chanting scripture; “turtle” is also an insult.