“All grown up and still so childish,” Xu Zimo said with a sigh, shaking his head. He looked at Zhong Xin and smiled, “Alright, I accept.”
He understood Zhong Xin’s thinking, after all, Xu Zimo’s father was the Vice-Lord. If he lost face, so did his father.
“I have a Yellow-grade Meridian technique here,” Zhong Xin said coolly. “You both get one incense stick of time to study it. Whoever understands it better and uses it more skillfully, wins.”
“Fine by me,” Xu Zimo and Liao Ruyan both nodded.
Zhong Xin took the technique out from his storage ring. The Yellow-grade technique was called Soaring Swallow Blade Art.
Liao Ruyan’s eyes lit up when she saw it.
She had been cultivating the Soaring Swallow Blade Art since she started tempering her body half a year ago and had recently reached Minor Completion.
In the Primordial Heartlands, every Meridian technique was divided into four levels of mastery:
Minor Completion, Major Completion, Grand Completion and Absolute Perfection.
And the technique she had been working on this whole time was this exact one, Soaring Swallow Blade Art.
Zhong Xin gave her a discreet smile and said, “If there are no objections, you can start now.”
“No need to make it so complicated,” Xu Zimo said, waving his hand. He casually flipped through the technique.
“Let me borrow your saber,” he said to a nearby onlooking disciple.
The long saber left its sheath. Xu Zimo gripped the hilt and gave a light slash through the air.
The crowd felt something mysterious pass before them, the saber unleashed a glowing blade aura over a meter long.
To everyone’s astonishment, the aura took the shape of a swallow mid-flight.
The air split with a crisp white arc. Then, the swallow vanished.
Xu Zimo casually handed the saber back and turned to Liao Ruyan with a smile.
“Your turn. Let’s see your performance.”
The entire place fell into silence.
After a long pause, someone finally muttered uncertainly,
“Was that… a Martial Dao Intent? Did he already master Soaring Swallow Blade Art to Absolute Perfection?”
Gasps spread through the crowd. Only techniques at Absolute Perfection could manifest Martial Dao Intent.
Liao Ruyan stared at Xu Zimo, speechless.
“You’ve already reached Absolute Perfection, and I’m still stuck at Minor Completion. How the hell am I supposed to compete with that?!”
“If you think one incense stick isn’t enough, I’ll give you a full day. If you can surpass me by then, you win,” Xu Zimo said with a laugh, turning to Zhong Xin. “What do you think, Senior Brother Zhong?”
“Ah, ” Zhong Xin snapped out of his shock, forcing a smile. “Sure, but I think a match is more about the experience. Winning or losing doesn’t matter as much as what we gain.”
“Bullshit,” Xu Zimo said bluntly. “If results don’t matter, then why compete at all? Senior Brother Zhong, you’re the Grand Elder’s top disciple. And yet you can’t grasp such a simple truth? Is this because you’re not too bright yourself, or because the Grand Elder’s teachings are too rigid?”
“Teachers guide the path; walking it is up to the student,” Zhong Xin replied coldly. “If you have a problem, take it up with me. But you’re in no place to insult my master.”
“Say whatever you want,” Xu Zimo shrugged with a grin. “I’m only concerned about those Darksky Tiger cubs. When are they arriving?”
Zhong Xin paused, glancing at Liao Ruyan.
Darksky Tigers were Imperial Beasts, extremely rare, even within the True Martial Sacred Ground. The Grand Elder had already planned to give the cubs as favors to important allies.
So Zhong Xin couldn’t make that decision on his own.
“If you can’t deliver, just say so. I won’t push it,” Xu Zimo replied with a calm smile. “But some people really shouldn’t play if they can’t handle losing. It’s embarrassing to the entire True Martial Sacred Ground. Think of how glorious Grand Emperor Zhen Wu once was. We may not surpass our ancestors, but let’s not shame them either.”
“Yeah, if you can’t take it, don’t waste people’s time,” Lin Ruhu chimed in. “A Grand Emperor once said: Time is money. Time is life. Wasting someone’s time is basically stealing their life.”
“No need for sarcasm,” Liao Ruyan snapped, her face red with frustration. “I lost! I admit it! I’ll honor the bet!”
Then she turned and ran off.
“Zimo… don’t you think we went a little too far?” Lin Ruhu asked softly, tugging at Xu Zimo’s sleeve and glancing in Liao Ruyan’s direction.
“Too far?” Xu Zimo smiled and shook his head.
First, he hadn’t wanted to start anything, she came to pick a fight and humiliate him.
Second, Liao Ruyan already knew Soaring Swallow Blade Art, and Zhong Xin chose that exact technique for the match. That was a setup, plain and simple.
Third, Xu Zimo reminded himself, he’s a villain now. If someone even looks at him wrong, he might just wipe out their whole family. So what if he goes too far?
Zhong Xin gave Xu Zimo one last deep look, then hurried after Liao Ruyan.
“Picking on a girl, how impressive,” a quiet voice called out from the crowd.
The voice was low, and with so many people present, Xu Zimo couldn’t tell who said it.
“Who’s talking crap behind our backs?” Lin Ruhu shouted, glaring at the group.
The disciples looked around at each other, shaking their heads in silent agreement, no one stepped forward.
“I hate people who talk behind others’ backs,” Xu Zimo said with a smile, stepping forward.
“If you’ve got something to say, say it to my face, like a man. I know someone here heard who it was. Here’s the deal: Whoever tells me who said it, gets to follow me from now on. Be part of my gang. Wait, ‘my gang’… that sounds kinda wrong. What I mean is, you’ll be my subordinate. My lackey. One of my boys.”
Before he’d even finished, someone already raised a hand.
“Brother Zimo, I report, it was him!”
“Yeah! I heard it clearly, he was the one talking!”
“No doubt about it. He’s my buddy, we talk a lot. He always criticizes you behind your back. I swear on my honor and dignity.”
And just like that, the crowd exploded. It was as if the whole group had suddenly turned into mini detectives.
All fingers pointed at one white-robed disciple.
The poor guy stood there in total confusion.
He’d just muttered a few words, figuring no one would notice in such a big crowd.
He never imagined there’d be this kind of rat-out-your-friend-for-clout twist.
Now, just for a chance to become Xu Zimo’s lackey, they were all throwing him under the bus like loyal fanboys.