Nameless stood before Jin Shu, stunned and swaying slightly as she tried to regain her balance from the explosions.
Her hood had been blown off by the force of the rune-charged pellets, revealing a familiar face.
“You?!” Jin Shu stared, dumbfounded. “You’re not even a disciple here, Li Xue!”
“Hehe!” She smiled sheepishly. “Well… about that... After you took Chen Ai Yun as your master, I asked Momma to make me her disciple.”
Jin Shu groaned, dragging a palm down his face. “You... ugh...” He didn’t even know where to begin.
The match had paused so suddenly that the crowd grew confused.
“Are they done fighting?”
“Hey look! Nameless’s face is visible!”
“Does anyone recognize her? I don’t...”
“Who is she? Tell us!”
“She was with Tian Li and the others in front of Phoenix City the other day.”
“Uh... haha... yeah…”
Onstage, Li Xue shrugged off her black cloak, revealing a fitted pink combat robe in place of the pink and yellow hanfu she’d worn earlier.
“So, how is it?” she asked with a little spin.
Jin Shu blinked. “How’s what?”
“My robes,” she grinned. “You said you wanted to see them.”
Before he could respond, the judge’s voice cut in from outside the barrier. “If you two aren’t going to continue, I’ll call this match a draw.”
“Okie! One second.” Li Xue turned back to him. “The bet—you have to include me now.”
“The bet? Oh... right, sure. Whatever. Let’s get back to the match.”
He nearly forgot about the bet placed on Xiao Tian’s back and waved it off.
“Okie!” she chirped—then lunged at him.
She moved so fast he almost couldn’t track it. He barely managed to block the strike aimed at his chest.
Clearly, she knew she couldn’t let him gain distance, so she stuck to him like a leech.
But he still had his ripples. Surely she couldn’t counter those.
He formed one behind him and stepped into it.
A burst of wind qi slammed into his back—just like that the ripple vanished.
“Hehe! Momma taught me how to counter your technique,” she said with a cheeky peace sign, continuing her assault.
“Fine! I didn’t want to do this, but you forced me!”
He turned and sprinted toward the edge of the arena.
“Ah! Hey! Come back here!”
She chased after him—
A small explosion went off beneath her feet.
She tumbled backward just as Jin Shu circled back, ready to strike.
He lunged, knife poised.
But she twisted mid-fall, sending a kick at him in one fluid motion.
He caught her leg, yanking her closer, and struck down.
Her sword blocked it.
At the same time, she kicked with her free leg and pushed off the ground with one hand, knocking him away.
Jin Shu stumbled back but managed to fire at her hands as she caught herself.
The pellets struck her wind barrier, bouncing off harmlessly—
But the next explosion didn’t.
She was thrown down onto her chest, her back now exposed.
This time, she couldn’t possibly block.
Jin Shu charged, dropping his knife for the finishing blow.
He was inches away when she rolled and flung her sword at him.
He twisted aside just in time—but that moment was all she needed to throw herself back to her feet.
No weapon now. This time, he thought, she’s got nothing left.
She thrust her palm forward, and a blast of wind qi slammed into his face.
The force of it blinded him, his vision whipped away in a rush of air.
Instinctively, he extended his control over the wind, spreading his senses.
But she was still invisible—shrouded in her wind-wrapped body.
Still, she couldn’t keep that up for long.
It cost him very little qi to use the Wind element this way, but for her?
She was burning through her own qi to sustain the wind shield wrapping her body.
She’d waste it all away eventually.
However, that kind of victory would leave a bad taste in his mouth. He wouldn’t settle for something so mundane—and he knew she wouldn’t accept it either.
Calling on his connection to the Wind element, Jin Shu summoned a small tornado to sweep across the stage.
The crowd below erupted in disbelief.
“Who created that tornado? It doesn’t even feel like wind qi!”
“That’s a real tornado!”
“No way. How could an actual tornado appear on stage just like that?”
“The Wind element! One of them is using the Wind element!”
“It must be Nameless! She’s been using wind-based techniques all match.”
Jin Shu’s eyes snapped open. Just as he expected, Li Xue’s palm was already flying toward his chest. He tried to dodge, but his concentration was still fixed on maintaining the tornado—he was a beat too slow.
The strike slammed into his abdomen, sending him staggering back. The accompanying burst of wind qi knocked him off his feet with no chance to catch himself.
But it didn’t matter. His objective was nearly complete.
The many undetonated pellets scattered across the stage were now caught in the swirling winds. Dozens of them floated within the tornado’s spiral.
With a single thought, he unleashed them.
The pellets rocketed outward with more force than his pellet gun could ever generate, slamming into Li Xue’s wind barrier. One after another, they pierced through, each hit staggering her further.
The explosions built on each other, creating a shockwave that hurled her across the arena and slammed her body into the qi barrier.
“Winner, Jin Shu!” the judge declared, just as Li Xue’s unconscious body crumpled to the floor.
Jin Shu lay there too, still curled in pain from her strike. He watched as healers rushed in—three veered toward Li Xue while one knelt beside him.
The young healer pressed her palm to his chest, sending her qi into his body to assess the damage.
“So, how is it, Doc? Will I survive?”
“This kind of injury won’t kill you. You’ll only have a slight bruise.”
“Ah… I was just joking.”
“Oh. Well, it wasn’t very funny.”
Jin Shu sat up with her help, scratching his cheek awkwardly. “Uh… sorry.”
She nodded stiffly. “You shouldn’t joke about death.”
“R-right… so, do I owe you a mark?” he asked, holding up his palm to change the topic.
“No. I didn’t heal you, so I need no mark,” she said plainly.
“…Oh. Okay then. I’ll just… go.”
She nodded once more and walked off without another word.
Jin Shu scratched his head.
Seems like serious girls are your kryptonite, Gold said with a teasing chuckle.
I’m not sure what that is, but… yeah. I guess so.
Be on the lookout for girls with serious personalities, then—and steer clear.
Mm… sure. He responded absently as he stepped off the stage.
The first thing he did was scan the area, looking for where they’d taken Li Xue. He had to make sure he hadn’t accidentally injured her too badly.
It wasn’t until then that he truly registered the roar of the crowd.
“Wow! I can’t believe Jin Shu was the one controlling the Wind element!”
“That’s insane! Only the Sixth Stage of the Core Realm and already controlling an element!”
“She’s really young too!”
“No wonder she was seeded fifth despite her low cultivation!”
Jin Shu cringed slightly. He still wasn’t used to being referred to as a girl.
He finally spotted Li Xue beneath a shaded alcove, already receiving treatment, and made his way over.
Just then, Di Ti took to the stage to announce the next match.
“Wow! What an exciting fight! First we saw Nameless’s face—turns out she’s the secret disciple of the Vice-Sect Master, who would’ve guessed? And then we witnessed Jin Shu’s command over the Wind element!” She spun in place with theatrical flair.
“Let’s see if the next match is just as thrilling, shall we?” She grinned wide. “And wouldn’t you know it—it features the Sect Master and Vice-Sect Master’s disciples! Tian Li and Fan Biyu, please take the stage!”
Tian Li and Biyu descended side by side from the elders’ platform, casually chatting, neither in a rush nor showing any sign of tension. They didn’t look like opponents about to face off—they looked like friends.
Jin Shu glanced at Li Xue, now up and jumping around like she hadn’t been unconscious moments before. He decided to wait—Tian Li and Biyu were walking straight toward him.
“Good luck to both of you,” he said when they reached the stadium floor.
“Oh? To both of us? But we can’t both win,” Biyu teased. “So who are you rooting for?”
“Uh… well… neither…? I mean both—no, wait…” he fumbled, completely unsure. He truly didn’t want either of them to lose or get hurt.
So he gave up trying to explain and just told them the truth.
“I’d rather you didn’t fight at all. I’d hate to see either of you injured.”
A shout came from behind him. He turned to see Li Xue storming up with a pout.
“What about me?! You didn’t seem too worried about hurting me!”
“You hid your identity!” he said defensively. “By the time I figured out who you were, we were already too deep in the fight!”
“If you four are done chatting,” Di Ti called from the stage, laughing, “we’ve got a tournament to run!”
“Ah, right, sorry!” Jin Shu bowed quickly and pulled Li Xue aside, letting Biyu and Tian Li head for the stage.