As Yang Zhe stepped off the arena, the referee finally came to his senses and announced, "Ling Chen wins this match!"
"Now that all four semi-final spots have been taken, everyone please go back and rest well. We’ll have the final matches in three days."
After the referee’s words, Ling Chen breathed a sigh of relief and began to walk down from the stage. However, just as he stepped off, he felt dizzy and collapsed to the ground.
It’s unknown how long passed before the groggy Ling Chen finally woke up.
"Ling Cheng, you’re finally awake." Hearing Xia Yue’s voice beside his ear, Ling Chen slowly turned his head to see a concerned Xia Yue and smiled weakly: "Sister Xia."
Seeing that Ling Chen was not in serious trouble, Xia Yue scolded him lightly, "You, I don’t even know what to say to you. Clearly unable to hold on, yet you were stubbornly resisting. Do you know how worried we were?"
Ling Chen replied sheepishly, "Well... Sister Xia, I did win, didn’t I?"
"You did win, but you almost lost your life. Alright, rest up now; you need to heal. In a couple of days, you still have to fight in the final."
While they were talking, Qiu Yong and others walked in from outside. Seeing Ling Chen awake, Qiu Yong hurried to the bedside to ask about his condition.
Upon hearing that Ling Chen’s injuries were not severe, Qiu Yong breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Ling Cheng, I must say, you were too careless yesterday. If it wasn’t for your good luck, how could you have won so easily?"
Hearing this, Wei Jiahao at the side laughed, "Ling Cheng, you’re too cunning. Pretending to be injured in front of Yang Zhe and then ambushing him when he was off guard. You should hear the rumors outside; they’re all saying you’re too deceitful."
Ling Chen touched his nose and gave a wry smile.
He had no choice yesterday. He knew his skills were far inferior to Yang Zhe’s. If he hadn’t employed some strategy, there was no way he could have defeated Yang Zhe. Moreover, before the match, Yang Tao had told Ling Chen about Yang Zhe’s weak spot—his waist. Previously, Yang Zhe had injured his waist by accident, resulting in a lingering weakness.
All along, aside from Yang Tao, hardly anyone knew about this weakness of Yang Zhe.
Yang Tao telling this to Ling Chen was essentially handing him a chance at victory.
Thus, during the match with Yang Zhe, Ling Chen had pretended to be seriously injured to lower Yang Zhe’s guard. When Yang Zhe became less cautious, Ling Chen seized the moment to strike his weak spot severely.
That was the reason he managed to win by a fluke.
However, his body wasn’t completely without injuries. After all, Yang Zhe, a top contender of the Earthly List, didn’t hold back his blows. If not for that, Ling Chen wouldn’t have passed out after stepping down from the stage.
"Big Brother, is Yang Zhe’s injury serious?" Ling Chen asked, "Although I won against Yang Zhe, it was an unorthodox victory. To be honest, I even feel quite embarrassed. Big Brother, I’m not in a position to visit him right now. Could you help me pay him a visit?"
"Sure, no problem. I’ll take everyone to see him later. You just rest at home." As Qiu Yong spoke, he suddenly changed the subject, "Ling Cheng, have you considered it? In a few days, you’ll have to fight in the last match. Besides you, there will also be Wang Hao. We’ve inquired about him; he’s not easy to deal with. He’s the strongest amongst the disciples of Yangxin Pavilion. Even Elder Du’s disciple, Yang Tao, wasn’t his match, let alone you. Your victory over Yang Zhe was mainly due to luck, but Wang Hao is different. If you can’t defeat him, don’t even think about obtaining the Nine Elements Pill. I’ve discussed it with the others, and our decision is to forfeit this match."
"Forfeit?" Ling Chen sat up in bed abruptly, looking at Qiu Yong, "Big Brother, I’ve come so far, how can you ask me to give up?"
Qiu Yong responded, "Ling Cheng, I’ve thought it through carefully. Instead of facing Wang Hao, it might be better to steal the Nine Elements Pill."
"Steal?" Ling Chen was taken aback, not expecting Qiu Yong to make such a suggestion.
"Exactly," Yuan Yun nodded and said, "I’ve checked; the box containing the Nine Elements Pill is placed in the valley, unguarded. As long as we’re careful, we can definitely steal it. Then, we can plan carefully and take the pill out to save your father."
Ling Chen immediately shook his head, "No, absolutely not. Big Brother, if we do this, even if we can temporarily deceive the Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion, they will eventually find out. They’d definitely cause trouble for us. Moreover, we have such a good relationship with Miss Su; it wouldn’t be right to do this to her."
After a pause, without waiting for Qiu Yong to say anything more, Ling Chen continued, "Big Brother, let’s drop it. Don’t think too much. Besides, if we are to win, let’s win fair and square. I don’t want to do things stealthily."
"Alright." Seeing that Ling Chen was unwilling, Qiu Yong didn’t insist and nodded, "Since you’ve decided, I won’t say more. Xia Yue, please take good care of Ling Cheng. We’re going to see Yang Zhe."
Having slept for a day and night, Ling Chen really couldn’t sleep anymore. He half-sat on the bed, looking at the martial arts training field outside the window, deep in thought.
Just then, Porridge Girl entered the room from outside. Seeing Ling Chen lost in thought, she parted her lips gently and asked, "What are you thinking about?"
Hearing Porridge Girl’s voice, Ling Chen came back to his senses, turned his head to look at her delicate face, and smiled faintly, "Nothing much, just thinking about the upcoming match in a few days."
"Are you worried about your opponent?"
Ling Chen nodded lightly, "Wang Hao is a formidable figure. I’m considering how to defeat him."
"Stop thinking about it, you can’t beat him."
Ling Chen gave a bitter smile, "Why do you have no confidence in me at all?"
"It’s not that I don’t have confidence, but I know Wang Hao well. Although I’ve never fought with him, I’ve seen his strength firsthand. Among his peers, there’s hardly anyone as formidable as he is. I, myself, am not weak and advanced to the Earthly List at a young age. However, compared to Wang Hao, I still fall far short. Previously, I considered Wang Hao a rival, hoping to surpass him one day. But later, I realized that the gap between me and him is too great; it’s unlikely I’ll surpass him anytime soon."
Hearing this, Porridge Girl looked seriously at Ling Chen and advised, "Take my advice, don’t take the risk. If you face him, you won’t stand a chance."
"But if I don’t get the Nine Elements Pill, how can I save my father?" Without waiting for Porridge Girl to say more, Ling Chen suddenly smiled and said, "Alright, don’t mention my worries. Regardless, I have to try."