Chapter 331: If You

~~~

The sun shines over the Crimson Cloud Arena. Though recent fights have proven dangerous to members of the audience, every single seat is already occupied. The barrier around the ring has been reinforced to withstand the skills of the four strongest fighters this generation has to offer. Even if it hadn’t been, the people would have still come to watch. No one wants to miss what is about to happen.

Liu Jin is no different.

He watches from the shadows, his Qi perfectly hidden. The sheer concentration of high-level cultivators in the arena, the very same people who are trying to find him, makes it extremely easy to conceal his presence. Life is full of little ironies.

The fight about to happen is another such example.

Xiao Shuang and Lu Mei. When Liu Jin first took over the Storm Dragon Empire, he’d been worried that their respective Sects would try to pit them against each other, but things never came to that. Instead, the girls became friends, only putting on an outward facade of enmity to satisfy the expectations placed on them. Their fight should have been nothing more than a friendly duel.

And yet…

“Xiao Shuang of the Divine Frozen Palace vs. Lu Mei of the Eternal Flame Clan.”

The arena becomes colder the instant Xiao Shuang appears. Many in the audience came dressed in warm clothes precisely because they expected this to happen. However, the cold around Xiao Shuang is more than mere temperature. It is intent, a declaration and a warning. Nothing will stop her from reaching the final, and anyone who tries will regret it.

Lu Mei takes it all in stride. Her Qi brims with warmth and confidence as she walks, moving so gracefully she almost seems to flow over the ring. Her golden eyes shine as she looks at her opponent. There is no fear there. No hesitation. Her aura flares in anticipation.

Heat and cold meet, causing small whirlwinds to appear around the ring, a prelude of what is about to happen. The usual Lu Mei would not care about trying to defeat Xiao Shaung, but that is no longer the case. Two of the strongest talents in this generation are about to give it their all to win this fight.

All because of him.

Liu Jin smiles bitterly. In the end, it wasn’t the Divine Frozen Palace or the Eternal Flame Clan that turned the two against each other. This is all the result of his actions. He exposed himself to the world, predicting their safety but failing to account for the emotional toll his actions would take on them.

He should have predicted Xiao Shuang would suffer, but he hadn’t. He was so busy thinking of large, overly complicated things that he forgot to take into account what is most important.

Now, he can only watch as two of the people most dear to him fight.

~~~

Sparks appear in the ring as Lu Mei’s and Xiao Shuang’s energies brush against each other. Though they have yet to move or make a sound, a whole conversation has already gone by.

“Isn’t this interesting?” Lu Mei says, one hand on her hip and a casual smirk on her face. “Aren’t you going to ask me to surrender?”

“I want to,” Xiao Shuang says. Just by speaking, she causes frost to appear over the ring. “However, I know better than to underestimate your resolve.”

Lu Mei’s smirk widens.

“A compliment. How nice. I wish I had one to give you, but the truth is, you look quite terrible.”

Xiao Shuang does not react to the taunt, but she is blessed enough to have several people who get angry on her behalf. Lu Mei feels the bursts of lethal intent aimed at her from all over the ring, especially from the Divine Frozen Palace’s box.

Who is she to insult Xiao Shuang? Who is she to comment on her beauty? Xiao Shuang’s face is hidden behind a veil, and even if it wasn’t, the face of a member of the Divine Frozen Palace cannot be anything less than breathtakingly beautiful. That is what all those prickling looks seem to be telling her.

However, Lu Mei can see much better than all those people. Beyond the cold. Beyond the terrifying Qi. She knows her friend, and what she sees in her is worrying for reasons that have little to do with their impending fight.

“Do you think I will respond to taunts?” Xiao Shuang asks her. Her Qi rises, but she has yet to reveal her full strength. Considering the Crimson Cloud Tournament is a gathering of the strongest cultivators of their age, that Xiao Shuang has managed to keep her cultivation hidden thus far is incredibly impressive.

“You know better than to think I am insulting you,” Lu Mei tells her. “I just never once thought you were quite this weak.”

A wave of cold hits Lu Mei across the face like a slap.

“Weak?” Xiao Shuang asks.

“What else am I supposed to call you?” Lu Mei asks. “Dear, you might be trying your hardest to seem like an impenetrable wall of ice, but to me, it looks like you are falling apart. Does it take so little to make you crumble?”

Xiao Shuang’s cold blue eyes peer into hers.

“I am treating things with the appropriate seriousness,” she says. “You are not. One must wonder whether you even care.”

That wipes the smirk from Lu Mei’s face.

“I am going to let that one go in light of our history,” Lu Mei says. Her Qi rises dangerously as she speaks.

“There is no need for that,” Xiao Shuang says. “I have no intention of taking back my words. You do not care enough.”

Gold flames roar around Lu Mei.

Earth Realm, Level Eight.

“Oh dear,” Lu Mei says, her smile stiff. “You really should not have said that.”

She raises her hand and aims it at Xiao Shuang.

[Incandescent Scorching]

A golden sun is unleashed on the ring, forcing Xiao Shuang to summon multiple walls of ice in front of her. They barely slow down the fire, but they give her enough time to launch a counterattack. Her Qi spikes, and a wave of cold slams down onto the ring, instantly snuffing out the flames.

Lu Mei suddenly appears at her flank, moving with speed far beyond what someone in the Earth Realm should be capable of. Gold and blue eyes meet just before Lu Mei unleashes the Eternal Flame once more. Xiao Shuang wraps herself with cold and ice, her aura growing as she pours more power into it. Heat and cold explode upon contact. Mist is scattered over the ring as Xiao Shuang is blown back by the force of the explosion.

“Are you really in any position to talk about taking things seriously?” Lu Mei’s voice shouts from within the mist. “Do you really believe you can fight me while hiding your cultivation?”

[Binding of the Condemned]

Chains of flame appear on all corners of the ring and chase after Xiao Shuang. She summons a wall of ice to defend herself, but the fiery chains immediately pierce through it. One wraps around her wrist, slowing her down just enough for the other chains to trap her remaining limbs.

“Is this it?” Lu Mei asks as she makes more flaming chains appear around Xiao Shuang. “You could barely defeat Fan Bingbing while keeping your cultivation hidden. What made you think you had any right to step into the ring while trying to hide your power?”

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Despite her state, Xiao Shuang meets Lu Mei’s gaze calmly.

“As I thought, you do not care enough,” she says.

The chains around Xiao Shuang immediately tighten. Smoke rises from her clothes, yet the girl refuses to flinch.

“Oh?” Lu Mei says, raising an eyebrow challengingly.

“If you really cared,” Xiao Shuang says without flinching, “You would have tried your hardest to defeat me right now.”

Something breaks.

The solitary sound echoes throughout the suddenly silent city. A man near the city walls sighs, and his breath comes out as white vapor. A glass of beer over at a bar suddenly shatters, and the beer freezes on the floor. The sunny sky darkens as the clouds become heavy. Snow begins falling over the city.

Heaven Realm.

Level Three.

~~~

“That’s not…”

Ruan Chenshu cuts himself off. What point is there in saying it is not possible when the truth is right before his eyes? The girl from the Divine Frozen Palace hasn’t just reached the Heaven Realm. She’s in the third level of it. It is borderline unprecedented.

His gaze shifts to the Wandering Wind. Unsurprisingly, she remains unperturbed. She probably realized the girl’s true power from the start.

However, if this is the power of the Divine Frozen Palace’s strongest disciple…

~~~

“That is potentially troublesome,” Lord Feng Gui says, frowning as he looks at the ring.

“Is it?” His wife asks. She tries to sound dismissive, but he can see the nervousness in her eyes. “Certainly, she is impressive, but by the time he reaches her age, our son will be-”

“Our son is our blood. It is expected of him to be impressive,” Feng Gui says. “He has been given every privilege since before he would walk.”

He points to the fight.