Chapter 62: Trust

~~~

“Xiao Nan gave me a mission before he left.”

“My cousin thinks Wu Yan will use his position to favor the Yun Sect by sabotaging our disciples, doesn’t he?”

Liu Jin is left blinking in mute shock. The expression Xiao Fang gives him in return is decidedly unimpressed.

“Should I feel insulted that you look so surprised? Why else would you be chosen to participate? I will not deny you are strong, but if we only consider cultivation, I can think of a few Inner Disciples who are stronger and more experienced than you. Your medical skills are the only thing that would elevate you over them.”

Liu Jin cocks his head to the side.

“You acknowledge my medical skills?”

Xiao Fang crosses his arms.

“Even if I didn’t before, I’d have to be blind not to do so after today. Do you have any idea how hard it is to examine someone’s meridians like you did this afternoon? Wait, don’t answer that. It will make me angry either way.” Xiao Fang’s fingers tap against his elbow, an irritated look on his face. “There’s also that stupid condition to consider. Both Sects agreed to only send Inner Disciples to the tournament. Do you have any idea what our Xiao Sect had to give up for that?”

Liu Jin shakes his head in negative. His conversation with Xiao Nan did not include that detail. All he knows is that it was the Xiao Sect who made that request.

“Oh? So I finally know something you don’t?” Xiao Fang chuckles. He grabs his cup and swirls the liquid inside as he looks at the partying disciples. He stays like that for a moment. “Well, aren’t you going to ask?”

Liu Jin thinks about it before shaking his head. “If it was important, Elder Brother would have probably told me. Of course, I will not object if you decide to tell me.”

Xiao Fang clicks his tongue.

“You are annoyingly good at taking the fun out of things.” Xiao Fang takes a drink out of his cup. His expression grows serious as he looks at the wine. “The Patriarch of the Yun Sect is in the Renegade Realm. As such, he is not exactly what one can call stable. Although the Yun Sect tried to hide it, we found out he was having a hard time stabilizing after a recent breakthrough. That is why the Yun Sect requested that the tournament be held later than usual. If the Yun Sect’s Patriarch failed to show up and the right rumors started circulating, well, you can imagine what would have happened.”

If Yun Peng failed to show up for the Eastern Port City Tournament, people would definitely take notice. It would be easy for the wrong sort of rumors to start floating around the city. In fact, the Xiao Sect would make sure that they would. Soon, everyone would be talking about how Yun Peng had lost control of his cultivation. Such a situation would have been extremely embarrassing for the Yun Sect.

In other words, the Xiao Sect could have made a much bigger demand of the Yun Sect, yet the Xiao Sect merely chose to have both Sects limit who they could send to the tournament.

“Yes, that was my reaction too,” Xiao Fang says, seeing Liu Jin’s expression. “It didn’t make any sense to me. Of course, if the objective was to bait the Yun Sect…”

He leaves the sentence hanging. There is no need for it to be finished.

If the objective was to bait the Yun Sect, then everything makes sense. By removing Core Disciples from consideration, the Xiao Sect had guaranteed that the finals would be between Xiao Fang and Yun Han. With Wu Yan as the medical official of the tournament, the stage was perfectly set up for the Yun Sect to humiliate Xiao Fang.

“As you can see, it isn’t hard to piece everything together once you have all the information. I suspected something was off from the start, but today confirmed it. What you did for the others, examining their meridians, that was to make sure Wu Yan hadn’t done anything to them, right?”

Liu Jin nods. He has no reason to hide anything.

“And?” Xiao Fang prods. “Did you find anything?”

“Nothing.” Liu Jin lets out a sigh, an uncharacteristically dour look on his face. “I examined all members of our delegation, but I found nothing.”

“All but me, you mean,” Xiao Fang says, causing Liu Jin to look at him with renewed intensity. “I really hate it when you have that look on your face. If you are thinking something, just say it.”

“Is there really any need for me to do so? We both know what I am going to ask.”

Liu Jin has verified the health of every member of the Xiao Sect’s delegation.

The only exception is Xiao Fang.

In other words, to fully ascertain the health of all members of the Xiao Sect, Xiao Fang needs to submit himself to Liu Jin’s care.

For a moment, neither says anything. The two just stare at each other in silence while the other disciples celebrate a few feet away from them.

Liu Jin looks away first, bowing his head slightly.

“Brother-in-law… Xiao Fang, I wish to examine your body. Will you allow me to do so?”

~~~

“Participant Xiao Fang is guilty of cheating! He does not deserve to be crowned champion!”

Wu Yan shouts with all the strength his lungs can muster. His words reach every corner of the arena, setting off a cacophony of shocked comments.

“Preposterous!”

The inside of the Xiao Sect’s private room is no different. While the disciples trade confused and panicked looks, Elder Gang rises to his feet, a furious expression on his face.

“What is the meaning of this? To dare accuse our Xiao Fang of cheating!”

“Elder Gang, I am sure this is all a misunderstanding. There is no need to lose our tempers.”

“You are too soft, Elder Hui! This is an insult! Doctor Wu will have to answer for his son’s foolishness!”

Down in the ring, the situation is not much different. The announcer seems woefully out of his depth. Liu Jin can see as he looks from Xiao Fang to Wu Yan and then to the downed Yun Han. More words fly from Wu Yan’s mouth, this time not loudly enough for Liu Jin to hear them. The announcer raises his hands, no doubt trying to calm things down. Xiao Fang smiles as he replies, a taunting smile on his face.

“No, I will not move from here!” Thanks to a simple application of Qi, Xiao Fang’s words reach every corner of the arena. “If Wu Yan means to accuse me in front of everyone, then I shall prove my innocence in front of everyone. This Xiao Fang is innocent, and before the day is over, the entirety of Eastern Port City shall know it!”

“Son-in-law.”

Xiao Zheng speaks softly, yet that is enough to silence every other mouth in the room. Liu Jin takes a moment to gather himself before speaking.

“Yes, father-in-law?”

“Do you believe my son would benefit from your presence down in the ring?”

“I believe that would be the case.”

“Then go.”

The Patriarch of the Xiao Sect does not need to say anything else. Liu Jin bows his head to Xiao Zheng then to Elders before rushing out the door. Seven consecutive uses of Ground Contraction put him right before the fighter’s entrance. Wu Yan’s voice is now close enough to reach his ears.

“I was as shocked as the rest of you when participant Xiao Fang, who looked to be on the verge of defeat, suddenly gained renewed energy,” Wu Yan says. Unlike Xiao Fang, he is not using Qi to amplify his voice. This type of public speaking is new to him. Much to the detriment of his argument, he has to rely on his natural volume. “However, as I was close to the ring, I was able to discern the truth. Right before participant Xiao Fang’s sudden recovery, he swallowed something. I am certain he ingested an illegal substance!”

An illegal substance?

Liu Jin snorts.

What a joke.

Cultivation pills and elixirs are items commonly used by those who have the means to obtain them. In light of that, what type of substances can be called illegal?

While there is a list of substances deemed too dangerous or volatile for participants to use, testing whether Xiao Fang took one or not should be a simple matter. Most rules regarding the use of foreign substances fall along the lines of “do not poison your opponent before the match.”

In other words, Wu Yan’s accusation is too weak.

“Illegal substance?” Xiao Fang laughs. “You dare imply I would soil my body? How laughable!”

“Then how else can you explain your sudden recovery? No, it wasn’t just a simple recovery. Your cultivation level rose in the middle of the fight! We all felt it!”

“Rose? You are mistaken, Wu Yan. My cultivation level did not rise in the least.”

Wu Yan blinks, surprised by the assertion. “Are you then saying that…?”

“Exactly! I was already in the Sixth Level of the Nascent Realm before the tournament even began!”

This time, the gasps coming from the audience are far more audible. Even Wu Yan and the announcer cannot hide their surprise. That is how impressive Xiao Fang’s statement is. If he is telling the truth, it means he has been hiding his real level of cultivation for the entirety of the tournament. Even while fighting Yun Han, who was supposedly his equal, Xiao Fang never gave himself away.

Such a feat speaks volumes about the level control Xiao Fang has over his Qi.

It is a good thing Yun Han is unconscious, or else Xiao Fang’s declaration would probably make him want to cough blood.

“Th-then are you saying you did not use any pill during the match?”

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Xiao Fang’s words have unbalanced Wu Yan. The young doctor can only point at Xiao Fang with a trembling finger. He cannot even accuse him of lying. If he does, Xiao Fang will produce as many witnesses as he needs. That is the power of the Xiao Sect’s Young Master.

Wu Yan cannot even rely on his authority as the medical officer to say Xiao Fang was not at the Sixth Level of the Nascent Realm before the match.

That authority was already undermined the moment Wu Yan asked for Liu Jin’s help yesterday.

“No, I definitely used a pill during the match.”

Liu Jin fights the urge to snort. Xiao Fang is having far too much fun with this.

Wu Yan almost leaps to take the bait. “Ha! So you admit it then?”

“I merely said I took a pill during the match. I never said it was an illegal substance,” Xiao Fang explains slowly and calmly as if speaking to an idiot. In his eyes, Wu Yan probably qualifies. “I have also not lied about my cultivation. I was already on the Sixth Level of the Nascent Realm before the tournament began.”

“Then why…?”

“To rid myself of the parasite, of course.”

All blood flees Wu Yan’s face. He takes a stumbling step back.

“I… I do not understand…”

“What exactly confuses you?” Liu Jin says he comes up from behind Wu Yan, eliciting a surprised yelp from him. Wu Yan takes several panicked steps back, managing to avoid falling by sheer luck. “Throughout the entire tournament, you have been examining the health of the participants. Surely you noticed the Soul Draining Parasite egg that rested within my brother-in-law’s stomach?”

Just like Xiao Fang, Liu Jin uses Qi to amplify his voice. Just like Xiao Fang, Liu Jin’s words do not fail to make an impact on the crowd. The implications are too clear for anyone to miss. If Liu Jin and Xiao Fang are telling the truth, that means Xiao Fang had a parasite inside him for the entire tournament, and Wu Yan did not notice.

Either that or Wu Yan chose not to notice.

The whispers from the audience grow louder with every passing second, and Wu Yan seems to grow smaller as he finds himself the center of attention.

“Enough!”