~~~
Liu Jin wakes up before the sun rises.
He wakes up but makes no effort to leave his bed. His eyes do not move from the ceiling even for an instant, not even to blink. Xiao Nan’s request. The group stage. Cui Tian. Song Daiyu. The talk with Xiao Fang. The fight with Yun Han. Though his body is unmoving, his mind is hard at work, reviewing all the events that have led up to this point. To Liu Jin’s surprise, he finds he doesn’t dislike remembering most of it.
Other than Cui Tian’s unfortunate fate, the tournament has been… okay. Almost enjoyable, even.
However, there is no time for enjoyment today.
His eyes narrow.
Today is the day. Xiao Fang and Yun Han will fight to decide the winner of the Eastern Port City Tournament. Both the Yun Sect and the Xiao Sect are completely sure of their victory in the way only high-ranking Sects can be. The people of Eastern Port City are far more evenly split in their predictions, with people betting exorbitant amounts of money on both fighters.
As for Liu Jin, there is not a single doubt in his mind as to what the outcome of the match will be.
It is what will happen afterward that he is less sure about.
He feels the weight of the coming events pressing down on his back. However, it does not overwhelm him. It falls over him like a heavy blanket during summertime. It is not comfortable, but it doesn’t yet suffocate him.
Still, he’d feel safer if Xiao Nan were here.
Liu Jin sighs and tries to brush that thought aside.
Today is going to be a long day.
~~~
“I believe I will open the clinic today,” his father tells him over breakfast.
“Truly?” Liu Jin asks, not quite able to hide his surprise.
His father smiles.
“The only reason I went to the tournament was to watch you compete, and I am proud of how far you’ve come. Now that you’re no longer competing, there is no reason for me to be there. Of course, I do not expect you to stay here with me. No doubt, you’ll want to cheer your fellow disciples.”
Just like that, his father takes care of his biggest worry.
Under other circumstances, his father’s praise would have left him dazed, yet all he can feel right now is relief.
“I understand, father.”
It is not what Liu Jin really wants to say. At that moment, the words Liu Jin wants to say are “Thank you, father.”
Liu Jin’s father is someone who cannot use Qi. As such, he is weaker than regular people, a fact Liu Jin does not like but which the situation will not let him ignore. Today, the patriarchs of the Xiao and Yun Sects will be present to watch their sons fight. Should anything unexpected happen, the possibility of the two men clashing exists. The possibility is not high, but ignoring it would be foolish.
That is why Liu Jin is glad his father will not be at the stadium today.
Should anything happen, all the people in the stadium could become potential collateral damage. Liu Jin would worry about his father even if he were a normal person. That he cannot use Qi makes it an absolute necessity for him to remain at the clinic today. Indeed, Liu Jin had been wondering how to best broach the issue since yesterday. He never expected for his father to take care of the issue without him doing anything.
As Liu Jin meets his father’s red eyes, he realizes it is not a coincidence.
He knows. Liu Jin doesn’t know how he knows or how much he knows, but his father clearly knows enough to remove himself from the situation.
“I trust you will do your best to be cautious.”
“I will do my best to meet your expectations.”
“Then I have no reason to worry. My expectations are something you have repeatedly surpassed.”
This time, not even the pressure of the situation is enough to stop the rush of pride Liu Jin feels at his father’s words.
Today is the day, and he is ready for it.
~~~
The walk to the Xiao Sect is as uneventful as it is unneeded.
It would be much simpler, Liu Jin thinks, if he could just go to the stadium as he has done the previous days. The walk from his home to the stadium is much shorter than the one from his home to the Xiao Sect’s compound. As it is, he’ll have to go all the way to the Xiao Sect only to then go to the stadium with the others.
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Once more, it is all about image. Liu Jin can’t say he cares much about it, but the same cannot be said for just about everyone else.
It is the last day of the tournament. The Xiao and Yun Sects are the only factions remaining. Everyone else has already been weeded out. Today, there will only be two fights. Big Nose Li will fight a disciple of the Yun Sect to determine the third and fourth place. The finals will take place after that. Compared to the two previous days, this one will be woefully short. Liu Jin is sure the fight between Xiao Fang and Yun Han will not last more than thirty minutes.
Yet, it is for those thirty minutes that the Xiao Sect is putting its best foot forward.
All ten members of the Xiao Sect’s delegation will be taken to the stadium in a procession of palanquins with a suitable quantity of servants. Of course, it won’t be just them going. The Patriarch of the Xiao Sect, Xiao Zheng, will be there too. Then there are—
“Young Liu Jin, I see you have arrived at just the right time.”
The Elders.
Elder Hui stands right in front of the Xiao Sect’s main gates. He smiles at him, the very picture of a kindly grandfather. It is a good smile, and it would probably fool quite a few people. However, Liu Jin has seen his master put on a grandfatherly act around Su An. Compared to that, Elder Hui’s smile can only be called lacking.
“Elder Hui,” Liu Jin says, bowing his head in greeting. “This disciple is honored you would go out of your way to greet him.”
Elder Hui chuckles.
“Think nothing of it. I merely wanted to take the opportunity to congratulate you. To think you were one of my Outer Disciples but a few weeks ago. Now, you’re among the Top 16 of the Eastern Port City Tournament. Your accomplishments are worthy of praise.”
“Your praise is wasted on this disciple, Elder Hui. I merely performed as is expected of a disciple of our Xiao Sect.”
“How humble of you,” Elder Hui replies as the two make their way inside the Xiao Sect’s compound. “That is a good quality for a disciple to have. Indeed, I often tell my disciples a humble spirit is a necessity.”
That is a lie.
Elder Hui is in charge of the Outer Disciples, but saying he is hands-off with them is putting it mildly. It would not be inaccurate to say Elder Hui barely involves himself in the matters concerning Outer Disciples, leaving most of his duties to the lesser-ranked instructors.
In other words, a situation in which Elder Hui talks and gives advice to the disciples he’s in charge of almost never happens.
So why is Elder Hui now going out of his way to talk to him?
As much as Liu Jin has tried to wrap his head around it, he still cannot comprehend what motivates Elder Hui. Even talking with Xiao Fang the other night did little to change this. If anything, it made things even more confusing.
Elder Hui initially presented himself as amicable, but he sided with Xiao Fang when the latter wanted Liu Jin to break off the engagement. Now, he seems to be trying to make a good impression on Liu Jin once more, though Liu Jin can only try to guess at his purposes. It could be as simple as Elder Hui being an opportunist who now acknowledges Liu Jin’s position within the Sect, yet there has to be more to it than that.
Of course, confronting him right now would be a poor decision.
“This disciple will do his best to reflect on Elder Hui’s words,” Liu Jin says, bowing his head.
“See that you do. You may already be out of the tournament, but there will be another one in only two years. If you diligently push yourself, your cultivation level will reach new heights. You made it to the Top 16 this time, but you might reach further next time. Indeed, as the patriarch’s son-in-law, you must endeavor to give an even greater performance when the time comes.”
Is Elder Hui trying to distance himself from Xiao Fang?
Liu Jin fights the urge frown as the thought occurs to him.
“This disciple will do his best not to shame Patriarch Xiao Zheng when the time comes.”
Elder Hui laughs and continues talking, even as Liu Jin’s face starts to hurt. Keeping a respectful expression on his face has rarely been quite this difficult. He knows the other members of the delegation aren’t too far away, yet the trip to them is going to be a long one.
~~~
The procession is a bit too gaudy for Liu Jin’s tastes and takes far too long. On his own, he could make the trip in a few seconds using Ground Contraction. Patriarch Xiao Zheng would not even need the blink of an eye to cross that distance.
The procession takes almost an hour. There is even music.
It is, in Liu Jin’s opinion, rather asinine. About the only upside to the whole thing is that he gets a palanquin all to himself, which means he does not need to talk to anyone.
Of course, even the overly long procession is comfortable compared to what happens next. During the previous two days of the tournament, the Xiao Sect’s private room had been a place of comfort where the Inner Disciples could talk freely and laze about. All things considered, being there had been fun.
Patriarch Xiao Zheng’s presence changes all that.
He takes the seat that had been occupied by Xiao Fang during the previous days. Elder Gang is at his right, Elder Hui at his left. The Inner Disciples who had competed in the tournament are now kneeling on the floor with their backs straight. Their gazes firmly locked on the arena below.
Then the Yun Sect’s Patriarch, Yun Peng, arrives.
They do not see him, but all feel his wild Qi falling down on the entire stadium. Liu Jin sees the disciples around him pale and tremble. Had he not been in Nine-Headed Snake God’s presence, he probably would be in a similar condition. He does not dare to imagine how the people below them are faring.
Even at the height of his rage, Yun Han’s Qi never once felt this wild. Yun Peng’s Qi feels sharpened to the extreme, a sword hanging over their heads, dripping with menacing intent. It is the might of someone in the Renegade Realm, the eighth realm of cultivation.
At that moment, there is only one person in the stadium who can protect them from that power.
Xiao Zheng’s Qi rises to push away Yun Peng’s menacing Qi, draping itself over the members of the Xiao Sect like a cloak. Throughout it all, Xiao Zheng’s expression never changes.
A drop of sweat appears on Liu Jin’s forehead. The fights have not even begun, yet the first blow of the day has been struck.
The first fight goes by almost mercifully quickly. At least, that is how it feels to Liu Jin. Big Nose Li takes the third place with little fanfare. Some cheer for him, yet the presence of the two titans above them has left the audience rattled.
“Xiao Fang of the Xiao Sect vs. Yun Han of the Yun Sect!”
The two fighters make their way to the arena, and their fathers’ Qi spike in response. Yun Peng’s with wild anticipation. Xiao Zheng’s with stalwart discipline.
Xiao Fang and Yun Han meet each other in the center of the ring. Wu Yan stops in front of each of them, making sure to carefully examine them. A nod is given to the announcer when he finds their health satisfactory.
“Begin!”
~~~