Upon the viewing platform belonging to the State of Chu, the veteran general Chu Yuzhi sighed deeply. Though he, too, had been a defeated general under Xiang Bei, and had suffered no small amount of disdain and humiliation from that arrogant youth, yet on this Guan He Platform, he still held a faint hope that the favored son of Chu could emerge victorious.

Even a titan like Dou Zhao’s failure to claim the championship had already broken the hearts of the Chu people. To witness an Inner Mansion realm cultivator falter at the threshold of the top eight would be an even greater blow. However, in this particular match, no matter how he searched, he could not conjure a valid reason for Xiang Bei’s defeat. Indeed, Xiang Bei was simply outmatched.

The loss of the initial advantage and the significant curtailment of his heavy pupils, rendering his most potent divine soul killing technique unusable, were crucial factors in Xiang Bei’s downfall. Yet, for Xiang Bei, whose heavy pupils were a natural marvel and who was renowned for his formidable divine soul techniques, to be defeated in a confrontation of the divine soul realm spoke volumes of his opponent’s terrifying power. The State of Qi’s lineup for this session… truly sent shivers down one’s spine!

Seated beside Chu Yuzhi was Qu Shunhua, who had joined the viewing area midway through her own battle. Her face remained expressionless. Ever since she had chosen to conceal her true strength during the domestic selections, she had not held much expectation for the outcome of this match at the Yellow River Assembly.

Only Zuo Guangshu, who had been forcefully dragged by Qu Shunhua to witness the spectacle, now stared fixedly at the martial stage, utterly transfixed. Of course, he understood the meaning behind Jiang Wang’s seemingly inexplicable words spoken on the stage. He remembered clearly what Jiang Wang had said after he had vaguely recounted Xiang Bei’s exploits within the Tai Xu Illusion Realm. That person had declared then: “When I return, I’ll help you teach him a lesson!”

It had sounded so frivolous and lighthearted, like pacifying a child. At the time, he had merely sneered in contempt… Xiang Bei, after defeating him, had once said, “I have three regrets: first, that Zuo Guanglie died too soon; second, that the illustrious Zuo family has declined; and third, that the world no longer sees fireworks.” With these words, he had mocked the lack of successors in the Zuo family, laughing at Zuo Guangshu’s inadequacies.

Now, Jiang Wang, before the eyes of the entire world, had pressed the “fireworks” onto Xiang Bei’s face, telling him that fireworks had never truly faded. When Zuo Guangshu had seen Jiang Wang in the present world today, he had originally thought that if the opportunity arose, he would mock him. How could the invincible “Tai Xu First” of the Inner Mansion realm be so shallow, so fixated on appearances, crafting his image within the Tai Xu Illusion Realm to be so handsome, utterly unlike his real self? But at this moment, he could only feel… that image within the Tai Xu Illusion Realm was merely passable. Jiang Wang, at this very instant, was truly dazzling, breathtakingly so. And warm… like sunlight.

“What’s wrong?” Qu Shunhua noticed Zuo Guangshu’s strangeness and asked in a low voice.

Zuo Guangshu did not shift his gaze, only murmured, “Very alike, aren’t they?”

“Alike to what?”

After this question escaped her lips subconsciously, Qu Shunhua already knew the answer. She, too, looked at the martial stage, but said nothing, merely tightening her grip on Zuo Guangshu’s hand.

The clash between the favored sons of the two great overlord states of Qi and Chu had thus been decided. Only that figure, treading on clouds and falling with Jiang Qingyang, remained calm of eye and steady of step. As if nothing had changed, as if nothing could ever change him. In this situation, in this scene, at this moment, that upright figure in a green robe with sword in hand vaguely radiated a ten-thousand-zhang radiance.

Huang Sheli, who was half-crouching by the side of the martial stage, watching the battle with her hand supporting her cheek in a casual posture, was momentarily stunned. Behind her was Chu Men, whose arms and legs had been broken, three puppets shattered, and two strange beasts slain. She had originally aimed for a quick victory to come and witness the humiliation of this Qi country’s Jiang Wang. This person wasn’t handsome enough, yet he dared to steal her, Huang Sheli’s, thunder, daring to seize the attention of the two great beauties, and even provoking her… simply outrageous! Of course, the first issue was far more serious than the latter two.

But… she blinked her eyes. How was it that he now looked strangely handsome? Some people possessed beauty of skin, some of bone, and some, of spirit. She suddenly recalled that this favored son named Jiang Wang, sitting beside the peerless Ji Zhaonan and the stunning Chong Xuanzun, had never appeared out of place or been overshadowed. He had always possessed his unique style. Only she, Huang someone, had been utterly captivated by the gazes of absolute world beauties and had thus overlooked it. Alas, stealing the spotlight was understandable; this was the Yellow River Assembly, who didn’t want to showcase their divine power before the masses? As for provoking… everyone was young, a little temper was inevitable. If there were misunderstandings, they could simply be resolved; why dwell on trivial matters?

She was about to stand up when she suddenly heard a loud shout—

“Jiang Qingyang!!!”

This voice was piercing, even heartbreaking. The entire atmosphere dissipated… Huang Sheli turned her head angrily, only to see, on the viewing platform on the Qi side, a man with an unusually high forehead, his face flushed red, waving his arms and shouting continuously: “Jiang Qingyang! Jiang Qingyang! Jiang Qingyang!”

What was wrong with not winning?!

Huang Sheli’s fierce gaze… Xu Gaoe completely ignored it. Within the entire Tianxia Platform, too many people were looking at him at this moment. He, one of the “Double Prides of Gan Ma Mountain,” was a dignified figure; must he pay attention to each and every one of them? Precious swords inevitably attract worldly pursuit, and strange flowers naturally fill the spring gardens! Thus, he cupped his hands in a circular gesture and announced, “This humble one, Xu Xiangqian, one of the Double Prides of Gan Ma Mountain, offers greetings!”

Many people from other countries were utterly bewildered. Did he think they were greeting him? Some, with bad tempers, were rolling up their sleeves, ready to stand up. Then they saw that high forehead again, smiling with squinted eyes, saying, “The so-called Double Prides of Gan Ma Mountain are none other than Jiang Qingyang and I, Xu Xiangqian. My Qingyang merely displayed a little, everyone, please laugh it off, please laugh it off.”

Many people were immediately silenced. Xiang Bei, the favored son of Great Chu, had beaten Yue’s favored son Bai Yuxia into submission with three fists, an existence who could forcibly assault an opponent’s Tong Tian Palace in the Inner Mansion realm. Such a top-tier favored son had lost utterly to Jiang Wang. From a divine soul struggle to an external battle, he was completely defeated. This fellow could be equally named with Jiang Qingyang; presumably, he wouldn’t be weak… Within the entire Tianxia Platform, those of the highest status did not bother to nitpick the excited shouts of the younger generation. Those powerful figures who could easily teach Xu Xiangqian a lesson were generally willing to show face to the Great Scholar Mo Ya. The younger generation, unaware of Xu Xiangqian’s background, would inevitably feel a sense of apprehension because of Jiang Wang. Thus, after Xu Xiangqian completed his circular bow, several people actually returned his greeting with a smile. The majority then silently withdrew their gaze, treating it as mere chirping sparrows.

Instead, Jiang Wang himself, on the martial stage, was somewhat surprised. Who wanted to be equally named with him? He remembered he had merely laughed it off and skipped over it! Even if he had to be equally named, why “Gan Ma Mountain”? That was a mountain of graves, not auspicious, Brother Gaoe!

But having just secured a spot in the top four, under the gaze of ten thousand people, he couldn’t just ignore everything else and specifically emphasize this. He could only try to maintain a smile, force a look of not having heard anything, a face of “I don’t know,” “Not me,” “Nothing happened.”

After Xu Xiangqian completed his circular bow, he sat down and discovered that within three zhang of him, everyone had left. Li Longchuan and Chong Xuansheng were either looking at the sky or the ground. Yan Fuzheng had twisted his head to the other side and was saying something softly to Wen Tinglan, their flirtatious banter annoyingly sweet. If it weren’t for Brother Yan, he, Xu Xiangqian, would definitely torment him a little. He turned his head to look at Zhao Shijie… Zhao Shijie was also pulling Miss Zishu, sitting far, far away.

Xu Xiangqian shook his head and sighed; his friends’ psychological fortitude was simply too poor. “Let me bear this burden of attention alone,” he thus murmured, straightening his waist even further, raising his head even higher. Of course, his forehead also appeared even brighter.

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