Chapter 380: Withdraw After Accomplishing the Mission

Wangchuan’s elimination of the Beggar Sect’s three martial artists dealt quite a blow to Young Master Xue’s side.

Young Master Xue had originally hoped to join forces with the Beggar Sect to deal with Lu Ping’an. He had never expected Qin Kainian and the other two to be the first batch eliminated—and in such a miserable fashion at that.

Alarmed, and after Lu Ping’an cut away the helpers around him, he had no choice but to grab the Advancement Token in his hand and flee the stage in disgrace, rushing toward the shore.

There was no way he could let himself get eliminated during the elimination round!

That would be far too humiliating!

Although Lu Ping’an very much wanted to keep him there, he did not seem to have cultivated any long-range martial arts. By the time he turned his head, he could no longer catch up, and could only watch helplessly as the other man advanced ahead of time.

“Hmph.”

“A defeated opponent.”

“Nothing to fear.”

Lu Ping’an withdrew his gaze and looked toward Wangchuan.

Wangchuan’s group had already secured enough Advancement Tokens as well.

Just as expected,

all eight of them advanced as a whole and entered the top forty.

Wan Xiwen’s smile deepened.

When Old Seven saw Qin Kainian unconscious and being carried off for treatment, he smiled and nodded at Wangchuan.

Everyone in the Caobang was greatly invigorated.

“Hall Master Wangchuan!”

“Hall Master Wangchuan!”

Up to this point in the tournament, Wangchuan had made only a few moves. Earlier on, he had not stood out much. But this time, he truly made everyone’s eyes light up, allowing them to feel the dominance and edge of this Deputy Hall Master.

The matches that followed

were fought in pairs, simultaneously across the five stages.

Lin Jiahe, Bai Yuhui, and Yang Feiyue were, after all, newly advanced third-rank martial artists who had come more to fill out the numbers. Aside from Lin Jiahe, who fought his way through danger after danger and defeated his opponent at the very last moment, both Bai Yuhui and Yang Feiyue stopped at the top forty.

Chen Libin, Zhang Zishan, and the third-rank martial artist from the Lu Family also ran into powerful opponents in this round. Only Zhang Zishan advanced and entered the top twenty.

Lu Ping’an, meanwhile, defeated his opponent with almost an invincible third-rank bearing and marched into the top twenty.

On Wangchuan’s side, he was unexpectedly matched against Young Master Xue—Xue Lingsong.

After exchanging blows, Xue Lingsong finally understood why Qin Kainian and the others had lost so quickly.

This fellow...

The oppressive force brought by his speed came like a violent storm, leaving one unable to breathe.

And the internal force transmitted through the weapon left his tiger’s mouth numb!

In just a few short exchanges, Xue Lingsong felt miserable beyond words.

Especially when the other man switched between different sword moves and different sword arts, he actually felt as if he were facing Lu Ping’an himself. He was like a little skiff on storm-tossed waves, liable to be shattered at any moment.

Xue Lingsong went all out and used every skill he possessed. After more than a hundred exchanges, his internal energy was finally exhausted.

Clang!

With one moment of carelessness, his weapon flew from his hand. Wangchuan’s sword stopped before his chest.

The match was over.

Wangchuan withdrew his sword and cupped his fists.

“My thanks.”

Xue Lingsong returned the salute, his face ashen. He could not even be bothered to pick up the weapon he had dropped. In a fury, he turned around, lunged into the river, ran across the water, and boarded a painted pleasure boat in the distance.

“What is this...”

“He’s just leaving?”

Quite a few people stood there stunned.

Including the judges...

Wangchuan sneered inwardly:

Heh.

Not every disciple of a great family was like Lu Ping’an.

The competition continued.

Top twenty advancing into top ten.

Lin Jiahe was matched against Lu Ping’an and withdrew on the spot.

Zhang Zishan was matched against Wangchuan.

Though both were Deputy Hall Masters of the Caobang, Zhang Zishan had already seen how formidable Wangchuan was and immediately withdrew as well, giving Wangchuan ample time to rest and recover his stamina.

Just like that...

the Caobang had someone advance into the top ten of the third-rank tournament.

Mission accomplished!

The Caobang had secured both its substance and its face.

Only then did Wan Xiwen, Old Seven, Lin Cunxin, and the others finally feel the great stone in their hearts fall away.

Of the remaining eight competitors, five came from famous sects and great schools; three came from renowned great families of the capital.

Because of Lin Jiahe’s and Zhang Zishan’s withdrawals, both Wangchuan and Lu Ping’an were in very good condition.

But the remaining contestants had all gone through bitter fights. Either they were wounded and in poor shape, or their internal energy was badly depleted.

Faced with Wangchuan and Lu Ping’an, all of them were defeated within a mere twenty-some moves.

The two of them advanced into the top five.

As for the remaining three...

their conditions were even worse.

Lu Ping’an received a bye.

Wangchuan advanced together with Chang Feihe of Wudang.

After finishing his match, Chang Feihe descended from the stage with a pale face and severe internal energy depletion.

Then, right in front of everyone, he swallowed a Lesser Rejuvenation Pill and immediately began circulating his Qi to restore his internal energy. Steam rose from the top of his head like mist, and Wangchuan cursed inwardly at the sight:

That dog thief, what a waste of a treasure!

“Next!”

“Comes the final match to decide the top three!”

“The three remaining competitors are Chang Feihe of Wudang, Lu Ping’an of the Lu Family of Qinghe Commandery, and Wangchuan, Deputy Hall Master of the Caobang’s Sanhe Commandery hall.”

Old Seven was beside himself with excitement.

Watching Wangchuan climb step by step all the way into the top three, even he found it hard to believe.

The judges quietly conferred among themselves:

“Chang Feihe was nearly out of the tournament already, but after taking a Lesser Rejuvenation Pill, he can restore his internal energy quickly and return to peak condition. Now the rankings of the top three have become uncertain again.”

“As expected of a Wudang disciple.”

“Give him a little time.”

“What does Elder Wan think?”

“Of course!”

“The final clash of dragons and tigers must be fought with both sides at full strength to truly be worth watching.”

Wan Xiwen saw that Wangchuan had already broken into the top three and knew the Caobang had already stolen all the thunder it needed in this tournament. There was no reason for him to place obstacles in the way. He might as well be generous now...

Even if they only came away with a third-place finish, so what?

They had still made a fortune and filled their bowls to the brim.

Hahahaha!

Wangchuan stood shoulder to shoulder with Lu Ping’an.

“Chang Feihe is very strong. His internal cultivation, swordsmanship, and lightness skill are all no weaker than mine. His body-protection technique is even slightly better than mine.”

For once, Lu Ping’an seemed genuinely tense. Light flowed through his eyes, and he looked extremely excited.

Wangchuan’s state of mind, however, was calm.

Cui Mingjue had already come over earlier to congratulate him in advance.

His mission had long since been accomplished—and accomplished beyond expectation.

His goal had been reached.

To be honest, for the matches that followed, he had no intention of risking his life.

On the one hand, a tall tree catches the wind;

on the other hand, there was no need to lay all of his trump cards on the table and expose them completely.

When Old Seven announced that the first match would be Lu Ping’an versus Wangchuan,

Lu Ping’an was stunned.

Still wearing a relaxed grin, Wangchuan said lightly to him:

“I concede this round.”

“...”

Lu Ping’an froze for a moment, then frowned.

“If we both go all out, the victory between us truly lies at fifty-fifty.”

Those words were not self-deprecation.

“I know. I understand. You still have methods kept in reserve too. But I’m only the Deputy Hall Master of Sanhe Commandery. I don’t have fourth-rank martial artist guards. I don’t have the protection of a powerful family. A tall tree catches the wind.”

Wangchuan spoke very frankly:

“Let me keep a few trump cards and live a few more years. You go all out and take first place.”

“...”

Lu Ping’an stared into Wangchuan’s eyes.

Then, after a long moment, he nodded.

“I understand.”

Wangchuan conceded on the stage and took third place.

Although everyone found it strange, Old Seven quickly announced the second match: Chang Feihe versus Lu Ping’an, to determine first and second place.

Naturally, the two of them fought a true clash of dragons and tigers.

At that moment, the system prompt sounded:

“Ding!”

“Congratulations! In the Caobang Martial Tournament, you have taken third place in the third-rank tournament!”

“Jianghu Reputation increased by 50 points!”

“Jianghu Reputation Rankings unlocked!”

“Current Jianghu Reputation Ranking: No. !”