MTLNOVEL Chapter 161: Advancing to the Elimination Round
Chapter 161: Advancing to the Elimination Round
“Boom! Boom! Boom!”…
The white-robed youth and the martial-arts youth were evenly matched, locked in a fierce battle.
Ten moves.
Twenty moves.
Thirty moves…
Soon.
Over one hundred moves had passed, and the two were still evenly matched.
After two hundred moves, both of their faces turned slightly pale, their energy reserves rapidly dwindling.
The noblewomen and ladies in the audience grew anxious.
“The young master of Duke Jing’s household and the young master of Duke Ying’s household are both at the Transformation Strength Rank 9 Stage. Their strength is equal. If they continue to fight like this, they’ll both end up with serious injuries. If they keep fighting like this, they won’t have the strength to deal with the person who fought his way up from the lower level. That person has managed to rise from the lower realm, so his strength can’t be underestimated.”
“That’s right. The young masters of the two clans should first eliminate that person before concentrating on their own match. Otherwise, that person from the lower level will just take advantage of the situation…”
The white-robed youth and the martial-armour-clad youth were not unaware of this simple logic, yet they showed no signs of stopping. The battle only intensified.
Xu Lian finally understood. These two youths had probably seen each other as rivals since childhood. In their eyes, there was no one else but each other. They didn’t care about winning or losing the match; all they cared about was defeating the other.
The match could be lost… but they had to defeat each other!
“Boom! Boom! Boom!”…
Both of them fought with all their might, leaving no energy to deal with Xu Lian. They completely ignored him, treating him as if he were air.
After three hundred moves, both of them were covered in wounds.
After four hundred moves, their vision was blurred, their steps were unsteady, and they swayed as if they were drunk.
Finally, after a few more exchanges, they both collapsed, unconscious.
“…” Xu Lian, who had stood in the corner and watched the entire fight, had won without lifting a finger.
The noblewomen and ladies in the stands rushed to the arena, some casting healing spells, others feeding the two young masters with healing pills. Xu Lian, the victor, was completely ignored. Everyone knew that his victory was purely due to luck.
The commoners in the audience watched Xu Lian on the stage with frustration. Why hadn’t any of the noble ladies taken a liking to him? For them, the rise of a “grassroots genius” was only complete if he ended up marrying a noble lady.
“Xu Lian advances. Congratulations on qualifying for the elimination round.”
A crimson-robed official with a blank face handed Xu Lian the token for the elimination round.
Xu Lian took the token and left without a word. His goal was different from the two geniuses. While they were focused on defeating each other, he was focused on the result.
He needed to secure a spot in the elimination round so that he could continue to climb the ladder, all the way to becoming the royal son-in-law.
Back at the inn.
Seeing the questioning looks from the three women, Xu Lian took out the elimination round token, waved it around, and then put it away.
He then pulled Huo Xin’er into the room to work on increasing her affection.
After some time.
Huo Xin’er’s affection level rose from 75 to 80.
Huo Xin’er was like this. The stronger Xu Lian’s displayed strength, the more her affection would rise. As a sword servant sent by the Sword Pavilion, her relationship with Xu Lian was more master-servant than romantic.
In other words, the Huo family had tied their interests to Xu Lian. The stronger he became, the greater the benefits the Huo family would reap from the Sword Pavilion in the future.
“Since I arrived in the capital, I have been busy with the competition and haven’t had much time to spend with you all. Now that I’ve passed the preliminary rounds and secured a spot in the elimination rounds, I’ll have about a month before the elimination rounds begin. During this time, I’ll make sure to spend more time with you.”
Xu Lian didn’t neglect Jiang Yunyan and Miao Yueyue either, smiling as he shared his plans for the coming month.
From then on.
He spent his days touring the capital with the three women.
Jiang Yunyan and Miao Yueyue were overjoyed, their faces shining with happiness every day.
However, Huo Xin’er remained indifferent. What mattered to her was Xu Lian’s progress in strength and his future achievements. Whether Xu Lian had time to spend with her wasn’t a big concern, though she was still pleased that he was willing to set aside time for her.
As a sword servant, her loyalty lay with the Huo family and the Sword Pavilion’s interests. But she was still a young woman in her twenties. How could she not be moved by this exceptionally talented young man? Of course, she felt something, but she would never show it.
“Master, you’ve already spent almost ten days with us. That’s enough. You should now focus on your cultivation, strive to break through to the Grandmaster realm, and prepare for the elimination round.”
Huo Xin’er reminded Xu Lian.
Xu Lian smiled and pulled her close to him. “Xin’er, don’t worry. I’m different from other cultivators. My main focus is on my state of mind… As long as I’m happy every day, my cultivation will naturally improve.”
“I see. Now I understand.”
Huo Xin’er suddenly realized why Xu Lian’s cultivation had progressed so quickly. When she first met him, he was at the same level as her, and without much visible effort, he had already reached the next stage.
Xu Lian was quite fond of her. Ever since she had become his sword servant, she had treated him with the utmost loyalty. While his other companions were also obedient, the absolute submission of a sword servant was on a different level, and it was quite satisfying.
With about twenty days left before the elimination round, Xu Lian planned to spend more time with the three women to increase their affection level. Miao Yueyue’s affection was at 85 and could reach 90 at any moment; Jiang Yunyan’s affection was at 91 and had room to grow; Huo Xin’er was the easiest, currently at 80. As long as he advanced to the Grandmaster Realm, her affection would likely reach 90.
With that, he would have three progression points, plus two more waiting to be used, allowing him to reach the peak of the Grandmaster Realm and compete with the top geniuses.
One day.
While the three women were visiting a famous historical site in the capital, they were suddenly surrounded by a group of young nobles. The leader was none other than the martial-arts-dressed youth from the arena, the young master of Duke Ying’s household.
Instinctively, Xu Lian stepped forward and shielded the three women behind him.
Seeing this, the martial-arts youth laughed. “I mean you no harm. I just want to spar with you.”
The young nobles all urged Xu Lian to accept the challenge.
“Ten days ago in the arena, Young Master Ming was so focused on his duel with Young Master Que from Duke Jing’s household that they both ended up severely injured, allowing you to win by default and secure a spot in the elimination round.
Now, some ignorant commoners are spreading rumors that the two young masters were no match for you together. Our circle of young nobles in the capital can’t stand this insult. Now that Young Master Ming has recovered, we hope you’ll face him in a proper duel!”
“This duel won’t affect your place in the elimination round. Young Master Ming has no interest in the elimination round. He just wants to dispel the rumors and make these ignorant commoners realize their mistake.”…
Xu Lian clasped his hands and said, “Rumors stop with the wise. Only the foolish believe them. We are all cultivators. Why should we be bothered by rumors?”
It wasn’t that he wanted to avoid the fight, but he didn’t want to make any enemies.
If this Young Master Ming were to lose even more badly… wouldn’t that ruin his reputation?
So since he had no grudge against this young master of Duke Ying’s household, why should he step on him?