Silence reigned around the arena and in the stands, not a single sound to be heard.
Though Fan Zhong's final desperate attack failed to injure Fan Qi, his fearless bravery won him the respect of all present.
Up in the stands, the Sixth Princess trembled, large tears rolling down from her eyes.
Yet she didn't show the fragility of before, quickly wiping away her tears and fixing her gaze firmly on the arena below.
***
Below the arena.
"Even without the boost of the Explosive Core Technique, that last kick from Fan Zhong had the air of a martial arts grandmaster."
Xu Taiping looked towards Fan Zhong's body from afar, his tone filled with respect.
"That's right, Fan Zhong is not the waste he claimed to be. On the contrary, he's one of the rare talents of the Fan family in recent years. Otherwise, he wouldn't have mastered the Explosive Core Technique. It's just a pity that in front of the monstrous Fan Qi, his talent is insignificant."
Huang Que nodded in agreement.
"The next challenger in this life-and-death arena, Qi Yan."
At this moment, Fan Ye announced the name of the next challenger.
Almost as soon as the words were spoken, a white-clothed young man with a long spear on his back leaped up from below the arena and landed gracefully upon it.
"Your surname is Qi, and you wield a spear. Could you be the grandson of that old man Qi Kai from Wu Country?"
Fan Qi stood with his hands behind his back, giving the white-clothed youth a detached glance.
"I'm surprised Elder Fan still remembers my grandfather."
The youth smiled and then unslung the long spear from his back.
"It seems I have no grudges with the Qi family of Wu Country. Are you challenging me just to make a name for yourself?"
Fan Qi gave the youth a cold smile.
Of all the challengers, he liked least those who sought fame without knowing life from death.
"I knows I'm no match for you, but a few years ago, I was nearly killed in prison due to a betrayal in Baishu Country. Fortunately, the Sixth Princess came to my aid, and I survived. Hearing of Her Highness's plight, I couldn't stay away."
As the youth spoke, he raised his long spear, and the easygoing aura about him was suddenly replaced by a sharp and fierce presence.
"Your grandfather was no match for me; are you stronger than him?"
"I am not as strong as my grandfather."
"Then you're seeking death."
"Qi Yan is willing to die for the Sixth Princess."
With those words, Qi Yan's spear trembled, and like a Flood Dragon, it thrust violently towards Fan Qi.
Like Fan Zhong before him, Qi Yan put all his strength into every strike, each one without regard for his own life.
But Fan Qi was like an invincible ancient beast; no matter how hard Qi Yan tried, even with the most exquisite spear thrust of his life, he couldn't overcome Fan Qi's casual punch.
"Bang!"
A dull thud sounded.
Qi Yan, once in white, was now blood-red as he was punched off the arena by Fan Qi.
"Bang!"
When he landed, the crowd saw his long spear broken in two, embedded in his chest.
"Brother Taiping, have you seen clearly? This is Fan Qi, this is the power of a martial arts grandmaster at his peak. Do you still have confidence you can defeat him?"
Huang Que turned to look at Xu Taiping.
Xu Taiping fell silent.
But his silence was not due to recognizing Fan Qi's strength; rather, he had realized the reason why Qi Yan and others were so willing to risk their lives to challenge Fan Qi—"to die for the Sixth Princess, to die for Baishu Country."
"The next challenger in this life-and-death arena, Wang Zhenghao."
At that moment, Fan Ye called out the name of the third person to enter the arena.
"Here I come, here I come!"
A nonchalant-looking youth, carrying a large saber, swaggered past Xu Taiping.
Watching the man approach the arena, Xu Taiping hesitated before finally calling out:
"Brother, please wait."
"What for?"
The youth turned, looking at Xu Taiping with impatience.
"May I go first?"
Xu Taiping asked the youth calmly.
"Scram!"
The youth glared at Xu Taiping and cursed fiercely.
Then, without hesitation, he turned his back to Xu Taiping, waved dismissively, and said:
"I know who you are, I know you're formidable, but don't you look down on me!"
With that, he strode towards the arena without looking back.
"It's useless. The spirit of chivalry is strong in Baishu Country; these people take pride in dying for their benefactors and consider ingratitude and cowardice shameful. Unless you kill them, there's no way to pull them down from the arena."
Huang Que laughed and looked up at the arena.
The carefree youth stepped onto the arena, placed his saber in front of him, and cheerfully said to Fan Qi, "Fan Qi, you old bastard, Wang Zhenghao, leader of the Big Saber Gang, is here to seek death."
His voice echoed through the Angry Fist Manor.
Before long.
Wang Zhenghao, not particularly tall, was sent flying out of the arena by Fan Qi with a "bang."
As the servants of the Angry Fist Manor carried his body past Xu Taiping, he noticed that although there was a huge hole in his chest, his face bore no trace of fear or horror; he still had that nonchalant expression.
"One must not underestimate these Mortal Bones. While we strive for immortality in vain, they willingly die for righteousness. No wonder the Nine Mansions are reluctant to loosen their grip on the mortal world."
Seeing Wang Zhenghao face death so calmly, Huang Que couldn't help but comment.
Xu Taiping certainly wouldn't underestimate Mortal Bones.
Because he himself was one.
After shifting his gaze from Wang Zhenghao, he silently returned to his place, gave up on persuading these people, and began to seriously observe each of their matches against Fan Qi.
***
"He Yuan comes to die."
"Di Yi comes to seek death."
"Ran Yong comes to seek death!"
In the following proud declarations of facing death, the number of people standing below the arena dwindled, and more and more bodies were carried away.
Xu Taiping's expression gradually shifted from confusion to solemn respect.
When the last of the chivalrous fighters was carried past him, Xu Taiping didn't wait for Fan Ye to speak. He stood up and walked straight towards the arena.
Muttering softly to himself, he said:
"You all's good intentions, I shall not fail."
Proofreader & Editor: Lotas