Chapter 429 – Ascending the Arena

Zhang Xiaohua rubbed his nose with a smile and said: “Does Spring Rebirth Valley’s martial arts tournament for a bride not require prior registration or any entry fee?”

It seemed he was thinking of Yuan Guoliang and Zhou Tai.

Valley Master Nie chuckled and replied: “Naturally, none of that is necessary. However, if someone comes bearing gifts, we wouldn’t refuse them out of politeness either. Otherwise, wouldn’t that make us seem lacking in confidence?”

Zhang Xiaohua nodded, feeling a sense of mutual understanding.

From behind, Nie Qianyu urged anxiously: “Father, time is running short!”

Valley Master Nie offered an apologetic smile. “Young Hero Ren, you see, if we arrive late, sneaking you in through the back door or slipping your name in wouldn’t be impossible. But if you were later kicked out for withdrawing the engagement, wouldn’t that make things rather awkward? We’re all smart people. When we act, it should be seamless and watertight. Why don’t we use Qinggong to head over right now?”

Zhang Xiaohua cupped his hands and said: “Valley Master Nie is indeed meticulous. That is exactly what I was thinking. Please, after you.”

“Good! This old man shall lead the way. Young Hero Ren, follow me.”

With that, Valley Master Nie made no further courtesy—he tapped his foot lightly, and his figure floated toward the doorway. With a shake of both arms, he shot off like a white crane straight toward the manor’s main gate.

Zhang Xiaohua was in no rush either. He picked up his long sword from the ground, and without any discernible exertion, his figure appeared at the doorway, then drifted off the ground as he followed closely behind.

From the back, Nie Qianyu also called out hastily: “Little Orange, prepare the horses quickly. Let’s hurry and have a look.”

Valley Master Nie, while using Qinggong to rush toward the main gate, kept some of his attention behind him. He was curious to see just how much weight this seemingly unremarkable young man truly carried.

As expected, ever since he had stepped out of the main hall, Zhang Xiaohua had been following unhurriedly behind him. At first, Valley Master Nie had only used fifty percent of his internal strength. After all, he was a martial artist whose internal cultivation had nearly reached perfection—far beyond what an ordinary young man in his twenties could compare to.

But after running for a while and seeing that he still couldn’t shake him off, Valley Master Nie added another thirty percent of his strength, letting his speed burst forth as he surged forward rapidly.

Yet after a short moment, when Valley Master Nie glanced back, he saw that the young man was still following behind him unhurriedly, no more than ten feet away. Valley Master Nie couldn’t help but feel a secret delight in his heart: “Never mind his calm and composed temperament—even just this level of Qinggong alone is already enough to stand above the crowd.”

Valley Master Nie knew very well that the martial arts passed down in Spring Rebirth Valley were ordinary for the most part, but their Qinggong was highly unconventional, completely unlike the common styles, with secrets all its own. That Zhang Xiaohua could keep up with him even as he used eighty percent of his internal strength—he was already an expert in Qinggong by Jianghu standards.

Seeing the main gate drawing near, a thought stirred in Valley Master Nie’s mind. In an instant, he pushed his internal energy to full force, wanting to see if Zhang Xiaohua could still keep up.

But when he turned his head slightly to glance behind—he couldn’t help but mutter to himself, “Not good, don’t tell me that kid’s been left behind?”

Behind him, there wasn’t the slightest shadow to be seen!

That’s impossible, he thought. They were going in a straight line—even if the kid couldn’t keep up, he should still be within sight. Could it be…?

Valley Master Nie suddenly looked forward—and sure enough, the unbelievable had happened. That tall, slender figure had already appeared ahead of him! With just a flicker, he had passed right out the manor gate!

“What!?” Valley Master Nie nearly tumbled from mid-air. “What kind of Qinggong is this kid using? How could he be this fast? And more importantly—how did he end up ahead of me?”

“The strangest thing is, just a moment ago, he was still following behind calmly without urgency—why did he suddenly erupt like a divine manifestation and race ahead? Could it be my constant testing finally angered him?”

“Sigh… young people will be young, after all. Hmph, having a bit of fire isn’t bad either. If you’re young, you should have fire in your belly. A youth like this—if Little Yu’s mother were to see him, she’d surely be fond of him too…”

One had to admit—when a prospective father-in-law looked at his future son-in-law, the more he looked, the more pleasing he became to the eye!!

In front of Spring Rebirth Valley, on the grand martial platform, a proud-faced young man stood with a long sword in hand, tall and straight at one side of the arena. His spotless martial robes made him appear all the more refined and aloof.

Standing beside the platform was an elderly man with graying hair and beard—the very same figure Zhang Xiaohua had sensed with his divine sense earlier, the one he’d mistaken for Valley Master Nie. The old man cupped his hands and addressed the crowd below the stage: “Young talents of the martial world, today marks the final day to qualify for Spring Rebirth Valley’s martial contest for marriage. In just half a shichen, the last bout of the arena trials will begin. As of now, Long Linye of Dragon Soaring Sword Manor has secured consecutive victories. If no one steps forward to challenge him, Young Master Long shall be the final candidate to win the right to the marriage match. I will count to ten—if no one takes the stage, Young Master Long will be declared the victor.”

Just at that moment, a figure leapt out from within Spring Rebirth Valley, swiftly making his way to one side of the platform. But at that point, all attention was focused on the stage—who would notice someone slipping in quietly?

The old man circulated his internal force and began loudly counting, “Ten… nine…”

Those in the crowd had already witnessed Young Master Long’s prowess today. They knew this final call was merely a formality—no one would actually dare challenge him now. They jeered along merrily, chanting, “Eight… seven…”

On the stage, Long Linye maintained his polite smile, clasping his hands and returning bows toward the cheering crowd.

As the count reached, “Four… three…”

A sudden voice rang out from the side of the platform: “No need to count—let this young master sample a few of Young Master Long’s famed techniques.”

The counting stopped abruptly. The crowd turned in unison, looking toward the speaker. Not far from the arena stood a tall, lanky young man with plain, unremarkable features. He held what looked like a raw sword blank in one hand and strode toward the platform—wasn’t it Zhang Xiaohua?

Zhang Xiaohua stepped quickly to the edge of the stage, gave it a quick once-over, then thrust his sword into the ground before leaping lightly onto the platform. Cupping his hands toward the old man, he said: “This one is Ren Xiaoyao. Might I be permitted to challenge Young Master Long?”

Before the elder could answer, a burst of laughter exploded from below the stage. Someone shouted: “You there, little guy—how old are you? Already dreaming of a wife?”

“Hahaha! Right? He’s still wet behind the ears and dares come join this farce?”

“Look at that getup—clearly just here to scam a wedding feast!”

“Where did this brat even come from? Trying to grab some free glory from the platform? He thinks Spring Rebirth Valley’s son-in-law is something he can lay claim to?”

The crowd was a cacophony of voices, mocking and jeering. But off to the east side of the crowd, a man with an injured arm glanced toward a pale-faced youth beside him. They opened their mouths to speak—but no sound came out. Looking into each other’s eyes, both saw the same stunned shock. Then, in a low voice, one of them muttered, “It’s actually him?”

As for Zhang Xiaohua, he remained completely indifferent to the noise from the crowd. Smiling, he turned to the elder and asked again: “Esteemed elder, do you think I’m eligible to participate in the match?”

“This…” the old man hesitated, seemingly in thought.

Indeed, this young man looked rather unfamiliar—clearly not someone from the southern martial world. His face still bore the softness of youth, and he appeared even younger than Miss Nie herself. Yet thinking of Nie Qianyu’s delicate figure that seemed not yet fully developed, he actually seemed like quite a good match for her. Besides, the martial contest for marriage held by Spring Rebirth Valley had never set a lower age limit—only that the candidate be a hero under twenty years of age. By that standard, this youth certainly qualified.

But still, in over two months of trials, had anyone so young ever stepped onto the stage? There was no precedent for this.

The old man hesitated slightly and was just about to turn back to consult the judges when a sudden gleam lit his eyes. He spotted a figure quickly flitting over from the direction of the Spring Rebirth Valley’s main gate—wasn’t that Valley Master Nie himself?

To tell the truth, Valley Master Nie was rather embarrassed. He hadn’t even reached the manor gate yet when he heard the crowd outside counting aloud. Judging by the timing, it was already at “five”. With his level of qinggong, he knew he would likely be too late to stop the countdown. Just at that critical moment, however, the counting abruptly ceased. Though he couldn’t hear what Zhang Xiaohua had said from outside, he was certain the boy had made it there first and done something to halt the count.

Thinking back to how he’d just tested Zhang Xiaohua’s qinggong with a senior master’s airs, Valley Master Nie felt a flurry of complicated emotions—shame? Jealousy? Relief? Admiration? All jumbled together. One thing he forgot to ask himself, though, was—how exactly had this young man known the competition was about to end?

By the time he reached the gate, Zhang Xiaohua had already stepped onto the platform and was in the process of having his qualifications verified. The old man, spotting the Valley Master, raised his voice and said: “Young hero, please wait a moment. The host of this contest has just arrived. Let us hear his judgment.”

Then he called out cheerfully: “Valley Master Nie! You’ve been missing all day—I thought perhaps you’d managed to sit still for once! But it seems you couldn’t resist coming to see who would emerge victorious in the end, could you?”

With a few light steps, Valley Master Nie reached the arena stage. Smiling, he cupped his hands toward the crowd and said: “Thank you, all you heroes, for gracing us with your presence. There have been many affairs within the valley, and seeing how the contest is nearly concluded—and that I’ll soon be marrying off my daughter—naturally, I’ve had to devote myself to preparing her dowry. I’ve neglected you all, and I ask for your pardon.”

The crowd burst into laughter. “Valley Master Nie, you’re too polite—this is a joyous matter! Of course you’d be busy!” “Exactly! Don’t worry about it! Just don’t forget to invite us to the wedding feast when the time comes!”

“Absolutely, absolutely. When the time comes, I’ll be inviting heroes and friends from every sect and corner of the martial world to join us in celebrating this great occasion here at Spring Rebirth Valley.”

He then turned to the two youths standing on the stage, frowning slightly. “Brother Yue, the hour is getting late—what’s going on here with these two young heroes on stage?”

The old man laughed. “Weren’t we just waiting for you, Brother Nie, to make the final call?”

“Judgment?” Valley Master Nie said in surprise. “The outcome of the bout can be decided by you all—what need is there for me? I’ve already handed over full authority to you, Brother.”

Seeing how convincingly Valley Master Nie played the part, Zhang Xiaohua couldn’t help but feel a bit gleeful inside.

The elder gestured toward Young Master Long and said, “This is Young Master Long of Dragon Soaring Sword Manor. He’s already secured several consecutive victories. If no one steps up to challenge him, he’ll be today’s final victor. But just before you arrived, this Young Hero Ren leapt onto the stage, declaring his intent to challenge Young Master Long.”

Valley Master Nie frowned. “Well then, since he’s stepped up—let the match begin, no?”

“But, this Young Hero Ren came alone, without any companions, and from the looks of him, he’s rather young. This seems a bit…”