Her usual gentle and virtuous demeanor had vanished, replaced entirely by deep worry.
Luo Chen had a good idea of how she felt.
Min Longyu's performance just now had been exceedingly bizarre. He had appeared to deploy an array using formation flags, but they had not been activated by linking together.
Instead, it was a self-destructive, retaliatory formation.
Ignorant of the secret, his opponent had instinctively destroyed the flags, which only accelerated the formation of that Golden Blade Array.
Against such a trap, let alone Han Dang—any of the Mountain Breaker Gang's nine cultivators would have suffered disastrously.
Now, the opening victory the Mountain Breaker Gang so desperately needed was gone.
Instead, the Great River Gang held the upper hand.
*Hopefully the next battles go a bit smoother!* Luo Chen sighed inwardly. Having thrown his lot in with the Mountain Breaker Gang, he instinctively wanted them to win.
The course of the following three bouts did not defy expectations.
Simply put, the three men dispatched by the Great River Gang were all internal members whose backgrounds and capabilities were well known to the cultivators of Dahe Market.
The scenes were far less brutal. Perhaps having seen Han Dang's gruesome end, the hall masters sent by the Mountain Breaker Gang fought with much more caution.
The second fighter was Luo Wudi, dubbed the "Descending Tiger." Sharing the surname Luo, he was a kinsman of sorts to Luo Chen.
His performance matched his name perfectly; like a ferocious tiger charging down the mountain, he launched a relentless onslaught against his opponent.
In under three minutes, he secured victory.
The third bout was won by Coiled-Dragon Tiger, whose winning edge was a top-grade magical tool.
Murong Qinglian explained that it was a tool Mi Shuhua regularly used, specially loaned out for this occasion.
Fortunately he won; had he lost, that top-grade magical tool would have become the enemy's prize.
When the fourth bout arrived, Luo Chen's interest was truly piqued!
The man stepping onto the stage was his old customer, Fellow Daoist Zeng Wen!
Facing him was the sole female cultivator among the eighteen participants: the Great River Gang's Rakshasi.
"Sister-in-law, what do you think of this match?"
With two consecutive victories for the Mountain Breaker Gang, the gloom from before had lifted considerably.
Murong Qinglian brushed back a stray hair and smiled. "As long as they field their own gang members, we can take almost any of them down."
She spoke the truth.
The cultivators of the Mountain Breaker Gang spent their years fighting demon beasts in the mountains. Their combat experience was among the richest for their realm.
The Great River Gang, on the other hand, plied the waterways year-round. Although they clashed with demon beasts and marauders, most of their battles were fought on water.
Certain signature techniques proved lackluster when confined to the stone arena of the Dao Discussion Platform.
"Fellow Daoist Zeng Wen's combat prowess is far from ordinary. In his early years, an enemy injured his dantian, severing his path of cultivation.
"People assume he gave up on himself and drowned his days in carnal pleasures.
"Yet little do they know that he has honed every method of Qi Refinement combat to perfection.
"Sending a woman against him now is likely underestimating him."
Murong Qinglian spoke with confident ease, placing great faith in Zeng Wen.
*Who would have thought that old brothel-crawler could inspire such confidence?*
Luo Chen marveled inwardly. It seemed his prejudices against the man had indeed run too deep.
Next time he sold him Myriad Wonders Pills, he would make sure to give Fellow Daoist Zeng a discount.
On the platform, facing Rakshasi, Zeng Wen was all smiles.
"Your Great River Gang is quite generous, sending such a beauty to take my life.
"What a pity that a man like me, who has always cherished flowers, will have to show no mercy and pluck one today."
Rakshasi was nothing like her grim namesake; she was stunningly gorgeous.
Her ample chest in particular was eye-catching enough to dazzle anyone.
Faced with Zeng Wen's teasing, her expression turned frosty.
"Today, I'll let you die beneath the peonies and depart as a ghost!"
With that, a crescent-moon throwing blade shot forward, accompanied by several talismans triggered at once.
Across from her, Zeng Wen remained completely unruffled. He activated a defensive magical tool, triggered the protective enchantments of his superior-grade robe, and slapped a Golden Light Barrier talisman into the air.
Three layers of defense, rock solid.
Even Luo Chen gasped at the sight!
His Soul Breaking Nail likely couldn't pierce such airtight protection.
The crescent blade was exceedingly sharp, yet after several strikes, it failed to harm Zeng Wen in the least.
As for the fireballs and wind blades unleashed by the talismans, guided by the blade, they managed to breach only two layers of defense.
By the time they reached his robe, they were like a gentle breeze against his face.
Zeng Wen beamed broadly, his hands moving without pause—it was his turn to strike!
Nine talismans flew out in orderly succession.
The rules capped talisman usage at ten, and he had now reached his limit.
While Rakshasi scrambled to deflect them, he formed an incantation gesture, instantly conjuring a Quagmire Technique.
The ground abruptly turned into a soft, squelching swamp, from which countless hands reached out, seeking to drag their foe into the depths.
Rakshasi was forced to leap into the air.
Yet a looming shadow hung over her!
Without anyone noticing, Zeng Wen's superior-grade offensive magical tool was already in position.
A massive yellow brick smashed down directly atop her head.
*Bang!*
Protective barrier and cultivator alike were slammed straight into the quagmire.
Countless hands seized her, and within a few breaths, they tore Rakshasi into bloody mush.
"What a pity to clash in a place like this. Anywhere else, I would have gladly sparred three hundred rounds with you in bed.
"This time, it was honestly a bit too quick."
Zeng Wen looked slightly pale, his smile strained.
Unleashing so many techniques in one breath had pushed his magical power to the brink.
Still, at least he won.
Turning back toward the Mountain Breaker Gang's stands, he yelled, "Old Man Mi! The Sick Tiger didn't fail you today! You promised me a monthly pass at Tianxiang Pavilion, so no backing out!"
With that, he staggered off the Dao Discussion Platform.
In the stands, Mi Shuhua was grinning ear to ear. Three consecutive victories meant things were well in hand.
The rest of the audience hollered and cheered in excitement.
Although this battle had been one-sided, Zeng Wen's execution had been measured, rigorous, and thorough.
Talismans, defensive tools, offensive tools, spellcraft, and even psychological provocation before the bout—it had been a textbook demonstration of almost every tool a Qi Refinement cultivator could bring to bear.
Many cultivators fell into deep thought after watching it, realizing they could adopt this tactical approach to tightly coordinate their full combat strength.
Luo Chen was thrilled as well. Reviewing Zeng Wen's maneuvers step by step, he felt that almost anyone in Rakshasi's shoes would have suffered the same fate.
First, defend to ensure invulnerability.
Then bombard with talismans, forcing the opponent onto the back foot.
Next, use the Quagmire Technique to cut off retreat while herding the foe toward the offensive tool waiting in ambush.
Finally, a crushing blow with the yellow brick seals the victory.
Steady, precise, and ruthless.
Of course, this approach had its flaws; if the enemy possessed overwhelming firepower early on, they could suppress him right from the start.
Or if they wielded bizarre tools capable of reversing the tide—like Min Longyu's formation flags from the first match—they could turn defeat into victory.
All in all, though, there was much to learn from this tactical mindset.
The interval for laymen to gawk and adepts to study the subtleties did not last long.
The crucial fifth bout was about to begin.
For this match, the Mountain Breaker Gang was brimful of confidence.
The name Broken Saber Xu Renke carried immense renown across several market towns.
Such wandering rogue cultivators possessed varied methods, formidable prowess, and no lack of courage to stake their lives.
His opponent, River-Muddying Dragon Gao Tingyuan, paled in comparison, having earned only a modest reputation along the Lancang River.
In contrast to the Mountain Breaker Gang's confidence, the mood over at the Great River Gang was stifling.
They had indeed won the opening bout.
Yet what followed was anything but auspicious; three consecutive losses had left them thoroughly numb!
"Fellow Daoist Wang, it seems your gang's elites aren't quite up to snuff!"
The voice transmission entered his ears, darkening Wang Haichao's expression.
For this tournament, the Great River Gang fielded five men, while the Lianyun Merchant Alliance provided four in support.
In his previous roster arrangement, aside from sending Lianyun Merchant Alliance's Min Longyu in the first bout, the next five were all Great River Gang members, leaving the remaining Lianyun cultivators for the final bouts.
This arrangement was intentionally made to give his own people a chance to shine.
Winning an extra match or two would give him more leverage and confidence in future cooperation with the alliance.
Yet here they were, three losses in a row.
The first two were acceptable, as he had not harbored high hopes to begin with.
But Rakshasi's swift and utter defeat had truly caught him off guard.
What happened to Sick Tiger Zeng Wen having his cultivation path severed, losing all ambition, drowning himself in women, and having barely a fraction of his strength left?
The crescent blade Rakshasi wielded was a superior-grade exotic magical tool he had bestowed upon her.
He had scavenged it years ago from Wanbao Pavilion, costing him over three thousand spirit stones.
It had accomplished nothing, and now it belonged to someone else.
Furious as he was, he felt no real panic.
"Elder Zhou, didn't we calculate before that we could take seven out of nine bouts? Rakshasi's match was merely one extra loss; we won't drop a single one from here on!"
Faced with his confidence, Elder Zhou, seated somewhere in the stands, chuckled softly.
"Are you truly so certain?
"From what I know, Xu Renke's broken saber is a fragment of a magic treasure. Even if he can only draw out a hundredth of its might, it isn't something your subordinate can withstand!"
Wang Haichao's lips curled into a faint smile. "No matter how formidable a magic treasure fragment is, can it match the power of spirit stones?"
"Oh? It seems you've come prepared! Then I shall wait and see!"
Chapter 61