Chapter 216: Challenge!
The third day of the Qing Jiao Compet.i.tion.
The skies were clear and had a light breeze.
Compared to the previous two days, there were even more people in Jia Nan Square today. After all, it was the day of the warrior compet.i.tion’s finals. Thus, everyone was very interested.
The people who rose to the top in the Qing Jiao Compet.i.tion were usually all outstanding talents. Some aristocratic families liked to pick out young men or young women for their children to marry.
Once Chu Liuyue reached the square, she felt a familiar gaze on her. She turned around and saw Chu Ning in the crowd.
He was sitting at Tian Lu Academy’s spectator stands. He was wearing casual clothes, clearly showing that he did not want to attract anyone’s attention.
Upon seeing Chu Liuyue looking over, Chu Ning immediately waved excitedly.
Chu Liuyue smiled and walked over. “Father, why are you here today?”
“I’m here to see you!” Chu Ning looked at his daughter lovingly. He had not seen her for the past few days and missed her dearly. “I have a break today, and I heard that you entered the finals. Thus, I came here to see you.”
He inspected her and asked, “They said that you won against two stage-four warriors. Are you injured?”
After seeing the worry in Chu Ning’s eyes, Chu Liuyue felt warm in her heart. “Father, don’t worry. I’m fine. Am I not standing here completely fine? Since you’re here, just sit back and watch a good show. I won’t disappoint you.”
Chu Ning was elated yet worried. “Just do your best. Yue’er, your health is the most important thing, okay? It’s your first time partic.i.p.ating in the Qing Jiao Compet.i.tion, and it’s already amazing that you made it into the top ten. You must be careful in the arena.”
After what happened at Wan Ling Mountain, Chu Ning’s biggest wish now was for Yue’er to be safe and healthy. Everything else was not important.
Chu Liuyue patted his arm. “I know what to do.”
Chu Ning then nodded. Since I’m here today, I definitely won’t let other people bully Yue’er.
At this point, he unintentionally looked up and saw Rong Jin. His face was slightly cold as he asked, “Yue’er, did the Crown Prince disturb you yesterday?”
Chu Liuyue could not help but laugh.
Everyone talked about how the Crown Prince had changed his mind about her, but only her father talked about how the Crown Prince had disturbed her. He really was her biological father.
“He just has too much time on his hands. I didn’t even care about him.”
“That’s great; that’s great…”
Overnight, many people found out about Rong Jin’s request and behavior toward Chu Liuyue.
Not only did Chu Ning not feel happy after he heard about it, but he even felt disgusted. How did Rong Jin treat my daughter back then? How dare he have the cheek to do this now?
“We shouldn’t care about such things. If the Crown Prince backs away now, then forget it. If he dares to continue to act in this manner, I definitely will not let him off.” Even though Chu Ning spoke softly, he looked very serious.
It was better to stay as far away as possible from a person like Rong Jin.
Chu Liuyue nodded. “I’m a.s.sured with Father around! You can just sit here first then. I’ll come back after the compet.i.tion ends.”
Chu Ning hurriedly said, “Go on! Don’t be late!”
…
Not long after Chu Liuyue sat down, the compet.i.tion officially started.
The rules for the compet.i.tion between the last ten people were simple.
There was a ranking between the ten people. People who had partic.i.p.ated in the Qing Jiao Compet.i.tion before would be ranked in front, and they would be lined up according to their best results in the last compet.i.tion.
People who partic.i.p.ated in the Qing Jiao Compet.i.tion for the first time would stand at the back. They were ranked according to their cultivation levels.
The top three students from last year had all graduated, so they did not partic.i.p.ate in this year’s Qing Jiao Compet.i.tion. Hence, the person who ranked first was Tai Yan Academy’s Situ Ziyue—who had come in fourth place last year.
The person who ranked second was Rong Jin—who had come in fifth place last year.
The people ranked after the two had also gotten quite a good ranking in the previous Qing Jiao Compet.i.tion.
Only two freshmen had entered the finals this year.
One of them was Chu Liuyue. The other was Nan Feng Academy’s Ye Chenjia.
Ye Chenjia was a stage-three warrior, so Chu Liuyue was ranked tenth since she was a stage-one warrior.
The ten people walked up to the arena and took a wooden plaque with their rank written on it from Elder Sun’s hands.
Chu Liuyue looked at her own wooden plaque with the word ‘ten’ written.
Sun Zhongyan’s gaze swept past the few people. “All of you now have your own rankings. In the finals later, you will be split into two groups. The top five will be in one group, and the bottom five will be in another. In the first round, the bottom five can choose to challenge anyone from the top five. If your challenge is successful, you will exchange your rankings. If your challenge is unsuccessful, you will continue to hold onto your current ranking.”
“When the second round starts, everyone can challenge anyone with a higher ranking than them. The compet.i.tion will carry on until n.o.body wishes to challenge any longer and when everyone accepts their own ranking. The top warrior will then emerge in this manner.”
Chu Liuyue squinted her eyes.
The rules were indeed simple, but it was a little cruel. If one wanted to be the top warrior, not only did they need to win, but they also had to keep winning.
Whether it was in terms of physical or mental health, the compet.i.tion for first place would be a long and torturous process.
“Liuyue, you’re in tenth place, so you get to choose first.” Sun Zhongyan looked at Chu Liuyue with a much gentler gaze.
Everyone looked over and began guessing who Chu Liuyue would pick to challenge first.
“Rong Jin and Chu Liuyue are both from Tian Lu Academy, so logically speaking, she won’t pick him from the top five. As for the remaining four people… It’s hard to say.”
“The person with the lowest cultivation amongst the top five is an intermediate stage-four warrior. I’m afraid Chu Liuyue isn’t their match…”
“That’s true. Even the warrior ranked fifth—Ye Chenjia—has capabilities that cannot be underestimated. Chu Liuyue has a very low chance of winning…”
“There’s no need to mention the front few people. Xi Wanwan—who ranks fourth—is also a Xuan Master!”
“These people all wish to come in first place this year, so Chu Liuyue doesn’t have a chance against them… But even if she loses, she’s still tenth place. Obtaining this kind of result in her first-ever Qing Jiao Compet.i.tion is enough to shock everyone.”
“I agree! She’s only 14 this year, and she has a bright future ahead of her! If she waits for another year or two, she’ll definitely take first place in the Qing Jiao Compet.i.tion!”
…
Everyone partook in heated discussions.
Chu Liuyue’s gaze swept past the few people in front of her. Finally, her eyes landed on one of them.
Her lips curved up to form a smile. “Tian Lu Academy’s Chu Liuyue challenges Tai Yan Academy’s… Situ Ziyue!”
Complete silence then ensued.
Chu Liuyue actually chose Situ Ziyue—who ranks first—directly? Is she crazy?