Chapter 121: Con artists.

Chapter 121: Con artists.Because of his inner struggle, Xiao Lian’s shout turned out to be so loud it was heard by everyone. While most people began to laugh at him, there were few who immediately wanted to make the use of the situation and bully him into making the bet.

"Brother Xiao, I accept your bet!" There were three who shouted at the same time, and began to pester him.

"Brother Xiao, you can’t go back on your word! I’ll match your bet!" One rushed to him, climbing over a couple of rows of annoyed spectators.

"No! I agreed first! Don’t meddle in!" Another one argued.

I the end there were six people who claimed they had the right to bet with Xiao Lian, and his own opinion apparently didn’t matter. The whole place instantly turned into a chaotic marketplace.

Someone claiming the scrawny kid was capable of defeating him pissed off Xie Wuking. He noted he had to teach Xiao Lian a lesson next, but decided it would be only proper to take the free points first.

Xie Wuking walked over to Xiao Lian, and said, "If you want to bet with anyone, I have the right to take this bet first! How many contribution points do you have?"

"Five thousand ..." Xiao Lian said, and was immediately drowned in regret.

He began to have a bad premonition and his stomach churned as he noticed the sudden excitement in the eyes of the people around him. As expected, there were too many who wanted to take the bet – even if one didn’t witness Lee’s fights during the past months, the difference between the two parties was too obvious.



Xiao Lian threw a complicated glance at Lee, who for some reason didn’t seem to be worried at all. He even had a faint smile on, and after noticing Lee’s faint nod, Xiao Lian realized this was what he was going for from the start. And than meant, he had to play his role.

He said, "Sorry Xie Wuking, if I bet, I have to bet with all! But there are so many of you! Are you all really willing to bet five thousand points against mine?"

The confident sure, of course and why not were the answers, and Xiao Lian took a deep breath, and walked over to the only junior elder present in the arena.

During the past months, Yuan Xianwei had seen Lee beaten up countless times, and had already written the kid off as a useless garbage. Not because of the losses, but because of the sheer stubbornness that would inevitably lead to him becoming a cripple sooner or later.

Currently, the junior elder was already fed up with the commotion on the arena grounds. When Xiao Lian came over and asked him to be the witness to multiple larger bets, he gladly agreed so that the event would be finally over.

It was surprising that there were twelve people, including Xie Wuking, who were ready to put five thousand points each against Xiao Lian’s five thousand, but there was no rule against it. They became slightly hesitant when Junior Elder Yuan Xianwei explained that the group, in the case they won, couldn’t get five thousand each, but the sum would be divided among them. They, on the other hand, had to pay full five thousand in case they lost.

While some were hesitating, two other people decided to join, hearing what the stakes were. Of course, the sight of Lee openly picking his nose, and staring at the finger afterwards, admiring the result, clearly helped them to pick the side.

In the end, no one backed out, and all fourteen made up their minds to bet against Xiao Lian. The odds of him winning were non-existent, but there was no turning back. With a throbbing heart, he observed Xie Wuking get back in the arena and throw a punch the moment junior elder allowed the fight to start.

No one really expected Lee to go down immediately. But no one expected him to counterattack so viciously either.

After dogging the first jab, he dived in and punched Xie Wuking’s right knee, before rolling away. While it did seem a lousy and useless attack, the big guy’s ugly expression clearly showed he was in much pain. But Lee didn’t stop.

After avoiding one more jab and left hook, he let the next uppercut graze his cheek, and countered with hitting Xie Wuking’s right side twice. The latter got Lee with his knee right after, but Lee rolled away and immediately got back on his feet.

The spar was entertaining, but the dynamics were completely different from the usual. Even some color returned to Xiao Lian’s face when he realized Lee actually had a chance, and judging by Xie Wuking’s tightly pressed lips, maybe even the upper hand.

At first, Junior Elder Yuan Xianwei slightly regretted allowing the others to take advantage of Xiao Lian. But now, watching the two spar, he was forced to realize that something was off. This wasn’t his first day presiding over arena matches, and Lee’s performance clearly didn’t fit the odds of the bet.

On the other hand, it could be the guy simply had a luckier day, right? To think that someone would get beaten up for months only to win one match with such effort was impossible ... or was it?

No. A quick look at Xiao Lian told the result was not in the bag. The guy clearly was stressed out of his mind. And Lee wasn’t having an easy time either. His left cheek was all swollen, and he barely could lift his left hand. Every block he made on that side took a painful effort.

Suddenly Lee changed his tactics and did what he had never done before. He kicked Xie Wuking in the chest, fell back and repeated the action two more times. All three attacks were blocked, but they were so quick and unexpected, the defender barely managed to react.

But then the real nightmare began.

While avoiding Xie Wuking’s attempts to hit or catch him, Lee began to keep him at safe distance and only jumped in to make a faint that ended in only kicking the opponent’s right knee. It was dirty, but not against the rules, and after four such kicks, Xie Wuking had to switch stances to avoid his left leg eventually getting broken.

Ignoring the displeasure in the spectator seats, Lee didn’t even flinch when he repeated the earlier attacks, giving Xie Wuking’s left knee the same treatment. He didn’t care that such tactics didn’t work in fights between elemental masters. He didn’t even care what the others thought about his ethics. He was about to get rich.



The longer the fight went, the uglier Xie Wuking’s expression became. He hadn’t been hit in the face once, but for some reason he couldn’t land a punch on the damn weasel either. The hateful newbie danced around him and kept biting like a mosquito, except more painful. And the main problem was, he kept hitting the same spots over and over, and Xie Wuking felt how he himself was slowing down. And the slower he became, the more energized his opponent grew.

Actually Lee couldn’t be blamed for this. He was becoming desperate with how tenacious Xie Wuking was. The guy really could take a hit. Of course, the problem was that Lee never landed one on a weaker spot, but he couldn’t risk it.

For the past twenty days he was preparing for this event and went through all possible scenarios. Xie Wuking was a head taller than him and his reach was much wider. When Lee let his opponent catch him the first time, there was no getting out from the tight grip no matter how he struggled.

Back then he ended up receiving several punches in the face, even though he had already passed out. No one in their right mind would want to experience it again.

This fight, however, was coming to an end. Xie Wuking stood there, slightly swaying, received occasional kicks to the lower body, and throwing punches now and then. Lee jumped around him like a grasshopper, his face bloodied and left hand hanging loosely at his side. He couldn’t clearly see with his left eye because of the blood coming from the deep cut on his eyebrow, and his nose was broken. Strangely enough, his expression was relaxed.

He had been waiting for a true opportunity for a long time. Xie Wuking caught him on a couple occasions, feinting an opening, and then punishing Lee for being smaller. But the last one wasn’t a feint.

Lee held back, though. He knew there will be another, and then one more. Even when he was hundred percent certain, he didn’t risk to dive in with fist, but kicked Xie Wuking in the chest. This was when the guy stumbled and fell.

But Lee was faster. While Xie Wuking’s hands grasped the air, instinctively trying to grab something to hold on to, Lee was at his side, landing a hearty right uppercut.

To the spectators, it looked unnatural how Xie Wuking was already falling to the ground, but then suddenly flew several yards and landed outside the arena. The disturbing part, though, was the crisp cracking sound that silenced the audience when Lee’s fist connected.

Even he didn’t know whether it was his fist or Xie Wuking’s jaw that was broken, but it didn’t matter. He won.