16: Chapter 16: Zhao Mingyue's Challenge

As soon as Zhao Mingyue's shout fell, the atmosphere in the martial arts arena, which had just heated up, immediately became tense again.

Many people on the Zhao Family side started jeering on the spot.

"Brother Mingyue has entered the arena himself!!"

"Wasn't Li Qingfeng quite capable of fighting just now? Let's see if he dares to accept this time!!"

"Qi Refining Stage 7 against Qi Refining Stage 7, don't say our Zhao Family is bullying anyone!"

On the Li Family side, Li Chengyue's expression darkened, his hand already pressing on the hilt of his blade, and he cursed in a low voice, "This bastard picked his timing perfectly; you just finished fighting Wang Qingluan, and he jumps out..."

Li Ruolan also frowned and said, "Zhao Mingyue is at the Peak of Qi Refining Stage 7, and his fire-attribute techniques are very fierce; a head-on fight will put you at a disadvantage."

Li Qingfeng did not rush to reply.

He looked at Zhao Mingyue on the arena, his mind racing.

Zhao Mingyue was dressed in black and red dharma robes, tall and thin, with a fierce look in his eyes. Fire-attribute spiritual power swirled around his body, and even his cuffs were emitting a pale red spiritual light. This guy was on a completely different level from Zhao Han.

Peak of Qi Refining Stage 7, Fire Spiritual Root; he ranks among the top of the younger generation in the Zhao Family.

What's more troublesome is that fire suppresses wood.

Li Qingfeng's most handy means right now are his Azure Wood Spiritual Power, Vitality Perception, Azure Wood Rejuvenation Art, and the dharma sword and light dharma armor he had just obtained not long ago.

To rush up blindly would be like taking fireballs with his face; it would purely be asking for trouble.

The Grand Elder sat in the Li Family's seating area, his gaze falling on Li Qingfeng, and he asked via voice transmission, "Qingfeng, this battle concerns the Family's share; what do you think yourself?"

Hearing the voice transmission, Li Qingfeng actually felt steadier.

The Grand Elder did not agree on his behalf directly, which showed that the Li Family did not intend to treat him as a pawn to be discarded at will.

He lowered his head slightly and replied via voice transmission, "Elder, it can be accepted. But the bet must be written clearly, the value must be equal, and it must be witnessed by all four families and written into a notarized Jade Slip."

A hint of satisfaction appeared in the Grand Elder's eyes.

"Are you not afraid?"

Li Qingfeng replied, "I am afraid. But fear aside, the accounts must be settled clearly first. If I lose, I cannot let the Li Family suffer a loss in silence. If I win, I cannot let the Zhao Family welsh on the debt."

The Grand Elder nodded slowly.

After a while, he stood up and said in a calm voice, "Zhao Mingyue, if you want to bet on the Family's share, fine. If the Li Family loses, we will cede the patrol rights of East Street for one month. If the Zhao Family loses, the one-month share of the stall taxes from West Street will go to the Li Family. Four families as witnesses, established by a notarized Jade Slip. If even one word is missing, the Li Family will not accept."

The Zhao Family Elder's expression did not look too good.

Zhao Mingyue, however, pulled the corner of his mouth, smiling coldly, "Fine. We will proceed according to this."

He answered very quickly.

So quickly that Li Qingfeng became even more vigilant.

This guy agreeing so readily meant he was very confident in himself.

Soon, the referee took out a white Jade Slip and read the contents of the bet aloud to the public. The Elders of the four families—Wang, Chen, Li, and Zhao—each imprinted their spiritual power onto it.

The Jade Slip lit up; the agreement was formed.

The noise of discussion in the whole arena became even louder.

This was no longer an ordinary Small Tournament sparring match~~~

The outcome of one match directly involved the market revenue of two families.

Li Qingfeng lifted his foot and stepped onto the stage.

When passing the Li Family's seating area, he subconsciously glanced at Su Qingyue.

Su Qingyue was sitting there, her light green long dress accentuating her slim waist, the hem of the skirt draped against her long legs, her ankles blindingly white. Her expression was softer than usual today, her brows and eyes gentle, but the sachet in her hand was being gripped tightly.

She was worried about him.

Li Qingfeng felt a warmth in his heart and nodded gently towards her.

The meaning was simple: "Don't worry, I won't do anything reckless."

Su Qingyue understood, bit her lip, and her eyes calmed down a lot.

Li Qingfeng turned and walked onto the arena, gripping his dharma sword.

Zhao Mingyue was already standing on the opposite side, fire-attribute spiritual power spreading out from under his feet, scorching several burn marks into the arena floorboards.

He said mockingly, "Li Qingfeng, you certainly know how to calculate. Checking the bet clearly before getting on stage, afraid that the Li Family might lose out?"

Li Qingfeng said casually, "Family interests are not children playing house. If you Zhao Family love to act generous, that's your business. We in the Li Family won't gamble our industry just to help you show off."

The people from the Li Family off-stage felt a sense of satisfaction.

Li Chengyue laughed out loud, "Well said!"

Zhao Mingyue's expression became even uglier.

He raised his hand, flames surging in his palm, and said mockingly, "Your tongue is quite sharp, but I don't know if your cultivation can support your words."

The referee raised his hand and shouted loudly, "The gambling duel begins!!"

As soon as the words fell, Zhao Mingyue took a step forward, and his fire spiritual power exploded with a 'boom'.

"Fire Snake Technique!"

As the three words were spoken, a crimson fire snake darted from his palm, carrying a scorching heat wave, and lunged directly at Li Qingfeng's chest.

This fire snake was as thick as an arm and moved extremely fast; wherever it passed, the surface of the arena was scorched black.

Li Qingfeng did not take it head-on; he shifted his feet, his figure flashing away quickly to avoid the frontal impact.

The fire snake brushed past his light dharma armor, the protective spiritual patterns on the surface of the armor lighting up and helping him dissipate the residual heat.

Li Qingfeng immediately knew where he stood.

This dharma armor was indeed useful.

Zhao Mingyue's fire power hit his body; if not for this light armor to dissipate the force, the aftermath alone would have caused his Meridians to tighten. Although it was uncomfortably hot, it was still within the bearable range.

The System prompt also popped up at this moment.

[Detected that the host is suffering from fire-attribute technique suppression.]

[Basic protection of the light dharma armor is in effect, capable of weakening the aftermath impact of Qi Refinement Stage fire-attribute techniques.]

[Hint: The Fire Snake Technique is continuously controlled by the caster; the core weakness lies in the fire-controlling spiritual power nodes. If the nodes are disturbed, the stability of the technique decreases.]

Li Qingfeng's eyes flickered.

This hint came just in time.

He immediately activated Vitality Perception, while simultaneously focusing his attention on the spiritual power traction between the fire snake and Zhao Mingyue.

The fire snake looked fierce, but in reality, it was not a living creature and had no true vitality. However, when Zhao Mingyue controlled it, the spiritual power would form a thin traction line between his wrist, palm, and the head of the fire snake.

To strike a snake, hit its seven-inch mark.

To strike a technique, you must hit the nodes.

Seeing that he only dodged and did not attack, Zhao Mingyue's tone became increasingly arrogant.

"What? Is the Li Family's newly emerged Qi Refining Stage 7 only capable of running?"

Li Qingfeng retreated repeatedly, saying indifferently, "What are you rushing for? If you can't hold on, you can take a breather first."

"You're courting death!!"

Zhao Mingyue shouted angrily and pushed with both palms simultaneously.

The fire snake twisted its body, forcibly turned, and swept across.

Li Qingfeng's dharma sword left its sheath, Azure Wood Spiritual Power poured into the blade, and the sword edge slanted; instead of hacking at the snake's head, he slashed diagonally, grazing its waist and abdomen.

Clang!

Green light and fire light collided, emitting an explosive sound.

The fire snake's body twisted violently, almost dissipating.

Zhao Mingyue's expression changed, and he immediately increased the infusion of spiritual power, forcibly stabilizing the technique.

Li Qingfeng was even more certain in his heart—it was effective.

He couldn't clash head-on with the fire snake; he had to specifically target the positions where its spiritual power circulation was not smooth.

Off-stage, Wang Qingluan watched this scene with her sword in her arms, her expression becoming a bit more serious.

"He is looking at the fire-controlling nodes."

Someone next to the Wang Family said in surprise, "The Fire Snake Technique is so fast, can he see it?"

Wang Qingluan said indifferently, "That is why he is difficult to deal with."

On the Li Family's seating area, Su Qingyue also saw Li Qingfeng's intention.

She let out a slight sigh of relief.

Li Qingfeng was not led by Zhao Mingyue into a head-on clash; he was still looking for an opportunity.

Zhao Mingyue, however, became more and more irritable as he fought.

He originally wanted to rely on fire-attribute suppression to quickly force Li Qingfeng to the edge of the arena and then kill him in public. But Li Qingfeng was as slippery as a loach; taking a step back, a step to the side, blocking once—every time it looked dangerous, he somehow managed to dodge the most vicious attacks.

What was even more infuriating was that Li Qingfeng didn't forget to keep talking.

"Zhao Mingyue, your fire is quite hot, it's just that your aim is a bit poor."

"Shut up!"

"Don't be anxious, getting too angry is bad for your liver."

"Li Qingfeng!!!"

Zhao Mingyue was so angry that the veins on his forehead popped out, and his fire-attribute spiritual power surged again.

On the surface, Li Qingfeng was still retreating, but under his feet, he was quietly seeping Azure Wood Spiritual Power into the cracks of the arena.

This arena had gone through several duels, and there were many small cracks between the floorboards and the formation patterns. Ordinary Cultivators wouldn't pay attention, and Zhao Mingyue would notice even less.

But for Li Qingfeng, these cracks were opportunities.

The Azure Wood Spiritual Power drilled in bit by bit; he wasn't in a hurry to make it grow, just hiding it deep within the cracks.

He silently counted the positions in his heart.

One on the front left.

Two on the right.

Three on the edge of the arena...

As long as Zhao Mingyue continued to press forward, these spiritual powers would be able to disrupt his fire-controlling rhythm at the critical moment.

Zhao Mingyue stared at him coldly and suddenly formed hand seals.

"You like to dodge, don't you?"

The flames in his palm suddenly split, and that fire snake twisted in mid-air, following which it split into three.

Three crimson fire snakes lunged from the left, middle, and right directions simultaneously, the scorching heat waves sealing off Li Qingfeng's retreat path completely.

A wave of exclamations suddenly rang out from off-stage.

Li Chengyue's expression changed drastically, "Oh no!!!"

Su Qingyue also sat up straight, the sachet gripped tightly in her palm, her eyes fixed on the arena without blinking.

Zhao Mingyue revealed a fierce smile, pressed his palms forward, and shouted loudly, "Let's see how you dodge this move!!"