178: Xie Ning erupted

On the high platform, Xie Ning's cold eyes stared intently at Feng Lai.

The latter hadn't noticed yet, talking to Feng Ta with a smug expression.

"5-second countdown!"

"5..."

"4..."

"3... 2... 1..."

"Match start!"

Just as Yan Chengze finished speaking, the Winged Demon Lizard flapped its wings, a blast of Devilish Qi landing on the Witch Body Curse Tiger, before charging fiercely at Xie Ning.

Receiving this Devilish Qi, the Witch Body Curse Tiger's Aura surged, and it pounced toward the small Shadow Gold Soldier with a roar.

Clearly, they intended for one to delay Xie Ning while the other dealt with the Shadow Gold Soldier as quickly as possible.

A flash of mockery crossed Xie Ning's eyes as he uttered, "Weaponize!"

The previously trembling Shadow Gold Soldier rapidly transformed, turning into a dagger flowing with dark light, and flew into Xie Ning's hand.

In the next second, Xie Ning shot forward, appearing before the Winged Demon Lizard, and swung the dagger under its stunned gaze.

Rip~

The Winged Demon Lizard's left wing was severed by Xie Ning's dagger. It plummeted to the ground with a scream, half its wing touching the area below the stage. Meanwhile, Xie Ning used the momentum in mid-air to charge at the flightless Witch Body Curse Tiger. Just as it was about to bite him, he grabbed its tail, gave a thunderous shout, and yanked it off the ground, swinging it three times before letting go.

Boom!

The Witch Body Curse Tiger was slammed heavily onto the ground, sliding several meters to the edge of the challenge platform, its tail hanging off the stage.

Xie Ning clapped his hands and said nonchalantly, "Referee, announce the result."

"The two Yao Beasts have not completely fallen off the challenge platform; the match is not over yet," Yan Chengze said.

Xie Ning didn't seem surprised, but asked, "Then how do you explain the rules of the exhibition match? The rules clearly state that if any part of a side touches the ground below the stage, they lose."

"Are you the referee, or am I? I said the Yao Beast's entire body must fall completely off the stage. Otherwise, even if just one claw remains on the platform, it's not a loss!" Yan Chengze barked.

Xie Ning said, "That's what you said. Everyone heard it."

With that, Xie Ning glanced at Feng Lai on the platform and waited for the two Yao Beasts to crawl back up from the edge.

Feng Lai was reveling in his smugness and didn't notice Xie Ning's gaze, but his uncle, Feng Ta, felt his heart skip a beat as an ominous premonition grew stronger.

The two Yao Beasts returned to the stage. From a distance, the Winged Demon Lizard cast a support skill on the Witch Body Curse Tiger, causing its strength to skyrocket as it lunged straight at Xie Ning.

Xie Ning deftly dodged a claw, stabbed the Witch Body Curse Tiger with his dagger, and then took two steps back.

Crack!

A tiger tail like a steel whip lashed at his previous position. As soon as the tail moved, Xie Ning stepped forward again and slashed with his dagger.

But at this moment, some sharp-eyed people below the stage noticed that the previous wound on the Witch Body Curse Tiger had already healed, and it hadn't bled after being stabbed just now.

"What kind of Yao Beast is this? It's fine even after being stabbed?"

"The Witch Body Curse Tiger is a walking corpse-like Yao Beast with incredible self-healing abilities. Even if its head is cut off, it can recover."

"Its attacks also have curse effects—weakness, irritability, Doubled Pain, and so on. The longer you fight it, the more disadvantaged you become."

"Holy shit, how do you even fight that?"

Listening to the discussions below and watching Xie Ning battle the two Yao Beasts, Feng Lai couldn't help but become even more smug.

"Uncle, did you see that? This is that legendary person of Yan Ruyu's. Haha~ He's nothing special after all."

Feng Ta didn't respond but kept his eyes fixed on Xie Ning.

Although Xie Ning seemed to be at a disadvantage, Feng Ta felt that he was holding something back, especially his behavior during the conversation with Yan Chengze—it was as if he were waiting for Yan Chengze to break the rules.

"But what good would that do him?"

Thinking this, Feng Ta's expression grew increasingly grim.

"Uncle, what's wrong? You look terrible," Feng Lai asked, puzzled.

Feng Ta thought for a moment and said, "I'm just worried. In any case, stay alert. He is Yan Ruyu's person after all; I'm afraid it won't be that simple."

"Haha~ Uncle, I think you've been intimidated by Yan Ruyu's reputation." Feng Lai laughed loudly. "Think about it. If Yan Ruyu were really as powerful as people say, why would she be stuck in a small place like Lingnan Academy? She would have been making waves in the Imperial Capital long ago."

"As for this idiot who uses a dagger like a sword, do you really think he can turn the tide? Once a single curse takes effect, he's guaranteed to lose."

Feng Ta: "..."

Looking back at the battle below.

Xie Ning wielded the dagger like a short sword, parrying, stabbing, slashing, and hacking. It looked strange, yet he always managed to perfectly withstand the Witch Body Curse Tiger's attacks.

"No," Feng Ta shook his head grimly. "I still feel like he's hiding something."

"Uncle, you're just worrying over nothing. This is clearly a guaranteed win; he can't even kill the Witch Body Curse Tiger."

As he spoke, a hint of contempt flickered in his eyes, as if he looked down on Feng Ta.

"You think the Witch Body Curse Tiger has no weaknesses? If its weakness is discovered, we're bound to lose this match."

Feng Lai didn't listen to Feng Ta's warning. He laughed arrogantly and pointed at Xie Ning below the stage:

"Uncle, you can't say this guy is powerful just because the Winged Demon Lizard got hurt. If he really could find a way, he would have done it already. Why would he struggle so much against the Witch Body Curse Tiger?"

Feng Ta frowned and whispered, "It's not because he injured the Winged Demon Lizard, but because this person's actions are truly quite strange."

"You're really losing your nerve as you get older. You're afraid, but I'm not! Just watch, it's only a matter of time before my Witch Body Curse Tiger defeats him." Feng Lai lifted his chin with an arrogant expression. "I'll let those people in the Imperial Capital know that Yan Ruyu is nothing special. What's so great about a woman? I don't care about her at all. I'll beat her people up just the same."

The uncle and nephew didn't notice that while Xie Ning was fighting, his ears were constantly listening, and he would occasionally look in their direction.

Bang!

"It seems you have a lot of complaints about Yan Ruyu."

Xie Ning's voice rang out; this was the first thing he had said to the Feng Family Uncle and Nephew since the battle began.

The two looked toward the source of the voice and saw that one of Xie Ning's hands, covered in black runes, had grown thick and large. He was gripping the back of the Witch Body Curse Tiger's neck, his fingers sinking deep into the fur and grabbing its bones. Ignoring the tiger's struggles, he looked at the uncle and nephew expressionlessly—more accurately, he was looking at Feng Lai.

"Hmph! Is there a problem? I just don't like her! Being from the Imperial Capital yet not contributing to it and running off to a tiny place like this—for that alone, she deserves to be cursed out." Feng Lai said smugly, having completely lost his sense of propriety.

These words made Feng Ta shake his head in disappointment.

Xie Ning didn't answer him, but first scanned the area below the stage.

He looked at the students from other academies near the arena; they were whispering, their eyes full of hostility.

Then he looked at the many students from Lingnan Academy watching him, their shouts and reproaches constant.

Next, he turned his gaze toward the surrounding waiting area buildings, ending on Yan Ruyu's location.

Finally, he looked at Feng Lai and shook his head. "Some 'Nurturing Exhibition Match.' After all this, it's just about settling old scores, personal vendettas, and wagging tails."

"In that case, why should I still follow the rules?"

Just as he finished speaking, Xie Ning applied force with his hand, and the Witch Body Curse Tiger's neck snapped.

"It's useless! It'll just come back to life after being killed; you can't kill it! But you've already been hit by the Doubled Pain curse. You're screwed! Hahaha~"

Feng Lai's arrogant words didn't cause any change in Xie Ning's expression.

Just as the Witch Body Curse Tiger was slowly crawling back up, Xie Ning focused and flicked the dagger hard, producing a fine, melodious humming sound.

Accompanying the humming was the scream of the Witch Body Curse Tiger. In the next second, Xie Ning drew the changhong sword and hacked off one of its claws.

Pfft!

Blood spurted out.

"How is this possible?! How could you know its weakness?!" Feng Lai was shocked.

The Witch Body Curse Tiger feared no damage, except for rapid metallic vibrations.

Xie Ning ignored him, kicked the rest of the Witch Body Curse Tiger's body off the stage, and threw the changhong sword, pinning the severed claw so it couldn't be retracted. Then, his body shot forward, appearing above the Winged Demon Lizard's head. He raised his left arm and slammed it down heavily.

Boom!

The thick left arm brought immense force—a strength that didn't seem to belong to Xie Ning—smashing the Winged Demon Lizard into the stage, creating a crater about a meter deep.

The intense vibration could even be felt below the stage, causing some people near the challenge platform to sway.

Xie Ning turned his gaze back to Feng Lai, whose face turned pale with fright, his legs trembling.

Bang!

Xie Ning rushed in front of the two and gave a loud shout. His thick left arm shattered the protective shield before him, then deflated back to its original size. He grabbed Feng Lai by his clothes and glanced at Feng Ta. "If you want him to keep breathing, don't move and don't speak."

Feng Ta opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, Xie Ning had already brought Feng Lai onto the stage.

With a swipe of the gold soldier dagger, the black patterns representing the 'Doubled Pain Curse' transferred from his left hand onto Feng Lai's body.

This was precisely the Shadow Gold Soldier's Talent—Transfer.

With everything ready, Xie Ning cracked his wrists, raised his fist, and began to strike.

Bang!

"Arrogant?"

Bang! Bang!

"Smug?"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

"Daring to insult Yan Ruyu?"

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang... "I'll beat you to death, you bastard!"

Xie Ning swung both ways, punching and kicking, raining down a flurry of wild blows on Feng Lai.

Following the blows were Feng Lai's shrill screams under the effect of the Doubled Pain.

"Ahhh—"