47: Chapter 47: The second match officially begins!

If the Sword Control Technique were a secret art of Snow Moon City, Sikong Qianluo felt that everyone would probably scramble to learn it.

Combined with a divine object like the peerless sword casket, everyone would set their sights on the peerless sword casket.

After all, that was a supreme technique that had once swept through the Jianghu.

“Perhaps it won't be completely abandoned, but it will no longer be the core.”

Su Rui shook his head gently.

Having said that, he turned to look at Sikong Changfeng and Baili Dongjun.

Was this martial arts competition going to continue or not?

At this moment, Sikong Changfeng and the other were also pricking up their ears to listen to him speak.

The people around Su Rui were the same, still immersed in the shock of Zhao Guyan's decision.

As expected of someone who could sit in the position of the City Lord of Wushuang City, Zhao Guyan's decisiveness was indeed beyond the reach of ordinary people.

Sikong Changfeng noticed Su Rui's gaze; he was stunned for a moment before realizing his meaning.

He suddenly felt a bit embarrassed.

However, looking at the mess of the arena below, he was also a bit dazed.

Could they still continue the fight?

But those who won this time were all experts; they shouldn't be affected by this dilapidated arena, right?

Thinking of this, Sikong Changfeng let out a light cough.

At this time, everyone was still immersed in the shock brought by the phantom of the Nine-Leaf Sword Grass that Su Rui had summoned earlier, unable to snap out of it.

This cough finally pulled them back to reality.

“Today's second match officially begins: Wanwan, the successor of the Yin Kui Sect from the Great Tang, against Yue Ji, who has recently risen to fame.”

Originally, everyone didn't pay much attention to this.

After all, the scene between Su Rui and Zhao Guyan just now was far too shocking.

Everyone was currently in a state of exhaustion after the excitement.

However, when Wanwan lightly leaped into the arena, revealing a pair of jade-like delicate feet and a face that stunned everyone, the whole crowd suddenly perked up.

Most people didn't know the origin of the Yin Kui Sect.

But they still understood the two words 'Great Tang.'

Beauties, after all, were a topic in the Jianghu that shared equal fame with peerless experts.

And when another person dressed in purple, wearing a crescent-shaped hair ornament—Yue Ji—leaped into the arena, the interest that had just been piqued instantly turned into fervent expectation.

Two beauties facing off—now that would be a sight to see.

Sikong Qianluo was still holding the peerless sword casket, clearly very curious about it.

“If you like it, take it back to play with; just don't lose it.”

Seeing this, Su Rui said casually.

“Really? I can take it away?”

Sikong Qianluo was stunned.

“Why not? It's not some rare world-class treasure.”

Su Rui shook his head slightly.

Fine!

Sikong Qianluo smiled helplessly.

The guardian treasure of Wushuang City was actually nothing impressive in her teacher's mouth.

Then what would count?

The Cheng Ying Sword?

She looked at the sword in Li Hanyi's hand.

Li Hanyi misunderstood her meaning, thinking she wanted to try it, and handed the Cheng Ying Sword into her arms.

“...”

That's not what I meant!

Sigh!

Sikong Qianluo sighed in her heart, tossed the peerless sword casket to Mu Liangyue, and turned to start fiddling with the Cheng Ying Sword.

She pulled at it a couple of times but couldn't draw it out.

She wasn't disappointed though.

There weren't many people who could personally touch such a divine weapon.

Ji Ruofeng, watching from a distance, stared with wide eyes, almost drooling.

His eyes were full of envy.

He wondered to himself if he could also join this martial arts hall.

After all, he could be considered a Disciple with potential!

But on second thought, he wasn't young anymore.

Looking at Li Hanyi and Sikong Qianluo beside Su Rui, he lowered his head in shame.

There was no comparison, no comparison at all.

Better to focus on his promising job as 'The Knower of Everything.'

With that thought, he turned his gaze toward the battered competition stage.

The contest between Wanwan and Yue Ji was about to begin.

Wanwan wasn't from Northern Li, so she wasn't within his scope of research.

As for Yue Ji, Ji Ruofeng also had a bit of appreciation in his eyes.

To have such cultivation at such a young age was already rare.

But if one were to speak of a true Genius...

That would naturally still be on Su Rui's side.

Yue Ji: Nineteen years and eleven months old; Talent: 82; Talent Evaluation: Clever and sharp, excellent bone structure, unfortunately potential was prematurely exhausted due to drugs; recruitment into the martial arts hall is not recommended.

Su Rui nodded slightly, his expression calm and his heart undisturbed.

Generally speaking, ordinary assassins mostly relied on drugs to forcibly raise their strength.

Only then could they quickly form combat power and then execute missions.

This was determined by the system.

It was different from an assassin group with a sound system like the Dark River.

In the Dark River, only those with insufficient talent would use such methods.

Those with truly extraordinary talent would be cultivated with focus.

After all, the value of a top-tier expert far exceeded that of a hundred qualified assassins.

Especially for an assassin organization as world-renowned as the Dark River.

They had enemies everywhere.

Why could they still stand firm? They relied on the internal powerhouses to deter all sides.

Just as Wanwan and Yue Ji were sizing each other up, Su Rui's expression suddenly shifted, and he turned his gaze to one side.

Murong Fu was walking over with several people.

Su Rui's gaze swept over them but paused on one person.

【Wang Yuyan: Eighteen years and seven months old; Talent: 96; Talent Evaluation: Intelligent and elegant, possesses photographic memory, extremely high Comprehension Ability; strongly recommended for recruitment into the martial arts hall】

There was actually an unexpected gain.

However, her steps were floating; she had clearly never practiced even a bit of martial arts.

“Murong Fu of Gusu, Great Song, pays respects to the Hall Master!”

Murong Fu had a smile on his face. Walking past the several experts on the front spectator stand, he felt himself to be of extraordinary bearing and likely to attract attention.

Walking up to Su Rui, he cupped his hands in greeting.

“What is it?”

Su Rui looked at him with a hint of confusion.

Others might not know, but Su Rui knew very well.

He even knew this person better than Murong Fu knew himself.

“The Hall Master is like a celestial being. Fu feels deep admiration. I imagine your martial arts hall will surely become the number one hall in Snow Moon City before long, and even rank first in the world!”

Murong Fu said with a face full of smiles.

Su Rui's gaze shifted slightly.

“You think I would care about those things?”

Murong Fu's expression froze.

Yes!

For a figure like this Hall Master, never mind a martial arts hall, if he wanted to join Snow Moon City, he would certainly become a core figure.

If he sought refuge with the imperial court, he would surely receive courteous treatment; even being a State Preceptor would be well within his reach.

Looking at the Su Rui before him, who was younger and more handsome than himself, a wave of jealousy rose in Murong Fu's heart.

What he dreamed of, the other party possessed easily, yet seemed not to care at all.

Though unwilling, he was clear about the purpose of his trip.

“Hall Master, might I have the honor of joining the martial arts hall?”

This was the solution he had thought over repeatedly.

By now, he knew that Sikong Qianluo was the only daughter of Snow Moon City's Sikong Changfeng, and Sikong Changfeng doted on her immensely.

Furthermore, once the Hall Master made a move, geniuses from all factions would likely flock to join.

If he could also enter the hall, not only would he have the chance to get to know a peerless Genius like Li Hanyi, but he might also be able to borrow their strength in the future.

Even more, he could befriend outstanding Disciples from various factions, adding support to his future plans.

Even putting the future aside.

As long as he could build a good relationship with this young girl in the hall, he would likely benefit greatly in Snow Moon City.

As long as he could enter the hall, all of this was possible.

Looking at the properly smiling Murong Fu before her, a flash of annoyance crossed Sikong Qianluo's eyes.

She gently tugged on Su Rui's sleeve.

“Teacher, I don't like this person. His smile is fake.”

She almost directly exposed his hypocrisy.

The smile on Murong Fu's face faltered slightly but quickly recovered, though that smile appeared somewhat forced no matter how one looked at it.

Su Rui patted her hand and turned to look at Murong Fu.

“Your talent is too low; you do not meet the standards of the martial arts hall.”

Murong Fu was startled and almost failed to suppress his anger.

In the Great Song, he was known as 'Murong of the South, Qiao Feng of the North.' How could his talent be low?

But he was still calm enough to know that the person before him was not someone he could afford to offend.

With a forced smile, he cupped his hands in a parting salute and hurriedly led his people away.

Wang Yuyan curiously sized up the people before her, her gaze finally landing on Su Rui.

Seeing that Su Rui was looking at her, she was suddenly like a startled deer, hurriedly turning her head to look away.

Watching Murong Fu and the others walk past them.

The people on the front spectator stand all twitched the corners of their mouths slightly.

Still too young.

A typical case of being too clever for one's own good.

What kind of character this Murong Fu had, this group of old Jianghu veterans saw through at a single glance.

Furthermore, Murong Fu's actions during the previous match had already caused displeasure in many people's hearts.

Yet this person remained self-righteous and quite smug.

After they stepped down from the front spectator stand, a hint of dissatisfaction appeared on Feng Biaoe's face.

“Young Master, you are the master of the Gusu Murong family. Why bother being so humble and submissive?”

“Exactly, Brother Feng is right. These people of Northern Li don't know the Young Master's great name, so why bother dealing with them!”

Bao Butong also chimed in with his agreement.

Hearing this, a forced smile appeared on Murong Fu's face.

“This Hall Master's martial arts are divine. Never mind here in Northern Li, even within the borders of the Great Song, I'm afraid no one can match him.

Moreover, he is skilled at teaching; his few Disciples are already famous at such a young age.”

The more he spoke, the more the regret on his face could not be hidden.

“Furthermore, that Sikong Qianluo is the daughter of Snow Moon City's City Lord, Sikong Changfeng.

And Sikong Changfeng controls Snow Moon's finances; the wealth he can mobilize is incalculable.”

Though he said this.

Wang Yuyan noticed that at this moment, the knuckles of Murong Fu's right hand, which was gripping his folding fan, had turned white, clearly showing intense emotion.

No, that wasn't excitement; it was anger!

“Cousin, you are already illustrious in the Great Song, and Gusu Murong is famous in the Jianghu. Why must you still be obsessed with restoring the state? That Yan State has already been extinguished for a hundred years!”

Wang Yuyan felt she was speaking reasonably.

But as soon as her words fell, Murong Fu suddenly turned around, his eyes bloodshot.

“What do you know? The Murong clan's century-old foundation—you want me to just give it up like this?”

The expression on his face frightened Wang Yuyan into a shudder, and she involuntarily took two steps back.

Murong Fu was stunned for a moment, then restrained his expression, gave a cold snort, and walked away quickly.

“Miss, the Young Master is in a bad mood. Please don't take it to heart.”

AZhu and ABi were also frightened by this display. Seeing Wang Yuyan's dejected expression, they quickly spoke words of comfort.

“I understand. Cousin has always wanted to be the ruler of a country, but now the situation in all countries is stable. Even if Northern Li is slightly turbulent, the experts over there are as numerous as cow hairs!”

Wang Yuyan's tone was gentle, but her words were full of helplessness.

“Miss, it's better not to mention these things in front of the Young Master.”

AZhu advised helplessly.

“I know.”

Wang Yuyan nodded gently.