Chapter 27: The Duel to End Rumors

  The young men had not yet begun their training, so they called the duel between the two "a trial of martial skill". The news had already spread far and wide, but the trial did not take place immediately.

  Xin Youtao was busy consolidating the existing victories, and in the next few days, more and more new children arrived, the gifts piled up in the middle of the courtyard decreased, and the children surrounding Wang Zidong's side were enough to form a small army.

  During this time, Xia Qiu thought back and forth, starting to feel that the martial duel was meaningless and unnecessary. After all, he had no deep grudges with Xin Youtao, and even if he won the duel, he wouldn't gain any obvious benefits, nor could he regain his lost companions.

  For Xīn Yòu Táo, this duel was very necessary.

  Simple facts often have greater power. Xin Youtao successfully erased his cowardly experience in the forest, but Xia Qiu's first meeting with him, that one sentence "Huan San Er", still became a nightmare he couldn't shake off. Although no one dared to say it out loud in public, in private, this nickname spread widely, and every new child who received a gift from the courtyard would ask about the origin of "Huan San Er" as their second task.

  As more than half of the young men in Ye Lin Town had already submitted to Wang Zi, most people did not believe the rumor of "three faints". However, Xin Yu Tao could not let go of this matter and still wanted to cut off the last bit of rumors through a martial arts competition to prove that he was absolutely not the kind of coward who would easily faint.

  Xiao Qiu tried to go to the dining hall as late as possible, reducing her chances of running into Xin Yu Tao. Er Liang and Shen Huiwei also stopped calling her "Huan San'er" at his suggestion. Fang Fang rarely went to the study room, occasionally taking out a few books to teach the remaining two students in Xiao Qiu's room how to read.

  Shen Hao moved to another room, listless and depressed every day, coming and going alone, not interacting with anyone. The Bone Fist he had been practicing smoothly was also hindered, often being publicly ridiculed by Zhang Lingsheng, "Either it's a naturally obtained Dao root or there's a problem." This was his daily mantra.

  Xin Youtao's two loyal followers often provoked Xiao Qiu and Er Liang, but got no response, so they retreated.

  Xin Yutao seemed to have forgotten about the three outsiders in the mansion for a few days, not causing any more trouble or mentioning anything about comparing martial arts, but the prince's thoughts were always different from ordinary people.

  One day in early September, Da Liang Shen Xiuning called his younger brother to one side and whispered a few words in his ear. Er Liang Shen Xiu left his older brother with a cold face and found Xiao Qiu. "Tomorrow after breakfast, Xin Yu Tao wants to have a martial arts competition with you in the front yard. Xiao Qiu, we can't retreat anymore, we must teach him a lesson."

  Xiao Qiu had never actually relaxed, and in recent days he had been practicing his fist techniques even more diligently than usual. Although the Bone Tempering Fist could only strengthen his body and not be used for combat, after becoming lighter and healthier, he was more confident that he could defeat Xin Yu Tao: He remembered very clearly that the physique of the Western Region's prince was nothing special, and wasn't even comparable to that of an ordinary young man from a small town.

  Fang Fang was originally firmly opposed to the martial arts, but since Xin Yu Tao took the initiative to challenge her, she naturally stood on Xiao Qiu's side and found many books to prove her original point of view. "Look, here is a passage, Jiudao Tongyi had reached an agreement with Shengfu Huangchao very early on, except for selecting disciples and slaying demons, Taoist priests were not allowed to intervene in any disputes in the mortal world, and Shengfu Huangchao could not interfere with anything within the scope of the Taoist sect. The twelve vassal states that paid homage to the symbol emperor naturally had to abide by this agreement as well. Therefore, the Pangshan Taoist sect is independent, and the prince's identity is actually not very useful here."

  "Useful are those who wrap things up." Er Lang Shen couldn't help but conceal his disdain for the prince, "The princes and kings have money, they can even buy the Taoist sect of Mount Penglai."

  "Don't take Zhang Daoshi as the representative of Pong Mountain Taoist sect." Fangfang read more books and had more respect for the Taoist sect, "Strictly speaking, he is just a miscellaneous personnel, not even an internal alchemist, can't represent the Pong Mountain Taoist sect."

  "In that case, there's even less to be afraid of. Little Autumn brother, tomorrow afternoon must thoroughly thrash Xin Yu Tao, so he dares not lie in public again." Shen Xiuyi's fighting spirit was high, and she went out to find her brother to pass on the message: Little Autumn agreed to a duel.

  There were only two people left in the house, Fangfang said in a low voice: "It's best not to cause trouble, we're here to practice Taoist skills, there's no need to offend fellow disciples."

  "I know, tomorrow I'll just give him a light beating, won't make him lose too much face."

  Fang Fang smiled and said, "You shouldn't be too careless either. As usual, the royal families of various vassal states rarely choose to cultivate Taoism. Since Xin Yu Tao has joined Mount Pang, he may have some extraordinary abilities. Moreover, he can use paper talismans. I haven't found out yet whether Mount Pang allows the use of talismans, but you should be on guard."

  "Don't worry, he's got no aim, I'll make the first move and won't let him pull out the paper talisman."

  It was settled, and the children in the temple had already reached fifty or sixty. They were all born with a good foundation for Taoism, and some of them would become great Taoist priests in the future. However, they still hadn't gotten rid of their ordinary childhood preferences, loving noise and excitement, and a scheduled martial arts competition was enough to stir up everyone's emotions.

  The next morning, Zhang Lingsheng supervised the children to practice their boxing skills and immediately left the building, pretending not to know that something would happen today. The village women who delivered food delayed leaving until they had nothing else to do, then reluctantly walked out of the gate.

  Several children ran to shut the courtyard gate, while others formed a circle, leaving an empty space in the middle. Xiao Qiu, Fang Fang, Er Liang Shen Xiu Wei were already ready, but Xin Yu Tao was slow to appear.

  "Didn't we agree to have a martial arts match after breakfast? Where is he?" Shen Xiuyi loudly questioned the person in front of her.

  A young man replied, "Don't be in a hurry, Xin Dao will practice his skills after breakfast, it's his habit."

  "Put on airs." Shen Xiuyi said in a low voice, "Xiao Qiuge, don't go easy on him later, I've been holding back for days and have been waiting for today."

  Xiao Qiu smiled and took off his grass hat, handing it to Shen Xiuyi. He had been away from herding life for a long time, and even his skin had turned white, but he still couldn't get rid of it.

  Xin Youtao finally walked out of his solitary residence, and the crowd automatically made way for him. He was wearing a fitted brocade robe today, with a jade belt around his waist, and on his head, he wore a forehead ribbon that shone brightly with pearls. The red gemstone in the middle sparkled so much it dazzled people's eyes. On his feet were a pair of brand new leather boots. Looking at him, he seemed more like he was going to visit other noble young masters rather than engage in a duel with a rustic and unsophisticated youth.

  Xiao Qiu's attire was similar to that of the farmers in Jinghu Village, with a coarse linen short shirt and long pants, and a pair of cloth shoes on his feet. This was the standard uniform given by Pang Shan to new disciples, but most of the other children wore the clothes bestowed upon them by Wang Zi, only a handful still kept their original appearance.

  Xin Yutao casually chatted with his trusted friends, walking into the arena with a smile on his face. He pointed at the young man approaching him and said: "This Mo Dao friend has been spreading a ridiculous rumor that I am a timid coward. Originally, I didn't care about it, but someone told me that our Pangshan Taoist sect values discipline the most. Letting such a rumor survive is the greatest disrespect to our school. So..." He sighed, as if this went against his will, "I have no choice but to use facts to put an end to this ridiculous rumor."

  Xiao Qiu was almost impressed by the prince in front of her, who looked delicate and pale like a girl. When he told lies, his face didn't turn red and his heart didn't skip a beat. The more people around him, the more calm his expression became.

  Xiao Qiu had nothing to defend himself with. He had never fabricated or spread rumors, and his conscience was clear. "Come on," he said, deciding to settle the matter quickly.

  Xin Yu Tao's idea was the same as Xiao Qiu's. He was a prince and couldn't be evenly matched with a young man from a small border town.

  Xiao Qiu made the first move, he had never learned any martial arts that could be used in actual combat, so it was just a simple tiger pounce. After nearly two months of boxing practice, his physique had undergone significant changes, his movements were faster and his strength was greater, this pounce would be difficult for even an average adult to dodge.

  Xin Youtao didn't dodge, he didn't even bother to use the martial arts of ordinary people, since he had entered the Taoist path, he naturally used his magical skills.

  He stretched out his right hand, with a smile still on his face, and instead of looking at Xia Qiu, he winked at the audience on the side, then a ball of fire visible to everyone flew out from his palm.

  A fireball hovered in mid-air, and with a slight movement of Xinyu Tao's palm, it changed its position, covering a large area in front of his opponent.

  The children watching in unison exclaimed, and many people even showed a fearful expression. After arriving at the Mirror Lake Village Hall, they had some understanding of Taoism, and it was clear that one thing could not be done without internal alchemy, and condensing internal alchemy was an extremely difficult task. Without the guidance and leadership of a master, it was impossible to achieve.

  Prince Xinyu Tao has done it, which means he is far ahead of everyone else.

  Fang Fang and Er Liang were even more shocked. Xinyu Tao had once used paper symbols in front of them, with a clumsy posture and extremely poor accuracy. Twelve times he launched an attack, but not once did he hit the snake demon. But this time, he didn't take out any paper symbols, nor did he make any special movements. He simply stretched out his palm and released a fireball, which he could even control the direction of. It was like night and day compared to before, and more like a mature Taoist casting a spell.

  "Fang Fang, didn't you say that within the bounds of Mount Pao, it's not allowed to use magic casually?" Er Liang asked in surprise.

  Fang Fang was speechless in response. She had indeed seen such a rule before, so she was more surprised than anyone else at the scene before her eyes.

  Xiao Qiu on the field didn't have time to think too much, hastily stopped her movement, dodging that ball of fire that was chasing closely, instantly changing from an attacker to a desperate fugitive.

  Xin Yutao leisurely strolled in the courtyard, following behind Xiao Qiu, controlling the fireballs to intercept from all directions. He loudly said: "Do you still want to claim that I can't defeat an ordinary snake demon? Do you still want to spread rumors of my fainting? Mu Xingqiu, kneel down and confess your guilt!"

  Xiao Qiu dodged and retreated, but couldn't shake off the ball of fire. Her foot stepped on a stone, and she fell backward, the flames rushing towards her face.

  Xin Yutao was getting excited and had already lost control of his emotions a little bit.

  In a burst of screams, Fangfang and Erliang Shenhui rushed up to rescue Xia Qiu, but they also couldn't withstand the fireball.

  Xiao Qiu subconsciously stretched out his right arm to block the approaching threat, and without thinking, he muttered the five words "Wrong or weak, don't fall".

  The fireball stopped, only four or five inches away from Xia Qiu's palm. It stopped, as if it had fallen into a tight net, unable to move no matter how hard it struggled.

  It happened suddenly, and the onlookers didn't react in time. Even Xin Youtao, the owner of the fireball, didn't realize what was happening and continued to rush forward until he was just inches away from the fireball before realizing something was wrong. He hastily stopped in his tracks, but his feet were momentarily unstable, and he almost fell to the ground as well.

  Xiao Qiu didn't think that the curse actually had an effect, and he could only feel a slight change in the air in front of him.

  Fang Fang and Er Liang Shen Xiu Wei supported the stunned Xiao Qiu, just as he stood up for a moment, the fireball exploded, sparks splashed everywhere, and people around were splashed with some. To onlookers, this seemed like Wang Zi Xin Yu Tao's ultimate move.

  The scene suddenly became chaotic, timid and cautious children retreated step by step, while others wanted to join the battle.

  Shen Hao had always been standing on the periphery, but now he suddenly became the front row. He saw seven or eight boys rushing towards Xiao Qiu, Fang Fang and Er Liang Shen Xiuyi. He could no longer hold back, and the pent-up anger and humiliation of many days suddenly erupted.

  "Damn it, I don't want my uncle anymore, Dizzy Three, I'm coming!"

  (Collection needed, recommendation needed)