Chapter 181: Freedom Without Debt

　　In no time, the snow had submerged the whole rooftop as if the season suddenly changed from spring to winter in the blink of an eye.

　　The sharp ice spike and the hissing of sword-energy arrived with a loud bang.

　　The three harpies turned back in a hurry, but they were too late.

　　Rays of mild golden talisman-light appeared along with the sword stance and weaved a web in the sea of bloody light.

　　The web was going to shatter and smash the power gained by exciting the blood vessels.

　　Boom!

　　Tons of snow fell to the ground.

　　The hiss of sword-energy followed after the boom. After the continuous noises, a lotus manifested from the sword and blossomed among the sea of bloody light.

　　The bone-chilling wind whistled, the earth quaked, and the mountains shook. Even huge waves surged from the river below the mountain from the shockwave.

　　After the sudden onslaught, the venue became peaceful again.

　　Splash!

　　A puddle of blood could be seen on the floor. Wei Chunqiu stumbled and held himself up with his sword.

　　He had not fully regained his strength yet, but he forcefully activated his secret skill. His blood and lifeforce in his body churned, and he could no longer contain his injury.

　　Kou Wei was no better. Five Dragons Playing with a Pearl – this skill required a lot of mystic force. Kou Wei also froze his water dragons, which also consumed most of his mystic force. Kou Wei was now as pale as a sheet of paper and looked like he might faint.

　　Looking over, the bloody light had disappeared, and the harpies looked like they were almost dead. They clearly had no more energy left to fight. Wei Chunqiu and Kou Wei heaved a sigh of relief. They suddenly thought about Lu Mingshu and hurriedly looked around to check if she was okay.

　　All they saw was Lu Mingshu floating in the middle of the air, collecting back her spiritual tool. She then dropped to the ground like a feather as if nothing happened.

　　Not only were the spectators bewildered, but Kou Wei and Wei Chunqiu were also as well.

　　She was acting as bait and all that, but how could she not be even slightly injured?

　　Lin Zixin stepped onto the rooftop and went to ask the harpies a few questions.

　　The three harpies ignored him. The first harpy struggled to stand up and turn to his fellow teammates before waving his hand. “Let’s go!”

　　The second and third harpy struggled to stand up. They went back to their tent without saying a word.

　　In an instant, the crowd gave the trio thunderous applause.

　　Everybody present, from the servant girls to the disciples to the Spirit Realm experts, had smiles on their faces and applauded for them loudly.

　　This match brought glory to mankind. Especially for Lu Mingshu, she proved that ability wasn’t just about skills and basics. Without her observation skills, they would not have been able to win this match so impressively, if at all.

　　In terms of contribution, she definitely deserved first place on the New Generation Ranking.

　　“Miss Lu, how are you?” Kou Wei asked with concern when he regained some energy.

　　Lu Mingshu shook her head. “I’m fine.”

　　“Are there any injuries?”

　　“No.”

　　Wei Chunqiu sighed in relief and admiration. If she was inaccurate even a tiny bit, she would have received serious injuries.

　　The three of them bowed to the spectators and went back to their respective tents.

　　Smiling like the Cheshire Cat, Lin Zixin announced the result. “The match for today ends here. Ladies and gentlemen, you can now make your way back. Tomorrow will be the start of the fights for the Hero Ranking. Please look forward to it. Have a good rest everyone.”

　　The disciples were still full of energy, and they went back to their rooms in groups while still discussing the match that just ended. Even the Hero Ranking fights, which was the main attraction of Qilin Festival, was no longer that attractive.

　　When the Qilin Festival ended and the New Ranking was announced to the world, this match would be a delight to the world!

　　They had witnessed a legend!

　　As for Lu Mingshu, she was tired to death, and she didn’t even have enough energy to speak. When she got back to her room, she immediately shut the door and plopped down on her bed.

　　The last three matches had drained all her energy.

　　She lay down on her bed, allowing herself to relax while the six-coloured streamers surrounded her and recharged her.

　　…

　　After some time, when Lu Mingshu opened her eyes, she realized that something was out of place.

　　The Heavenly Wheel… has lit up?

　　She looked forward and saw that the space that she had been banned from was now lit up again, and the floating island could be seen clearly.

　　She scanned her surroundings and stopped on the center of the Heavenly Wheel.

　　Lu Mingshu looked at the tree as it turned into many rays of light. The lights flowed down and congealed into a phantom wooden wheel.

　　In the middle, there was a number on it – forty-seven.

　　The number was green.

　　Lu Mingshu stared blankly at the number for a while. “Xiao Sang.”

　　“Yes?” Xiao Sang answered immediately.

　　“Did I pay off all my debt?”

　　“Yes.”

　　Lu Mingshu felt surreal. I owed a thousand and two hundred points the last time I checked, along with interest. How did I manage to pay off everything?

　　“What happened? Where did all the points come from?”

　　“Every win in the real world will give you points.”

　　“Then why didn’t I receive anything previously?” Lu Mingshu asked blankly.

　　“The Qilin Festival counts as one match. The match just ended, so we only just calculated the points.”

　　Lu Mingshu, who was now used to being to debt, couldn’t accept it for a moment.

　　“May I know how exactly I earned the points?”

　　“Yes.” Xiao Sang answered slowly, “Your points for this competition accumulated from the first round all the way until it ended for a total of three hundred. You got first place on the New Generation Ranking, so an additional three hundred points. In the last fight, you lead your team to victory against the barbarians, which earned you another six hundred points. You also managed to upgrade your strength, so one hundred points for that. So, in total, you earned one thousand and three hundred points.”

　　No wonder! One thousand and three hundred, subtracting the one thousand, two hundred, and fifty-three would give her change of forty-seven.

　　“I placed first in the Heavenly Door competition too, but I didn’t even get a hundred points back then. Why do I gain so much now?”

　　Lu Mingshu was confused. Comparing both competitions, the Heavenly Door competition had of a personal impact. She changed her mindset, and she learned Physical Manifestation of Sword Intent. She also pushed herself to the limit by winning eighteen fights in a row.

　　“Because you only changed yourself during that competition.”

　　Lu Mingshu stared blankly into space. Only changed myself? She couldn’t understand.

　　She flashed back to the times where she fought in the arenas. The challenge at the rune-carving shop earned her the most points even though it had the fewest spectators. So… did the Heavenly Wheel perhaps want her to change the world around her?

　　The Heavenly Door competition was internal to her sect, but the Qilin Festival was the biggest festival in China, so the impact was definitely different.

　　Becoming a successor disciple of Nine Jade Palace wouldn’t create much attention, but placing first on the New Generation Ranking would.

　　And defeating the barbarians would bring more than twice as much attention like that for sure.

　　“So, is it…?”

　　Lu Mingshu decided to ignore that matter for now. “Xiao Sang, I can use the Heavenly Wheel now, right?”

　　“Yes.”

　　Lu Mingshu reached out to the wooden wheel. The originally grey areas were now lit up once again.

　　She went into the forum and found a familiar number.

　　“Brother Six.”

　　Brother Six, who was a business specialist that spent most of his time in the Heavenly Wheel, immediately came over. “Finally! Little Sister Seven, where have you been? You were gone for so long. Is everything fine?”

　　She had been in debt for half a year.

　　“Not really, I was delayed by something,” Lu Mingshu answered vaguely. She then got to her point. “Brother Six, I need your help.”