Chapter 634: Suffering

　　The moment Meng Jing posed that question, everyone else looked over in unison, their eyes shining with curiosity. It was a burning question in everyone’s hearts.

　　They saw Qiang Wanzhou dealing two attacks to his opponent at the very least. But when it came to Chu Liuyue’s end, the match was over with her emerging as the winner before they knew it.

　　Other than the completed Xuan formation on the black stone slab—which proved that she had indeed won with her own capabilities—nobody saw how her victory came about. This explained why Meng Jing would so agitatedly ask one question after another.

　　Chu Liuyue stopped and turned her head to smirk at him. “Because I’m capable.”

　　Meng Jing and everyone else were rendered speechless.

　　Ye Ranran tugged at Lu Zhiyao’s sleeve and whispered, “Senior, won’t Liuyue come off a little arrogant this way?”

　　How is this just ‘a little arrogant?’ The word ‘arrogant’ is practically plastered in bold across her face! But then, why am I enjoying this? The corners of Lu Zhiyao’s lips twitched at that. “What of it? Like she said before—if the winners don’t deserve to be arrogant, then the losers have even less right to do so! Earlier, the people from Jiu Xing Alliance all had their noses in the air. They didn’t even have the slightest respect for us! Our junior is just paying them back in their own coin!”

　　We’ve been tolerating them since the start of the competition and have almost reached our limits! Now that we finally have the chance to put them in their place, we naturally have to make good use of it!

　　Hearing that, Ye Ranran nodded in understanding. “That makes sense! Isn’t Meng Jing the most outstanding Xuan Master in Jiu Xing Alliance? But he lost to Liuyue in the end, so that title must be fake.”

　　“Tsk, did the match even last for five minutes just now? I don’t think it did, right? It’s a good thing that Meng Jing didn’t bother to sit down. It’d be quite troublesome if he had to stand up again the moment he sat.”

　　“On top of that, he even dared to accuse Liuyue of cheating. We have so many people watching here. Does he think that everyone is blind?”

　　“From what I see, he’s a narrow-minded person!”

　　“Wanzhou is really capable too! He defeated his opponent in just two moves! Both of them are stage-six warriors, but why is there such a huge difference in their capabilities?”

　　One by one, the rest of Chong Xu Cabinet’s disciples joined in the conversation and spoke their minds. With just a few sentences, they criticized Meng Jing from top to bottom and inside to out. Not even Jiu Xing Alliance—the sect he belonged to—was spared.

　　Jiu Xing Alliance’s members used to mock and ridicule them, but they could finally hold their heads high now.

　　…

　　While Meng Jing almost fainted out of anger, Zhang Hua—who could no longer stand to listen on—barked, “What are you still standing there for? Get back here this instant!” Doesn’t he find himself a disgrace?!

　　This jolted Meng Jing back to reality, and it was then that he remembered he had lost this match. Master will surely be angry at me…

　　He then took a quick glance at Zhang Hua, whose face had anger written all over it as expected. He immediately lowered his head, made his way back to his clan, and stood in front of Zhang Hua, his face full of guilt. “I apologize for my incompetence—”

　　“Since you know that you’re incompetent, hurry up and make yourself scarce! Don’t be an eyesore here!” It was only natural that Zhang Hua—who was currently in a raging mood—spoke harshly.

　　Having never been reprimanded in public, mixed emotions surfaced on Meng Jing’s face. Hanging his head low, he suppressed his tumultuous feelings and murmured, “…Yes.”

　　He then quickly retreated.

　　Nobody was talking on Jiu Xing Alliance’s end, but many of them sneaked secret glances at Meng Jing with varying expressions. Other people might lose, but Meng Jing… He’s basically the best Xuan Master among us. It’s truly baffling that he lost to Chu Liuyue, but the result is clear for us to see—Chu Liuyue has indeed won the match. Could she really be more capable than we expected her to be?

　　As the other disciple who had lost to Qiang Wanzhou returned with his tail between his legs, Zhang Hua’s mood plummeted even further, which was only natural for anyone experiencing two consecutive losses. The point was that they had suffered crushing defeats.

　　Just minutes ago, Chong Xu Cabinet was three points behind us. Now, they’ve almost caught up to us in the blink of an eye. If they win the next match, we’ll be tied! And if they win the last match as well… the tables will truly be turned! I can’t let that happen! He turned to look at the two disciples who would be competing in the last two matches. “You must win the last two matches, you hear me?! You know what awaits you if you lose!”

　　The two disciples flinched in unison as they immediately replied, “We got it!”

　　…

　　When Chu Liuyue walked over to Qiang Wanzhou’s side, she noticed that he was still wiping his sword and that he looked somewhat upset. “Why do you seem unhappy even after winning the competition, Little Zhou?”

　　Although his opponent wasn’t much of a challenge for him, he was still a stage-six warrior. Wanzhou ought to be celebrating his win. A thought suddenly hit her mind as she studied his face, and she teased, “Surely you’re not feeling upset because you lost to me?”

　　“That’s not it.” Qiang Wanzhou finally ceased his actions and looked up at her. There was a hint of embarrassment on the teenager’s pretty face. “…He dirtied my sword.”

　　Chu Liuyue blinked her eyes in confusion before she belatedly realized what he meant. He’s upset because… the sword was stained with that person’s blood?

　　She was caught between laughter and tears. “Since it’s a sword, it’ll surely be stained with blood at some point.”

　　Qiang Wanzhou silently looked away. Knowing that Chu Liuyue had gone through a lot to refine the sword yet still gave it to him, he treasured it dearly despite his calm exterior. This was why he didn’t let the sword touch his opponent at first, although it was still stained with blood in the end.

　　That person has no right to stain my sword with his blood. He stubbornly gave his sword another wipe before he finally whispered, “But you suffered so much to refine this sword.”

　　A warm current flowed into Chu Liuyue’s heart. “Little Zhou, I meant to give this sword to you in the first place. Knowing that you treasure it so much, what I experienced before… is nothing.”

　　Hearing that, the emotions of Chu Liuyue’s ancestor—which had finally settled down—turned tumultuous once more. He tried to stop himself from giving any comments, but it was to no avail. “Lass, I don’t think you’re the one who suffered the most.” What about those lightning bolts that had been taught a lesson?