Wu Jian’s fight, if one could call it that, was the first match of the semi-finals, and it was disappointing enough that many people boo’d Hou Gun off the stage. The young man looked calm and collected. However, his fists were tightly clenched even as he smiled. Wu Jian knew he must have been burning up inside, but really, it was his own fault for forfeiting during the semi-finals.

Hou Jingshu vs. Mei Xilan.

“Looks like you’re up against our strongest contender,” Wu Jian said, glancing at the woman beside him. “Do you think you can beat her?”

“I’m certainly gonna give it my best,” said Hou Jingshu. She glanced at him with big green eyes. “Wish me luck?”

Wu Jian could not remove his mask, so he couldn’t give her a good luck kiss. What he did instead was pull the young princess into his embrace. He held her tightly as she pressed her face against his chest and hugged him back.

“Good luck,” he whispered.

“Mmm. Thanks.”

Hou Jingshu’s ears were pink as she pulled back and beamed at him. Her refreshing expression soon left, replaced by fiery determination, as she and Mei Xilan left the waiting room. They walked side by side in silence for a moment. Hou Jingshu thought it would remain like this, but Mei Xilan surprised her by speaking up.

“You and Jian Wu are very close,” she said.

“Well… of course. Jian Wu is my man.”

“By that, you mean that you and he are engaged?”

“It’s… not official yet… but father gave me his blessing to be with whomever I want. I chose Jian Wu.”

“I see.”

“… Why do you want to know?”

“Call it idle curiosity.”

Hou Jingshu didn’t think her question stemmed from something so simple as curiosity, but they soon reached the stage, and she put those thoughts out of her mind. She climbed onto the stage alongside Mei Xilan.

The two opponents faced each other. The elder stood between them. He looked back and forth at the pair.

“Are you both ready?” he asked. They nodded. “Very well. Bow to your ancestors. Bow to me. Now, bow to your opponent. On my mark. Three, two, one… fight!”

Hou Jingshu grinned widely as she burst forward like a bolt of lightning, summon her spear into her hand as she charged. Several walls of ice appeared before her, but she cut them down, chi billowing around her like a flame. The chi soon condensed around her body and formed ethereal scales.

Mei Xilan tried to freeze Hou Jingshu’s feet, but it was pointless, like trying to stop a storm. The ice that connected Hou Jingshu’s feet to the floor shattered moments after it formed. The young woman’s formidable strength was like that of a dragon and no amount of ice could stop it.

Hou Jingshu reached Mei Xilan in less than a second and thrust her spear forward. The glowing tip looked like golden flames, which took the same of a dragon’s head, maw opened wide as if to swallow her opponent whole.

[Jaws of Retribution]

Mei Xilan held out a hand. Ice formed before her. It looked like a blooming lotus, but the object was quite small--much smaller than the attack coming at her.

[Ice Lotus]

Despite being so much smaller than Jaws of Retribution, the ice lotus stopped Hou Jingshu’s attack in its tracks. Hou Jingshu glared at the object that was keeping her from attacking Mei Xilan. She roared and put more chi into her attack, causing the dragon to glow an even brighter shade. Cracks formed along the lotus. Then it shattered.

Hou Jingshu was about to charge at Mei Xilan again, but she found herself unable to move. She looked down. Ice had formed all along the ground and crept up her body. It already covered everything from the knees down. Mei Xilan must have done this while she was busy attacking the ice lotus.

The woman who had frozen her in place leapt high into the air. She landed on one of the platforms. Now standing high above Hou Jingshu, she raised her hand, and snowflakes appeared. There were dozens of them. They weren’t very big, maybe about the size of a hand. However, Hou Jingshu’s instincts screamed at her to not let herself get hit by even one of those.

With a wave of her hand, Mei Xilan sent her attack at Hou Jingshu.

[Snowflake Blades]

Several dozen snowflakes flew down in an overwhelming barrage. Hou Jingshu knew she wouldn’t be able to block all of these with just her spear. She inhaled a deep breath, gathered chi into her lungs, and expelled it all in one breath.

[Dragon’s Roar]

A deafening roar like that of an enraged dragon echoed across the arena, forcing everyone in the stands to cover their ears. The soundwave this attack unleashed caused all of the snowflakes to shatter. Even the ice that kept her pinned to the ground cracked enough that Hou Jingshu could use her superior strength to break free.

Hou Jingshu rushed toward the pillar. It looked like she was going to smash into it, but then she began running up the pillar in defiance of gravity.

Mei Xilan leapt off the pillar and onto another one, but Hou Jingshu followed, jumping from her place, landing on the other pillar, and continuing to run up it. She soon reached Mei Xilan and tried to once more stab the other girl with her spear. She missed as Mei Xilan leapt away, and when she tried to chase after the woman, she was forced to spin the spear protectively in front of her as almost a dozen spinning snowflakes were sent her way. While none of them did much damage, a few did cut into the flesh of her arms and legs.

Landing on another platform, Mei Xilan eyed Hou Jingshu, who stared right back at her. Was she wary? She seemed to be doing her best to keep Hou Jingshu at bay. Maybe she was worried about Hou Jingshu’s strength? Her cultivation wasn’t as high as Húndàn Wang, but her physical strength far exceeded his.

Hou Jingshu thought about chasing after the woman, but she understood that wouldn’t get her anywhere. Mei Xilan’s attacks weren’t very flashy, but they were very strong. A normal snowflake would have never been able to cut into her skin while she was wearing her Dragon’s Armor--a defensive technique that covered her body in chi that looked like dragon scales. This technique was more than capable of blocking steel swords, though it might not put up much of a fight against a spirit profound weapon.

What should I do? How can I close the distance?

***

“This is quite the exciting tournament,” said Zhou Xie. “Those two young women are very strong. I didn’t realize the Shang Kingdom was brimming with such talent this year.”

“Even I am surprised by the talent being displayed here,” said Zhou Chaoxiang.

“The Shang Kingdom’s princess is a real surprise. Her physical abilities are off the charts. She’s faster and stronger than most of the people in this tournament, and the chi she can wield is equally impressive. It’s too bad her opponent is Mei Xilan. I think if it were anyone else, Hou Jingshu would have already won.”

“Even if she fought Húndàn Wang?”

“Definitely. Húndàn Wang is strong, but he lacks experience. His strength also lay in his talent with a sword. However, Hou Jingshu has both strength and experience. You can see by how she fights that she’s been in many battles. The only reason she hasn’t won here is because Mei Xilan is a mid to long-range fighter, has excellent defensive techniques, and is an expert at keeping her distance. However, if Hou Jingshu ever managed to close the distance between them and really land an attack, it would all be over.”

“You’re praising them quite effusively. Do you think they are strong enough to give our talented youths a run for their money?” asked Zhou Chaoxiang.

“Hmmm…”

Zhou Lihua pretended not to pay attention to the conversation taking place close by between the branch head, Zhou Chaoxiang, and Zhou Xie. Yet even while she watched the match taking place down below, she made sure to keep an eye on their reflection in the window. They were too far away for her to hear what was being said, but she was reading their lips. It was a skill she had picked up from her time selling alchemy pills.

“It’s hard to say,” Zhou Xie said at last, hand still cupped to his chin. “If you were to pit either of those girls against someone of the same age from the Zhou Clan’s main household, they may or may not be able to win. Those two are definitely talented. Even among the Zhou Clan, it is rare for someone so young to reach the peak of the Asura Realm, nevermind the Human Limit Realm. Of course, if you were to pit them against someone a few years older, it wouldn’t even be a contest. The Shang Kingdom doesn’t have the resources needed to bring the pair to a higher cultivation.”

“Perhaps we should consider lending them some aid? It might be in our best interest to foster a good relationship with the Shang Kingdom if they can produce talent like this,” said Zhou Chaoxiang.

Zhou Xie shrugged. “You certainly bring up an interesting point. I’ll contact Lord Chaoqie and ask for his thoughts on the matter. Don’t do anything until we hear back from him.”

“Of course.”

So they are thinking of ingratiating themselves to the Shang Kingdom? That might prove beneficial to Hou Jingshu and Wu Jian… but I wonder if it’s good for the country.

Alliances did not shift often in the Xaio Continent. The Shang Kingdom’s alliance with the Heavenly Sword Sect was a good example. It had formed several hundred years ago when Hou Jingshu’s grandfather impressed the Heavenly Sword Sect’s sect master, who was actually still the sect master even to this day. The reason the alliance was still going strong was because the Heavenly Sword Sect’s sect master was still alive and well.

Cultivators could live for a long time. The higher one’s cultivation, the longer they lived. Since the people who had formed the alliance were still alive, the alliance held strong. It was only when the people who forged the alliance died that it would weaken. The people who came after had no emotional ties to their allies and would eventually move away from them as they forged new alliances with people they believed were more beneficial to them.

That wasn’t to say every person who formed an alliance remained an ally. People did have a falling out all the time, but the alliance between this kingdom and the Heavenly Sword Sect was one that had withstood the test of time.

In either event, if the Zhou Clan decided to make nice with the Shang Kingdom, it might cause the Heavenly Sword Sect to feel threatened. On the other hand, it might also cause the Heavenly Sword Sect to try even harder to make nice with the Shang Kingdom. This could be either a good thing or a bad thing, depending on how the sect master perceived the Zhou Clan’s actions.

I don’t think they’re trying to start trouble with the Heavenly Sword Sect, but I do wonder what their intentions are.

Thinking about what the higher ups of her clan were doing wouldn’t provide any benefits to her, so she refocused all of her attention on Hou Jingshu and Mei Xilan’s battle. They were at a standstill now. The two stood on pillars located on opposite sides of the arena. A thick tension between them had sprung up, so strong even Zhou Lihua could feel it from where she stood.

Finally, Hou Jingshu sprang forward. Mei Xilan launched several snowflakes, but the Shang Kingdom princess had propelled herself forward by pushing off the pillar wall. She once more thrust her spear forward. A dragon formed on the edge and slammed into the pillar. Zhou Lihua thought her friend had missed her target, but then the entire pillar shattered, and Mei Xilan, still standing on the pillar, fell down alongside all the rubble.

Hou Jingshu leapt into the air, reached the apex of her jump, and ascended down. Her aim was true. She was flying right toward Mei Xilan. The ice fairy had landed on the ground just a few seconds ago. She had been forced to create a giant ice lotus to shield her from the falling debris, which meant she couldn’t see Hou Jingshu.

At least, that was what Zhou Lihua first thought.

Her eyes widened when the lotus changed shape, becoming thin and concave. Sunlight reflected from the mirror and hit Hou Jingshu’s eyes. The princess shrieked in surprise as she was blinded, and because she couldn’t see, she was unable to do anything as Mei Xilan created an ice pillar that slammed into her torso.