Chapter 303 - 181: Fake Painting

Chapter 303: Chapter 181: Fake Painting

Xiaotao had intended to greet the triumphant Zheng Xiu with a smile, but when she looked down and saw his palm gushing blood, her expression changed. She frantically wrapped it with a silk scarf.

Staring at the wound on his palm, which was deep enough to expose the bone, Zheng Xiu was rather surprised himself.

’Who the hell was that guy? To think he broke my Unbreakable with a single slash.’

His Unbreakable skill was only at the Entry level, and its description was "skin like bedrock, bones like fine steel," not "Indestructible." For Cheng Xiao to inflict such a deep, bleeding wound with one slash, he was clearly no ordinary person.

As Xiaotao painstakingly bandaged his wound, Zheng Xiu had another thought. Cheng Xiao’s slash had easily severed the Fine Iron Fan Ribs, cutting through metal as if it were mud. It wasn’t so strange that it had broken through Unbreakable.

Or perhaps his "link" with the Prisoner Path wasn’t deep enough.

A confluence of factors had resulted in this wound.

After Cheng Xiao left, the tournament continued.

But the subsequent rounds went by much faster.

In the next two rounds, he first faced a master ranked twenty-seventh on the Weapon Manual. The man wielded an uncommon weapon, a pair of Midnight Mandarin Duck Halberds, which he brandished with dazzling flair. He had hoped to take advantage of the fact that Zheng Xiu had no weapon at hand, but Zheng Xiu sent him flying with a single slap, knocking him unconscious on the spot.

The female warrior in the second round was buxom, with charming features. When Zheng Xiu used his "Projection," her knees went weak. Her longsword pressed feebly against his chest, lacking any force, and she immediately conceded. Before leaving the stage, the wilting warrior asked Hero Xiao where he was staying the night and if he had time for a romantic, moonlit chat. Zheng Xiu refused and thus won the final match.

With that, the tournament for the Jiazi group was over. He had entered the top ten of the Hero Rankings.

By the time the winners were decided in the other four groups, the moon was high in the sky, and the night air was cool and damp.

Although the other Knights had failed to take the top spot, this martial arts tournament had been full of twists and turns. They had enjoyed the spectacle and would return to the Martial World with plenty of new stories to boast about. The trip had not been in vain.

As the crowd dispersed, only a dozen or so people remained in the arena.

Aside from Zheng Xiu, these individuals were nearly all formidable figures ranked in the top thirty of the Weapon Manual. While there might have been a bit of luck involved in their winning a top-ten spot on the Hero Rankings, they were, at the end of the day, all skilled fighters.

"Congratulations, everyone!"

Dugu Xiang’s eyes glinted as he descended from the high platform and clasped his fist in congratulations. He invited them all to rest well at Hidden Sword Manor for the night, saying they could view the masterpiece left by Gongsun Painting Saint together in the morning.

"Hero Dugu, there’s no time like the present! Why not tonight? We can’t wait any longer!"

A master of the unorthodox path, ranked sixteenth on the Weapon Manual and known as the "Purple Blood Sword," spoke up with a sinister chuckle. He was wrapped in a cloak.

An old man with a kind face and a long, navy-blue robe stroked his beard and smiled. "I have always been a great admirer of the Art of Painting and have revered Gongsun Painting Saint from afar for many years. Now that I have learned his masterpiece has appeared in the world, I have traveled a thousand miles just for a single glance. With the martial arts tournament concluded, my heart is itching with anticipation. I implore Hero Dugu, do not keep an old man like me in suspense any longer! Let me see the Painting Saint’s authentic work!"

"Gentleman’s Sword Yue Chongyang, truly a gentleman, just as his name implies! HAHAHA!" A bald, burly man with a fat head, big ears, and a potbelly, who had fought his way into the top ten with a pair of iron claws, laughed heartily from the side. But his eyes were full of ridicule, and his words were laced with sarcasm as he continued:

"Unlike us rough types, we don’t understand any of that bullshit about romantic notions and art! Hero Dugu, let’s not mince words. Ever since the legend of ’He who obtains the Four Seasons Map can obtain Nie Gong’s Treasure Vault’ began to spread through the Jianghu, who under Heaven doesn’t want a piece of the pie? Even the Court, if they weren’t busy with the war in the north, would have already scoured the land for the Four Seasons Map to find Nie Gong’s Treasure Vault! It wouldn’t be our turn, a bunch of small fry! Now that Hero Dugu has been so generous as to share, we’ll be tossing and turning all night. How can we possibly wait until tomorrow? We ask Hero Dugu to fulfill the promise made on the Heroic Invitation and tell us the location of Nie Gong’s Treasure Vault! Otherwise... I’m afraid Hidden Sword Manor might have a hard time commanding respect today!"

As he spoke, the bald man took a step forward, waving his hands at the others and shouting, "Tell me, am I right?! What’s there to hide? We’re straightforward people, we say it like it is! Not like Senior Yue, the Gentleman’s Sword, who’s so respected in the Jianghu that he has to worry about his reputation!"

Including Zheng Xiu, no one voiced their support for the bald man, but their eyes flickered as they each harbored their own thoughts. In this situation, however, silence was tantamount to agreement. After the bald man’s tirade, the old senior, Gentleman’s Sword Yue Chongyang, snorted lightly through his nose, clearly displeased. But he didn’t refute it.

It was the truth.

With the exception of Zheng Xiu’s persona, "Xiao Buping," who had shown surprising strength like a dark horse, the other nine were all figures who held a place on the Weapon Manual. Among them, the bald man ranked lowest—Zhang Da’er, known as the "Iron-Clawed Blood Chef"—was once ranked forty-sixth on the Weapon Manual by Bai Xiaosheng. Forty-sixth might seem low, but to stand out from the tens of millions of Martial Artists and be included in Bai Xiaosheng’s Weapon Manual was a feat in itself. Even "Iron Fan Scholar Xiao Buping," who perennially ranked outside the nineties, was considered a famous figure. They were all names discussed in the Jianghu over tea and after meals; there wasn’t a single weakling among them.

If these ten were to harden their hearts and raise hell at Hidden Sword Manor together, they might not gain the upper hand in a place teeming with masters, but it was still a scenario Dugu Xiang wished to avoid.

Dugu Xiang’s expression remained calm. By now, the other attending Martial Artists had long since departed, leaving the arena empty. He smiled, clasped his fist at the group, and said, "I, Dugu Xiang, have built my reputation and wide circle of friends in the Martial World on a single principle: ’trust’! Now that I have given my word, I will not break faith with you. I was merely concerned that your exhaustion might dampen the mood for appreciating the painting. But since none of you will accept my kind consideration, so be it. I will take you to appreciate Gongsun Painting Saint’s masterpiece right now."