4 Betting matches. (1/2)
Mei Kongxu's whisper was so low that it didn't reach his ears, but the forlorn light in her eyes as she sat down again caused one of Li Yang's eyebrows to rise ever so slightly. He lazily slumped down into the seat next to her and placed his hands behind his head, crossing his legs as two people entered the stone stage to start the sparring matches.
He only looked at the ongoing match with one eye, casting a few glances at the girl sitting next to him. He had to admit that the fiancee that his father had found for him was quite a bit prettier than he originally expected, her pitch-black eyes were so dark and deep that they seemed to pull on your soul, her white and silky hair making it look as if she was constantly surrounded by falling snow.
If he had a complaint then it would be the forlorn light in her eyes and the fact that she seemed too serious. Even now, despite looking directly at the ongoing fight, she wasn't actually looking at it. Her gaze seemed to peer directly through the surroundings and into the distance, her shoulders somewhat lowered as if she was carrying a heavy burden. If he had to give a description of his future wife based on just this initial greeting then it would have to be beautiful but boring. But since she was to be his future wife he couldn't exactly judge her based on just the initial greeting, his chin gesturing towards the sparring stage as he retained his cheeky smile.
”How about you and I engage in a small game? We'll bet on who wins the various sparring matches, the winner gets to ask a question of the loser. We're supposed to be husband and wife in the future so we might as well try to learn a bit more about each other, even if we may not end up interacting much in the future.”
Marriage was not something involving just one person, it needed two people to be accomplished. And looking at this Mei Kongxu it was abundantly clear that they might not have much to do with each other even after they got married. And if her personality was just like the first impression Li Yang got of her then that would suit him just fine, he couldn't be bothered to waste time on someone boring. Mei Kongxu's gaze moved slightly, focusing on Li Yang for a split second as she refused.
”I don't really see a need for that, it's not like I have any other questions I want to ask you.”
Mei Kongxu moved her gaze away from Li Yang again in a disinterested manner, but Li Yang simply maintained his cheeky grin, nodding backwards to motion towards the source of the faint pressure both of them were feeling.
”Oh, is Fairy Sister Kongxu scared that she'll lose and have to tell me all her embarrassing secrets? Don't worry, I'm a certified gentleman, I won't ask you any questions that might cause a tingling down below. Besides, with the bigshots watching us, we have to at least pretend a little, no?”
Mei Kongxu's eyebrows twitched slightly under Li Yang's teasing and rather shameless words, her pupils flickering slightly as she cast a stealthy glance at the seating area high above them. She moved her pupils back onto the two young men fighting on the stage, pointing at a grey-haired youth from the Deepsea King sect, Li Yang not missing a beat as he pointed at the black-haired youth from the World-rending Behemoth sect.
”That boy from your sect will win, he's commanding the flow of the battle and hogs all the initiative for himself. He should win within another two minutes.”
”Hah, Song Yongju winning? Dream on, that bastard lets everything get to his head, give him an inch and he'll take a mile and then some, especially in a setting like this, you can even see traces of it already. He'll get cocky soon enough, that kiddo from your sect will then crush him, probably using his legs since he seems to be trying to hide the fact that his legs are his strongest point.”
Mei Kongxu's eyebrows twitched once again when Li Yang so casually pointed out the fact that the youth from her sect had been trying to hide by using only his upper body during the entire fight. And sure enough, after the battle dragged on for another minute, the grey-haired Song Yongju started taunting his opponent while showing off to the audience, an action that swiftly earned him a fierce kick to the side of the head while he was flaunting.
The force of the kick went straight into his ear and ravaged his centre of balance, resulting in Song Yongju collapsing to the ground and leaving him defenceless against his opponents continued rush of attacks. The corners of Li Yang's lips remained raised throughout the entire fight, his head tilting fractally as he glanced at Mei Kongxu.
”It's fine to be carefree and lazy, or probably distant and cold in your case, but if you let your eyes go so bad that you can't even properly see what's in front of you then you're just asking to get beat. A win for my brilliant eyes and a loss for Fairy Sister Kongxu's nearsighted eyes. So, what exactly is it that you're looking for with those distant eyes of yours?”
Mei Kongxu moved her gaze away from the fight, and for the first time since the initial greeting, she looked directly at Li Yang and locked eyes with him. She studied his crimson eyes as if she was trying to understand his true nature, turning her gaze away again as two new fighters stepped into the stage.
”A tyrant, I'm looking for a tyrant. I'm looking for the greatest tyrant so that I can force him to uphold the promise he already broke once. In this fight, Bai Piugan from my sect will win.”
Her answer couldn't be called very thorough or proper, but she had answered the question so Li Yang couldn't say anything about it. He also noticed that her eyes glimmered slightly when she spoke about the tyrant, a stark contrast to the forlorn and distant light she had shown so far. He turned his gaze onto the two people entering the stage, his eyes roaming over the two people for a bit before he helplessly shrugged his shoulders, even calling out to the fighters.
”Yup, Lagu Sanye doesn't stand a chance in this fight, poor bastard just went on to embarrass himself. Oy, Slowpoke Sansan, don't lose so badly that you throw away our face! Do it gracefully, gracefully I tell you!”
Lagu Sanye winced visibly after Li Yang called out, turning his head and casting a vicious glare at Li Yang, who felt a slight increase on the pressure on him as his father's gaze undoubtedly landed on him. But Li Yang didn't care one bit about either of those things, leaning back in his seat and motioning towards Mei Kongxu.
”A win for your fast tongue and a loss for my bad luck, your turn to ask.”
Mei Kongxu glanced at Li Yang, who didn't seem bothered in the slightest by having to admit his loss, but didn't speak up right away. She waited for the fight to actually end in her expected victory, Li Yang muttering a quiet 'oh, so diligent.' Only when her victory was assured did she state her question, her glancing gaze lingering on Li Yang's face.
”I'll throw your question back at you. Why are you sharpening your eyes despite acting lazy and carefree, what are you looking for?”
Everyone who sharpened their gaze to the point of learning some people's strong points after just a bit of inspection was obviously aiming for something, they didn't do something like that without purpose. But faced with Mei Kongxu's passing interest in his goal, Li Yang simply chuckled.
”What I'm looking for? Easy, some fun. Don't you think this world is just too serious and boring? Everyone here and there keeps going on and on about how you have to be serious to amount to anything, they toss away everything fun to focus, terrified that they'll never amount to anything. Doesn't that just sound like absolute horseshit? So I'll have fun, I'll be carefree and cheeky, cocky to the extreme as I ascend to the peak. And once I stand there and look down at all you boring and serious people, I will laugh at you and your condemnation, laugh at your foolish and narrow-minded beliefs.”
Disdainful and boundless arrogance, that was the only thing Mei Kongxu could see within the depths of Li Yang's crimson pupils. Arrogance to overshadow the whole world and then laugh at it, arrogance that wouldn't falter even if it were to be faced with the full might of the heavens themselves. Facing that arrogance, even Mei Kongxu's eyes flickered slightly. Li Yang turned his gaze onto the stage and pointed at the two people that entered it, cheekily declaring who would win the next match, as if the previous glimmer of arrogance had been nothing more than an illusion.