Chapter 79 - Settling Things (1/2)
Fu Xue put down her hammer to the side, releasing it from the magical grey lines. The massive rock formation crumbled into pieces.
She had won the fight fair and square. Bai Xuengen was torn when he awkwardly lifted himself from the ground to return to his seat. His legs were barely holding on but his mind was in a worse shape.
”I was too careless and let her discover the fact that I can't control my wind blades. She even took care to not use the hammer closer to me. The closer it is the easier I can deflect it but here... There was nothing I could do.”
Elder Purple Cloud was smiling internally, looking at the young man barely walking on his own. Next to him, Elder Crimson Cloud asked ”I take it you've found a good disciple, Brother Purple?”
”He will do perfectly, indeed.”
Far from the Elders who were now taking a brief intermission to repair the damage Fu Xue had done to the arena, the girl who had just fought found her seat next to Yan Yan.
”You were right in being confident, you've beaten Bai Xuengen pretty easily it seems” said Yan Yan.
”No Sister Yan, you were right. It was harder than I anticipated. I even had to use one of my trump cards, my Fu Clan's Earth Shattering Spirit technique.”
Shin Sumi turned silent for a moment. Despite her victory, Fu Xue's eyes had a strange depth to them. She was looking in the distance, peering through people and buildings, lost in her own thoughts.
She suddenly turned her head towards Bai Xuengen who was just now reaching his seat. Shin Sumi didn't attempt to stop her when she stood up and started walking. She was curious.
”Bai Xuengen. I want to ask you something.”
Bai Xuengen looked up and locked eyes with the girl who had just very nearly crushed him to death. But he could tell she wasn't seeking trouble. She was not one of these people who held a grudge after a scheduled fight.
”Are you related to Bai Fulong?”
The unusual question startled him a little bit. Why was she asking him about his 'Senior Brother Bai' who had helped him and saved his life many times in the Rising Star Tournament.
Bai Xuengen answered negatively, pausing for explanations. Fu Xue hesitated a few seconds but turned on her heels instead.
Bai wasn't an usual surname in East Seaside Country and Blue Fire Country. So more specifically, why would Bai Xuengen and Bai Fulong be from the same Bai Clan?
Shin Sumi had conflicted feelings, looking at both her friends interacting. She had heard Fu Xue's question to Bai Xuengen but didn't know what to make of it.
”That Bai Fulong has made quite an impression on you, hasn't he?”
”I have some unresolved business with him, that's all. Judging Bai Xuengen's progress since the Rising Star Tournament, I thought if they were related that would give me an idea of how strong Bai Fulong might be now...”
Slightly uncomfortable about talking about her other personality, Shin Sumi was relieved when the next fight started, cutting short on the conversation. Besides, she had other things to think about.
Her fight was coming next and she was intent on dropping out of the competition.
”How to look like I'm weaker than my opponent without the Elders realizing that this isn't the case?”
Shin Sumi knew she sounded arrogant when she spoke to herself, but she also knew who her opponent was. Gen Lao was a promising Liquid Realm disciple but he was definitely not on par with the likes of Fu Xue, Chu Erlong, Bai Xuengen and the others.
When time came for them to step on the platform, Shin Sumi still had no idea how to lose her fight with credibility.
”I'll just have to improvise then. Come at me Gen Lao.”
During the entirety of the fight, Shin Sumi did her best to react a bit late to Gen Lao's attacks. The techniques she used often lacked precision and her power was restrained to sixty percent of what she was capable of.
And yet she couldn't avoid using her reflexes at times. The same fighting reflexes she had honed for years while in the Dark Sky Starry Sect and she now had to forcefully stop.
How could that fool the Elders and Master Cloud, trained experts who were intently watching the round?
Even Master Cloud himself had lifted an eyebrow under the shadow that obscured him.
When the fight ended with Yan Yan on the ground and a panting Gen Lao holding a sword on her throat, even Chu Erlong and Fu Xue were perplexed.
Elder Azure Cloud who was to announce the issue of the fight cleared his throat, his angry face about to ask for an explanation.
Shin Sumi, as she was awkwardly getting up, thought ”how is it so hard to appear weak?!” She looked towards the Elders' seats feeling the growing pressure of their divine sense on her, wondering what to do now when she froze in place.
Nevermind the intimidating pressure of twelve Cloud Elders that were noticing her lack of fatigue and injury, what made her heart skip a beat was a pure white speck of dust landing on Master Cloud's open hand.
All eyes on her, nobody had seen the briefly visible white glow before Master cloud closed his hand, except her.
”Wait, Elder Azure Cloud” said Master Cloud in a soft and hypnotizing voice, ”This fight belongs to Gen Lao. Next fighters please.”
His face wasn't visible from where she stood, but Shin Sumi knew while speaking he had been looking at the White Crane's feather in his palm.
Shin Sumi glanced briefly up at the ceiling despite knowing she wouldn't be able to see the White Crane anyway. In a quiet manner she returned to her seat under the cheers from Gen Lao's friends.
Even if she had not deceived the Elders, most of the fighters hadn't seen her semi-obvious attempts at losing.
It wasn't the case for Fu Xue though as she stomped the ground angrily with her foot.
”Care to explain what that was, Sister Yan?! You're a very bad actor, you know that?”
”Sister Fu... I am sorry but I can't explain. I didn't want to participate in this ranking anyway. I'm not interested in the Cross Branch Arena.”
Having fully given up on pretending, Yan Yan told her friend in a low voice so the other fighters wouldn't hear, especially the poor Gen Lao who fully believed in his victory.
”So what? You're afraid, that's it? You're scared of meeting stronger opponents and getting hurt?” Fu Xue was trying to grasp Yan Yan's intents without success.
”And you, aren't you relieved we won't have to fight each other?” answered Shin Sumi.
Fu Xue grew silent for a moment. She looked at her friend with clenched teeth, her cheeks flushed a light red ”But... but...”
”It's too late anyway. Master Cloud has decided to let it slide and give Gen Lao the victory” Shin Sumi closed the debate before adding, in order to not raise more suspicion, ”I don't know why he decided to let me off the hook though.”
Still not convinced but unable to do anything, Fu Xue crossed her arms and turned to the ongoing fight on top of the platform.
Chu Erlong won easily. Despite her original talent that had been deemed only to be orange when she was in the Shinsoo Gathering Realm, she had the advantage of her grandfather being the Dark Sky Starry Sect's Great Elder.
Hence, her resources and her importance in the eyes of others had always been way above average. Using this appeal to the masses, she had gathered a large group of followers that proved useful in the Rising Star Tournament.
She had even grown closer to Jun Qian in order to ask him for help in killing Shin Sumi and Bai Fulong, unaware that both were the same person.
In exchange for his service, Chu Erlong had allowed Jun Qian to make her his dual-cultivation partner. Ever since then and despite their failure in their first objective, the two of them had remained close.
Dual-cultivation had also allowed them to intimately grow stronger, mixing their Yang and Yin type Shinsoo, to the point that both had made impressive progress.
Of course since she was the weaker one in the couple, Chu Erlong had been the one to benefit the most from these sessions.
She now stood proudly as number two of the Cloud-Formation Pavilion, right below Jun Qian who was Master Cloud' direct disciple.
At the end of the day, there remained only eight Liquid Realm disciples. According to the lineup, Chu Erlong was almost certain to end up in the final, opposing only the two strongest.
What interested Shin Sumi more was what would happen on the other end of the bracket. If everything went right, the semi-finals would oppose Jun Qian and Fu Xue.