Chen Fang watched the dust cloud in the center of the arena, and a thought suddenly struck him. He sensed movement within the dust.
"Lin Zhen Mo Qiang! Lei Ting Wan Jun!"
"Zong Shi, Pi Shan Duan Hai!"
A figure shot out from the dust, and a giant sword formed of sword energy slashed down towards Chen Fang's head.
Chen Fang was startled. He hadn't even had time to dodge the sudden attack.
Chen Fang only managed to raise his long sword to block the sword energy above him.
With a boom.
The sword energy, carrying thunder and cold, landed squarely on Chen Fang's head.
Chen Fang was suddenly forced to his knees by the immense pressure from above, and the long sword in his hand snapped into two pieces with a crack.
Puff!
Chen Fang instantly spat out a mouthful of blood.
On the viewing platform, Xu Fengnian's expression changed. He had absolutely not expected such a sudden turn of events.
Chen Fang clutched his chest, blood trickling from the corners of his mouth. He had just managed to stand up when he collapsed again due to his injuries.
Su Fan panted. He had just forcibly used the "Lei Ting Wan Jun" skill with the "Zong Heng Zhi Shu" moves, which had placed a great burden on his body. Although his health had not decreased, Su Fan felt a persistent lack of strength.
"Hoo, come again!"
Su Fan pointed his sword at the fallen Chen Fang and said sternly.
Seeing this, Chen Fang's brows furrowed. He struggled to stand up, but his injuries caused him to collapse again.
"I... I lose..."
Chen Fang reluctantly chose to surrender.
Xu Fengnian on the platform saw this and his face turned as cold as frost. He said to a servant beside him, "Go and check Chen Fang's injuries. If he's faking, kill him!"
Xu Fengnian did not believe that Chen Fang would lose to Su Fan.
"Yes."
The subordinate replied and retreated to check Chen Fang's injuries.
Chen Fang lay on the ground, looking at Su Fan, who was breathing heavily, and a hidden smile flickered across his face.
"This is all I can do to help you."
Su Fan looked at Chen Fang with gratitude.
He could tell that Chen Fang had held back, and that his final blow, while capable of injuring Chen Fang, was certainly not enough to cause such severe damage. That mouthful of blood was forced out by Chen Fang himself.
Soon, Xu Fengnian's men arrived on the stage and examined Chen Fang's injuries.
"Reporting to Young Master, there are no issues."
Chen Fang's injuries were real; he had indeed suffered serious internal injuries.
"Summon the commoners from below to receive the imperial edict!"
After Su Fan was declared the champion of the martial arts tournament, an eunuch held out an imperial edict and addressed Su Fan.
Su Fan immediately stepped forward and knelt down.
"By the Mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: To confer upon the champion of the martial arts tournament the title of Baron, along with five Martial Essence Stones, as encouragement. Respect this!"
The imperial edict was short, a decree specifically issued for the champion of the martial arts tournament, but the rewards were enticing. Besides the baronetcy, which would advance the plot, there were also five Martial Essence Stones, which Su Fan desired the most.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Su Fan accepted the imperial edict. The eunuch then had someone bring over a plate on which five Martial Essence Stones were placed.
"Young Master Su, please accept them."
The eunuch's attitude towards Su Fan changed instantly. Su Fan was now a noble, and even the lowest-ranking baron was not someone he could easily offend.
"Thank you, Eunuch."
Su Fan thanked the eunuch and, after putting away the Martial Essence Stones, walked to the viewing platform and found Xu Fengnian.
He was now qualified to ascend to this viewing platform, as he was also a noble.
"Young Master Xu, give me the money."
Su Fan extended his hand to Xu Fengnian, demanding the wager.
The wager had doubled, and Xu Fengnian now owed him forty thousand taels of silver.
"What money?"
Xu Fengnian raised an eyebrow, suddenly finding new amusement in reneging on the debt.
Su Fan's expression changed.
"Young Master Xu, don't make things difficult for me."
"Oh? What are you talking about? I don't understand. Are you going to rob me?"
Xu Fengnian was not afraid of Su Fan at all. Did Su Fan dare to lay a hand on him? He was the son of the Grand Commandant, and a mere baron could not afford to offend him.
"Don't force me to act."
Su Fan's face turned cold as he warned Xu Fengnian.
"I am forcing you. What can you do?"
Xu Fengnian completely disregarded Su Fan's threat. He didn't believe Su Fan would dare to make a move, and his subordinates were not just for show.
Su Fan frowned.
He immediately used three Martial Essence Stones to upgrade "Lin Zhen Mo Qiang" to max level.
Lin Zhen Mo Qiang Max
Type: Offensive
Buff skill. Upon use, increases weapon damage by 500% for 30 seconds, with a 40-second cooldown.
Weapon damage increased from 300% to 500%. The improvement was significant.
Lin Zhen Mo Qiang!
Su Fan immediately drew his sword and slashed towards Xu Fengnian's head.
Before the martial arts tournament, I didn't dare to offend you. Now that it's over, I still won't dare?
A figure instantly rushed forward to block Xu Fengnian, and Su Fan's sword severed half of the man's shoulder. The man was instantly killed, but he also blocked the sword strike for Xu Fengnian.
"You... you actually dared to touch me?"
Xu Fengnian showed no concern for his subordinate's death, pointing at Su Fan with a look of disbelief.
"Who told you to owe me money? Anyone who owes me money, even the King of Heaven, I will cut down!"
Su Fan said coldly.
The young noblemen around them did not step forward to help. These pampered youths were all hoping to see someone else suffer, just for a laugh.
"I'll pay you! Just don't kill me!"
Although Xu Fengnian had some strength, he was still far inferior to Su Fan. After all, as noble sons, they did not focus their efforts on martial arts, spending most of their time playing.
Xu Fengnian tremblingly took out a stack of banknotes. Su Fan snatched them without checking, confident that they would be no less than forty thousand taels.
"Hey, hey?"
Xu Fengnian looked at the banknotes Su Fan had snatched away with a pang of heartache.
"This is all there is. The rest is interest."
Su Fan pocketed the banknotes without regard for Xu Fengnian's agreement.
Xu Fengnian dared not say anything. With his subordinate killed by Su Fan, he had no one capable of dealing with Su Fan, except for a few powerless maids.
"Goodbye."
After getting the money, Su Fan left without another word.
"Holy crap! You actually won!"
Xiao Yan, who was watching from outside the arena, exclaimed in surprise as he saw Su Fan walk out unharmed.
Xiao Yan and Long Die had come specifically to wait for Su Fan today, and they had been worried about his safety.
"I told you I was going to win the championship, and you still didn't believe me."
Su Fan walked over with a smile, put his arm around Xiao Yan's shoulder, and patted him.
"By the way, does the wager still count?"
Su Fan suddenly remembered something and said.
"What wager?"
Xiao Yan asked curiously. He didn't remember having any wager with Su Fan.
"The one about doing a handstand and pooping."
Xiao Yan's face turned black. Su Fan actually remembered that casual remark.
"Ew~ Aren't you guys disgusting!"
Long Die looked at Xiao Yan with disgust.
Doing a handstand and pooping... just thinking about it was nauseating!
"Let's not talk about that. Come on, let's go buy a house!"
Su Fan said magnanimously.
He had carefully examined the banknotes he had taken from Xu Fengnian. There were one hundred and fifty thousand taels. This was more than enough for him to splurge. The first thing he needed was a place to live. Sleeping in an inn every night was not a viable option. Now that he had money, it was time to get a permanent residence.