Chapter 811: Chapter 811
Upon hearing what Cheng Bufan said, Qi Luomei was slightly startled. By the time she turned around, Cheng Bufan was already kneeling in front of Qi Changran.
"Please accept the three kowtows of your disciple as thanks for raising and teaching me!"
Immediately after, Cheng Bufan made three kowtowing sounds in succession.
At that moment, Qi Changran, who was extremely weak, opened his eyes and looked at Cheng Bufan...
After the three kowtows, Cheng Bufan stood up and declared, "From this moment on, I'm leaving Quanzhen Xuanmen! From now on, I have no affiliation whatsoever with Quanzhen Xuanmen..."
Qi Luomei, who was standing to the side, had her eyes wide open after hearing Cheng Bufan's words. She truly suspected that she might have heard wrong.
One must know that Cheng Bufan had grown up in Quanzhen Xuanmen. To him, the sect was practically his home.
And yet at this point, Cheng Bufan actually announced his departure from Quanzhen Xuanmen...
In the meantime, Ding Fan also glanced at Cheng Bufan; he naturally knew why his sworn brother had decided this way.
Quanzhen Xuanmen, starting with the sect leader, had begun practicing Evil Cultivation Techniques. In Cheng Bufan's eyes, Qi Changran was like a father figure, a lofty and tranquil noble with high aspirations.
But now Qi Changran had changed, and in the future, Cheng Bufan himself wouldn't know how to interact with his own master.
Furthermore, Qi Luomei's heart no longer belonged to him. Cheng Bufan understood that staying here would only make things unpleasant for the other party...
Qi Luomei glanced at Cheng Bufan, then without saying anything, led the disciples of Quanzhen Xuanmen in a very disheveled manner, carrying Qi Changran away.
Meanwhile, Guo Ziyu at the side did not dare to stay longer on Serpent Island.
If not for Ding Fan's eminent status, he would likely have met his end by now. Thus, he followed the people of Quanzhen Xuanmen and left as well.
And all this time, Cheng Bufan just stood there, watching Qi Luomei and the others leave...
After the incidents with Fenghuo Gate and Mysterious Sword Sect, the martial arts tournament originally scheduled for today could not continue. It could only be rescheduled for tomorrow.
Everyone, quite surprisingly, got a day of rest.
Ding Fan originally wanted to invite Cheng Bufan for a drink to drown his sorrows, especially since Cheng Bufan surely wasn't in the best mood after just leaving Quanzhen Xuanmen.
However, Cheng Bufan declined, preferring to use this time to rest and recondition, aiming to achieve a good result tomorrow.
Seeing Cheng Bufan , Ding Fan did not insist further and also returned to prepare for the next day's competition.
This night passed without incident, and in the blink of an eye, it was the next day.
As required by the martial arts convention, the sixteen advancing competitors were to proceed to the Martial Arts Venue for the next matches.
Today was the fourth round of matches, and the process was quite straightforward. Those who were victorious in the same numbered group would face the victorious opponents from the next numbered group.
This pattern would continue until the last. In one-on-one duels, eight strong competitors would be determined.
There would be two rounds of contests today, after which the eight qualifying martial artists would decide upon the top four. Tomorrow, the final champion would emerge.
Ding Fan was assigned number eleven, and according to the competition's schedule, his opponent was Guo Ziyu from Quanzhen Xuanmen.
However, since Guo Ziyu could not participate in the competition, Ding Fan had a bye round. Feeling rather fortunate, Ding Fan thought that with continuous fights, he actually got two consecutive byes...
Shortly after, martial artists began to take the stage one after another in the central Martial Arts Venue to compete.
From today's contests, it was clearly visible that as the martial arts convention progressed, the fighters' combat abilities grew stronger.
The first group fought intensely for over half an hour before a victor emerged. The two were evenly matched; whether one won or lost, it was understandable either way.
The second group... the third group... the fourth group... soon, it was Bian Zixuan's turn to enter.
Over the past couple of days, Bian Zixuan had become quite close with Mu Zi, Wu Die, and Huan Er, so when it was time for Bian Zixuan to compete, these few quickly cheered her on with their shouts of encouragement.
Her opponent was a young man wearing a mask.
The man was wearing a Zhongshan suit, and although masked, one could clearly see he was bald.
However, Ding Fan found it puzzling and even used his Divine Sense to probe the opponent's cultivation level, but for some reason, possibly due to a Magical Treasure, he couldn't discern it.
Overall, this man gave off a somewhat sinister vibe.
"Please..." As Bian Zixuan stepped onto the stage, she made a welcoming gesture towards the man.
"San Zhaimu versus Bian Zixuan... begin!"
At that moment, the referee read out both competitors' names and declared the start of the match.
Ding Fan slightly furrowed his brows, finding this person and his name strange, sounding odd and somewhat like a name from Japan.
While Ding Fan was distracted by his speculations, the battle commenced in the Arena, and San Zhaimu had already made a move.
Unlike the others, San Zhaimu didn't rush out with aggressive moves. Instead, he seemed to amuse himself by slowly practicing Tai Chi.
"What's this guy doing? Instead of fighting, why is he doing Tai Chi in the match?"
"Don't underestimate this one. Of those who reached this stage, few are pushovers."
Ding Fan also felt that there was something fishy, and probed directly with his Divine Sense.
Soon, Ding Fan discovered the peculiarity.
San Zhaimu's leisurely movements seemed to be syncing subtly with the rhythm of the air... While he appeared to be entertaining himself with Tai Chi...
In fact, the man was inconspicuously drawing several strands of inner energy...
However, these strands of inner energy were invisible to others; only Ding Fan's Divine Sense could detect them.
Ding Fan furrowed his brows; this person seemed rather odd. What was the purpose of that inner energy thread? In two lifetimes, Ding Fan had truly never seen anyone use this inner energy thread.
Just at that moment, the man suddenly pulled out a puppet from his storage ring.
The puppet appeared to be as tall as a grown adult, its body entirely stitched together with cloth, and its craftsmanship was quite exquisite.
"Kid, what are you doing? This is a martial arts tournament, why are you bringing out a large puppet? Could it be that you're planning to give it away as a gift?"
At this time, the man paid no attention to the people around him; he took a deep breath, then suddenly opened his eyes.
And at that moment, the previously limp puppet standing beside him suddenly stood up straight as if it was filled with electricity.
Seeing this spectacle, everyone present held their breath and watched intently.
It was clear to the crowd that there was more to the puppet than meets the eye.
"It seems that this kid must be a disciple of the Mechanical Elder Tianji Zi…"
"Mechanical Elder? Do you mean the Mechanical Elder who once single-handedly vanquished two major Sects?"
"That Mechanical Elder pursued the experts from the two great Sects relentlessly, leaving them with no escape to the heavens or the earth. Unexpectedly, after so many years, the disciple of Tianji Zi has emerged!"
Listening to the conversations around him, Ding Fan began to understand from their discussions that this Tianji Zi probably was a figure proficient in using puppets.
In the Cultivation World, it was not unheard of to use puppets, but their adaptability was quite limited, so very few turned their eyes to them.
While the discussions continued below, in the martial arts venue, San Zhaimu suddenly raised his right hand.
The puppet in San Zhaimu's hand abruptly lunged forward to attack.
At that moment, no one could believe that the thing lunging at Bian Zixuan was a puppet.
The puppet's murderous aura was intense, and its momentum was truly frightening…
Whoosh whoosh whoosh…
The puppet charged forward, throwing three consecutive punches towards Bian Zixuan.
Although this was her first time fighting a puppet, Bian Zixuan did not dare to underestimate it. As the puppet's fists came hurling towards her, she swiftly dodged to escape the continuous assault.
Just as Bian Zixuan thought she had avoided the puppet's attack, the puppet's body suddenly twisted in a way that no normal human could achieve.
The puppet bent its head down to its buttocks, and then kicked out with one leg.
When facing a human opponent, Bian Zixuan would not believe someone could bend their head to tightly press against their buttocks, so unprepared, the puppet's kick landed squarely on her chest.
Even though the puppet was made of cloth, the power behind the kick was not small, and Bian Zixuan was sent flying five or six steps away.
Ding Fan watched from the side.
Bian Zixuan had been careless; her opponent was a puppet that could make any move, a puppet not constrained by bones, muscles, and meridians…
"You might as well give up now. You're not my match," San Zhaimu said indifferently.
Bian Zixuan gently wiped away the blood from the corner of her mouth and then said to her opponent, "Come on, I won't admit defeat so easily."
San Zhaimu nodded. "I didn't expect you to be so stubborn, but you will definitely pay the price for your stubbornness... I shall not hold back any longer."
Having said this, San Zhaimu's figure charged directly towards Bian Zixuan. Thıs text ıs hosted at 𝔫𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔩⁂𝖿𝗂𝗋𝖾⁂𝔫𝔢𝔱
And the puppet by San Zhaimu's side also charged forward; one person and one puppet, like two attackers, worked in tandem, trapping Bian Zixuan in the middle.
Bian Zixuan truly hadn't expected things to turn out .
For a moment, Bian Zixuan was bewildered; this was clearly two against one, with the puppet's movements incredibly lifelike as if controlled by a real person, and San Zhaimu's cultivation was not weak…
Having just exchanged blows, Bian Zixuan was hit several times, although the strikes avoided vital areas and her life was not threatened.
At this moment, Ding Fan also furrowed his brows tightly; if the situation continued , then Bian Zixuan had no option but to lose…
On the current arena, Bian Zixuan was reduced to only being able to defend without any ability to counterattack. One person and one puppet, attacking from both sides…
"I admit defeat…" Bian Zixuan shouted on the martial arts venue.
With the contest having progressed to this point, anyone could see that continuing further, Bian Zixuan had no chance of winning. If that was the case, it was better to admit defeat when outmatched…
Ding Fan had been worried that Bian Zixuan would stubbornly refuse to give up, but since she had admitted defeat, it was a good outcome.
Just then, powerful Inner Strength surged forth.
Bian Zixuan had already lost the power to defend, and she couldn't withstand such Inner Strength…
In an instant, Bian Zixuan's petite body was blasted away.
In response, Ding Fan's figure flickered, and before Bian Zixuan could hit the ground, he caught her in his arms…
"You've gone too far…" Ding Fan said coldly, looking at San Zhaimu.