Chapter 35: Disdain

As the tournament went on, the women in the stands chittered away about Prince Nan and the other handsome men present, who were far more interesting than the fighting.

Hua Qiyue, however, focused intensely on the competition as she attempted to remember every single move made.

She was like a diligent scholar, her slim brows shifting between being raised while and furrowed.

Qiuyun returned, having handed all the betting slips to Butler Wang.

As the tenth round approached, Lvxin's anxiousness increased further. She approached Hua Qiyue, who was absent-mindedly chewing on a piece of watermelon, and whispered, "Miss... let's leave quietly..."

Hua Qiyue raised her brows as she stared at her maid in shock. "Why would I leave? My turn is coming up."

Beside her, Qiuyun said anxiously, "Yes, Miss, no one would notice if you just left now!"

Hua Qiyue put down her piece of watermelon calmly and wiped her mouth. "Look at you, so nervous. I've been watching their moves. I can win."

The fourth round of the female competition had ended as the losing party had fallen out of the stage into a corner.

"Tenth round, female competition, Hua Qiyue versus Ouyang Liuer! Starting in 15 minutes time!"

Ouyang stared at Hua Qiyue coldly, with a frosty smile. Hua Qiyue returned her smile, appearing almost cheerful.

Hua Qiyue stood up slowly as Lvxin turned pale with fear. The maid held on to her lady's sleeve. "Miss..."

"Lvxin, you must have confidence. I will win you much silver today!"

Qiuyun pulled Lvxin away, appearing to be confident in Hua Qiyue. "There's no avoiding it now. We need to trust her!"

What Qiuyun was really trusting in was the slow-acting laxative she'd put in Hua Qiyue's breakfast. If the timing was right, it would kick-in during the match, causing Hua Qiyue to run away and ruining her reputation!

Ouyang Liuer clearly hated Hua Qiyue, and Qiuyun was hoping she'd kill her while Qiyue was distracted with her roiling bowels.

Hua Qiyue gave Qiuyun an affectionate look before walking confidently towards the stairs. Her pace was calm and confident, her expression peaceful, playing deaf to all the jeering and mocking.

"Hua Qiyue versus Ouyang Liuer, ready!"

There had been many conflicting rumors about Hua Qiyue recently, but the calm, confident Hua Qiyue before them made up the minds of many in the crowd as to which ones could be believed.

Ouyang Liuer followed Hua Qiyue up to the stage.

As they faced each other, Ouyang Liuer seethed. She wanted to spit insults at Hua Qiyue, but couldn't do so in such a public setting without ruining her reputation.

"My apologies if I injure you, Miss Hua!" Ouyang Liuer exclaimed, smirking and placing her palm on her fist, full of disdain and mocking in her eyes.

Hua Qiyue blinked. She stared at the bloodstains left behind by previous contestants.

Hua Qiyue closed her eyes with feigned fear and inhaled deeply. "What a terrible fate for these people. I do hope that Miss Ouyang can strike softly. I don't know any Qi Art, but Master Xuanji said that I would definitely win, so I will try my best!"

In the stands, Master Xuanji's mouth twitched in the briefest semblance of a smile.

Laughter roared beside the stage, much louder than all the previous times. "If Master Xuanji's words are really so accurate, even poverty can be eliminated!"

"Oh my god, you listened to that stupid monk..." Ouyang Liuer snickered haughtily.

Beside him, Huangfu Xuan was laughing so hard that he was giving himself a cramp. "Hahaha, Brother Yun, did you hear that? She came because of a prediction by Master Xuanji! That's the funniest thing I've ever heard!"

The rest of the crowd looked at Hua Qiyue dubiously.

In the Ji family's section, Ji Zhong's face sank. He had heard that the legitimate daughter of Hua's Mansion was an idiot, but had allowed Hua Qiyue to participate due to the prestige of Hua's Mansion. This, though, was beyond idiocy!

"If this Hua Qiyue is really knows nothing about Qi Art, this will be a waste of our time," Ji Zhong said coldly.

Ji Yang looked at Hua Qiyue below with disdainful eyes. "Uncle, you are right. The legitimate daughter of Hua's Mansion is for having ruptured Qi veins, making it impossible for her to learn Qi Art."

Ji Feng merely lifted up his teacup slowly and sipped his tea. The tea entering his mouth was fragrant and mesmerizing, allowing him to focus his attention on Hua Qiyue again.

Who was this woman, really? Confident idiot, or clever manipulator?

"Competition begin!"

Before the emcee had finished speaking, Ouyang Liuer had already struck towards Hua Qiyue.

Hua Qiyue widened her eyes in shock, and she heard a desperate, piercing scream from Lvxin.

Hua Qiyue's back arched as her feet move sideways like shooting stars, shifting far away from Ouyang Liuer in an instant!

The entire crowd gasped as one.

Ouyang Liuer turned angrily and lowered her voice so that only her opponent could hear her say, "Hua Qiyue, you are an idiot who only knows how to run! Face me straight on!"

Hua Qiyue screamed as Ouyang Liuer attacked again! This time, she did not venture forward but used her spiritual Qi to assassinate Hua Qiyue.

But Hua Qiyue moved like lightning, evading her opponents attacks at the last moment.

Ouyang Liuer threw everything she had at Hua Qiyue, but nothing seemed to hit.

The audience began murmuring in response to the changing atmosphere on the stage.

Ouyang Liuer's Qi Art was useless in the face of Hua Qiyue's magnificent footwork.

Ji Feng squinted his eyes as he smiled lightly.

Ji Zhong's eyes grew wide as he watched this unexpected turn of events. "Feng, look at Hua Qiyue's movements... have you seen anything like it in Jianghu? "

Ji Feng spent a few years traveling and gathering medicine and had made a lot of Jianghu friends.

"I've never seen anything like it, Dad. Whatever that technique is... it's not Jianghu. But it is impressive. Completely defensive, but also fearless."

Ji Yang kept her disdainful face as he realized that Hua Qiyue did have some substance.

Ji Jing, however, looked at Hua Qiyue with admiration. She said delightfully, "Regardless of whether Hua Qiyue wins this time, and regardless of whether she will become a disciple of the Ji family, I want to meet her!"

Ji Zhong gave a small smile at his daughter's words. "Jing, you talk as if she is a treasure! But it is true that she's shown amazing skill so far. She'll certainly be worth talking to, after this is over."