Chapter 118: The Poison Valley Annual Tournament (Part - 2)
"My Heavens, Bai Haoran... You actually came," Madam Li looked at Bai Haoran feigning surprise, "I almost did not recognise you. You have lost so much weight!"
"Why don’t you share the secret with me?" Madam Li laughed out loud, "My husband does not think I am pretty enough for him."
"Matriarch..." Gu Yangtian finally spoke up for the first time, trying to silence Madam Li.
And Madam Li was also smart enough to know when to shut up. So she smiled at her husband, and did not say anything further, but she did look at one of the Gu Clan elders and raised her eyebrow.
"Did the entire Bai clan get robbed by street beggars, or did you just forget to wash those faded, pathetic robes before stepping out in public?"
Finally Bai Haoran stopped in his tracks, his face turning bright purple with raw fury as he furiously gritted his teeth together. His ego was completely unable to handle the fact that a mere Gu Clan that his ancestors had brought on the verge of ruin was now basking in unimaginable wealth while his own powerful clan was desperately surviving on their stock of resources and spirit stones.
"Watch your fucking mouth!" Bai Haoran snarled as his bloodshot eyes glaring up at her pavilion as he tried to maintain his strong, intimidating facade, "Laugh all you want for now. But we will see who is laughing when my disciples violently slaughter your trash disciples in the arena, and colour your robes in their blood!"
While he spoke to the elder, Bai Haoran’s words were intended for Gu Yangtian and Madam Li, and the entire town square went completely silent as the massive crowd eagerly held their breath, hoping for a nice show between the Gu Clan and the Bai Clan.
But the Patriarch in response instinctively turned his gaze towards Madam Li who simply leaned back into her seat and crossed her legs totally unbothered by Bai Haoran’s flaring aura as a wicked smirk spread across her beautiful red lips.
"How dare you threaten our Matriarch, you broke, pathetic dog!" The Third Elder roared furiously from the Gu Clan pavilion, stepping in front of Madam Li and releasing his suffocating Origin Realm aura followed by the guards surrounding the pavilion. Most of them in the Origin Realm, while a few on the verge of breakthrough to the Origin Realm.
"How...?1" Bai Haoran was left speechless as soon as he felt the pressure fall upon him. He knew that Gu Yangtian was an 8th stage Origin Realm cultivator. He was the same. And almost every elder of the Gu and Bai clan was a match for each other in terms of strength.
But where did these new Origin realm guards come from? This absolutely disturbed the power balance between the Gu and Bai Clan.
’Was the Gu Clan playing the hidden dragon, waiting for the right time to strike?’ Bai Haoran tried to make sense, but it did not, ’No... This can’t be... I know... Then how?!’
"Bai Haoran... Ooh! Bai Haoran! You spread your legs out of your sheets," Madam Li shook her head as she looked at Bai Haoran in pity.
"And now look at you... Your entire clan is walking on egg shells."
"Your shops are empty, your alchemy halls are burning dry."
"And yet you dream of annihilating my Gu Clan?! You wish!" Madam Li looked at Bai Haoran in disdain.
And with that, she casually reached into her sleeve and pulled out a bulging pouch, effortlessly tossing it directly at Bai Haoran’s feet where it hit the stone floor with a massive, highly satisfying clatter.
"I heard your elders have been desperately begging for basic credit at the Lustful Spring Pavilion," Madam Li mocked and the massive crowd beneath them instantly erupted into laughter. "Take that pocket change and buy your disciples some cheap whores. At least let them have a little fun before my Gu Clan disciples butcher them."
"You... you are ruthless, Li Hua!" Bai Haoran trembled violently, his fingernails digging so deeply into his own palms that thick drops of blood dripped onto the stone floor, his entire body shook with unadulterated humiliation.
"Pick up the spirit stones and walk away while you have some dignity left," Madam Li commanded with absolute authority as her eyes were devoid of any mercy as she stared down at the broken Patriarch.
Bai Haoran didn’t say another word because his pride was entirely shattered, forcefully turning his head away and aggressively marching his humiliated, silent clan toward their own pavilion while completely ignoring the heavy bag of spirit stones resting on the floor, leaving the massive crowd to openly laugh and point at their retreating backs.
Gu Fan watched the entire face-slapping scene from the back of the crowd, as he proudly admired his domineering woman, ’I could not have written this scene better.’
As the massive wave of mocking laughter slowly died down, a loud, rhythmic marching sound suddenly echoed through the square. It was finally time for the Song Clan to join the spectacle.
Dozens of elite guards marched in absolute unison, and their heavily polished armours and thick shields gleamed blindingly under the hot morning sun, radiating a highly domineering, untouchable aura of military might.
Patriarch Song Tianming walked confidently at the front of the procession and with long steps climbed the stone steps to their designated VIP pavilion without stopping even once to look around.
Finally after taking his lavish seat did he look across the arena and casually nodded and greeted Bai Haoran and Gu Yangtian.
"Patriarch Gu, Patriarch Bai," Song Tianming nodded politely before his eyes locked onto the crimson-robed Matriarch with an appreciative smile, "And Madam Li, you look absolutely radiant today. I heard some commotion on my way here, so tell me, did I miss anything interesting?"
Madam Li just scoffed and rested her chin on her hand, looking completely unbothered by his charming act.
"You haven’t missed a single thing, Song Tianming, and to be entirely honest, no one here actually missed you either."
Song Tianming just chuckled at her words, not minding one bit.
’Oohh! I guess I have missed something that I never wrote,’ Gu Fan’s curled up in a smirk as he looked at the interaction between his dear mother and Song Tianming.
Finally after everyone had seated and the commotion around the Town square had finally died down, an old man walking with the help of a wooden cane walked forward and stepped on the platform.
He looked around the crowd once and raised his hands to quiet down the last of the buzz in the crowd.
"Welcome everyone!" The old man finally spoke up, and despite his thin, old body, his voice reverberated
"I welcome you all to the yearly custom that you have been waiting with eager eyes, the Poison Valley Annual Tournament."
As soon as the words left the Old man’s mouth, the crowd erupted in another loud cheer that shook the ground beneath their feet and Gu Fan felt his eardrums go dead for a second.
"I know... I know you are all very eager for the competition to begin," the old man raised his hand again and spoke with a smile.
"But before the tournament officially begins, let us first applaud the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion and the Blood Iron Mercenary Guild."
"The two of these esteemed guilds have generously announced the rewards for today’s victors!" the elder’s voice boomed across the square.
"The top disciples will receive a massive sum of one thousand low-grade Spirit Stones, 5 stalks of Spirit Grade Dewdrop Ling Stem, and an artifact of their choosing directly from the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion’s vaults!"
"Meanwhile, the Blood Iron Mercenary Guild has announced a reward of five hundred low-grade Spirit Stones, and a ten year old Spirit Grade Azure Leaf Lotus flower."
Following the announcement, up in the VIP section, Manager Su Mei who sat with her long legs crossed and her face covered with a black veil giggled softly.
"I just hope the winners have actual taste, unlike some guilds who treat a few measly stones like their entire annual treasury," she purred, casting a highly mocking glance directly at Commander Hu Ba.
Hu Ba’s scarred face instantly flushed bright red with sheer anger, and he aggressively slammed his fist on his armrest. "Watch your filthy mouth, you sly fox! Those rewards are perfectly generous for a bunch of brats who haven’t even shed real blood for their names yet!"
The crowd murmured in amusement at the guild leaders bickering, but the master of ceremonies quickly raised his hands again to regain control.
"And finally, let us also give our absolute, utmost respect and a deep welcome to the esteemed elders who have travelled from afar to quietly observe our disciples today!"
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[A/N: I hope you are enjoying the story. If you have any suggestions that you would like to suggest, feel free to drop them in the comments.]
