Chapter 269: Covert Schemes And Overt Schemes
This time, there wasn’t even an uproar to shake up the arena.
The constant turns of the tide between Han Xuhan and Chen Yan, accompanied by the numerous mind-numbing revelations, followed by Han Xuhan’s unbelievable performance in the duel, and his subsequent disqualification...
Having sat through all this without a break, the thousands of attendees had long lost their ability to analyze what was happening.
Even the most refined senior disciples and the most experienced Sect-servants had a layer of sweat soaking their temples, all immersed in a collective suspension of disbelief.
Arena Official Yu was quick to recover, realizing what the cloaked disciple meant. Stuttering, he said,
"Are you... Trying to say that the disqualification of disciple Han Xuhan, who represented you in the duel, is not equal to your own disqualification?"
"That’s right. Junior Brother Xuhan never informed me about his plan to ’cheat’ in the second round of the duel.
According to the rulebook, if a representative of a contestant violates a rule, of his own volition, any subsequent penalty won’t affect the contestant personally, isn’t that right, Elder Shen?"
Seeing the cloaked figure gesturing invitingly at the ’Elder Shen’ standing beside Arena Official Yu, everyone in the gallery held their breath.
Elder Shen, having already deduced this scheme a moment ago, could only nod helplessly.
"There indeed exists a rule like this. But-"
"No buts. If you want proof, you can go interrogate Junior Brother Xuhan over there. He’ll surely admit that he kept me in the dark about this audacious plan of his."
The cloaked disciple sounded genuinely angry and frustrated. Elder Shen himself couldn’t sense a trace of falsehood in that statement.
And he knew that even if they interrogated Han Xuhan right now, he’d really shoulder all the blame himself!
After all, this was the only way for Han Xuhan to not lose this contest at this very moment!
This resolved the great mystery that had been puzzling Elder Shen until now.
In every thread of schemes he had deduced, a common point of question was: why would Han Xuhan intentionally pull himself out of the contest?
So this was the truth!
He had pulled himself out... Because, even before the duel started, he had already planted someone else who could come in and duel Chen Yan!
And this plant had been in front of everyone from the very beginning! In Han Xuhan’s design, this plant was using him as a mere pawn. So, in everyone else’s eyes, this plant was the true contestant!
However, in the eyes of those actively playing this game, the cloaked disciple was none other than Han Xuhan’s minion, a strawman to shoulder the responsibility for his crimes.
It didn’t have the qualifications to duel Chen Yan. Hence, they had never bothered to take this plant seriously.
But looking at the vigorous, dauntless figure walking towards the dueling field step by step, they could feel their hearts contract violently.
This person... was definitely not Han Xuhan’s skeleton soldier!
Then who? Who else could it be?
Elder Shen scoured through his memories to examine every disciple who had interacted with Han Xuhan before the first round of the duel. Was anyone there missing right now?
In a flash, he had an answer. And from that answer, he detected a new thread of schemes, one he had overlooked until now, because this scheme, too, had been so open that not much focus would stick to it...
In the front row of the gallery, Xuanyuan Zhou sat beside Han Xuhan and helped bandage his torn-up, bloodied forearms. Elder Shen stood next to them, undetected, listening intently as they spoke in low voices.
"Since you already had someone more capable to fight for you, was it necessary to suffer so much?"
"Of course," Han Xuhan said between pained grunts. "My martial arts instructor told me that I’d be disgracing her if I didn’t avenge myself and torment my enemies with the martial arts she taught me."
Xuanyuan Zhou rolled her eyes, but it was evident that she was trying her best to hide how pleased she was.
Especially under the scrutiny of a Soul Reformation expert like Elder Shen, her rising joy was bright enough to rival the morning sun. The old man couldn’t help but roll his eyes as well...
"Wait," Mu Ran said from the next seat, sounding bewildered, "Who the hell is wearing Zhanxian’s clothes?"
"Didn’t you recognize her by her voice?" Xiao Wu started mocking him ruthlessly.
"I say, a self-proclaimed ladies’ man like you, Brother Ran, should be able to tell her identity by just the curves of the silhouette, right?"
Mu Ran indignantly retorted, "She’s masking her voice and wearing a cloak thicker than Xuhan’s face. I’d not be able to tell who’s underneath even if she were my wife!"
Xuanyuan Zhou ignored their argument and asked, "Is there any particular reason why you chose her to fight the third round for you? Why didn’t you ask me instead?"
For some reason, Han Xuhan felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up, as if he was suddenly being eyed by a ferocious predator.
Looking around himself alertly, he explained, "Senior Sister Qing Hua is the only disciple who meets all the requirements.
Her Mystic path cultivation base is at the peak of the Physique Transformation realm, and her accumulation in the Martial Path and the secondary arts is also quite formidable, thanks to the reckless investment of a certain royal family supporting her with precious resources.
More importantly, she’s the only senior disciple desperate enough to grab this opportunity like a lifeline, regardless of the risks involved. She’s also the only senior disciple I could trust not to backstab me, before or after today’s events."
But Xuanyuan Zhou asked again in an insistent tone, "Why didn’t you ask me instead? Were you looking down on me? Did you think I’d lose to Chen Yan?"
Han Xuhan’s premonition of danger grew stronger. Sensing her displeasure, he quickly answered, "But Sister Zhou, you were in closed-door cultivation! If I barged into your room and interrupted you during a crucial moment, how could I live with the guilt?"
Xuanyuan Zhou was silent for a long time. Then she said something that made Han Xuhan, Mu Ran, and Xiao Wu blanch.
"Next time... If it’s something this important, don’t go to random people for help. You can come inside even if I’m locked in a critical phase of my cultivation."
"...Of course, that’d be great!" Han Xuhan gasped.
"Hey, Sister Zhou, what are you putting on such airs for?" Mu Ran said, looking exasperated.
"Chen Yan is at the Soul Reformation realm! Did you forget that? Even if Xuhan asked you for help, you’d end up getting thrashed if you fought him honestly."
Xuanyuan Zhou said stubbornly, "I can fight dishonestly as well. And if an outsider like Senior Sister Qing Hua dares to face him to keep Xuhan’s request, why can’t I?"
Han Xuhan put his bandaged hands between the two bickering martial siblings.
"Are you guys misunderstanding something? Senior Sister Qing Hua dares to face Chen Yan not by my request, but because she has to fulfill a condition to my satisfaction."
"...Huh?"
His three martial siblings looked at him with burning curiosity, and Han Xuhan looked at Qing Hua’s silhouette in the distance as she entered the dueling field. A snide smile came over his face.
"I’m not some benevolent saint. She needed a way out of this planet, and I knew the way. She wanted it, so I sold her an opportunity, for a price. Now it’s on her to make the best use of the opportunity and earn what she needs.
Fighting the third round on my behalf is my price and her opportunity. It’s a fair transaction based on mutual benefits and losses.
If she wins, we both win. If she loses... I will still win."
