Chapter 406: Chapter 226: Ah~ I’m Marrying Yue’Er! Mom, Why Didn’t You Say So Earlier
Gu Ziye’s habit of speaking without a filter was likely a bad influence from her nephew, Gu Gaoxu. After all, the father she mentioned was the reigning Emperor.
"Don’t speak such nonsense. Be careful, or I’ll spank you. Have you forgotten when your Father-Emperor had your nephew beaten with a plank?" Empress Ma chided.
Gu Ziye let out an "oh" and clutched her bottom, lowering her head to admit her fault. "Mother, I know I was wrong. I just don’t want to get married."
The mere thought of her nephew, Gu Gaoxu, being beaten with a plank by her Father-Emperor a few years ago made Gu Ziye’s own bottom burn with a phantom pain.
Empress Ma ignored her daughter and turned to converse with Su Liyan’s mother. "Your son-in-law is quite a capable man. Ever since His Majesty the Emperor started drinking the medicinal soup Lord Lu prepared, his constitution has become much more robust."
Back then, Lu Yuan didn’t know Alchemy yet.
Su Liyan’s mother smiled and said, "Yes, my son-in-law has other skills as well."
"Oh? I wonder if he can win today’s martial arts competition?" Empress Ma said after a moment of thought.
"Yuan~ He definitely can!" Gu Ziye declared confidently, but then she seemed to think of something, blushed, and lowered her head in silence.
Su Liyan’s mother instantly understood what was going on. ’So that’s it! She’s taken a liking to my son-in-law!’
Her mind started racing. ’Just now, through the Sound Transmission Skill, my son-in-law said he was just sparring in a competition. Isn’t that the martial arts competition to win Miss Yue’Er’s hand that the Empress mentioned?’
’Miss Yue’Er just said with a joyful face that my son-in-law could definitely win. A moment ago she was whining about not wanting to marry, but now she seems to have agreed to it.’
Su Liyan’s mother thought, ’Fine, fine, so this is how we’re playing it? We were just chatting, and somehow my own son-in-law got dragged into this. What’s my daughter Liyan supposed to do?’
Lu Yuan was already on the Training Ground, having won three matches in a row. He still hadn’t guessed what the Emperor’s prize was. Seeing the fervent gazes from the crowd, he figured the reward must be quite generous.
Facing the challengers who came up on stage, Lu Yuan was very confident. After all, not everyone could cultivate the same Secret Manual as he did.
Sitting in the Empress’s chambers, Su Liyan’s mother was now on pins and needles, not knowing what her son-in-law was thinking.
’If my son-in-law finds out he’s in a competition for a bride, and I, his mother-in-law, use a sound transmission to confirm it, it’ll seem like I’m trying to stop him from taking a concubine.’
’That sort of thing is supposed to be handled by the primary wife, and I can’t exactly call my daughter Liyan to discuss it.’
The Empress noticed the subtle change in Su Liyan’s mother’s expression and said, "Come, have some tea. Let’s just chat about family matters today, nothing else!"
Gu Ziye then said, "Mother, I’m a little tired. I want to go back to my room and rest."
Empress Ma didn’t think much of it and said, "Oh, you. Aren’t you going to stay a bit longer?"
"No, Mother. Auntie, I’ll take my leave first!"
"Of course, Yue’Er. If you’re tired, go and rest," Su Liyan’s mother said, a bit distracted.
On the Training Ground, Lu Yuan sent a Military General flying out of the ring with a single kick.
Lu Yuan had won five matches in a row, and the atmosphere reached a fever pitch. The crowd cheered and jeered, urging those around them to go up and challenge Lu Yuan.
"Go on! Don’t you usually boast about how strong you are?"
"I’m decent at leading troops, but one-on-one duels really aren’t my strong suit."
...
Offstage, one man saw Lu Yuan looking so triumphant and felt extremely indignant. He leaped onto the platform, intending to knock Lu Yuan down a peg.
The man wore a navy blue Daoist robe, a Duster resting on his left arm. He actually looked rather handsome.
The Emperor saw that the Daoist on stage was the youngest second-generation Elder of the Celestial Dynasty Palace. He looked at the Grand Elder of the Celestial Dynasty Palace and said coldly, "Are your people participating today as well?"
The Emperor had summoned the Elders from the Celestial Dynasty Palace and Le Shen Temple today to observe and ensure order during the martial arts competition.
Seeing a Daoist take the stage, the Emperor was naturally displeased. ’This is a martial arts competition for my most beloved daughter’s hand in marriage. What are you, a Daoist, doing up there? Surely you don’t expect the Princess of the Divine Ling Empire to marry a Daoist, do you?’
’The Celestial Dynasty Palace may be a Royal Daoist Temple, but in the end, wasn’t it I, the Emperor, who bestowed that title upon you?’
The Grand Elder of the Celestial Dynasty Palace wiped away the large beads of sweat forming on his forehead and said, "Your Majesty the Emperor, I believe Elder Li merely wishes to help you gauge the depths of Lord Lu’s Martial Arts."
"That had better be the case," the Emperor said, his face still stern.
On the Training Ground, Lu Yuan looked at the man before him. It was the Daoist from the Celestial Dynasty Palace who had attacked him without a word back then. And today, he was on stage again.
Lu Yuan said mockingly, "Well, well. Looks like today’s prize is pretty amazing. Even a Daoist has come on stage for it."
Hearing this, the Daoist seethed with anger. As the youngest second-generation disciple of the Celestial Dynasty Palace, he was filled with pride. How could he tolerate being publicly humiliated by another?
The Daoist flicked his Duster, took a stance, and said, "Lord Lu, let’s begin!"
Lu Yuan continued, "That Duster looks pretty new, haha."
Provoked by Lu Yuan’s few taunts, the Daoist charged forward with his Duster raised.
Sitting in the tent, the Grand Elder of Le Shen Temple said, "Elder Kong, your junior brother is indeed skilled, but he’s a bit too impetuous. Lord Lu provoked him with just a few words."
Elder Kong of the Celestial Dynasty Palace naturally defended his junior brother. "He’s arrogant for a reason. Just watch."
The Emperor coughed once, and the two Elders immediately stopped their bickering.
Lu Yuan flicked his sleeve, and a longsword from the weapon rack offstage flew into his hand.
"Summoning an object from thin air!" the Grand Elder of the Celestial Dynasty Palace muttered to himself in surprise.
Lu Yuan had learned this technique of summoning objects long ago, so he didn’t find it particularly remarkable.
The Grand Elder of the Celestial Dynasty Palace also knew this Cultivation Method, but it was rare to see someone as young as Lu Yuan master it.
Even the simplest moves from the Secret Manual Lu Yuan studied were techniques others might spend their entire lives trying to learn.
Lu Yuan raised his sword to block his opponent’s move, speaking as they fought, "Last time, I shattered your Duster with the Celestial Master Sword. Today, I’ll beat you just the same with this Iron Sword!"
"Enough boasting! Take this!" The youngest second-generation disciple of the Celestial Dynasty Palace flung out several Talismans.
"Talismans for the Suppression of Xingzi are far less effective when used on people!" Lu Yuan rolled a few pebbles under his foot and kicked them forward.
The pebbles struck the incoming Talismans with perfect accuracy.
Lu Yuan was quite pleased with himself. ’I’m a trained professional, after all.’
To Lu Yuan, such low-level Talismans were long since obsolete.
After putting some distance between them, Lu Yuan said, "Daoist, watch my Talismans!"
Lu Yuan mimicked his opponent, flinging out the Talismans in his hand.
Seeing Lu Yuan imitate him, the Daoist was furious. He chose to respond in kind, flicking his Duster to send several pebbles flying.
The pebbles collided with the Talismans, which exploded, kicking up clouds of dust.
But what Lu Yuan had thrown were Mid Level Talismans—Explosive Talismans.
Most of the crowd outside the Training Ground, aside from a few masters, couldn’t see what was happening on the stage.
Crown Prince Gu Biao stood up and said, "Elders, if anything goes wrong, please be ready to intervene immediately!"
"Rest assured, Your Highness!" the two Elders said in unison.
Emperor Gu Yuanzhang sat steadily in his seat, saying nothing.
Relying on his own Perception, Lu Yuan sensed his opponent’s position, pinched a few more Talismans between his fingers, and threw them out.
With the sound of more explosions, the dust on the field grew even thicker.
Lu Yuan turned into a Mage, using the cover of the dust to madly fling out Explosive Talismans.
Although the Daoist could sense Lu Yuan’s position, he couldn’t effectively evade the flying Talismans.
Only when a Talisman was right in his face could the Daoist manage to block it with the Duster in his hand.
The Daoist was so angry he wanted to curse out loud. ’If you’ve got any real skill, stop throwing Talismans!’
Lu Yuan was already being quite polite. If he had used the cover of the dust to throw a few Thunder Bombs, he could have finished his opponent off.
Just as Lu Yuan was having a blast, his mother-in-law’s voice came through again via the Sound Transmission Skill. "Son-in-law, I heard from the Empress that you’re in a martial arts competition for a bride?"
After much consideration, Su Liyan’s mother had decided to ask her son-in-law what he was thinking.
"What?" Hearing his mother-in-law’s sound transmission, Lu Yuan finally understood why the Military Generals had been so fervent.
The exasperated and furious Daoist swung his Duster, sending out several currents of air that resembled Sword Qi.
Seizing the opportunity, Lu Yuan unhesitatingly threw an Explosive Talisman at his own feet, blasting himself out of the ring.
"Look! The guy who won five matches in a row just lost!"
Lu Yuan pretended to be seriously injured, lying on the ground, unmoving. He heard his mother-in-law’s voice again: "The winner has to marry Miss Yue’Er!"
"Ah! I’d be marrying Yue’Er? Mother-in-law, why didn’t you say so earlier!"
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