Chapter 207: Chapter 204: Bullshit Rules
The exchange of techniques went from ten moves to a hundred, and then to a thousand.
The King of Kaosan was the King of Kaosan, after all. From being evenly matched at the start, he slowly began to gain the upper hand, until he was completely overwhelming the External Incarnation.
Although the unknown expert had researched for a thousand years, his skill was still a bit lacking compared to the King of Kaosan.
By the one thousand two hundred and thirty-third move, the King of Kaosan found an opening and pressed his palm against the External Incarnation’s forehead. The power was present but not released, leaving the External Incarnation unharmed.
Meanwhile, in the Dragon Vein Core, Mo Qi’s control over his power wasn’t nearly as perfect. He couldn’t retract his strength in time and brutally slapped the unknown expert on the forehead, sending him flying with the blow.
Clearly, the King of Kaosan had won, and the unknown expert had lost.
"Hahaha, exhilarating! It’s been a long time since I’ve had such a satisfying fight!"
The King of Kaosan roared with laughter. His gaze toward Mo Qi was now filled with admiration, even a sense of mutual respect between kindred spirits.
"Your techniques are exquisite, King of Kaosan. I humbly concede defeat." Mo Qi cupped his hands in a salute.
"Don’t be so modest, you. There were several times I nearly lost to you. I really don’t know how your brain is wired, to be able to master so many powerful combat techniques at such a young age."
Mo Qi grinned. Of course, he couldn’t reveal that he had cheated by using his External Incarnation.
He put on a foolish smile and scratched the back of his head. "It’s just something I cooked up when I had nothing better to do."
Everyone was speechless, feeling as if they’d just taken a critical hit to their egos.
What is a genius?
This is a genius!
His "cooking things up" was stronger than all of them combined.
"Brother Blessed One, I haven’t had the honor of asking your name yet?" the King of Kaosan asked with a smile, his initial imposing manner gone. He was already starting to treat Mo Qi as a brother.
"I am Qin Daye," Mo Qi blurted out instinctively.
But he regretted it the moment the words left his mouth. It was a name he had randomly made up back when he was teasing Qian Duoduo.
It was a pun on "qīn dà yé," a phrase that means "Your Granddaddy."
’Saying it now in front of the King of Kaosan, Li Shimu, and the others... they’re not going to jump me, are they?’
Sure enough, the moment they heard the name "Qin Daye," everyone’s expressions became quite colorful.
"Ahem, Brother Blessed One, not only are your abilities outstanding, but your name is quite outstanding as well," the King of Kaosan said wryly.
"A name is just a label. Don’t sweat the small stuff," Mo Qi could only say, biting the bullet and pretending he didn’t understand.
At this moment, Li Shimu stepped forward, looked at Mo Qi, and said with a smile, "Qin... Blessed One."
He clearly couldn’t bring himself to say the "Daye" part.
"According to the rules passed down from our ancestors, after we have granted the Blessed One one request, the Blessed One must remain at the Imperial Academy to practice Cultivation. Your treatment will be the same as any other student’s. You must strive for everything on your own; the Empire will not provide you with any special advantages."
"Of course, we will be watching you closely."
Mo Qi: "..."
’Who? Who the hell was it?!’
’Who came up with such a bullshit rule!’
’One moment it’s granting one request, the next it’s sparring with the King of Kaosan, and now suddenly there are no special advantages?’
’Are you messing with me?’
’So this whole "Blessed One" title is only worth a single request?’
’And you all made such a fuss coming over here, staring at me like I’m some kind of treasure for so long, just to tell me this?’
’How bored are you people?!’
’Don’t any of you have work to do, Cultivation to practice, or contributions to make to the Empire?’
Li Shimu also felt a bit awkward. He patted Mo Qi’s shoulder and said, "There’s nothing I can do. These are the rules."
And so, under Mo Qi’s stunned gaze, Li Shimu and his entourage departed swiftly, as if they had never been there at all.
Before leaving, the King of Kaosan sent him a telepathic message: ’Young brother, my Prince’s Mansion is always open to you. Come visit whenever you have the time.’
Back in the Dragon Vein Core, the unknown expert had been sent flying by a palm strike from Mo Qi’s true body.
"You lose!" Mo Qi said with a smile.
The unknown expert’s face was filled with disbelief. He couldn’t believe he had actually lost.
Losing to a boy who was still wet behind the ears felt like a dream.
But the searing pain on his forehead was a stark reminder that all of this was real.
If that had been a true battle to the death, and their Cultivation Realms were comparable, he would already be dead at Mo Qi’s hands.
"Yes, I lost!"
The unknown expert let out a long sigh, looking utterly dejected.
"Pathetic. I’m truly pathetic!"
"I researched for a thousand years, thinking I could finally surpass the King of Kaosan in this area, but in the end, I’m no better than a snot-nosed kid. Hahaha, how pitiful, how sad."
Mo Qi frowned. The unknown expert’s Martial Dao heart was wavering. If he wasn’t stopped, if he was allowed to continue spiraling like this, his future would be ruined.
"What’s your name?" Mo Qi asked. He wasn’t about to let a newly acquired follower go to waste just like that.
"My name? Is it important?" The unknown expert’s eyes were vacant.
Defeating the King of Kaosan had been his conviction for a thousand years. In a single day, that conviction had shattered. Not even his Void Realm Cultivation could withstand such a blow.
"I won’t waste words. I’ll say just one thing: follow me, and in the future, the King of Kaosan will only be able to look up to you."
"Heh." The unknown expert sneered and shook his head. "Make the King of Kaosan look up to me? Do you have any idea what you’re saying? Do you know how powerful he is?"
Mo Qi shrugged. "I never care how strong others are, nor do I need to know. All I know is that I will surpass them. It’s only a matter of time."
"Hmph, anyone can talk big," the unknown expert scoffed.
"You think I’m talking big?" Mo Qi chuckled. "When everyone said the Dragon Vein Imperial Bell could never be rung, I did it!"
"When the Old Tomb Digger and Hu the Eighth thought I couldn’t see the root of their problems, I did that too."
"And when you were supremely confident, thinking it was impossible for me to beat you in techniques, I still did it!"
"If I told you that all of this is just the tip of the iceberg, would you believe me?"
The unknown expert was stunned by Mo Qi’s words. He remained silent.
’Should I believe Mo Qi?’
Mo Qi sneered. "You lost the contest of techniques. According to our agreement, you are now my subordinate."
"I didn’t need to say all that to you. I just didn’t want to see a man of talent go to waste."
"And let me remind you of one more thing. Although you’re an expert at the Void Realm, to me, you aren’t an indispensable asset."
"Whether you choose to wallow in despair and let yourself fade away in failure, or to blossom with new life from the brink of withering... the choice is yours."
After saying his piece, Mo Qi ignored him and walked straight toward Wu the Old Ghost and the others.
"Wait!" the unknown expert suddenly called out to Mo Qi.
Mo Qi stopped but didn’t turn around.
THUD!
The unknown expert dropped to one knee.
"From this moment on, the man I once was is gone. I am now merely your follower. Please, Master, grant me a name!"
The unknown expert had been moved by the phrase, "blossom with new life from the brink of withering."
Moreover, he had a prior agreement with Mo Qi. A loss was a loss, and for a true expert, a promise is worth a mountain of gold.
Rather than dying miserably Within the Pass, it was better to place his faith in Mo Qi just this once.
’Maybe, just maybe, a miracle really could happen?’
