The Boat of Friendship (continued)

Si Ming paid no attention to such tactics. He unleashed a powerful "Fist of Heaven," accompanied by dazzling light, which shattered the Hurricane Tiger King into turbulent air currents. Upon getting close, he used the Blood-Burning Finger to strike the opponent's pressure points.

The scorching finger force penetrated his body, making his blood feel as if it were being boiled. Si Jingzhi steadfast, enduring the pain. He opened his mouth and spat a mouthful of blood towards Si Ming's face, its sharpness no less than that of a powerful crossbow.

"Take this Heavy Hammer Sparks!"

Even if it were a real crossbow bolt, Si Ming wouldn't take it seriously. He wasn't afraid at all and directly rammed his head into it. His skull, strong enough to withstand a spiked club, shattered the blood arrow. The momentum continued and struck Si Jingzhi's nose with the force of a real iron hammer. Si Jingzhi was immediately struck, blood gushing out and his nose crooked to one side. It was as if a sauce shop had been opened, with salty, sour, and spicy sauces all gushing out at once.

Even with her strong will, Si Jingzhi was brought to tears by the blow; the biological instinct to cry, triggered by the stimulation of her tear ducts, couldn't be suppressed by willpower alone. However, she was also a ruthless woman, and after being reprimanded, she still angrily retorted, "You commoner, how dare you..."

"Shut up!"

A sudden surge of irritation welled up within Si Ming, and he slapped the man, sending him flying and breaking two of his front teeth in the process.

Si Jingzhi landed face-first, and the blood flowing from her mouth covered the lower half of her face. When she lifted her head, her face was still covered in sand from the beach, making her look extremely disheveled.

"Your counter-move guarantees a win..."

In this situation, he still dared to provoke them. Even from the enemy's perspective, Si Ming had to admit that Si Jingzhi had guts.

Although this old woman was headstrong and had a foul temper, she was by no means weak-willed. Her ruthlessness was ingrained in her bones; one could say she would "never admit her mistakes."

Of course, given her current appearance, she even speaks with a lisp, so she's hardly intimidating at all; she's more like a clown, making people laugh.

To show his respect for Si Jingzhi's integrity, Si Ming used his Blood-Burning Finger to press the acupoints on her legs, temporarily rendering her unable to move, and then hurriedly turned his gaze to the lake.

The battle between Si Jingyu and Si Huaruo has come to an end. The former, wielding the dark aura of repentance, descended like a ghost or god, accompanied by the wailing of thousands of vengeful spirits, and suppressed the latter, who had stirred up an ice and snow storm.

Although Si Huaruo combined the "Water Moon Precious Mirror" and the "Vast Cold Immortal Sword Art" and comprehended the ultimate move hidden in the Soul Intent Diagram, it was still her first time using it, so there were bound to be some delays. The icy Sword Qi stirred up the lake water, transforming into a huge white ice and snow tornado that roared into the sky, but it was defeated step by step under the impact of thousands of ghosts, and the white was gradually swallowed by the pitch black.

"Young Miss is going to win..."

Si Shuiyun exhaled, but there was no smile on her face.

Si Ming asked, "You don't seem happy to see her win?"

Si Shuiyun paused for a moment, then said, "Back then, I was able to be favored by the young lady thanks to Miss Ruo's recommendation. How could I repay kindness with enmity?"

Si Ming nodded and said, "I see. That's good. At least you won't be angry about the outcome."

By the time Si Shuiyun understood the meaning behind Si Ming's words, the battle on the lake had already reversed. Another white tornado burst out of the lake and rushed towards Si Jingyu from the side, blocking her downward momentum.

Then came the third, the fourth... a total of five white ice and snow tornadoes that enveloped Si Jingyu, their chilling aura spreading outwards, freezing the lake surface and covering it with a layer of snow, turning this place into an ice and snow world!

"How could this be? Where did Miss Ruo get such strong cultivation?" Si Shuiyun couldn't accept it.

Si Ming, "It's the environment. Si Huaruo's ultimate move is based on the 'Water Moon Precious Mirror,' so she can naturally use the surrounding water vapor to enhance the power of her move. On the other hand, Si Jingyu's ultimate move comes from the 'True Scripture of Sinful Punishment,' which has nothing to do with the water element. The advantage of the terrain will determine the outcome of this martial arts battle."

As they spoke, five ice and snow tornadoes froze thousands of fierce ghosts, surrounding them and, with a deafening roar, solidifying them into a massive ice tower tens of meters high.

Si Jingyu was not frozen inside the ice tower; she avoided the strongest point of the cold current and was able to escape unscathed—of course, Si Huaruo intentionally changed her direction.

However, only the parties involved know about this matter; outsiders cannot see it. Even if Si Jingyu immediately launches a counterattack and treats the outcome as her own deliberate avoidance, no one can criticize her.

It's like two swordsmen dueling in the martial arts world. One swordsman, on the verge of victory, holds back and deliberately misses his strike. As a result, his opponent seizes the opportunity, turns One Sword, and stabs him to death. Afterwards, the swordsman proclaims in the martial arts world that he won honorably. He can't come back to life to defend himself; everyone will just think that he was less skilled.

But Si Jingyu's character was clearly not that bad. She glanced at the huge ice tower beside her, then at Si Huaruo, who was almost exhausted of her True Qi and could barely stand, sighed, and said slowly, "I lost."

Her voice was soft, but to others it was as deafening as thunder.

"The young clan leader lost! The young clan leader actually lost!"

"How could this be? Si Huaruo has never beaten the young clan leader before..."

Almost no one believed that Si Huaruo could win, including those who were driven by Si Shuiyun to use public opinion to promote the idea that Si Huaruo had a better chance of winning. In reality, they didn't believe this argument at all.

"She won... Huaruo won? My daughter won!"

An indescribable joy welled up in Si Huamu's heart, filling her long-empty soul. She stood there stunned for a long time, and two lines of tears flowed down her cheeks without her realizing it.

Her wish came true, but it had nothing to do with the effort she had put in. Recalling what her daughter had said to her before the competition, Si Huamu had to admit that she had really made a mistake, used the wrong method, walked the wrong path, and sought the wrong goal.

His only stroke of luck was having a daughter who was far more capable than him.

"Whew, all that scheming and plotting, and in the end it was all for naught."

Si Jingzhi was overjoyed with this result.

Si Shuiyun glared at her and said, "Shut up! You don't understand Miss at all. Do you really think she cares about the position of clan leader? All you care about is power. Do you think Miss is like you, only knowing how to scheme and plot?"

Si Jingzhi was about to make a few more sarcastic remarks, but Si Ming grabbed his mouth, preventing him from uttering a single word.

"I won... I finally won."

Si Huaruo looked at her palm and felt a sense of unreality, as if it were all an illusion.

Suddenly, memories flooded back, and she recalled why she had relentlessly challenged Si Jingyu in the first place—it was to save him, but how had they ended up as enemies?

After confirming the truth, a strong feeling of weakness washed over her, and Si Huaruo could no longer stand. She fell forward, but was caught in time.

"You're the winner, how can you look so pathetic? A victor should have the pride of a victor and not bow down to a loser. That's a form of respect for your opponent," Si Jingyu said.

Si Huaruo smiled and said, "I remember now. I desperately wanted to beat you because I wanted to break the shackles on you, but I put the cart before the horse... I'm sorry, Sister Yu."

Si Jingyu shook her head and said softly, "You don't need to apologize to me. I was indeed saved because of you. At that time, I was sliding into the abyss, and every challenge you gave me pulled me back up. Otherwise, I'm afraid I would have become like Grandma now, with only darkness in my heart."

During that period, only Si Huaruo's challenges made her feel that life was not without fun.

"Sister Yu..."