Constitution

Rumble!

Thunderous applause erupted from the stands. Without a doubt, this battle had been extraordinarily thrilling.

Twists and turns! Everyone had thought that once Liu Zhen unleashed the relentless momentum of the Great Dark Calamity Fist, Xu Xiaoshou would be unable to withstand it. Yet unexpectedly, he had broken the fist with a single finger blade and turned the situation around.

Everyone had thought that when the dark calamity exploded, Xu Xiaoshou would be gravely injured beyond saving. Instead, he had played along, using a mouthful of blood to blur Liu Zhen's vision and turn passivity into initiative.

Most crucially, after the two had hung in midair, that rapidly spinning wheel of wind and fire had not only spun Liu Zhen into doubting his life, but the Antelope Hanging Its Horn move that followed—throwing Liu Zhen backward—had displayed Xu Xiaoshou's formidable close-combat skills.

As for Xu Xiaoshou, the instigator himself, he could only say that without "Sturdiness," he would basically be dead by now.

The hidden force of the Great Dark Calamity Fist was truly terrifying. Though he had turned defeat into victory, he had now completely lost his ability to fight.

"Do you need to rest?" The referee hurried over.

"Mm." Xu Xiaoshou nodded.

The referee took a deep breath and pointed at Liu Zhen beneath Xu Xiaoshou. "He needs to rest too."

Liu Zhen had already passed out. No one knew whether it was from the fall or from rage.

Xu Xiaoshou awkwardly got up at last and vacated Liu Zhen's spot. Staff immediately came forward and carried him away.

"Aren't you going inside to recover?" the referee asked.

Xu Xiaoshou glanced at the spectators standing and applauding. Go inside? As if.

He shook his head and turned his attention inward.

Encouragement received. Passive Value +242.
Praise received. Passive Value +366.

The notifications refreshed one after another. In the time it took for half an incense stick to burn, the Passive Value he had accumulated was more than he could earn from fighting two full matches.

Xu Xiaoshou could not resist taking a look below.

Passive Value: 7255.

Tsk, tsk!

Ignoring the few points contributed by Di Xin'er, Liu Zhen alone had given him more than two thousand.

Everything else had been bestowed by those crazed lords in the audience during the intervals between the two matches.

The number was still climbing nonstop.

Xu Xiaoshou stopped paying attention and examined his own body instead.

When the dark calamity had exploded, he had suffered severe injuries. It could be said that all his later maneuvers had been forced out through sheer willpower.

Now that he relaxed, he had practically lost all ability to move. Even twitching the corner of his mouth hurt.

Yet there was still one elimination match left! Xu Xiaoshou gritted his teeth, sat upright on the Cloud-Emerging Platform, shifted his body, and turned his back to the audience.

He took out a bottle of pills. This was the tenth-grade healing spirit medicine Elder Qiao had given him after the group stage: the Red-Gold Pill.

All or nothing!

Looking as though he were marching to his death, Xu Xiaoshou pinched up a Red-Gold Pill. He did not dare take a deep breath and merely gave it a light sniff.

In an instant, it was as if he had been struck by lightning. His eyes rolled white, and his body shook like a sieve.

"Geh geh geh..."

Everyone in the stands was watching Xu Xiaoshou. Seeing him turn his back to them and suddenly start trembling, they all craned their necks in curiosity.

"What's he doing?"

"Taking pills? What kind of pill is that? It hits that hard?"

"That's poison, isn't it? How terrifying!"

Before everyone's eyes, Xu Xiaoshou's cross-legged body toppled over. He sprawled across the Cloud-Emerging Platform in the shape of a "big" character, like a pile of quivering sludge.

"What did he take to shake like that?"

"This guy's probably got a vibration attribute..."

Question marks instantly popped up over everyone's heads. Unconsciously, Xu Xiaoshou harvested another huge wave of suspicion.

The referee was scared out of his wits. What the hell is going on? I just had Liu Zhen carried off, and now you're collapsing too? You're grown men already—can't you give me, the referee, a little less to worry about? He hurried over with the medical staff, checking Xu Xiaoshou's pulse with one hand while pinching the spot beneath his nose with the other.

"Geh geh... I-I'm fine..." Xu Xiaoshou foamed at the mouth.

The referee nearly started cursing. Did this look like he was fine?

"If you can't hold on, say something! I'll take you to get treated!" The referee tried pressing down on his chest to stop the trembling.

Xu Xiaoshou's eyes rolled white. He struggled to sit up, but his entire body was weak. He roared feebly, "D-Don't touch me!"

"I'm currently... of a sensitive constitution, geh geh geh..."

The referee: "..."

He silently withdrew the hands pressing on Xu Xiaoshou. Perhaps... he did not need my help after all.

The spectators were all shouting to ask what had happened. Once Xu Xiaoshou lay down, his face became visible. Someone who understood lip-reading translated his words, and the crowd instantly exploded.

"He took an aphrodisiac, didn't he?!"

"Taking that stuff during a match? I'm impressed!"

"Someone, drag him off and let him vent some fire!"

"I strongly demand a drug test! Xu Xiaoshou definitely took banned drugs!"

That round of translation brought Xu Xiaoshou countless more Passive Values—suspicion, admiration, mockery...

The medical staff released Xu Xiaoshou's wrist, their faces filled with astonishment. "He actually seems fine?"

"Hm?" The referee was puzzled.

"We don't know what kind of pill he took, but its medicinal effects are terrifying. His body is repairing itself at high speed. He's recovered seventy or eighty percent already."

"Heh!"

"Seventy or eighty percent?"

The referee pointed at Xu Xiaoshou's trembling body. "Then what's this?"

The medical staff hesitated, uncertain. "Feeling good?"

The referee's face went black. Feeling good, my ass! Completely unreliable! After thinking for a moment, he pried Xu Xiaoshou's hand open and saw the Red-Gold Pill.

"Just this?"

Raising an eyebrow, he casually took one out and popped it into his mouth, making the medical staff nearly jump up. "You can't eat that!"

"It's fine. If it were poison, it wouldn't have the effect you described, and he wouldn't dare swallow it. If he took banned drugs during the match, then I need to find that out immediately."

The referee sat cross-legged. The moment he circulated the spiritual essence within him, the pill dissolved, and his eyes flew open.

What was this?

It really was a Red-Gold Pill? Looking at the relentlessly trembling Xu Xiaoshou, he could not help falling into deep thought. Did we eat the same thing? Or could it be... he really does have a sensitive constitution? At that thought, the referee's body shuddered, startling the medical staff.

On the ground nearby, Xu Xiaoshou continued trembling for a while before gradually calming down. With the experience from the Spirit Refining Pill last time, he was already doing much better.

Besides, the Red-Gold Pill was ultimately a healing medicine. The pleasure came quickly and went quickly.

It had to be said: the side effects of the Breathing Method were immense, but its efficacy was even greater! Looks like I've mostly recovered. It still hurts, though... Xu Xiaoshou thought to himself.

The explosive force of the hidden energy in the Great Dark Calamity Fist was no joke. Even now, when he thought back on it, his scalp tingled. He truly did not know how he had found the courage to hold on back then.

Well, aside from holding on to the death, it seemed he had had no other choice...

Xu Xiaoshou waved his arms and kicked his legs, forcibly making himself look lively and vigorous. There was still another battle to fight; he could not let his body go cold.

The referee watched Xu Xiaoshou bounce about energetically, twitching now and then, with a face full of suspicion.

That was it? Xu Xiaoshou bounced as he turned around, waved to the audience members who loved him to thank them for their concern, then checked the notifications in his mind again.

Passive Value: 10220.

Tsk, tsk—an increase of more than three thousand!

This was true love! Xu Xiaoshou marveled as he walked back into the barrier, trembling with every step.

Today's quota had been met, even exceeded.

The referee followed him like a personal bodyguard and seemed to ask casually, "Ready to start the next match?"

"No rush. Let me regulate my breathing a little longer. Give me some time, yeah?"

Xu Xiaoshou took out a Spirit Crystal and sniffed it from time to time, doing his best to keep himself in peak condition.

Even so, after just going through a fierce battle and recovering from severe injuries, it would already be quite good if he could bring out sixty or seventy percent of his strength.

"Sure!"

The referee chuckled. "Then let's begin. There's no time left anyway."

Xu Xiaoshou stared at the referee in shock. Are you a dog? If there's no time left, why did you even ask whether I was ready to start? Did you have to screw with me? Grinning cheerfully, the referee injected spiritual essence into the formation token and activated the lottery screen, wearing the victorious smile of someone who had won a round back.

The screen flickered, and the name settled.

"Wen Chong!"

Xu Xiaoshou gaped at him. Wen Chong? Are you screwing with me?

The referee looked utterly innocent and spread his hands, indicating that it had nothing to do with him.

At the same time, the stands nearly exploded. The atmosphere was instantly ignited by that name.

"My heavens, Wen Chong?!"

"There's definitely something shady going on. Xu Xiaoshou is miserable—he's been set up!"

"Yeah, he just went through a life-and-death battle. Before he's even rested properly, he's facing a big shot who should have been defending the arena."

"A big shot defending the arena?" Some were immediately intrigued, while others only half understood and had no idea why everyone had suddenly erupted. "Tell us—what's going on?"

"You know Arena Two, right? Boss Wen had terrible luck. He was placed in the same group as Chao Qingteng during the group stage and got suppressed. One took first place, the other took second."

"Tch, so what? Xu Xiaoshou was a champion too!"

"Chao Qingteng, second on the rankings, an Innate expert!"

"Boss Wen, seventh on the rankings, half-step Innate!"

"Hiss! He's that badass?"

"Heh, you think that's the end? No, no, no. This guy is practically Xu Xiaoshou's natural nemesis!"

The speaker's teasing tone whetted everyone's appetite. People nearby grew impatient. "Stop keeping us in suspense! Spit it out!"

"You know Liu Zhen, right? That tenth-realm beast who nearly blew Xu Xiaoshou apart just now!"

"Mhm, mhm!" Everyone nodded.

"Wen Chong's lackey!"

"Hiss!" The crowd drew sharp breaths.

"That's not all!" The man looked smug as he continued. "You know Di Xin'er, right? The girl whose head Xu Xiaoshou smacked twice with a wooden sword!"

"Mhm, mhm!"

"Wen Chong's goddess!" The speaker dropped a bombshell.

"Holy shit!"

"That's explosive!"

"Xu Xiaoshou is so dead!"