Su Yuan wouldn't believe a single word of the System's claim that Taihua Tianji was a Devil Dao Magnate.
The only thing people said was that he had a bit of bad luck when it came to fortune.
But putting aside the slander about him being some Devil Dao Magnate, the core of this task was pretty normal.
Get the attention of an influential figure, then receive their guidance and support—a thoroughly orthodox progression.
Besides, the task of attracting attention also happened to align perfectly with how he planned to fight in the upcoming Martial Arts Competition.
The Demonic Cultivation Technique · Finger Artifact, a technique in the Demonic Cultivation Technique · Five Fingers series—Su Yuan was determined to get it!
Just as his fighting spirit was soaring, another figure suddenly emerged from the Flying Boat.
She was a little girl with white hair and golden eyes, as exquisitely adorable as a doll.
She emerged in a flowing dress, instantly becoming the focus of the entire crowd.
White-haired Loli fanatics really were everywhere.
"Su Yuan, look! It's the little girl we saw in the cafeteria last time. She must be True Man Tai Bai's daughter."
Chen Nuoyi, standing in front of Su Yuan, turned around and said in surprise.
"Mm, I see her."
Su Yuan replied perfunctorily, his face expressionless, while inwardly rolling his eyes.
For some reason, he wasn't surprised at all that the White-haired Loli was Taihua Tianji's daughter.
The father was a Devil Dao Magnate, while the daughter was a mighty righteous cultivator, huh?
System, you sure knew how to write a family drama.
After Taihua Yu Xi—that was, the White-haired Loli—stepped out of the Flying Boat, her golden eyes immediately locked onto Su Yuan.
In her view, the demonic aura radiating from Su Yuan had grown even stronger. A hint of satisfaction appeared on the little girl's pretty face.
"Daddy, you said earlier that Taihua High School was holding a Martial Arts Competition?"
The little girl turned to look at Taihua Tianji.
Before he could answer, Principal Zhang Youde of Taihua High School chimed in with a genial smile:
"We selected a few promising students from the senior class. We also hoped True Man Tai Bai might serve as a judge and offer some pointers to these underachieving students of ours."
The White-haired Loli gave a little "oh," then bluntly said:
"A small place like Taihua High School doesn't have a single person worthy of Daddy's attention. Making him a judge would be a waste of his time."
Zhang Youde: "..."
Why say something so painfully true?
Taihua Tianji shook his head.
"Yu Xi, don't be rude."
But the White-haired Loli said:
"I'm only telling the truth! How about this, Daddy? You can go look around somewhere else, and I'll be the judge for this Martial Arts Competition."
"You... be the judge?"
Taihua Tianji was slightly taken aback.
He furrowed his brow, recalling something that had happened a few days ago.
It had been the second day after he arrived in Taihua City. His daughter had gone alone to Taihua High School to make an incognito visit.
It hadn't seemed like anything important, but when she returned, he noticed that his usually aloof and taciturn daughter had started smiling now and then.
Almost as if... she had fallen for someone!
But how could that be? What could a little girl of ten or so know about such things?
So, after only a moment's suspicion, he put the thought out of his mind.
And now, upon returning to Taihua High School, his daughter had once again become extremely enthusiastic about the place. She had even volunteered to be a judge for the Martial Arts Competition.
What had gotten his daughter so invested?
Taihua Tianji recalled the list of Martial Arts Competition participants that the school had sent over the day before. His daughter seemed to have looked through it.
Could it be someone on the competition roster?
A flash of insight crossed Taihua Tianji's mind. He felt he had more or less guessed the truth.
"Fine, Yu Xi. You can be the judge for the Martial Arts Competition."
Taihua Tianji nodded without hesitation.
Principal Zhang Youde was stunned.
"True Man Tai Bai, is it really appropriate to let a child be a judge?"
Zhang Youde trailed off. Could this Sword Immortal be one of those fathers who spoiled his daughter rotten?
Taihua Tianji waved his hand and smiled.
"It's fine. Since my daughter wants to experience being a judge, then let her. We can just watch from the side."
Zhang Youde thought it over and decided that made sense.
As long as True Man Tai Bai got to see the students of his school in action, the title of judge didn't really matter.
Taihua Tianji gave his daughter a meaningful look.
Once his daughter became a judge, she might favor someone on the Martial Arts Competition roster. That person was almost certainly the reason for the change in her temperament.
Su Yuan was already sweating buckets.
He had a feeling this little brat was up to no good as a judge.
Was she trying to screw him over?
But the Martial Arts Competition was already like an arrow on the string, impossible to hold back. Su Yuan could only hope Taihua Yu Xi wouldn't cause trouble and would let him win the competition fair and square.
Li Ziquan was in charge of this Martial Arts Competition. She quickly showed Taihua Tianji and the school leaders to their seats, then cleared the area where the competitors would fight.
As the competition judge, Taihua Yu Xi took her seat on the judges' panel without hesitation.
The eight contestants, Su Yuan included, stepped forward and gathered in the center of the field.
The Martial Arts Competition had a simple format: draw lots to determine the matchups, go from eight contestants to four, then four to two, and finally decide the champion.
After briefly explaining the rules, Li Ziquan took out a box of lots and addressed the contestants:
"Come up one by one and draw a number. The two people with the same number will be paired together."
The draw went smoothly. Su Yuan drew number one, as did a student from Class Six who was at Qi Cultivation Level 6.
He and the Class Six student were the only two people on the field at Qi Cultivation Level 6.
To outsiders, it looked like two weaklings fighting it out.
Su Yuan was also satisfied with the draw. He had all sorts of ways to win, but starting with the weak and powering up as he went was, of course, the more orthodox approach.
As the number one seed, Su Yuan and his opponent were up first.
The other contestants stepped back, leaving only Su Yuan and his opponent in the middle. Just as they waited for the referee's signal to start, a clear, girlish voice suddenly rang out.
"I hereby declare Su Yuan the winner of this Martial Arts Competition."
Su Yuan: "???"
Wait, we haven't even started fighting!
Li Ziquan, the referee: "???"
Wait, I haven't even rigged the match yet!
The students and school leaders watching: "..."
They all turned toward the source of the voice. It was Taihua Yu Xi, standing on the judges' bench and just barely level with the seated adults.
Principal Zhang Youde asked helplessly:
"Judge Tai Bai, the match hasn't even started. How has Su Yuan already won?"
Taihua Yu Xi glanced at him and said coolly:
"Su Yuan is in Class Two, and his opponent is in Class Six. Two comes before six, so that's one victory."
"Su Yuan has one victory, while the other contestants have zero. That's two victories."
"Su Yuan has two victories, while the other contestants still have zero. That's three victories."
"Three battles, three victories. Doesn't that make him the champion?"
At those words, everyone present clearly understood one thing.
This Martial Arts Competition was freaking rigged!
Everyone's gaze landed in unison on Su Yuan in the middle of the field. He felt his skin crawl under their stares.
But what made Su Yuan's heart seize up even more was the sharp spike in his System Panel's task progress.
[Task Progress: Attention (100/100)]
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