The Fourth Prince, Under-the-Table Manipulation?

Lin Ye stood below the stage with his long saber in his arms, waving excitedly as he shouted, "Go, Miss Su! Just slaughter them all!"

At that moment, her opponent also climbed the steps onto the arena.

The newcomer was none other than the Rogue Cultivator named Chen Tie.

He was broad and burly, his entire body knotted with muscle, his palms covered in thick calluses. The aura of late Second Realm blood and qi radiated from him.

Such strength was more than enough to serve as a martial master guarding homes and courtyards among ordinary folk, but in Su Yueli's eyes, he posed no threat whatsoever.

This was practically a battle without any suspense.

Meanwhile, atop the elevated platform of the martial arts grounds.

Within the Pang Family camp, Pang Jinbiao sat in his chair, his gaze fixed upon the green-clad figure on Arena No. 2 as he ground his teeth in secret.

"Patriarch, it's that girl."

The gray-robed elder beside him lowered his voice, his tone icy. "This subordinate has confirmed it. Her build, her appearance, that Lin Ye, and even their weapons all match."

The killing intent in Pang Jinbiao's eyes nearly overflowed. He snorted coldly and heavily set the teacup in his hand onto the table.

"Go pass word to the drawing official."

Pang Jinbiao gritted his teeth. "For the next round, no matter what means you use, put Pang Lei in her group! Tell Pang Lei that once he gets on the stage, he is to strike to kill immediately. Don't let her surrender. I want that little bitch to die without a complete corpse!"

On the other side of the platform, at the seat of honor belonging to the Great Li Imperial Clan.

The Fourth Prince, Zhao Yan, held a cup of tea as he watched the martial artists below fight like ants, bored out of his mind and yawning repeatedly.

"What a bore. If Father hadn't insisted that I preside over this, I truly wouldn't have wanted to come."

Though he complained, he was helpless about it.

The emperor's command had to be obeyed.

Yet the young man in plain robes beside him, Gu Chen, stared intently at Arena No. 2, an intrigued smile hanging at the corner of his lips.

"Brother Gu."

Zhao Yan shot him a glance, looking rather puzzled. "A bunch of ordinary mortals are beating each other like wild beasts down there. You're a disciple of an immortal sect—how can you watch with such relish?"

Gu Chen smiled and said softly, "Your Highness, there are genuine talents in this tournament. Two nights ago, that girl in green counter-killed a Fifth Realm death warrior at an inn. She barely even caused a disturbance. Quite interesting."

Hearing this, Zhao Yan shook his head disapprovingly.

"No matter how talented mortal martial artists may be, they are still merely martial artists. Before the immortal sects, they are nothing but ants. Even if an immortal cultivator simply tossed out a low-grade spell, they could kill them with ease."

Though he said so, Zhao Yan still followed Gu Chen's gaze toward Arena No. 2.

At that glance, the teacup in Zhao Yan's hand froze halfway to his lips.

The girl on the arena wore a pale green dress, her high ponytail fluttering lightly in the wind. Her cold, otherworldly face, coupled with the aloof aura around her—as if she stood apart from the world and cared nothing for everything around her—made her seem utterly out of place amid the noisy martial arts grounds, yet impossible to look away from.

Zhao Yan immediately raised his brows, his eyes filled with astonishment.

"There is actually such a stunning beauty among ordinary folk?"

Zhao Yan found it somewhat unbelievable. Those supposedly gorgeous imperial consorts and noble young ladies in the palace were simply unbearably vulgar before this girl.

Even the so-called fairies among immortal cultivators fell somewhat short in comparison, not to mention that she wore no adornments at all.

Gu Chen lightly waved his folding fan and teased, "Has Your Highness taken a fancy to her? But girls who cultivate the Ultimate Dao Killing Art tend to have fiery tempers. I fear she won't be easy to tame."

A smile curled across Zhao Yan's lips. "If this prince wants something, no one within Great Li dares say no. Let us first see what she is capable of."

On the arena, the referee gave the order, and the match officially began.

Chen Tie looked at the breathtakingly beautiful girl before him, scratched his head, and gave an honest smile. "Miss, fists and feet have no eyes. You're so pretty, so I'll try to hold back a little later, lest—"

Before he could finish speaking.

Chen Tie only felt a fierce gust of wind rush toward his face as a green afterimage instantly closed the distance.

Su Yueli did not use any martial skill at all, nor did she even rouse much of her blood and qi. With merely a single step, she appeared before Chen Tie.

Her fair palm gave a gentle push, landing against Chen Tie's chest.

"Bang!"

A powerful burst of inch force erupted with a boom.

Chen Tie did not even have the chance to react. Both feet left the ground as he flew in an arc and crashed outside the arena.

Defeated in one move!

Su Yueli withdrew her hand, her expression calm. She turned and walked toward the steps, preparing to enter the next stage.

Chen Tie lay sprawled on the ground below the arena, his face blank with confusion, completely shut down.

He knew that his late Second Realm strength would not earn him any decent ranking, and that he had only come to broaden his horizons. But he had never imagined that he would not even see how his opponent made her move before the match ended the instant it began.

What the hell was there left to play?!

Su Yueli stepped down from the arena and accepted the wine gourd Lin Ye handed her.

"That was incredible, Miss Su! That was utterly one-sided!" Lin Ye raised a thumbs-up, his face full of amazement.

Su Yueli looked at him somewhat helplessly and said flatly, "Stop flattering me. It was only someone below the Third Realm. What is there to brag about?"

Soon, the matches for Group Thirty-Five began.

Lin Ye took his long saber onto the stage. Though he was usually talkative and rash, the skill in his hands was truly solid.

His Third Realm Peak blood and qi erupted in full. With only three strikes, he hacked his Third Realm Mid-Stage opponent into begging for mercy and claimed an easy victory.

An hour later, the first round of preliminary selections had completely ended.

Half the bottom-tier martial artists who had come to muddle through were eliminated, and those remaining were basically elites at the Third Realm or above.

"The second round begins! All victors, proceed to the lot cylinder and draw again!" the referee announced loudly.

Su Yueli followed the crowd and lined up before the lot cylinder.

While waiting, she raised her head, her gaze naturally sweeping across the Pang Family camp on the elevated platform.

By chance, she met Pang Jinbiao's eyes, looking down from above and filled with cold killing intent.

That gaze seemed to be looking at a dead person.

Su Yueli withdrew her gaze and rubbed her brow, feeling a headache coming on.

The great families of the imperial city held far too much influence. There might very well be under-the-table manipulation during the drawing process...

There was no avoiding it. She could only respond to whatever came her way.

It was Su Yueli's turn to draw.

The official responsible for registration glanced at her, a trace of pity flashing through his eyes too faintly to notice before he handed her a wooden token.

Su Yueli lowered her head and looked at it.

Group Forty-Three.

She turned and looked toward the enormous match board.

The opponent listed for Group Forty-Three was written in four striking characters—Pang Family, Pang Lei!

Su Yueli immediately raised her brows. So it had come after all...

Lin Ye leaned over to look at her number token, then followed the board to find the listing.

Once he saw the opponent's name, the smile on Lin Ye's face instantly froze, and he went completely numb.

"Pang... someone from the Pang Family?!"

Lin Ye sucked in a sharp breath, even his voice trembling.

Though he had personally seen Su Yueli punch Pang Hu to death and knew that Miss Su's strength was unfathomable.

This was the arena of the Martial Dao Tournament!

At such a critical moment, the Pang Family had precisely arranged for one of their own to become Su Yueli's opponent. This was absolutely no coincidence. They were openly here for revenge!

At that thought, Lin Ye's heart immediately filled with guilt and self-reproach.

If he had not stubbornly stepped forward in Lingshui City back then, Miss Su would not have been dragged into this quagmire.

He secretly blamed himself for stirring up trouble. Yet when facing a colossus like the Pang Family, he could not offer even the slightest help now. There was simply no way for him to resolve this matter.

"Miss Su, how about... we forfeit?" Lin Ye gritted his teeth and suggested in a low voice. "It's too dangerous to stay on the stage. Pang Lei must have come prepared with a killing move!"

"Forfeit?"

Su Yueli clenched the wooden token in her hand, her tone calm and unruffled. "If I forfeit, will the Pang Family stop trying to kill me?"

She turned to look in the direction of Arena No. 43, her eyes freezing cold.

"Since they want to turn the arena into my grave, then let us see who will be the one left lying on it, unable to rise."