Zhang Yan remained calm. He stamped his foot, and the Qi-Blood in his chest and abdomen surged with a roar. In that instant, Deng Qing felt as though Zhang Yan had become a furnace glowing red-hot.
The misty shadow lunged at Zhang Yan's back. Just as it was about to possess him, the Qi-Blood in his chest and abdomen surged again, cloaking his body in what looked like blood-red flames.
The shadow struck him like it had hit a bed of hot coals. It let out a piercing shriek and recoiled halfway.
Zhang Yan struck backward with his palm. The force of the blow, wrapped in searing Qi-Blood, slammed into the gray-black shadow and sent it tumbling away.
Chen Kong gave a cold snort and shook his black bell, drawing the shadow back.
Zhang Yan smiled. "Brother Chen, your Yin-Blade Ghost Pet grows fiercer by the day."
"A petty trick unworthy of Brother Zhang's notice," Chen Kong said coldly. "But I won't need it to defeat you."
Before his words had faded, the two clashed again. After dozens of exchanges, they broke apart, both wearing grim expressions.
Chen Kong sheathed his saber and looked at Zhang Yan. "Brother Zhang, there's no point continuing."
Zhang Yan snorted. "What do you propose?"
Chen Kong raised a hand toward the medicine chests. "A different contest. Since neither of us can defeat the other, let someone else fight."
"How?"
"Each side chooses one disciple from the first, second, and third layers of Skin Tempering. Best of three. What do you say?"
Zhang Yan considered for a few breaths. "As you wish."
He looked at the long-faced young man to Fan Sheng's left. "This contest is crucial. Tan Fang, you'll go first."
He knew how important it was to strike the first blow.
Chen Kong had specified one fighter from each layer but had not set the order. Zhang Yan intended to seize that opening.
Tan Fang was among the strongest at the second layer, and Zhang Yan held his swordsmanship in high regard.
Tan Fang stepped out of the crowd and cupped his fists toward Zhang Yan. "I won't fail you."
Zhang Yan nodded. "Be careful."
Tan Fang acknowledged him, strode forward, and called out, "Tan Fang, Skin Refining Second Layer. Please."
The Golden Saber Sect seemed prepared. A tall, thin man stepped forward.
Narrow of build and gaunt of face, he wore a slender saber at his waist. He cupped his fists. "Swift-Blade Xin Wu."
Deng Qing watched, absorbed. Wang Wei continued his running commentary. "Xin Wu is a well-known fighter in the Golden Saber Sect. That swift saber of his is vicious. He and Senior Brother Tan are well matched."
Xin Wu wasted no words. He drew his saber and attacked. Tan Fang flicked his sword out, held its tip across his body, and met the first cut steadily.
Soon the fight turned fierce. Saber and sword clashed in a flurry dense as driving rain, each attack more relentless than the last.
Tan Fang's swordsmanship was steady. His defense let neither wind nor rain through from any direction.
Xin Wu's saber was astonishingly fast. Its gleam darted along Tan Fang's sword like a Spirit Snake flicking its tongue.
At first, Deng Qing wondered why no one had checked their cultivation levels. What if someone stronger fought someone weaker?
Once the two exchanged blows, he understood.
The moment their Qi-Blood surged, their Skin Membranes flexed and their muscles and bones took the strain, there was no hiding their levels.
A dozen or so moves later, Xin Wu's upward strike at the groin forced Tan Fang's footwork into disarray.
Then the slender saber slipped beneath the screen of sword shadows Tan Fang had woven and thrust diagonally toward his shoulder.
Tan Fang hurriedly brought his sword back to block, but he was half a beat too slow. The blade grazed his shoulder, drawing blood.
Zhang Yan's eyes darkened. "Stop."
Tan Fang retreated two steps, clutching his shoulder, his expression grim.
The Golden Saber Sect erupted in cheers. Xin Wu turned away and sheathed his saber with an air of effortless superiority, as though he had done nothing worth mentioning.
Chen Kong's smile widened. With a voice dripping false courtesy, he told Zhang Yan, "You let us win."
The mood on the Celebration Hall side sank. Losing the opening bout had dealt their spirits a heavy blow.
Before the second bout even began, the Golden Saber Sect sent out its next fighter, a large, powerfully built man.
He carried no saber. He pressed his hands together, making his knuckles crack with a dull series of pops. "Xu Zhen, Skin Tempering Third Layer."
Zhang Yan frowned deeply. He had already chosen his fighters, but after the first defeat, his plan no longer seemed so sound.
It was best of three, and they had already lost one. If they lost the second, there would be no third bout.
For a moment, Zhang Yan could not decide.
Just then, hurried hoofbeats sounded from the mountain path behind them.
Everyone turned. A rider in white was galloping toward them.
At the sight of him, Zhang Yan relaxed. Joy spread across Fan Sheng's face, and he called out, "It's Senior Brother Ma!"
The white-robed rider reined in his horse and swung down.
He looked a little younger than Zhang Yan, with an open expression and a sturdy build. His feet landed firmly.
Murmurs quickly rippled through the crowd.
"Senior Brother Ma Mingfei?"
"Is it really Senior Brother Ma?"
"Wasn't he away traveling?"
"Back when Senior Brother Ma was at Celebration Hall, he was one of its best fighters. His Iron-Clad Body Technique was exceptionally solid."
Ma Mingfei strode over and cupped his fists toward Zhang Yan. "Senior Brother, I hurried as fast as I could. Glad I made it."
"Your timing is perfect," Zhang Yan said.
There was no time to catch up. Zhang Yan briefly explained the situation.
Ma Mingfei laughed. "In that case, I'll take the Skin Tempering Third Layer bout."
Chen Kong recognized Ma Mingfei and knew he was indeed a disciple of Celebration Hall, so he had no grounds to object.
Ma Mingfei stepped into the fighting ground and cupped his fists toward Xu Zhen. "Ma Mingfei, Skin Tempering Third Layer."
Xu Zhen grunted and raised both palms, Qi-Blood surging through them.
Ma Mingfei loosened his outer robe, revealing the fitted fighting clothes beneath.
They attacked at the same time. The moment they clashed, the blows sounded far heavier than those in the first bout.
Xu Zhen's first palm strike came with a muffled rush of air, like thunder bearing down.
Ma Mingfei lowered his shoulders, drove Qi-Blood into his Skin Membrane, crossed his arms before his chest, and took the blow head-on.
Thud! Ma Mingfei swayed, and the gravel beneath his feet shattered, but he was unharmed.
"Iron-Clad Body Technique!"
Xu Zhen's gaze sharpened. His second palm strike came sweeping in a gust of force.
Ma Mingfei shifted his feet half an inch and turned his shoulders with the blow, taking another hit. At the same time, he swept a palm toward Xu Zhen's brow. Xu Zhen dodged in a panic, stumbled back several steps, and stared at him in horror.
To an outsider, Ma Mingfei was simply taking a beating.
But experts like Zhang Yan and Chen Kong could see it clearly. With every strike he took, Ma Mingfei made tiny adjustments, using the Iron-Clad Body Technique to gradually absorb the layered force of Xu Zhen's blows.
Xu Zhen had plainly seen it too. He snorted and pressed forward with a chain of palm strikes, one after another.
It looked as though Xu Zhen had the upper hand, but with every exchange, his confidence ebbed.
Then Xu Zhen struck again. In the instant when his previous force had run out and fresh force had yet to rise, Ma Mingfei unleashed the mighty blow he had been building toward.
Instead of retreating, he drove forward, ramming his shoulder into Xu Zhen and knocking both his arms aside.
Xu Zhen's face changed. He tried to pull his palms back to guard his chest, but he was a breath too late. Ma Mingfei stepped inside his guard, struck with an elbow that threw his chest wide open, then drove a fist squarely into it.
Xu Zhen grunted and staggered back several steps, sending gravel flying beneath his feet. He tried to steady himself, but the Qi-Blood in his chest had scattered, and he could no longer sustain that chain of force.
At last, his knees buckled, and he dropped to one knee.
The Celebration Hall side exploded into cheers.