"No need. They only have four people left, and the one up there is practically finished. I'm very interested in this supposedly unrivaled Core Condensation cultivator. I can hardly wait. Remember, our agreement was that I would act whenever I wanted to. Well, now I'm interested, so I'm going." The man cut Qi Haitian off, his tone brooking no argument.
"Well... all right." Qi Haitian hesitated, then could only agree.
Whoosh! The man's figure flickered, and he flung off his cloak. Lightning flashed, and he appeared on the Dueling Platform. He was tall, dressed in a fitted purple outfit, with blue-white hair and even blue-white eyebrows. His eyes had purple pupils, and his handsome face was cold and proud.
"It's him!" Shangguan Nan's heart lurched as the man appeared in the arena, and he cried out in surprise.
"Wait!" The Nine Profound Fairy suddenly barked coldly from midair. In a flash, she appeared before the cultivator and looked him up and down. "Why are you here? Are you representing the Qi Household?"
"My respects, Senior Jiu Xuan. This junior merely agreed to help the head of the Qi Household," the cultivator replied, neither servile nor overbearing.
"Oh? Don't you know the rules? A cultivator can only represent one lineage once every three years. Aren't you concerned about your own lineage's next city-defense contest?" The Nine Profound Fairy seemed to know him and spoke without betraying any emotion.
"Rest assured, Senior. With him there, there won't be a problem," the cultivator said mildly.
"Whew. Then I won't interfere." The Nine Profound Fairy sighed, then flickered back into the air.
"Eighth match: Ji Fazi of the Qi Household against Shangguan Nan of the Du Household!" the announcer immediately declared.
"What? Ji Fazi? How could it be Ji Fazi?" Du Chengfeng sprang to