Chapter 189
Chapter 189: The Rejected Stake
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Gossip thrived where people gathered – this was one of the fundamental tenets of human interaction . Apart from a minority who were particularly stern and somber, most people loved gossiping .
Just like now, when Dai Yue first announced her condition for the bet, several people glanced around curiously as they attempted to locate the “brother Rong” that was mentioned by Dai Yue .
From what Dai Yue had announced, the audience gathered that it seemed to be a love triangle – two female cultivators from different sects had fallen in love with the same male cultivator . Not only had they vied for this male cultivator’s attention, they had even laid down a bet such that the winner of this duel would be able to earn for herself the attention and favor of that male cultivator .
Almost eighty percent of all the male cultivators within the audience admired this “brother Rong” mentioned by Dai Yue . After all, few people possessed such luck with women to be able to attract the affection of two beautiful female cultivators like the ones on the arena right now .
Even if one sets aside the ladies’ appearances for now, just their backing and stature alone was already sufficient to cause one to salivate .
One was the daughter of the Heavenly Peak’s Peakmaster; while the other was the daughter of the Eternal Summit Sect’s Grand Elder . Being together with either one already meant that one would have access to insurmountable riches, resources and wealth . And this man had attracted the attention of these two ladies all at once .
Just who is this “brother Rong”? Several gossipmongers in the audience began to look around in excitement as they exclaimed in their hearts .
Jun Xiaomo squinted her eyes, and her cherry-blossom lips stretched out into a thin grimace .
If her loved ones were on the arena, they would undoubtedly be able to tell that Jun Xiaomo was fervently suppressing the indignation that was surging within her heart .
Jun Xiaomo looked wryly at how Dai Yue was glaring back at her with her nose in the air as she coldly articulated, “I . Re-fuse . ”
As soon as Jun Xiaomo responded, the entire audience grew silent once more .
It was evident that nobody expected Jun Xiaomo’s current response . Most people had expected her to welcome the challenge with open arms .
After being dazed for a moment, the pride and contempt in Dai Yue’s expressions deepened even more as she coldly chuckled, “What’s the matter? You’re backing out now because you know you’re going to lose? Jun Xiaomo, I despise you . I really don’t know what else brother Rong sees in you apart from that face of yours . This is fine as well . Brother Rong can see your timid and gutless true colours more clearly . ”
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As Dai Yue finished speaking, she looked purposefully into the audience . Everyone followed her gaze curiously, and their eyes landed on the body of a suave and handsome-looking male cultivator .
A fiery gaze in his eyes; a striking disposition; sharp and chiseled features accentuated the cool and distant charms about him . Simply put, this man he exuded the airs of royalty . It was no wonder he was able to attract the attention of these two beauties on stage right now .
Despite that, this man continued to watch nonchalantly at the dispute on the arena . Nobody could tell what he was thinking of right now .
Dai Yue also discovered that Rong Ruihan was completely still and composed, and she couldn’t help but grow anxious as well .
At this moment, Jun Xiaomo began to speak with a cold and dispassionate tone, “Dai Yue, I didn’t reject your earlier condition because I was afraid of you . Rather, making brother Rong a condition for this bet is a humiliating to him! Brother Rong isn’t a tool to be handed from one to another . He’s a person, and he’s got his feelings and pride as well . You ask me to ‘return’ him to you . But let me ask you this – do either of us even have the right to ‘return’ him to begin with?!”
Realization swept across the entire audience as they began to cast looks of approval at Jun Xiaomo . At the same time, they found themselves tacitly agreeing with Rong Ruihan’s decision to pick Jun Xiaomo .
After all, who would like someone who treated himself as nothing more than an “object” that was to be obtained or discarded at any time? Rong Ruihan was not a person with fetishes after all!
Jun Xiaomo’s spiel made Dai Yue’s face turn sickly green and pale with fright . Then, when she realized how Jun Xiaomo’s spiel was met with the approval of almost the entire audience, the indignation in her heart burgeoned into a roaring inferno .
“You’re a liar! You’re clearly afraid of losing to me . That’s why you’re not willing to take this bet . ”
Jun Xiaomo snorted disdainfully, “Since when did I say I’m backing out of the bet? I’ve only refused the condition that you’ve set . ”
“Then why is it that when we made your marriage arrangement the subject of our bet, you didn’t see any reason to reject it, huh? You must have already had a change of heart back then! That’s why you didn’t even need to think about it before you accepted my conditions back then!”
Jun Xiaomo raised her eyebrows quizzically, before sighing in her heart – At least you’ve managed to guess half of it .
Even though she had not exactly had a “change of heart” back then, the truth of the matter was that, having been reborn again, she no longer possessed any modicum of affection towards Qin Lingyu .
Of course, she was not going to bother Dai Yue with these finer details .
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Jun Xiaomo gently patted her palm with her whip as she placidly responded, “Dai Yue, I truly pity your lack of logic and your inability to comprehend simple truths . The marriage arrangement is a contractual arrangement . It can naturally be made the subject of a bet . Besides, the marriage arrangement between Qin Lingyu and I had always been nothing more than a formality, and there has never been any entanglement of feelings amongst us . So what’s the issue with making it the subject of a bet?”
“You!” Dai Yue was infuriated with Jun Xiaomo’s verbal agility .
The commotion in the audience was incessant . Jun Xiaomo’s marriage arrangement with Qin Lingyu was hardly news to most people in the audience .
Since when did the Dawn Sect’s Sect Leader’s First-Seat Disciple get drawn into the picture? Is this not just a love triangle? Could this be a multi-sided love affair?!
Everyone watched on excitedly as this “drama” unfurled .
In the audience, Qin Lingyu’s face turned pale the moment he heard that Jun Xiaomo had already made his marriage arrangement with her the subject of a bet one year ago .
He had never expected Jun Xiaomo to have had a change of heart since such a long time ago . Most of all, he found it completely absurd that he had always been under the impression that Jun Xiaomo was reluctant to dissolve the marriage with him, and he had even wracked his mind trying to think of a way to make Jun Xiaomo rescind the marriage arrangement with him .
Qin Lingyu stared at Jun Xiaomo with a sullen gaze in his eyes . He was incredibly frustrated and infuriated .
It suddenly dawned upon him that he had been played like a fiddle all this while .
Ding! The chief referee rang the bell in his hands as he reprimanded, “Enough . This is an arena, not a theatre . Make your final preparations . The battle will soon begin .
Jun Xiaomo nodded her head as she walked to her side of the arena and began to examine the whip in her hands .
Yet Dai Yue was simply relentless . She yelled across the arena, “Jun Xiaomo, you cowardly piece of trash! I knew that you would sooner or later renege on your agreement when you made that bet . ”
Jun Xiaomo’s gaze grew frosty . She looked up again and curled her lips into a smirk as she dispassionately responded, “Dai Yue, since you really want a bet, then shall we make something else the condition of out bet?”
“What do you want to stake this time?” Dai Yue mocked, “Don’t bother if it’s things like spirit tools or medicinal pills . I’ve got no interest in them . ”
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Jun Xiaomo lashed her whip out intently as she responded, “Whoever loses this battle…shall never appear before brother Rong again . How about that?”
Dai Yue snorted coldly, “Didn’t you say you can’t make brother Rong the subject of our bet? What’s the matter? Capitulating after a slight provocation on my part?”
“Brother Rong isn’t the subject of the bet . The condition that I’ve set simply determines our own actions…”
“You…you’re twisting words!”
“But isn’t it true? I’m not using brother Rong as the subject of a bet nor treating him as an object to be passed around . What we can do is to stake the restrictions on our own movement and conduct . So, how is it? Do you accept these conditions?”
Dai Yue almost choked on Jun Xiaomo’s rhetoric . Finally, she squinted her eyes as she clarified, “Are you really willing to make this the condition of our bet?”
“Of course . Furthermore, with the entire audience as witness, you won’t have to be afraid that I’ll capitulate . ”
“Hah!” Dai Yue chuckled disdainfully, “Good . Remember, you’re the one who suggested it . Furthermore, I’m not afraid of you capitulating at all…”
Because I’m going to kill you on this arena today! Dai Yue gnashed her teeth as she added in her heart .
Just as both parties managed to agree to the conditions of their bet, the chief referee stood up once more and rang the bell on his hands – Ding, ding, ding!
“I hereby announce…the seventeenth battle of the second round of Lower Category competition…begins now!”
As soon as the chief referee declared the commencement of the battle, Dai Yue immediately went on the offensive and rushed straight towards Jun Xiaomo .
She did not intend to give Jun Xiaomo any time to react . Furthermore, she firmly believed that defeating Jun Xiaomo was going to be an incredibly simple task .
After all, in Dai Yue’s last battle, she had taken one incense stick of time to completely and utterly defeat her opponent who was only at the seventh level of Qi Mastery . Jun Xiaomo was only at the fifth level of Qi Mastery – did this not mean that this battle was going to be that much easier?
How much time would I be able to end this battle in? Half an incense of time? Or maybe even less…
No . She would never end the battle so quickly . Rather than let Jun Xiaomo die a quick and painless death, she would instead prefer to torment this lady who had snatched the object of her affection time and again .
She was going to ruin her appearances, before crushing her limbs…
Dai Yue was already convinced of her own victory . Yet Jun Xiaomo had avoided her first attack easily – this was completely outside the ambit of her calculations .
In her first battle, Dai Yue had precisely taken advantage of the fact that her opponent had not managed to react quickly enough to the commencement of the battle, and the first strike of her whip instantly connected with her opponent . In this present battle, she had in a similar fashion sent her first whiplash straight towards Jun Xiaomo’s face .
She did not wish to merely injure Jun Xiaomo – she intended to utterly ruin Jun Xiaomo’s appearances and disfigure her .
However, Jun Xiaomo nimbly avoided Dai Yue’s attack .
Dai Yue was momentarily stunned . Then, she gritted her teeth – This must be Jun Xiaomo’s luck! I don’t believe that Jun Xiaomo can keep avoiding my attacks!
Thus, a second lash of the whip, and a third, and a fourth… Countless afterimages of her whips lashes enveloped Jun Xiaomo’s figure as their fluttering clothes melded together in an intense battle .
Off the stage, the entire audience watched with bated breaths as they grew worried for Jun Xiaomo . Dai Yue’s usage of the whip was incredibly vicious, and each lash of the whip resounded with an earsplitting snap, as though powerful enough to cleave the floor of the arena .
In contrast, Jun Xiaomo appeared to have been completely suppressed and restrained by Dai Yue’s relentless attacks . Jun Xiaomo did not appear to launch any counterattacks at Dai Yue at all .
The audience only saw Jun Xiaomo fervently avoiding each and every attack released by Dai Yue . Several members of the audience even broke out profusely with sweat on her behalf .
Seems like Jun Xiaomo’s is fated to lose this battle, then? It’s to be expected . That lady from the Eternal Summit Sect is just too vicious . Furthermore, the difference in their cultivation levels are so great .
It’s such a pity . I wonder if this beauty will still be able to walk out of the arena alive…?