After hearing this, Huang Quan’s heart stirred. She looked at Jing Chen and asked, “What’s the relationship between Di Qin and Xuan Yong?”
Jing Chen replied, “They know each other, but they’re not close.”
They knew each other because one was the crown prince of an empire, and the other was a highly regarded prince within the empire. All four great empires had interactions, and although Di Qin was often away, making his whereabouts a mystery, it was certain they were acquainted.
It was like how he and Feng Jiu Yan recognized each other even without having met often.
Not close?
Huang Quan tilted her head, stared at Xuan Yong for a moment, and then withdrew her gaze.
“Why are you asking if Di Qin and Xuan Yong are familiar with each other?” Feng Jiu Yan asked.
“Just asking,” Huang Quan replied. “He conceded for no reason, effectively sending me to the next round. I don’t know him, and he doesn’t need to help me, so I was wondering if he conceded out of consideration for Qin Qin.”
Huang Quan’s reasoning was sound, and Feng Jiu Yan didn’t doubt it.
“Listening to Jing Chen, Xuan Yong does seem a bit strange,” the teacher said. “However, his conceding is a good thing for you, girl.”
“Yeah,” Huang Quan replied.
While Huang Quan and the others were puzzled about why Xuan Yong had conceded, many others were also wondering.
Most people thought Xuan Yong conceded because he knew Huang Quan, but after stepping down from the platform, Xuan Yong hadn’t interacted with her at all, making it seem like they weren’t acquainted.
Since they didn’t know each other, why would he concede and send Huang Quan to the next round?
Qian Rou pouted and muttered, “I told you she’s a vixen.”
Hearing this, the old man rubbed his temples in frustration.
When will this mouth of hers change?
What did Xuan Yong’s acquaintance with Huang Quan have to do with anything?
Even if Xuan Yong conceded because he thought Huang Quan was pretty, that was still his choice. Did Huang Quan make him concede?
“Qian Rou,” the old man said, “I promised your father to bring you out to see the world. If you keep disregarding the rules, I’ll have someone send you back.”
Upon hearing this, Qian Rou quickly replied, “Grandfather, I know I was wrong. I won’t say anything else.”
The old man didn’t respond and continued watching the matches on the platform.
The results of the match between Xuan Yong and Huang Quan were announced, but the results of the other two groups had yet to be revealed.
Half an hour later, the results for the two remaining matches came out.
Once those results were in, the next set of matches commenced.
By the time all fifteen matches concluded, it was already afternoon.
Aside from Huang Quan, the other fourteen participants who had won had all sustained varying degrees of injury.
The winners were injured, not to mention the extent of the injuries sustained by the losers.
After announcing the fifteen victors, the vice president arranged for everyone to be taken to the designated courtyard for rest and instructed the staff to bring food.
…
Due to the large number of participants, many people were accommodated in a single courtyard. For instance, Huang Quan and her companions shared their courtyard with the teachers from the Western You Empire Academy.
However, the two groups were separated into two courtyards.
“Girl,” the teacher said during dinner, “the contestants in this competition are all highly skilled. You need to be prepared and shouldn’t underestimate anyone.”
Huang Quan nodded. “Teacher, I understand. You can rest assured.”
The teacher nodded and didn’t say more.
After dinner, the teacher went to heal his injuries sustained during the matches, while Huang Quan stepped out of the courtyard for a stroll.
Although she called it a stroll, she was actually observing if there were any special places nearby.
After wandering around the area surrounding the courtyard and finding nothing noteworthy, she returned to her living quarters.
425
Returning to the courtyard, Feng Jiu Yuen said, “I don’t know about other places, but where we went was fine.”
Jing Chen replied, “It would be better if we could go a bit further.”
“That would definitely be better, but it’s not appropriate,” Feng Jiu Yuen said. “After all, we are in someone else’s territory. Regardless of whether they have issues or not, they wouldn’t like us wandering around their grounds.”
Jing Chen nodded and looked at Huang Quan. “Since we didn’t find anything special nearby, why don’t we sneak out again tonight?”
“Hmm.” Huang Quan nodded. “Let’s not worry about it now. We should rest and check things out later tonight.”
“Alright.”
…
Nightfall.
After greeting the teacher, Huang Quan, Jing Chen, and Feng Jiu Yuen left the small courtyard.
Stepping out of the courtyard, they blended into the darkness of the night.
Huang Quan turned to Jing Chen and Feng Jiu Yuen. “Let’s split up. You and Jing Chen go together.”
Jing Chen and Feng Jiu Yuen nodded. “Okay.”
Huang Quan reminded them, “Be careful. If you get discovered, head straight back to the courtyard.”
“If you encounter danger and can’t fight back, don’t push it. Just run.”
“Understood.” Feng Jiu Yuen and Jing Chen responded, indicating that they understood.
Huang Quan felt reassured and then separated from them.
…
After parting ways, Huang Quan began to check the surroundings for anything unusual.
The places she had checked during the day were limited, and she hadn’t noticed anything odd. Taking advantage of the night, Huang Quan went further away.
The square to the south of the Nanyuan Empire Academy was quite large. After exploring other areas and finding nothing suspicious, she returned to the courtyard.
“Ah!”
A scream suddenly pierced the quiet night!
Hearing that sound, Huang Quan immediately rushed toward the courtyard from which the noise came.
At the same time, others who heard the sound rushed over!
“What happened?”
Huang Quan entered the small courtyard and, upon reaching the room, saw several people standing outside.
Hearing the noise, the people turned around, and one of them said upon seeing Huang Quan, “Our companion has been killed.”
Huang Quan frowned slightly. “May I take a look?”
If Huang Quan had barged in without asking, they might not have agreed. However, her polite inquiry and their belief in her abilities made them nod in agreement. “Sure.”
With their permission, Huang Quan entered the room.
Inside, she immediately spotted Xuan Yong.
Aside from Xuan Yong, there was also an old man and a woman she didn’t recognize.
Huang Quan walked over to Xuan Yong.
Xuan Yong wasn’t surprised to see her. “Huang Quan, come take a look.”
Both the old man and the woman turned their attention to Huang Quan.
Noticing their gaze, Huang Quan nodded as a form of greeting before looking at the deceased.
The victim was a man she recognized; he was a participant from today’s competition, but he wasn’t among the winners—he had lost.
His opponent was quite strong, and he had suffered severe injuries during the match.
The man lay on the ground with a bloody hole in his left chest, right where the heart was located.
Huang Quan squatted down to inspect. “His heart is gone.”
“Yes,” Xuan Yong replied. “Not only is his heart missing, but his spiritual energy has also been drained.”
Heart, spiritual energy…
This was a sign of a demon’s healing technique!
In this continent, there were no demon races—unless you considered beasts to be a part of that category.
However, this world was quite harsh towards beasts. Aside from those with inherently noble bloodlines, like the dragon clan, other beasts found it very difficult to cultivate enough to transform into human forms.
