Chapter 115: You’re Mom Calling You Home for Dinner

Instead of falling to the ground and melting into water as usual, snowflakes descended and coalesced around Chu Chuyan, gradually forming an ice-sculpture-like lotus that enveloped her delicate body.

On the stage, Sang Hong, seated in the central main seat, nodded slightly. "I've long heard of Miss Chu's genius, and seeing it today confirms she's truly extraordinary. To wield elemental energy to such an extent at this age is remarkable."

Behind him, Sang Qian's eyes burned with fanaticism. He thought, "Though Zheng Dan is beautiful, she still pales in comparison to Chu Chuyan. If I could possess this woman, I'd probably wake up laughing from my dreams."

Previously, he wouldn't even have dared to dream of such a thing. But upon learning that Chu Chuyan had chosen Zu An, who was inferior to him in every way, as her husband, he suddenly felt that even goddesses from heaven were no longer out of reach.

Especially after learning about some of his father's plans, he mused that when the Chu family eventually fell from grace and she was no longer a high-ranking duke's daughter, he might actually have a chance to win her affection.

The only minor issue was that Shi Kun also seemed to be interested in her...

At this moment, Sang Hong was unaware of his son's thoughts. He turned his head to speak with Jiang Luofu, who was beside him. "Miss Chu's achievements today must surely be due in part to Principal Jiang's guidance, wouldn't you agree?"

Despite consciously reminding himself, his peripheral vision couldn't help but glance at her legs—long, straight, and well-proportioned, truly a masterpiece of creation. Especially the way they were encased in stockings, this woman was indeed an enchantress!

Jiang Luofu smiled slightly. "Chu Chuyan's achievements are primarily due to her own extraordinary talent and high comprehension. The school merely provided a little guidance."

"Principal Jiang is too modest." Sang Hong wasn't particularly fond of women, but the woman beside him had such beautiful legs that even with his self-control, he couldn't help but steal a few more glances.

On the arena, Wu Di's momentum had reached its peak. The ten-meter-long flaming blade in his hand, carrying a terrifying aura, slashed straight down, striking heavily onto the ice lotus.

Ice and fire are incompatible; upon contact, the outer petals of the ice lotus were melted by the flaming blade, which then proceeded to cleave directly towards Chu Chuyan at the center of the lotus.

"Miss Chu, watch out!""Fairy Chu, be careful!"

Chu Chuyan was simply too beautiful. Even knowing they had no relation to her, seeing her in danger, the men watching in the training ground couldn't help but shout warnings.

Zu An immediately became agitated. "I'm the main one here, and I'm not even worried. Why are you all so worked up?" His wife was being eyed by other men, and he felt deeply displeased. When he was displeased, he decided to make more people displeased. So, he stood up and shouted loudly, "Go, wife! Go, wife! Go, wife!" His voice was so loud, it was as if he wanted to make sure everyone knew the woman on stage was his wife.

Sure enough, the moment he started shouting, countless murderous gazes instantly converged on him.

"This guy is Miss Chu's husband? He looks utterly unremarkable.""More than unremarkable, he's known as the city's famous good-for-nothing.""How can such a person marry my goddess? Heaven is so unfair!""Damn it!"

On the main platform, Shi Kun instantly crushed the armrest of his chair. He had long considered Chu Chuyan his exclusive possession, yet now he had to watch another man call her his wife. The feeling was indescribable, making him feel as if his head was covered in green.

"Shameless, utterly shameless! No wonder he could write such disgraceful stories." Ji Dengtu, who was busy pushing his way through the crowd to take advantage, couldn't help but shake his head. "I must find an opportunity to ask him about the rest of the story. Did that protagonist named Wang ever change later? Huh, why am I concerned about someone named Wang? I didn't accidentally project myself into his perspective, did I? Bah, bah, bah!"

Zu An watched the massive influx of Rage points in the backend, thinking, "Is having a beautiful wife truly joyful? You guys can't even begin to imagine the happiness, hahaha!"

Chu Chuyan, who had been fighting Wu Di for so long without any of his words eliciting a change in her expression, now heard Zu An's loud shouts. A fleeting blush appeared on her exquisite cheeks. "This guy is truly..."

Her shy reaction infuriated Wu Di. "I said so much just now and you didn't react at all, but now you're blushing? You dare to be distracted while fighting me?"

Sensing the fury in his heart, the massive flaming blade instantly surged, pressing down several more feet onto the ice lotus, as if to cleave it completely in two.

Seeing this, the surrounding crowd gasped in surprise. However, Wu Di frowned, sensing something amiss; the blade's descent was becoming slower and slower.

Chu Chuyan stood calmly in the center of the ice lotus, gazing at the flaming blade above her with no expression. Fine snow continued to drift around them, and the two seemed to be in a stalemate.

"Look!" Someone suddenly noticed something unusual.

Everyone followed his pointing finger and looked intently. They saw that the flames on the blade had stopped flickering at some point, and a layer of white mist had appeared on the blade.

The entire flaming blade rapidly froze at a visible pace, and finally, even Wu Di, still in the air, was frozen solid into an ice sculpture.

Zu An swallowed hard, thinking, "My cheap wife is so formidable. What if she becomes abusive in the future? No, I must improve my strength quickly, or who will I cry to if my little brother gets frozen into an ice sculpture?"

"Even elemental energy can be frozen?" The young disciples from the smaller and medium-sized families in the arena were utterly astonished, and even those seated in the main positions on the stage were moved.

"As expected of the woman I chose!" Shi Kun's face showed a smug smile, as if her victory had brought him honor.

The faces of the Wu family, Yuan family, and others darkened. After all, having such a genius in the Chu family was a great misfortune for their own clans.

City Lord Xie Yi secretly sighed, thinking, "What a pity. Such an astonishingly talented woman had refused the marriage proposal from Prince Qi's lineage."

Sang Hong's eyes, however, gleamed with shrewdness. He thought, "Fortunately, Chu Chuyan is a woman. Otherwise, if Chu Zhongtian had such a powerful son, all our plans would be impossible."

Everyone believed Chu Chuyan had already won the match. Even Chu Chuyan herself began to say, "I concede..." then she paused with a confused "Huh?"

She had intended to retract her elemental energy to unfreeze her opponent, but suddenly noticed something abnormal. Looking up at the ice sculpture in the air, she saw the outer ice shell cracking inch by inch before finally dissolving into a cloud of white powder. Wu Di landed back on the ground, his entire body glowing with a faint luminescence, as if enveloped by a transparent film.

"Sixth rank!"

Everyone in the arena was stunned. An elemental protective film was the unique mark of a sixth-rank practitioner, capable of isolating attacks from lower-rank elements.

"How could they have a sixth-rank practitioner?!" Qin Wanru suddenly stood up, her face filled with disbelief.

Chu Zhongtian also shot a lightning-fast gaze towards the Wu family. "Duke Yangquan, what is the meaning of this?" He knew, of course, that the Yuan family didn't have such a foundation; the opponent must have come from the Wu family.

Wu Wei smiled faintly. "Duke Mingyue, I don't understand what you mean. It's a match between your Chu family and the Yuan family; why ask me?"

Chu Zhongtian snorted. "You and I both know what's really going on."

Wu Wei said, "It's just a sixth-rank practitioner, Duke Mingyue; why are you making such a fuss? It's not as if the family grand competition stated that sixth-rank practitioners aren't allowed to participate, is it, Prefect? Am I wrong?"

Sang Hong nodded. "Indeed, there's no such rule."

Chu Zhongtian frowned. It was true there was no such rule, but the family grand competition was for selecting young disciples from each family. How could a young disciple have a sixth-rank cultivation? Even Chu Chuyan, with her astonishing talent, was only at the peak of the fifth rank. Could this unknown Di Wu across from her truly possess even greater talent?

Wu Wei chuckled. "Duke Mingyue, your daughter isn't the only genius in this world. The situation is quite clear now; perhaps it would be best for your esteemed daughter to concede beforehand. Otherwise, if she gets hurt, it wouldn't be good."

It was widely acknowledged that a sixth-rank practitioner held a crushing advantage over a fifth-rank one. This wasn't dependent on individual ability; after all, the most potent elemental abilities of a fifth-rank practitioner were virtually useless against a sixth-rank's protective film. What was the point of fighting then?

Chu Zhongtian looked at his daughter in the arena. Just as he was about to speak, Chu Chuyan's cool voice came from the stage, "The fight isn't over yet. Why should I concede?"

At this moment, Shi Kun also couldn't help but say, "Miss Chu, it's common knowledge that there's a vast difference between fifth and sixth ranks. This isn't a fault in your fighting ability, so don't try to be brave. Conceding would not harm your reputation in the slightest."

He was worried that she might insist on fighting a higher-ranked opponent and accidentally leave a scar on her perfect body, which would be a great pity. If she somehow disfigured herself, that would be even more unacceptable.

Chu Chuyan said indifferently, "Thank you for your concern, Young Master Shi. I know my limits."

Yuan Zhengchu, the head of the Yuan family, chuckled, "In that case, Di Wu, go ahead and spar with Miss Chu again. Just remember not to hurt her, alright?"

Wu Di smiled slightly. "Of course."

Chu Zhongtian knew his daughter's character and that she would never act recklessly. Hearing her words, he agreed to let the match continue, secretly instructing her, "If anything goes wrong, just concede. Above all, don't get hurt."

Chu Chuyan nodded and silently watched Wu Di across from her.

Wu Di couldn't help but laugh. "Miss Chu, you are indeed a genius, but there's a huge gap in cultivation between us. Your Divine Snowflake Sword can't harm me at all. I don't see the point in continuing this fight."

Chu Chuyan finally spoke her first words to him. "There's nothing absolute in this world."

The moment her words fell, she transformed into an afterimage. The long sword in her hand gleamed coldly, attacking him from various angles.

Wu Di instantly understood her intention. It was clear she knew elemental attributes couldn't harm him, so she simply abandoned elemental attacks and focused all her strength on swordsmanship, aiming to win with exquisite swordplay.

"How naive! You can't use elemental attacks, but I still can."

He stamped his foot on the ground, and two fiery chains emerged, coiling rapidly around his opponent's feet like two spiritual snakes.

Seeing the chains successfully entangle their target, he felt a pang of regret. Leaving burn scars on the feet of such a stunning beauty would be a terrible waste.

However, his expression suddenly changed as he realized he had only entangled an afterimage. He quickly pulled his blade back to defend himself, and indeed, Chu Chuyan had already appeared behind him.

The two exchanged several blows in an instant. He secretly broke out in a cold sweat. Was this the true power of a genius? He was a whole rank above her, yet the fight was so difficult. If they were at the same rank, wouldn't he have been defeated long ago?

Thinking this, he put aside any tender feelings and focused all his attention on responding to her attacks.

As a result, Chu Chuyan's pressure significantly increased. Surrounded by blade shadows and flames, she narrowly avoided danger several times.

On the platform, Shi Kun abruptly straightened up, staring coldly at Wu Di. He thought, "If you dare leave any scar on my woman, I'll make your life a living hell!"

"Game over, Miss Chu!" Wu Di, fearing complications if the fight dragged on, stopped holding back. Seizing an opportunity, the long blade in his hand suddenly transformed into a flaming blade nearly thirty meters long, slashing towards her. This strike, in both size and momentum, was several times more powerful than the previous one, far exceeding the elemental energy of a fifth-rank practitioner.

At this, even Chu Zhongtian stood up. He was ready to rush forward and rescue his daughter at the slightest sign of trouble, even if it meant losing the grand competition.

Just then, a teasing voice suddenly came from below the stage: "Wu Di, your mom's calling you home for dinner."

I had insomnia again last night and only fell asleep after 5 AM. I feel like I'm prematurely entering old age...

Also, this book is going to be released soon, and seeing only 3,400 total saves makes me a bit nervous. Based on the usual save-to-subscription ratio, I estimate only a few hundred subscriptions then. Is this anxiety causing my insomnia?