Chapter 41: Human Dragon 'Peak' Duel

This finger...

Li Changshou's forehead was covered in black lines, his eyes swallowed by shadows, as he sat there like a lifeless statue for a moment.

Why was this world so full of malice toward him?

Among the several thousand cultivators present, his own cultivation level wasn't the highest or the lowest among the young disciples—many from the smaller immortal sects hadn't even reached the Fan Xu Jing stage.

How had this second prince from the Dragon King's family zeroed in on him out of the vast crowd?

Li Changshou couldn't figure it out, truly couldn't, but he knew this wasn't the time to space out. He had to do something to escape the current predicament.

Countless gazes converged on him, and waves of immortal senses probed in his direction...

Fortunately, as long as no one grabbed his hand to check his inner energy, his true cultivation and hidden cards should remain concealed.

But he couldn't be sure if the big shots on the high platform above had already seen through him...

At that moment, Li Changshou really wanted to rush forward, pin this little dragon named Ao Yi to the ground, pry open his mouth, and stuff in a few Rong Xian Dan or Fu Mo Shi Gu Dan pills!

"Shizhi Changshou? Shizhi Changshou?"

A female immortal from Du Xian Men urgently sent a voice transmission, and Li Changshou quickly snapped back to attention, looking up.

"Ahem!"

A male Zhen Xian from Du Xian Men cleared his throat, stood up, and cupped his hands toward Ao Yi, who stood proudly in the center of the wide square, saying with a smile, "Your Highness Ao Yi, do you intend to spar with my shizhi Changshou?"

"That's right," Ao Yi replied impatiently. "Let him come out."

No sooner had he spoken than a few voice transmissions reached him.

"Your Highness, you must have mistaken him for someone else; that person is only at Fan Xu Er Jie."

"Your Highness! Pick that woman in the fiery red dress instead; she's at Fan Xu Ba Jie!"

Ao Yi's mouth twitched slightly, but he remained unmoved.

Li Changshou also stood up, bowed with cupped hands to his own Zhen Xian, and said, "Shibo, my cultivation is shallow. I don't even rank in the top hundred within our sect, so I'm no match for His Highness. Going out there rashly might bring shame to Du Xian Men's reputation.

Why not have His Highness choose another disciple from our sect who's among the top ten to spar instead...

I'll just stay out of it and not embarrass myself."

The other ten disciples from Du Xian Men also rose one after another, with Qin Xuan Ya even stepping a few paces to the side to block the spot in front of Li Changshou.

Ao Yi frowned. Not only was this person's cultivation weak, but he was also so long-winded.

The second prince of the Dragon Palace declared loudly, "I've set my sights on you!

What, does Du Xian Men look down on Donghai Longgong that much?"

Li Changshou's brows furrowed tightly. This young dragon was dead set on sparring with him?

Exactly what had gone wrong?

At the same time, on the high platform above, over two hundred human Tian Xian were watching the scene below with bowed heads, while over a hundred Dragon Clan experts were frowning as they observed.

Only the old Dragon King, with his dragon head and human body, sat there with a smile, as if dozing off; he paid no attention to what was happening below, as though he already knew what would unfold...

As Li Changshou hesitated, the shibo from his sect turned back, giving him a smile full of helplessness.

"Shizhi Changshou, why don't you go and exchange a few moves with His Highness?"

The male Zhen Xian, fearing Li Changshou might feel awkward, added directly, "I originally brought you here to broaden your horizons, but I didn't expect you'd be chosen by His Highness for a spar.

Just show what you've learned in your daily practice; you don't have to win or lose. Don't dampen His Highness's enthusiasm, that's all."

Then, Li Changshou heard another voice transmission from a shibo:

"Shizhi Changshou, don't worry. Go up and exchange a few moves; we'll keep a close eye from behind.

This young dragon is a prince of the Dragon Palace and quite skilled. If things go south, admit defeat right away. Always prioritize your own safety.

Your cultivation isn't enough, so losing is fine. We don't need Du Xian Men's face to be upheld by our disciples shedding blood!"

Li Changshou sighed inwardly, put on a slight smile, bowed with cupped hands to the elders and peers in his sect who were watching with concern, and then stepped down the stairs toward the field.

He would just do what a Fan Xu Er Jie disciple could do.

Today, Ao Yi was the main character; the other side had probably chosen him to ensure an easy win.

So, he'd go along with it, exchange a few moves, admit defeat when he was supposed to, and as long as he didn't lose too badly, that would be enough...

"Changshou! Shizhi!"

Jiu Jiu suddenly called out from the side, untying the large gourd on her back and winking at Li Changshou as she shouted, "You forgot your Zhu Xie Ruyi Sword!

I've pretty much figured it out, so I'll return it to you now."

Li Changshou couldn't help but laugh and cry at once, but he also felt the genuine concern from his shishu.

The Zhu Xie Ruyi Sword was a top-grade treasure refined by Wangqing Shangren, said to have the potential to evolve into a Ling Bao, with immense power.

It was his shishu's life-bound treasure, and now she was using this excuse to lend it to him...

"As a disciple, I'm just going to spar with His Highness the Second Prince," Li Changshou said warmly. "This isn't a life-or-death battle, so there's no need for a lethal treasure like that."

With that, Li Changshou entered the field without taking the large gourd from his shishu, and for the second time, his gaze met that of the Dragon Palace prince.

A slight smile appeared at the corner of Ao Yi's mouth, his eyes full of urgency.

'Good, come on.

Strike me down directly, you Dragon Palace Second Prince!

Hit me with your full force, a spell or a punch! I'll end up spitting blood three times over!'

But Li Changshou felt a twitch in his heart at that gaze...

What was this guy trying to do? So aggressive!

'Does this Dragon Palace prince really want to kill me, a Du Xian Men disciple, right here?

Is it because I'm not an immortal seedling? Killing me outright might not provoke much reaction from Du Xian Men and could even vent the Dragon Palace's anger?

Tsk, that's probably the plan.

I need to handle this spar carefully.'

And so, Li Changshou became even more cautious.

Ao Yi's immortal armor burst into brilliant light around him as he stepped forward, his aura surging upward!

Li Changshou, standing thirty or so zhang away, could sense that Ao Yi's energy was completely locked onto him.

He quickly channeled his magical power, concealed his aura, and focused on operating his self-created Gui Xi Ping Qi Jue, making his magical fluctuations perfectly match those of a Fan Xu Er Jie disciple exerting full effort.

Then, Li Changshou stepped forward half a pace, and the energy of the two—one human, one dragon—fully connected!

'Come on!'

A flash of light gleamed in Ao Yi's blue eyes. He abandoned attacking from a distance with treasures and charged straight in, practically delivering his handsome face right under the fist of this weakest Du Xian Men disciple on the trip!

"Wait a moment!"

Li Changshou shouted loudly, causing Ao Yi to stumble mid-step, nearly pitching forward onto the clean surface of the Shui Lian Tai.

What now?

Ao Yi frowned and looked over, and the eyes of everyone in the field turned with a hint of confusion.

They were about to start, so why "wait a moment"?

Li Changshou continued, "Since this is a spar, we should set some rules first.

We need a respected referee to judge the win or loss and define the boundaries so we don't fight outside them.

Starting without any rules wouldn't align with the Dragon Palace's usual meticulous conduct or its fair and just principles!"

This guy is so troublesome...

Black lines appeared on Ao Yi's forehead, but the Gui Xiang beside him found Li Changshou's words perfectly reasonable and irrefutable.

It was their Dragon Palace that hadn't prepared for this step.

So, Gui Xiang stepped forward, personally acting as the referee for this spar, and used immortal energy to draw a large circle with a diameter of two hundred zhang.

"Your Highness and this talented Du Xian Men cultivator should stop at the point of contact. Neither side may use lethal treasures..."

With the field marked and the rules set, the spar suddenly felt much more formal.

Li Changshou and Ao Yi faced each other again, still thirty or so zhang apart, their energies reconnecting.

Ao Yi paused slightly, and several diamond-shaped Xuan Bing appeared around him, each containing flickering flames.

'Put on a full show; the loss has to be dramatic!'

Taking a breath and steadying himself, Ao Yi charged forward for the second time!

"Wait a moment!"

Li Changshou shouted again, making Ao Yi slip and stagger forward two steps.

This guy always calls out "wait a moment" right when he's about to channel his power!

Li Changshou said, "Your Highness, why don't we switch to a literary contest instead..."

"Too much talk! Take this!"

Ao Yi roared lowly, stomped his foot, and charged ahead!

His form was like an arrow loosed from a string, the Xuan Bing around him glowing brightly, leaving an afterimage in place. Yet, right in front, he exposed an incredibly obvious weakness!

Li Changshou held a stack of talismans in his hand. As Ao Yi rushed close, he feigned a stumble and dodged awkwardly to the side, though his movement still carried a hint of grace.

You Long Tan Yun Bu—a superior Du Xian Men movement technique he'd already revealed before, but it was just a technique, nothing particularly powerful.

Ao Yi frowned. As he brushed past Li Changshou, he stared at the slightly panicked face.

Ao Yi thought to himself:

'Why isn't there a direct counterattack?

Of course, I'm too fierce; I must have scared him.

Don't be afraid; hit me head-on. I'll make sure you win spectacularly!'

Rushing forward twenty zhang, Ao Yi performed a stylish mid-air flip to steady himself, then stomped and charged at Li Changshou again.

Li Changshou casually threw out six talismans, formed seals with his hands, and the talismans' patterns lit up instantly, spewing out intertwining fire serpents toward the front!

Ao Yi didn't even dodge, charging straight through. His form was swallowed by the flames but burst through the ordinary spell fire in an instant!

Fierce and unstoppable!

Li Changshou used You Long Tan Yun Bu again, dodging Ao Yi's charge more calmly this time but still somewhat awkwardly. He even threw two more talismans at Ao Yi as he evaded.

Ao Yi sneered and changed his tactic, closing in to chase Li Changshou while deliberately taking all the flames from the talismans!

Li Changshou, using Fan Xu Er Jie level magical power to execute You Long Tan Yun Bu, retreated while attacking, quickly falling into a disadvantaged position and 'smoothly' circling toward the spot he'd chosen earlier...

In the blink of an eye, they had exchanged dozens of moves!

Ao Yi's brows furrowed deeper. Relying on his 'far superior' strength to this Du Xian Men disciple, he kept exposing weaknesses and his face, but the other side either intentionally avoided his vital points, not daring to strike the Dragon Palace prince, or was truly too weak to seize these blatantly obvious opportunities...

He just wouldn't take the bait!

Well, at least this guy's talismans weren't very powerful, but he'd endured quite a few blasts of spell fire...

Soon, he could put on the 'big explosion' as a live dragon!

Finally, Li Changshou and Ao Yi made their first physical contact...

At this point, Li Changshou was just three zhang from the boundary behind him, 'forced' into a corner. A hint of determination finally showed in his eyes as he flung out over a dozen talismans. He gathered magical power in his palm, forming thunder!

Tian Ming Wu Lei Miao Fa!

This was one of Du Xian Men's slightly advanced spells, mastered by half of the disciples who had entered Fan Xu Jing.

Thunder light flashed, and flames erupted!

Ao Yi charged into it and finally landed a punch on Li Changshou's palm!

'Hmm?'

Ao Yi frowned slightly, for in that instant of their fists and palms meeting, his innate keen combat sense detected a faint trace of danger.

'Huh?'

Meanwhile, Li Changshou was a bit confused.

This guy's punch had no power at all?

Even so, Li Changshou stuck to his script. He leaned back, staggered backward a few steps, and used a clever force to deflect Ao Yi's fist to the side while continuing his retreat.

Ao Yi seized this opportunity, pretending to slip, and stumbled a few steps to the left, thinking, 'That should be enough!'

Just then, Ao Yi heard a cough from beside him. He turned his blue gem-like eyes and caught a glimpse.

Li Changshou coughed a few times with his head down, a trace of blood on his fingertips. He sighed deeply, his face full of frustration, and muttered lowly:

"Alright, I lost. Skill is no match for yours; I'll just go back to the mountains for more training."

He stepped back half a pace, perfectly crossing the boundary they'd drawn earlier.

Immortals and cultivators around Shui Lian Tai, as well as the Dragon Clan and Sea Clan members, showed a hint of regret.

The movement techniques, talismans, and thunder spells Li Changshou had displayed were quite impressive for a Fan Xu Er Jie disciple.

He... admitted defeat?

Ao Yi was stunned, staring at the shimmering boundary in front of Li Changshou, momentarily at a loss.

What was this about admitting defeat first?

Beating him to it? What kind of win was that? Didn't you want to win, human cultivator?

Then, Gui Xiang shouted from the side, "This match goes to our Second Prince..."

Ao Yi's eyes widened, his handsome face twisting slightly with ferocity!

No, this couldn't be!

His perfect plan! The most crucial step in his scheme to awaken the Dragon Clan!

How could this guy admit defeat on his own? He'd even offered up his face for a hit!

Truly, truly!

A faint red glow suddenly surged over the second prince's clear face.

Gui Xiang continued shouting, "The win..."

"Ah!"

Ao Yi suddenly threw his head back with a roar, bursts of pale golden dragon blood exploding from his body, even cracking his immortal armor slightly.

The Tian Xian-level Gui Xiang was instantly startled.

Ao Yi glared at Li Changshou with unwillingness, trembling as he said, "Such... a powerful... talisman... technique..."

With those words, the second prince's figure slowly toppled backward, collapsing into the 'pool of blood.' A group of Dragon Clan experts rushed over, throwing the scene into chaos!

Li Changshou: ...

This Dragon Clan kid's acting was clearly subpar, at best amateur level.

From the side, several Zhen Xian from Du Xian Men dashed over, shielding Li Changshou behind them.