Chapter Ninety-Two: Mutual Defeat

“Huh? Why is one of the Ten Elders coming down into the ring?”
“What’s going on?”
The moment Feng Zhenghao stepped onto the field, the atmosphere around them turned strange, and murmurs rose from every side.

He paid them no mind. Looking at Jia Zhengliang and Feng Shayan, he said calmly, “Jia boy, Shayan, you should both stop here. This Luo Tian Grand Rite was never a place for settling grudges or fighting private duels. Each of you take a step back.”
“We can speak of revenge later. Every grievance has its source, every debt its debtor. My own vengeance is not something I need my daughter to carry for me.”
“Jia boy, after this Luo Tian Grand Rite is over, come find me at the Under-Heaven Society. I can give you a chance at revenge. Whether or not you can truly ease the hatred in your heart, I won’t make things difficult for you, or for the Jia family. How about it?”

“This...”
At Feng Zhenghao’s words, Jia Zhengliang hesitated. A Ten Elder of such high standing had personally stepped forward, and what he said had indeed struck the very heart of the matter.

Naturally, Jia Zhengliang had no reason to refuse.

He was not the sort of man who bullied the weak and feared the strong; he would not vent his dissatisfaction and resentment on someone merely because he feared Feng Zhenghao.

“Fine, I agree. Count this match as your win.”

With that, Jia Zhengliang recalled his twelve Heaven-Slaying Flying Blades, then turned to the referee in the stands and said simply, “I concede.”

“What do you mean, count it as our win?”
The moment those words came out, Feng Shayan immediately bristled, punching the air in annoyance.

“Shayan...”
Even Jia Zhengliang had taken a step back. Feng Zhenghao could only glance helplessly at his daughter.

“Hmph.”
Though still somewhat displeased, she did not continue to defy her father.

She shot Jia Zhengliang a small, provocative glare, then looked to the referee on the platform as well.

“I concede too.”

“This...”
With both sides surrendering, the referee on the platform was left dumbfounded.

He looked at Jia Zhengliang, then at Feng Shayan, and scratched his head nonstop. “What is wrong with you people? Both conceding?”

What had become of the Luo Tian Grand Rite lately? Why was everyone always surrendering?

Ye Liangchen’s opponent, Zhang Churan’s opponent, and now Feng Shayan and Jia Zhengliang too.

So the Celestial Master’s seat and the Heaven-Piercing Register have no value in your eyes at all, is that it?

“Daoist, I’m sorry for breaking the rules of the Luo Tian Grand Rite.”
Seeing the referee so troubled, Feng Zhenghao at his side offered an explanation as well.

“But look: since neither of them has any desire to compete, why not just count both of them as eliminated? That way, wouldn’t the remaining men all be semifinalists in the end?”

“Let me ask for instructions.”
The Daoist referee looked utterly speechless, but he still took out his phone from his pocket and dialed a number.

A moment later, he put the phone away, raised both hands, and announced the final result of the match.

“Both sides lose.”

...

...

Elsewhere in the arena, the semifinal match between Feng Xingtong and Wang Bing was also growing increasingly tense.

“Brother Wang, you should concede. There is absolutely no chance you can win this match.”

Facing his opponent Wang Bing, Feng Xingtong was full of confidence. In the previous round, during his match with Deng Youfu, he had taken possession of one of the spirit familiars in Deng Youfu’s hands—a thousand-year-old immortal spirit.

He was naturally brimming with confidence now.

He had seen that spirit’s strength with his own eyes, and after personally coming into contact with it, having such a powerful ally as a trump card gave him complete assurance... he truly believed he would win.

Not to mention that he was now up against Wang Bing. With a spirit of this caliber in hand, so long as he did not run into a freak like Ye Yan, he had a real chance to fight for victory.

“Concede?”
Wang Bing gave a cold laugh, his eyes full of contempt and disdain for Feng Xingtong.

Seeing that Wang Bing showed no intention of throwing in the towel, Feng Xingtong could not help but sigh.

“In that case, forgive me.”
As he spoke, he slowly raised a hand. A tiny black flame burst from his palm, and in the next instant, a violent surge of dark energy began to churn.

As the dark energy emerged, the entire arena was instantly shrouded in a chill that seemed to strike the soul itself.

The spectators in the stands shivered.

Along with the dark energy, the clarity in Feng Xingtong’s eyes deepened as well. Then, behind him, a terrifying giant serpent of black scales materialized, coiling around him as it looked down upon Wang Bing.

A thousand-year-old serpent demon, Liu Kunsheng.

As the giant serpent fully manifested, Feng Xingtong, surrounded by the dark energy, began to invoke it as well.

“Come, Elder Liu. Lend me your power.”

The moment the words left his mouth, the giant serpent coiled behind him rose into the sky. Like a serpent crossing the Dragon Gate, it carried monstrous energy that blotted out the heavens and dove toward Feng Xingtong below, ready to transfer its power.

But before it could even descend from the sky, just as it was falling, it suddenly stopped dead.

It was as though some invisible force had seized it in midair, preventing it from dropping any further.

Liu Kunsheng’s snake eyes were blank.

He could not understand why his power, so fine a thing just moments ago, had suddenly been suppressed.

Feng Xingtong below was equally bewildered.

On the other side, Wang Bing’s pupils suddenly turned white, becoming a single color just like Feng Xingtong’s.

He slowly lifted a hand, extended it toward the falling Liu Kunsheng, and closed his grasp from afar. A contemptuous voice rang out.

“Beast, come here at once.”

With Wang Bing’s words, the black-scaled serpent frozen in midair seemed to receive some kind of summons.

It actually abandoned the task of transferring its power to Feng Xingtong and instead flew toward Wang Bing.

“How is this possible?”
Feng Xingtong was equally stunned.

Seeing this, Deng Youcai and Deng Youfu in the stands could no longer remain seated.

“Spirit Binding and Commanding?”
Having experienced it firsthand, Deng Youfu instantly named the technique. It was the same legendary art that Feng Xingtong himself had mastered: Spirit Binding and Commanding.

“Elder Kunsheng—”

Caught in a sudden upheaval, Feng Xingtong still did not understand why Wang Bing would also know the secret art passed down within the Feng family. But at this moment, that was clearly not the issue to focus on. The important thing was Liu Kunsheng.

The thousand-year spirit he had borrowed from the Deng brothers absolutely could not fall into Wang Bing’s hands.

He hurriedly joined the fight as well.

“Don’t be so stingy, Feng Xingtong. In this day and age, it’s hard to find such an exceptional spirit. With that half-baked Spirit Binding and Commanding of yours, keeping that beast in your hands would only be a waste...”

Feng Xingtong snapped back in anger, “Bullshit. I know this art more solidly than anyone else.”

“Then it’s all useless. Today I’ll show you the true way to use Spirit Binding and Commanding.”