Cultivation Nerd

Hu Jin glanced over and planned to keep his mouth shut about everything—His father always said enemies were created as easily as breathing if one wasn't careful.

"I remember you from the last tournament," Song San said, smiling and revealing his perfect marble-white teeth. He was pretty handsome and seemed easygoing. "You did quite well last time, right?"

"I won it," Kong Lijuan coldly stated, unimpressed by her opponent's behavior. "If I remember correctly, you didn't participate."

"One of my biggest regrets is missing that. I was learning a new technique at the time," Song San shrugged. Despite his opponent's glare, he still had a friendly smile. He seemed like a nice guy. Perhaps no one had to die in this fight.

"Begin!" The announcer declared the start of the fight.

In an instant, Kong Lijuan took out a thin halberd and rushed toward Song San. He drew a crimson-red sword that resembled a katana, and they both imbued Qi into their weapons.

Hu Jin could have sworn he saw dark flashes in their weapons. His thoughts wandered to what his master had told him about how it would take a while before he could see or sense Qi. However, having been near his master for so long, he would have an easier time than most people despite his poor talent.

The sound of air cutting rang out as Kong Lijuan appeared in front of Song San. Their weapons clashed, producing a loud, ear-popping clang of metal.

Neither had an advantage at first, but Kong Lijuan kicked Song San in the stomach, making him stumble. She then attempted to hit him with the butt of her halberd on the throat.

Song San leaned back, barely dodging by stepping to the arena's edge. Kong Lijuan wasn't done. She crouched down, and her fingers and the shadow beneath her touched.

Something strange happened: the shadow beneath her began moving as if it had a mind of its own. It shifted and ran toward Song San.

Song San narrowed his eyes at the incoming shadow, seemingly unsurprised. As someone who had participated in previous tournaments, some of Kong Lijuan's abilities were not a secret.

As the shadow approached, Song San's eyes followed it. Hu Jin could have sworn he saw greenish wisps of Qi.

When the shadow reached Song San, it stepped out of the ground and looked like a dark doppelganger of Kong Lijuan.

One of the shadow doppelganger's arms turned into a shadowy nail and pierced toward Song San. He dodged, but the shadow's body morphed, and suddenly, hundreds of thin needles shot out.

Song San's eyes widened in shock. He looked behind him, seemingly ready to jump back and out of the ring to lose the fight. But before he could, the shadow extended into spikes and skewered into his neck, head, belly, and eye.

Unexpectedly, no blood came out. Instead, Song San's body dispersed and popped into a green mist. Wherever the mist touched, the shadow melted as if hit by acid.

Kong Lijuan frowned when the air behind her shimmered. Suddenly, like a chameleon, Song San appeared with a knowing smile.

"Shadow is a good element when combined with the techniques of the Void Piercing Sect. But I always wondered what you would be like without your shadow around? Perhaps you might be defenseless?" Song San chuckled and slashed at Kong Lijuan's back with his katana.

However, Song San halted before his sword could connect with her neck. His eyes widened as the shadows under his clothes shifted and restrained him.

"Deathly Nail Technique," Kong Lijuan muttered. Suddenly, the shadows within Song San's clothes burst into needle-like shapes. Dozens of shadowy spikes erupted from his body, piercing his skin from the inside out. Blood sprayed from the wounds, and he looked down in shock as the shadows continued to puncture him like a porcupine, each needle tearing through his flesh and clothes.

His screams filled the air as the shadow needles twisted and burrowed deeper, leaving him bleeding profusely into a pool of blood on the ground. But he still stayed standing, through pure will alone.

Song San's surprise was genuine as he looked half-dead, his body trembling from the shock and pain.

"That is what I can do when my shadow is not around," Kong Lijuan stated calmly. She hadn't turned around to block his attack but did it on her own terms.

Her eyes were cold as she stared down at Song San and said, "I always dislike people like you. Reckless gamblers who think they might somehow come out on top or survive a situation."

"I think I'm in love with you," Song San chuckled weakly.

"You're not my type," Kong Lijuan replied as her shadow returned. "Anyway, any last words? Like surrendering or something?"

"What a cold woman…" Song San sighed, grasping his bleeding stomach and trying to stop some of the heavier wounds.

Whether he meant it as a joke or not, Hu Jin didn't understand. But the lady took those words as his last. Her shadow morphed into a spear, and she got into a familiar stabbing position.

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Then her spear twisted, and a sudden spatial distortion occurred. However, it disappeared as soon as it came, and the only thing Hu Jin saw was the tip of the shadowy spear disappearing and reappearing in the middle of Song San's chest. The tip of the spear dripped blood, and he coughed up a mouthful of crimson-red blood.

"Is this it? Aren't you going to use your element?" Kong Lijuan asked.

"Not everyone has a convenient element," Song San said through a heaving cough. He looked like he already had one foot in the grave.

Suddenly, Song San's throat bulged, and he threw up a mouthful of green pills covered in silvering saliva and other stomach juices. As soon as the green pills touched the ground, they emitted a bright green light followed by an earth-shaking explosion, causing the whole Colosseum to shudder.

Each green pill was an explosive, as the first detonation triggered a continuous blast. The elders quickly erected a barrier around the arena to shield the others from the debris.

As the smoke cleared, Song San was revealed floating, using his robe to hold him up like a flying artifact. He looked odd, slanted in position, and all the bleeding made him look quite pathetic.

There was no longer an arena, only scorched rocks and a shadowy cocoon in the middle. The cocoon cracked, revealing Kong Lijuan, standing on the scorched ground but otherwise unharmed.

"Winner: Song San, by his opponent going out of bounds!" yelled the announcer with a feverish smile.

A quietness settled over the Colosseum when those words were uttered. Everyone could see who had really won. If this had been a real fight, Song San would have been long dead.

Kong Lijuan had an unreadable look in her eyes as Song San floated down, falling on his behind as soon as his feet touched the ground.

"Oh, well," Kong Lijuan shrugged. She swung her hand toward Song San, and the shadows under her feet bubbled. Tendrils of shadow shot toward a defenseless Song San as if she was looking to finish what she had started.

Before her attack could land, five Inner Sect Elders in the Blazing Sun Sect uniform appeared from five directions. They immediately disrupted her attack before it could reach Song San. Then they pointed their weapons at Kong Lijuan—some had swords, others had daggers, and the last had a spear.

"Heh, it seems that when the lives of their own disciples are in danger, the Blazing Sun Sect can react quite fast," commented a Core Elder from the Void Piercing Sect. She was tall, with gray hair and wrinkles at the corners of her eyes.

Though one might think she was offended by her words, she wore a nonchalant smile.

When Kong Lijuan saw that she couldn't kill her opponent, she walked away without a care, letting Song San survive to fight another day.

"With the winner of the previous tournament already gone on the first day, the most popular contestant is already out!" said the announcer, trying to create some hype.

"Are so many elders even allowed to enter the arena?" asked the Void Piercing Sect Core Elder mockingly.

Hu Jin cautiously looked around, expecting a fight to develop. But these people were so old it was hard to tell what they were thinking, as they knew how to hide their emotions too well. They had likely seen hundreds of these tournaments, so nothing affected them much.

After that, the rest of the fights had an invisible tension. Since the battle between Song San and Kong Lijuan, the Blazing Sun Sect intervened in every match that looked like it was going too far. Hu Jin was sure something was happening, some political scheme he couldn't read. For some reason, the elders in charge of the fights became very cautious, and no one died after the Song San and Kong Lijuan battle.

After more fights, when everyone had fought once, Zun Gon suddenly stood up and put a hand on Hu Jin's shoulder. "C'mon, kid, let's go."

"The tournament is over?" Hu Jin inquired.

"Well, the tournament's first day is over since everyone fought once," Zun Gon nodded.

"The tournament for today is over; come back tomorrow for more lessons from your seniors," the announcer declared to the stands.

The disciples stood from their seats, and it looked like the exit would be crowded. Zun Gon tightened his grip on Hu Jin's shoulder, and suddenly, the world around them blurred. The next thing Hu Jin saw was that he was at the entrance of the Colosseum.

"Anyway, you can wander around as much as you want here. Try and see some sights. No one will dare touch you since they know you're with me. I would like to come along and show you around, but I have to deal with some boring stuff," Zun Gon said before disappearing in a flash as if he had never been there.

Core Formation Cultivators were monstrously fast.

Suddenly, the coin in Hu Jin's pocket grew warm, and the old master's voice rang out.

"That guy, Song San… There is something familiar about him."

"What?" wondered Hu Jin.

"Nothing… I just have a suspicion…" said his master, sounding contemplative. "Anyway, you can just go and explore around. No need to worry about something that already happened."

Hu Jin shrugged and used an Earth Grade movement technique to move away. He didn't want to stick around and wait for the other Inner Disciples; he had no friends among them.

Green trees and fields flashed past his eyes. Since Hu Jin couldn't use Qi, he couldn't use his Earth Grade technique to its full potential, but he was still moving fast enough to barely keep up.

He stumbled upon an old ruin with red ruby-like stones used as building materials. The structure looked ancient, with its stones weathered and cracked. Vines and moss covered much of the surface, and what remained of the walls and pillars was crumbling. The air around the ruin had an eerie stillness, as if time had forgotten this place. Broken statues and shattered tiles lay scattered around, hinting at a once-grand temple now reduced to rubble.

Hu Jin was almost about to touch one of the stones but decided against it. Such an action would be too careless. It looked like an important site, and since many Core Elders were at the tournament, the one stationed to protect this place might have gone there. Who knew when he might return? He might already be here.

As Hu Jin began walking away, he walked in a straight line. However, he returned to a familiar place just as he thought he was out of the area.

It was the exact location as before, but now it was no longer a ruin. The place was rebuilt like a magnificent temple. Thick, sturdy pillars rose high, supporting a massive slab of stone that shined with an intense, radiant heat. The ruby-like stones were polished and gleaming, reflecting the sunlight in dazzling patterns. Intricate carvings adorned the walls, depicting ancient battles and celestial beings. The air was thick with a sense of power and reverence, and Hu Jin felt like he was being boiled alive by the extreme heat emanating from the stone.

"We are stuck in some illusionary array," his master said. Then he appeared as a ghost next to Hu Jin and prepared in case of a fight.

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