Chapter 329: The Duel

"Zhao Ya, that girl may not be much as a person, but her strength is considerable. You need to be careful!"

The atmosphere across from them was tense, and Zheng Yang came up beside her, lowering his voice.

"Mm, don't worry!" Zhao Ya replied.

Two days ago, with Teacher Zhang's guidance, she had opened ten more acupoints. Even if the girl opposite was not weak, she was only about the same level. When it came to actual combat, it was still uncertain who would win.

Whoosh!

With a light leap, she landed gracefully on the competition platform. Raising her jade hand, her dark eyes fixed on Mu Xueqing opposite her. "Let's begin!"

"Hmph!"

Mu Xueqing was not to be outdone. She jumped onto the platform, and with a shake of her whole body, revealed her newly broken-through cultivation level, her power surging like water.

"It's starting!"

"Two beauties fighting..."

Seeing the two girls exchange no further words and directly leap onto the platform, the surroundings fell silent, afraid to disturb.

"I'll make you apologize!"

With a clear cry, Zhao Ya stamped her delicate body on the ground and charged straight forward. At the same time, her jade hand turned over, and a whistling energy burst forth like a sword's gleam.

"You're the one who should apologize!"

Refusing to yield, Mu Xueqing also met her head-on.

Bang, bang, bang, bang!

Soon, the two were locked in continuous combat. Both at the Acupoint-Opening Realm, their forces clashed in all directions, producing a series of violent sonic booms.

"Impressive! Where did this girl come from? She's not old, yet she's evenly matched with Mu Xueqing!"

Among the crowd, a young man watched the battle on stage, full of curiosity.

It was Zhao Wuxing, who ranked first in the student competition.

"I don't know either. It seems like she suddenly appeared today!" The person beside him also looked at the stage with confusion.

If Mu Xueqing saw this person, she would surely recognize him as Liu Changyan, who ranked second in the Tianwu Academy student competition.

Zhao Wuxing and Liu Changyan, the academy's two most famous students, had both come here to watch their match.

"Who do you think will win?"

After watching a while longer, Liu Changyan smiled.

"Mu Xueqing has not only increased her cultivation in the past few days but also shed her previous restraint in combat, boosting her fighting power. The girl opposite her uses martial techniques that aren't very sophisticated, but she's full of strength, and her moves carry a chilling cold that's hard to counter... As for who will win, I can't say for sure."

Zhao Wuxing hesitated, then said.

Although he was the top student, with keen eyesight, the two girls on stage were so close in cultivation and strength that even he couldn't predict the winner.

Liu Changyan nodded, frowning. "This girl who suddenly appeared has such solid cultivation, but why are her martial techniques so inferior? She's mostly using Mortal-grade mid-level ones. If her techniques were better, she might have won!"

"Yeah!"

Zhao Wuxing was also puzzled.

This incredibly beautiful girl had reached the Acupoint-Opening Realm. If she wanted, she could easily obtain Mortal-grade high-level or even peak techniques from the academy. Using only mid-level ones seemed too weak.

If not for the powerful yin-cold energy within her that kept Mu Xueqing at bay, she would have likely lost already.

"Not good!"

Zheng Yang and the others also saw the problem.

Zhao Ya, with her Pure Yin Constitution, should logically be very strong and easily defeat her opponent. But the martial techniques she practiced were clearly only at the level of Tianxuan Kingdom, still far behind her opponent's.

Moreover, more importantly, Zhao Ya had gone from the Qi-Gathering Realm to the Acupoint-Opening Realm in just two months. Her power had increased too quickly, lacking practical combat experience.

Mu Xueqing, on the other hand, was the opposite. Known as the 'Little Devil Girl' at Tianwu Academy, she had clearly experienced countless battles.

Weak martial techniques, little combat experience—if not for her powerful constitution and surging internal energy like a dragon, she would have lost long ago.

"Don't worry. Although Zhao Ya lacks experience, it won't be easy for her opponent to win."

Liu Yang said.

Zhao Ya's constitution had once suppressed even Teacher Lu Xun. Could this girl be stronger than Lu Xun?

"Rest assured. Once she adapts, defeating her opponent is only a matter of time."

Zhao Ya's disadvantage was her lack of combat experience. As time passed and she gradually adapted to the fighting style, it wouldn't be hard for her to defeat her opponent.

"Damn it!"

The audience below noticed this, and Mu Xueqing realized it too, her face turning pale.

Though she wasn't the strongest female student in Tianwu Kingdom, she was close. She had thought defeating a younger girl would be easy, never dreaming her opponent would be so formidable!

When did Tianwu Academy produce such a powerful new student?

"If I keep dragging this out, her true energy is thicker than mine, and I'll definitely lose. I have to use that move!"

Gritting her teeth.

A ruthless glint flashed in Mu Xueqing's eyes.

At first, her opponent was at a disadvantage, but as time passed, she herself was struggling to hold on.

Cultivation boosted by pills was, after all, somewhat unstable.

"Hmph!"

With a light snort, Mu Xueqing's brows lifted, and her entire aura suddenly surged. Then she threw a punch.

"It's the famous [Falling Flower Fist] of Master Mu!"

Zhao Wuxing's expression tightened.

"Falling Flower Fist?" Liu Changyan looked over.

"Yes, it's a Ghost-grade high-level martial technique. It's said that Master Mu created this fist technique when he was about to break through to the Grandmaster realm, missing his deceased wife. It has three moves, with immense power, and even Mo Hongyi praised it highly!"

Zhao Wuxing stared intently at the girl on stage. "I didn't expect Master Mu to pass on this technique, and she's already mastered the first move!"

"A Ghost-grade high-level martial technique? That's top-notch even in the royal city, right? The girl opposite her is in for trouble!"

Liu Changyan was astonished, then nodded.

A Ghost-grade high-level martial technique was among the best in all of Tianxuan Kingdom. Since the opponent's techniques were already inferior, Mu Xueqing using this would surely make her hard to resist.

Sure enough, as soon as they spoke, Zhao Ya's face changed as she felt the overwhelming pressure surging toward her.

"I'll go all out!"

Gritting her silver teeth, knowing that continuing with ordinary moves would lead to defeat, she let out a sharp cry. Zhao Ya channeled all her power madly through her meridians.

A desperate gamble.

Bang!

The Falling Flower Fist collided with her palm.

Stagger, stagger, stagger, stagger!

Both girls' faces flushed, and they each retreated seven or eight steps, spitting blood.

A draw!

"Zhao Ya!"

"Senior Sister!"

Zheng Yang, Meng Tao, and the others rushed forward.

"I underestimated you. We're tied today. Do you dare to have another match with me in three days?"

Shaking off Meng Tao and the others with a wave of her arms, Mu Xueqing looked over coldly.

"Three days it is. If you lose then, you must apologize!" Zhao Ya stared back intently.

"Apologize? I only said that Teacher Zhang isn't much of a teacher. What's it to you?"

At this, Mu Xueqing suddenly realized and froze. "You're not... students of Teacher Zhang, are you?"

"That's right. He is our teacher. Insulting him is insulting us!" Zhao Ya said.

"I see!"

Finally understanding why the other girl was so angry and challenged her to a duel, Mu Xueqing shook her head. "I admire Teacher Zhang too. I was just speaking factually, not slandering him. When it comes to teaching, I can guarantee that our Teacher Liu surpasses your Teacher Zhang!"

"Teacher Liu? Never heard of him!" Zhao Ya shook her head, looking proud. "Our Teacher Zhang is absolutely the best teacher, unmatched by anyone!"

"You..."

Mu Xueqing gritted her teeth. "Since neither of us is convinced, let's settle it with our fists! We tied today. In three days, we'll fight again. Whoever loses admits their teacher is inferior. Do you dare?"

"Why wouldn't I dare!" Zhao Ya nodded.

"Good, it's settled. Let's go!"

Seeing her agree, Mu Xueqing flicked her arm and turned to leave.

Although she had only known Teacher Liu for a short time, he had resolved her hidden problems and helped boost her cultivation. She was deeply grateful and naturally wanted to defend his honor when challenged by Teacher Zhang's students!

She wanted everyone to know that Teacher Liu, though not a renowned master, was no worse than one.

"Let's go!"

Zhao Ya also turned and left with Wang Ying and the others.

"These people are Teacher Zhang's students?"

"This is getting big..."

"I've heard of Teacher Zhang. He broke countless records of Mo Hongyi and became the top genius. No wonder this girl is so strong—she's his student!"

The crowd below, learning that Zhao Ya and the others were Teacher Zhang's students, erupted in excitement.

Some students who had been eyeing Zhao Ya's beauty now dared not think further.

If anyone had been making waves recently, it was this famous teacher, Zhang Xuan.

Making a move on his students? That would be asking for death!

"By the way, wasn't Mu Xueqing a student of Teacher Bai Fang? Who is Teacher Liu?"

"Don't you know? Teacher Bai Fang left the academy long ago. This Teacher Liu is said to be newly hired!"

"Newly hired?"

"Yeah, I was in charge of reception during the teacher recruitment. I saw it with my own eyes. This Teacher Liu is definitely a talent..."

...

An insider recounted the scene of the recruitment assessment.

"He cured a student's aversion to learning with one sentence, and cured another's desire to drop out by beating them?"

"Are you joking? Does anyone in the world have such ability?"

After hearing this, everyone was dumbfounded, feeling like they were listening to a story.

"It's true!" the insider swore. "If it weren't, you all know Mu Xueqing's personality. How could she be willing to fight a duel for this teacher after just a short time with him?"

"This..."

"Now that you mention it, I remember. I saw students from their class this morning, and their cultivation wasn't this high. How come in half a day, almost everyone's cultivation has improved?"

"That's right..."

"Could it be... all thanks to this Teacher Liu? Who exactly is this Teacher Liu?"

The more they discussed, the stranger it seemed. Everyone became curious about Mu Xueqing's new teacher.

"Ah-choo!"

Leaving the classroom and walking on the road, Zhang Xuan rubbed his nose, looking puzzled.

What's going on? Am I catching a cold?