Upcoming Challenges and the Golden Token’s Secrets

“This painting is indeed extraordinarily intricate, requiring careful contemplation. Hanxing, have you discerned any profound mysteries within it?”

After a long moment, Chi Qiu lifted her gaze, a satisfied smile gracing her lips. She turned her head, looking at Su Hanxing, who was leaning beside her, and posed the question.

As she turned, her eyes met Su Hanxing’s, who had been watching her intently.

“Were you not looking at the scroll?”

Chi Qiu’s expression was one of bewilderment.

“I glanced at it a few times, but couldn’t unravel its hidden secrets, so I stopped.”

Su Hanxing nodded, placing his now-empty wine flask casually on the table before them, his tone indifferent.

“Then what are you still doing squeezed in here? Go back.”

Chi Qiu raised a hand and gently pushed. Finding Su Hanxing unyielding, she then leveraged the power of the Great Dao to nudge him from the wooden chair.

“Little Chi, your mastery over the Great Dao’s power is truly becoming refined.”

Though pushed away, Su Hanxing wasn’t annoyed, merely remarking with a smile. At his words, Chi Qiu rolled her eyes, choosing not to engage. Su Hanxing’s smile widened.

As dusk settled, a flying boat slowly descended near Chi Qiu and Su Hanxing’s residence. Before it even touched the ground, Su Hanxing leaped off.

“Today has truly exhausted me! I need a good rest.”

Su Hanxing grinned at Chi Qiu, who was retrieving the flying boat behind him, then stretched languidly.

That morning, Su Hanxing had defended his arena challenge. After successfully holding his ground, the two of them had spent the afternoon investigating the Heart God Sect’s stronghold and clashing with one of their elders. Following that, they visited the Spirit Painting Pavilion, where they met Chai Niang and acquired the precious scroll.

After such a strenuous day, it was already late evening by the time they returned to their residence with the scroll. No wonder Su Hanxing was repeatedly complaining of exhaustion.

“Thank you for today’s events.”

Chi Qiu put away the flying boat and walked with small steps to Su Hanxing’s side, her voice sincere.

Su Hanxing offered no polite words in return. Instead, he smiled, reached out, and ruffled Chi Qiu’s hair. It was only at times like these that Chi Qiu wouldn’t flinch, allowing him to tousle her hair freely.

“In three days, Little Chi, your arena opponent will be Gong Lingfeng of the Gong Family. You should prepare yourself.”

As they entered the residence, Su Hanxing suddenly turned to Chi Qiu, his expression solemn.

“Him…” Chi Qiu tilted her head, pondering for a moment.

“His strength is indeed considerably greater than those opponents from the past few days…”

“Does Little Chi have confidence?” Su Hanxing asked, observing Chi Qiu lost in thought.

“He once defeated me in the Yinglong Tomb, but that was only possible with the cooperation of other cultivators from the Gong Family. Now, my strength has improved significantly, and on the arena stage, he won’t be able to rely on their assistance. I will surely defeat him.” Chi Qiu declared with utmost confidence.

“I also believe you, Little Chi, will certainly defeat Gong Lingfeng.” Su Hanxing nodded, a smile on his face.

“By the way, how did you know I would be fighting Gong Lingfeng in three days?” Chi Qiu asked curiously, settling into a chair she casually found in the front yard.

“Did an elder from the Tianyan Sect inform you?”

Chi Qiu’s curiosity was understandable, as even she herself was unaware of this matter.

“The Imperial City’s notice boards always display the combat rosters for each arena. Also, with the Daqi Golden Token, you can infuse it with true qi to see the names of your upcoming opponents and their affiliations.” Su Hanxing chuckled, then retrieved his Daqi Golden Token and channeled true qi into it.

Her Daqi Golden Token vibrated slightly, then a faint golden light emerged, vaguely forming characters. The sacred light materialized, slowly forming several lines of large characters.

Cui Ang of the Holy Fire Ruins
Zuo Ting of the Zuo Family

“It has this function too? I always thought it was merely a token symbolizing the arena master’s status.” Chi Qiu was slightly taken aback. She then retrieved her own Golden Token and, imitating Su Hanxing, channeled true qi into it.

Her Golden Token trembled faintly, and then a golden light appeared, revealing several names before Chi Qiu.

Gong Lingfeng of the Gong Family
Ye Shi of the Ye Family
Gong Tingxuan of the Gong Family

“After the first month of challenge matches concludes, the remaining eleven months of arena battles will no longer be randomly assigned by the Daqi Imperial Family. Instead, challengers will be able to select their own arena masters.” Su Hanxing explained to Chi Qiu, his gaze on the golden text displayed before her.

“At that point, this Golden Token will notify Little Chi who has issued a challenge against you.”

“I see…” Chi Qiu nodded.

“However, Little Chi, your next few opponents are not to be trifled with.” Su Hanxing said, pointing at the golden characters.

“There’s no need to say much about Gong Lingfeng; Little Chi, you should be quite familiar with him. This Ye Shi is also far from simple; his troublesome nature is no less than Gong Lingfeng’s.” Su Hanxing began to explain her upcoming opponents to Chi Qiu.

“The Ye Family is a prominent clan within Daqi, boasting numerous members and a reputation for high-profile actions. As a direct descendant of the Ye Family, Ye Shi enjoys exceptionally rich cultivation resources. In the preliminary rounds, he remained undefeated, being the first to secure a spot in the challenge matches, proving his formidable strength.”

“In that case, his strength is indeed considerable.” Chi Qiu nodded, then inquired, “Do you know what methods he excels in?”

“The head of the Ye Family is one of the masters of the Myriad Sword Villa. The Ye Family and the Myriad Sword Villa share the same origin. What do you suppose Ye Shi excels in?” Su Hanxing replied with a slight smile.

It seems this Ye Shi must be extremely skilled in swordsmanship.

The words ‘Myriad Sword Villa’ immediately brought clarity to Chi Qiu.

“To be precise, it’s the art of flying swords.”

“The Myriad Sword Villa’s most renowned offensive technique involves forming sword arrays with numerous flying swords, trapping and slaying their enemies.”

“Your previous methods bore some resemblance.” His words reminded Chi Qiu of her earlier combat style, where she would unleash a barrage of magical artifacts upon her opponents.

“The form is similar, but the essence is not. I relied on immense soul power, while they utilize formations.” Su Hanxing shook his head.

It seems this person truly warrants attention. Chi Qiu silently committed Ye Shi’s name to memory.

“As for the next one, Gong Tingxuan, Little Chi, you’ve met him before. He’s Gong Lingfeng’s younger brother.” Having finished with Ye Shi, Su Hanxing began to speak of Gong Tingxuan.

“I remember him, the Gong Family cultivator in purple robes from the Yinglong Tomb.” Chi Qiu immediately recalled the purple-clad cultivator.

“Precisely. He and Gong Lingfeng are half-brothers, sharing a father but different mothers. Both are known for their cautious approach to matters. He typically maintains a very low profile, never revealing his full capabilities, which makes his true strength rather enigmatic.” Su Hanxing spread his hands.

“Cautious indeed. Beneath the Dragon Transformation Pool, he tried to use external objects to overcome his tribulation and was promptly thrown out by Senior Yinglong.” Chi Qiu’s face showed a hint of mockery.

“Hahaha, that’s not entirely surprising. It’s an excellent quality for direct descendants of great families to act cautiously, but who would have thought Senior Yinglong was testing one’s Dao heart and willpower?” Hearing Chi Qiu’s words, Su Hanxing immediately burst into laughter.

The cultivation resources available to direct descendants of prominent families are exceptionally abundant, far surpassing what ordinary cultivators can access. With no shortage of resources, they naturally wouldn’t risk their lives for treasures, which is why most of them tend to act with caution.