Chapter 32: Signature

"Startled, Beidong Zhi, +1."

Xu Xiaoshou suddenly sprang up from the rest chair and looked around, realizing he was in the waiting area. He covered his face and looked aggrievedly at the staff member. "Why did you hit me?"

The staff member looked completely innocent, with three big question marks gradually appearing on his face.

Xu Xiaoshou glanced at his hand. Huh, no Dan Ping?

"The match is about to start!" the staff member said coldly.

Only then did Xu Xiaoshou distinguish between reality and dream, and he walked out of the waiting area with an awkward smile.

"Xu Xiaoshou, go for it!"

"Xu Xiaoshou, hang in there!"

"Xu Xiaoshou, champion!"

As soon as he stepped out, the audience's cheers startled him. Xu Xiaoshou saw that almost everyone was standing and cheering wildly.

He was stunned. Although some people had cheered for him before, there had also been plenty of boos. Why was everyone so supportive today?

He hadn't even gotten a good night's sleep...

Little did he know that over the past few days, after defeating Zhou Tianshen from the consecutive loss list and Tian Shen from the fourth place on the weekly list, relying on his Houtian Jian Yi and Xiantian physical body, he had become a top favorite to win the championship.

"Received encouragement, Beidong Zhi, +442."

"Received cheers, Beidong Zhi, +665."

"..."

His mind was flooded with messages again. Xu Xiaoshou happily waved his hand and strolled toward the arena.

"Beidong Zhi: 44820."

"Beidong Zhi: 45611."

"Beidong Zhi: 46002."

Xu Xiaoshou's eyes were crinkled in a smile. Last night's process of refining the Jin Zhao Huo Zhong had been painful, but in the final hours, it had shone brightly and generously contributed nearly twenty thousand Beidong Zhi.

And now, his Beidong Zhi was still skyrocketing.

"Xu Xiaoshou, hurry up!"

Xiao Qixiu's impatient voice came through, and Xu Xiaoshou quickly picked up his pace and entered the barrier, instantly feeling his ears clear.

He now understood why the Feng Yun Zheng Ba had set up the barrier.

Opposite him was a girl with a very delicate appearance, wearing a light yellow long skirt, her hair neat, with a pair of Dan Feng eyes. She held a soft bone whip and struck the ground with a snap at every step, full of energy.

Li Cenjing, Lian Ling Shi Jing.

Xu Xiaoshou was about to speak as usual, but the young girl beat him to it, saying with a sly expression, "To show fear before battle is a great taboo in combat; to flee without fighting..."

"Um, what comes next..."

"Oh, forget it."

Li Cenjing twirled her soft bone whip and patted her head. "Xu Xiaoshou, I've watched your matches. You're so amazing!"

"Could you give me an autograph later?"

"Received admiration, Beidong Zhi, +1."

Xu Xiaoshou touched his head awkwardly. He hadn't expected his opponent to be a fan of his. He quickly swallowed the sarcastic remark that was about to slip out and nodded in agreement.

Li Cenjing's face lit up with joy, and she giggled.

Xiao Qixiu waved his hand expressionlessly. "Match begins!"

To show generosity, Xu Xiaoshou gestured for her to attack first. But Li Cenjing raised her hands and blinked her big eyes.

"I forfeit!"

Xu Xiaoshou's face darkened. She had just stolen his line, and now she was forfeiting?

What kind of fan are you? Don't you know I need Beidong Zhi the most?

Seeing his expression change, Li Cenjing quickly explained, "Zhang Fu is still lying in the Ling Yao Ge and can't even compete in the ranking matches. I'm not fighting you. I want to save my strength for the ranking matches!"

"Match over, Xu Xiaoshou wins!"

Xiao Qixiu hadn't even finished his sip of water before raising his hand again.

The audience seats erupted in murmurs. With the tournament at the round of sixteen to eight, who would give up like this? Wasn't that throwing away the later rewards?

"Boring, why not fight properly? I wanted to see Xu Xiaoshou in action!"

"I think Li Cenjing is smart. She's only at Shi Jing, so she can't beat Xu Xiaoshou at Qi Jing. Better to save her strength for the ranking matches."

"Pfft, what nonsense are you spouting..."

After forfeiting, Li Cenjing scampered over to Xu Xiaoshou and handed him a Ling Bi with excitement. "Autograph!"

Xu Xiaoshou: "..."

Whoosh!

Hold back, she's a fan!

"Where should I sign?" Xu Xiaoshou asked gently.

Li Cenjing generously extended her hand, her fingers slender and fair, palm upward. "Here!"

She glanced intentionally toward the audience seats, where the crowd seemed frenzied, but inside the barrier, they couldn't hear a thing.

Outside, a woman in the front row was screaming wildly, "Li Cenjing, stop right there! Xu Xiaoshou is mine!"

"Na na na!"

Li Cenjing secretly stuck out her tongue at her best friend with a smug look.

Hmph, serves you right for not practicing properly. Now you can only sit there and envy me.

Without any shyness, Xu Xiaoshou grabbed her hand—it was soft and warm.

He quickly signed it and said, "In the future, don't forfeit against anyone. It's not worth it."

"Oh, okay, not a loss."

Li Cenjing was, after all, a sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl. Being held like that in front of everyone, even with her thick skin, made her blush.

The ticklish sensation on her hand made her want to pull away, but she held back and replied in a soft, mosquito-like voice, "Thank you!"

As soon as the autograph was done, the young girl turned and ran off like she was fleeing. Xu Xiaoshou called out, "Hey, your Ling Bi..."

She didn't look back. "It's a gift for you!"

Xu Xiaoshou glanced at Xiao Qixiu, who was shaking his head repeatedly, his eyes full of memories and emotion, not urging him to leave.

Xu Xiaoshou had no choice but to put the Ling Bi into his neck ring.

Outside, the woman in the front row went crazy at the sight, her eyes red as she charged toward Li Cenjing, who had just left the arena. Even the staff couldn't stop her in time.

"Li Cenjing, today is your end!"

"Take this, my kick from beyond the heavens!"

"Wait, are you really going to kick?"

"Waaah, I'm so jealous! If you chopped off that hand, give it to me!"

"..."

Xu Xiaoshou stepped out of the barrier and glanced at his info panel, suddenly feeling dizzy.

"Received disdain, Beidong Zhi, +333."

"Received disdain, Beidong Zhi, +333."

What was going on?

Though he had won without a fight, shouldn't a victory bring encouragement and praise?

Why the sudden change? They were cheering before the match, and now they didn't like him anymore?

Oh, humans!

Xu Xiaoshou forced a smile and waved at everyone, trying to turn things around.

"Received disdain, Beidong Zhi, +886."

Xu Xiaoshou: "..."

In the waiting area.

Xu Xiaoshou squatted on the rest chair. The atmosphere was so lively that he couldn't even nap.

With the tournament at this stage, he had successfully entered the top eight.

According to the schedule, he had another match today. If he won, he could compete for tomorrow's championship.

"Will I win the championship...?"

Xu Xiaoshou wasn't confident.

If he hadn't faced Zhou Tianshen yesterday, he might have thought he could take it. But Zhou Tianshen at Houtian peak was already so formidable—who knew how strong those at Xiantian would be?

Xu Xiaoshou swirled the water cup in his hand, lost in thought.

Xiantian was actually a general term.

It encompassed the Yuan Ting, Ju Wu, and Shang Ling three realms.

After Lian Ling Shi Jing, a spirit refiner would sense the heavenly dao and open a Yuan Ting in their Zi Fu. If successful, they could awaken their Xiantian attribute power, which was what defined Xiantian.

As for Xiantian attribute power, it was incredibly varied and unique to each person.

It could be the five elements or something like an intent realm, such as Chao Qingteng's "One Sword, Frozen River," or Zhou Tianshen's "Knife Breaking Xiantian"...

What Xu Xiaoshou feared was exactly this.

Even though his passive skills could be used like Xiantian spirit techniques, they still had limitations.

At least, he didn't have Xiantian attribute power, which meant he lacked a major advantage compared to the true championship favorites.

Xu Xiaoshou looked toward his Qi Hai and couldn't help but smile bitterly.

There, his spiritual energy was a dark red, filled with a scorching aura—it was the result of his desperate efforts last night. But compared to a true Xiantian attribute power, it was still half a step short.

"Sigh!"

Xu Xiaoshou sighed helplessly. He had originally wanted to fight his way to the championship with his current strength, but it seemed unrealistic.

He turned his attention back to his mind.

"Beidong Zhi: 48226."