Chapter 679: I Don't Know You, Don't Kill Me Wah

What is he doing?

Just like the bewildered crowd in the audience seats, in the VIP box, Xiao Lian and Yao Yue were equally baffled by Xu Shao's actions in the Bei Qu.

"Isn't this going to cause trouble, him acting like that?" Xiao Lian glanced at Xin Gu Gu, who had a calm expression, and asked Yao Yue.

Yao Yue hesitated, her face showing uncertainty as she stared at Xin Gu Gu for a long time. "Theoretically, Xu Shao is a bit eccentric, but he hasn't broken any rules..."

"As long as it's not against the rules, that's fine, right?"

Xin Gu Gu felt uneasy under their gazes and couldn't help but explain Xu Xiao Shou's actions. "He's just one person, and the rules don't say you can't incite others. Besides, look at him—he clears out a group every twenty seconds or so."

"He's really taking the competition seriously..."

Xin Gu Gu's face turned a bit red as he said this.

But Xu Xiao Shou was one of their own, after all. His methods were certainly strange, but they were exactly as expected!

Hadn't Xu Xiao Shou been like this ever since they met? If he didn't do things this way, could he still be called Xu Xiao Shou?

What could Xin Gu Gu do about it?

All he could do was provide cover from outside the arena. Was he supposed to explain more for this guy?

Even I don't know what Xu Xiao Shou has been up to all along... Xin Gu Gu grumbled to himself.

Yao Yue and Xiao Lian exchanged glances, both at a loss for words.

The situation in the Bei Qu was nothing short of a spectacle in their eyes.

Xu Shao's combat power was too high!

He barely made any moves, but that surge of golden light beads around him left no one daring to ignore its power.

While no one dared ignore it, no one dared face it either.

Even Yao Yue didn't think she could emerge unscathed from the explosive damage of those golden light beads. The other competitors in the arena were all at the Xiantian level.

What capability did they have to match Xu Shao's abilities?

"So this is what a Ban Sheng successor is like..." Xiao Lian murmured to herself.

By this point in the competition, it was clear to anyone with eyes that Xu Shao's power was the highest in the arena.

In such a one-sided fight, people in the other districts were still holding on, as the bloody battles made it hard to pay attention to Xu Shao's actions—out of sight, out of mind, so they kept fighting among themselves.

But in the Bei Qu, almost everyone was being toyed with in the palm of Xu Shao's hand.

If Xu Shao wanted to play with them, the competitors had to play along.

If Xu Shao wanted that guy named Xiao Wanfeng to be the one serving tea and water, then he had no choice but to go along with tears in his eyes!

It was simply...

"Simply like a devil!" Xiao Lian shook her head in amazement.

At first, a few obscure competitors had tried to take advantage of the crowd's focus on Xiao Wanfeng to sneak an attack on Xu Shao.

But Xu Shao just kept floating in the air, smiling as he watched Xiao Wanfeng's miserable state.

Those who tried to attack him were all either crippled or killed by the golden light beads without exception.

"Ruthless!"

Xu Shao's performance was nothing like that of a newcomer to the arena.

Or perhaps, except for that brief moment of distraction at the start of the competition, when he seemed startled by the bloody atmosphere of the Tian Luo Zhan, his subsequent actions were more merciless than any executioner.

Decisive and unforgiving!

Strike when needed, kill when necessary!

Utterly unstoppable!

"It's almost time."

Yao Yue suddenly spoke up.

While most of the audience's attention was fixed on the bizarre scene in the Bei Qu, she was still keeping an eye on the other districts.

The Tian Luo Zhan had been going on for quite a while by now.

At this stage, each of the five districts had been whittled down to only five or six hundred people.

In just a short while, once the numbers hit the standard, the host's excited voice would ring out.

"Time for the finals!!!"

"Now, let's congratulate the players still in the arena. You have ten seconds to catch your breath, and then we'll dive into the intense and thrilling final round!"

Rumble, rumble.

The platform began to sink, and the district barriers rose.

The competitors in the five districts all chose to stop fighting.

This was an unwritten rule.

The Tian Luo Zhan was exhausting, so during this brief intermission as the arena shrank, everyone was busy regulating their breathing to prepare for the next round.

Of course, there was one exception in the entire arena.

While others had been fighting tooth and nail and were now taking this moment to recover, this guy had been resting the whole time. Apart from saving someone, he hadn't made many moves at all!

"The intense and thrilling final round... huh?"

The audience outside stared blankly at Xu Shao in the Bei Qu, mindlessly echoing the host's words.

In any other situation, the final round battles about to unfold on the platform would be what everyone eagerly anticipated.

But now...

"Where's the intensity? Where's the thrill?"

"That Xu Dad's been sipping tea on the stage the entire time! He's basically one step away from building a restroom up there so he can handle everything on-site and stay balanced."

"This is ridiculous, utterly ridiculous! I've never seen such a suspense-free fight. Are the Bei Qu people all useless? Not a single one dared to sneak an attack and let him keep playing the big shot?"

"Heh, sneak an attack? Would you dare? Didn't you see what happened to the first few? Those explosive light beads..."

"Oh, right. What exactly are those golden light beads? Is Xu Shao really an explosion attribute? That Ling Ji is just too disgusting!"

"Xu Dad, have my babies!!! With me... ahhh, he—he's looking at me!"

"Tch, these women are crazy."

"The final round?"

"So soon?"

Xu Xiao Shou looked on with curiosity as the platform sank and the barriers rose.

All the competitors were forced into the central area.

Then, these ragged, ferocious-looking individuals all had their attention drawn to the young man in the sky above, who was almost spotlessly clean.

"He—he's not even bleeding?"

Xu Shao's ornate golden robe stood out starkly in this blood-soaked arena.

The few drops of blood on him were just from accidental splatters at the beginning.

Otherwise, he didn't have a single wound on his body, and his breathing was as steady as if he were out for a stroll, while everyone else was there to fight.

"My goodness, are the Bei Qu guys that cowardly?"

"Isn't there anyone who dares to take on Xu Dad? So they really got scared off by the Ban Sheng successor title?"

"Shh! Don't say that. You're from the Nan Qu, so you didn't see how nauseating the Bei Qu scene was earlier. That guy..."

"What's he like?"

"He—he... sigh, you wouldn't believe me even if I told you, and I can't even describe it. Why am I wasting my breath on you?"

Some competitors who had entered as teams regrouped in the central area from their respective districts.

A few had witnessed the Bei Qu situation.

But most had only just lifted their heads from their own killing fields and hadn't paid attention to the other districts before.

As for Xu Shao's anomaly, a few in the arena knew a thing or two about it.

But most still harbored thoughts of causing chaos in the upcoming round.

Xu Shao, after all!

The Ban Sheng successor!

Maybe at first, no one wanted to offend him.

But now, with the killing intent ignited and everyone in the Tian Luo arena responsible for their own life and death, who wouldn't want to step on this Ban Sheng successor as a stepping stone to reach the top?

"Xu Shao..."

Xiao Wanfeng, who had been beaten half to death, stumbled into the final round in a daze, completely disoriented.

His emotions were indescribable.

There was relief from narrowly escaping death, endless resentment toward the instigator Xu Shao, and above all, a profound sense of reflection on his own experiences.

"I've made it to the final round?"

Xiao Wanfeng asked himself in disbelief, doubting whether what he saw was real.

He had once come to the Tian Luo arena to witness the battles, but after a quick glance, he was afraid of getting caught in the fallout and left.

After all, the audience seats could ignore the battle waves because they had the strength to jump in if angered.

But he, Xiao Wanfeng, was just an ordinary person without his Cang Jian technique.

Yet now, this ordinary person had entered the final round?

"How did I get here?" Xiao Wanfeng scratched his head.

Only those who truly understood the Tian Luo Zhan knew how miraculous this was.

For someone to reach the final round meant they had eliminated nearly four-fifths of the competitors.

This was a battle where only one in ten thousand survived.

And the final round meant only about two thousand people left.

"I, Xiao Wanfeng, outran over seven thousand Xiantian and Houtian fighters?" The excitement in Xiao Wanfeng's heart nearly overpowered his anger toward Xu Shao.

"Yes, you've entered the final round. Don't doubt yourself, and don't belittle your achievements. You're not the best, but you're certainly impressive." Xu Xiao Shou landed beside him with a smile, offering encouragement.

Xiao Wanfeng finally snapped out of it, his anger surging back to suppress his excitement as he glared at Xu Shao.

"Why are you glaring at me?"

Xu Xiao Shou was completely unfazed by this harmless stare. He felt like he had transformed into the cold-blooded Sang Lao, nurturing seeds.

Some things were hard to understand until you reached a certain level.

Just like how he hadn't understood why Sang Lao treated a Ling Gong junior that way back then.

That approach was just like a devil, a heartless villain.

But once you reached that realm, it all made sense without realizing it.

"Maybe growing up is like that!"

The only thing that made Xu Xiao Shou feel his changes were a bit unnatural was that Sang Lao had only become that cold-blooded after reaching a height where he could decide lives and deaths.

Yet here he was, still just at the Xiantian level...

"What have you realized?" Xu Xiao Shou asked cheerfully.

This was a question he had asked countless times in the Bei Qu.

Every time Xiao Wanfeng lost all hope in the chaos, Xu Xiao Shou would save him, clear the area, and ask this.

But Xiao Wanfeng just glared back.

"You haven't realized anything yet?"

Seeing Xiao Wanfeng's reaction, Xu Xiao Shou raised an eyebrow. "That's okay. There's still fighting ahead—plenty of time for you to figure it out."

This time, after glaring, Xiao Wanfeng showed a thoughtful expression for the first time.

After all, only now did he have a moment to think...

"Honestly, I don't get your method at all, but it does seem pretty effective..." Xiao Wanfeng muttered to himself, as if he had truly grasped something.

The repeated near-death experiences, even with trust in Xu Shao to save him at the critical moment, brought an helplessness no human wanted to face.

In those situations, maybe the first or second time, no one could react or think about how to escape the predicament.

But when such life-and-death crises happened a third, fourth, or even thirtieth, fortieth time, it was completely different.

Xiao Wanfeng pondered.

He was someone who excelled at thinking and summarizing.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have gained unique insights and alternative perspectives after studying a type of sword technique.

Now, he entered that state of enlightenment again.

Flashing through his mind were scenes of repeated narrow escapes—or rather, situations of certain death.

Without Xu Shao's intervention, each time...

What he had thought internally was always disrupted by small details in reality.

Like a pursuer tripping, or two unrelated elements exploding beyond expectation due to a third factor...

So many details!

If the pursuers had acted as he anticipated, even with his ordinary body, he wouldn't have fallen into a desperate siege.

But they wouldn't follow his plans.

So, how could he make them follow his plans?

"Hold on?"

"Make them hold on?"

Xiao Wanfeng thought this idea was absurd.

But he had no idea that in this moment of reflection, the Dao Yun flowing around him had accelerated.

Others might not notice, but Xu Xiao Shou, right beside him, could "perceive" it clearly.

Just then, the platform finished sinking, and the district barriers rose to the sky, locking into place with a clang.

Along with it came the host's energetic voice.

"Rest time over! I now declare..."

"The competition continues!!!"

The final round competitors stirred instantly.

In the midst of the commotion, a strikingly bright blood-green figure shot straight toward Xu Xiao Shou—a petite form with double ponytails in a blood-green dress, attacking openly without any attempt at stealth. Accompanying it was a delicate shout.

"Good one, Xu Shao! While I've been fighting for my life in the Nan Qu, you've been here sipping tea?"

Xu Xiao Shou was startled.

He "perceived" the double-ponytailed girl in the blood-green dress and quickly retreated, grabbing Xiao Wanfeng and hoisting him up high.

"Xiao Wanfeng, stop her!"

He could see that Xiao Wanfeng was in the midst of enlightenment.

He had no idea what the guy would realize, but since things were like this, might as well add some fuel to the fire!

Mu Zi Xi was terrifying.

This girl had been relentlessly cursing and radiating resentful vibes ever since he entered the arena.

Right now, the only familiar face he had was this stranger in his hands—maybe that could curb the girl's impulsiveness!

Truth be told, all Xu Xiao Shou wanted at that moment was to avoid another vicious bite from her.

But to Xiao Wanfeng, the attacker was a complete stranger!

She was just like the horde of pursuers in the Bei Qu—no different.

Even though this double-ponytailed girl had turned her hands into wooden spikes that weren't as sharp as other wood cultivators', and even though he had seen Mu Zi Xi's information in the box and knew she had some connection with Xu Shao...

How could he gamble that she'd show mercy?

With his neck in fate's grip, the only thing Xiao Wanfeng could think of was Xu Shao's words.

"Stop her!"

But how?

Just like with those pursuers in the Bei Qu—if only...

If only she could stop, he'd have more time!

But how could he make her stop?

The wooden spikes were closing in, giving Xiao Wanfeng no time to think further.

In that instant, unable even to draw the wooden sword on his back, Xiao Wanfeng could only strain his eyes wide and shout desperately.

"Stop!!!"

A white sword energy pierced through Mu Zi Xi, freezing her in place.

Immediately, the swords of all players and audience members buzzed and trembled violently.

The sword hum echoed through the entire arena, spreading across the underground Tian Luo field and resonating for miles in the southern streets of Xi Cheng District in Dong Tian Wang City.

But Xiao Wanfeng, with his eyes closed, had no idea what had happened. He just continued to wail hysterically:

"I don't know you—don't kill me!"