Chapter 385: The Eight Quarter Finalists
Chapter 385: The Eight Quarter Finalists
Translator: Oneshotwonder Editor: Hitesh_
"I promise I will!"
"Love is the easy part; it is loving that's hard. Although Xiaoru has a kind heart, there would be the time when you two find yourself quarreling with each other. I hope you would be mindful of her feelings."
Wu Xin knew that it would be useless to threaten Wang Tong. However, she really hoped that Wang Tong and her daughter would stay together and be happy forever and after.
"Xiaoru is the best girl I have ever met, and it is my honor to protect her. Thank you!" Wang Tong announced.
Wu Xin nodded in approval.
Wang Tong had a sneaking suspicion that House of Ma had already discovered some of his secrets. He also reckoned that since House of Ma had acknowledged his relationship with Ma Xiaoru, they would have to get ready for the ire from House of Li.
"Very well, go find your sweetheart now. She must be waiting for you outside." Wu Xin finally cracked a smile and nodded.
Wang Tong bowed to Wu Xin one more time before leaving the living room. When he saw the gleeful smile on Ma Xiaoru's face, Wang Tong felt like the luckiest person in the world.
In the living room, a knowing smile hung on Wu Xin's face. Ma Xiaoru and Wang Tong were just like her and Ma Dutian when they were teenagers, brave, wild, and silly.
Although Wu Xin conceded that Li Shiming was a good candidate for her son-in-law, Wang Tong's genuine and unvarnished personality was much more to her liking.
Although Wang Tong was the heir of Li Feng, Wu Xin conceded that he would not be able to bring any immediate benefits to House of Ma. However, being the heir of the Blade Warrior meant that he would be more than capable of protecting Ma Xiaoru, and that would be enough for Wu Xin for now.
In the long run, when both Wu Xin and Ma Dutian got old, Ma Xiaoru would have to carry on the family business. In that sense, a marriage with House of Li might seem to be the most reasonable choice. However, fate had a habit of throwing a curveball from time to time, and no one could have predicted the emergence of Wang Tong.
Before the meeting with Wang Tong, Wu Xin had not only dug into his experiences, but also learned a great deal about his personality and reputation. She had quickly discovered his secret affair with Samantha. However, Wu Xin was not disturbed by her discovery. Instead, she reasoned that the fact that Samantha—a brilliant young girl —had fallen for him spoke loudly of his qualities.
The ringing of sky-net abruptly stopped Wu Xin's train of thoughts. It was Ma Dutian.
"Haha… Xin, still feeling bad for giving away our daughter?"
"Puhh...She is all grown up. It's hard for me to see..."
"Wang Tong is a good lad, don't worry."
"Did you find out anything else about him?"
"Well. I didn't choose him, you did."
"Whatever! You know what I mean."
Although the two had been married for decades, they still enjoyed harmless squabbles like a pair of newly married couple. This would be a rare scene in House of Li.
The main difference between House of Li and Ma was in their goals. House of Ma was content to have found their rightful place in history while House of Li burned in the egocentric mission of dominating the Confederation. Every generation of House of Li had to prove their superiority to the world, and therefore, they had become quite unforgiving to their family members.
After Ma Xiaoru left her house, she had been walking around in the streets while holding Wang Tong's hand. With her mother's approval, they could finally hang out in public as a couple.
Although Wang Tong knew that Wu Xin's approval did not amount to his final success, since he still needed to prove himself, he didn't share his concern with Ma Xiaoru, as he didn't want to make her worry.
"Tong, let's go hang out with Zhou Sisi and Karl."
"I see, you want to make the announcement." Wang Tong smiled.
"Of course! I want them to let them know that we belong to each other from now on."
"Ok, let's go."
The crowd cheered as the two appeared in front of them hand in hand. The sudden change of House of Ma's attitude had also surprised everyone. The group went straight to a restaurant to celebrate the lovers' reunion.
A few days had passed, and the seeding ceremony for the quarter-finals was about to start. There were over ten thousand media journalist that had applied to enter the arena. However, only a few were granted the pass.
All eyes were on the seeding process, as it would play a significant role in shaping the outcome of the remaining fights.
Suddenly, a streaky flash of light appeared on the stage as Zhang Buyu walked out of the backstage. The light came from his long glinting blade. He folded his hands and bowed to the audiences, polite as ever.
After the MC announced his name, the backdrop on the stage showed a projection of highlights from Zhang Buyu's previous fights.
When the images finally faded, a lightning flash zapped across the stage, and with the din of a blaring thunder, Lee Xin sauntered onto the stage with his legendary Thunder Blade. His dramatic entry won him lots of teenage girls' screams.
Before the screams had died down, the lights on the stage changed from blinding lightning flashes to dream like soft shades, as the only female contestant—Kaedeian Princess Heidi—appeared in front of everyone.
After the MC announced Heidi's name, the projector projected the image of Planet Mars onto the stage backdrop. As the camera panned closer to the red planet, Mars turned into a ball of fire, and Michaux slowly walked out of the flames.
Suddenly, the flame burned with more intensity, as another Martian walked out of the blazing fire. He was Lie Jian, the Martian prince.
The flame waned after Lie Jian's entrance, and the stage was slowly swallowed by darkness. Despite the darkness, audiences could vaguely discern an even darker outline of a human figure. As the mysterious fighter stepped into the light, everyone found out that he was Wang Tong, the dark horse of this year's tournament.
Suddenly, a blaring clap shot through the entire arena, and thousand trumpets followed with a few powerful high notes, as the two most popular fighters stepped onto the stage at the same time.
They were the heir of House of Li, Li Shiming, and the perfect human, Patroclus. All the audiences held the same question in their mind, "Will they re-enact their ancestor's legendary fight a few centuries ago?"
The eight fighters stood under the stage light. They represented the ultimate power of their generation. The most anticipated moment was about to arrive, as the names of the eight players rolled on the screen.
"Ding-a-ling!"
The first group: Li Shiming vs. Lee Xin.
It would be not only a confrontation between two young swordmasters, but also a fight between "Vayu" and the "Thunder Blade."
Lee Xin was very pleased with his position, since his opponent was not Patroclus, and he always believed that he would be able to defeat Li Shiming.
The second group: Michaux vs. Wang Tong.
The announcement had unnerved all earthlings, as they doubted that Wang Tong would be able to defeat the young master. To everyone's surprise, they both looked at each other and smiled knowingly, as if they were both pleased by the seeding result.
The third group: Patroclus vs. Heidi. It would be a fight between two hotties.
The fourth group: Lie Jian vs. Zhang Buyu.
After the final announcement, the seeding ceremony finally lowered its curtain. The next day, stage lights lit up again as the real battle of the tournament started.
The MC shouted the names of the combatants, but the feverish cheers of the audiences drowned his voice. This would be the first official fight between "Vayu" and "Thunder Blade."
Both fighters stepped onto the stage amidst waves of cheers of their supporters.