Chapter 5184 — I Yield!
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 3
That was Wei Zhao. Anyone else would have been unable to pull their kick at that point and would have sent Ling Tianyou flying, but Wei Zhao checked it effortlessly, casting Ling Tianyou a look pregnant with meaning and thinking to himself that this kid was no pushover.
Geniuses all have their pride, and for an exceptional talent like Ling Tianyou, even if he appeared mild and unassuming on the surface, deep down he was surely a proud man. People like that usually clung fiercely to their reputations, and even when driven into a corner, getting them to admit defeat to your face was harder than climbing to heaven. Yet Ling Tianyou had chosen to concede so cleanly and decisively, and had remained calm and composed from beginning to end, without the slightest trace of shame or embarrassment. That temperament alone marked him as no ordinary figure.
Outstanding natural talent, and a deep, calculating mind. Even Wei Zhao had to admit that if this Ling Tianyou truly grew into his potential, he would one day be a formidable power in his own right.
"Good. I hereby declare Wei Zhao the winner!" Xin Yi'an announced on the spot. The crowd still had not recovered their wits; they were still immersed in the rhythm of that drawn-out contest of endurance, and then in the blink of an eye the winner had been decided. It was just too damn sudden.
Wei Zhao looked utterly indifferent, turning to leave the arena, when Ling Tianyou suddenly spoke from behind him: "May I ask you a question, sir?"
"Go on." Wei Zhao turned his head to look at him.
"How did you escape my encircling flying needles just now?" Ling Tianyou asked. By rights his needle barrage covered a full three hundred and sixty degrees with no blind spot, yet Wei Zhao had slipped through it with ease and without a scratch. It truly left one baffled.
In truth he was not the only one with that question. Everyone present was wondering the same thing. The sole exception was Bing Wushuang, for among those present only he had witnessed Wei Zhao's half-primordial-spirit state.
"Work it out for yourself, slowly." Wei Zhao smiled faintly. He was not a fool; the half-primordial-spirit state was his greatest trump card at present, and there was no way he would casually reveal it to anyone, least of all in a public setting with so many eyes upon him.
"Very well. Then I shall seek your instruction again when the chance comes." Ling Tianyou did not press the matter, the hint of a smile still playing at the corner of his mouth, not in the least resembling a loser who had just conceded and surrendered.
He had indeed lost just now, but it was after all only an inconsequential match. He still had hidden moves he had not brought out; there was simply no need for them unless things became truly desperate. Compared with a life-saving trump card, what did conceding or surrendering amount to?
Xue Jianming watched this scene with silent exasperation. Wei Zhao against Ling Tianyou. The ideal outcome from his perspective would have been mutual destruction, yet now both had come away completely unscathed, and that brat Ling Tianyou had conceded just like that, turning it into a sickening display of mutual admiration. It was enough to make a man want to tear his hair out.
Once the two had returned to their respective detachments, Xin Yi'an raised his voice again and asked: "Who else wishes to issue a challenge across levels?"
This time no one made a sound. Even a peerless figure like Ling Tianyou had lost, which showed how hard it was to challenge across levels. To them it was like a blow to the head, and they instantly dared not act rashly.
Challenging across levels was no small matter. Not everyone would be like Wei Zhao and pull their punches, stopping at the point of contact. If someone carelessly picked a ruthless opponent, what then if that person struck hard, or even struck to kill? The Trial Grand Tournament had never said that lives could not be lost.