Cohabitation with Sword Spirit-Chapter 185 - 155: Quick Escape

The battle between Wang Jiu and Luo Jia quickly drew the attention of more people.

After Luo Jia silently fell limp, it wasn't long before seven or eight referees arrived, surrounding Luo Jia, sometimes checking his body and limbs with test papers and spiritual water, and then flipping through heavy ancient books for reference. They discussed for quite a while but couldn't come to a precise conclusion.

Later, Wang Jiu couldn't stand it anymore and took the initiative to join the discussion, offering valuable academic suggestions and historical references, earning several nods and helping the referees finalize the case of Luo Jia.

Luo Jia had not violated any rules. Although his origins were somewhat peculiar and his appearance severely affected the enjoyment of the match, the Poison Eating Skill was not an evil technique, nor was it forbidden. In fact, this unique skill had once been used for saving lives—drawing toxins from others into the practitioner's body to be neutralized. Besides, Luo Jia's strength was indeed astounding, a rare dark horse in the entire preliminary competition.

According to Wang Jiu's assessment, this person was comparable to Qian Ye before he was enhanced. Considering the odd nature of the Poison Eating Skill and the general lack of understanding about it, Luo Jia's less than ideal cultivation caused his face to enhance to the point of mental contamination, possibly throwing Qian Ye into panic during a battle and significantly reducing his strength.

Therefore, combining Wang Jiu's conclusions, several referees unanimously decided to allow Luo Jia to make an exception and enter the main competition stage, with two restrictive conditions: one, he must use specific props to cover his appearance during the match to avoid frightening the audience; two, he will draw lots with the lowest ranking, likely encountering strong opponents in the first round, and whether he can pass will be up to personal fate.

These two conditions are fixed; either accept them or withdraw from the competition, no negotiations. Although the number of applicants for the Cyan Cloud Tournament each year is in the tens of thousands, most are unremarkable, yet there are always a few dark horses, and Luo Jia isn't even the most outstanding among them.

After resolving Luo Jia's issue, they moved on to the real topic.

Wang Jiu.

If Luo Jia's strength was already comparable to Qian Ye before enhancement, then what level of power does Wang Jiu have, having defeated Luo Jia in one move?

While the referees were negotiating Luo Jia's treatment plan, they were also exchanging information about Wang Jiu to accurately determine his strength.

After all, Wang Jiu is a relatively well-known figure in QingCyan Cloud City, and as the referees each displayed their gossiping techniques, they quickly pieced together a profile.

Wang Jiu, a mysterious individual seemingly descended from the heavens, began showing his talents in QingCyan Cloud City around July. Right upon his debut, he was specially hired by the Li Family as an Honored Guest Elder and then resided in Shen Garden as Shen Qingming's bodyguard, allowing a girl trapped at the Wind Barrier for four years to make rapid progress in just a few months. During this time, it is rumored that he often corresponded with the Patriarch Li on equal terms. Furthermore, he is said to be the renowned theoretical advisor to the bestselling author, Li Jinglun.

He later served as an Inner Sect Instructor for the Li Family, and according to rumors, his teaching style was brutally inhumane, yet highly effective, with all disciples who persevered achieving remarkable transformations.

Before he registered for the competition, no one ever thought he would be such a young talent under the age of twenty.

Of course, on Xiangzhou Continent, there are many brilliant theorists lacking practical ability. Wang Jiu's reputation was large, yet no one had seen him fight others in person, so his actual combat ability remained unknown.

However, after the battle with Luo Jia, no one dared to doubt anymore that he was merely a pure theoretical Cultivator who could only speak and write but not act.

Coupled with the gossip from the Li Family Mansion—the once invincible Bai He Demoness, Li Wanqing, now reduced to Wang Jiu's plaything, spending her days at Shen Garden for his training and entertainment... For a while, the referees' assessment of Wang Jiu's strength had extraordinarily escalated to a level that could refresh one's worldview.

In the words of the rotating chief referee: "With this person appearing, others can basically only compete for the runner-up."

The referees' discussions quickly spread through various channels, like a plague.

By that evening, the news of the heavenly man Wang Jiu winning with a crushing stance had spread across half of QingCyan Cloud City.

Naturally, it also triggered earth-shaking chain reactions.

Not to mention the tycoon in the VIP box gritting his teeth and cursing Wang Jiu for exploiting loopholes, yet had to follow through with his promise to apologize to Li Wanqing and Shen Qingming.

Those most affected were the ones who pinned all their hopes on winning the Cyan Cloud Tournament championship.

——

"What did you say!? That Wang Jiu..."

At Qian Family Mansion, Qian Jing rose in disbelief from behind the conference table, his gaze piercing towards the Qian Family rotating chief referee, Qian Zhongkun, like two murderous swords.

Simultaneously, dozens of other gazes within the room focused on him, displaying shock and anger, yet without exception, they were strong and compelling, as if they wanted to overturn reality with invisible gazes and make the reporter take back his words.

Qian Zhongkun, under the watchful eyes of the elders, broke out in a cold sweat after a short while. Although these elders were advanced in age and had weakened vitality, their True Essence Realm was quite exceptional, with even the weakest at the Peak of the Cloud Flipping Realm, collectively releasing pressure that turned intangible into tangible, making it hard to withstand.

Nonetheless, Qian Zhongkun withstood the pressure and continued his report: "According to the unanimous opinion of seven referees, Wang Jiu's combat ability showcased in the preliminary rounds far surpasses that of all competitors in this tournament... including Ye'Er, with at least a twenty percent difference."

"Twenty percent!?"

Qian Jing slapped the conference table, causing the entire room to tremble slightly.

"Do you know what you're talking about!? A twenty percent power disparity is almost an entire tier of advantage! He reported his age as only 18, where in the world can you find such a prodigious talent?"

Qian Liu pondered, "If it's that person from the Zhao Family..."

"In the two thousand years of Xiangzhou's history, there has only been one Zhao Chenlu! How can there be so many Zhao Chenlus in the world!? Zhongkun, can you really guarantee that guy isn't using any cheating methods?"

Qian Zhongkun smiled wryly, "With so many eyes watching, and it's a single-digit sub-arena at the Aozora Martial Arts Arena, if he can still cheat like that, his means must be far beyond the Cyan Cloud contest champion."

Qian Jing shook his head, also realizing his question was indeed a bit foolish... But he couldn't be blamed, he was simply overly concerned.

This matter is of great consequence, which makes it impossible for him not to care. The Qian Family invested millions—and furthermore, signed long-term contracts worth several times that amount with the Lu Family—all for a Cyan Cloud contest champion. And now, in just the preliminary matches, a dark horse emerges...

The more Qian Jing thought about it, the more dizzy he became, forcing him to turn his head and solemnly ask, "Brother, what should we do now?"

Qian Long snorted coldly, "What else can we do? There's only one month until the main competition, can Ye'Er increase his strength by another twenty percent?"

The fourth elder responsible for directly guiding Qian Ye's cultivation shook his head, "... Impossible, within the next month, if he can manage those two pieces of ancient coins, that's already fortunate enough. Trying to further enhance his strength would be like trying to pull up seedlings to help them grow, only causing harm."

"Then, is it possible to make Wang Jiu withdraw from the contest?"

Qian Jing smiled wryly, "Don't mention that Wang Jiu is the Honored Guest Elder of the Li Family, even if he were an Independent Cultivator without roots or influence, it's not easy to target him. Nowadays, Wang Jiu has become the talk of the town, any mishap and suspicion would fall on us. So, let alone attacking him, we might even have to focus on protecting him..."

An elder proposed, "Change the perspective, how about negotiating with him? Although he is the Honored Guest Elder of the Li Family, he doesn't bear the Li surname. If we can win him over, wouldn't that be ideal?"

This suggestion seemed interesting, but just as the elders were preparing to discuss it, the host of the meeting, Qian Long, snorted coldly, "Old Eight, is this a message from that girl Qian Yue?"

"Uh..."

"Tell her to focus on her cultivation, how did she have time for gossip?! If she wants to meddle in family affairs, she should first control her temper, practice well, and only speak when she's matured into an elder. If this happens again, don't even think about leaving Jin Yin Mountain before her 16th birthday!"

Master Qian the Eighth was so reprimanded by his brother that he couldn't retaliate, only lamenting that handling Qian Yue indeed isn't easy...

On the other side, Qian Long also no longer mentioned persuading Wang Jiu.

Even just using their brains, they could see that it's utterly impractical. Not to mention Wang Jiu's relations with the Li Family, and whether anyone else could sway him. Even if the Qian Family offered a price to recruit him, wouldn't the Li Family know to offer him a retention bid? At that time, the two families would bid against each other, benefiting only Wang Jiu, an idea only that impulsive teenage girl Qian Yue could think of.

But with every path seeming closed, is there any way to reverse the current situation?

"Brother, if you have a solution, please speak up. We really can't think of any other way."

Qian Long looked at these family elders, saying somewhat helplessly, "Can't think of a way? It's more like you don't want to take responsibility. Our family ancestral teachings include an ironclad rule you should all remember. When losses have reached the threshold and there's no absolute assurance of recovery, no matter how painful it is, you must understand when to stop losses timely."

"But we've already invested before..."

Qian Long said, "Don't utter such foolish words, I only ask if you dare to make the painful decision, to stop the losses timely."

The elders naturally felt their inner struggles. The Qian Family previously invested millions, not entirely from the family's public funds. Every person present, in varying degrees, had dipped into their private wallets, and now to speak of stopping losses...

Indeed, only Qian Long has the courage and authority to propose such an idea.

"Well, although I can see you all have such struggles and even dissatisfaction in your hearts, at least you still maintain rational thinking, knowing what's the right choice."

Qian Jing sighed, "Our generation from the Qian Family is far from as astute and strategic as Ancestor Liexian, but at the very least, we won't hold the family back in matters like this, disregarding overall interests. Then starting tomorrow, I'll withdraw from public opinion and stop issuing financial products..."

"Who said stopping losses like that?" Qian Long shook his head, "You are wrong in thinking that way."

"Ah?" Qian Jing puzzled.

"Hereafter, not only should we not concede defeat, but we must intensify our promotional efforts, release even stronger messages, and show a stance of not resting until winning the championship. Even if it's over-promotion, as long as it's not blatantly lying, put out any available message! Hype up Ye'Er's championship predictions to the highest level, to feverish heights." 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

"And then?" Qian Jing vaguely grasped the idea but still dared not confirm.

Qian Long resolutely said, "When those ignorant masses rush to buy financial products and can't get them, driving the prices up, we'll sell off in batches, selling as much as possible."