The boy threw up a bit of blood and wretched in pain. Murong Lu’s sound attack shook his internal organs. He looked around as he wiped off the blood from the corner of his mouth. He still felt like puking more yet forcefully held his urge in. Soon, he found a soft hand pressed against his back. A gentle and warm stream poured from the hand into his body. Wherever the warm stream went, it repaired his injuries.

He looked behind him. It was Li Fen; she poured some of her Qi into him. Her gaze was fixed towards the Murong Clan’s people.

“Are you insane, Murong Lu!?” Li Yan spoke using Qi harmlessly like Wu Yu. “This is a public place! You’ve harmed hundreds if not thousands!”

“I don’t give a shit about these commoners right now!” Murong Lu waved his hands angrily. He pointed towards the fallen Murong Fang who was being force-fed a healing pill by Wu Yu, “Look at what your shameless daughter has done to the poor boy! Is this your declaration of war!?”

“This is a fight,” Li Yan rebutted calmly, “injuries are inevitable. A Tendon Transformation Realm expert such as yourself should know this!”

“Oh?” Murong Lu popped a vein, “That is clearly a killing blow! There was no need for her to do something so heavy-handed in a friendly match!”

“Friendly match?” Li Yan sneered, “Who are you fooling?”

“You-”

“Shut the fuck up!” one of the Elders from the Jade Lotus Sect screamed at Murong Lu before he could say anything else. Murong Lu instantly swallowed his words and looked at the Elder in fear.

“Do not forget where you are and where you stand, boy from the Murong Clan!” the mature-looking Elder continued. “You dare raise your voice in our presence? Are you treating us as air!?”

“N-No, respected Senior!” Murong Lu hastily denied, “I-I’m just stating facts. They’ve plotted against my clan. His child has gravely wounded my poor boy. It’ll take him months to recover!”

“Do you dare speak drivel once more?” the Elder berated him once again, “Do you think we do not know anything, boy?”

“Y-Yes?” Murong Lu was dumbfounded.

“Your ‘poor boy’ over there poisoned the Li Clan’s Eldest Young Miss,” she narrowed her eyes at him, “And you play the victim here?”

“Ah?” Murong Lu looked startled.

“If she did not get the poison removed before the tournament, would she have not thrown this match?”

“I…”

“Then on which grounds do you speak of being plotted against?” the Elder raised her eyebrow.

Murong Lu no longer spoke. Instead, he bit his lips and looked down at the floor like a child being reprimanded. The boy looked stunned. He looked behind towards Li Yan only to see him smirking.

“I believe a punishment needs to be meted out,” the Elder fixed her dress and sat with one leg atop the other. She looked towards the crowd and the Elders from the other sects, “I, Hong Yi, as the First Elder of the Jade Lotus Sect declare that Murong Fang shan’t be given entry into any of the sects present here!”

“You-” Murong Lu looked horrified!

“Is that clear?” she glared at him. Although this gesture made Murong Lu shut up, it was also a warning towards the Elders of the other sects.

“Elder Hong,” one of the Elders from the Smoke Lotus Sect spoke up, “On what basis do you punish him like this?” He had an army cut and a scar on his cheek.

“I think Elder Hong’s suggestion is apt,” this time an Elder from the Seven Aquamarine Lotus Sect spoke. He held a teacup in his hand which was full of steaming hot tea. Taking a sip, he continued, “He already schemes so viciously at such a young age. I don’t dare to think what would happen if we were to bring him into the sect.

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“It’s not like he schemed against a family member,” the scarred Elder, Liang Da shook his head, “this is a bit heavy-handed.”

“So, by that logic, won’t he scheme against everyone in a sect since nobody there is his family member?”

“You’re twisting my words, Guo Feng!” Liang Da crushed the armrest of his chair.

“Liang Boy, you seem to be getting bolder and bolder as the days pass,” Grand Elder Hong Yi finally spoke up.

“Ahahaha! I’m sorry if Elder Liang has disrespected you!” another Elder from the Smoke Lotus Sect laughed to dismiss the situation. He had narrow eyes like a Buddha statue. “Well, since Grandma Hong has spoken, the Smoke Lotus Sect will comply!” He quickly agreed to her terms.

“You’re the grandma! Your whole family is grandmas!” Hong Yi stood up and cursed him out.

“Ahaha!” the ice beauty Elder from the Jade Lotus Sect laughed coquettishly, “Aunt Hong, you should calm down. Since both of the Sects have agreed, we should let this matter rest.”

“Very well, Rao’er!” Hong Yi nodded and smiled at Elder Rao gently. She sat down and stopped paying attention.

On the other hand, Murong Lu looked at the Elders with his eyes full of resentment. This matter might not be anything to these big shots but they effectively cut off his clan’s road to prosperity.

Since he couldn’t do anything about these Elders, he shifted his resentment towards Li Yan. If that bastard had tattled to the Elders, would he be in this predicament?

Of course, his resentment-filled gaze was noticed by the recipient as well as the boy. The latter wasn’t even looking at the Elder; instead, his gaze was fixed on Murong Lu. Who knew if that twat decided to attack indiscriminately again?

“Ah fuck!” the remaining Elder of the Smoke Lotus Sect scratched his head in frustration, “The mood’s ruined!” He then looked at the Elders from all three sects and said, “There is no need to continue this farce any longer. Just select which brat you want in your sect and then be done it!”

“Liang Cheng, mind your words!” one of the other Elders from the Seven Aquamarine Lotus Sect rebuked him calmly, “We should still let them compete for just to-”

“Who are you fooling, Guo Po?” Liang Cheng sneered, “At our level, is there any reason for this charade? We already know what everyone’s talent and skill level are, no?”

“You-” before Guo Po could say anything more, Hong Yi raised her hand and stopped him.

“Let’s go with Liang Cheng’s idea,” Hong Yi rubbed her temples; “I’m a bit tired and would like to go back to the sect. So, just place your bids.”

The boy’s eyes constricted. He did not like how she phrased that. Coincidentally, he saw someone else who looked like the world had fallen from underneath them. And it was not Murong Lu. There was no reason for them to look horrified as nothing that had happened would implicate them. As such, if they are implicated then he needs to make a note of their identity.

“…very well,” Guo Po nodded reluctantly.

The crowd had been stunned into silence from Murong Lu’s outburst at the beginning and could not keep up with the twists and turns. So, when the decision was made, the people from Huangye Town looked dejected, to say the least. The entire tournament reached an anti-climactic situation, very different from the blood-boiling one they imagined.

“We’ll take Wang Clan’s Wang Meimei and Li Clan’s Li Chyou,” Hong Yi picked first.

“Ugh, fine!” Guo Feng sighed.

“Yeah, yeah, take ‘em!” Liang Da waved his hands dismissively. It seemed that the other two sects had unanimously agreed to let the Jade Lotus Sect have the females…no matter how much it pained them.

“We’ll take Long Sha, Li Jian and Liu Li” the Seven Aquamarine sect chose three of them at once.

“Sure, then we’ll take the remaining two!” surprisingly the Smoke Lotus Sect did not seem too bothered by their decision to take three at once. With how the two sects were at odds with one another throughout the tournament, the boy thought that the Smoke Lotus Sect would put up some resistance to their decision.

“They do not regard Li Jian to be valuable,” Li Yan spoke in a low voice. He then looked at the boy and continued, “You might not have paid attention but Li Jain’s talent and abilities aren’t as good as Li Chyou’s. The Smoke Lotus Sect does not think that Li Jian is something they should bargain for!”

“I see…” the boy’s voice trailed off as he pondered Li Yan’s words. Under their banter, a lot of politics was involved within the three sects. Some of the sharper ones had already gotten the gist of their situation and so did he.

“I did not expect the first Inter-Clan Tournament to end in such a fashion,” the boy shook his head, “Hopefully; this doesn’t become the norm in the future.”

At this point, Wu Yu came upon the arena. “Spectacular! This tournament was filled with excitement and passion. Although it came to an unexpected end, it was a happy one! We thank you for coming to the very first Huangye Inter-Clan Tournament. We hope you continue to do so in future tournaments as well!”

Wu Yu just like a pro at his job managed to better this lackluster ending. And thus, the much anticipated Inter-Clan Tournament has come to an end.