Wu Li vs. Wu Kang: The Battle Starts!

[A/N: I am editing the story. You can still read it, but chapters 9-11 are not that good. If you liked the story, don't be too harsh on these chapters. Afterwards, the story gets progressively better.]

Wu Li and Wu Bailian faced a dilemma. They could either swallow the two Insightful Truth Pills and risk being killed by Liu Shizi for wasting his valuable treasures, or confess their crimes and accept the Second Young Master's punishment.

As members of the same clan, they knew that the Second Young Master would show them some mercy.

Wu Bailian felt terrified and wanted to back out. She had little knowledge of the Pill Dao, unlike Wu Li, who had the support of Liang Xia, a formidable expert in this field.

Wu Yang asked them coldly, "Have you made your decision? Do you want to take this pill and face Senior Brother Liu's fury or admit your guilt to me?"

Wu Li was not afraid at all. He had the assurance from the old man that pill was fake. Even if the pill was genuine, he had nothing to fear since he did not try to molest Wu Bailian.

Wu Li spoke with sincerity and conviction. "Young Master, you know my character well. I have always been honest and fair to everyone. Even when Wu Kang tried to disgrace me in public, I only harbored resentment towards him. I never forgot that we are from the same clan and we should cooperate for the greater good."

"If we are divided and hostile, we will stagnate. But if we are united and harmonious, we can reach the heavens. Wu Bailian's despicable scheme is something I detest!"

He showed his righteous character by readily agreeing to take the "Insightful Truth Pill".

Wu Bailian looked pale and lifeless. Her bright blue eyes were dull and empty. She had no idea how to respond. If she was exposed, she would face Liu Shizi's wrath and public humiliation. But if she confessed to Wu Yang, she would lose her status as an elite.

Suddenly, a glimmer of hope flashed in her eyes. She had an idea!

"Young Master… I… I was stupid and deceived! I'm sorry for slandering Wu Li's reputation!" Wu Bailian cried out with a pitiful face. Her eyes were red and swollen with tears. She collapsed on the floor and sobbed.

"Wu Kang, that scoundrel, forced me to be his toy! He envied Wu Li's fame and when Wu Li lost his cultivation, he came to me and threatened me!"

"He told me that he wanted to kill Wu Li yesterday and he also made me accuse Wu Li of molesting me so that he could pretend to be a hero in front of everyone when he murders Wu Li!"

Wu Li scoffed. Wu Kang killing him? Wu Kang had no chance of defeating him in a fair fight. Anyone who saw his overwhelming victories would know that.

Wu Yang's eyes turned cold as he glared at Wu Bailian. "It's good that you confessed your crimes. As for Wu Kang's actions, I will deal with them. He won't be able to kill Wu Li under my watch, or under the watch of my Senior Brothers!"

"Wu Li has the favor of both Senior Brother Chen Yu and Senior Brother Liu Shizi. They will stop Wu Kang if he tries anything funny!"

"Because you tried to tarnish Wu Li's reputation, you will lose your status as a Core Disciple of the Wu Clan. You will be demoted to an Inner Disciple. If you want to regain your Core Disciple status, you will have to make great contributions to the clan!" Wu Yang's voice was icy and echoed in the room.

Wu Bailian felt terrified. Being demoted to an Inner Disciple would make her cultivation journey much harder when she reached the Core Formation Realm. Inner Disciples at that level only received one low-grade Spirit Stone per month, while Core Disciples received three. The difference was huge and she would fall behind her peers when they entered the Core Formation Realm.

"You can leave now that you have been punished. Don't ever scheme against your fellow clansmen again. If our clan is divided, we will fall apart quickly. As Wu Li said, we should cooperate with each other for our clan's prosperity!"

Wu Bailian hurried out of the room as Wu Yang dismissed her. She felt a bit relieved that Wu Yang did not cripple her cultivation or send her to the Wu Clan's Dungeons.

Only Wu Li and Wu Yang remained in the room. Wu Li felt a hint of happiness on his face that could be seen in his yellow eyes.

"It looks like Brother Li was innocent all along! I'm glad I trusted my judgement when I made you my sworn brother!"

Wu Li smiled. "Thank you, Brother Yang, for standing by me. You have no idea how much I appreciate it!"

Wu Li was moved by Wu Yang's loyalty and also amazed by his cunning scheme.

Wu Yang looked at Wu Li and said, "I bet Brother Li is smart enough to figure out that these two pills are not really Insightful Truth Pills or anything like that!"

The young man was surprised that Wu Yang revealed his trick so openly. Wu Li felt a bit sheepish to admit that he knew the two pills in Wu Yang's hands were not the Insightful Truth Pills.

He said with a slight embarrassment, "It's not that I doubted Brother Yang's words, it's just that I happened to read about the Azure Longevity Pill, this kind of Black Grade Pill, a few years ago. If I hadn't read about it, I would have never seen through your plan!"

"Good, good! Brother Li is truly clever. I've decided to give you one of these two Azure Longevity Pills when we get to the sect. These pills are from our Wu Clan's treasury. The First Elder gave them to me so that I could perform well in the sect and get more resources, but since Brother Li's talent surpasses mine, I don't feel right keeping both pills for myself,"

The two chatted for hours, and then they moved to the arena to watch the fight between Wu Kang and Wu Bailian.

This time, Wu Yang wasn't inside the Jade Room.

The fight between Wu Kang and Wu Bailian was entertaining.

They both used supreme Black Grade techniques, the Hundred Swords Controlling Technique and the Lightning Cloud Steps. But even though their techniques and skills were equal, no one expected Wu Bailian to win over Wu Kang!

Wu Kang had reached the peak of the third layer of the Ancient Wind Venerable Secret Art, while Wu Bailian had barely touched the surface of it. The gap was too wide for anyone to believe in her.

As they watched the fight, Wu Yang turned to Wu Li and asked, "Brother Li, can I ask you something? Did you receive the inheritance of a powerful expert? When you fought against Wu Jian, your strike was invincible!"

Wu Li knew that this question was inevitable since his performance was too dazzling. He calmly answered, "Yes, Brother Yang. When I was in the Ten Thousand Beasts Mountain, I encountered the inheritance of a Soul Palace Realm expert!"

Wu Yang did not question why he was in the Ten Thousand Beasts Mountain. He sensed that it was a cover story.

"Sadly, that strike was the core of the inheritance that the expert gave me. Even if I wanted to share that technique with you, I would die from the Soul Oath Tribulation!"

Wu Yang shook his head and said, "I wouldn't dare to ask for that technique! The Elders of the Wu Clan only wanted me to ask Brother Li to donate some other lesser techniques to the clan,"

Wu Li nodded and said, "I would have done that anyway after the tournament ended, even without Brother Yang's request!"

Wu Yang smiled. "Good brother! We've been talking for four hours now. I think your match with Wu Kang will start soon,"

He glanced at the arena and saw that Wu Bailian had already lost to Wu Kang. The crowd was cheering for Wu Kang's victory.

Wu Yang did not really like Wu Li, but he pretended to be his friend so that he could benefit from him. He thought that Wu Li was a hypocritical and selfish person who only acted for his own interests while claiming to care for the clan.

He left Wu Li and headed to the Jade Room to watch the final match.

After a while, the match was about to start.

Wu Yang saw Wu Kang standing on the stage, looking confident and arrogant. Wu Kang barely reached Major Success in the Hundred Swords Technique.

He felt that he could defeat any Foundation Building Realm expert with fourteen pillars, even though he only had thirteen condensed.

Wu Kang also had a secret trump card, the Heart Igniting Strengthening Pill!

Wu Li arrived on the stage shortly after. He was also confident, but not because of any external aid. He relied on his own experience and talent. Even though he only had six pillars condensed in the Foundation Building Realm, his foundation and techniques were not weaker than Wu Kang's.

The two remained silent and waited patiently for Li Xuefeng, the beautiful host, to announce the start of the match.

"Hello everyone! I hope you have had a great time watching this tournament, but this fight will be the final one of the tournament!"

The beautiful Li Xuefeng's voice filled the arena and she looked at Wu Li. "I was amazed to see a dark horse in this tournament! This made the competition more thrilling,"

"The two fighters here are not fighting for the two spots in the Extreme Jade Sword Sect, but for their pride! They have already secured their places in the Extreme Jade Sword Sect!"

Everyone gazed at the two young men with excitement, awe and fear. How amazing was the Extreme Jade Sword Sect? For the people watching the fight, it was beyond their imagination!

They knew that even the least talented people in the Extreme Jade Sword Sect would reach the Nascent Soul Realm. It was a certainty!

"Since both fighters are ready, let the match begin!" Li Xuefeng declared. She leaped off the stage to give them space and watched the stage with interest.