Chương 14: Duel of the Two Brothers

Descending to the main Hall, An went over to the tables. He saw sheets attached to a board positioned right above the desks. Stepping back to see everything clearly, he began examining them. Each sheet contained a task and its corresponding rewards. After looking through the options, An approached a table where a senior sister was sitting.

"Do you have a book with all the pill recipes, but without the step-by-step instructions? Just the names of the pills and their ingredients?" he asked."' A Brief Encyclopedia of Alchemy'? Forty contribution points." She tapped her finger on the table, indicating where An should place his plaque. He handed it over. After a few seconds, the senior sister took a book from a drawer behind her and placed a special black plaque on top of An's. A moment later, she waved her hand to indicate the transaction was complete.

An took his plaque back and checked the balance, only twenty points remained. Tucking the book into his pouch, he headed for the exit.

"Faster! Faster! Senior Brother Ova and Senior Brother Zen are going to fight in the arena!"

"What? A duel? I'm coming!"

"Wait for me!"

"There they go again, fighting like two yard dogs..."

"Does that mean you're not going to watch?"

"What makes you say that? Hey, wait for me!" Exiting the Alchemy Hall, An saw a crowd of disciples running down a path that branched off from the main staircase. He decided to follow them. Walking behind the crowd, he eventually reached a large group of disciples surrounding Brother Ova and Brother Zen.

"For two months now, I've been hearing rumors that I, Ova John, lost to you in a duel a year ago. At first, I didn't pay any attention. Even though these rumors were false, they didn't harm me. But I found out that the source of these lies is none other than you, Zen Do!" Ova John raised the sword in his hand and pointed it directly at Brother Zen.

"Ha! Brother Ova! You can say what you want, but don't you dare accuse me of something I didn't do! How dare you slander my noble name? How could you think that I would stoop to your level and insult my own junior brother?" Zen Do was practically shouting by the end, wearing an expression of innocent offense while tilting his nose higher than his own eyebrows.

"Brothers, sisters! Since my junior brother Ova has decided to drag my name through the mud, so be it!" Turning to the crowd, he tried to catch everyone's eye, placing a hand over his heart.

"Despite my refusals, he kept pursuing me, claiming my sword could help him improve his own skills. How could I not agree to help my junior brother? Regardless of the sect rules, we held a private match, which I won! Seeing how upset he was, I suggested we keep our match a secret. His eyes lit up, and he agreed! I, your brother Zen, gave my junior brother a way to save face!"

He twisted his face as if in pain, and tears began to gather in the corners of his eyes, "And now he accuses me, slanders me, and tramples on my name! The name associated with nobility on our Hope Peak!" Zen Do continued to turn so that everyone could see his distressed face. His voice had a sharp edge, as if it pained him to see his brother stoop so low. An looked around at the crowd. Most of the senior sisters were gasping and pitying Zen Do.

Some of the senior brothers nodded, agreeing with him, while others simply smirked at the performance. An decided to step back a few meters and sat under a large tree.

"Elder! I, Zen Do, offer my sincere apologies that we broke the sect rules a year ago. I beg you to forgive and understand our situation!" Zen Do turned to the elder overseeing the arena. The elder simply nodded, as if to say, ' Continue your farce'. Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

"Junior brother?! Private duel?! How dare you, you bastard?!" Brother Ova raised his sword to the sky, "Tyrant Sword! First form!" He sharply lowered his sword in a straight line. Immediately, an arc of fire erupted from the blade and flew toward Brother Zen with a screech. Zen Do's eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected attack. Quickly pulling a small golden talisman from his sleeve, he slapped it onto his stomach.

Instantly, his entire body was enveloped in a yellow membrane that clung to him like a latex suit. It happened so fast that An could barely follow the movement of Zen Do's hands. The arc of fire struck the membrane and scattered to the sides, unable to hold its shape. Zen Do, however, was thrown backward several meters. Raising his head, he saw Ova John already closing the distance. Ova raised his sword diagonally, bringing it closer to Zen's face.

Seeing this, Brother Zen pulled out another talisman and managed to toss it into the air.

"Tyrant Sword! Second form! Ha!" Brother Ova stopped in place, spinning with all his strength back toward Zen Do and swinging his sword in a downward arc. This time, the arc of fire was several times thicker and brighter. The sheer energy of the attack plowed up the ground on the right side of the arena." Aaaa!" This time, when the wave of fire struck Zen Do, his membrane cracked. Part of the attack's energy managed to penetrate the barrier and strike Zen Do's body directly.

Before the energy wave could scatter as it had before, it pushed Zen Do more than ten meters back. At that moment, Zen Do opened his mouth and screamed.

"Heavenly Justice!" Instantly, the talisman he had tossed earlier began to glow with a brilliant white light. With a loud bang, it exploded into ten glowing particles that crashed onto the arena floor with a roar. Their target was Ova John. Upon impact, they erupted into energy waves similar to blast waves, but far stronger. Even the disciples in the front rows were thrown backward by the force.

The elder overseeing the duel waited a moment before raising a barrier around the arena, almost as if he purposely wanted the spectators to get hurt. Dust and dirt rose from the explosions, and the entire arena was engulfed in thick smoke and the blinding light of energy blasts." Aaahhh!" A loud scream rang out. The elder instantly waved his hand, and with a single clap, the arena was cleared of smoke and the remnants of chaotic Qi.

On the arena floor, Zen Do knelt with a sword having cut through his shoulder, almost completely severing his right arm. With his left hand, he gripped a small dagger, preventing the blade from sinking any deeper. Opposite him, half-bald and with a burnt face, Ova John knelt on one knee. He held his sword with both hands, trying to drive it further into Zen Do. Both were covered from head to toe in blood, and the arena was littered with shreds of clothing and crimson droplets.

An frowned, noticing that they were frozen in this pose not because they were equal in strength, but because of the elder. He saw the elder send several Qi flows that penetrated both of their bodies. The speed of these flows was so fast that An could barely perceive them.

"Disciple Ova John wins," the elder announced. And immediately soared into the sky and flew toward the Outer Hall.' Foundation Establishment Realm?' An watched the elder disappear. What surprised him was the silence of the flight, unlike the cultivators who flew on swords. Turning his gaze back to the arena, he saw other disciples helping both combatants down. Having seen enough, he decided it was time to leave.

Walking back toward the Alchemy Hall, he suddenly remembered that he had forgotten to check the lecture schedule. Inside, An approached a table where an old man sat, wearing the uniform of an outer disciple.

"Greetings, Senior Brother. I would like to know when the free lectures for outer disciples take place," he asked. The old man raised his gaze to An and, without a word, tossed a small tablet onto the table. He pointed a finger at it and then lowered his face back to his book. An thanked him and picked up the tablet. It listed the lecture days for the month, distinguishing between paid and free sessions. There were two free lectures per month: one with Elder Shoa and another with Es Tsu.

Seeing the second name, An remembered the portrait he had seen on the second floor. Putting the tablet back, he decided it was finally time to go home. Walking through the now-familiar forest, he passed through his formation and opened the gate. He saw the rooster running around the field, pecking at the ground and occasionally pulling thick worms from the earth. After a moment's thought, An opened the gate and called to the bird. The rooster looked at him and ran over, making sounds without even opening its beak.

An began pointing at the open gate, shoo-ing the bird out as if to set it free. The rooster tilted its head, trying to understand, but eventually turned around and ran back to peck at the dirt.

"If that's the case, then you can live here," An sighed and walked toward the shore. As he passed the bird, he tossed it two Kavana fruits. Seeing them, the rooster pounced and began devouring the fruit, completely forgetting the fat worms that were desperately trying to burrow back into the safety of the ground.