Chương 253: Losing by Half a Move

As Song Que's saber cage collided with Zhao Mingyue's sword strikes, countless bright sparks bloomed in the air, dazzling the spectators watching from the sidelines. Grandee Song took this opportunity to fiercely push himself backward, retreating several steps. He lost! Looking at the small chip he had crushed into the stone pillar beneath his feet, the scattered, torn petals floating on the lake, and a few white-bellied fish elegantly practicing backstroke, Song Que knew he had lost this match.

Zhao Mingyue's control over her force was simply flawless. The nearly two elephants of force Grandee Song unleashed upon her had all been dispersed into the void by this Enchantress. Unlike Song Que, who had left behind plenty of residual destructive force in the surroundings. Therefore, strictly speaking, his loss in this match was entirely justified. Losing was losing; there was nothing to be overly disappointed about. Given a few more years, he naturally had the confidence to win it back.

Thus, Song Que very straightforwardly sheathed his saber and cupped his hands:"Miss Zhao's martial arts are exquisite; this humble one is in awe. Experiencing your brilliant techniques today has brought me great enlightenment." Zhao Mingyue sheathed her sword and smiled, her beauty as radiant and breathtaking as a blooming peony. She nodded and praised:"You are very good. I only won by half a notch due to more exquisite techniques. In a true life-and-death struggle, victory or defeat would still be hard to say.

I look forward to sparring with you again next time." Master Song merely took this as a comforting remark. Even in a true life-and-death struggle, with the Tesseract, he wouldn't even have thirty percent confidence in killing her. She, like him, had tempered herself to perfection in every aspect. Furthermore, her father was a genuine Grandmaster, and she was his only daughter. This woman's body must be filled with endless hidden trump cards. Saying thirty percent confidence was already an overestimation.

However, this sparring session truly brought him considerable enlightenment. Therefore, Song Que nodded cheerfully:"Definitely. When this humble one's cultivation makes a breakthrough, I will definitely seek Miss Zhao out for another match."

"Good, I will wait!" Leaving behind that sentence, Mingyue transformed into a fragrant breeze and returned to her seat. Song Que had reaped a bountiful harvest, and his goal was achieved—he had firmly engraved himself in this girl's memory. Having no interest in sparring with anyone else, he flew back to his table. As he walked past, the outsiders' gazes upon him were filled with either reverence or hateful jealousy.

It truly felt like this entire Tea Party had simply served as a stage for this guy to steal the spotlight. Afterward, a few people still went up to display their skills. However, having just feasted on mountain delicacies and ocean rarities, returning to ordinary rice and soup made everyone feel it was bland and tasteless. Gradually, no one was thick-skinned enough to step up, and the martial arts exchange segment ended early.

"Everyone, next we will proceed to the Moon-Gazing Pavilion for the banquet. Everything has already been prepared there. Men! Lead the way for our esteemed guests." Seeing that no one else was stepping forward, the young man sitting next to Zhao Mingyue—who had given the speech earlier—stood up once again, ordering the servants to guide them to the Moon-Gazing Pavilion. Xu Zishan naturally prioritized Master Song's side. As soon as the man finished speaking, she took the initiative to act as their guide.

"Brother Song, everyone, please follow me!"

"Hehe, many thanks, Zishan!"

"What's there to thank? I should be the one thanking Brother Song. You've brought great glory to all of us from Qinghe. When I return to the sect this time, I'm sure countless senior and junior sisters will pester me endlessly, demanding every detail about you. There are quite a few beauties among them, you know." Hearing her words, Master Song's heart leaped with joy, but his mouth still maintained a bit of modesty:"My martial path is not yet complete; how can I speak of romantic affairs? However...

making friends is what I love most. If your senior and junior sisters have free time, please don't hesitate to invite them to visit Qinghe. When the time comes, this humble one will definitely throw a welcoming banquet to wash away the dust of their journey. An extra friend is an extra path, don't you all agree? Haha..." Already well aware of this guy's true nature, Yun Xi and the others revealed looks of disdain.

Only Xu Zishan didn't mind, laughing heartily: Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

"Haha, with Young Noble Song's invitation, I believe many of my sisters would be delighted to take a trip to our hometown. Brother Song, just wait for the good news." Hehe heh— Villain Song sank into boundless daydreaming. Just as he was hopelessly lost in his fantasies, the man who had spoken beside Zhao Mingyue approached their side.

"Young Hero Song, Junior Sister Zhao would like to speak with you for a moment." The originally noisy room suddenly went silent. Everyone's attention was drawn to this side.

"Senior Brother Jiang!" Seeing the person arrive, Xu Zishan hurriedly bowed. Senior Brother Jiang merely nodded in acknowledgment, but she didn't mind. She quickly turned to introduce him to Song Que:"Song Que, this is Senior Brother Jiang Ping. He is also Alliance Leader Zhao's true disciple." Looking at the man, Song Que realized this was the only First-Tier martial artist he had sensed in the pavilion earlier. The man looked very young, likely not even thirty yet.

It turned out he was a true disciple of a Grandmaster; no wonder he was so terrifying. Song Que's expression turned serious as he cupped his hands:"Greetings, Brother Jiang!"

"No need for formalities. Junior Sister Zhao wishes to see you. Young Hero Song, please follow me," Jiang Ping replied with a nonchalant nod. Master Song naturally had no objections. Wasn't everything he did today just for this exact moment? He instructed the others to go ahead first, then straightforwardly followed Jiang Ping into the back room........ By the time Grandee Song arrived at the Moon-Gazing Pavilion, Yun Xi and his group were having a conflict with a man and a woman.

Even though they tried their best to restrain themselves given the setting, their expressions were still quite unsightly. Dismissing the servant guiding him, Song Que walked over on his own and asked in a deep voice:"Miss Yun, Brother Shen, what happened? Why are you still standing here?" Just like earlier in the Langhuan Water Pavilion, the table arranged for them here was also in the best spot on the second floor, which was why Song Que asked the question.

"Young Noble Song, you've finished your business!" Seeing him return, Yun Xi called out joyfully.

"Greetings, Young Master Song! I am called Yun Junying, this girl's third brother. This is my sister, Yun Yan, her fifth sister. We were just having a family chat." Seeing him speak with Yun Xi, the two didn't need an introduction, taking the initiative to step forward and strike up a conversation. Glancing at Yun Xi and seeing her give a slight nod of acknowledgment, Master Song's expression softened. He smiled and returned the greeting:"Greetings, Brother Yun, Miss Yun!"

"Why is everyone still standing here? The banquet is about to begin. Let's go up and talk." Hearing Master Song's words, a hint of embarrassment flashed across the Yun siblings' faces. It wasn't until Shen Ziming quietly explained it to him that Song Que understood the whole story. It turned out that these two from the Yun family didn't have the qualifications to go up to the second floor. They had been trying to pull some strings earlier but found no doors open for them.

Thus, seeing how easily Yun Xi could pass through by relying on Master Song, they came over to find an opportunity. The minor conflict arose because Yun Xi didn't like to act on her own authority and didn't dare make a decision on Song Que's behalf. The two thought she was being arrogant relying on her connections, leading to a slightly loud exchange of words. Such a trivial matter! Grandee Song naturally didn't find it difficult at all and readily agreed to let the two tag along.

"Alright, then let's all go up together!" Yun Junying and Yun Yan were overjoyed. With Song Que leading the way, the Heavenly River Sword Sect disciples guarding both sides of the corridor truly didn't cause them any trouble. With Master Song's prestige, and considering how much their Eldest Miss favored him, bringing a few people up was as trivial as catching a rabbit. The guards politely invited the group upstairs, leaving many people on the first floor watching with endless envy....... Second Floor.

There were only about thirty people seated here, all of whom he had some impression of. Lin Zhenjie, Zhu Yinming, and a few other men were currently gathered together, discussing who-knew-what. Upon seeing Master Song come up, they collectively shot him glares filled with common enmity and deep resentment. The women naturally had their own topics to discuss. Notably, that guy Hui Wu was enjoying boundlessly deep fortune right now.

He was the sole male scenery in the women's territory, currently surrounded by six or seven stunning beauties chattering like orioles and swallows. The scene truly resembled Tang Sanzang falling into the Silken Web Cave. The only difference was that Tang Sanzang was terrified, while this dog—despite showing no expression on his face—Master Song knew exactly how secretly thrilled he was inside. Song Que was boiling with envy, jealousy, and hatred!

Enviously glancing at the monk a few more times, their group was led to a round table by a receptionist. Six people just happened to fit perfectly.

"Young Noble Song, thank you very much for this," Yun Junying and Yun Yan excitedly cupped their hands in thanks. This incident clearly showed that although the Yun family appeared high and mighty in the eyes of ordinary commandery citizens, they were truly nothing in the eyes of Yangnan's top-tier factions. They hadn't even managed to squeeze into the innermost circle. No wonder Old Du could suppress them without any scruples—their strength simply wasn't enough.

Though he thought this, Song Que still smiled amiably and shook his head:"It's nothing, just lifting a finger." The two from the Yun family were currently eager to mingle and build connections with the people up here, but rashly approaching them meant they would likely be ignored. Therefore, they could only temporarily sit here and casually chat with Master Song. It was worth mentioning that Yun Yan was quite bold and had rather 'heavy' tastes.

Without any scruples, she began using ambiguous words to tease and openly seduce Grandee Song in front of everyone, causing him to inwardly furrow his brows. Although Yun Yan could be considered a beauty, to Master Song, who had seen much of the world, she was merely just that. Furthermore, her revealing and merchant-like demeanor was several levels below Yun Xi, who was pure, dignified, yet not lacking in capability and tact. Villain Song naturally didn't place her in his eyes.

As a bad boy, Master Song's favorite thing to do was corrupt pure maidens and turn decent girls bad. As for guiding and saving bad girls, turning them back into proper humans? He had zero interest. He immediately pushed this noble task onto the deeply repressed Shen Ziming sitting beside him, considering it an attempt to straighten Old Shen out a bit.

Ignoring Yun Yan, who was still using every trick in the book to flirt with him, Song Que gave an apologetic glance to the beautiful Yun Xi, excused himself, and eagerly scurried over to his little brother's side. The resources over there were truly, needless to say, far too abundant. Hui Wu, quickly share the goods with your Big Brother!