Free Web NovelChapter 690: Chapter 690: Losing Face
"Wu Chang, are you sure you want to continue?"
Ye Qingchen didn’t plan to deal him a fatal blow, as the old men on the stage were still watching. If he went for the kill, those Elders would certainly intervene.
Wu Chang glared furiously. "Ye Qingchen! You—"
He was both enraged and panicked.
I’ve been defeated by Ye Qingchen again! Even with my Martial Grand-uncle’s help, I still lost. Isn’t this even more humiliating? How am I supposed to face anyone in the Wuji Immortal Palace now?
Wu Chang felt both shame and rage, and it was all because of Ye Qingchen. Yet, he was utterly powerless against him.
Seeing this, Huo Mei stood up on the stage and shook his head. His voice, neither loud nor soft, echoed across the entire arena.
"I suppose the outcome is clear to everyone. For the Wuji Immortal Palace, a loss is a loss. The show is over, so you may all disperse."
No one in the crowd had expected the matter to end like this. And Huo Mei, their Martial Grand-uncle, didn’t even try to protect his own as the Great Elder had last time.
"This... have we been disgraced again?"
"No, that can’t be! Everything was going so well just a moment ago. How did it all turn around so fast?"
"Damn it, how can our Saint Heir be so unreliable? I was counting on him to win back everything I lost last time! And now I’ve lost another huge sum!"
"This is infuriating! So infuriating! What kind of Saint Heir is he?!"
"Seriously, when did our Wuji Immortal Palace become so pathetic?"
The complaints from the crowd naturally reached Wu Chang’s ears. Full of rage, he glared at the people below.
"Hmph! A bunch of useless disciples! All you can do is run your mouths from down there. Why don’t you come up here and try it yourselves?!"
Wu Chang’s words immediately enraged everyone.
"Hey! Saint Heir! How can you speak to us like that? We’ve been cheering for you this whole time!"
"Exactly! It’s your own incompetence, yet you have the nerve to blame us!"
"If you ask me, our Wuji Immortal Palace’s Saint Heir should have been replaced long ago!"
"That’s right! You’re the one disgracing the Wuji Immortal Palace, Saint Heir! Not us!"
Wu Chang hadn’t expected such a strong backlash. Faced with so much condemnation, he began to panic. After all, these were fellow disciples of the Wuji Immortal Palace, and the palace had clear rules against disciples fighting one another.
Just then, Ye Qingchen suddenly stepped forward to speak on Wu Chang’s behalf. "Everyone, please, calm down. Your Saint Heir’s intentions were good! He was only trying to win back some face for your Wuji Immortal Palace!"
Wu Chang immediately snorted coldly. What a hypocrite! Acting all kind and speaking up for me at a time like this. What a performance!
However, Ye Qingchen’s next words made Wu Chang want to spit blood.
"It’s just that your Saint Heir is a bit too sure of himself. He knew perfectly well he couldn’t beat me, but he had to act tough anyway!" Ye Qingchen continued with a sigh. "Alas, and look where that got him. You all feel sorry for him, yet he’s completely ungrateful. If I were him, I’d be too ashamed to show my face."
Ye Qingchen relentlessly laid into Wu Chang, whose face turned green with anger. To his dismay, the crowd started agreeing with Ye Qingchen.
"Yes! Yes! Ye Qingchen is right!"
"If you ask me, I think Ye Qingchen is the good guy here!"
"Honestly... if we could replace our Saint Heir with Ye Qingchen, I’d support it with both hands."
Their words stabbed at Wu Chang’s heart like knives.
At that moment, Huo Mei walked to the edge of the stage. "Alright, alright, the show’s over! Everyone, disperse!" he said, waving the crowd away.
Seeing it was their Martial Grand-uncle, no one dared to say another word and quickly scattered.
"Thank you, Martial Grand-uncle," Wu Chang said guiltily to Huo Mei.
Huo Mei snorted coldly. "Thank me for what? You’ve thoroughly disgraced me!"
Seeing Huo Mei carry on like this, Ye Qingchen snickered to himself and quietly departed.
When Huo Mei saw Ye Qingchen leaving, his voice grew even louder as he scolded Wu Chang.
"Wu Chang! I entrusted such an important Secret Technique to you, and this is the result you give me? You’ve put the Wuji Immortal Palace in this embarrassing position. Is this how you repay the palace for nurturing you?"
Wu Chang hung his head, silently enduring Huo Mei’s tirade. He’d never expected Ye Qingchen to be so difficult to deal with!
Seeing how angry Huo Mei was, several Elders hurried over to mediate. "There, there, Martial Grand-uncle. It’s no use berating him now. What should our next step be?"
Hearing the Third Elder speak, Huo Mei turned his head and narrowed his eyes. "Third Elder," he began, "when I am speaking, is it your place to interrupt?"
The Third Elder frantically shook his head back and forth. "Not at all, not at all!"
"Hmph! Third Elder, if I remember correctly, you went to the Ancestral Hall two days ago and stole my Soul Lamp, didn’t you?"
Huo Mei’s words made the Third Elder break out in a cold sweat. Before he could reply, the Great Elder’s eyes went wide.
"Third Elder! You actually went to the Ancestral Hall and stole our Martial Grand-uncle’s Soul Lamp? You... This is outrageous!"
With a woeful expression, the Third Elder tried to make an excuse. "Well, you see, Martial Grand-uncle... we were just so desperate to find you that we... accidentally... took it."
But Huo Mei wasn’t listening to his nonsense.
"Third Elder, if I’m not mistaken, the Wuji Immortal Palace has explicit rules about this. Stealing my Soul Lamp is an undeniable fact. Therefore, I see no reason for you to continue in your position as the Third Elder."
"What!" The Third Elder leaped to his feet in a panic. "No, Martial Grand-uncle, no! Everything I did... it was for the Wuji Immortal Palace! You... you can’t strip me of my position over this!"
The Third Elder never expected Huo Mei to be so ruthless. He had been the Third Elder of the Wuji Immortal Palace for many years and held considerable standing within the sect. But with a single word, Huo Mei was taking it all away. Who could possibly accept that?
"What? Do you object to my decision?" Huo Mei glanced at him coolly.
The Great Elder sighed and stepped forward. "Third Elder, stealing a Soul Lamp is a grave offense. Our Martial Grand-uncle is already being merciful by only stripping you of your position. Don’t try to argue anymore."
The Wuji Immortal Palace did indeed have rules that not even a Martial Grand-uncle could contravene. A mere Third Elder would certainly be no exception.
The Third Elder turned to Wu Chang, his eyes pleading for help. "Saint Heir, Saint Heir, you must speak up for me!"
If he hadn’t been trying to help Wu Chang, he never would have risked stealing the Soul Lamp.
However, to the Third Elder’s profound disappointment, Wu Chang merely glanced at him before turning his back, a clear sign that he wanted nothing to do with the matter.
