Free Web NovelChapter 26: Chapter 26—Weak Xiao Wan
Chapter 26—Weak Xiao Wan
Lei Feng gripped the edge of his seat, jaw set tight.
"Win," he had murmured as the match began, voice low but fierce. ’You must win. The honor of the Lei Clan rests on your shoulders.’
The Xiao Clan Patriarch’s voice rang out across the courtyard. "Begin."
Mo Ming moved instantly and hissed, "Level Three Movement Skill—Flowing Water Form." Blue energy wrapped around his legs like flowing water, his shape becoming fluid and near-invisible as he cut a zigzag path across the platform, dashing forward like a current.
Xiao Wan responded without hesitation. "Level Three Movement Skill—Vortex Triple Steps." The golden light around his legs sharpened into small energy blades—three stacked upon each other—and he launched forward at matching speed.
Their clash rang out sharp and clear as two swords collided.
Ting! Ting!
They moved so fast that for non-combatants like Lei Feng, the entire battle was nothing but flashes of light and ringing steel. He could only sit there with his fist clenched, hoping. freewebnσvel.cøm
Ting! Ting!
Mo Ming and Xiao Wan exchanged blow after blow without pause—neither yielding, neither breaking.
Then a voice broke through from behind Lei Feng. "Brother-in-law—here you are."
A middle-aged man with rough, unruly hair hanging loose down his back, dressed in red robes, dropped into the seat beside him. Lei Feng rose at once and cupped his hands. "First Brother-in-law. Please, sit."
Before he could say another word, a second middle-aged man in the same red robes walked up calmly and greeted Lei Feng with a polite nod. "Brother-in-law."
"Third Brother-in-law," Lei Feng replied. "Please, sit."
Xiao Yang pulled both his brothers into their seats beside him.
Lei Feng observed them quietly from the corner of his eye. ’Three Xiao brothers,’ he noted to himself. ’Eldest Xiao Lin—rough and unruly. Xiao Yang—seemingly humble, yet cuts with his tongue. Third, Xiao Mo—utterly nonchalant.’
Xiao Yang leaned over and patted Lei Feng’s shoulder. "Brother-in-law—it looks like it’s going to be a tough battle."
Lei Feng nodded, while his inner voice said something else entirely. ’You told me you were sending the weak one.’
Noticing the frown creeping onto Lei Feng’s face, Xiao Yang grinned and waved a hand. "Don’t worry. He really is the weakest. How old do you think he is? Eighteen, nineteen if rounded. He lacks battle experience. It’s only a matter of time before he loses."
Lei Feng stared blankly at the fight.
’Weakest.’ He turned the word over bitterly. ’Xiao Wan is your nephew’s guard. Your nephew is the Xiao Clan’s strongest young talent, known across Azure Cloud City as one of the Four Young Masters.’
It was clear now. The Xiao Clan was humiliating the Lei Clan while simultaneously elevating Xiao Wan’s reputation. One stone. Two birds.
Lei Feng’s expression darkened further.
From the audience behind them, an excited voice confirmed it. "Wait—is that Xiao Wan? Young master Xiao Zi’s guard? I heard Xiao Zi, the Xiao Clan’s top rising talent, nearly made it onto the Heavenly Prodigies List—he would have been ranked if not for his injuries."
More murmurs of admiration rippled through the crowd.
The three Xiao brothers grinned broadly at every word.
Xiao Yang, however, nodded with exaggerated reassurance. "Truly, brother-in-law—don’t worry. Xiao Wan carries injuries from a previous battle. He will definitely lose."
Before Lei Feng could respond, another voice from the crowd cut through, dripping with contempt. "Sending an injured opponent to fight?"
"Just how low do they think the Lei Clan is?" another voice echoed.
"Shut up," someone hissed sharply, silencing the speakers.
Lei Feng raised his eyes and sat silent for a moment, scanning the sky above the platform to calm himself. He spotted a figure in black robes floating silently overhead. ’A Bizarre Cultivator.’ He exhaled slowly, then turned and noticed another black-robed figure seated still among the audience. He also noted government soldiers and various officials present—but no other clan patriarchs, no city lord, no figures of equivalent standing had bothered to arrive.
Xiao Lin finally spoke—his first words since arriving. "Looks like you’ve hired Bizarre Cultivators for protection, brother-in-law."
Nonchalant Xiao Mo smirked. "How much did you pay them?"
"What are you two saying?" Xiao Yang hissed sharply before Lei Feng could open his mouth. "Do you have any idea how dangerous things become if a Bizarre creature were to appear here?"
Both brothers fell quiet.
Lei Feng let their chatter wash over him and returned his full attention to the platform.
Ting! Ting!
Mo Ming and Xiao Wan had already exchanged hundreds of blows. Under one heavy clash, both were pushed back several meters simultaneously—but there the similarity ended. Mo Ming was drenched in sweat, his breath ragged and labored. Xiao Wan stood utterly composed—not a single drop of sweat on his brow, his posture unchanged.
The audience needed no announcement. They could read the gap themselves.
’Was he really injured?’ Lei Feng thought grimly.
Beside Mo Yong—still sitting motionless in Lei Cheng’s form—Lin Mei rose from her seat, irritation flashing across her face. ’What is Miss thinking?’ she muttered inwardly. ’Doesn’t she want to get married? Lei Cheng’s luck is most suitable for her.’ She activated her technique quietly. "Celestial Fox’s Illusion." A wave of golden light washed over her as she slipped between the crowd, drawing not a single glance from anyone nearby.
Lei Feng leaned over and placed a hand on Mo Yong’s shoulder—who sat in Lei Cheng’s appearance. He murmured close to his ear, "Don’t worry, son. We will win." He knew the odds were grim, but a father’s instinct drove him to shore up his son’s confidence all the same.
He had no idea he was whispering encouragement to an imposter.
For a brief moment, Mo Yong’s fingers twitched.
On the platform, Mo Ming finally reached his limit. He screamed the name with full force—"Level Three Sword Skill—Five Wave strike!" Crystal-clear water energy surged and spun around his sword like a living thing, compressed and coiled.
Xiao Wan’s smile did not waver. His lips curled slightly upward. He raised his sword in response. "Level Three Sword Skill—Clear Gold Twin Strike."
Both fighters launched toward each other, movement techniques still blazing around their legs, newly activated sword techniques unleashed simultaneously. The five spinning waves of Mo Ming’s blade slammed headlong into the two razor-sharp golden lights erupting from Xiao Wan’s sword. Their blades never actually touched. It was their energies that met.
Boom!
The shockwave erupted outward. Mo Ming’s hair whipped violently—and so did Xiao Wan’s. Both stopped dead, locked in place, their energies grinding against each other in a contest of pure force and will.
Lei Feng leaned forward in his seat. ’This is it. This will decide everything.’
---
Meanwhile, across the compound—on the other side of the Xiao household—Lin Mei slipped inside Xiao Ming’s chamber.
She found Xiao Ming seated on her bed, dressed in full wedding robes. A faint trace of red still marked the corner of her lips—blood, dried and pale now, a remnant of the injury she had sustained when Lei Cheng broke the fox groom mark.
Lin Mei rushed to her side, eyes wide. "What happened, Miss?"
Xiao Ming turned her gaze on Lin Mei—and it was not gentle. Her eyes burned with cold fury.
"Why," she hissed, "did you mark another one half an hour ago?"
Lin Mei blinked. "What? Another mark—I marked Lei Cheng."
"You marked Lei Cheng?" Xiao Ming’s voice dropped to something dangerous. "Your target’s luck fortune is pathetic. If I were to use him to form my domain through marriage, it wouldn’t even stretch a hundred meters in radius."
Lin Mei’s mouth fell open. "What?"
"He was not Lei Cheng."
The words landed like a stone dropped in still water. Lin Mei stared, something close to distress flickering across her face. She wanted to reach out, to comfort her—she swallowed the impulse. Instead she steadied herself and asked carefully, "Then—was Lei Cheng marked in the first place?"
"Yes." Xiao Ming clenched her fist. "He was marked one day before. You were fooled. Why did you waste another mark?"
Lin Mei’s gaze dropped to Xiao Ming’s lips. "Miss—you coughed blood. You were injured?"
Xiao Ming’s golden energy exploded outward in a sharp burst. "That insufferable dandy—Lei Cheng somehow broke the mark."
The realization clicked into place between them at the same moment. Lin Mei completed the thought in silence. Both master and servant locked eyes.
"You were fooled by Lei Cheng!" they said together—one in accusation, one in dawning shame.
"Miss," Lin Mei said, her voice turning low and cold, "shall I make a move on Lei Feng and the Lei Clan?"
The room fell silent.
