Volume Twelve: Invitation to Hell, Chapter Forty-Two: A Brawl

Exhausted from the day, everyone had already lain down when Jiang Yun asked, "Master, will that Du Ping be very powerful?"

Yaoguang replied lazily, "I don't know. Ghost cultivators are generally combat-oriented."

"Then, how confident are you?" Huo Mingkun asked.

"Hard to say. I haven't really fought a ghost cultivator in years," Yaoguang said, stifling a yawn.

"Sister, please don't lose. That dueling arena is a place where life and death don't matter; Du Ping won't show any mercy."

Yaoguang said, "Don't worry."

"Yes, I believe in you," Chen Haixu added.

"Phoenix will definitely be fine," Chu Tianyou declared.

"Haha, that goes without saying," Xuan Chen chimed in.

From Yaoguang's side, steady breathing could already be heard...

The next day, they were awakened by loud knocking. Before Yaoguang could even crawl out of bed, Jiang Yun was already up to open the door. Seeing Yaoguang still sound asleep, Jiang Yun couldn't help but mutter, "Master is truly carefree."

When the door opened, Du Ping had arrived with his people. Seeing Yaoguang still in bed, a flicker of anger crossed his eyes, but he quickly masked it. "Phoenix, you haven't forgotten yesterday's agreement, have you?"

Yaoguang crawled out of bed slowly and said, "What's the rush? Go outside and wait."

Du Ping’s face darkened, but after taking a deep breath, he walked out.

Then, Yaoguang felt the top bunk shaking violently, followed by Jiang Yun's laughter from above. "Master, should I lend you some powder and lipstick to freshen up so you can make a dazzling entrance?"

"No need. My sister could smear some red mud on her face and still outshine everyone else," Nalan Yu's voice came from the other bed. Everyone burst into laughter; there was no atmosphere of an impending fight here at all.

The process of requesting a duel was simple. After getting ready, Yaoguang and Du Ping went to a location—presumably a temporary office for the two factions—to draft a duel agreement. The content was nothing more than a fair fight, where life and death were of no consequence, and no others would be implicated. Both signed, submitted it, and then the representatives of the two organizations signed off to finalize it.

During the process, someone, likely from a hidden faction, asked, "A secret duel? Or do you need us to announce it for a public one?"

Hearing this, Du Ping’s eyes turned red. Gritting his teeth, he said, "How can a duel be timid? A duel should be a grand, thorough battle under the eyes of the public!"

Yaoguang remained noncommittal. Wasn't Du Ping's choice just a way to use her to make a name for himself? Besides, she also needed this battle to re-establish her authority in this circle.

Since Du Ping had chosen this path, the people from the hidden faction immediately organized a promotion. The "promotion" turned out to be someone shouting through a megaphone. The reason for their enthusiasm soon became clear: they were charging thirty coins for admission and even setting up a betting booth to act as the house.

The megaphone approach proved quite effective. Since everyone was gathered in the open space having returned from the Ghost Market, who wouldn't be eager to watch a show for only thirty coins and perhaps place a bet? Most importantly, one party was Du Ping, who had powerful backing, and the other was the one who had bought out the merchant's goods at the Ghost Market. The crowd buzzed with speculation, eager to see who would win.

The ring was an open space temporarily chosen by the two factions. For safety, the hidden factions dispatched duel supervisors to avoid collateral damage. Curiously, the supervisor sent by the hidden faction was Qian Shou.

The supervisor sent by the righteous faction was that old man with white hair who guarded the gate. This was the third time Yaoguang had seen him. He sat lazily outside the large circle marked for the duel.

There was a massive crowd of people who had bought tickets, a sea of dark heads. With the coordination of the two factions, those sitting, standing, and squatting ensured everyone could see.

Because of these delays, it was nearly twelve o'clock by the time Yaoguang and Du Ping stepped into the ring.

Yaoguang and Du Ping had fought before, so there was no wasted breath. The moment he stepped into the ring, Du Ping pulled a soul-nurturing jar from his backpack, placed it in the center, and immediately began forming hand seals and chanting.

Yaoguang understood at a glance; Du Ping’s actions were no secret. He was summoning a spirit he had been nurturing—a powerful technique in the world of cultivators. Most techniques in the cultivation world had time limits; once exceeded, they lost their power and could leave the user weakened.

This technique, however, lacked such drawbacks. As long as one could control and withstand it, it could be used indefinitely. Its only downside was that the nurtured spirit required constant cultivation, effectively making it a long-term project; the longer it was nurtured, the more powerful the spirit became and the more it could assist. It was a formidable art. Depending on the spirit, the power of the technique varied—if the spirit was heaven-defying, so was the technique. For instance, ancient Taoists could nurture the spirits of auspicious beasts.

Du Ping chose this technique with a short preparation time to prevent Yaoguang from using Mao-style arts. But what Du Ping didn't know was that Yaoguang had long since stopped using them. Mao-style arts were divided into Upper, Middle, and Lower levels, borrowing power from celestial, earth, and ghostly deities respectively. While every cultivator had to know them, Yaoguang was already a Venerable Deity; she had no need for them.

Du Ping chanted rapidly, an irrepressible look of triumph on his face. He likely thought he had Yaoguang figured out, or perhaps his spirit was exceptionally powerful. But he was wrong about one thing: the woman before him was no longer a mere cultivator.

At that moment, Yaoguang actually stretched and said to Xuan Chen and the others outside, "After we leave the Ghost Market, I'll take you all for hotpot."

This statement stunned everyone. Hotpot?! What kind of insanity was this? They were at a duel where life and death were on the line, and she was thinking about hotpot? Either she was overwhelmingly powerful, or her imagination was far too vast.

"I want to eat marbled beef," Jiang Yun said playfully.

"No problem," Yaoguang nodded.

"I want shrimp paste," Nalan Yu said.

"OK," Yaoguang smiled.

"I want salmon," Chu Tianyou said.

"Sure," Yaoguang laughed.

"We want iced white wine," Chen Haixu and Huo Mingkun said.

"Yes," Yaoguang laughed.

"Don't forget to bring Lele for Axu," Xuan Chen added with a smile.

"That's a must," Yaoguang laughed heartily.

The people below, listening to this discussion, were completely bewildered.

On the stage, as Du Ping finished his chant, a sudden, fierce wind erupted. It wasn't the cold, gloomy wind typical of ordinary ghosts; it carried a sense of vibrant, majestic power. Clearly, he had been nurturing a creature of significant cultivation and supernatural ability. Yaoguang was curious to see what it was.

Du Ping’s display caused gasps throughout the crowd. Almost everyone present belonged to the cultivation world; even those without a "Heavenly Eye" could perceive the scene through years of accumulated cultivation and spiritual sensitivity.

As Du Ping finished his chant, the howling wind vanished as suddenly as it had appeared. At that moment, the strange soul-nurturing jar began to tremble violently. Yaoguang knew the creature was about to emerge, yet she remained still, watching quietly.

Everyone held their breath, their attention fixed on the jar. People whispered that the younger generation was truly formidable, making their old duels look like child's play. Most agreed that Du Ping seemed stronger, as the girl hadn't made a single move.

With a sharp "pop," the jar fell over due to the violent shaking. The next instant, the crowd erupted in gasps.

"This… this must have over a century of cultivation!"

"Incredible, truly incredible. Where did Du Ping find this thing?"

In the heightened state of spiritual focus, Yaoguang immediately saw what had appeared in the vast arena: a giant nine-tailed white fox! A true celestial creature with cultivation!

Anyone with common sense knew that snakes, weasels, and foxes were easily possessed and possessed strong spiritual awareness. Once they reached a certain level or due to other circumstances, they could transcend their physical bodies to form such spirits. Du Ping had been nurturing this nine-tailed white fox. If it still had its physical body, its appearance wouldn't have been so shocking, but as a spirit form of deep cultivation, it was colossal, enough to strike fear into anyone who saw it.

"Eh? Kid, where did you get a beast-bone jar to nurture a nine-tailed white fox?" an exclamation came from the side. It was Qian Shou, who was obsessed with such treasures.

Du Ping gave Qian Shou an apologetic look. He couldn't explain during a duel and didn't want to give Yaoguang a chance to turn the tables. He chanted a command, and the giant fox lunged at Yaoguang.

A spirit was not limited by physical constraints. In the blink of an eye, it was upon her. Perhaps because Du Ping didn't want to kill her too quickly, he didn't have the fox ram into her, but instead had it raise a front paw to strike her down. Such spirit attacks wouldn't harm the physical body but would damage the soul, which in turn would injure the physical form.

Perhaps Du Ping didn't want an easy victory; he wanted to humiliate her. The more miserable Yaoguang looked, the brighter his victory would shine.

Yet, facing the fox's descending paw, Yaoguang felt no fear. She turned slightly, nimbly dodging the attack, and stood at the other end of the arena, watching the fox with interest.

The crowd gasped in disbelief. The fox adjusted its direction and attacked again. Yaoguang dodged it with the same effortless turn. A third time, the fox struck, and again she dodged. But this time, everyone noticed something on Yaoguang's arm.

"Look at the girl's arm!" someone shouted.

All eyes focused on Yaoguang's left arm. Wrapped around it was a slender figure with a long head, two sharp, straight horns atop its head, and hard spikes on its tail. Beneath its belly were two limbs, each with four claws. Its golden scales shimmered with iridescent light.

"A dragon-jiao? It’s a dragon-jiao!" someone yelled.

"A dragon-jiao, why is it so small?" another wondered.

"Jinlin, this nine-tailed fox wants to kill me. What should we do?" Yaoguang asked, stroking Jinlin.

"How insolent," Jinlin replied.

Yaoguang smiled. "You're the best."

Jinlin had long since undergone the tribulation to become a dragon-jiao and had continued to cultivate, allowing its spirit and body to separate. At Yaoguang’s call, it could summon clouds and rain in an instant. Yaoguang had been dodging earlier just to summon Jinlin.

"Alright, Jinlin, go ahead. Don't kill it; we might be able to keep it," Yaoguang laughed.

"Rest assured," Jinlin replied.

The next moment, Jinlin detached from Yaoguang's arm and, before everyone’s eyes, rapidly expanded. Its massive body hovered in the air. Now, it was even clearer: its long, slender head, the pair of sharp horns, the spiked tail, the two limbs with four claws, and the golden, iridescent scales gleaming brilliantly.

"Jinlin, I'm counting on you!" Yaoguang called out, arms crossed.

As she shouted, she heard a thunderous cry of "Dragon-jiao?" followed by the sound of a chair crashing to the floor. Yaoguang looked back to see the old man in white standing up abruptly.

Next to him was Qian Shou, staring at Yaoguang with undisguised, intense greed, muttering to himself, "A Golden Dragon-jiao!"