Chapter 533: Public Opinion
The way of the sword was a conservative one that followed age-old traditions. Those who practiced the sword encouraged noble doctrines and righteous conduct. If the sword they wielded was dignified, then the swordsman had to behave similarly. Many sword arts passed down through generations, that spread across the Eastern Sanmu Subcontinent, had these teachings, teachings that were utterly opposed to the actions of the disciples of Ten Thousand Flower Valley.
If their prior strategy of fleeing from their opponent was offensive, then this new strategy was despicable. The challenge tournament was supposed to be a test of individual strength, whether a person could hold their own against the sword cultivators of the subcontinent to earn the right to enter the Forest of Swords.
If Xu Lanyi was too weak to defend her spot on the ranking pillar, then she didn't deserve it. For her to get a free win like that was unacceptable. It was an inditement against her, Wu Qianyu, their sect, and also their sect master. They were Chen Wentian's disciples. If they were like this, then he was sure to be even worse.
Immortal Thousand Sword Jin Wu, as one of the hosts of the convocation and the one currently presiding over the challenge tournament, could no longer sit still. Amidst the cries of outrage, he took action and arrived in front of Chen Wentian in a whirl of sword energy.
"Lord Chen, what is the meaning of this?" He asked, his face a mask of severity.
"Meaning of what?" Chen Wentian responded uncaringly.
He knew what he was doing would enrage certain people. This was inevitable since many didn't like him to begin with. They were jealous of his rapid rise to fame, jealous of his disciples such as Wu Qianyu and Long Yifei.
He didn't care what others thought of him. Immortals were naturally arrogant and envious creatures. It was a waste of time trying to please everyone. He had always been a loner. The only validation he ever needed was from himself and his soul art. Now that he had a sect, he also cared about what his disciples thought of him but that was it.
"You know what I mean." Jin Wu retorted. "That stunt your disciples just pulled."
"Oh, that. But... I'm confused. Have they broken the rules of the challenge tournament?" Chen Wentian asked
"No, but..."
"Then I don't see what's the problem. Please continue with the tournament."
Jin Wu's spiritual energy rose and fell in great waves as he tried to control his anger, "So... you have no intention of stopping these shameful strategies?"
"I think you know my answer." Chen Wentian answered flatly.
Jin Wu was left speechless. After a long pause, he harrumphed in frustration and took off towards the other three members of the Great Four atop the southern stands.
After a short conversation, all four were left helpless as Chen Wentian's disciples had indeed not broken any rules. They would become the unreasonable ones if they kicked Chen Wentian out over this matter. In a last-ditch effort, they turned to the honored guests to seek their opinion and their support.
"Senior Ancestor Yang?" They asked hopefully.
Yang Maoda didn't even look at them. He was expressionless and unblinking as he stared at Chen Wentian, the enemy of the Yang Clan of Great Waves. According to his young lord, Yang Gehu, Chen Wentian was supposed to be a cunning foe and a strong fighter. Before his eyes, he saw a completely different person, one who was willful and ignorant, who stumbled into situations and likely survived due to dumb luck.
But he knew this version of Chen Wentian was fake. He trusted his young lord's words. This mulish public display had to be an act but the reason for it remained unclear. He could not figure out how behaving like this, ruining one's reputation could be beneficial in any way. And since his enemy's motivation was unknown, it left him confused and unsure of how to proceed.
"Lord Qiu?" Yang Kaitian asked after Yang Maoda remained unresponsive.
Qiu Chuyi bowed his head slightly. "I am merely a guest. It is improper for me to interject in matters such as rules."
He sorely wanted to join them in condemning Chen Wentian but he had been instructed by the Lion Lord and the Eagle Lord not to antagonize anyone during this trip. His job was to observe and not cause any trouble. The Beast God Sanctum was still recovering and building up its strength. Publicly backing the Four Greats would satisfy his own distaste of Chen Wentian but it would also create another enemy who had strong backers in the Virtuous Order. The Beast God Sanctum already had enough enemies in the three beast kings. It didn't need anymore.
Disappointed, the four turned to the final guest, Immortal Ardent Duchess Su Tan. She came from the Huang Family and represented the Immortal Association for the Eastern Sanmu Subcontinent.
"Lady Su, what do you think? What should we do with Chen Wentian?" Jin Wu asked,
Su Tan looked around and merely shrugged, also refusing to speak up. She represented the will of the Immortal Association and their will was to not antagonize Chen Wentian. That battle at the Eastern Sanmu Metropolis between the Virtuous Order and the Sororal Order had shaken the four kings deeply. Compared to figures from the main continent, they were merely small fish in a tiny pond. They did not wish to draw attention to themselves.
In her personal opinion, Su Tan did not have a good impression of Chen Wentian. He was a simpleton and a dirty womanizer. He wasn't very good-looking either.
She preferred refined men, beautiful men, men who would place her and her alone in their hearts. Someone like Chen Wentian was everything she disliked. She would have liked nothing less than to see him publicly humiliated and kicked out of the Convocation of Swords. But she still could not go against her orders so she could not say anything.
The four sword masters turned to each other in disappointment. With no support from these greater powers, they could do nothing. After another quick conversation, they returned to their seats.
Jin Wu flew back to his post at the front of the arena and declared loudly, "The disciples of Ten Thousand Flower Valley have not broken any rules. The challenge tournament will proceed."
Chen Wentian turned to Zhou Ziyun, "You were right. They really didn't dare to do anything to us."
Zhou Ziyun looked up from her scroll where she was jotting down notes, "A small victory. Many people are still angry at us. They will surely challenge us at every opportunity. I'm afraid Xue'er, Yue'er, and the others will have to fight many duels."
"That's good, more practice for you."
She continued sternly, "That's not all. Now that this strategy is allowed, others are sure to use it as well. After all, this is the easiest way to get weaker disciples into the rankings. This will result in many strong opponents coming off the ranking totem on the third day. This adds a substantial amount of uncertainty. The final result and whether or not we will all be able to enter the forest will depend on luck."
"I've always felt that I'm a pretty lucky person." Chen Wentian chuckled, "Three days, two nights. I think that's plenty of time to make some magic happen."
"Oh? What kind of magic, master?" Lin Qingcheng chimed in, appearing beside him.
She looked refreshed and recovered from her previous ordeal.
"I'm glad you asked!" He replied with a devilish glint in his eyes.
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