Naked Sword Art

A few disciples were lounging inside—some chatting idly, others training in the corners. But the moment they saw her, they all straightened up. It was rare enough for a Core Court disciple to step foot in the Inner Court, but to visit their guildhouse of all places? Unthinkable.

Jiang Mei silently led Xun Wei deeper inside, past the gazes of curious disciples, until they reached a quiet chamber.

Inside, Xiao Fang's Solid Clone sat cross-legged, eyes closed in silent meditation.

"Fang?" Xun Wei called softly.

From within the clone's ear, her voice reached the real Xiao Fang. His eyes opened at once, as if waking from a dream.

"You're back," he said.

Xun Wei nodded and stepped closer.

"I lost," she said plainly, lowering her head.

He could already guess what she was referring to.

"I'm sure you fought well," Xiao Fang said calmly. "Come, sit."

She approached him gracefully and sat beside him on the bed. Her exhaustion finally catching up to her, she leaned back and let herself rest against the bedding.

"You must be tired," Xiao Fang said with a faint smile, "but I doubt you came all this way just to sleep on my bed."

Xun Wei rolled onto her side to face him, her head resting against the pillow, her eyes steady on his.

"The person I lost to... he said he was your friend."

"My friend?" Xiao Fang raised an eyebrow in mild disbelief.

"Mhm. He said he was a Divine Swordsman like us," she replied. "He also asked me to give you a message."

"What's his name?" Xiao Fang asked.

"Chu Piao."

Xiao Fang's expression finally shifted. That name stirred old memories. Chu Piao had planned to meet him in Jadepeak City before they journeyed together to the Chaos Sect. In the end, they had never reunited. Xiao Fang had always wondered what happened to him.

"What did he say?"

…

Xun Wei took a breath and recounted everything: Chu Piao's capture, the Elder who had tied a deathknot around his heart, the threat to his life if he didn't fight for the Flowing Blade Sect, and the weight the tournament held—especially if he ended up winning it for them.

When she finished, she looked at him then asked,

"What would you like me to do?"

Xiao Fang was silent for a moment, thinking.

"Nothing, I'll take care of it."

Xun Wei was surprised, she assumed he was still far away from the sect, so she didn't understand how he could take care of it. So she quietly asked,

"Fang… aren't you still in the Chaos Sect?"

"I'm not," he replied. "I just returned from there a few hours ago. I'm on my way to the tournament now."

Xun Wei felt relief, but still looked at him with concern. "What are you planning to do?"

"Meet me outside of the sect. I want you to introduce me to the Matriarch."

.

.

.

At the tournament stadium, Chu Piao was dragging out the fight against his next opponent after Xun Wei when he suddenly heard a voice he recognized in his head.

{"Brother Piao, I'm here."} Xiao Fang said through a spirit transmission.

Chu Piao's eyes widened for a moment because he wasn't expecting to hear Xiao Fang's voice, but he quickly concealed his shock.

"Fang… am I imagining you, or are you really here," Chu Piao whispered.

Understanding how good Xiao Fang's hearing was, Chu Piao knew his voice would only be heard by him if he was really watching.

{"Yes, I'm really here."}

A smirk escaped Chu Piao's lips.

"What should do?"

There was a long silence before Xiao Fang suddenly spoke again.

{"Win."}

Chu Piao was getting tired of acting weak, so there was nothing he wanted to do more. With a devilish grin creeping up on his face, Chu Piao charged forward, grabbing the girl by the neck then throwing her off the stage as if she was a piece of trash.

.

.

.

The atmosphere inside the Matriarch's private viewing platform was tense. High-ranking elders and core disciples stood around, watching the remaining battles unfold from above. The mood had already begun to sour after the third loss.

Xun Wei, freshly washed and changed out of her tournament attire, stood next to Xiao Fang as she led him to the Matriarch's platform. Eyes turned toward them, many with delight at seeing Xun Wei after her incredible performance, but also confusion and disapproving glares at Xiao Fang standing blindfolded next to her.

"Matriarch Shi Lan," Xun Wei said, bowing respectfully. "This is Long Wang. He has something to say."

Shi Lan, regal in her white and gold robes, turned her eyes toward him with mild curiosity, her fingers lazily brushing the armrest of her throne-like seat. "Long Wang, you say… I've heard of you."

Xiao Fang clasped his hands and bowed. "Matriarch. I request to be substituted in for one of the remaining matches."

The room stirred with whispers. One of the elders scoffed. "Ridiculous. The roster is already finalized. He didn't even participate in the mock tournament."

Another added, "Substitutions are allowed for injury or disqualification. This boy is neither on the list nor qualified. We can't make exceptions."

"He was on the list at one point. We should consider him," Supreme Elder Song unexpectedly said. She, along with the Matriarch were the only ones that knew that Xiao Fang wasn't an ordinary cultivator.

Matriarch Shi Lan raised a hand to quiet them. "If you wanted to participate, Long Wang, you should've entered the mock tournament the other day. That was your opportunity."

Xiao Fang stood firm. "With all due respect, Matriarch… I had no intention of joining the tournament because I truly believed no one could defeat us. But now that he's appeared, I know better than anyone—there's no one in the Black Paradise Sect who can beat him."

The room went still. Even Shi Lan's expression sharpened slightly. It didn't take a genius to see that Chu Piao was extremely strong, but they had some hope that their best fighters might beat him or at least weaken him before facing Li Lian.

"You're that confident?" she asked.

Xiao Fang didn't waver. "If you want a chance to win, you'll need to substitute me in. If not, the Black Paradise Sect will lose."