C440

The sudden turn of events startled everyone.

The man, with his shifty appearance, was already drawing attention. Suddenly, he turned into a gruesome sight, making it hard for anyone to look directly at him. Woo Zhengyang had figured the man would have some tricks up his sleeve, but he hadn't expected him to go to such lengths.

Despite the man's underhanded methods, they were effective. He managed to catch Liu Dahu off guard, giving him a chance to act. In terms of impact, the man's tactics were surprisingly similar to Woo Zhengyang's skill of controlling others with his sword force.

However, Woo Zhengyang's sword force was a genuine skill honed through effort. Even if others knew about it, countering it wouldn't be easy. In contrast, the man's trick was a shortcut—effective the first time, but easily anticipated the second time.

It wasn't until the situation was about to be reversed that the man resorted to such tactics. It seemed he had intended to save them for future opponents, but unexpectedly faced a tenacious Liu Dahu, forcing him to reveal his hand early.

At this moment, the man was filled with resentment towards Liu Dahu, a murderous intent flickering in his eyes.

As the sword approached, Liu Dahu raised his blade to block, but in his haste, he couldn't muster enough strength. The sword was nearly knocked from his grip, and when the man's long sword struck again, it flew right out of his hand...

Even without a weapon, everyone had already decided in their hearts that the outcome of this battle was clear. Although the sneaky behavior of the man with the weasel-like face was contemptible, the rules of the Azure Sun Martial Mansion were straightforward: a win is a win, and a loss is a loss.

Without his long sword, Liu Dahu was defenseless, forced to dodge and retreat, inching closer to the edge of the platform. "Dahu, give up!" Sun Li urged him to concede.

The folks from Great Leaf Village were the most frustrated. They had glimpsed a sliver of hope, only to see it overturned by a small trick. "Not necessarily, Dahu still has a chance..." Rice suddenly spoke up.

The people from Great Leaf Village chuckled at Rice's optimism. Without a weapon, how could there be any chance?

Just then, the two fighters on the platform separated. One figure was thrown off the platform, while another, holding a sword, remained standing.

In the end, it seemed like defeat. The people of Great Leaf Village sighed, and Sun Li was ready to fly up and catch the figure that had been thrown.

"Wait... Dahu won!" Woo Zhengyang called out to stop him.

"No way!" was everyone's first reaction to Woo Zhengyang's words. But when they looked closely at the figure on the platform, their eyes widened in disbelief.

On the stage stood a figure holding a sword—it was none other than Liu Dahu. However, instead of gripping the hilt, he was holding the blade itself! Once again, he had performed the incredible feat of catching a blade with his bare hands.

Though Liu Dahu hadn't disarmed his opponent, his hands showed no signs of injury. "What's going on? Is everyone from Great Leaf Village defying the odds?" Many spectators were in disbelief.

Liu Dahu's barehanded blade catch wasn't as awe-inspiring as Woo Zhengyang's, but if everyone from Great Leaf Village mastered such a skill, they could dominate future Thousand-village Martial Competitions.

It was obvious that Liu Dahu had kept this technique as a trump card. If he had used it from the start, combining it with his hand strikes, his opponent might have been defeated much earlier.

Some quickly deduced that Liu Dahu's success might be due to possessing the same treasure as Woo Zhengyang, or perhaps he was using Woo Zhengyang's treasure itself.

The people from Great Leaf Village knew Liu Dahu best. They were aware he didn't have the skill to catch blades barehanded, nor did he possess any treasure that could withstand weapons. Otherwise, they wouldn't have assumed he had lost.

Yet Liu Dahu had achieved this feat, and naturally, everyone's attention turned to Woo Zhengyang. Considering what Rice had just mentioned and Woo Zhengyang's calm demeanor, it was clear that Liu Dahu was indeed using Woo Zhengyang's treasure.

Everyone guessed correctly; Woo Zhengyang indeed handed the Profound Heavy Gathering Silk Gloves to Liu Dahu. According to the rules of the Thousand-village Martial Competition, to prevent larger villages from overpowering smaller ones by sharing a single magical weapon, weapons and treasures cannot be borrowed on the day of the competition.

Woo Zhengyang knew he wouldn't need the gloves today, so he secretly gave them to Liu Dahu the night before. However, he warned Liu Dahu not to use them unless absolutely necessary. The first reason was that true growth comes from battle, and relying on magical tools is not the ultimate path. Secondly, it was strategic to keep his trump card hidden for as long as possible. Just as the shifty-looking man revealed his hand too soon, so too would Liu Dahu if he used the gloves prematurely.

Regardless, Liu Dahu won, and according to the rules, their rankings were swapped, placing Liu Dahu at twenty-sixth. While this ranking was temporary, securing a spot in the top fifty was a certainty, bringing joy to everyone in Great Leaf Village.

Reaching the top fifty meant becoming a nominal disciple of the Azure Sun Martial Mansion. Although Sun Li had the chance last time, he didn't make it into the mansion. It had been decades since Great Leaf Village had a nominal disciple in the Azure Sun Martial Mansion.

No matter how strong Woo Zhengyang was, he wasn't originally from Great Leaf Village. While they had no doubts about his character, as Woo Zhengyang's strength became more apparent, everyone understood that he was destined for greater things beyond the village. Liu Dahu, on the other hand, represented the village's enduring hope for the future.

Woo Zhengyang had every reason to push Liu Dahu forward with all his might. The competition continued as the twenty-fifth contestant stepped into the ring. After Liu Dahu, only Woo Zhengyang and Rice from Great Leaf Village were left to compete. Woo Zhengyang, being the top contender, was naturally saved for last, while Rice was just there to make up the numbers. No one expected her to make it into the top fifty.

Finally, Rice's number was called. Her opponent was ranked twenty-first and hailed from the prominent Daxing Village. According to the rules, everyone had to step into the ring, whether they intended to concede or not. Rice bounced onto the stage, drawing laughter from the crowd, though some were clearly displeased. It was obvious why a little girl, only about five or six years old, had made it this far.

Woo Zhengyang bringing someone at the late or even mid-Skin Stage to this level was one thing, but bringing a child who had just entered the Skin Stage into the top hundred was clearly just to fill the numbers!