The Immortal Ascension

Chapter 16: Little Abacus

In the middle of the two groups, two unarmed youths were engaged in a martial arts sparring match. One of them was a portly figure, yet his stance was steady, and his punches and kicks were powerful and forceful. This was none other than Wang Da Pang, a good friend Han Li had made in the past. Despite his corpulent build, Wang Da Pang was no slouch in combat. With each shout, his fists whipped up gusts of wind, exuding an imposing aura. The other youth was short in stature but agile as a mouse. Instead of blocking Wang Da Pang's punches, he continuously dodged and weaved, seemingly trying to exhaust Wang Da Pang's strength before launching a counterattack.

Seeing his friend engaged in a martial arts match, Han Li naturally sided with his friend.

After watching for a while and seeing that Wang Da Pang still maintained his fierce momentum, Han Li, though not skilled in martial arts himself, knew that his friend wouldn't be defeated anytime soon. Feeling reassured, he relaxed.

He glanced around, hoping to find someone to ask about what was going on.

Not far from the tree he was in, he noticed a youth standing by a rock, watching the match while gesturing with his hands and muttering to himself, "Hit his head, kick his waist, ah! So close! Yes, yes, kick his butt, harder..."

The youth was watching with great excitement, his words spilling out animatedly.

From his tone, it seemed he was rooting for Wang Da Pang.

Han Li found this person interesting and slowly climbed down from the tree, approaching him.

"Senior Brother, do you know the people on the field? Why are they fighting?" Han Li asked with an honest expression.

"Why ask? Is there anyone Little Abacus doesn't know? Of course, they're fighting because— Wait, who are you? I've never seen you before. Are you new here? No, it's still half a year before new disciples can join. Who exactly are you?" The youth, who had been about to answer, suddenly realized he had never seen Han Li before and immediately became alert.

"I am Han Li, a friend of the valiant Wang Da Pang on the field," Han Li replied earnestly.

"Wang Da Pang's friend? I know all his friends, and you're not one of them!" The youth remained suspicious.

"Oh, I've been in seclusion for the past few years and haven't come out for a long time. It's normal that you don't know me," Han Li said, half-truthfully.

"Is that so? You must have joined four years ago. I never thought there was someone in the sect that I, the all-knowing one, didn't recognize," the youth said, glancing at Han Li's attire and seemingly convinced by his explanation.

After chatting with Han Li for a bit, the youth couldn't help but volunteer the reason behind the match.

"Junior Brother, you wouldn't know, but this is all caused by a beauty. It all started..." True to his self-proclaimed title of "all-knowing," Little Abacus recounted the entire story in detail to Han Li.

It turned out the incident involved two people: one was Wang Yang, Wang Da Pang's cousin, and the other was Zhang Chang Gui, the son of a money shop owner. Both were disciples of the Seven Mysteries Sect, but one was an Outer Sect Disciple, while the other was an Inner Sect Disciple.Although these two individuals lived in the same town, their paths would not have crossed under normal circumstances. Everything was set in motion by another girl, who was from a different town and had been betrothed to Wang Yang since childhood. However, some time ago, while the girl was out, she caught the eye of Young Master Zhang, who happened to be passing by on his way home. Under the influence of Young Master Zhang's wealth, both the girl and her parents succumbed, and she was subsequently betrothed to Zhang Chang Gui instead. Wang Yang's betrothal gifts were returned, and the girl's family, swayed by greed, changed their allegiance. This devastating news dealt a heavy blow to Wang Yang, who had already fallen deeply in love with the girl. Upon hearing the news, he became inconsolable and, in a moment of despair, tragically took his own life by jumping into a river.

At this point, the story could have ended as a simple tragedy.

However, Wang Da Pang, who had been close to his cousin since childhood, could not let the matter rest. He confronted Zhang Chang Gui and challenged him to a duel, with the loser having to serve tea, bow, and apologize to the winner.

Although Zhang Chang Gui was arrogant, he knew his martial skills were slightly inferior to Wang Da Pang's. Therefore, he proposed that friends could also participate, and the outcome would be determined by the overall results of multiple matches. Wang Da Pang readily agreed. Zhang Chang Gui, leveraging his wealth, spent lavishly to recruit skilled martial artists from among his wealthy peers. On the other hand, Wang Da Pang, though not wealthy, had a wide network of friends from the middle and lower classes, many of whom were skilled in martial arts and volunteered to help.

As a result, many disciples who heard about the competition came to watch and cheer, creating a highly charged and hostile atmosphere between the two sides.

From the tone of the young man, Han Li could sense that the conflict between the wealthy disciples and those from the middle and lower classes had intensified.

A single competition had attracted so many spectators and supporters.

"You're here to help Wang Da Pang too, right? If they don't play by the rules, we'll join in and beat those young masters until they're running for their lives, so they'll never dare to bully us again," the young man chattered incessantly.

Han Li gave a wry smile. The conflict between these two sides had little to do with him, and it was hard to say who was right or wrong in this matter. After years of cultivating Qi and meditating, his youthful impulsiveness had long since faded. Moreover, he had never practiced martial arts or weaponry, so he was no match for any ordinary disciple. After watching the competition, he planned to quietly return to the valley.

"Great!" Suddenly, the young man exclaimed with joy.

Hearing this, Han Li quickly turned his attention back to the arena. It turned out that Wang Da Pang's opponent had finally been unable to hold out and, failing to dodge Wang Da Pang's hefty fist, was struck on the forehead and knocked unconscious.

Immediately, a portion of the crowd erupted in cheers, while the other portion looked displeased.

Wang Da Pang, looking quite pleased with himself, raised his fists to the crowd and then, with a swagger, returned to his side, the ferocity he had shown during the match now completely gone.

From Zhang Chang Gui's side, two people stepped forward to drag the unconscious disciple back to their group.

Next, one person from each side stepped forward, one wielding a saber and the other a sword.

The two seemed to have fiery tempers and, without a word, began clashing their weapons with a series of clanging sounds.

(End of Chapter)