Chapter 145: Qin Xiaochuan Finally Won

This...

After running over, referee Miss Star Dream saw that Sikong Lang had already collapsed to the ground, having seemingly exhausted his entire life force. His muscles had turned into pale, withered strips, and fragments of muscle that had fallen from his body were scattered all around him. Those pale fragments looked like wood shavings completely drained of their strength, drifting around his body until a gust of wind blew them far away.

Sikong Lang's hair had also turned completely gray, as if every ounce of his vitality had been completely drained. At this moment, his eyes still held a look of satisfaction from that final strike. Approaching him closely, Miss Star Dream bent down and reached out to check Sikong Lang's breathing. Regrettably, there was no breath at the tip of his nose. With his ultimate pursuit of martial arts, this martial arts elite who dared to challenge himself had returned to where his journey first began, carrying all his dreams with him.

"Ah?!"

Pulling back her arms in fright, Miss Star Dream hurriedly stood up. Turning around, she suddenly saw Qin Xiaochuan crawling up from the ground. As the sole survivor of this duel, Qin Xiaochuan had risen once again. Seeing him back on his feet, Miss Star Dream, acting as the committee referee for the match, hurriedly raised her microphone and announced loudly to the packed stadium, "Contestant Qin Xiaochuan wins!!"

Seeing that Qin Xiaochuan was standing again, Miss Star Dream raised the microphone to broadcast the final result to the entire arena, "The ultimate winner of this Dark Martial Arts Tournament is—Team Qin Xiaochuan!"

"Xiaochuan! Pull yourself together!" When Qin Xiaochuan heard the news of his ultimate victory, the last thread of belief supporting his body vanished as well. His limp body began to collapse toward the ground. At that moment, Bai Ying rushed forward, caught the falling Qin Xiaochuan, and continuously encouraged him, "You won, Xiaochuan! You won!"

"......" Hearing Bai Ying's words, Qin Xiaochuan seemed to regain a sliver of consciousness. Opening his hazy eyes, he muttered to himself, "Did... I win? Am I still alive?"

"That's right, you won! And what a brilliant strike it was!" King Enma stepped forward as well, offering his congratulations to Qin Xiaochuan.

"You... damn it!!" Upon hearing their words, Qin Xiaochuan suddenly dropped to his knees, furiously pounding the ground with both fists, his face filled with remorse. "What on earth am I supposed to say to Zhang Yang? What else can I possibly do for him? Damn it!" Tears of regret streamed down Qin Xiaochuan's cheeks, dripping onto the earth. "Wah~~~!! It happened right before my eyes, yet I was completely powerless! What can I ever do for him from now on?! Damn it!!"

As he spoke, Qin Xiaochuan continued to pound the ground in agony, tears falling uncontrollably from his face. Although he had initially looked down upon this idiot, through sharing a master and training together, jointly eliminating the Four Holy Beasts' base, and rescuing Feiyan's younger sister Feixue—all the way up to participating in this Dark Martial Arts Tournament—Zhang Yang and he had forged a genuine bond of life and death that transcended mere friendship during these youthful years. He never expected that Zhang Yang would be killed by Sikong Lang simply to provoke his potential. This was his greatest regret in life. Watching his best friend being killed right before his eyes while remaining utterly helpless—the mere weight of this remorse made Qin Xiaochuan's heart ache so intensely that he could not even stand.

"Hey! Are you alright?" Just as Qin Xiaochuan was weeping bitterly over his perceived death, Zhang Yang materialized out of nowhere right in front of him, making tentative, teasing gestures as if greeting him, yet fearing that getting too close might yield bad results. Thus, Zhang Yang bounced up and down in the distance, trying to catch Qin Xiaochuan's attention. Looking up and seeing the full-of-life Zhang Yang, Qin Xiaochuan turned his tear-filled eyes toward Bai Ying.

"Um, Xiaochuan... I'm sorry!" Seeing Qin Xiaochuan's expression of grief and fury, Bai Ying felt a bit embarrassed. "Zhang Yang isn't dead at all!"

"He's... not dead?!" Hearing Bai Ying declare that Zhang Yang was alive, Qin Xiaochuan was stunned for a moment, and then glared at Bai Ying with a wrathful expression. You guys played me for a fool!! Can you just toy with my feelings like this just because he's not dead? Can you just toy with my tears like this just because he's not dead? Do you have any idea how much agony I went through?!

"U... Um, calm down!" Pacifying the即将 erupting Qin Xiaochuan, Bai Ying offered a sheepish, smiling explanation. "Well, the thing is..."

With that, Bai Ying re-explained the recent events to Qin Xiaochuan. As it turned out, after Sikong Lang pierced through Zhang Yang's chest with his hand, Zhang Yang had simply collapsed on cue and was caught by the rushing Bai Ying.
"Zhang Yang! Zhang Yang!"
"Don't worry, he missed the vital organs!" Lowering his head, Zhang Yang whispered to Bai Ying, "Please, help me keep this from Xiaochuan. Subjecting him to a shock like this might just work."
"......"

Listening to Bai Ying's explanation, Qin Xiaochuan wiped the tears from his face. "So, you all conspired to fool me alone!"

"Hmph! That's only because you were being so pathetic," Feiyan chimed in, crossing his arms at Qin Xiaochuan's complaint. "If you had managed to unleash this hidden power of yours a bit sooner, we wouldn't have needed to stage this whole farce..."

"Ah!! Help!! I'm going to die! Stop it, Xiaochuan!"
"......"

"Look over there!" Pointing at the wrestling Qin Xiaochuan and Zhang Yang, Bai Ying wore an awkward smile. To be able to brawl with such vigorous energy—it seemed Xiaochuan really hadn't exhausted his full strength after all; how else could he have so much stamina left? Still, someone should probably stop them before Zhang Yang actually gets beaten to death by you.

"You jerk, Zhang Yang, you tricked me yet again! This time, go ahead and really die for me!"
"Ow, ow, ow, ow!!"
"Aren't you full of energy! Go die!"
"Ah!! Ow, ow! I'm dead! I'm dead! I'm really dead this time, stop hitting me, help!! I'm dead, really, really dead, I'm actually dead this time!! ......"

"However," hoisting up the battered and unrecognizable Zhang Yang, Qin Xiaochuan furrowed his brow in puzzlement, "why didn't Sikong Lang kill this guy?"

"Zhang Yang's physical shock-resistance must have improved, and his defense increased as well, so his heart wasn't actually punctured," Feiyan said, glancing at the motionless Sikong Lang lying on the ground. "When it comes to refusing to admit defeat, this guy is truly peerless."

"Why do I feel like you're not actually complimenting me?"

"I don't think Sikong Lang ever intended to kill Zhang Yang in the first place," Bai Ying speculated, gazing at Sikong Lang on the ground. "I've always felt he was waiting for this exact moment—waiting for a true warrior to defeat him, even if it meant playing the villain the entire time..."

"Well, there's no way to know for sure now." King Enma stepped forward, a pacifier in his mouth. Just as he was about to continue speaking, the ground suddenly began to shake violently, as if a magnitude-nine earthquake had struck. Everyone's bodies began to sway up and down with the undulating earth.

"!!?"
"What's going on!?"
"This place is going to collapse!!"

"Why is the entire arena shaking?!"
"Here? This place is going to collapse!!"
"Yujing!!"

Just as everyone was bewildered by the chaos, Yujing walked over from the opposite side. He held a detonator in his hand, making it clear that this devastating earthquake had been meticulously planned and premeditated. Gazing at Bai Ying across from him, Mr. Yujing took a puff of his cigarette and gently exhaled the smoke. "I think Bai Ying was right. Even though I've known Sikong Lang for so long, looking back, he really was that kind of man—someone who would abandon everything for his goal. I readily admit that I lost, and the reason I lost was simply because I failed to see Sikong Lang's true nature!" Throwing the cigarette butt onto the ground, Mr. Yujing shoved both hands into his pockets, a mad look gleaming in his eyes as he stared at the group opposite him—the exact expression King Enma had spoken of earlier, the desperate look of a gambler who had cast aside all thoughts of life and death. "This arena is about to explode, and my ambitions along with it!"

"Waa!! We don't want to be buried with you! Run for it!"
"There's the hole Qin Xiaochuan made! Let's run!"
"Run that way! If we don't run now, we'll lose our lives!"
"Run!!"
......

Hearing Mr. Yujing's words, first a few demons closest to him, then a small group, and eventually a massive tide of demons began fleeing frantically toward the giant hole blasted by Qin Xiaochuan's spirit wave. It was the only exit left in the entire arena.

"Ah!! Miss Feixue!!" Spotting Miss Feixue amidst the chaotic mob of demons, Zhang Yang scrambled up from the ground. She was more precious to him than his own life; she was a presence for whom he would gladly cast aside his mortality. Seeing the sheer chaos of the scene, Zhang Yang didn't care about anything else—he brandished the spirit sword in his hand and charged forward. Anyone who dared lay a hand on Miss Feixue would be torn to shreds! "Get out of my way!! All of you, get out of my way!!"

"What on earth is that guy doing?!"
"Let's follow him." Pointing at Zhang Yang, who was charging frantically toward Feixue like his life depended on it, Bai Ying smiled awkwardly. The explosive power that fellow could unleash for Feixue was definitely not to be underestimated, and it certainly saved them a lot of physical effort.

"The passageway inviting all humans into hell... I'd love to take a glance at it." Pulling the final cigarette from his pocket, Mr. Yujing lit it. Savoring the flavor that brought him such infinite nostalgia, Mr. Yujing was soon buried by concrete slabs crashing down from above. Just as he had said, this was a gamble with his life. For Sikong Lang's conviction in pursuing the ultimate martial arts, he had wagered his life, and now the time had come to pay the debt. Let everyone lose right along with me; who else's turf could this possibly be?