"Who are you talking about? I don't understand."
Xuefeng turned his head to the side with his eyebrows raised, feigning innocence.
"Your wife's opponent. Did you see her?" Sir Liu questioned. "She left the arena and you disappeared together with her."
There wasn't a clear suspicion coming from his mouth but it was clear as the sky Xuefeng was the main suspect. If they wanted to find her, they would at least search around compared to surrounding him immediately. Moreover, how could they not know what happened after seeing so much blood on the wall?
"Yes, I saw her," Xuefeng answered honestly, blinking his eyes as if he did nothing wrong. "Is there a problem?"
"Can you tell us where is she now then?" Sir Liu questioned, his lip twitching. "We have something to ask her."
He didn't seem to expect a straightforward answer from Xuefeng that made all the staff speechless.
"Oh, I guess that won't be possible. I killed her just now."
He declared it as if killing was an everyday thing for him, as easy as harvesting fruits from the tree.
Before Sir Liu could say anything, Xuefeng added, "Is that against the rules? She already dropped out of the tournament so she is not protected by anyone. Does it matter if I kill her now or later? She was already dead when she cursed at my wife."
"She is protected by the Water Land Capital, just like every ordinary citizen," Sir Liu reminded with his eyebrows knitted. "You killing her violates the rules within the Capital."
Xuefeng couldn't help but smile. "Sir, with all due respect, if I want to kill someone, no one can stop me. In the worst-case scenario, I will just leave the Capital. If anyone tries to stop me, I will just kill them as well. Isn't it how this world works? The ones with strength dictate the rules. Today it is me, tomorrow it will be someone else."
With that said, he walked towards Sir Liu, stopping in front of him.
"Also, are you sure you want to stop me? There are many who would rage if they found out I was disqualified from the tournament. The whole Arena or even the Capital would become a mess once I'm gone," Xuefeng muttered quietly. "What if I exposed all the shady business behind the scenes? What would the public say? Wouldn't they boycott the whole tournament?"
The Arena staff looked at each other in confusion, causing Sir Liu to admit defeat.
"Fine, I will forgive you this kill. Just refrain from blooding your hands outside of the stage."
Xuefeng shrugged and walked out of the encirclement, heading back to the Waiting Lobby.
"I'm sorry but I can't promise that. I plan to kill all Fate Holders I can find. It's a rare opportunity to get so much free Fate Qi. Why would I spare them? Life is brutal."
Sir Liu could do nothing but watch him leave, his mind filled with complicated thoughts. Who was this guy and why was he so different from others?
"Sir? Should we watch and stop him once he attempts to kill someone again? I'm guessing we don't pursue him about this…?" One of the Arena Staff questioned as he pointed at the blood on the wall.
"Just clean up the scene and ignore him. Let him do what he wants," Sir Liu ordered. "This is how the world works. The strong eat the weak and get even stronger."
A clever light reflected in Sir Liu's eyes as he suddenly vanished from the spot, appearing right behind his niece on the Platform.
"Huh? Uncle?" Liu Xinyu questioned as she turned around. "What are you doing here?"
"I just came to see my niece, can't I?" Uncle Liu said casually and returned to the topic troubling his mind. "Anyway, follow me to my office."
He disappeared again but when his eyes opened, his Liu Xinyu was already waiting for him.
"What happened?" She questioned with a frown.
"I need to go as another match is starting soon but I just wanted to tell you something about Xuefeng," Uncle Liu explained, making Liu Xinyu visually tensed. He couldn't help but tease her about it.
"Hehe? Did you already fall for him to cause such a reaction?"
"I swear, even if you are my uncle, I will beat you up," Liu Xinyu warned. "I didn't fall for anyone."
"Then maybe you should," Uncle Liu replied straightforwardly.
"What? Why so suddenly…?" Liu Xinyu asked with her eyes widened.
"Something tells me he will reach high. You should cling to him or at least hug his thigh. I'm not joking," Uncle Liu suggested. "At the very least, you will be safe with him."
Liu Xinyu knitted her eyebrows. "Are you telling me I'm not enough to protect myself?"
"No, that's not it. He is just different. You will understand once you meet him," Uncle Liu said mysteriously. "Anyway, I'm off."
He didn't hesitate and left the confused Xinyu to her own thoughts. Just based on her expression, one could tell her Uncle messed up the calmness in her mind.
"Liu Xuefeng…"
———
"Nice! To think Tianshi got so powerful."
Watching the replay of Tianshi's match, Wu couldn't help but be proud and happy. She didn't expect her to master such a strong Art. She already regretted she missed Xuefeng's first match, but Tianshi's battle cheered her up.
"Miss Wu! You have an important meeting in five minutes!"
Just as she wanted to watch more, waiting for the second round of matches to start to finally see Xuefeng, her grandpa's Secretary came over with bad news.
"What?! I cleared my afternoon for today already!" Wu called out with a frown, not expecting it. After learning about the broadcast, she immediately finished all the matters at hand to free herself.
"Miss Wu, although you don't have any meetings yourself, your grandfather had some old appointments. As he is away, all his responsibilities fall on you." Secretary explained. "I know you want to watch your husband but this business deal is really important."
"Ughh!" Wu grunted as she glanced at the screen and then back. It should still take some time till everyone finishes their matches in the first round. If she hurries, she might have time to come back on time.
"How long will it take?"
"At most twenty minutes. The other party is already being led to your office," Secretary replied, noting a checkmark on her notepad. "I already told you will arrive in five minutes. I'm sorry, Miss Wu."
"Fine! Let's handle it fast!" Wu called out as she snapped at the two guards that followed her since she arrived. "Let's go."
For her, nothing was more important than Xuefeng. Forget the Trade Union. Even if she had to destroy it all, she would still choose him.
"Good Morning, General Manager Wu!"
She was passing through the Trade Union reception when she stopped, hearing a weird greeting. Everyone knew they should call her Miss Wu instead of using her title.
"Who are you?" Wu questioned coldly seeing a stranger by the counter. "This is the first time I see you here."
Although Wu was in the Trade Union for only a few days, she was serious in her job. She already knew all employees after reading through their profiles. She didn't like to work with people she didn't approve.
"Uhm…" The lady immediately panicked, looking at Secretary for help.
"She is a recent employee we hired. She started her work today so it's understandable that Miss Wu doesn't recognize her," Secretary explained.
"Why I don't know about it? Where is the other lady? I didn't approve of this change," Wu questioned Secretary immediately. "I specifically told you I want to know everything. Don't tell me you fired someone without my permission?"
The autocratic tone in Wu's voice made the atmosphere tense. Everyone stopped working, gazing at the scene.
"Miss Wu, I was about to inform you about it after your meeting…" Secretary answered with a bitter smile. "You were busy with all the meetings, so I handled it myself. It just happens we like to exchange people with different branches. The lady wasn't fired but instead got promoted as a team leader in the Blood Land Capital Branch. She accepted the promotion on her own will."
It definitely sounded reasonable but Wu didn't seem entirely convinced. Noticing the other employees look at each other strangely, it was obvious something was wrong. She opened her mouth to speak but Secretary cut her off, speaking out.
"Actually, due to the shortage of capable staff, I planned to promote most of the staff from the headquarters and move them to the branches to improve the quality of staff there. To grow as a whole, we need to be strong on all fronts and capable people are hard to find. The various Presidents across eight lands were bugging us to send some of our staff to help handle the branches. I wanted to inform you about it today but as I said, Miss Wu was busy."
Wu didn't even look at the Secretary, not really used to having one, and asked the staff directly, "Did all of you receive the same offer from the Secretary?"
All of them nodded cautiously.
"Do you wish to accept it or any of you want to remain here?" Wu questioned again. "I'm sure all of you have families and friends in the Capital."
The staff quickly brightened but Secretary followed up in protest.
"Miss Wu, I already applied for the promotions, informed the other branches and the replacements are on the way. Pulling out on such a matter would bring a lot of proble—"
"Did I ask you a question?" Wu cut her off coldly. "Why are you speaking instead of them? No matter what you did, I have the last say."
With Secretary silenced, Wu turned to the staff and repeated, "So, what is your answer?"
"Miss Wu! We want to stay!"