Shu Qingdie sized him up and gently nodded. “Brother Du, sit.”
She sat on the seat next to Chu Li, taking over where Yang Lingfeng used to sit.
Yang Lingfeng subtly laughed and waved his hands, hinting at everyone else to move one seat down so that he could sit next to Shu Qingdie. A faint and nice scent tickled their noses. They suspected that it was Shu Qingdie’s.
While this was happening, Chu Li also subtly sized up Shu Qingdie.
She had long, slim arms which were more accentuated due to the fact that her movements were light; every move she made had an unexplainable rhythm to it, like a professional dancer. It was apparent that Shu Qingdie was someone who was skilled in the art of the sword. She had a natural-born talent for it which gave her a distinct advantage.
Shu Qingdie knew she was better than the others and she made no secret of it, constantly keeping her head held high. She considered no one else due to the arrogance she had.
“Are you really the fiance of Sister Du Xia?” Shu Qingdie’s bright eyes were concentrated on him as she asked curiously.
Chu Li smiled as he nodded.
Shu Qingdie shook her head and sighed. “Such a waste. Women usually have such bad taste. Smart ones always get a dumb partner.”
Chu Li broke into a smile. “Lady Shu, Du Xia is indeed smart but I’m not that dumb by comparison, am I?”
“You are just a brute!” Shu Qingdie scoffed and turned as she shifted her gaze to everyone else.
“Usually, men are not inherently more skilled at martial arts, it’s just that they are born to a patriarchal society, which makes them feel like they are the natural masters of the land and that all women should listen to them.”
Chu Li looked at Zhao Feihu.
Zhao Feihu was simply sitting there staring deeply into Shu Qingdie’s eyes. It was easy to tell how much he adored Shu Qingdie.
“I heard that you want to kill Feng Shaohua. Is this true?” asked Shu Qingdie.
Yang Lingfeng quickly pushed the silver bowl toward her and passed her a silver spoon. “Come come, Brother Du, eat some seafood. This is the best in our lake, they are very fresh and tasty!”
Chu Li took the silver needle as he smiled. “I should try it then.”
He took a shrimp and put it into his mouth. It was soft and smooth as he chewed it for a bit. It tasted fresh and tasty, no wonder they were enjoying it that much, it was scrumptious.
Shu Qingdie stared at Yang Linfeng when he did this. Yang Lingfeng on the other hand just laughed awkwardly and acted as if he did not see anything.
Chu Li smiled to himself.
He activated the Omniscient Mirror for a split second and smiled even wider.
Yang Lingfeng actually had a secret crush on Shu Qingdie. Unfortunately, Shu Qingdie liked no one. There was no doubt that she did not like Yang Lingfeng nor the Youth Champion Zhao Feihu.
Her eyes were higher than her head – nobody else was in her sight. She believed that all men were the same: that is, men would soften the moment they saw a pretty woman and change their target whenever another one pops up. None of them were worth her affection.
Zhao Feihu may be the Youth Champion of the Snow Lunar Pavilion but he was still only merely the Youth Champion. Shu Qingdie felt that he was only as good as she was, but he would be able to pull a win after an extended fight only due to the fact that he was born a man.
She did not even look at men who could not best her in battle.
Shu Qingdie looked towards Chu Li again. “Do you know how good Feng Shaohua is, Brother Du?”
Chu Li nodded. “I heard that he’s the Youth Champion of the Green Hill.”
“He’s not exactly the Youth Champion.” Shu Qingdie scoffed. “His elder brother, Feng Shaorong perfected his Innate Mastery and had been isolating himself for some time. He is the actual Youth Champion, just like Sister Du Xia.”
She glared at Zhao Feihu after saying this. Zhao Feihu was referred to as the Youth Champion, but Sister Du Xia had perfected her Innate Mastery first. She was the actual Youth Champion.
Zhao Feihu stared at the ground and did not say a thing.
Yang Lingfeng was not happy about this. “Feng Shaorong is going to be a Grandmaster. It’s only a matter of time. He does not join in any of their affairs, so he shouldn’t be considered a Youth Champion! Sister Shu, in the same way, Brother Zhao is the actual Youth Champion of our Snow Lunar Pavillion – I don’t think you are eligible for that title.”
“Hmph, your logic is so skewed!” Shu Qingdie did not sound happy. “Alright, let’s not talk about this any longer. If Sister Du Xia left her isolation and saw you guys pushing Brother Du to fight Feng Shaohua, what would she think?”
“But we did not push him,” Yang Lingfeng said loudly as he tried to explain. “It was Brother Du that offered to do it himself, isn’t that right, Brother Du?”
Chu Li was eating when he looked up and nodded.
He was not going to have any food like this after leaving the Snow Lunar Pavilion, so every bite counted.
Shu Qingdie scoffed. “Brother Du does not know how strong Feng Shaohua is. Do you all not know either? What if anything happens to Brother Du? How are you guys going to explain it to Sister Du Xia?”
Chu Li sighed and put down the silver spoon. “Thank you Lady Shu, but the one called Feng Shaohua almost killed Du Qiu. Do you think that me, as her brother, can stand by and not do anything about it to avenge her?”
“Even if you want revenge, you should know your limits.” Shu Qingdie scoffed. “Feng Shaohua is extremely cunning. We still can’t kill him, even with the number of people we have here. He’s great at his Light-body Technique, don’t end up failing to get your revenge and get yourself killed, too!”
Chu Li smiled in response. “My Light-body Technique is not bad either. I can always run and escape.”
He knew that Shu Qingdie was doing this for his sake, but she was also looking down on him.
At this point, Yang Lingfeng suddenly piped up. “Then why don’t we fight, as practice?”
As soon as Shu Qingdie said those things, he suddenly felt a little afraid. What if Du Feng was actually un-skilled and was brutally murdered by Feng Shaohua? Yang Lingfeng could not possibly explain why he had let him go.
Chu Li waved his hand and smiled as he said, “I shall not shame myself.”
He decided to act humble for now to avoid looking too overbearing. This was so he would not be misunderstood as one that looked down on the Snow Lunar Pavilion.
It was easy to defeat them, but it was much more important to make sure Su Ru did not end up worse-off just because of Chu Li’s temporary enjoyment.
Su Ru had just joined the sect and her Master and Xiao Qi were both isolated. She was all alone now – it would be far too pitiful if she were isolated by the other followers.
As a man, being looked down upon did not count for much. Chu Li was quite thick-skinned, so it did not matter to him.
“If anything happens to Brother Du, we could not possibly explain it to Sister Du Xia. It’s better if we practice now!” Yang Lingfeng made a closed fist salute as he raised his voice in a panic. “If not, I dare not tell you where Feng Shaohua is.”
“Sigh…” Chu Li shook his head as he smiled. “It seems like no one will be happy if I don’t prove my abilities.”
“You’re a man! Be more straightforward! Don’t act like such an old woman!” one of the men did not like how Chu Li acted and was starting to get agitated.
Chu Li smiled at him and stood up. “Brother Zhao, shall we practice now?”
“Alright!” Zhao Feihu pushed his chair away and stood up.
“Don’t get too carried away! I will go and get some weapons!” Yang Lingfeng said.
He ran out and returned with a wooden sword and a wooden knife. The wooden knife was quite heavy, similar to an actual knife. The tip of the weapons was not exactly sharp, but a direct hit from them would still cause damage. As long as the weapons did not strike any vital points, Chu Li would be fine.
The crowd pulled the table away to make some room.
The two of them then stood facing each other. Chu Li made a closed fist salute. “Brother Zhao, we will limit ourselves to ten moves. If no one wins then we will end it, what do you think?”
“How about thirty moves,” Zhao Feihu suggested.
“Sure!” Chu Li nodded as he swung at the air. “Be wary of my blade.”
Zhao Feihu held out his wooden sword in front of him as he started to briskly walk toward his opponent.
The two men’s weapons clashed and the thirty moves passed by in the blink of an eye. Nobody said a word throughout, obviously too fascinated by the spectacle.
Chu Li’s moves were fierce, they transitioned too smoothly, the technique was almost perfect. Meanwhile, Zhao Feihu’s swordplay was quicker and ruthless, but he was still unable to break through Chu Li’s technique. The two of them were quite evenly matched.
After thirty moves, Chu Li took a step back and stepped out of the fight. He made a closed fist salute as he smiled. “You let me win.”
Everyone’s impression of Chu Li instantly changed.
To face Zhao Feihu on equal terms, without any kind of handicap, was enough. Nothing else mattered, his skills with the knife were clear. They were far worse than Chu Li.
Shu Qingdie furrowed her brows and looked at Chu Li.
Chu Li smiled as he turned to ask the crowd, “So, do you think my knife skills can hurt Feng Shaohua?”
“Alright, we’ll see how good Brother Du really is!” Yang Lingfeng laughed at his question. “I’ll tell Brother Du the moment we get news of Feng Shaohua!”
Chu Li smiled and nodded. “Thank you.”
Zhao Feihu seemed to have something on his mind. For some reason, he believed that Chu Li had held back and was actually far superior to him. If it were a real fight, he would have pointed it out.
However, Shu Qingdie was in front of him. His pride stopped the words from leaving his mouth.
Shu Qingdie treated him well all thanks to his martial arts. If Zhao Feihu had lost now, what would she think of him?
Shu Qingdie stood up and made a closed fist salute. “Brother Du, I shall take my leave. Welcome to the Snow Lunar Pavilion!”
Chu Li made a closed fist salute as he smiled. He had won her respect.
Regardless of how she acted, Shu Qingdie was still Su Ru’s savior. Chu Li was thankful for her.
As soon as Shu Qingdie left, the suppressed excitement of the crowd burst out. Everyone started to talk excitedly. “Brother Du is truly skilled, we shall await your good news, Brother!”
However, although Chu Li’s knife work was not bad, they did not believe that he could actually kill Feng Shaohua.