Vindicator’s Wrath - Chapter 18

Cang Rong threw her cautious attitude to the wind at this point. Her eyes were black coals of smoldering anger; her voice dripped with malice. “Fine, if you want to court death then who am I to deny you? You’ll regret those words soon enough.”

The crowd was stirred into a frenzy. Disciples in gray robes rushed out of the pavilion to inform others or run ahead to grab a good place for watching the fight. Others stayed, not wanting to miss any possible new developments. Those in blue robes felt it beneath them to get excited over some junior sect members little spat and turned back to browsing items. Looking around, Hong Wu found that Hu Huan took the opportunity afforded by the commotion to disappear into the crowd.

The Roaring Tigers Arena existed so that all disciples could fight for fame, fortune, revenge, honor, and anything in-between. It was for this reason that the location usually had a fair amount of cultivators present. These disciples ranged from young and naive opportunists looking to make quick money, to seasoned veterans who made the battlefield their second home. Battles to settle disputes were not unheard of, but the animosity between the two girls was widely publicized making this a show many did not want to miss. While the sect forbade killing your opponent, it wasn’t as if accidents never happened. Injuries were common, and every few years someone would be unlucky enough to lose their life. Many of the spectators hoped for a particularly vicious fight this time.

The two combatants walked slowly to their field of battle. Both wouldn’t deign to even look at the other as they made their way to the location of the fight. The crowd behind them continued to grow until they arrived at the arena.

The Roaring Tigers Arena was more of a practice field than an actual arena. The flattened ground was mostly dirt compacted down from years of being trampled upon into a bare patch of earth. Ten slightly elevated circles with a hundred meter diameters lined the area in two rows of five. Two arenas were left empty. Three had men in gray robes standing arrogantly in the center of their circles, their body language daring anyone brave enough to challenge them. Four circles were currently hosting battles between outer sect disciples. Normally these four would garner a small crowd of people to watch and sometimes cheer, but few people were focused on these battles today. Instead, the last circle was surrounded by disciples eager to catch the first glimpse of Gu Fei’s Flowers in action.

Walking up to the ring, Hong Wu calmed her breathing and cleared her mind. Hong Wu was confident in her chances of winning. Cang Rong may have had more time to cultivate and practice spells, but Hong Wu had the practical experience of hunting for her food every day. After regaining her strength Hong Wu had made progress in her practical fighting skills. She no longer needed to rely on Yan during her hunts and hand often gone out of her own volition to hone her skills.

Stepping into the ring Hong Wu returned her focus to her opponent who was already squaring off with her. “Get ready to get humiliated again cunt!”

“What are you waiting for fatty?”

Cang Rong could contain her anger no longer and let loose a malicious howl as she charged Hong Wu. Cang Rong preformed a few quick hand motions before materializing a Frozen Blade and sending them straight at Hong Wu. The deadly icicle flew towards Hong Wu at a speed that shocked her. The color of the blade was a translucent white similar to Yan’s Frozen Blade. ‘Fourth layer of Qi Condensation!’

As Hong Wu suspected Cang Rong had recently broken through to the fourth layer of Qi Condensation; the quality of her spell proved it. This disadvantage heightened Hong Wu’s sense of danger, but did not discourage her. She would no longer freeze up the way she did when first encountering the wild boar.

Running straight at the incoming blade, Hong Wu summoned a Frozen Blade of her own and sent it for a collision course with Cang Rong’s. The two spells met in midair. Hong Wu’s blade was shattered upon impact. Cang Rong’s Frozen Blade had slowed and developed cracks along its surface, but maintained its trajectory and shape. As the blade closed in on Hong Wu, it appeared that it would slice straight through her torso. Drawing the dagger she took from Cang Rong after their first fight, Hong Wu cast the Frozen Blade spell along the edge of the dagger transforming it into a short sword.

Hong Wu shifted her body and swung her weapon at the incoming projectile. Both Frozen Blades shattered. The failure of her initial attack shocked Cang Rong; seeing Hong Wu use her own dagger against her caused Cang Rong’s emotions into further disarray. In direct contrast, Hong Wu had already made her next move. She recast Frozen Blade upon the dagger and started to close in on Cang Rong.

Starting to panic, Cang Rong cast Shrouding Mist to buy herself time. The mist quickly formed in the ring obscuring the action to the onlookers’ dismay. Seeing as Cang Rong had done Hong Wu the favor of condensing the mist for her, Hong Wu also cast Shrouding Mist and hid herself in the fog. With both hidden from each other, the battle came down to detecting their opponent’s presence.

This was the opportunity Hong Wu was waiting for. Using her recently developed hunting skills, Hong Wu stopped moving and slowed her breathing. After masking her presence as much as possible, Hong Wu closed her eyes and listened for any movement in the fog. Straining her ears, Hong Wu heard a faint rustle of clothing not far from her position to the left. In an attempt to draw Cang Rong closer, Hong Wu tapped her foot on the ground once as if to imitate a stumble. Listening in again, Hong Wu noticed faint sounds of movement heading in her direction and moved into a crouching position.

When Cang Rong was only a three meters away she stepped out of the fog with a snarl, two Frozen Blades hovering by her shoulders. Almost immediately after, Hong Wu pushed off parallel to the ground and came in low towards Cang Rong at a blinding speed. Before Cang Rong could adjust Hong Wu had already drawn her blade across Cang Rong’s midsection and stopped shortly after passing by her opponent.

The two Frozen Blades hanging in the air melted away. Blood spilled from Cang Rong’s body quickly staining her robes a dark red. The wound was deep; if left untreated it would easily spell death for her. Cang Rong had never been so seriously wounded before. Hong Wu did not wait for Cang Rong to recover from her shock. In a fluid motion, Hong Wu readjusted the blade and slashed at the back of Cang Rong’s right leg severing the tendons and bringing the stunned Cang Rong down to her knees.

Much of the fog had dissipated at this point allowing the audience to once again view the events taking place on stage. Seeing Cang Rong’s sorry state caused an uproar. The pain of the second wound snapped Cang Rong back to reality as she bellowed in rage turning to face her opponent again, only to find Hong Wu’s blade pointed centimeters away from her throat.

Hong Wu towered over Cang Rong, an aloof ruler passing judgement. “You lose again little piggy.”

Revenge is so very sweet.

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