CHAPTER 745: CHAPTER 750: THE FINAL WINNER (2)

At this moment, Wang Hao standing on the stage appeared to have frozen, his complexion turning exceptionally unsightly. What was supposed to be a sure victory had taken an unexpected turn, and the decision that he had lost was something he found impossible to accept.

As the foremost disciple of Yangxin Pavilion, Wang Hao had always been a proud individual, possessing an ego slightly stronger than others.

Consequently, when he heard Elder Du Kang revise the outcome of the match, he felt as though he was about to lose face completely, unable to leave the stage with dignity.

Blood Dripping Device... Wang Hao clenched his teeth in secret!

No, he had not lost to Ling Chen, but rather to a hidden weapon he had never seen before.

Under Elder Du Kang’s correction, Su Mei immediately amended the result of the match, taking back the Nine Elements Pill which was originally about to be passed to Wang Hao.

"I apologize for the earlier misjudgment, and here I express my regret to everyone. Now, please welcome the ultimate victor, Ling Chen, to the stage." As she spoke, a joyous smile bloomed on Su Mei’s delicate and lovely face.

Her mood had been like that of Qiu Yong and the others before, feeling pity for Ling Chen. If possible, she had wished for Ling Chen to win, not Wang Hao. Now, events had taken a dramatic turn, and her wishes had surprisingly come true.

"Big brother, please help me to the stage, I can’t walk anymore," Ling Chen said helplessly.

Qiu Yong nodded without a word and walked straight up to the stage, taking the Nine Elements Pill from Su Mei’s hand.

Yuan Yun patted Ling Chen on the shoulder with a laugh, exclaiming excitedly, "Ling Cheng, your efforts haven’t been in vain, you’ve finally got it."

Ling Chen grinned and wanted to say something more, but before he could speak, he felt a wave of exhaustion and his head became heavy; he directly fainted into the arms of the porridge girl.

...

Who knows how much time had passed, but Ling Chen finally woke up from his deep slumber.

Looking around the environment, Ling Chen knew he was lying in the guest room. He propped himself up with his hands on the bed, wanting to sit up, but as soon as he tried to exert pressure with his arms, he felt an all-over weakness and collapsed back onto the bed.

Pain!

Ling Chen took in a sharp breath. He had been fine during the day of the competition, but now he felt an unbearable pain in every part of his body, as if each move pricked him with thousands of needles.

Even with his tolerance for pain, he found it nearly unbearable, almost crying out in agony.

Upon careful consideration, although he’d often been injured during this period, none were as serious as this time.

Based on his own experience, he estimated that he would need at least a month to fully recover.

Just as he was thinking this, the door to the room was pushed open from the outside, followed by the sound of approaching footsteps. Ling Chen turned his head to look, only to see Qiu Yong and the others walking in one after the other.

"Big brother, second brother..." Ling Chen mustered up his spirits and greeted them one by one.

"Ling Cheng, how are you feeling?" Xia Yue asked with concern.

Ling Chen replied with a wry smile, "I’m afraid I’ll have to stay in bed for a while."

"You, oh you..." Qiu Yong said, "This time you were too reckless. In pursuit of victory, you almost gave up your life. It was not worth it at all; you are not allowed to do this again."

"Big brother, you’re well aware that what I’m doing is to save our father. As long as he can return safely, I’m willing to pay any price." Having said this, Ling Chen glanced at the others and asked, "By the way, big brother, where’s porridge girl? Why didn’t she come with you?"

"She left Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion yesterday."

Left?

Ling Chen was taken aback. Given how concerned porridge girl was with his own condition, it was impossible for her to leave without taking his health into account.

With this in mind, Ling Chen anxiously asked, "Big brother, why did she leave?"

"She said she was going to save your father," Yuan Yun chimed in from beside him. "You’ve been unconscious, and she was worried that it could cause too much delay, so she decided to take the Nine Elements Pill and trade it for your father’s safety herself."

"What?"

Ling Chen was shocked. He hadn’t expected porridge girl to undertake the task of finding Ji Gang and trading with him for the Nine Elements Pill all on her own.

"Big brother, how could you let her go alone?" Ling Chen expressed his concern. What kind of person was Ji Gang? With porridge girl going by herself, who knows what tricks Ji Gang might play? He’s a top expert on the Heavenly List. What would happen if he really played some kind of trick, what could porridge girl do?

"What could I do? Besides, her worries aren’t unfounded. We’ve been out for so long, and there’s been no word from God Organization. Who knows whether Ling Kun is still safe. So, rather than worrying here, it’s better to exchange your father back with the Nine Elements Pill sooner."

Xia Yue interjected, "Ling Cheng, you don’t need to worry too much. Porridge girl isn’t going there alone."

"Oh?" Ling Chen asked, "Who else is with her?"

"Yang Tao and Yang Zhe went with her. Elder Du knew you needed the Nine Elements Pill to save your father, and he was worried that porridge girl might encounter trouble on her own, so he sent the Yang brothers to accompany her. This way, she has some support, so you don’t need to worry too much."

Hearing this, Ling Cheng finally breathed a sigh of relief. Both Yang Tao and Yang Zhe were high-ranking experts on the Earthly List. With the two of them accompanying her, porridge girl’s mission would undoubtedly be much easier.

"Big brother, how long have I been unconscious?" Ling Chen shifted the topic and asked.

"Almost two days now. Lucky for us, we managed to get a Heavenly Mechanism Pill from Master Su that day. We dissolved the Heavenly Mechanism Pill into water and fed it to you, which helped your body recover. Otherwise, you probably would have been unconscious for more than three days. These past few days, many people have come to visit you, but we turned them all away."

"Who came?" Ling Chen asked curiously.

He didn’t know many people in Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion, so he wondered who would visit him.

"Just some opportunistic types," Yuan Yun snorted. "You defeated Wang Hao, becoming the top among the disciples of Yangxin Pavilion, and you’re Elder Su’s disciple. Coupled with the favor you’ve received from Elder Du, just those points alone are enough reason for people to ingratiate themselves with you."

With that, Yuan Yun couldn’t help but laugh and say, "Ling Cheng, you’ve made it now. With your status, your position isn’t at all inferior to Master Su’s. In the future, you’ll have to take good care of your big brothers."

Ling Cheng replied with a slight smile, knowing Yuan Yun’s words were said in jest, so he didn’t take them to heart.

Suddenly, Ling Cheng’s heart skipped a beat, remembering something. His smile vanished instantly, and he said in a grave tone, "Big brother, I saw Zhu Hong that day."

"Who?"

Everyone was momentarily stunned, looking at Ling Cheng in surprise.

"You’re talking about that Zhu Hong?" Xu Ming was the first to recover, frowning slightly as he said, "Last time Zhou Qi and his people turned the entire Heavenly Mechanism Pavilion upside-down and still couldn’t find any trace of Zhu Hong. Everyone thought he had an accident..."

"No." Ling Chen interrupted Xu Ming, stating, "He’s fine, and he’s within Yangxin Pavilion. Although I didn’t see him very clearly that day, I’m certain it was him; there’s no mistake. I’m wondering, Elder Zhou and his men searched thoroughly; there’s no way they should have missed Zhu Hong. The reason they came up empty-handed must be that someone is secretly protecting Zhu Hong, allowing him to escape harm."