380: Chapter 24 Matchup Chart, Treasure Gourd

The next morning.

Zhang Chulan looked at everyone present with a heavy expression.

"Last night, nothing happened, right?"

As he spoke, he pulled up his pants and put them on, continuing to deceive himself: "Everyone just had a bit of wine and then simply fell asleep."

"Right?"

Xu Si curled his lip: "Yeah, just bird-watching under the moon."

Zhang Chulan: (ΩДΩ)!

Xu Si continued: "Then you forced everyone to watch your little chick turn into a Phoenix."

Zhang Chulan: Σ(⊙▽⊙"a!

Xu Si: "Finally, you insisted you were a woodpecker. Do you know how many trees you destroyed last night?"

Zhang Chulan: [○･｀Д´･ ○]!

"Enough!"

"Don't say another word!"

A certain Zhang flew into a rage out of shame and roared at Xu Si.

Xu Si patted his shoulder and comforted him: "Alright, kid, who hasn't been young once?"

Zhang Chulan's expression softened.

The next second, Xu Si's tone suddenly shifted: "But traveling all this way to the Celestial Masters Residence to walk your bird, you're the first person in history to do so!"

By the end, he couldn't help but burst into wild laughter, saying between laughs: "Kid, congratulations on establishing the first stain on your life."

Zhang Chulan: (•́へ•́╬)!

At this time, Cang Long, who was laughing with Xu Si, added: "Zhang Chulan, you will definitely become a legend in The Realm of Extraordinary People. I have high hopes for you."

Zhang Chulan's face darkened. Suddenly thinking of something, he asked with a flicker of hope: "You guys... didn't take any photos, did you?"

Cang Long shook his head: "No, how could we do something so immoral?"

Zhang Chulan breathed a sigh of relief, but a moment later, his blood pressure soared.

Because Cang Long said faintly: "We recorded a video."

Zhang Chulan's anger instantly flared up, and he bolted toward Cang Long, wanting to teach him a lesson.

Cang Long had prepared for this and slipped away instantly.

Watching the two of them chasing each other, Meng Li shook his head and walked toward the gate of the competition grounds.

The match schedule for the round of 16 to the quarter-finals should be out.

He walked over to check and found it was indeed so, except that Wang Bing, who was nowhere to be found in the round of 32, had actually appeared on the list.

Rigged?

Meng Li mused, thinking it likely was.

Because there was no draw for this round; the match schedule was decided by Zhang Zhiwei, Lu Jin, and the others.

However, Meng Li didn't care much.

Anyway, no matter who he faced, he wasn't afraid.

But when Meng Li saw his next opponent clearly, his eyes couldn't help but narrow.

Was it a coincidence, or was someone playing tricks?

Because his next opponent was—Jia Zhengliang!

Jia Zhengliang came from Jia Village in the west. The Family was famous for two unique skills: one was Object Manipulation, and the other was the Rushing Palm.

In terms of Object Manipulation ability, Jia Zhengliang was even superior to his elder brother, Jia Zhengyu.

And the sword manipulation Meng Li had shown before also belonged to Object Manipulation.

So, it was hard for him not to suspect that Zhang Zhiwei, Lu Jin, and the others wanted to see a clash of titans to see who was superior.

A similar case was Wang Ye facing Zhuge Qing.

However, for those two it should be a coincidence, because Wang Ye had only used Taiji Quan in previous matches and hadn't revealed any warlock techniques.

And Feng Sha Yan, who was originally supposed to face Jia Zhengliang, had her opponent changed to a minor character named "Ling" from Lu Linglong's group.

Zhang Lingyu's opponent also changed from Lu Linglong to a minor character, Liao Fan.

The others remained the same as in the original plot.

Zhang Chulan vs. Tang Wenlong.

Feng Baobao vs. Xiao Xiao.

Feng Xingtong vs. Deng Youfu.

Wang Bing vs. Ye Xiao.

Four arenas, eight matches, divided into two rounds.

Meng Li and Jia Zhengliang were in the first round, as were Zhang Chulan and Tang Wenlong, Feng Baobao and Xiao Xiao, and Feng Xingtong and Deng Youfu.

Before long, the referee began calling them to enter the arena.

Meng Li took out his Sword Casket, flicked his finger, and then leaped onto the longsword, flying toward the arena on the wind.

Seeing this while pondering how to deal with his opponent, Zhang Chulan's mouth fell open in shock: "Holy crap! Flying on a sword, this guy is a Sword Immortal!"

Xu San and Xu Si also looked astonished.

Cang Long, standing aside, nodded: "That's right. Not only does he use Sword Immortal techniques, but his name is also 'White Sword Immortal'. He previously defeated my Ice and Snow Linglong Goddess with a single Flying Sword. Interestingly, his opponent, Jia Zhengliang, also knows Object Manipulation and belongs to the Sword Immortal category."

Zhang Chulan said in surprise: "So, their match is a duel between two Sword Immortals."

"I'm actually looking forward to it. It's a pity we're entering at the same time, otherwise I'd definitely go watch."

With that, he walked toward the arena.

On the other side, after Meng Li took the stage, Jia Zhengliang finally entered while answering a phone call.

Unsurprisingly, the call was from his mother.

Standing on his Flying Sword, Meng Li took a palm-sized gourd from his pocket and toyed with it, waiting for Jia Zhengliang to hang up.

Minutes passed, and Jia Zhengliang showed no intention of hanging up.

Meng Li turned to the referee on the high platform: "Referee, it wouldn't be considered a foul if I strike now, would it?"

The Taoist acting as the referee scratched his head, said "Wait a moment," and then said to Jia Zhengliang: "Contestant, the match has already begun. Whatever business you have can wait until after the match. If it's truly urgent, you can also just forfeit."

Hearing this, Jia Zhengliang hurried to say into the phone: "The referee is rushing me. I'll finish the match first and we can talk about whatever it is later."

"That's it, I'm hanging up now."

After speaking, he hung up, put away his phone, and looked up at Meng Li: "Sorry about that, my mom is a bit over-concerned about me."

Meng Li said indifferently: "It's fine, let's start now."

"Alright."

Jia Zhengliang agreed, and with a flick of his hand, a Throwing Knife flew out of his sleeve, heading straight for Meng Li.

Meng Li didn't dodge. He uncorked the gourd in his hand and tossed it casually.

The gourd stopped in mid-air, its mouth facing the Throwing Knife, emitting a powerful suction.

With a whoosh, the Throwing Knife was sucked into the gourd.

Jia Zhengliang was stunned on the spot.

Because the moment the Throwing Knife was sucked in by the gourd, he clearly felt his connection with the knife break.

This was the first time he had encountered such a situation in all his years.

The referee on the high platform was also dazed.

The spectators in the stands were also bewildered.

What's going on?

That gourd just took the Throwing Knife.

Is this a battle between immortals?!

After a moment, Jia Zhengliang came to his senses. Looking at the gourd in mid-air, he said to Meng Li in a low voice: "Aren't you a Flying Sword user? What the hell is this gourd?"

Meng Li smiled: "I use Flying Swords, but that doesn't mean I only use Flying Swords. As for this gourd..."

"It's called the 'Treasure-Swallowing Gourd,' a Magical Artifact specifically for collecting other Magical Artifacts."

Jia Zhengliang's face darkened.

Treasure-Swallowing Gourd, a Magical Artifact for collecting other Magical Artifacts—wouldn't his throwing knives be perfectly countered?

Muttering to himself, Jia Zhengliang remained stubborn on the surface: "Is that so? I don't believe it."

With that, he pulled three throwing knives from his pocket and manipulated them to stab at Meng Li from different directions simultaneously.

Meng Li recalled the Treasure-Swallowing Gourd. Holding it, he called out to the three throwing knives as they drew near: "Treasures, please enter!"

Then, something magical happened: the three throwing knives actually flew into the Treasure-Swallowing Gourd obediently.

Jia Zhengliang: "..."