True Person of Taiyi, seeing that Mo Yudie was a cultivator at the Immortal Sage Level, was so frightened that he shrank his neck back and dared not speak. However, Wang Xiaoqiang's avatar was fearless, extending his head towards Mo Yudie's Immortal Sword and scoffed, "Kill me, go ahead, come, I'll let you kill!"

To prevent the competitors from secretly plotting against each other, the top thirty contestants in the Armor Snatching Tournament were protected by the Empire. Touching them was tantamount to opposing the Empire and would result in severe repercussions. Furthermore, Wang Xiaoqiang was one of the top four contestants in this edition of the tournament and the focus of public attention. If someone were to kill him at this point, it would undoubtedly provoke discontent and suspicion among the public, affecting future tournaments. The perpetrator would also certainly face a grim fate. In fact, Mo Yudie merely intended to intimidate Wang Xiaoqiang, but unexpectedly, Wang Xiaoqiang did not budge. This left her in an awkward state, her gaze shifting to Princess Hua Shao.

Princess Hua Shao waved her hand at her, signaling her not to act rashly.

Mo Yudie huffed angrily and stepped back to stand behind Princess Hua Shao.

"Wang Xiaoqiang, you are bold!" Princess Hua Shao said to Wang Xiaoqiang with a condescending attitude, "I came here today mainly to discuss a matter with you."

"Speak quick, if you're going to fart, let it out fast, we are still waiting to eat!" Wang Xiaoqiang's avatar did not give her a pleasant face, and spoke decisively and bluntly.

"You…" Princess Hua Shao was choked up and speechless. In all her years, nobody had dared to speak to her like that.

"Your Highness, insulting you is akin to insulting His Majesty. This is a crime of lese-majesty, deserving of death. Princess, let me kill him!" Mo Yudie's demeanor turned icy as she drew out her Immortal Sword again.

Princess Hua Shao had come without informing Huang Ce. If Huang Ce were to find out, he would certainly question her. Therefore, she dared not create a big scene or kill Wang Xiaoqiang.

Princess Hua Shao waved her hand to Mo Yudie and said, "Yudie, wait for me outside."

Mo Yudie was momentarily stunned, then glanced at Wang Xiaoqiang sullenly before turning and walking out.

"Wang Xiaoqiang, Ann Miaoyi, daughter of Prince Ann. You must have heard of her; she's my dear friend. She joined this tournament to compete for the Spirit Golden Armor, do you understand?" Princess Hua Shao began speaking slowly.

"I don't understand what you're talking about…" Wang Xiaoqiang's avatar responded coldly.

Princess Hua Shao paused, thinking whether Wang Xiaoqiang was being obtuse or pretending to be confused. She rolled her eyes in frustration and continued, "Alright, I'll speak plainly. Wang Xiaoqiang, if it comes down to the final match between you and Ann Miaoyi, I hope you will let her win…"

"Why should I?"

Princess Hua Shao pursed her red lips, "Wang Xiaoqiang. You can set a condition. As long as I can grant it, I will definitely fulfill it."

Wang Xiaoqiang's avatar gazed at Princess Hua Shao's stunning and noble visage, and slowly said, "I have only one condition. Marry me."

"What?!" Princess Hua Shao could hardly believe her ears. Indeed, among those who wanted to marry Princess Hua Shao, aside from male cultivators who practiced the Path of Ruthlessness, nearly every man in the Yellow Dragon Empire harbored the desire.

However, these men were all faint-hearted and dared not speak recklessly. She could never have imagined that Wang Xiaoqiang would be so audacious and bold as to propose marriage right to her face.

"Impudence!" Princess Hua Shao cried out in a loud voice. She unleashed her Divine Sense, enveloping Wang Xiaoqiang in it.

Wang Xiaoqiang's avatar felt a powerful aura envelop him, but knowing that Princess Hua Shao dared not kill him, he showed no sign of panic and merely said indifferently, "You may leave now. If you wish to stay for the meal, you'll have to pay for it."

"Hmph!" Princess Hua Shao released her oppressive aura and stood up. Turning around, she said, "Wang Xiaoqiang, have you not heard the saying about the nail that sticks out gets hammered down? If a person is too outstanding, it will incite jealousy and suspicion. I hope you take care…"

"One should live as a hero and even in death, be a ghost worthy of respect, Princess Hua Shao, I hope you can appreciate this saying."

Being a person of such sharp intellect and having cultivated at Yueyang Academy under the Old Master for years, even though Princess Hua Shao had not heard this saying before, she almost immediately grasped its implication. With a heavy huff, she walked out.

…

Wang Xiaoqiang, the true self, and the two ladies of the Yans family were dining in a private room. Ruxue sat to the left of Wang Xiaoqiang while Ruyu sat to his right. Wang Xiaoqiang, sitting in the middle, enjoyed his meal like an emperor, moving only his mouth.

Ruxue offered Wang Xiaoqiang a piece of chicken, putting it into his mouth, and Ruyu gave him a sip of wine. Wang Xiaoqiang chewed and found the chicken to be exceptionally plump, then asked, "How comes it's another chicken butt?"

Ruxue laughed, "Don't you love eating chicken butts the most?"

"Didn't I just have one? Why is there another one? A chicken only has two butts?" Wang Xiaoqiang asked in surprise.

"How can one person have two bodies?" Ruxue countered without answering.

Wang Xiaoqiang faltered, "You, you haven't figured it out already, have you?"

Ruxue and Ruyu both smiled; Ruyu said, "We don't need to see to guess. You, at the Ninth Stage of True Immortal Realm, said you were going to cultivate and also mentioned breaking through today. Advancing beyond the Ninth Stage of the True Immortal Realm means reaching the Immortal Venerable Realm. Given that Immortal Venerable status is determined by avatars and you have already made a breakthrough, you must have already condensed a clone..."

"Quickly tell us, are you the true self or the clone?" Ruxue asked with her eyes intently fixed on Wang Xiaoqiang.

"Rest assured, I am the true self, not the clone. The clone went to accompany the True Person of Taiyi," Wang Xiaoqiang spread his hands, "The clone and the true self have a subordinate relationship. Frankly speaking, a clone is just a ser.."

"What? Little Qiang, is condensing a clone really that easy?" Ruyu asked Wang Xiaoqiang with a look of astonishment.

"Quite the opposite," Wang Xiaoqiang replied, "It's very difficult, but for me, it's a piece of cake. Thus, you've followed the right person. By following me, your worth will rise along with the tide..."

Although the Yans sisters were puzzled by Wang Xiaoqiang's rapid advancement, they asked no more because everyone has secrets that are better left unrevealed, and knowing more only increases the danger.

Ruxue said, "Little Qiang, today I heard that Ann Miaoyi is the daughter of King Ann and a close friend of Princess Hua Shao. Some say Ann Miaoyi, though a woman, is highly ambitious and aims to win this session of the Armor Snatching Tournament and acquire the Spirit Golden Armor... Little Qiang, if you encounter Ann Miaoyi in the arena tomorrow, do you dare to defeat her?"

"Why wouldn't I dare? Though she's a princess, once she's on the stage, she's just another contender, just like everyone else. Why should I be afraid of her?" Wang Xiaoqiang replied.

"Little Qiang, I heard that in the elimination rounds at Yan Mountain, many cultivators, to curry favor with King Ann, not only did not compete with Ann Miaoyi for the armor but even helped her snatch it. And some of them have a cultivation base not inferior to Ann Miaoyi's..." Ruxue said hesitantly.

"So what if their cultivation base is high? Without ambition, if one has freed themselves from servility, there are no great deeds in life, just a lifetime of sneaking safety," Wang Xiaoqiang scornfully sneered, "If I were such a person, I wouldn't have come to the Immortal Realm. Earth is much more comfortable!"

Impressed by Wang Xiaoqiang's ambition, Ruxue expressed her worries, "Little Qiang, I'm afraid that if there are some hidden rules here..."

"Hidden rules? There shouldn't be. But even if there are, I'm not afraid."

Seeing Wang Xiaoqiang's daring and fearless attitude, the Yans sisters admired him even more and grew fonder of him.

Because Wang Xiaoqiang didn't use his Spiritual Power to dispel the effects of alcohol, he was slightly drunk at this point. He glanced at the Yans sisters and then put his left hand on Ruxue's shapely hips and his right arm around Ruyu's slender waist, feeling their surprising curves and said, "I, I'm a bit thirsty..."

"Thirsty? Then I'll make some tea," Ruxue said as she was about to get up, but unexpectedly, Wang Xiaoqiang pressed down, and Ruxue sat back down. Surprised, she asked, "What now?"

That night, Wang Xiaoqiang recalled his clone.

The next day.

With the Yans sisters attending to him, Wang Xiaoqiang put on a clean robe, washed up, had breakfast, and then, accompanied by the two ladies and the True Person of Taiyi, proceeded to the Dragon City Plaza. (To be continued. If you love this work, welcome to recommend and vote at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read at m.qidian.com.)

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.