Chapter 286: Are you kidding me?
Chapter 286: Are you kidding me?
Translator: Sparrow Translations Editor: Sparrow Translations
A few hundred battle stallions charged out, kicking up plumes of dust as they galloped. The first few battle stallions were as fast as an arrow.
They opened up a fifty meter gap within seconds.
Even though Ping Yang was no particularly skillful, the Snow Jade’s speed allowed her to ease herself into third easily.
The Ninth Prince fell to seventh place.
Fang Zhengzhi was a far cry from them.
The Mud Striped Horse stretched its neck and glared at the competition. It galloped at full speed but was unable to do anything much. It was of inferior stock.
Before long, Fang Zhengzhi was just less than 100m from second place.
Of course...
That was the second to last position.
"Hahaha... Fang Zhengzhi is here to accompany the others!"
"Even if he is riding the best Mud Striped Horse, I doubt that he can do anything much?"
Everyone laughed when they saw Fang Zhengzhi. Their attention was no longer on the race, they just wanted to laugh at Fang Zhengzhi.
They were filled with confidence.
Even though they did not have the courage to register, they all felt that they would thrash Fang Zhengzhi if they had.
Fang Zhengzhi ignored the chatter around him as he reined his stallion in.
The Mud Striped Stallion whinnied. Then, it turned and left the racetrack, galloping into the woods.
"Oh? Why is Fang Zhengzhi leaving the track?"
"Is he trying to take a shortcut?"
"Is he crazy? According to the rules of the competition, all competitors must mark their names on the tablets at each of the four corners. He wouldn’t have completed the race unless he did that. So what if he runs to the finish now?"
"Is he trying to hunt first?"
"People have tried it before. However, they realized that it was still slower. After all, the hunting spots are all near the tablets."
All of the spectators could not understand what Fang Zhengzhi was thinking. However, they were sure that he stood no chance in this competition.
Emperor Lin Mubai spotted Fang Zhengzhi leaving the racetrack. His eyes briefly glittered with suspicion. However, in the end, he simply shook his head.
These competitions were regularly held in the Great Xia Dynasty. The rules were standard and everyone was familiar with them.
It was natural for Fang Zhengzhi to try some creative tactics on his first outing.
However, the chances of them paying off were virtually none.
According to the rules, one had to kill four predetermined types of beasts and use the blood of the beast to inscribe one’s name on the tablet in each of the corners.
These beasts were all situated around the tablets.
As such...
The easiest way was to run a circle around the four tablets.
There were people who had tried to run in the opposite direction.
However, they never did well.
Although running in the opposite direction meant that one did not have to squeeze with the others, however, one then had to face the beast alone. On the other hand, the others could face the beast as a group.
It was clear which one was easier.
Furthermore, there was no difference in the total distance. After covering each of the North, South, East, and West checkpoints, one had to return to the finishing line.
Fang Zhengzhi did not know what everyone else was thinking. He had already disappeared into the forest, galloping leisurely, picking up small rocks every now and then.
...
Time flew and the rankings began to stabilize.
20 competitors had already hunted down the beast at the first checkpoint. They had also written their names down on the tablet.
As for Fang Zhengzhi, he disappeared without a trace.
The Eastern Hunting Grounds were the royal hunting grounds. There were many levels inside it.
The one that was opened today was on its perimeter. Even though there were many beasts, they were all of mediocre power. Most of them were herbivorous or omnivorous.
They were not ferocious or dangerous unless threatened.
As such, even though Fang Zhengzhi sped across the land, he would not face any trouble if he was smart.
The competition continued to heat up. Very slowly, everyone’s attention began to turn towards the competitors in the lead. No one thought about what Fang Zhengzhi was doing.
"I never expected Ping Yang to be so powerful. She is still in the top three."
"But of course. She is riding the Snow Jade, the best stallion around. Furthermore, everyone keeps their distance from her."
"The Ninth Prince is doing well too. It is no wonder he is known as the Little Black Dragon in the city. He has already moved up to fifth place. Based on the explosiveness of his Purple Lightning Dragon Stallion, he still has a chance to make the top three."
"Everyone who has participated here is quite powerful. The top 10 of the Rising Dragon Roll do live up to their name. It is a pity that only Xiang Tianying and Tang Zhongming are here. I heard that Wu Feng also registered for the court examinations. He is also in the city. I wonder why he did not come today."
"Wu Feng is ranked fourth on the Rising Dragon Roll. If he was here today, I am afraid Xiang Tianying and Tang Zhongming would not be first and second today.
All of the spectators continued to chatter amongst themselves as the race progressed.
Between the first and second checkpoints...
Clouds of dust were sent skyward.
Ping Yang slung the head of the ferocious beast on the back of her stallion. She held the Blazing Qilin Spear in her hand as she continued to stab at the competitor behind her.
"Your highness, please have mercy!" Zhang Feiyu was in fourth position. He was also ranked 12th on the Rising Dragon Roll and had the honor of taking up the worst position in the race.
Princess Ping Yang was just ahead of him.
Behind him was the king of the capital’s races, Ninth Prince Lin Yun.
He was under immense pressure.
Overtake?
He really wanted to overtake Ping Yang. However, it was near impossible to speed past her when she is riding the Snow Jade.
If the pass was not fast enough, her Blazing Qilin Spear would do some serious damage.
If not for the fact that he was more powerful than her, he may have already been dismounted by now.
"Just stay in your fourth position. If you dare overtake me, I will make sure you regret it!" Ping Yang raised her head as she stabbed at Zhang Feiyu once again, columns of flame shooting skyward as she did so.
Zhang Feiyu’s body glowed blue. Within the columns of blue were petals of jade green that looked like lilies.
When the flames crashed towards him, those lilies formed a protective shell around Zhang Feiyu and the water countered the flames.
Even so...
His speed faltered slightly.
A 10 meter distance opened up between him and Ping Yang.
It is no wonder that the Blazing Qilin Spear is one of the ten greatest treasures of the Great Xia Dynasty.
Furthermore, it was the best offensive weapon. Even though he was at the pinnacle Heavenly Reflection State, he was not immune to its effects.
"Your highness, that is against the rules!" Zhang Feiyu looked at Ping Yang. Even though he was flushed, he did not dare show his fury.
"Against the rules? In this city, I am the rules. You can try complaining to the Emperor later if you’d like!" Ping Yang replied rudely.
Ninth Prince Lin Yun saw what happened and shook his head in exasperation.
The main reason why he remained in fifth was because Ping Yang was third.
As a result, fourth position was a bad place to be now.
However, Zhang Feiyu’s status was different. He was the heir to one of the thirteen constabularies. His sister was also a concubine, making him Ping Yang’s uncle.
Else, would he even dare think of overtaking Ping Yang?
When two tigers fought, injuries were inevitable.
The Ninth Prince decided to let them fight it out.
Zhang Feiyu sped up and chased after Ping Yang.
"Your highness, why don’t we work together to bring down Tang Zhongming. Then, you can take second and I will be third!" Even though Zhang Feiyu was her uncle, he could not do much.
After all, Ping Yang was not just a princess. She was the one the Emperor loved the most.
"Don’t you think I want to?" Ping Yang sighed as she looked at Tang Zhongming almost 200m ahead of her.
"Why don’t you let me pass and I’ll drag him back. You can come over and overtake him after!" Zhang Feiyu tried to convince Ping Yang.
"Do you think I’m dumb? Stay where you are!" Ping Yang looked at Zhang Feiyu scornfully.
"..." Zhang Feiyu was speechless. He turned to look at the Ninth Prince, shaking his head as he did so.
He wanted to work with the Ninth Prince. However, he would count himself lucky if the Ninth Prince and Ping Yang did not plot to defeat him.
...
The competition intensified.
Xian Tianying managed to inscribe his name on the second tablet. Tang Zhongming was not far behind.
Then, Ping Yang’s, Zhang Feiyu’s, and Lin Yun’s names all appeared.
By this time, the competition was past the halfway mark. However, Fang Zhengzhi’s name had not appeared on any of the tablets.
"Is Fang Zhengzhi planning to forfeit?" One of the armored youths looked on in disbelief.
This was Wen Dabao, the youth who had been dragged away by Ping Yang in The Vast World.
As a youth in the Mountain Breaking Army, he had aspirations but no ability.
He would never register for such an intense competition. However, with his status, he was still able to come spectate and enjoy the atmosphere.
There were many like him in the crowd.
These people loved to watch the concerts and wine and dine. They lived for a life like this.
They always hung out at events like this.
Wen Dabao loved such luxuries.
They had a standard clique to talk about their ambitions, soothe their feelings, and comfort themselves.
As such...
When Wen Dabao sighed, all of those around him looked at him in disbelief.
"Do you really think Fang Zhengzhi can win?"
"Is that a joke? He’s riding that horrible Mud Striped Horse!"
"Young Master Wen, have you been slapped silly by your dad?"
Many voices rang out. There were some who placed their hands on Wen Dabao’s forehead, trying to check for a ‘fever’.
"What the hell do you know?! I saw Fang Zhengzhi..." Wen Dabao stopped himself before he said too much.
After leaving Cang Ling Mountain, Xing Yuanguo had ordered all the soldiers not to breathe a word about what happened. Anyone who disobeyed would be executed without trial.
"What?" A voice rang out in doubt.
"I saw him defeat Nangong Mu!" Wen Dabao recovered.
"Nonsense, who didn’t see that? If Nangong Mu did not decide to give up, would Fang Zhengzhi had won so easily?"
"Exactly. Furthermore, in his battle with Yan Xiu, Yan Xiu clearly had the upper hand. Fang Zhengzhi is at best a pinnacle Heavenly Reflection State cultivator."
Many people began to mock him
"Why? Were you in the pinnacle Heavenly Reflection State at 16?" Wen Dabao said in frustration.
"Oh? What’s up with you today? Fang Zhengzhi is just a commoner. So what if his talented? He will never be able to make it in the courts. After he was made Sword Envoy, he has yet to make any progress." Another voice rang out.
"Enough rubbish. Let’s have a wager. I bet that Fang Zhengzhi will win!" Wen Dabao said in anger.
"Oh, are you trying to give us silver? How much do you want to bet? If you win, we will pay you double!"
"Come come, we will all join in!"
"If we lose, we will all pay you double!"
Many of the surrounding spectators crowded around Wen Dabao. They had spotted their prey.
"Okay deal. I bet... five silvers!" Wen Dabao grit his teeth and stomped his foot.
"Five silvers?! Are you kidding me?"