Chapter 3776 — Retreating to Advance?

Knowing full well how unevenly matched they were, meeting Meng Zhou head-on was plainly unwise—but to openly concede in front of everyone took tremendous nerve. Hesitate for even a moment, and one might well be left bleeding on the spot.

The instant Xiao Che finished speaking, the entire hall fell silent for a long while. Even the referees from the Profound Mechanism Pavilion were stunned for several breaths before they recovered and announced, "Xiao Che of Mountain-Low Cave Dwelling No. 14 forfeits. This match goes to Meng Zhou of Mountain-Low Cave Dwelling No. 15!"

"Hmph, at least you know your place. Otherwise, this lord would have kicked you into minced meat long ago!" Meng Zhou shot Xiao Che a vicious glare and sneered.

Xiao Che looked back at him expressionlessly, said nothing, and turned to walk off the platform. What greeted him was a chorus of boos from the other newcomers below.

Yet in that instant, the fighting spirit hidden within him only burned all the fiercer.

"Once you have established your foundation, come back and deal with this thing properly," Wei Zhao said with a smile, patting him on the shoulder.

"Yeah." Xiao Che nodded firmly. When he looked up at Meng Zhou again, the fighting spirit had been drawn back in, once more plain and unremarkable.

But Wei Zhao, who knew him well, understood that this fool Meng Zhou had already drawn the attention of something formidable. There would be no need for Wei Zhao to lift a finger himself—before long, a wholly new Xiao Che would rise to challenge this creature.

Given Xiao Che's depth, even if Meng Zhou had established his foundation first by a few days, when the time came, the outcome was anyone's guess.

Up on the platform, however, Meng Zhou did not step down at once. By the rules of the challenge, in his current position as master of Mountain-Low Cave Dwelling No. 14, no newcomer ranked below him—except Xiao Che—could issue a challenge. Yet he did not leave the stage. Instead, he extended a single finger and pointed across the distance at Qiao Hongcai, who stood beside Wei Zhao.

"The next round will be your turn. We shall see whether you, Qiao the Good-for-Nothing, will also learn to play the shrinking turtle. This lord waits with keen interest!" Meng Zhou laughed scornfully, then finally turned and stepped down.

"My god, what the hell is this idiot so smug about? Does he really think early-stage Foundation Establishment makes him invincible? Just wait and see!" Qiao Hongcai clenched his fists.

He was not Xiao Che. Even knowing that retreating to advance was the wiser course, he could not swallow this insult. Knowing full well he would lose, he would still rather clash head-on with Meng Zhou to the bitter end. He would never concede of his own accord.

Wei Zhao and the long-suffering senior brother exchanged a glance and shook their heads helplessly. Given Qiao Hongcai's upright, unyielding temperament, even if they wanted to talk him out of it, they could not.

Still, perhaps it was just as well. Letting him pit himself against a skilled early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator like Meng Zhou would do him enormous good for breaking through to Foundation Establishment afterward. By then, he need only be careful not to let Meng Zhou seize the chance to kill him.

In the first match of the first round of the Azure Cloud Pavilion newcomers' challenge tournament, though it ended with Meng Zhou winning without a fight, one thing at least was beyond doubt: he had broken the awkward deadlock, ensuring that the other newcomers would not be so wary of one another that they dared not initiate a challenge.

Sure enough, mere moments after Meng Zhou stepped down, a newcomer immediately issued a challenge—the master of Cave Dwelling No. 12.

Originally, had the scene just now not unfolded—had Meng Zhou not publicly reserved the next round for a challenge against him—Qiao Hongcai would undoubtedly have struck first. But as things stood, he truly had no intention of making a move this round.

After all, however upright his nature, he was not so foolish as to know he would face a stronger opponent next round and still squander his true qi in this one. That would not be bravery but sheer stupidity.

Yet the master of Cave Dwelling No. 12 taking the stage first was somewhat beyond everyone's expectations. This fellow was named Zha Wu; though his strength barely reached the Heaven Grade Grand Perfection, he was in truth a thoroughly feeble newcomer.

His performance in the previous two rounds: in the first, he was the first to exit, earning one point; in the second, he challenged a peak late-stage Heaven Grade cultivator and earned ten points. Together, that made eleven points—dead last in the entire Azure Cloud Pavilion rankings.

This Zha Wu, called "the Weakling," was a title well deserved. That he dared step forward and challenge right after Meng Zhou, with such baffling confidence, was truly astonishing.

However, when he announced whom he intended to challenge, the entire hall erupted in an uproar.

"Zha Wu of Mountain-Low Cave Dwelling No. 12 challenges Wei Zhao of Mountain-Low Cave Dwelling No. 1!" Zha Wu looked down at Wei Zhao and called out his challenge with full-throated vigor.

Ha, strange things happen every year, but this year they come in droves!

Being publicly named and challenged, Wei Zhao raised an eyebrow in surprise. A mere creature who could only be considered weak even among Heaven Grade Grand Perfection cultivators dared to call him out by name—where did this thing find the courage, the nerve?

By his own judgment, in this one-on-one challenge format, the only one with the confidence to challenge him should have been Meng Zhou alone. Anyone with a shred of sense would not foolishly throw himself onto the spearhead. Yet who would have thought such an unexpected turn would arise in the very first round!

With all eyes upon him, Wei Zhao lifted his foot to step onto the platform. Just before he did, however, the long-suffering senior brother caught his arm and said a few words.

"Junior Brother Lin, this is a rare chance to retreat in order to advance! If you forfeit this round, you will immediately gain Mountain-Low Cave Dwelling No. 12. That position will not only make it easier to harvest points later, but will also conveniently suppress Meng Zhou. Two birds with one stone!" the long-suffering senior brother said excitedly.

The rules were plain. If Wei Zhao willingly conceded to this weakling, it might sound absurd at first, but anyone with clear eyes could see the logic in it.

A temporary concession would cost him fifteen challenge points, but it would win him room to maneuver. Given Wei Zhao's formidable strength, if he chose to, he could fight his way up cave dwelling by cave dwelling. By then, forget a mere fifteen points—even a hundred would be no challenge at all!

For Wei Zhao, trapped helplessly in Mountain-Low Cave Dwelling No. 1, this weakest of the Azure Cloud Pavilion's newcomers was nothing short of a benevolent savior. Such an opportunity was rare at any other time—one could not ask for it, could not beg for it.

Wei Zhao answered the long-suffering senior brother's suggestion with a smile, said nothing more, and walked straight onto the platform.

Seeing Wei Zhao take the stage, his expression seemingly free of anger, showing neither fighting spirit nor killing intent, Zha Wu laughed inwardly. Just as I expected!

As the undisputed top newcomer of the Azure Cloud Pavilion, Wei Zhao's current predicament was plain to all the newcomers like Zha Wu.