Chapter 531: Planning Against Song Qingshu

Song Qingshu kept pressing him relentlessly, leaving Chen Youliang anxious. His verbal provocation had indeed succeeded, but Song Qingshu was clearly no match for him—criticized and humiliated, he angrily tried to intervene. Seeing that it might draw in the martial artists from Hero’s Villa, Chen Youliang grew worried and kept trying to dissuade Song Qingshu, but the latter was determined to regain face by defeating Happy and refused to leave.

At that moment, Happy’s tone softened: “I’m not opposed to dueling you, but there must be a wager.” As soon as he spoke, unease flashed across Chen Youliang’s face. He had thought Happy was acting on his provocation, leading to the confrontation, but it seemed Happy wasn’t angry at all—instead, they had fallen into some kind of scheme by Happy.

Just as he prepared to persuade Song Qingshu, the latter, delighted, snorted in agreement: “Say it!”
“Swear in front of everyone—if you, Song Qingshu, lose to me, Happy…” Happy smiled and voiced the idea that had occurred to him: “You’ll kneel before Zhou Zhiruo, the leader of Emei, and apologize in front of all the heroes under heaven.”

“…” Song Qingshu’s expression darkened. He had heard of Happy’s strength. Though he had mastered the rare lost martial art “Heart-Pushing Palm,” he wasn’t sure he could defeat Happy 100%. If he lost, he would lose all face in Zhou Zhiruo’s eyes, making it impossible for him to pursue her in the future.

“Troublesome?”
Seeing Song Qingshu’s angry face, Happy seemed to expect him not to agree right away. Before Song Qingshu could speak, he added, “If you can’t do that, there’s another option. If you lose because you’re not good enough, as long as you promise to return to Wudang, stay on the mountain for three years, and stop harboring foolish hopes for Zhou Zhiruo, I’ll accept your challenge. What do you say? You’re not too scared, are you?”

Under Happy’s atmosphere, the martial artists around them began to look at Song Qingshu with disdain and mockery.

In the tavern, Song Yuanqiao and the others’ eyes lit up upon hearing Happy’s words! They finally understood the true intention behind his words.

“Youth Happy is truly extraordinary…” Song Yuanqiao smiled contentedly, stroking his beard. He knew well the level of his son’s cultivation. This time, Happy had deliberately provoked Song Qingshu to embarrass him, yet unintentionally solved the biggest problem he had been pondering all along.

Smiling, the group turned their attention back to the streets below.

Provoked, Song Qingshu gritted his teeth and replied:

“Okay!”
“I promise you!”
Damn it!
Chen Youliang’s expression changed drastically, his anxiety growing even more intense.
He had originally planned to use Song Qingshu to get closer to Zhou Zhiruo, hoping to obtain the Nine Yin True Scripture. If Song Qingshu really lost and returned to Wudang, staying there for three years without coming down, all his efforts would be in vain.
“Happy Young Master, I think…”
Cough!
Happy didn’t want to pay any attention to Chen Youliang at all and certainly wouldn’t let him disrupt his plans. With a distant sword sound, his long sword was drawn, pointing at Song Qingshu.
The latter slowly raised his sword, his expression grave.
Influenced by the two of them, the martial artists in the Hero Villa’s streets voluntarily cleared a space. A gentle breeze blew, creating a solemn and tense atmosphere between them.
Among the crowd, many players were stunned…
They never expected someone to bring a storyline mission to the Hero Villa and cause such a fuss. For a moment, they became highly interested, standing there, staring intently.
…
With Song Qingshu now in his grasp, Happy quickly regained his composure!
Although he wasn’t sure what martial art Song Qingshu had acquired, the fact that he dared to challenge him meant the other party must also have some trump cards—he couldn’t afford to lose now!
Of course, Happy was quite confident in this battle.
No matter how skilled Song Qingshu was, he couldn’t surpass the two Xuanming elders or Ah Da and Ah Er. So, as long as he was careful, victory wouldn’t be difficult.
What troubled Happy now was that to defeat Song Qingshu, he obviously couldn’t rely on the Flying Dragon Sword Technique. Song Qingshu was an outstanding disciple of Wudang, skilled in swordsmanship, and also possessed some unknown ultimate art. Relying solely on the True Dragon Ten Styles would make it hard to win in a short time. As a last resort, he might have to use the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms.
Revealing the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms would surely bring a lot of trouble, but Happy felt that everything carried risks. For the Nine Yang Divine Art, taking some risks was worth it.
…
“Happy, please teach me.” Although Song Qingshu had been greatly shaken by Happy’s words, he had regained his calmness by the time of the actual battle, though his expression remained grim, filled with murderous intent.
Happy casually shook his Guardian Sword and slowly put on his golden armor…
The cold golden armor didn’t cause any change in Song Qingshu, but Happy could feel his own stamina and strength rapidly increasing.
Hah!

The moment the last piece of equipment was in place, Song Qingshu finally moved. With a quick step forward, his long sword flashed like lightning, charging at Happy’s face with unstoppable momentum. The two fighters on the arena not far away paled in comparison to Song Qingshu’s intensity! At that moment, all the attention on that arena was drawn away by Song Qingshu… Happy, however, had no time to pay attention to these things. He moved swiftly, facing the thunderous sword light with a serious expression, blocking and parrying methodically while constantly changing his stance to counter Song Qingshu’s force. Above the restaurant, several pairs of eyes watched closely as the fighters moved back and forth, analyzing the sharp and dazzling sword light. “Master, Brother Song seems much stronger now.” “Indeed.” Hearing his disciples’ words, Song Yuanqiao’s expression was complex, but he couldn’t hide the satisfaction in his eyes. He nodded slowly, “This wayward son hasn’t fallen behind in his swordsmanship during his time away from Wudang.” “Maybe Happy isn’t even Brother Song’s match,” someone else said. Song Yuanqiao shook his head. “Although Qingshu’s swordsmanship is quite good, Happy is a descendant of the Murong family. He knows well the strengths and weaknesses of various sects’ sword techniques. Though his internal energy level is lower than Qingshu’s, his skills are still impressive. Moreover, after Shaolin’s destruction, his cultivation surpasses even mine. Even he speaks highly of Happy. For Qingshu to win… it’s difficult!” As expected! Below on the street, under Happy’s continuous defensive maneuvers, Song Qingshu’s momentum clearly weakened. Seizing the opportunity, Happy changed the direction of his sword, suddenly twisting his body in a strange way to avoid Song Qingshu’s slashing strike. With his left hand, he grabbed Song Qingshu’s sword at lightning speed and snatched it from his grasp. Instead of panicking, Song Qingshu was delighted! With a roar that sounded like thunder, he abandoned his weapon. Black light appeared in his palm, along with a fierce dark wind, which he hurled at Happy’s chest at blinding speed, his face twisted in rage, full of murderous intent!