Some people even wanted to step forward right then and there to advise canceling the contest, but they were all stopped by the censors led by Feng Tang.
What a joke. This was supposed to be their job, but since their superior, Lord Feng, stood on the side of the Junior Mentor, they had no choice but to follow suit and suppress the opposition.
Couldn't they see that His Majesty and the other high officials hadn't said anything?
Others harbored ill will, secretly praying that Yue Fuguang would take a major fall this time, hoping it would even turn His Majesty against her, so she would no longer be the most unique presence in the Dayan court.
Regardless of what these people thought, with the sound of three drumbeats, the contest officially began.
"Little Pearl!"
Immediately, a ripple spread around Yue Fuguang. As a protective shield rose, the Lightning Summoning Talisman was also activated.
Crackle! Crackle!
Crackle! Crackle!
The sound of wind and thunder suddenly and abruptly echoed in the originally clear night sky. Pale purple lightning arrived swiftly and fiercely, with purple flashes taking on the form of a roaming dragon, charging menacingly towards Tai Li and his group.
Shuyang and the others, who prided themselves on their formidable martial arts, had no time to dodge when they saw the lightning streaking towards them. They were met head-on, making intimate contact with the wildly cool and dazzling electric dragon.
Pfft! Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!
As if by prior agreement, all four spat out blood simultaneously, smoke rising from their heads like incense sticks.
Over on Yue Fuguang's side, aside from a few ripples on her protective shield, not a single strand of her hair was harmed.
She walked over to the group, who had been struck nearly lifeless, as casually as if nothing had happened. A smell of charred meat mixed with a burnt odor assaulted her nostrils.
Zzzzt! Occasional arcs of electricity still crackled around them.
Wispy white smoke rose from Shuyang's body. Ji Po and Wu Yun had been struck into having frizzy, explosive hairstyles—and this was only because they were women. Yue Fuguang, fearing they might have weaker constitutions, had specifically asked the system to go easy on them.
The worst off was Tai Li. He had fallen unconscious. Yue Fuguang gave him a gentle nudge with her foot, but he didn't wake up.
"Little Pearl, he's not dead, is he? Can I still get my winnings?"
[Master, don't worry, he's still alive. Who would have thought this guy couldn't handle a strike? I only used ten percent of my power. How did he end up completely incapacitated?]
The Dayan emperor and his ministers suddenly felt that the young immortal lord and the divine artifact had truly been merciful and tolerant towards them. Although they often talked about striking people with lightning, they had never actually done it.
Looking at the several individuals who had been struck unconscious, they silently declared themselves thoroughly subdued.
As for Feng Tang, Wu Yong, and the other young officials, their eyes shone as they looked at Yue Fuguang, brighter than the stars in the sky.
Yue Fuguang didn't care whether the group was unconscious or delirious. She waved the contract in her hand at them in a showy manner. "A bet's a bet. No backing out now."
She then turned her gaze towards Beiyue and the others, her tone half-threatening, half-joking. "Those who renege might just lose their lives, you know!"
After that earlier strike—though they hadn't had time to see clearly how she did it before it was over—the fact that Tai Li and his group had been struck by lightning was undeniable.
The Dayan Junior Mentor was truly no ordinary person!
They naturally wouldn't take her words as a mere joke.
Only when the electric arcs ceased crackling around the victims were they carried away by their own people for treatment. Beiyue and the others, feeling they had lost face, also excused themselves and left the banquet.
Seeing that the opposing side had all departed, leaving only the Dayan emperor and his ministers, Yue Fuguang immediately put on an act of contrition and apologized to Emperor Mingxi. "Your Majesty, did I ruin your birthday banquet?"
Emperor Mingxi wouldn't dare agree. He immediately shook his head. "No, no, no. Today's banquet is the most unique one I've had in all these years."
"Little Pearl, was I too reckless just now? What if they suspect how I could summon lightning? They won't become wary of my abilities and want to kill me, will they?"
The Dayan emperor and ministers: Could you make it any more terrifying? Who would be killing whom? Wariness was indeed genuine, and fear was real too. But why did the mere thought of the Junior Mentor inexplicably give them a sense of security?
[Can't you say you learned it from the masters at the Taoist temple?]
"The masters don't know how to summon lightning. Who would I have learned from? Give me a Lightning Talisman. I have a use for it."
"Your Majesty, about that lightning earlier..."
Emperor Mingxi cut in, answering for her, "I know, you learned it at the Taoist temple. I never realized our Dayan Taoist practitioners had such skills. I've truly broadened my horizons today!"
Yue Fuguang shook her head. "Your Majesty, actually, that wasn't lightning I summoned."
As she spoke, she pulled out from her small pouch something made of an unknown material—neither quite paper nor silk—and handed it to Emperor Mingxi.
"The reason I could summon lightning relies entirely on this Lightning Talisman."
Emperor Mingxi took the pale purple talisman with vivid red, indecipherable markings and examined it closely. Could a single talisman like this really summon lightning?
[Master, you're giving the Lightning Talisman to the emperor? He doesn't have immortal spiritual power; he can't activate it!]
"I'm not planning on letting him use it. Isn't that talisman also inscribed with evil-warding patterns? It can be used as a protective talisman."
Thinking this to herself, she said out loud, "Your Majesty, when I was at the Taoist temple, I once went to play in the back mountains and happened to meet a passing Taoist priest there. The priest said we were fated, so he gave me two Lightning Talismans for protection.
The lightning earlier was summoned using one of those talismans. This is the last one. Would you like to try it?"
Try it? After trying it, the protective talisman would be gone, right?
Emperor Mingxi: Only a fool would try it. This is an item from an immortal! Would it be too much to make it a family heirloom for the Xie family?
Emperor Mingxi immediately shook his head like a rattle-drum. "No, no, no, there's no need to try it. Since it's the last one, of course we should save it for a critical moment.
Until we find that priest who gave you the talisman, we'd better keep it safe."
Yue Fuguang nodded. "Your Majesty, the priest who gave me the talisman called himself Zhang Sanfeng. His appearance..."
Yue Fuguang described him to the Dayan emperor and ministers, basing her description on the image of Zhang Sanfeng she'd seen on TV before, with some additional embellishments of her own.
Although everyone knew it was fabricated, they all cooperated fully with her act. Wei Ping even painted a portrait on the spot based on her description.
You had to admit, Wei Ping's painting skills, honed through long practice sketching fugitives, were impressive.
While not strictly realistic, it wasn't the currently popular impressionistic style either. As for the Zhang Sanfeng in the painting, he looked quite the part of an immortal sage, possessing even more of an otherworldly aura than she had imagined.
The hour of Zi (midnight) approached, and the grand feast was winding down.
Outside the hall, the night sky was fittingly filled with the sound of firecrackers. The banging and popping created a lively atmosphere, like the New Year.
But there weren't many spectators left, as those who could drink were drunk, and those who couldn't were asleep!
Under the fervent gazes of his ministers, Emperor Mingxi still failed to protect the remaining more than half a bottle of his wine.
Yue Fuguang belonged to the category of those who couldn't drink. After instructing Emperor Mingxi to hurry up and help her secure the land (from the bet), she peacefully slipped into a deep sleep to meet the Duke of Zhou in her dreams. The loud bangs of firecrackers outside only made her turn over in her sleep.
In this great hall, she slept with utmost peace of mind. With the system around, she wasn't afraid of anyone 'stealing the child'!
Without the need to rise early for court, Yue Fuguang slept until the sun was high in the sky the next day.
After a combined breakfast and lunch, she curled up on the recliner by the window, reviewing the events of the previous day and discussing upcoming tasks with the system.
"System, the points are about to reach thirty thousand. Does that mean you're going to level up again soon?"
