Chapter 145: Poison Against Poison

I didn't want to sound condescending but that's how I must've sounded like. Well, I couldn't help it since I was wearing the smuggest and most arrogant face I could come up with.  I figured I have the right to do so since I managed to miraculously survive the near-death situation I was put in.  Moreover, I didn't just survive it, I came out unscathed, which not a lot of cultivators could do if I'm being honest.

"Impossible!" Shen Rong's eyes were filled with shock and disbelief as he stared at me as if he had just seen a ghost. "Impossible," He repeated, his irises shaking as he looked down on the ground and then back to my face.

"But... isn't that the Scorch Poison combined with the Deep Freeze Poison? How could he survive that?" One of the nearby audiences whispered but all he received were the shaking of the heads. Just like him, everyone else in the audience, cultivators and non-cultivators alike, couldn't explain what they had just witnessed. It's as if a miracle was displayed right before their eyes.

Well, I couldn't blame them, my eyes would've popped out if I were in their shoes.

"How? This is absurd. There's no way you could survive an incurable Poison! How did you do it?" Zeng Meihui was flustered to her core, evident through the redness on her cheeks and ears. She was shakily pointing a finger at me as if she was accusing me of doing something wrong. And as for her legs, they were like two broken pillars who were struggling to keep themselves upstanding.

I'm guessing it was only her headstrong nature that's keeping her standing like that.

"You want to know?" I challenged, taking a step forward as I put my right hand on my chest. "If you really want to know, then you can surrender the match right now and I will teach you everything I know about poisons," I told her.

A pang of guilt pricked my heart as I said those words. I knew for a fact that the knowledge about all those poisons didn't come from my own efforts, but rather, it was given to me by the system like downloadable data that I installed in my brain. In any case, the end result was that this knowledge is in my mind right now so technically... I have full ownership of them. Even if it came from unconventional or perplexing sources— well,  what I'm trying to imply is that the end justifies the means. And clearly, the end was something satisfactory for me.

But thinking about what happened a few minutes... I would've been a goner if it weren't for  Hui-ying and the System's help. Thanks to Hui-ying, I managed to accidentally stumble upon the locked items in the shop and they unlocked after I saw them. And as for the System, it's thanks to its System Shop that I managed to survive yet another day. If it weren't for those miracles,  I would've kicked the bucket a bit earlier than expected.

Now back to Zeng Meihui, she didn't answer for a good few seconds after I asked her to throw in the towel. While wearing a conflicted expression on her face, she tried to say something but then she bit her lips, probably thinking that one wrong move and she'll end up like me a few minutes ago.

My heart skipped a beat.

Curse you, heart. Why would you react that way right now? I know she looks charming and alluring right now but seriously, you should know your place. There's a time and place for everything. Even if she looks like a pink rose underneath the summer sun, you know that this isn't the time to be skipping like that. Seriously.

"All right... but if I surrender the match... promise me you would teach me a thing or two about poisons." She said, her brows furrowing.

"Hoh hoh~ is that how you treat your master?" I asked in a rather haughty manner.

"T-then... I look forward to your teachings, Master Yong Rui. I surrender this match."  She said, cupping her hands.

First off, I did not expect her to surrender that easily.  If I were her, I would've forcefully attempted to make my opponent reveal all his cards before I believe what he said— in this case, I would've asked for more proof in regards to the poisons I know. Probably, my instant recovery from the poison must've removed all the clouds of doubt in her mind and that's what made her concede.

"How impertinent." A voice from the audience stood out as a figure suddenly appeared in front of me.

"M-ma— " Zeng Meihui was about to say something when I realized who the figure belonged to. Even if it were five miles away from me, I would have recognized her by the way she was carrying herself.

What I mean to say was, she was incredibly conspicuous.

The figure belonged to an old woman but her pink hair starkly contrasted her appearance. Even though she was already of old age, she still looked surprisingly beautiful. Even if I didn't know of her identity, I would have immediately concluded that she was somehow related to Zeng Meihui due to their uncanny resemblance. She seemed like she was fifty years old but I know that she was already past that age. When I met her before, she was already seventy years old... and that was seven years ago.

"Shen Rong, is this your kid?" The old woman spat a gum to the side of the arena as she walked towards me. "I'm surprised. For a respectful kid, you sure didn't teach your own kid some manners."

"Um, Master Duyao, this is— actually, he's not from my Shelter. He's technically from Tang Shelter but right now he's representing my Shelter. On behalf of his disrespectfulness, I offer my sincerest apology." Shen Rong bowed his head— not too high and not too low— to show respect to the elderly.

Yes, in my eyes, he's showing respect to the elderly, which is quite commendable if you ask me. Because if it were me, I don't think I'll find it in my graceful self to respect someone that acts unusually cocky. Respect begets respect, and I've lived on those words for the past twenty or so years of my life.

"Well, whatever. This kid is trying to steal my one and only disciple from me. It would be fine if I teach him a lesson before the finals, right?" The elderly woman asked.

It's just my personal preference but I utterly refuse to call her a master since she doesn't have the right to receive that kind of respect.

Before, her attitude was quite bearable for me, probably because  I held great respect for her talent at that time. But now that I have the System with me, along with priceless knowledge regarding poison in my head. I realized that what she knew were only the basics.

I guess ignorance is bliss, after all. After the System gifted me with this knowledge, it was obvious that she didn't deserve to be called a master. After all, the cure to the Scorch Poison and Deep Freeze Poison was one of the basics when it comes to poison. The other five hundred poison is on a different level— a relatively higher level that not a lot of Poison Element users would know.

"Master Duyao, there will be another match before the semi-finals. I hope that you would be understanding enough to let that match go first befo— " Shen Rong gulped as he received a deadly stare from the old woman. "I mean, you can have a separate fight on one of the arena stages here. We just hope that you won't interrupt the next semi-finals match."

"Very well. Then, I will be borrowing your kid for a while." The old woman smiled as she walked towards me.

"Master!" Zeng Meihui desperately called out as she tried to stop her, but realizing that she didn't have the strength to do so, she slowly backed away as she pursed her lips. After stealing a few glances my way, she heaved a sigh of concession as she closed her eyes. She was probably praying that I survived the trials her master would shower upon me.

Or should I say, previous master?

This girl, to think that she could make an expression like that. I guess her master's arrogance and cockiness must've rubbed on her, giving her a personality like that. But deep inside, she's a good person, I think. I mean, if she weren't, she wouldn't have cried after seeing me sprawled on the ground like that, struggling to breathe my next breath.

If she were to come under my wing. I swear I'll make her useful for the sake of my Sect. She's a good addition to my team if I could fully utilize her power over the Poison Element.

But right now, making her master lose face and snatching her master's position from underneath her feet is of prime importance.

Let's see if these poisons in my head would make her resign from her role as her master.