The Peerless Emperor (TPE)

"This is simply unbelievable!" Zhang Wenxuan finally exclaimed after a long pause. She quickly turned to Zhang Qi and said, "No wonder you had so much confidence in him. His physical strength is astonishing."

Zhang Qi nodded proudly and replied, "So, do you believe me now? A deal's a deal. Hand over the Eight-Armed Sticky Fist manual."

Zhang Wenxuan huffed, wrinkling her nose as she pulled out a manual and tossed it toward Zhang Qi. "You tricked me! If you'd told me earlier that he defeated you, I wouldn't have made the bet. Now I've lost again."

It was clear that Zhang Wenxuan wasn't angry about losing the manual but rather about losing to Zhang Qi.

Inside the arena, Lin Qian noticed that the host was still in a daze. He looked up and asked, "I believe you're supposed to announce the winner now, so I can leave, right?"

The host, who was still shocked, snapped out of her reverie upon hearing Lin Qian's voice and quickly announced the result of the match.

At the same time, Zhang Li's clan members rushed over to carry him away.

After the result was announced, Lin Qian noticed a change in the token at his waist. A faint glow appeared on its surface, displaying the character "Two" before fading away.

Lin Qian quickly understood that this was his reward for winning the match, earning him two points.

With the match over, Lin Qian left the arena and swam back toward the Eastern Branch's observation platform.

As Lin Qian returned, Zhang Qi immediately stepped forward to congratulate him. "Congratulations, Your Majesty, on winning your first match."

"What's there to congratulate? You already knew the outcome," Lin Qian replied with a smile as he took his seat.

At that moment, Zhang Qi handed Lin Qian the manual he had won from Zhang Wenxuan. "Your Majesty, this is a soul technique manual called the Eight-Armed Sticky Fist, which I won from a friend."

"What's this about?" Lin Qian asked as he accepted the manual without hesitation. Such items were valuable for the Hua Xia Empire, so he didn't want to miss out.

Zhang Qi laughed and recounted his bet with Zhang Wenxuan.

After hearing the story, Lin Qian couldn't help but glance over at the Western Branch's observation platform.

He saw a pink-skinned Eight-Armed Sea Tribe woman glaring angrily in their direction, her eyes fixed on Zhang Qi, who was still chuckling.

When Zhang Wenxuan noticed Lin Qian looking at her, she quickly adjusted her expression and politely saluted him.

In return, Lin Qian saluted back before turning to Zhang Qi and giving him a playful nudge on the shoulder. "Hey, that girl is considered quite the beauty by your Eight-Armed Sea Tribe's standards, isn't she? Is she your sweetheart?"

"Come on, we're just friends from different branches. We played together when we were kids, that's all," Zhang Qi quickly denied, waving his hands.

Seeing Zhang Qi's reaction, Lin Qian's interest grew. He laughed and nudged him again, sending bubbles out of his water-breathing soul artifact. "You can't fool me. If you didn't have feelings for her, why would you make that bet?"

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"Well, sometimes shy guys like to tease the girls they like to hide their true feelings. I'm telling you, if you like her, be more proactive. Don't let someone else swoop in and steal her away, or you'll regret it later," Lin Qian teased, punching Zhang Qi lightly in the chest.

Zhang Qi stared at Lin Qian in shock, his mouth opening and closing as he struggled to find words. After a moment, he finally muttered, "Your Majesty, why are you speaking so loudly? Everyone can hear you."

Lin Qian quickly glanced over at the Western Branch's platform and noticed that Zhang Wenxuan had moved to the other side, her head lowered as if she were embarrassed by his words.

"Oh... my apologies," Lin Qian said with an awkward laugh, patting Zhang Qi on the shoulder and lowering his voice.

Zhang Qi shook his head with a small smile and glanced over at the Western Branch, a hint of amusement in his eyes.

Lin Qian smiled knowingly. Thanks to his experiences in his previous life, he was very perceptive about such things.

It was obvious to him that Zhang Qi and Zhang Wenxuan had feelings for each other, which was why he had intentionally pushed them to confront those feelings.

In fact, both Zhang Nianxin and the Western Branch's leader would be pleased to see such a union. If the talented young man and woman from their branches were to marry, it would be considered a great match.

The shock of Lin Qian's performance began to fade as the clan assembly continued.

The Eight-Armed Sea Tribe's assembly was full of talented individuals, and while Lin Qian's unexpected display of power had surprised everyone, the atmosphere of intense competition soon overshadowed the earlier astonishment.

However, not every match ended as quickly and decisively as Lin Qian's. Most of the battles were drawn-out affairs, especially when the participants were of similar strength.

After all, most of the participants in this assembly were talented individuals, with cultivation levels at the Void-Fragmentation Realm or higher.

At this level, their soul power was vast, and they could easily sustain a fight for two or three hours.

As a result, the next ten matches after Lin Qian's took a total of four hours to complete, stretching into the evening.

Some matches between smaller tribe members and more powerful opponents ended quickly, but without those brief battles, the competition would have taken even longer.

As night fell, the underwater world of the coral island was illuminated by the bright light of sea-glow stones.

With the day's matches concluded, everyone returned to their temporary residences.

"Where's Zhang Qi? Where did he run off to?" Lin Qian asked curiously after scanning the area upon his return.

Zhang Nianxin laughed heartily and replied, "Isn't it thanks to Your Majesty? You pointed out the subtle feelings between those two earlier, and now they're probably off somewhere together."

"Haha, well, that's a good thing, isn't it?" Lin Qian chuckled at Zhang Nianxin's words.

At that moment, Zhang Nianxin suddenly took out a token, a message flashing from it and entering his mind.

He looked at Lin Qian with surprise. "Your Majesty, the clan leader wants to see you!"