I Am The Villain In The Novel

Chapter 16: Record-breaking Performance

Five days later.

At the Martial Arts Hall of the Mirror Division.

Early in the morning, a hundred or so burly men were anxiously waiting at the entrance, their eyes glued to the path, not daring to make a sound.

This scene resembled that of elderly folks eagerly waiting outside a supermarket, ready to snatch up discounted eggs.

A few sparrows perched on the branches, witnessing the scene. Just as they began to preen their feathers, they were startled by the sudden uproar of excited shouts.

“He’s here, he’s here! Young Master Wei is here again today!”

“Finally! I was so scared he wouldn’t show up!”

“Ahhhh! Lord Wei! I must spar with you today!”

“Look at me! Look at me!”

“Hurry, hurry! Get the draw sticks!”

“Heaven help me! I must draw a winning stick today!”

The excited crowd surged forward, surrounding Wei Changtian and Wang Er in a scene reminiscent of fervent fans mobbing a celebrity in his past life.

“Don’t push! No pushing!”

Wang Er, standing protectively in front of Wei Changtian, helplessly pulled out a wooden cylinder used for drawing lots, similar to those found in temples. In the blink of an eye, the bamboo sticks inside were snatched away.

Groans and cheers erupted simultaneously; some were overjoyed, while others were dismayed.

“Hahaha! A red stick! Heaven has finally smiled upon me!”

“Damn it! Not again!”

“Brother, how about selling your stick for fifty taels?”

“No way! I’m just one achievement away from a promotion. Try someone else.”

Those who drew red sticks were overjoyed, while the unlucky ones, after a moment of frustration, reluctantly accepted their fate. They fished out silver coins from their pockets and crowded around another man.

“Brother Liu! What’s the betting line today?”

“Gentlemen! Today’s bet is still whether Young Master Wei can win at least one match out of ten!”

The man being crowded around had an autumn cicada token on his waist, indicating he was from the Spy Department. He held up a wooden board and shouted:

“Betting on ‘can’ wins you ten times your stake! Betting on ‘cannot’ gives twelve to one!”

“The former has no limit on the bet! The latter has a cap of two hundred taels! First come, first served…”

Before he could finish, the crowd surged forward, each person thrusting their silver towards him.

“Cannot, five taels!”

“Cannot, three taels and two qian!”

“Cannot, ten taels!”

“Cannot…”

The unanimous chants of “cannot” quickly amassed the two hundred taels. Although a few gamblers, hoping to win big with a small bet, wagered on “can,” their total only amounted to two taels and eight qian.

It’s no wonder no one had faith in Wei Changtian.

After all, his “fifty consecutive defeats” over the past five days was quite the “impressive” record.

Whether this would be surpassed in the future was unknown, but he had undoubtedly set an unprecedented benchmark.

How could they resist taking advantage of this opportunity?

However, the “cash cow” Wei Changtian himself showed no reaction to this scene.

Or perhaps, he had just gotten used to it.

He merely glanced over and walked straight towards the second stage. Wang Er, walking beside him, pulled out ten fifty-tael silver notes from his pocket, ready to hand them over at any moment.

Neither of them noticed that, just as they walked away, a heroic woman suddenly approached the bookie.

She wore standard black attire, with a red ribbon tied in her long hair, and had a tall and slender figure.

Although her features were beautiful, it was evident at first glance that she was nothing like the delicate and fragile Lan Jingyao.

“Miss Xu? Are you here to place a bet as well?”

The bookie’s eyes lit up, but he didn’t dare look directly at her. Regretfully, he said, “Ah, you’re too late. Now you can only bet on whether Young Master Wei can win.”

“I want to bet on him winning a match today.”

The woman lightly pressed her thin lips together, pulled out a money pouch from her bosom, and tossed it over. “Bet it all.”

“This… how much is it?”

“Thirty taels.”

…

“Bang!”

A cloud of dust rose from the blue stone platform as Wei Changtian once again crashed to the ground, looking as disheveled as could be.

His opponent did not continue attacking. After cupping his fists and saying “Forgive me,” he jumped off the ring and happily accepted the silver note from Wang Er.

Watching the person leave, Wang Er picked up a small knife and carved another mark on the wooden sign next to the ring.

Under the character “Defeat,” there were already eleven sets of five-stroke tallies and three additional strokes.

Next to the character “Victory,” it remained empty.

With fifty-eight consecutive defeats, each match Wei Changtian fought added a new mark to his record.

… When would the young master finally win a match?

Wang Er felt a bit helpless, but also a bit amazed.

He was Wei Changtian’s attendant and also a death warrior trained by the Wei family from a young age.

Not only was his cultivation level high, but his extensive experience in life-and-death battles allowed him to judge a person’s skills at a glance.

Although Wei Changtian’s moves were still inexperienced, compared to five days ago, his progress was astounding.

From his reaction speed, to the precision of his moves, to the application of his inner strength… the changes were obvious but gradual, improving day by day.

This was normal, but the extent of his progress was extraordinary.

Even the most talented martial artist Wang Er had seen could not match Wei Changtian’s progress.

Could it be that the young master was a once-in-a-century genius?

After all, both the master and the mistress were top-notch experts in the world. It made sense for their son to be exceptionally gifted.

It’s just a pity he started late…

As Wang Er’s thoughts wandered, he climbed into the ring to help Wei Changtian up.

“Young master, there are still two more matches. Do you want to rest before continuing?”

“Hmm.”

Wei Changtian took a few deep breaths, accepted a red and a white pill from Wang Er, and chewed them like candies before swallowing them.

The red one was a Qi Restoration Pill to restore inner strength, and the white one was a Vitality Restoration Pill to recover physical strength.

These two pills alone could sell for fifty or sixty taels on the market, and Wei Changtian consumed seven or eight of them daily.

There was no denying that having money had its perks.

As the medicinal effects spread, warmth flowed throughout his body.

After half a moment of meditation, Wei Changtian stood up again. “Call the next person.”

“Yes, young master.”

Wang Er nodded and called out to a man who had been eager to fight, “It’s your turn!”

“Swish!”

The man immediately leaped onto the stage and cupped his fists towards Wei Changtian, “Young Master Wei, I apologize in advance!”

“……”

Apologizing in advance?

Wei Changtian was speechless, thinking to himself that this group was becoming more and more presumptuous.

However, he didn’t say much, simply took a deep breath and formally introduced himself.

“Seventh rank, Wei Changtian.”

“Flower Wing Guard, eighth rank, Song Linming!”

The man seemed a bit impatient. As soon as he finished speaking, he stepped forward and punched directly at Wei Changtian’s chest.

The punch was fast, indicating he had trained in some form of boxing.

But Wei Changtian was no longer at the same level as five days ago. He took a small step back to avoid the punch, then immediately struck out along the opponent’s arm, aiming directly at his throat.

“Slap!”

His inner elbow was pressed by a palm, dissipating the force of his punch, only grazing Song Linming’s collar.

The two quickly separated.

The first exchange ended slightly in Wei Changtian’s favor, with a 60-40 split.

“Hey? Young Master Wei seems to have a chance at winning this match!” someone exclaimed from the audience.

But another quickly retorted, “Brother Song only lost due to the disparity in their ranks.”

“If this were the first match, Young Master Wei might have a fair chance.”

“But it’s already the eighth match. Even with a recovery pill, his internal energy can only be restored to twenty or thirty percent. It won’t be long before he runs out.”

“At that point, it’s inevitable that Young Master Wei will lose.”

“True…”

The first speaker nodded, seemingly convinced.

Wei Changtian himself was well aware of this situation.

To win, he needed to find a decisive strike before his internal energy was depleted.

His feet kept moving, and he recalled the scenes he had repeatedly experienced in the Dream Path.

Suddenly, in a fleeting moment, Song Linming’s movements perfectly matched one of those scenes.

!!!

Wei Changtian felt a surge of joy in his heart.

That’s it!