The psychological blow was enormous. Even someone with a will as unyielding as bedrock, like the Shura Great Emperor, found it hard to accept.
Before the last two matches, he had been virtually certain they would win this wager. They had even been preparing to celebrate early.
But with Li Jiancheng's loss in that match, the overwhelmingly favorable situation was squandered in an instant.
All of a sudden, they were the ones lagging behind.
True, in the final match he would be fighting personally, and victory was assured. But so what? Even a guaranteed win was useless now.
The current state of affairs put the Shura Dojo at four wins, three draws, and five losses. Even if he won the last match, it would only bring them to five wins, three draws, and five losses—a tie!
If thirteen matches of wagering ended without a clear victor, would the Shura Dojo still have any grounds to continue issuing challenges?
Looking at the situation now, the minds of many lords had tipped decisively toward Peacock Sacred Mountain. Peacock Sacred Mountain, through one brilliant performance after another, had won over the hearts of a great many.
The Shura Dojo, meanwhile, was drifting further and further off course.
The rage burning in the Shura Great Emperor's heart was immense.
However, by now he had no path of retreat. This final match—he had to step in, and he had to win.
In that instant, a vicious resolve took hold of the Shura Great Emperor!
Now that things had reached this point, winning this match would require seizing victory from the jaws of danger.
But seizing victory from danger didn't mean defeating Young Master Zhen by some desperate gamble—it meant turning the entire situation around.
"Kill Young Master Zhen. Take out that brat, and Peacock Sacred Mountain will once again be a leaderless flock! Once he's dead, Mo Wushuang is nothing but a wandering rogue cultivator—how could he possibly hold any position in Peacock Sacred Mountain? He wouldn't even want to! As for that little girl, without that brat Young Master Zhen, she's just a woman. How much fight would she have left to devote to Peacock Sacred Mountain?"
The Shura Great Emperor understood perfectly well that the only reason Peacock Sacred Mountain had not yet collapsed was because Young Master Zhen was holding it up.
The moment he went up there and eliminated Young Master Zhen, Peacock Sacred Mountain would fall apart like a tree whose monkeys had all scattered!
With this thought, the Shura Great Emperor's mind cleared of all distraction.
He strode forward and swept up onto the arena platform.
"Young Master Zhen, I am waiting for you on the arena. Don't go telling the world that you lack the courage for this final battle. If you truly believe that Peacock Sacred Mountain's fortune still endures, then come up here and face me in honorable combat. Otherwise, no one in this Glazed Tile City will ever truly submit to you!"
The Shura Great Emperor swept toward the arena while shouting his challenge.
He was worried that Jiang Chen would refuse to fight and simply concede. In that case, the result would be a tie—and a tie would clearly favor Peacock Sacred Mountain.
So these words from the Shura Great Emperor were designed to back Jiang Chen into a corner, leaving him no way to avoid battle.
Those on the Shura Dojo's side immediately understood the Shura Great Emperor's intent, and they were filled with admiration for his cunning.
On Peacock Sacred Mountain's side, after Huang'er's victory, everyone had been beside themselves with joy. Hearing the Shura Great Emperor's provocation, they finally snapped out of their elation.
"Young Master, this match—even if we don't fight, the result is a tie. And if it's a tie, what face would the Shura Dojo have to challenge us again?" urged Emperor Yunzhong.
"Young Master, you really shouldn't fight in this match. Even if you don't take the field, no one in the world will think less of you. He's a three-thousand-year-old monster challenging a young man not yet thirty—the one losing face is him, not our Peacock Sacred Mountain." Emperor Duomei was equally disgusted by the Shura Great Emperor's goading.
Mo Wushuang gazed at the Shura Great Emperor on the arena and said gravely, "That Shura Great Emperor—killing intent surges beneath his words. From what I can see, he has already decided to kill. He intends to strike you down right there on the arena."
"Young Master, we should forfeit this match."
"Just give it up. Everyone in Glazed Tile City will understand. Absolutely no one would criticize you for not taking this one fight."
Nearly everyone urged Jiang Chen to withdraw.
Jiang Chen gave a slight nod, but a sharp gleam flickered in his eyes as he looked at the Shura Great Emperor posturing on the arena. Jiang Chen knew better than anyone that the Shura Great Emperor, at this point, was a cornered beast. If he went up on that arena, what awaited him would be nothing less than the man's most frenzied killing techniques.
Honestly, with his current strength, going head-to-head against the Shura Great Emperor offered virtually no chance of victory.
But that did not mean Jiang Chen would avoid the fight.
It wasn't that he wanted to be reckless. He had already planned this long ago—this match, he had to fight.
"Everyone, His Majesty the Great Peacock Emperor appointed me as Young Master precisely because he foresaw this day. The battle between Peacock Sacred Mountain and the Shura Dojo was always inevitable—so let me and him bring it to a conclusion. We cannot back down in this match. If we do, the Shura Dojo will be free to stir up trouble again at any time!"
If these thirteen matches of wagering ended in a tie, the karmic debt would remain unresolved, and the Shura Dojo would assuredly cause havoc again in the future.
Jiang Chen had no intention of letting Glazed Tile City be thrown back into internal strife. Today, this matter had to be settled once and for all.
"Young Master, this is a trap set by the Shura Great Emperor!"
"Exactly. His provocation of you stems from murderous intent. You are the core of our Peacock Sacred Mountain right now—eliminating you is tantamount to destroying us."
"Young Master, your life is worth its weight in gold. Why take such a risk?"
Seeing Jiang Chen bent on his course of action, everyone was seized with anxiety. At this critical juncture, they all felt there was simply no need to stand toe-to-toe with the Shura Great Emperor.