Chapter 201: The Sword Is the Truth

"No need."

Phoenix Lady smiled faintly, "It's just a box of pearl powder, a few thousand gold coins. Lion King will buy me more."

Eileen snorted lightly, "I advise you to cherish it. What if Lion King doesn't buy you more?"

Phoenix Lady seemed to have expected Eileen to say this and immediately replied, "No, he has indeed done many things that made me unhappy, but he is a king. Who can argue with a king about gains and losses? However, no matter how many incidents or unpleasant things occur between us, he will always make it up to me in the end. As for those incidents, we will soon forget them."

In public, Eileen was clearly at a disadvantage. She pursed her lips, avoided Phoenix Lady's topic, and said seriously, "Alright, it's been long enough. Phoenix Lady should announce the start of the tournament."

After saying this, she turned her head back to the arena, closely watching Rayan's every move.

Phoenix Lady also noticed Rayan, but her expression was much more relaxed than Eileen's. She turned to Lady Spring Rain behind her and said, "Look, my dear Spring Rain, how majestic your Oath Knight is."

Lady Spring Rain finally came to her senses, standing up incredulously to look into the arena. She saw Rayan looking up at her, his cold yet handsome face dazzling in the sunlight like a descending deity.

Lady Spring Rain suddenly remembered the scene of the oath at the banquet, her face blushing and her heart racing, she muttered softly, "Why is he here? Shouldn't he be the last to appear?"

Lady Spring Rain's tone was like that of a girlfriend complaining about a date arriving early, and she immediately realized this, quickly closing her mouth.

Phoenix Lady covered her lips with a black silk fan and laughed, "As expected of Lady Spring Rain's Oath Knight. To let Lady Spring Rain see him sooner, he disregarded the rules. Such a passionate man is truly enviable."

Marquis Hart, standing nearby, sneered, "Dare to violate the tournament's rules? I will order Trevor to remove him from the arena—by the way, where is Trevor? Why haven't I seen him?"

"Lord Trevor is maintaining order outside the arena, he should be here soon."

Phoenix Lady shook her fan, "However, I don't think breaking the rules is bad. Look at the audience's excitement. This will surely be a tournament recorded in history, and our Firebird family will be remembered because of it—my dear Spring Rain, don't sit there foolishly. Come sit with me and watch our Oath Knight dominate the field."

Lady Spring Rain didn't know who Phoenix Lady meant by "our Oath Knight." It could be Imperius, Rayan, or both. But she hoped Phoenix Lady meant both because, in her heart, Rayan was her only Oath Knight.

Smiling, she got up, walked around the stiff Marquis Hart, and sat gracefully next to Phoenix Lady, then nodded lightly towards Rayan in the arena.

At this moment, a team of energetic Black-armored guards appeared from the passage, led by Iron-blooded Commander Trevor.

Trevor's face was still pale but much better than when Rayan saw him at the inn yesterday. He rode on his horse, his expression as cold as steel, until he saw Rayan riding a green fire demon steed, and his expression changed.

"Lord Rayan? You..."

Trevor wanted to ride closer to Rayan but found his well-trained black armored warhorse hesitating, seemingly afraid.

Trevor paused, realizing it was not the best time to question Rayan about the demon steed. He immediately changed his tone, "Why are you in the arena? The Copper-edged group should enter last to salute the nobles on the main stand."

Imperius seized the opportunity and said, "That's right, Lord Rayan disrupted the tournament order. Please, Lord Trevor, enforce the law impartially."

This put Trevor in a difficult position. Although he only knew Rayan from a few conversations, he understood Rayan's temperament well. If an argument broke out, it would harm their friendship and escalate the situation uncontrollably.

Rayan sneered, "It's just a game. If we talk about breaking rules, Lord Imperius should be the first to be removed from the arena—if I recall correctly, you haven't sworn allegiance to Marquis Hart yet, right?"

Imperius' old face turned red, "That's because... because the Firebird guards were busy searching..."

He was an honest man, not good at lying, and his expression betrayed him as soon as he spoke.

Just as Trevor didn't know how to handle the situation, Phoenix Lady stood up on the high stand and said loudly, "Lord Trevor, don't be troubled. Lord Rayan is right. The tournament is just a game, not a matter of state governance. As long as the audience is happy, other aspects can be accommodated. Imperius was delayed by the search, so he missed the oath with Marquis Hart, and Lord Rayan clearly has the strength to be in the king's group, so staying in the arena is not excessive."

"But in this case, there will be one extra Oath Knight on the field."

Trevor frowned, "In any previous tournament, there has never been a scene where eleven knights of the king's group appeared together to receive the blessings of their patriarchs."

"That's simple."

Rayan laughed lightly, riding the Emerald Fire Thunder to the other nine Oath Knights, sweeping his Battle Qi to find the weakest one, pointing, "You, step down."

"Ah? Me?"

The Oath Knight pointed at was a nearly thirty-year-old fat man with a pink laurel crest on his chest. His Elite-level armor couldn't hide his flabby flesh. His forehead was bald and shiny, with a few strands of hair sticking to his face due to the heat. His Battle Qi was only at the Eighth Tier, not qualified to be in the king's group, but because last year's champion, the Second Prince, didn't participate this time, he entered the king's group by virtue of his patriarch's status.

Hearing Rayan ask him to step down, his first reaction was a sigh of relief, but he immediately tensed up, his flabby flesh seemingly turning into solid muscle—after all, it was about his patriarch's honor. He couldn't step down so easily.

"Why should I?"

The fat knight put his hand on the curved sword at his waist and said righteously, "Rayan, I've heard of your notorious reputation, but don't think you can bully me because I'm fat. When I go crazy, even I am scared of myself!"

Rayan found it both funny and exasperating, "So, are you planning to fight me?"

"I, I..."

The fat knight stammered for a while before saying, "In broad daylight, we should reason things out, right? Lord Trevor, Lord Imperius, don't you think so?"

Imperius and Trevor both pursed their lips tightly, like stone statues guarding the gate. They knew very well that reasoning with someone like Rayan was pointless because his sword was the reason. Although both of them were stronger than Rayan, they were wary of him and would not act in such a situation.

Imperius was concerned about Phoenix Lady's attitude, while Trevor valued his friendship with Rayan.

Rayan ignored the fat knight's words, turned to the audience, and loudly asked, "Do you want to see a fight between him and me?"

"Yes!"

The audience's enthusiasm was instantly ignited. They had watched tournaments all their lives, usually seeing a few unimpressive individuals perform showy moves. They didn't expect this tournament to be so thrilling even before it started.

"If you want to see it—"

Rayan, riding the Emerald Fire Thunder, announced loudly, "Raise your arms! Let the nobles see your demands! If enough arms are raised, I will have a positioning match with this laurel knight to see who is more qualified to stay on this field and salute their patriarch!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the stands were filled with raised arms, many even standing up and raising both hands to support Rayan.

The fat knight kept wiping the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand, his thick lips trembling, "This, this is against the rules, against the rules..."

On the noble's stand, many nobles also raised their arms, most of them just wanting to enjoy the show.

Seeing the nobles also raising their hands, many audience members couldn't wait to start betting, placing their money on Rayan to win.

After the audience's enthusiasm subsided a bit, Phoenix Lady pressed her hands down, smiling, "Dear audience, since everyone wants to see it, the Firebird family, as the organizer, naturally cannot disappoint you. On behalf of the Firebird family, I announce that before the official start of the tournament, Rayan and this laurel family Oath Knight can have a one-on-one challenge based on their agreed victory conditions."

The audience erupted in a thunderous cheer. The other Oath Knights in the arena, seeing that it didn't concern them, cheerfully moved aside, leaving only Rayan and the laurel fat knight in the sandpit.

Without saying a word, Rayan slowly drew his black-as-night Crow Sword, pointing its blunt edge at the laurel fat knight's eyes, "Come on, go crazy and show me how you scare even yourself."

The fat knight swallowed nervously, then drew his curved sword and shield, urging his horse forward—but his horse dared not face the Emerald Fire Thunder. The more he urged, the more the horse backed away, making him wriggle on its back like a clothed fat worm.

The audience burst into laughter, whistling and booing.

"You'd better dismount and fight me," Rayan said,

 unable to bear watching any longer.

"Okay."

The fat knight gratefully replied, clumsily dismounting. As soon as the horse lost its rider's control, it neighed and fled the arena.

The fat knight got tangled in the reins, tripping and falling, but luckily he quickly cut the reins with his sword, avoiding being dragged around the arena by his horse.

Watching his horse's dusty retreat, the fat knight's mouth was full of bitterness. But at least he didn't embarrass himself like the Copper-edged Oath Knight outside the arena, who ran after his horse.

As a fighter, he knew he wasn't Rayan's match, but as an Oath Knight, he couldn't retreat without a fight. It would disgrace his patriarch. He'd rather take a beating than disgrace his patriarch, so he gritted his teeth and stood up.