Chapter 15 — The Most Despised Son Who Shocked the World

The day the Training Trial Congress officially opened, the entire Tuong Phu Thanh seemed to awaken in an unprecedented bustling atmosphere. The large square in front of the main palace was transformed into a giant arena, stands were erected on all four sides, flags of the Tuong family and allied clans were hung in the sky. Guests from many clans of the Eight Clan Alliance also attended, turning the event into one of the largest gatherings in years.

The list of contestants is announced, divided into many groups in the form of knockout, which will take place over the course of half a month, starting from the preliminary round to the semi-finals and finally the glorious final.

Vo Ky appeared in the arena in a familiar simple service outfit, different from the splendid battle robes of the other disciples. Scornful eyes and mocking whispers surrounded him from the moment he entered the waiting area.

"Does an illegitimate child even dare to stand here?" Another disciple of the main branch, named Tuong Nhat Cuong, belonging to a somewhat influential sub-branch, sneered when he saw Vo Ky. "I'll fight you in the first round. I hope you don't waste my time."

Vo Ky did not answer, just nodded slightly, maintaining the humble attitude he had maintained for the past seventeen years. According to the plan carefully discussed with the three seniors, he will only use the basic techniques of the Soft Bone layer combined with the ability to dodge delicately, enough to narrowly pass each round, without attracting too much attention, retaining all his true power until facing Khinh Vu directly.

Vo Ky's preliminary round match took place quickly but was full of fake drama that he deliberately created. He let Tuong Nhat Cuong attack continuously, only narrowly dodging it many times, making the audience hold their breath, then finally used a simple counterattack, taking advantage of a small loophole to push the opponent out of the round, winning with a narrow score that made many people admire but no one suspected anything was wrong.

"It's really lucky." There were whispers from the stands. "It's probably thanks to the durable physical foundation from doing odd jobs over the years."

Tuong Nhat Cuong, after being eliminated, stood silently for a long time outside the arena, his eyes still in shock at Vo Ky's final counterattack. He did not tell anyone the details of the match, partly out of shame, partly because a vague doubt began to arise in his heart about what he had just witnessed with his own eyes.

Meanwhile, in another group, Tuong Khinh Vu performed with great fanfare, using the Japanese Fist to burn his opponent in just a few moves, causing the whole arena to resound with cheers. He stood in the middle of the arena, his arrogant eyes scanning the crowd, enjoying the ovation as if it was something that naturally belonged to him.

Duong Tuyet Y sat in the audience's audience, her eyes following Vo Ky's every match with a tension that was hard to hide. She clearly understood his plan to deliberately keep his strength a secret, but every time she saw him suffering unnecessary attacks to appear struggling, her heart tightened with worry.

"You seem interested in that handyman's match." A voice rang out next to her. That was Tuyet Y's father, Mr. Duong, who led the Duong Family delegation to attend the Congress.

"I just found the match quite interesting." Tuyet Y replied, trying to keep her voice calm, although secretly worried that her father had noticed something unusual in her attitude.

"Is it so interesting that you forgot to pay attention to the other contestants from your families?" Old Master Duong continued asking, his tone half joking and half serious. "I remember the previous times, you always meticulously analyzed the strategies of every outstanding contestant, but this time, you seemed to only focus on one person."

Tuyet Y was silent for a moment, not knowing how to respond appropriately without revealing too much.

Old man Duong looked at his daughter for a moment, his eyes searching but did not say anything more, just sighed slightly, perhaps somewhat sensing the change in his daughter's heart over the past few months, since she insisted on extending her stay in Tuong Phu Thanh.

Through the following rounds, Vo Ky continued to maintain his careful strategy, always winning by a narrow margin, enough to overcome but not enough to attract undue attention from those with keen eyes. There was a match, his opponent was an outer sect disciple with quite a high level of cultivation, forcing him to the point that he had to retreat to the edge of the arena, causing the whole stadium to stir as if he was about to be eliminated. Vo Ky let the tense situation continue for a few more breaths. Just when the opponent revealed a small flaw in an over-extended swing of his right, he launched a precise counterattack, ending the match in the surprise and suspicion of many sharp-eyed spectators.

However, there was someone who began to notice abnormalities in his fighting style - not Khinh Vu, who was engrossed in enjoying his own glory, but the homeowner Tuong Trong Khang.

Sitting on the highest stand, Tuong Trong Khang observed each match with the sharp eyes of someone who had gone through countless life-and-death battles. He noticed that Vo Ky, although always struggling, had a strange precision in his evasion, as if each dodge was premeditated, not the panicked reflex of a weak person.

"That kid is not as simple as he looks." He thought to himself, but did not rush to draw conclusions, just silently remembered to continue observing in the following rounds, vowing to watch more closely when the conference approached more important rounds.

The night after each day of competition, Vo Ky still secretly tried to contact his three seniors at Tuyet Cot Nhai to report the situation and receive further instructions, even though he no longer had time to practice as intensely as before because he needed to maintain his strength for consecutive rounds.

"You did very well." Dry Bone Old Man commented when listening to Vo Ky recount the events of the matches, nodding with satisfaction. "But I heard that the owner seems to be paying more attention to you than usual. You need to be more careful in the upcoming rounds, especially as you get closer to the semi-finals."

"I understand." Vo Ky replied, in his heart he also felt the homeowner's scrutiny in recent matches, a scrutiny that was completely different from the familiar contemptuous gaze he had endured for the past seventeen years.

Senior Thiet Dien's health is clearly deteriorating, but he still tries to be present to mentally support his students and speak up more. "No matter what the homeowner suspects, he will not act hastily before having clear evidence, because that is not the character of a person who values honor and rules like him. Just continue with the plan, just keep it up until the finals."

Vo Ky nodded, silently calculating the number of rounds left before he and Khinh Vu could officially face off head to head. According to the tournament structure, if they both continued to win, they would meet in the finals — the moment he had been waiting and preparing for ten long years.

That night, before leaving Tuyet Cot Nhai, Vo Ky stopped in front of the cave entrance and looked back at his three seniors one last time. Senior Thiet Dien sat leaning against the cliff, his face much paler than a few months ago, but his eyes when looking at Vo Ky still shone with unwavering confidence.

"Don't worry about me." He said, as if he had read his student's thoughts. "I just need to live long enough to see you standing in the arena, stripped of all disguise. That's what I want most for the rest of my life."

Vo Ky was choked up, unable to say a word, just bowed deeply before turning and walking away, silently promising to end everything quickly, so that the teacher who had sacrificed his whole life for the old oath could witness the results before it was too late.

But he did not expect that, before that day came, Khinh Vu, with growing jealousy and insecurity at the inexplicable progress of the person he always despised, would publicly declare an arrogant challenge, pushing the entire smoldering hatred between the two to a climax right in front of the entire family's eyes.

The semi-finals are approaching, and the tense atmosphere at Tuong Phu Thanh is also increasing day by day, as if the whole family feels a huge storm is silently gathering behind the bustling appearance of the competition festival.