Solstice Souls

Adversaries

Lan Zhan POV

Lan Zhan watched the stranger, calling himself Suibian, waltz off the stage and go straight into his first fight, smiling.

So many more people had signed up to fight the moment it was announced that the winner would be able to cross swords with himself. He sighed internally, because while this made his brother much happier, it meant the last fight would be delayed, and he'd have to stay that much longer.

However, his eyes were drawn to the silver-eyed fellow, too cocky and sure of his moves as he flexed his arms. The young man was a magnet for his attention, but it was his skill that pulled Lan Zhan into focusing entirely on him.

One hundred and nineteen contestants would have to be won against, before Suibian could face him alone.

And what kind of a name was that, anyway? Surely just the flippancy and arrogance that it suggested, and to use it here, among other cultivators was just too much. There was no way that young man would win.

Lan Zhan found himself scanning the crowd one last time, looking for his precious dancer, just before the cries of the crowd alerted him to the new duel about to begin.

Suibian was determined.

That was for sure.

Just before he began, he tossed a careless smile his way and shouted, "I'd fight a thousand men as long as my sword gets to feel the metal of your blade caress it, Hanguang-jun!"

Lan Zhan steadfastly ignored him, but he felt a rise in his temperature.

Suibian fought well and efficiently, not expending more energy or time than necessary to win easily, one after the other. And it wasn't just mindless attacking; he ducked, parried, jabbed with the utmost single minded attention, having already worked out and predicted what moves his opponents would use. In no time at all, fifty contestants had lost to his well-aimed strikes.

It was worth noting, Suibian did not injure them to win. His skill surpassed that of ordinary fighters, to the extent where a well timed push or smack with the flat side of his sword was enough to render the receiver a loss in the tournament.

Lan Zhan got the distinct feeling he was holding back. And then, he was surprised at himself for wanting to see what Suibian was fully capable of. These quick bouts felt as if they were just glimpses, like the corner of a painting. A true work of art had to be seen in fullness, the whole picture, to fully appreciate it.

He felt frustrated at both Suibian and his opponents. The bouts were becoming tedious, and the only saving grace was the mastery of the winner. The crowd was on his side and Lan Zhan found himself smiling internally at the entertainment on display.

For the most part, Suibian focused on three points; winning, looking behind him at someone in the crowd, and, if Lan Zhan felt a glimmer of jealousy, he studiously ignored it, and himself. Too many times, silver eyes had clashed with his own, and make no mistake, that was a battle of wills in itself.

Suibian wanted to be looked at, the satisfaction in his gaze on a par with his jubilation, and Lan Zhan....Lan Zhan could not look anywhere else.

A hundred and twelve fighters were dispatched and only now was Suibian showing a little tiredness. He still fought with grace and skill, but there was the tiniest of pauses between each move, something only someone with the expertise of swordplay analysis would know. Lan Zhan glanced at XiChen.

"What is it, Didi?" He asked, concerned.

Lan Zhan did not do anything without meticulously thinking about it beforehand.