Indeed,

Si Houqing was filled with regret.

His regret didn’t stem from Shen Changchuan’s decision to fight masked to hide his identity.

There was nothing wrong with that.

After all, it wasn’t unheard of for sore losers, furious after a defeat in the arena, to retaliate against their opponent after the match.

While fighting masked wasn’t a common sight, it was not unprecedented.

The real reason for Si Houqing’s regret,

was the feeling that he had been far too reckless!

Without truly understanding the situation,

he had rashly chosen that fellow Shen Changchuan as his hired gun.

He’d simply let his excitement get the better of him.

He had accidentally overheard a fellow named Guo Cheng chatting with his own Steward, telling a story about their journey. They had been ambushed by men in black, but Shen Changchuan had supposedly unleashed a massacre, defeating a powerful enemy at the Qi Introduction Sixth Layer Peak in just a dozen breaths.

Upon learning that such a powerful expert existed,

and after getting some corroboration from other members of the traveling party,

he had, in a fit of impulsive excitement, decided to hire him.

It wasn’t until after he had paid the Deposit,

and the agreement was sealed,

that Si Houqing suddenly realized,

he had been impulsive!

He had overlooked one crucial detail:

’What if that Guo Cheng fellow and the rest of the caravan members were just boasting? What if the story wasn’t true at all?!’

It wasn’t impossible!

This kind of boastfulness was incredibly common among low-level Cultivators, especially the itinerant types who traveled all over.

For example, a "heaven-shattering, earth-rending" battle they claimed to have witnessed between suspected True Cultivators of the Soul Emergence Realm might have been nothing more than a skirmish between some Late Stage Qi Introduction Cultivators.

Or a fellow at the Qi Introduction Fourth or Fifth Layer might brag about trading blows with a master at the Seventh or Eighth Layer, when in reality, all he did was chuck a hidden weapon from an incredible distance during a chaotic melee.

Many low-level Cultivators loved to exaggerate to show off and impress others, telling tales so tall they reached the heavens!

’What if Shen Changchuan’s reputation was just more of the same hot air from his subordinates?’

Or perhaps,

the men in black who attacked them were already a spent force after a long battle, and he just got lucky, taking advantage of their weakness.

’What if his true strength wasn’t nearly as great as it seemed?’

For the past few days,

this realization had kept Si Houqing awake at night.

His heart was filled with worry and apprehension,

and he tossed and turned.

’If he were really that powerful, he would have made a name for himself long ago. Why would he still be a complete unknown in a place like the Border Desolate Land?’

’I’ve never even heard of this person. His supposed accomplishments are most likely exaggerated. A miscalculation... this was a terrible miscalculation!’

Si Houqing’s expression remained impassive,

but inwardly, he had a very bad feeling about this arena match.

But despite his regret, he didn’t suggest replacing him.

For one, he was already resigned to defeat;

that was a foregone conclusion that couldn’t be changed.

To invite someone only to replace them right before the battle would be a blatant show of distrust.

For a proud man, such an insult would surely create a bitter enemy.

He would be losing on one front while making an enemy on another.

That would be utterly foolish.

Besides,

it wasn’t as if he could find a replacement anyway.

’Wanghu Commerce Association... Qian Xiaochang... Hmph! I’ll remember this!’

Si Houqing snorted coldly to himself.

If it weren’t for that bastard’s scheming, he never would have needed to hire a mercenary in the first place.

Although he felt that Shen Changchuan’s chances of victory were slim,

he was one of the only choices Si Houqing had left.

...

Shen Changchuan was oblivious to the thoughts swirling in his client Si Houqing’s mind.

Right now, all he was thinking about,

was getting this fight over with, grabbing the money, and getting out of here.

As for fighting masked, that was a precaution. After all, his opponent was from the Shen Family.

If he easily defeated his opponent, displaying immense strength and potential, he couldn’t let word of it get back to Tian Nan City. That would be a huge problem and could expose him to untold risks.

After all, he knew all too well what kind of person the "Great Madam" was.

And that thought,

made Shen Changchuan recall, with some annoyance, the opinions of certain readers from the web novels of his past life.

Some people seemed to think that a major Immortal Cultivation clan must be a place where everyone was united, working together for the common good, completely free of internal power struggles.

They figured that any great clan rife with infighting would quickly be crushed and replaced by a more unified one.

A disunified clan, they argued, couldn’t survive.

That idea wasn’t just wrong; it was laughably so.

First of all, whether it’s clans in the Immortal Cultivation World or the powers of nations, none of them are static.

They all go through phases: a founding period, a period of ascension, a golden age, and a period of decline!

And each phase is completely different from the last!

During its founding or ascendant phase, a clan’s members might actually be of one mind.

But fast forward to the period of decline, when the founding members are long dead and gone, how could members separated by countless generations be expected to have that same unity, that same single-minded devotion to the clan’s prosperity?

If a clan could truly remain perfectly united, generation after generation,

then it wouldn’t be an ordinary clan,

it would be an eternal dynasty, a family of immortals that would never know decline!

But that, of course, is impossible.

Besides,

whether a clan is unified or rife with infighting isn’t the ultimate factor in its survival.

Take the Wu Family of Wu Family Collection for example.

Let’s say that for the next hundred years, every member of the Wu Family is perfectly united. They fear no sacrifice, throwing themselves into their work and giving their all for the clan’s rise.

Meanwhile, over the same hundred years, the Tian Nan Shen Clan becomes even more consumed by power struggles and rampant infighting.

After a hundred years, or even a few hundred, would the Wu Family be guaranteed to replace the Shen Family?

Not a chance.

Because it’s more likely that the moment the Wu Family produces a few, or even a dozen, Soul Emergence Realm Cultivators—the moment they show the first sign of being able to challenge the Shen Clan’s authority—

a powerful band of "wandering" Tribulation Cultivators would inexplicably appear out of nowhere to sack their home, slaughter them to the last man, and wipe them off the map.

Internal unity isn’t the deciding factor in a clan’s ultimate survival.

So what if your clan members are united as one, like an impenetrable fortress?

Your rivals have a massive head start, with deep reserves of power and resources more than sufficient to crush you with ease.

Just look at the Tian Nan Shen Clan today.

Even with all its vicious internal power struggles,

the sheer size and foundational power built from their head start means they could crush any unified challenger in their territory just by rolling over in their sleep.

Countless thoughts flashed through his mind,

Shen Changchuan shook his head slightly,

and reined in his Heart Spirit.

Then, his figure leaped, crossing dozens of yards in an instant and landing as lightly as a falling leaf upon the arena platform.

At that moment,

his opponent landed on the opposite side of the stage.

Shen Changchuan cleared his mind, his gaze locking onto the man before him, his focus now entirely on his opponent.

Although he was eighty to ninety percent confident he would win this fight, he knew that even a lion uses its full strength to hunt a rabbit.

He had no desire to lose an easy fight due to his own arrogance.