Douluo: I have too many clones

Chapter 829 The Marriage Proposal Begins

The Mingdu Grand Stadium, where the martial arts contest for marriage took place on its final day, had shed the tense competitive atmosphere of the previous events and been transformed into a brand-new venue that was both solemn and magnificent.

The core competition stage remains in its original position. Its hard, soul-guided alloy surface has been cleaned and shines with a cold luster under the lights, as if it still tells the story of the fierce battles of the past rounds.

On the east side of the competition stage, a square platform about twenty meters high rose from the ground. The platform area could only accommodate four or five people standing side by side. The entire body was made of silver-white metal, with small blue soul guide crystals inlaid on the edges. The crystals shimmered with light as soul power flowed.

This meticulously crafted platform is the exclusive venue prepared for Princess Gu Yuena, the Silver Dragon, to choose her husband. Its luxurious scale and unique location underscore the extraordinary significance of today's core event.

With the joint efforts of the military and stadium staff, ticket holders entered the stadium in an efficient and orderly manner.

Soon, the entire Mingdu Stadium was packed to capacity.

The stadium was a bit noisy, but the spectators' eyes were full of excitement.

Who will ultimately win the heart of the beauty?
Audiences are always very interested in this kind of gossip, and all sorts of speculations abound.

The players who advanced from each group are all quite skilled and good-looking, and they also have a considerable number of fans.

The audience members supported different groups, which naturally led to more heated discussions.

Well, apart from Nan Fusheng, who was exposed as having a wife.

Since the final martial arts contest for marriage might involve violence, the protective shields inside the stadium remain at the highest level, just like before, awaiting the Silver Dragon Princess's decision.

The commentator is in place, or rather, the host is here today.

Effie, dressed in a white suit, was already in the commentary booth on one side of the stage.

"Please take your seats as soon as possible and keep quiet. The final stage of our martial arts contest to find a husband is about to begin."

"After so many days of competition and selection, there is no doubt that those who can enter the final selection stage are the strongest of the younger generation in the world today."

"Today, we will witness an exciting moment together—how will Princess Gu Yuena, the Silver Dragon Princess, choose her partner from among these powerful individuals? To be honest, my curiosity is no less than yours. The final answer will only await the Princess's discerning eye."

Under Effie's guidance, the scene gradually quieted down.

However, some viewers had a question: why was there no prelude performance in the final segment of such a grand, century-old event?

In the past, similar large-scale events would often invite well-known mainland artists to perform in order to create an atmosphere and alleviate the audience's anxiety while waiting. However, the current arrangement of "going straight to the point" always seems a bit rushed.

In fact, the organizer, Spirit Tower, had initially invited several top Soul Master artists to prepare a pre-show program, but due to the unexpected situation at Qian Gu Zhang Ting, Qian Gu Dong Feng once considered canceling the final segment.

Ultimately, the segment was retained to "complete the process and maintain the reputation of the Spirit Pagoda," and the pre-show performance was naturally canceled as a result.

At this moment, Qian Gu Dong Feng sat upright in the main seat of the podium, calmly watching the arena below, exuding the majesty of a superior.

His grandson, Qian Gu Zhangting, suffered a backlash of soul power after using "Medusa's Eye," and was further struck by a series of defeats. He is currently receiving treatment in the Spirit Pagoda's treatment room. Although he is not in mortal danger, he remains in a daze after regaining consciousness due to mental distress.

However, in Qian Gu Dongfeng's view, this setback may not necessarily be a bad thing for his grandson.

Because Qian Gu Zhangting's cultivation has been smooth sailing since childhood, he lacks the tempering of adversity, while setbacks are the driving force for a Soul Master's growth.

If Sun Tzu cannot even overcome this difficulty, how will he gain the respect of his subordinates and the approval of the other higher-ups in the Spirit Pagoda?

Qian Gu Zhangting is over thirty years old; it's time for him to learn to stand on his own.

The Spirit Pagoda is now full of talented people. Cai Xukun, who is not yet thirty years old but has already reached level ninety-eight, is destined to become a Limit Douluo in the future.
With the support of his elder brother and sister-in-law, an old acquaintance of the Divine Craftsman, close ties with the Temple of War, and extensive connections, Fors;
Gu Yuena comes from a reclusive family, possesses exceptional scientific research talent, has made significant contributions to the Spirit Pagoda, and is also a disciple of the Heavenly Phoenix.

These three are all Spirit Transmission Envoys. Compared to them, Qian Gu Zhangting only has the strength of a Super Douluo and the identity of a second-generation Spirit Transmission Tower to be proud of.

If he can't even overcome this setback, how will Qian Gu Zhangting win against these people in the future competition for the position of Tower Master?

Therefore, he did not offer much consolation, only hoping that his grandson could resolve his inner turmoil and transform setbacks into motivation for progress.

On either side of the dais sat high-ranking federal officials who had been invited. Qian Gu Dongfeng would occasionally nod and chat briefly with them—these people were all potential allies of the Spirit Pagoda, and maintaining good relations with them was crucial for the future development of the Spirit Pagoda.

Gu Yuena sat beside Qian Gu Dongfeng. Today, she wore a rare black dress with the hem falling to the ground, outlining her elegant figure. Her long silver-white hair was unbound and fell naturally over her shoulders, the ends swaying slightly with her breath.

Her face was only lightly powdered, yet it could not conceal her breathtaking beauty. Even the well-traveled high-ranking officials of the Federation could not help but frequently cast their gazes at her, their eyes filled with amazement.

"Are you confident?" Qian Gu Dongfeng turned to look at Gu Yuena, his voice low and carrying a hint of barely perceptible concern.

"I have it." Gu Yuena nodded without hesitation, her tone firm and without the slightest doubt.

"Alright, I'll wait and see." Qian Gu Dong Feng nodded slightly and said no more.

Gu Yuena gently agreed, but her gaze unconsciously turned to the other side of the stage—there, Fors was chatting happily with his master and mistress, Fu Xuan and other high-ranking military officials, with relaxed smiles on his face.

"Didn't this woman have no interest in the martial arts contest to choose a husband? Why would she come here on her own initiative?"

Gu Yuena narrowed her purple eyes, a hint of doubt rising in her heart. This time, Fors's attendance was not at Nan Fusheng's invitation, but rather the other party took the initiative to attend. This unusual behavior made her particularly vigilant.

To her even greater surprise, when she caught a glimpse of another area in the audience, she saw Xu Xiaoyan, Qiyana, and their group sitting in their seats, chatting and laughing intimately with each other.

"Why are they here too?" Gu Yuena's doubts grew stronger, and she secretly became wary.

Fors has always been at odds with her, and his presence here this time might be an attempt to create an unexpected situation in the final round, making her look foolish in front of everyone.

"Alright, now I'll explain the final part of the martial arts contest for marriage: the rules for choosing a husband." Aifei began announcing today's rules for the contest.

"The ten finalists will all have the opportunity to be selected by Miss Gu Yuena. Miss Gu Yuena will then appear on the selection platform, and each contestant will have one opportunity to showcase themselves during the selection process."

"You can present a carefully prepared gift, demonstrate your abilities on the spot, or express your heartfelt sentiments to win the princess's approval."

"At the same time, Miss Gu Yuena has the right to ask questions to the contestants or request to spar. After all the contestants have finished their presentations, Her Highness will make the final choice and determine her partner."

The rules are simple and clear, even somewhat "simple" compared to the complex procedures of the previous rounds.

But the audience's attention was already focused on the "final result," and no one was too concerned about the details of the rules—since there was no "prelude" performance, let the "main course" start as soon as possible.

"Now, please welcome the top ten contestants of this martial arts contest to the stage! Let's give these talented young men a warm round of applause! Audience members, now's the time to shout out the name of the one who will win the heart of your goddess!"

Effie's passionate voice instantly ignited the atmosphere.

The next second, a deafening roar erupted from the stands:

"Kun Kun! Kun Kun!"

"Sasuke! Sasuke!"

"Yu Longyue! We support you!"

"GG ​​Bond! My idol!" Different names intertwined, forming a deafening cheer, and colorful support light boards formed a dazzling sea of ​​light in the stands.

Inside the competition venue, a group of people filed in and walked toward the competition stage, proceeding in the order of their respective groups.

Ten people lined up in a row, each maintaining a distance of three or four meters from each other.

They were all young talents, and the oldest looked to be only in his thirties. Among high-level soul masters, being in one's thirties is definitely considered young.

Aifei's voice rang out with a touch of excitement, "Now, let's give a warm round of applause to the core of this martial arts contest for marriage—the final decision-maker, the Silver Dragon Princess Gu Yuena!"

The sky suddenly darkened, and then a silver beam of light descended from the sky, landing some distance away. The audience then saw a figure slowly rise under the illumination of the light shield.

Her long black dress fluttered, her silver hair danced in the wind, and she looked like a fairy with her arms outstretched, as if she had traversed a century, or perhaps only a moment had passed, before gracefully landing on the marriage proposal stage.

The sheer brilliance of this scene instantly silenced the previously noisy stadium.

In the eyes of every audience member, Gu Yuena's figure seemed to be magnified by an invisible force. Her stunning beauty, perfect figure, and even the curve of her flowing hair were clearly imprinted in everyone's eyes.

Her otherworldly beauty made everyone instinctively hold their breath, afraid of disturbing this "goddess descended to earth".

Standing on the competition stage, Lan Fuzi, even though she had been in close contact with Gu Yuena before, couldn't help but whisper in admiration: "So beautiful... so incredibly beautiful."

Before she could finish speaking, she subconsciously turned to look at Nan Fusheng beside her, only to see him staring intently at Gu Yuena on the marriage proposal stage, his eyes full of undisguised admiration.

For some reason, a complex and indescribable emotion suddenly welled up in Lan Fuzi's heart.

After standing on the marriage proposal stage, Gu Yuena slowly raised her eyes, her gaze sweeping over the ten contestants lined up below. Then she nodded slightly, greeting everyone with an elegant demeanor.

At this moment, Aifei quickly adjusted her state and picked up the soul-guided microphone again: "I believe that every audience member here, like me, has been looking forward to this moment."

Next, the ten selected candidates will give self-introductions in turn. To ensure fairness, the order of presentations will be determined by drawing lots.

She paused, deliberately drawing out her words to create suspense: "So, the first one to get the chance to perform is—the first group of selected members, Lord Naruto Uzumaki!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the entire venue erupted in cheers.

For the audience, being the "first to appear" means a natural advantage—as long as the performance is outstanding enough, it will leave the deepest first impression on Gu Yuena, and the probability of winning her heart will naturally be higher.

All eyes turned to Naruto Uzumaki, anticipating a spectacular opening.

However, to everyone's surprise.

Naruto didn't look at Gu Yuena on the marriage proposal platform. Instead, he turned to look at Uchiha Sasuke not far away, his tone urgent: "Sasuke! Come back to the village with me. Everyone has been waiting for you to come back!"

Upon hearing this, Sasuke Uchiha's expression instantly turned cold, and he looked sharply at Naruto: "Naruto! You're still as persistent as ever. Wasn't your dream to become the village chief? Instead of harassing me here, you should go back and focus on your training to achieve your goal as soon as possible."

"This is impossible!"

Naruto's eyes were filled with determination, and his tone was unwavering, "What right does someone who can't even save his comrades have to be the village chief? Sasuke, don't you understand?"

"Naruto!"

"Sasuke, give it to me!"

The atmosphere between the two instantly became tense, completely ignoring the surrounding environment and the hundreds of thousands of spectators present.

Standing in the commentary booth, Aifei watched this sudden scene unfold, coughed awkwardly twice, and tried to interrupt the conversation between the two: "I'm sorry to disturb you two lords, but Lord Naruto is currently in a crucial stage of the martial arts tournament to find a husband."

She paused, trying to maintain a professional tone: "If you have a personal grudge against Sasuke, you can resolve it yourself after the tournament. The most important thing now is to show your feelings to Princess Silver Dragon. Don't you have anything you want to say to Her Highness?"

The village? The village chief?
What a niche term!

Although the information does say that these two lords are both powerful figures from the common people, it is unexpected that they actually come from the same village.

In this day and age, the word "village" is rarely seen. A village that can nurture two young titled Douluo must be a place of outstanding people and abundant resources.

"I wonder what the village is called? Should I buy a house there someday?"

After a brief moment of random thoughts, Aifei quickly came to her senses—as a professional host, she had to bring the focus back to Gu Yuena and not let irrelevant topics distract the audience.

"A martial arts tournament to find a husband? That kind of thing is completely unimportant!"

Naruto completely ignored Effie's reminder and didn't even glance at Gu Yuena, his gaze fixed on Sasuke: "Sasuke, come back with me! The people in the village are very worried about you, and Sakura is waiting for you too."

"Enough with the nonsense!" Sasuke Uchiha suddenly unleashed a surge of dense soul power, purple light swirling around him. "Now that things have come to this, I will never go back with you. Naruto, why are you so fixated on me?"

"Because we're friends!" Naruto said firmly, his eyes gleaming with an undeniable light. "Even if it means breaking your arms and legs, I'm bringing you back today!"

"Try it if you dare!" Sasuke Uchiha's eyes flashed red, and his three-tomoe Sharingan suddenly appeared, spreading out with a sharp aura.

"Then try it!"

Behind Naruto, golden chakra suddenly erupted, and a huge phantom of a nine-tailed fox slowly emerged, its ferocious beastly eyes staring at Sasuke, the tension in the air almost freezing.

A major battle seems imminent.

"Your Excellencies! Please calm down! You must calm down!" Effie was sweating profusely, with fine beads of sweat seeping from her forehead.

She had hosted countless large-scale events and witnessed all kinds of fierce duels, but she had never encountered such an outrageous scene—the martial arts contest to find a husband had turned into a "personal feud confrontation" between two contestants.

She waved her arms and shouted, "Naruto! Sasuke! This is a time for confessing your love to the Silver Dragon Princess, not a duel! Please be rational and don't fight here!"

Even Gu Yuena, standing on the marriage proposal stage, showed a hint of surprise in her eyes. Although she hadn't cared much about the final outcome of the marriage proposal, she hadn't expected such an unexpected turn of events.

"Naruto, if you want to fight, let's go outside! Today I'm going to settle things with you!"

Uchiha Sasuke snorted coldly, his soul power surged, and a purple Susanoo phantom instantly took shape, soaring into the sky with a powerful sense of oppression, flying straight towards the outside of the Mingdu Stadium.

"I'll stay with you until the end!"

Not to be outdone, Naruto followed closely behind with the golden phantom of the Nine-Tailed Fox. The massive body crashed through the temporary soul-guiding barrier at the top of the stadium, and the two figures, one purple and one gold, quickly disappeared from everyone's sight.

These two top ten contestants of the prestigious martial arts contest for marriage "withdrew from the competition" right before the eyes of tens of thousands of people in the audience!

"Wait! Lord Naruto! Lord Sasuke!" Effie stood rooted to the spot, watching the direction the two had gone, her voice filled with barely concealed despair, "Even if you're going to fight, at least wait until the tournament is over before you leave!"

Her shouts echoed in the empty stadium, but only elicited murmurs from the audience. This originally solemn finale had taken an absurd turn, with its first "unexpected" moment.

(End of this chapter)