Chapter 70: Sure

Although he had really wanted to lose, Wen Xu still managed to win this difficult match to enter the top ten. His opponent was an inner sect disciple at the peak of the ninth level of Qi Refining, who had entered the sect six years before him and studied under a Nascent Soul True Monarch of Sword Peak.

This was also his first time fighting a sword cultivator. Rumor had it that sword cultivators were exceptionally good at fighting above their realm, so in a fight without any flashy spells, he had won with great difficulty. Fortunately, the gap in their cultivation levels was not too wide. In the end, he relied on the Wind-stacking Array to secure a decisive victory.

But Wen Xu knew very well that just as they were studying the moves of the winning disciples, others were definitely studying theirs. The Wind-stacking Array was highly effective, but it was also easy to counter. The only reason he had waited until the very end of this match to use it was because his attempts had been interrupted multiple times earlier. His future opponents would only be stronger. If he did not make some changes, it would be very difficult to win again with his current cultivation level.

His cultivation was still too shallow. Wen Xu tightened his grip on the Wind-Folding Fan in his hand. Perhaps he could still make some adjustments. Although stacking arrays was good, it was not reliable enough for one-on-one combat at the moment.

But in truth, Wen Xu was still thinking… too highly of his fellow disciples.

Although many were indeed studying the winners’ moves, the eliminated disciples made up the vast majority. While they cared about which senior brothers and sisters had won and whose ultimate move was stronger… who didn’t love a bit of gossip?

For instance, the gossip about a certain Senior Brother Shi from the inner sect had been updated again. Rumor had it that during a recent match, Senior Brother Shi had set aside his cultivation specifically to watch the clash of titans between Senior Brother Bian and Senior Sister Lin. When the two saw Senior Brother Shi arrive, their half-hearted fight, which had dragged on for most of the day, instantly erupted with sparks. According to eyewitnesses, they fought so fiercely that the sky turned dark and the sun and moon lost their light. Furthermore, Senior Brother Bian had even used the talismanless technique that only Senior Brother Shi knew, instantly defeating Senior Sister Lin on the spot, in every sense of the word.

They said Senior Sister Lin cried terribly, but Senior Brother Shi was completely oblivious to her feelings, caring only about the winner. Ah, it was truly… However, word was that Senior Brother Shi did go to comfort Senior Brother Lin Congcong afterward. Right now, Senior Brother Lin Congcong had already gone into secluded cultivation, supposedly preparing to redeem himself in the year-end assessment.

As expected, being an inner sect disciple wasn’t easy. The love-hate drama of these chosen ones was truly delicious. 🙂

“Where did you get this news? How come I’ve never heard of it?”

“Everyone knows, we just don’t talk about it in front of the people involved. Also, all gossip about the Little Grand-Uncle Master is strictly forbidden.”

“Why? Is the Little Grand-Uncle Master going to eat people?”

“Not really. The Little Grand-Uncle Master rarely shows himself and is very polite, but he gives off a sense of distance. Of course, that’s not the point. The point is…”

“What is the point?”

“The point is, the Punishment Hall has a disciplinary elder who is a real stickler for detail. He’s from Lingyao Peak. You know what that means: a minimum sentence of clearing two mu of spiritual fields.”

“The ‘respect the hierarchy’ guy?”

“Yeah. Anyway, some daredevil has already gone to plow the fields. A senior brother from Kaiyuan Peak, apparently. I heard he was caught and dragged off to do hard labor just for discussing some minor gossip about the Sect Master.”

…It was highly likely that the Sect Master had personally ordered this using an avatar.

Of course, he only dared to think this to himself. If he said it aloud and someone overheard, they might get dragged off to plow fields one day just for stepping into the sect with their left foot first.

Clearing spiritual fields was, without a doubt, the single most hated way for Yonglu Mountain disciples to earn sect contribution points.

That bunch of apothecaries from Lingyao Peak usually looked amiable and good-natured. But when it came to clearing spiritual fields and tending to spiritual herbs, they turned into life-claiming ghosts straight out of the underworld. Even death itself didn’t hound people this hard. Every time the disciples went to clear the fields, they left feeling incredibly frustrated, as if they were fools who had forgotten to bring their brains. The worst part was, if you tried to argue back, they actually had logic and evidence on their side. Seriously, if anyone wanted to temper their Dao heart, they could just take on Lingyao Peak’s missions for a month straight. Guaranteed… they would give up in three days.

Anyone who could last seven days was either suffering just to save face, or simply not normal.

“How brutal. Are the spiritual fields on Lingyao Peak really that scarce?”

“They are. Why do you think they know exactly how to clear spiritual fields?”

“…Why is that?”

“It’s because they’re rich and don’t want to do the dirty work. The spiritual fields we clear are used by them to experiment with all kinds of spiritual herbs and flowers. Some of those herbs grow so aggressively that once they’re harvested, they need Spirit Stone coolies like us to nourish the soil back to health. You get it, right?”

If they had enough Spirit Stones in their pockets, who would want to do this work and take this crap? Cultivation was truly not easy.

“Senior Brothers, what are you chatting about so happily? Why don’t you share it so I can have a laugh too?”

The two turned their heads in unison. Good grief, what was with these Lingyao Peak disciples? They didn’t even need to sniff out gossip to show up. Was this really necessary? No, they were just…

Better to sacrifice a fellow Daoist than oneself. Without hesitation, the two shared the gossip about a certain Senior Brother Shi.

“Junior Brother, this isn’t verified. You must not spread it around.”

The Lingyao Peak disciple, having heard his fill of gossip, left satisfied. Hehe, tomorrow when he went to hound people to plow the fields, he would have new gossip to chat about.

Thus, the rumor spread from ten to a hundred, and eventually reached the ears of the person involved.

A certain Bian Chunzhou, who had just stepped off the arena and fainted, practically sat up startled from his deathbed, his eyes bulging wide. Chen Zui hadn’t expected his casual remark to have the power to bring someone back to life. He couldn’t help but stroke his chin. “Has my eloquence improved?”

“No… next time, I suggest you keep your mouth shut.” It was only because Bian Chunzhou had a strong heart that he could take this kind of shock. After saying that, he fainted again. After all, this battle had been too difficult. He had thought he wouldn’t dare risk everything, but once he stood on the arena, the adrenaline rushed to his head, and he threw all caution to the wind.

To secure a spot at the Five Sects Conference, he had truly risked his life.

But because of this, his injuries were quite severe. In the next round, he would be a pushover. Whoever drew him would be guaranteed a spot in the top five. Rather than letting an outsider benefit, it was better to let a friend have the advantage. Heavens, please let him draw Wen Xuxu or Chen Zuizui in the next round.

Then, having finally mustered enough energy to draw his lot, a certain Bian ended up drawing…

“Whoa, Junior Brother Bian, you got your wish.” The disciple from Kaiyuan Peak had clearly heard that ridiculous rumor too. But while everyone thought it was absurd, they also… well, you know.

Bian Chunzhou’s face instantly turned pale. “Senior Sister, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Haha, right. Well, good luck, Junior Brother. We’re all rooting for you!”

Bian Chunzhou: …He could really do without this kind of blessing.

“Senior Sister, can I just forfeit and surrender?”

The senior sister shook her head. “There’s no rule against it, but I wouldn’t recommend it.”

Had he used up all his luck in his match against Lin Congcong? Was this the legendary blessing in disguise, or was it a curse? Although he didn’t mind, and even wanted to fight Senior Brother Shi, that was only if he hadn’t heard that rumor, which was so ridiculous it had probably spread across the entire Hanhai Region.

Don’t any of you need to cultivate? Are you so idle because you don’t want to ascend anymore?

Bian Chunzhou returned to his cave dwelling in a sullen mood. Before long, he received Transmission Talismans from his friends. Once they compared notes, he became even more depressed.

Aside from the three of them, the top ten spots for those below Foundation Establishment included Senior Brother Shi Yijian (peak Qi Refining), Senior Sister Liu Zheyan (peak ninth-level Qi Refining), Senior Brother Fang Buge (peak Qi Refining), and Senior Sister Rong Xiaoling (peak Qi Refining) from the inner sect. There were only three from the outer sect, all of whom were at peak Qi Refining. Among them, they had already fought Senior Sister Huo Shengyin and Senior Brother Li Anqu. The last one, Senior Brother Han Yu, was also at peak Qi Refining, but he reportedly came from a prestigious clan and was incredibly wealthy. When it came to competing with talismans at the same cultivation level, he was unmatched.

Thus, even if Bian Chunzhou didn’t have internal injuries, his chances of making it into the top five were slim. Aside from him, Wen Xu had the lowest cultivation level among the remaining nine. However, the strength of high-level Qi Refining cultivators was generally quite close, so… it would all come down to actual combat.

Chen Zui was very satisfied with his opponent. “In my next match, I’m up against Senior Brother Fang Buge from the inner sect. He’s a sword cultivator.”

His previous fight with Xia Ying hadn’t been satisfying enough, and he wanted to test himself against other types of sword cultivators. He had heard that Fang Buge studied under Venerable Suilie, and his swordplay was exceptionally explosive. That was exactly the kind of opponent he liked.

“What about you, Wen Xuxu?”

Wen Xu unfolded the match token in his hand. “Senior Brother Han Yu from the outer sect.”

…Well, they were all formidable opponents.

“I wish you both victory. As for me, there’s no point even hoping; my injuries won’t let me use most of my spiritual energy.” Bian Chunzhou was already very satisfied. After all, he had made it to the finals at only the eighth level of Qi Refining. Even his master was astonished that he had lasted this long and had given him a substantial reward. “Which means, other than us, the remaining two are the inner sect senior sisters. I heard, and this is strictly rumor, that Senior Sister Liu and Senior Sister Xiaoling have some bad blood between them.”

Listening to gossip about oneself was agonizing, but gossiping about others was highly entertaining. Because of this, Bian Chunzhou couldn’t really blame others for spreading rumors. After all, when it came to “do not do to others what you would not have them do to you,” none of them had managed to follow that rule. 🙂 As long as the rumors didn’t spread outside the sect, it was fine.

“What kind of bad blood?”

Bian Chunzhou shook his head. “I don’t know, but they’re just like me and Lin Congcong; they just can’t stand each other. Senior Sister Liu is gentle and warm to everyone, except she never has a pleasant look for Senior Sister Xiaoling. Senior Sister Xiaoling is outgoing and free-spirited, but she loves finding fault with Senior Sister Liu and refuses to miss even the slightest opportunity.”

Wen Xu: …That sounds like they actually have a very good relationship.

“I wonder if they’ll be fated to draw each other?”

Bian Chunzhou had only made a casual remark, but then… wow, it actually came true. The inner sect had a civil war between Liu and Rong, and the outer sect had a civil war too. Good grief, looking at it this way, he was also in an inner-sect civil war. It was just that… the outcome was already a foregone conclusion.

So when Bian Chunzhou stood on the arena stage, he was even calm enough to make a request: “Senior Brother Shi, could you let me lose with a bit of dignity?”

A smile spread across Shi Yijian’s face. “What does ‘dignified’ look like? Why don’t you teach me, Junior Brother Bian?”

I’m screwed. I shouldn’t have brought it up. Senior Brother Shi, you’d better shut up, or who knows how this shitty gossip will spread next. It might turn into something like “a certain Senior Brother Shi throws the match for X.”

No, no, no, no. Bian Chunzhou immediately said with a straight face, “Actually, it’s fine even if it’s not dignified.”