Chapter 96: Questioning

“Why are you all looking at me like that?” Tang Ji felt deeply wronged. Heaven and earth be his witness, this cultivator who had suddenly appeared and disguised himself as a participant really had absolutely nothing to do with him.

“Do you dare claim he has no connection whatsoever to your Suitian Sword Sect? Or are you saying this secret realm has gone out of control, first swallowing three of my sect’s disciples, and then stealthily swallowing a Foundation Establishment cultivator?”

Tang Ji nodded. “Perhaps that is exactly what happened.”

“Amitabha. Then may I ask, Sect Master Tang, why did this cultivator disguise himself as a participant beforehand?”

Ding Jieyou of the Hehe Sect said, “Sect Master Tang likely already has the answer in his heart, which is why he shows no worry or anxiety. Otherwise, if such a blunder occurred during the Five Sects Conference, the Suitian Sword Sect’s reputation would not look good.”

That was the downside of having dealt with them for too long. The moment he tried to hide even a little, these three would catch the scent and expose him.

But how could he possibly tell the truth? Was he supposed to say outright that this was a certain Divine Venerable from their own sect who, due to some well-known personal grudge, was currently causing trouble for someone else’s disciple? Moreover, he had been exposed the moment they crossed paths. If word of this reached the ears of a certain Dragon Venerable, he would probably fly to the Suitian Sword Sect overnight just to mock Divine Venerable Wushan!

During the brief moment Tang Ji hesitated, the other three immediately understood. Gu Wufang reacted the fastest, instantly taking out a Shadow Retention Stone. He claimed it was to record the fight scene of his Little Martial Uncle learning a new sword art, but in truth, those who knew, knew.

As for worrying about his Little Martial Uncle’s safety, truth be told, Gu Wufang was not particularly concerned. Setting aside the fact that Wen Xu definitely had a protective talisman from a certain Dragon Venerable on him, just looking at their cultivation bases: that Saber Peak disciple inside had managed to defeat a Foundation Establishment cultivator while only in the Qi Refining Stage. All three of them possessed formidable combat strength. They might get injured, but it certainly wouldn’t be life-threatening.

For cultivators, injury was a routine part of life. In a way, getting hurt was even a good thing.

Watching Wen Xu’s astonishing, ghost-like swordplay, Gu Wufang thought to himself, It’s only been a few days, yet he’s already practicing it with such form. Not bad, not bad. He would record it and bring it back to present to the one on Guochun Peak. It could count as a local souvenir from this trip to the Suitian Sword Sect.

In reality, however, Wen Xu was far from as relaxed as he appeared. The Jianfeng Sword Art was highly difficult to begin with. Although it did not have many forms, its combinations and transitions were extremely fluid, and because it was so flexible, it was also exceptionally difficult to control.

When practicing alone, he could already smoothly execute the entire set of sword techniques. But when facing an opponent, especially a master whose cultivation was a whole major realm higher than his, Wen Xu felt the sword art becoming increasingly sluggish.

Ultimately, his early Foundation Establishment cultivation was artificial. Lacking the actual process of advancing to Foundation Establishment, his control over the spiritual energy in his body was far less precise than it had been in the outside world. To some extent, this extra spiritual energy made it easier for him to control the wind, but when it came to controlling a sword, it became a hindrance instead.

A weapon like the sword demanded a great deal from its wielder in every aspect. Once any single aspect fell out of balance, the blade would immediately grow dull. Wen Xu could not yet be considered a pure sword cultivator, but he had already faintly realized that within the secret realm, he was unable to exert his full sword-fighting prowess.

He had felt a trace of this earlier in the water prison formation, and now, fighting against an opponent, the sensation was like thick paste, causing his sword to grow slower and slower.

Things that don’t belong to me are indeed too unreliable, he thought.

Wen Xu flicked his sword. Without any further hesitation, he suppressed all the extra spiritual energy in his body back into his dantian. Things that were not fully under his control should not be used in the first place.

Almost instantly, Divine Venerable Wushan noticed it: the kid’s sword had become faster.

As a Divine Venerable who had lived for a very long time, Wushan had seen far too many sword geniuses. To look no further than his own sect, there was the renowned Meixi Jian, who possessed a Lightning Spiritual Root and a Natural Sword Constitution, and whose progress in swordplay could be described as advancing by leaps and bounds. Having practically watched Meixi Jian grow up, Wushan was able to perceive it even more clearly:

This kid’s talent for the sword was somewhat terrifying.

He had noticed during their clash just now that this youth could not have been cultivating for long. Yet, whether in his use of spiritual energy or his control of the wind, he was highly creative. So why would a Wind Spiritual Root who practiced the sword join Yonglu Mountain?

Did that make any sense? Was Jun Zhaoying dead? Or had the Suitian Sword Sect’s ranking dropped? What right did Yonglu Mountain have to him!

The more he fought, the angrier he became. Once he got out, he would definitely have a serious talk with Tang Ji. What was the meaning of handing over such a prime prospect to Yonglu Mountain? His own theories on swordplay were also highly comprehensive; Wushan felt he could easily teach this disciple himself.

Divine Venerable Wushan would not bully a child. Since the boy had suppressed his cultivation, he would also suppress his own to the Qi Refining Stage. He refused to believe he could still lose.

A stick of incense ago, Wushan had felt it absolutely impossible for him to lose. A stick of incense later, he vanished into the air, taking his sword with him.

Although he hadn’t lost, a draw was still incredibly embarrassing. The only saving grace was that he hadn’t used his own face to lose face.

Zhou Ji: …

“Wen Xuxu, are you alright? Hurry and take some elixir.”

Wen Xu was actually fine; his body was mostly just exhausted. His opponent clearly had plenty of strength left, but had likely stopped because continuing would be… too much like bullying him. In a way, he had a vague idea of who this person was.

His master’s thirty-page list was actually somewhat useful. Or rather, in a way, his master possessed a great deal of self-awareness.

“I’m fine. Let’s leave this place first.”

As Wen Xu was the shared brain of the team, Chen Zui and Bian Chunzhou always followed his lead without question. Hearing his words, they prepared to take him away, but seeing this, Zhou Ji immediately caught up to them.

“You three, could we step aside for a chat?”

As Zhou Ji spoke, his gaze landed on the blindfolded youth in the middle. If he remembered correctly, this person should only have a Qi Refining cultivation. At least before entering the secret realm, he had been at the ninth layer of Qi Refining. The two Yonglu Mountain disciples beside him should also have been in the Qi Refining Stage.

Yet now, not only had they all suddenly become early Foundation Establishment cultivators, but they had also entered the Forest Secret Realm. Was this an open display of using the back door?!

“Apologies, but we have nothing to say to you.”

Zhou Ji still did not back down. “Are you sure? We met before entering the secret realm competition.”

This was a subtle way of letting them know that he knew their true cultivation levels. If they did not want him to expose them right then and there, they had better agree to talk to him.

“You…” Bian Chunzhou was about to snap back when he suddenly realized that Zhou Ji must have misunderstood. He thought they had used the back door to participate in the Five Sects Conference.

When he realized this, Bian Chunzhou could not help but widen his eyes. Aha? Is this guy out of his mind? Yonglu Mountain is one of the Five Great Sects, after all. Would they really do something like that in full view of everyone… Oh. In full view of everyone. Which means they really did enter the Forest Secret Realm!

Which meant all that beautiful nonsense he had spouted earlier was…

Bian Chunzhou felt utterly defeated. Forget it. A cultivator’s life was long; he would just take it one day at a time. He only hoped no one would pay attention to the three of them, the fake Foundation Establishment cultivators.

“Have we met? Sorry, I’m blind, so I don’t recognize people easily.” After saying this, Wen Xu had no intention of lingering. “So, can you let us leave now? Of course, if you want to fight, we’re happy to oblige.”

Zhou Ji did not expect the three of them to be so arrogant and unyielding. Did disciples of great sects really have nothing to fear?

Having been suppressed by his father and clan for so long, Zhou Ji could no longer control himself. More accurately, he was jealous of the blindfolded youth. He was jealous that the other man could stand by A-Yu’s side. If the Little Martial Uncle of Tianji Pavilion really was A-Yu, then… The anger in his heart flared up completely, leaving him with very little rationality. “So this is how Yonglu Mountain, one of the Five Great Sects, conducts itself!”

“Are you…” an idiot?!

Before Bian Chunzhou could get the words out, the other party fired off like a machine gun. “The three of you, every single one, aren’t actually at the early Foundation Establishment stage, are you? Faking your cultivation to enter the secret realm competition, what exactly are you plotting?”

What?! Faking their cultivation? What is this guy talking about?! So that huge commotion earlier was just to build up hype?! So they’re fake Foundation Establishment, but real Golden Cores? This… since when did Yonglu Mountain become so disgusting?

To actually use the Five Sects Conference to build hype! How cheap! No wonder there were four extra people. Turns out they had… malicious intentions! And that guy who suddenly appeared earlier, he was just a hype man^[1], wasn’t he? It was all just to show off his swordplay!

For a moment, the onlookers felt worse than if they had swallowed flies. Thinking back, that exploding water ball from earlier might have just been some sort of illusion! How cheap. Is the Suitian Sword Sect really going to let Yonglu Mountain cheat like this?

Just as everyone was preparing to curse Yonglu Mountain and denounce the rigged match, the dialogue from the secret realm echoed once more, and… it completely shattered their worldview yet again.

“Yeah, we’re indeed not at the early Foundation Establishment stage. Is there a problem with that?” With his friends by his side, Chen Zui rarely bothered to use his brain. Hearing this, he found it very strange. What was there to criticize? Besides, was early Foundation Establishment that hard? He would be advancing to Foundation Establishment very soon anyway.

This guy must have something wrong with his head.

“You faked your cultivation to enter the secret realm, and you’re asking me what the problem is?” These three were simply too shameless.

“What do you mean, faked cultivation?” Chen Zui did not understand. “Oh, you mean how I was only at the peak of Qi Refining, but now I’m at early Foundation Establishment? About that, I don’t know either. You should go ask someone else.”

So frank, so direct. Outside the secret realm, Sect Master Tang Ji silently clutched his chest.

Never mind Tang Ji; every single cultivator outside the secret realm who heard this wanted to clutch their chest.

“Qi Refining! He said Qi Refining, did I hear that right?”

“…No, you didn’t. He said he was at the peak of Qi Refining.”

“Is Qi Refining so terrifying nowadays? That explosion earlier would be considered terrifying even for a Golden Core, yet he actually said they are at Qi Refining! Has the world gone mad, or have I?”

“It must be fake. He’s probably just saying that to temporarily placate that cultivator surnamed Zhou…”

Before the onlooker could finish speaking, he was instantly proven wrong as Zhou Ji spoke up. “Going from the Qi Refining Stage to the Foundation Establishment Stage, is that not enough?”

…It was indeed quite suspicious, but it was also rather damaging to their confidence as cultivators. Peak Qi Refining, and yet so terrifying!