Sect Grand Tournament

Xu Ya didn’t spare even half a glance at the male lead.

Now was the moment for her to make her stance clear.

Xu Ya never sought trouble, but now that her memories had returned, she wasn’t afraid of it either.

Perhaps, by openly revealing her connection with Shi Yuzhen in front of the Culinary Cultivators, her future path of feeding him would go much more smoothly.

After a brief pause to consider, Xu Ya bowed to Master Wang and said, “Many thanks to Master Wang for standing up for this disciple. I am deeply grateful. My recent research into immortal culinary ingredients is entirely due to Senior Brother Shi saving my life. To express my gratitude, I’ve often come and gone late at night. I ask Master to punish me if I’ve overstepped.”

Xu Ya gave Master Wang a way to save face. His expression eased slightly, and he began to listen more attentively to her explanation.

Shi Yuzhen stood behind the crowd with his hands clasped behind his back, neither agreeing nor objecting to her words. When he heard the phrase “saving my life,” his brow lifted ever so slightly—what a little liar.

Master Wang’s broad palm landed heavily on Xu Ya’s shoulder as he laughed heartily to maintain appearances. “So that’s what it was. I’ve heard things have been hectic leading up to the tournament, and your senior brother already explained it to me. Why would I punish you for that? Hahaha!”

And just like that, the matter of Xu Ya being falsely accused was settled. Zhang Xin, who had committed a serious violation, was punished and sent to reflect in seclusion for over half a year, effectively vanishing from sight. Though the scandal did spread, since one of the main parties involved was the little-known Xu Ya, it didn’t generate much discussion.

As the tournament approached, even the Culinary Cultivators who had witnessed the entire incident firsthand no longer dared to casually summon Xu Ya.

Who would dare joke around? What exactly was her relationship with the Great Senior Brother?

Now, quite a few female cultivators, unable to suppress their curiosity, began asking her—some openly, some in secret—what her relationship with Shi Yuzhen really was.

Though Xu Ya patiently explained over and over that she was merely repaying a life-saving debt, no one seemed to believe her.

This little incident didn’t change Xu Ya’s life as much as one might expect. She was still the same rookie who hadn’t formally acknowledged a master, still the same temporary helper quietly working behind the scenes in the Culinary Cultivators’ sect.

Only now, from time to time, Shi Yuzhen would personally appear at the Culinary Cultivators’ sect, unerringly picking Xu Ya out from among the crowd of cultivators, extending his hand to silently request food.

Each time, Xu Ya would pull out a pre-packed box of fried chicken from her spatial pouch with a baffled expression and hand it over. Shi Yuzhen never said a word, took it, and left swiftly.

The senior sisters would hide behind a pillar in the corner, peeking out and barely suppressing their shrieks. Once he left, they would immediately revert to their NPC-like routine, pestering Xu Ya again and again about what her relationship with the Great Senior Brother really was.

To outsiders, the two of them seemed incredibly close.

And so, a rumor quietly began to spread throughout the Yunmeng Immortal Marsh.

The annual Sect Grand Tournament of Yunmeng Immortal Marsh had finally begun.

The venue, the Yu Xian Platform, was located at the foot of the Immortal Marsh mountains, where the mortal world and the cultivation realm truly intersected. Its original purpose, beyond hosting the tournament, was to scout talented cultivators—wandering cultivators or mortals with exceptional spiritual roots could all enter the sect through this event.

In other words, if Xu Ya wanted to leave, this was the perfect opportunity to slip away unnoticed.

The old Xu Ya, who had lost her memories, believed that since the Immortal Marsh had raised her for so many years, she could never abandon it over a bit of mistreatment. But no one knew how much she had changed in recent days.

Xu Ya arrived early at the Yu Xian Platform with the Culinary Cultivators to help prepare the venue.

After a month of nonstop work, the Culinary Cultivators finally had a moment to breathe. The cultivators were all in high spirits.

Only Xu Ya was being driven mad by the system.

It still believed she would flee at the last moment and kept chanting in her head like some superstitious nag.

“Could you stop already?”

Even the system’s robotic voice sounded anxious: 【55, you have to promise me you’re really not going to run.】

“I’m not leaving. If I wanted to, I would’ve already. I think I’ve said this five times now.” Xu Ya replied coldly as she pulled out the ingredients she had prepared from her spatial pouch.

She had now been granted a single, narrow table—just wide enough for one person—to display her food.

One by one, she opened the lids of the golden, crispy fried chicken she had prepared and arranged them neatly.

The perfectly fried chicken gleamed under the sunlight. As soon as she lifted the lids, an indescribably mouthwatering aroma wafted out, drawing the attention of nearby senior brothers and sisters.

But no one approached. They simply watched from a distance, still sneering inwardly—what kind of powerful dish could that little good-for-nothing Xu Ya possibly make?

Every year, the Yunmeng Immortal Marsh’s Grand Tournament drew large crowds of mortals. For their survival, mortals toiled from dawn to dusk every day. But when the tournament came around, most would give themselves a day off to watch the cultivators compete.

One by one, cultivators from various sects arrived, descending from the sky to the cheers of the crowd.

Especially the sword cultivators, who arrived in perfect formation, flying on their swords and landing gracefully. Their robes fluttered in the air, creating a dazzling spectacle.

In the past, Xu Ya would have been one of the cheering crowd. But now, she was sick of these self-righteous cultivators and their flashy tricks. Instead, she sat on the ground with her back to the Yu Xian Platform, leaning against the table leg and gnawing on a piece of fried chicken.

The familiar crispy flavor awakened her taste buds. This specially refined immortal fried chicken didn’t cause internal heat, and with the system’s added immortal energy, it was just as addictive as anything from the modern world.

The tournament officially began. The various sect masters took their seats at the center of the Yu Xian Platform to oversee the proceedings.

Anyone who knew Xu Ya’s usual demeanor would be shocked to see her now.

The timid wallflower who never dared speak up was currently playing with cats and dogs, occasionally tearing off a piece of fried chicken to feed them.

In the distance, a filthy little beggar stared hungrily at Xu Ya’s actions, swallowing hard.

Xu Ya noticed immediately and waved the child over.

The child hesitated, shrinking back into the shadows, seeming to think she was trying to shoo him away. He stayed hidden for a long time.

Xu Ya walked toward the dark corner. In the shadows, the child’s dirty eyes were the brightest thing about him. He was skin and bones, curled up in the corner with skeletal black hands wrapped around his knees, too afraid to move.

Xu Ya spoke again. “Hey, kid. Are you hungry?”

The beggar boy looked about seven or eight years old, though he was probably older than he appeared. He seemed surprised for a moment upon hearing her words, but obediently stayed put, not daring to respond.

A flicker of sympathy rose in Xu Ya’s heart. She had once looked just like that when the orphanage director picked her up off the street.

She grabbed a box of fried chicken from her table and walked over, gently placing it near the child’s feet before walking away.

The child didn’t move at first, just stared at the food like a starving little wolf.

After a while, he glanced around, then crawled over on all fours. His small, blackened hands grabbed the still-warm fried chicken, and without hesitation, he retreated into the shadows and began devouring it ravenously.

Seeing this, Xu Ya finally relaxed. A faint, almost imperceptible smile appeared on her lips as she returned to her seat.

The tournament events unfolded one after another, full of twists and excitement. As the competition progressed, the Culinary Cultivators’ food stalls began to shine, offering a dazzling array of dishes for the cultivators to choose from.

Many low-level cultivators came and went, glancing at Xu Ya’s food with disdain, giving her a cryptic smile before moving on to other stalls run by senior brothers and sisters to get their meals.

Xu Ya didn’t care at all. The Culinary Cultivators had prepared food for the entire Yunmeng Immortal Marsh, and all cultivators could eat for free—no spirit stones required. In other words, Xu Ya had spent an entire month running around for the sect and hadn’t earned a single coin for her trouble.

So Xu Ya enjoyed her peace: they didn’t want to eat, and she didn’t want to give it to them anyway.

Xu Ya sat in a corner, hugging her knees. With a flick of her hand, she plucked a foxtail from the ground and began teasing the ants crawling nearby.

A flash of white appeared—suddenly, a man stood in front of the Culinary Cultivator’s stall, drawing gasps from the crowd.

The white-robed man seemed completely unaware of the stir his arrival had caused. He walked straight toward a particular stall, and every step he took sent waves of astonishment rippling through the onlookers.

This man was none other than the famed and powerful first disciple of the Yunmeng Immortal Marsh—Shi Yuzhen. Even ordinary mortals who had come just to watch the spectacle knew his name.

Xu Ya, still toying with the little ants, remained oblivious.

Only when the man chuckled softly did Xu Ya snap out of her daze.

At that moment, the white-robed man stood before her, while the young girl sat on the ground hugging her knees. He reached out once again and helped her to her feet.

The noisy surroundings fell into sudden silence.

“What’s the relationship between Senior Brother Shi and her?? Could the rumors be true??”

“What rumors??”

“You know… that Senior Brother Shi is in love… with that useless girl…”

“?? That can’t be true!”

“No way! Isn’t she the useless one Master Xu keeps trying to protect? Why is she still in the Marsh after all these years? By the Marsh’s standards, shouldn’t she have been kicked out long ago?”

“You didn’t hear about the huge commotion at the Culinary Cultivator sect that day? There’s definitely something going on between those two.”

“I don’t know.”

“I don’t get it either.”

The murmurs of doubt were shut out by Shi Yuzhen. After helping Xu Ya up, he deliberately acted as though they were quite close.

Caught off guard by the surge of immortal energy lifting her, Xu Ya nearly collided with Shi Yuzhen when she stood. She quickly stepped back to put some distance between them.

The move made Shi Yuzhen raise an eyebrow slightly. He stepped forward again.

With a gentle smile, Shi Yuzhen turned to the small table in front of Xu Ya and said warmly, “Junior Sister, would you mind introducing the food you’ve brought?”

Shi Yuzhen often found Xu Ya amusing. She talked about repaying him, claimed she liked him, but it always felt like empty words.

Of course, Shi Yuzhen never believed the little liar. From the moment he arrived at the Meeting Immortals Platform that morning, he’d been swarmed by cultivators who adored him. But among all those people, not once did Xu Ya—who always said she liked him—show up.

He easily spotted her in the crowd, playing with ants and grass like she hadn’t a care in the world. That wasn’t something someone infatuated with him would do.

Why didn’t she cling to him?

This silly girl—why couldn’t she even put on a proper act?

Shi Yuzhen had thought long and hard about why Xu Ya acted this way, but he still couldn’t find a good explanation for her behavior.

The fried chicken Xu Ya gave him had indeed been beneficial to his cultivation. In fact, it had a remarkably enhancing effect. Shi Yuzhen often felt he was becoming addicted to it.

So, if that was the case, why not keep her close and observe her?

— Translator’s Notes —

– reflect in seclusion: A common punishment in cultivation settings where offenders are isolated to contemplate their mistakes and achieve spiritual enlightenment.

– save face: A concept important in Chinese culture referring to maintaining dignity, prestige, or reputation in social situations.

– Yu Xian Platform: Lit. ‘Meeting Immortals Platform,’ a sacred space where the mortal and cultivation realms intersect, often used for important sect events.