Falling off a cliff
“Nameless girl? Nameless girl?” Ning Xihe called softly.
Yun Wei was intently observing the crowd of people gathered in the Guiyun Sect's plaza when she heard the sound and turned around.
Today she was dressed in a neat, moon-white outfit, her dark hair tied up high with only a plain silver hairpin. Her expression was as cool as ever as when she glanced at Ning Xihe and nodded slightly: "Senior Sister Ning."
Ning Xihe hurried through the crowd, her face filled with concern: "Nameless girl, have you found teammates yet? If not, I..."
"Thank you for your concern, Senior Sister Ning. I already have one." Yun Wei said calmly as she walked with her towards the gathering place of the contestants.
Ning Xihe looked slightly surprised and asked with a smile, "Who is so lucky to win the favor of this nameless girl?"
Yun Wei's gaze swept across the crowd and landed precisely on a figure leaning against a stone pillar in the distance.
Xie Lanchen, dressed in black, stood with his arms crossed and chin slightly raised, coldly observing the noisy crowd in the square, giving off an unapproachable air.
“It’s him. Xie Lanchen,” Yun Wei said calmly.
Ning Xihe followed her gaze, her smile freezing on her face: "Junior Brother Xie? His strength is undeniable, but his personality is notoriously difficult to get along with within the sect. Teaming up with him might be..."
Yunwei recalled the scene from yesterday when she asked him to team up with her.
The young man was stunned at first, then glanced at her with a complicated look, before turning his face away and snorting coldly: "Now you know to come looking for me? The day I left Biyue Manor, I asked you if you wanted to come along, and you refused so decisively."
She rejected him at the time because Guiyun Sect had many spies, and it was not advisable for their relationship to be exposed too early.
Since the boy later publicly admitted to "finding her," forming a team at this point was a natural progression.
I never expected that he would still remember what happened that day, being so petty and vengeful.
She lowered her eyes: "Thank you for the reminder, Senior Sister Ning. I have my own considerations."
At this moment, all thirty-two disciples who had advanced to the next level had arrived at the square.
The bell tolled clearly, and the two elders slowly ascended the high platform in front.
One was Elder Wu, and the other was tall and thin with a deep vertical line between his eyebrows; he was Elder Wang, who was in charge of criminal law.
He is the most impartial and incorruptible of Father's subordinates. Now he has been sent to oversee the competition. It seems that Father's suspicions were not completely satisfied yesterday. He wants to take this opportunity to observe her further. We must be more careful.
Elder Wang cleared his throat twice, silencing the murmurs in the room: "Today's season tests your teamwork and adaptability. The task is simple: obtain the 'Twin Lotuses.' You will be transported to the forbidden area shortly; you must find your teammates first." He continued, "The 'Cloud Trace Beads' worn around your necks are linked; if one is lost, the other is lost! If a teammate's bead is shattered, even if they are unharmed, they will still be eliminated! There are eight Twin Lotuses hidden in the forest. You have two hours; only by obtaining the Twin Lotuses can you win!"
Elder Wu then added, his gaze seemingly sweeping over Yun Wei: "Obtaining the Twin Lotuses is no easy feat, and we must be wary of others trying to snatch them. Although the sect competition is supposed to end with a point, swords have no eyes. If you harbor any improper thoughts or take risks relying on petty cleverness, you will bear the consequences!"
Yun Wei remained calm, as if she hadn't heard anything.
"You can't help but dislike or doubt me," she thought.
She turned towards the boy and saw that he was also looking at her.
Yunwei nodded to him, her lips moving silently as she uttered the words "high place".
Although Xie Lanchen has an awkward personality, they should at least have this much understanding.
The two elders simultaneously made hand seals, and a great light shone brightly in the sky above the plaza. The teleportation array suddenly lit up, causing Yun Wei to raise her hand to shield her eyes.
The bright light was blinding. When she lowered her hand, she found herself at the edge of a deep forest, with steep cliffs beside her and the sound of rushing river water coming from below.
As agreed, the boy should go to higher ground.
She concealed her presence and quietly darted towards a high slope in the woods.
As she approached the top of the slope, she keenly sensed a slight movement in the bushes behind her. Instantly, she focused her attention and placed her hand on the hilt of the Broken Dust Sword.
But then the bushes parted, and Xie Lanchen stepped out with his arms crossed, a few blades of grass clinging to his black robes. His expression was cold and arrogant: "So slow." He glanced at her from head to toe. "I thought you couldn't even find the rendezvous point."
After saying that, the young man snorted coldly: "This place is completely different from the place during the competition three years ago. Those old guys really love to cause trouble."
“Lotus flowers prefer shade and dampness, let’s go check out the forest with the thickest fog to the east first,” Yunwei judged, and took the lead.
The boy followed closely behind, and the two walked briskly through the woods, one after the other, without saying a word to each other.
As she was walking, she suddenly saw a figure running towards her in a disheveled state.
It's Zhao Changsheng.
His face was filled with terror, as if he were being chased by something horrible.
Xie Lanchen's eyes sharpened, and the Lone Goose Sword was instantly drawn.
"No! Don't do it!" Zhao Changsheng stopped abruptly in fright, waving his hands repeatedly. "There's a big guy in the woods behind! He's very powerful! Let's join forces first..."
Before he could finish speaking, a deafening roar erupted from the depths of the forest, startling him so much that he quickly hid behind Xie Lanchen.
A massive black shadow darted out; it was a cleaving mountain demon, entirely black with protruding fangs.
Yun Wei's eyes narrowed. The appearance of this Mountain-Splitting Demon was suspicious, and the elders could not possibly be unaware of it.
Is this one of the challenges of this season?
Without a word, she and Xie Lanchen exchanged a glance, both understanding what the other was thinking.
With a clang, she drew her sword from her waist, and in a flash, she dodged the claws of the Mountain-Splitting Demon. Her sword strike was sharp and swift, aimed straight at its vital point—with a single strike, she killed the ferocious demon.
The ferocious demon let out a mournful cry and collapsed to the ground with a thud. Its massive body turned into specks of light and dissipated, and a white lotus flower slowly sprouted from the spot where it had been standing.
Twin lotus flowers.
Yun Wei's breathing became slightly short. She sheathed her sword and stood looking at the lotus flower.
She knelt down on one knee, intending to examine it carefully, when suddenly a crimson talisman emerged from the lotus heart and stuck to her chest.
A sharp pain instantly spread throughout his body, and the flow of spiritual energy abruptly stopped.
Her cultivation was actually sealed?
"This is a spirit-suppressing talisman." Her heart sank.
Almost simultaneously, Xie Lanchen seemed to suddenly remember something, turned around and shouted sharply, "Zhao Changsheng, how dare you..."
A hint of smugness flashed across Zhao Changsheng's eyes as he, who had been trembling with fear, flicked his wrist and thrust out the dagger hidden in his sleeve, aiming for the boy's waist and abdomen.
"Ugh!" Xie Lanchen groaned, watching as a blood-stained sword tip protruded from his waist, warm blood gushing out and quickly staining his black robes red.
Yun Wei's breath hitched. She tried to rush forward, her body weak and powerless due to the loss of her cultivation, but she felt her legs go weak and she stumbled, almost falling over.
She gripped the Broken Dust Sword tightly; the cold touch of the hilt calmed her slightly.
Holding a dagger, Zhao Changsheng laughed loudly: "Senior Brother Xie! Don't blame me for being ruthless! Blame yourself for humiliating me like that Yun Wei who died from demonic possession! I, Zhao Changsheng, have wanted to avenge this for a long time!"
He then looked at Yun Wei and sneered, "And you! Wuming? Hmph, just as stupid as Yun Wei! You rush to kill any demonic beast you see, no wonder you fell for the trap! How does this spirit-suppressing talisman feel? Do you feel weak all over, like a cripple?"
"Scum!" Xie Lanchen gritted his teeth and cursed angrily, his voice hoarse from the pain, and veins bulging on his forehead.
What a cunning plan to kill two birds with one stone!
Yun Wei forced herself to stand up, staring coldly at Zhao Changsheng, her voice laced with sarcasm: "You think you can succeed with such scheming? Do you know that, according to the rules, plotting against a fellow disciple should result in the loss of cultivation and expulsion from the sect?"
Zhao Changsheng's expression changed slightly, but he quickly regained his composure: "You! Don't try to scare me!"
Yun Wei remained calm and composed.
Although her cultivation was sealed, her sword skills honed over many years remained.
With a flick of her wrist, the Broken Dust Sword did not thrust straight in, but instead struck Zhao Changsheng's wrist holding the dagger with the back of the blade.
Zhao Changsheng had not expected that she would still have such skills after losing her cultivation. In pain, he dropped the dagger.
Taking advantage of the situation, Yunwei lunged forward and slammed the hilt of her sword into his neck.
Zhao Changsheng rolled his eyes, and without uttering a sound, he collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
Almost at the same moment he fell to the ground, Xie Lanchen swayed, could no longer support himself, and knelt down on one knee.
She quickly helped him up and let him lean on her shoulder.
The boy's black clothes were already mostly soaked with blood. She pressed her hand tightly against his bleeding wound. The area where she touched him was warm, wet, and sticky. Bright red blood kept gushing out from between her fingers, staining her pale fingers and sleeves.
Looking at her hands covered in glaring blood, and feeling the boy's body trembling as it gradually lost its temperature, her heart sank.
Blood.
So much blood.
He was so badly injured.
A vow of life and death... If he dies... she cannot live on her own.
No, we can't let him die.
But is it only because of the life-sharing pact that's gripping her heart right now?
Looking at the boy's pale face and his lips tightly pressed together in pain, she couldn't tell for a moment.
"Cough..." Xie Lanchen leaned on her shoulder, his breathing weak and disordered, his face as pale as paper, yet he still forced out his usual cold, mocking laugh, "Don't worry... I won't die... It's not that easy... to get what you want..."
"Shut up," Yun Wei interrupted him harshly. "If you say another word, the blood will flow even faster."
After speaking, she forced herself to calm down again, her eyes quickly scanning the surrounding trees. "My cultivation is sealed, and if I encounter an enemy again, I will have no chance of resisting. I must find a secluded place immediately to stop your bleeding and bandage you."
"You think you can leave? Not so easy!" Hurried footsteps came from deep in the forest. Another tall and thin male disciple, dressed in the Guiyun Sect's disciple robes, came running over. He was clearly Zhao Changsheng's teammate.
He immediately spotted Zhao Changsheng lying unconscious on the ground and Xie Lanchen, covered in blood and leaning against Yun Wei. His face hardened instantly. "Senior Brother Xie, I never thought you'd end up like this. Being seriously injured must be tough, right? And this nameless girl, now that you've lost your cultivation, you're worse than a mortal, aren't you? Why don't you just crush the Cloud Trace Pearl and withdraw from the competition? That way, I won't have to lift a finger!"
"If you want the Cloud Trace Pearl, come and get it yourself." Yun Wei said coldly, carefully placing Xie Lanchen behind a bush nearby.
She stood up, holding her sword horizontally across her chest.
The tall, thin disciple was momentarily stunned by her icy gaze and imposing manner, then became enraged. Seeing that Xie Lanchen was indeed seriously injured and on the verge of death, he felt that victory was in his grasp. He raised his long sword and shouted, "Then I'll have no choice but to personally send you out of the game!"
Yun Wei could see clearly that although the disciple's moves were fierce, they were also somewhat hasty.
She sidestepped the sword energy, and with a swift movement of her Duanchen Sword, she caught the back of the incoming sword and deflected the force downwards.
The two swords clashed, creating a string of tiny sparks.
Yun Wei quickly calculated in her mind: she had lost all her cultivation, and a prolonged battle would be disadvantageous for her. Moreover, Xie Lanchen's injuries were critical, so a direct confrontation was definitely not the best strategy.
The only course of action now is to take a risky military gamble.
She has been a good swimmer since childhood, and perhaps she can use the rapids below the cliff to escape.
Seeing that her swordplay was skillful but powerless, her opponent gradually relaxed and launched an increasingly fierce attack, each move aimed directly at vital points.
Yunwei narrowly avoided the attack by sidestepping, retreating until she reached the edge of the cliff. Rocks tumbled down from her feet, and the river roared below.
She glanced back at the surging river and made up her mind.
While seemingly dodging in a disheveled manner, she retreated towards the edge of the cliff, signaling with her eyes to Xie Lanchen, who was hiding in the bushes, not to make any rash moves.
The boy clutched his bleeding wound, his face pale, a bad premonition creeping into his heart.
He struggled to get up, the sharp pain in his lower back and abdomen making his vision blur, but he still managed to hoarsely shout, "Yun... what do you want to do?! Don't do anything rash!"
She retreated to the most dangerous spot on the cliff edge, sheathed her sword, and deliberately mocked the disciple who was closing in, saying, "Are all the disciples of Guiyun Sect good at is taking advantage of others in distress? If I still had my cultivation, would you dare to be so arrogant?"
Upon hearing this, the disciple was indeed thoroughly enraged, his face turning red with anger: "Sharp tongue! Let's see how long you can keep up your stubbornness without your cultivation!" He roared and thrust his sword towards her chest, determined to defeat her.
Instead of dodging, she turned to meet the attack head-on, letting the sword graz her arm. At the same time, she grabbed the disciple's wrists tightly with both hands, which he couldn't retract in time as he charged forward. She said calmly, "You have disgraced the Guiyun Sect by acting violently and taking advantage of others' misfortunes. Since you dare to wield your swords, you should be prepared to perish together with us."
Xie Lanchen's pupils contracted sharply upon witnessing this scene.
She wanted to fall off the cliff with him...
But now that she has lost all her cultivation, how could she possibly withstand the raging river...?
"Wait! No! You'll die!" the boy screamed hoarsely, staggering towards the edge of the cliff.
He used all his strength to reach forward, but only managed to touch the hem of her dress that had been raised.
He watched helplessly as Yun Wei grabbed the terrified, struggling disciple and leaped backward, plunging with him off the cliff into the raging torrent.
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