"Can eggs boiled in the water from the Sword Boiling Pond really be eaten?" Si Rong raised his head and asked.
"'Sword Boiling Pond'?"
"It's another name for the Warm Water Pool. The swordsmen of Wuxing Peak often come here to clean their swords. It's said that the high temperature makes the blade tougher. My dad told me that Master once argued with Second Uncle and said he'd throw him into the Sword Boiling Pool to see what remained of his tough bones. I thought Master was so domineering at the time. Has Master forgotten everything?"
"Why does your father always like to eavesdrop?" Shen Qingmang smacked her lips. She didn't know if it was due to psychological reasons, but she felt a rusty taste in her mouth. "In that case, I'd better..."
Before she could close the lid, a hand reached out and took an egg. "Thank you, Master. I need to replenish my energy."
When I looked up, it was Gu Sui Han who had competed in two events.
Then several more hands reached out.
"I'm not that particular. I'm starving after watching the game for so long. Thank you, teacher!"
"What's wrong with washing the sword? At most, it will smell a little rusty. We still need to absorb the golden spiritual energy, so what's the big deal about a little rust?"
The hot spring eggs were quickly divided up. The children, having watched the competition all morning, were truly starving and devoured the eggs ravenously. Shen Qingmang said with a smile, "After the next event, we'll have lunch. We can go back to the peak to eat then."
Hao Xin grabbed two eggs and said incoherently, "I'll have one first."
The third competition was the wood magic project. Only one disciple under Shen Qingmang participated in the competition, and the one who appeared in the exhibition match was the eldest brother Shi Mingli. His "Resurrection of All Trees" skill was superb, adding greenness to the autumn forest.
After lunch, it was finally Si Rong's turn to perform. She wore a red coral hairpin and a half-fire bead between her eyebrows, looking as if she were going to pay New Year's greetings (in the eyes of Shen Qingmang, a straight woman), ready to show off her skills in the fire element.
The Fire Magic event tests precise control of flames. Competitors are required to extract fire energy from a block of rhyolite and burn it into specific shapes on fire vine paper. The purer the extracted fire energy, the brighter the color on the paper. Creating specific patterns without igniting the entire paper is also a skill.
Two contestants in the first group failed to control the heat properly, watching with a mixture of laughter and tears as the fire vine paper in front of them turned to ash. Si Rong, in the second group, held her face tight, gradually drawing spiritual energy and burning the paper, until a bright red trumpet creeper emerged from it.
"First place, Wuya Peak, Si Rong."
Si Rong smiled brightly. The crane carried her back to the stands, and she threw herself into Shen Qingmang's arms. "Master, am I awesome?"
"Great, great." Shen Qingmang smiled and hugged her.
She let go of his hand and moved to the back seat to share her joy with the outer disciples. Everyone laughed happily.
Shen Qingmang watched them playing with a smile. Compared to Hao Xin who pretended to be cool after winning, Si Rong's true feelings looked more adorable. However, it was all due to their personalities and there was no difference between them.
The disciples from Wuya Peak in the Foundation Establishment Group came on stage from other senior brothers and sisters, while in the Golden Core Group, a disciple from Wuwei Peak left the pattern on the paper and burned off the other parts, turning it into a window paper shape, which attracted cheers from the audience.
Si Rong hugged Shen Qingmang's arm and said, "Master, I can do it in the future."
"Yes, master believes in you." Shen Qingmang said.
Hao Xin snorted. "She just acts like a spoiled brat to win his favor."
Si Rong made a face at him. "Master just dotes on me. There's no point in you being jealous."
For the fire-related exhibition match, Wuwei Peak sent its peak master, An Yanxiang. Previously, the handsome Cheng Wuyi and the dignified Shi Mingli had excited the female monks when they appeared, but that excitement was reserved and restrained, like the blooming lotus in early summer. With An Yanxiang, the excitement became unbridled and intense, like a dahlia in full bloom.
Shen Qingmang didn't expect An Yanxiang to be so popular, but compared to the other two, he was more approachable. Perhaps that was why everyone was more willing to express themselves.
An Yanxiang smiled and waved to the audience before the competition began. In this competition, as one's realm increases, the fire spirit energy in the rhyolite becomes increasingly thinner and harder to extract, and the patterns on the fire vine paper become increasingly complex. However, in the exhibition competition, there are no prescribed patterns on the paper; the contestants are free to carve as they please.
An Yanxiang possessed a fire spirit, mastering the element of fire with ease. He quickly extracted the purest fire energy from the rhyolite, condensing it into a high-temperature, colorless flame that burned the fire vine paper. As the flames danced, intricate patterns gradually emerged, and the edges of the paper began to peel. It seemed he, too, wanted to create a window paper.
When the flame in his hand went out and he held up the pattern to show everyone, everyone's eyes first fell on the pattern, and then on Shen Qingmang. Shen Qingmang himself gasped.
An Yanxiang actually burned out a portrait of her, and it was so lifelike that it was easy to recognize it was her.
How many times does one have to trace a person's gaze before accurately capturing their spirit? He was actually so deeply in love with Qiongju.
Before she could think about it, the other party had already teleported in front of her with the portrait, his eyes burning, even more passionate than the fiery red portrait.
"Everyone says that Master Qiongju is aloof and pure, but Yanxiang feels that only the most fiery colors are worthy of you." He held the portrait in both hands and stretched it in front of her.
Shen Qingmang lowered his brows and closed his eyes. "Brother Fengchun, your compliments are unmerited. Qiongju is truly unworthy of them."
"I have offered you my sincere gratitude, how can you bear to turn me away, Junior Sister?" An Yanxiang looked at her with a smile.
Shen Qingmang sighed. "Brother... you have the right to express your feelings, and I naturally have the right to reject them. No matter who you are in this world, you can only control your own feelings; you can't influence others."
An Yanxiang stared at her for a long moment, then withdrew his hand and tucked the portrait into his arms. "Okay, then I'll wait for the day when Junior Sister changes her mind."
After this incident, Shen Qingmang was a little absent-minded the whole afternoon, thinking about how to deal with the relationship with An Yanxiang.
However, when dusk fell and the first day's competition was over, the elders of the Discipline Hall of Wendao Peak came over.
"Qiong Ju, your disciple Gu Suihan has been acting strangely today. Please ask him to come with us."
Gu Suihan looked bewildered. Shen Qingmang stretched out his hand to shield him from view and asked, "What's so strange about that? Does taking two first prizes arouse suspicion?"
"Winning the championship is insignificant; it's just a game among the disciples. But the spiritual power he displayed is not what a Foundation Establishment cultivator should possess."
Shen Qingmang frowned. "Just because it didn't happen before doesn't mean..."
"Master." Gu Suihan tugged at her sleeve. "Master, don't be angry about me. I'll just go with them."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
