Chapter 149 Pre-Competition Chats and Conflicts
In the days leading up to the competition, students from various factions arrived one after another.
As night fell, a valley in the Zongzhong territory was bustling with activity.
The Taihui Sect, as the organizer, has prepared a spacious mountain area for them to camp in, so they won't have to suffer from wind and rain in the wild. The sect's disciples will also gather here so they can use the teleportation array to go directly to the competition venue later.
Before arriving here, Shen Lixia hadn't expected it to be in a summer camp-like setting. The disciples were grouped together according to their respective sects, some had already started fires and were sitting around them, chatting casually. Some had even set up soundproof barriers to prevent their conversations from being overheard.
She and Qiao Yanshen walked side by side, bypassing the throngs of students, slowly making their way towards the area where Emperor Taihui belonged. There, lights twinkled; some were lighting fires, others carrying lanterns. As they drew closer, they saw familiar faces everywhere.
"Aren't you all going to rest?" Shen Lixia found a seat and sat down.
Tang Huairou poked the fire with a branch in his hand and said, "It's rare that we can put aside other things and come all the way from the ends of the earth to gather here. We must catch up."
The flames hissed, illuminating the faces of everyone gathered there. Scanning the room, Shen Lixia noticed that they had all changed somewhat; even the youngest boy had lost much of his childishness. The initially boisterous Lu Changqing was still lively, but subtle changes had occurred; he was much more restrained in his speech. Aside from the usual acquaintances, Xie Chunan and Yan Jueshu were also present. Beside Yan Jueshu sat a boy who bore a resemblance to her.
"What is this?" Shen Lixia's gaze lingered on the boy, and she smiled slightly.
Yan Jueshu smiled and said, "This is my younger sister, Yan Jia. She's a little shy and has just reached the early stage of the Golden Core Realm." All of them were stuck at the Golden Core Realm, except for Xie Chunan, who had broken through to the later stage.
"Hello, junior sister." Shen Lixia nodded in greeting, then took out some candies from her mustard seed bag, opened her palm, and let everyone pick one to take away.
After handing out the candy, she sat back down next to Qiao Yanshen, leaning against his shoulder and swinging her legs. "I really want to roast some marshmallows."
“I can help you trim the branches.”
"The problem is there are no marshmallows here at all—ah, and lots of junk food... Sorry, I don't think my senior sister used to like these. I just really miss the taste of additives."
“I’ve tried it,” Qiao Yanshen said slowly. “It tastes good.”
"Right! Gummy candies, potato chips... Oh my god, if I keep talking, I feel like everyone else will think I'm crazy. But I really want a Coke. Is this some kind of disguised finals week? Are you nervous, senior?" Shen Lixia naturally took Qiao Yanshen's hand and squeezed it in front of her. The others were busy talking to others and didn't notice them.
She stroked Qiao Yanshen's hand, carefully tracing the contours of his bones, then gently pressed her fingertips against his neatly trimmed nails. Finally, she slipped her fingers between his fingers and gently held them together, feeling the rough texture of the calluses.
My senior sister is really diligent in practicing swordsmanship.
Qiao Yanshen smiled and said, "It's alright for now, but I'll probably be a little nervous when it actually happens. How about we go to town to buy some plum juice tomorrow?"
"Okay." Shen Lixia seemed to suddenly remember something, let go of her hand, and abruptly straightened up. "Speaking of which, we still need to do some exam preparation!"
As soon as she finished speaking, she quickly stood up, tossed out a "I'm going to gather some information," and ran off to join the other sect's disciples. Qiao Yanshen sighed helplessly at her boisterous behavior. Other disciples from different sects also came looking for her. Tang Huairou, as the senior disciple of her generation, was already surrounded by several people chatting. Xie Chunan seemed to be quite popular as well, and was engaged in lively conversation with someone else.
Wu Zhuyue was sitting by the fire, scratching at the sand and gravel with a twig, and like her, she showed no intention of speaking to anyone.
Qiao Yanshen simply took out an ancient book and opened it, intending to slowly decipher it.
"Lin Yuxian!"
However, the next moment someone disturbed the peace. This unfriendly shout immediately interrupted their conversation and made Qiao Yanshen look up.
She frowned, about to speak, when she saw Lin Yuqian stand up and calmly walk a short distance in front of the person.
The newcomer was a male cultivator, dressed in black robes adorned with dark gold patterns. While Lin Yuxian's attire was of the same style, it appeared comfortable and elegant, but the man's demeanor made it seem utterly vulgar. If not for the similar waistband, Qiao Yanshen would have almost forgotten the existence of the "Lin family."
Besides disciples from various sects, the grand competition also included students from aristocratic families. While there were many outstanding individuals among these families, there were also those who were ignorant yet arrogant, vying for power. The person before us was likely one of the latter.
"Is there anything I can help you with?" Lin Yuxian asked politely.
The male cultivator was displeased: "What kind of attitude is this? You've been sent to the sect, and you've forgotten your own home?" It scanned Lin Yuxian with its divine sense and found that it could not see through her cultivation level. It was so angry that it immediately drew its sword.
"It seems I should uphold the family rules on behalf of your uncle and elder brother!"
Where does it get this confidence from?
Lin Yuxian frowned slightly and dodged the sword strike. Caught off guard, the sword energy left a thin wound on her shoulder.
The other people's eyes turned to him, but the male cultivator remained arrogant, looking down on everyone else and paying them no attention.
Seeing Lin Yuxian dodge, it shouted sternly, "I didn't believe you were the murderer who killed your elders before, but now that I see you, you really don't care about them at all! Your father should have thrown you out of the house back then!"
"Father? What is that?" Lin Yuxian took a step back. "I only have my mother. Don't make up stories about me out of thin air."
The male cultivator's face darkened: "You'd better recognize your current identity."
Before it could finish speaking, a crisp sound rang out. Everyone's attention turned to the source of the sound, and they saw Xie Chunan had somehow produced a handful of sunflower seeds and was just taking a bite.
The young man blinked and smiled innocently, "Do you want some? It's sugar-roasted."
She spread her hands out, but after a while no one came to take them, she pulled them back and continued eating, showing no embarrassment whatsoever. She looked ahead with great interest, as if she were watching a monkey show.
The crackling sound of cracking sunflower seeds seemed to stimulate the male cultivator's nerves, causing him to clench his fists.
Lin Yuxian crossed her arms and laughed, "What is my identity? I am a disciple of Emperor Taihui, a personal disciple of the Nine Branches True Lord, and my mother's good daughter. As for you, Lin Fenghua, and Lin He'an, you are nothing."
The same applies to the entire aristocratic family.
She is no longer the boy who couldn't change anything; she can now calmly deal with the occasional shadows of the past that catch up with her.
She had barely finished speaking when she heard a whoosh of wind, and the other person's fist immediately came flying at her.
It was ridiculously slow. Just as Lin Yuxian was about to raise her hand to catch it, she heard someone draw a sword, followed by the sound of blood splattering.
A severed finger rolled to the ground. The white-robed youth who had drawn his sword calmly wiped the blood off his blade, glancing at the male cultivator who was clutching his wound with a ferocious expression.
Qiao Yanshen sheathed his sword. "Junior Sister Lin, there's no need to be too patient with things that are still uncivilized, like livestock."
The male cultivator, sweating profusely, forced out the words through clenched teeth: "You actually dared to make a move here... I'm going to tell the Immortal Venerables..."
"Hmm? I'm sure the others will be willing to testify for you about who started it." Qiao Yanshen raised an eyebrow slightly. "Get back here now."
Hearing her say that, the male cultivator's face turned even paler. He trembled and said no more. He picked up the severed finger and ran away like a drowning dog.
Lin Yuxian was surprised by her decisive action and felt a surge of warmth in her heart. She walked to Qiao Yanshen's side and said sincerely, "Thank you, Senior Sister."
Qiao Yanshen smiled. "No need. We couldn't receive any messages while we were at the Chaos Rift, so a lot must have happened within the sect. Why don't we chat about it?"
Lin Yuxian nodded, "Okay."
She first walked around to Xie Chunan's front and extended a hand. He was taken aback for a moment, but quickly realized what she meant and, with a wry smile, gave some of the sunflower seeds in his hand to Lin Yuxian.
Her loud cracking of sunflower seeds earlier was actually meant to embarrass the male cultivator. Now that he's gone, there's no need to make a scene anymore.
Seeing that the show was over, everyone gave Qiao Yanshen a thumbs-up and then went back to their own conversations.
On the other side, in a small grove belonging to the Wuji Sword Sect.
"Senior Sister..."
"Young Palace Master..."
The two young women sat together, surrounded by a group of students. The boys looked sincere, almost as if they wanted to hold the women's hands and shake them repeatedly.
One of the disciples, dressed in red, drawled out "Senior Sister" again, pleading pitifully, "Since the two sects are on good terms, could you please go easy on us?"
"That's right, Young Palace Master. If we cooperate, we'll definitely be able to advance together."
Yue Qifeng rubbed his temples and waved his hand helplessly: "Go away, go away. You don't work hard in your cultivation, and now you're trying to cheat in the competition. Xiao Jing, if you say something like that again, I'll go back and tell your aunt to spank you with a bamboo stick."
The boy she called "Xiao Jing" said without fear, "Alright, since you've said that, I'll take it as Senior Sister's agreement. A promise is a promise."
The students from the Wuji Sword Sect or Xihe Palace nearby started to jeer: "A promise is worth a thousand pieces of gold!"
"Nonsense! It's one thing for our sect to cooperate, but what about the students from other sects if the two sects cooperate? That's not honorable." Yue Qifeng raised his hand and tapped them on the head. "Get some rest. There are still a few days until the competition. Get up early to practice your swordsmanship as usual tomorrow."
"Senior Sister Yun, is it really not possible?" The students were not discouraged and instead surrounded another student.
Yun Zhixiao blinked. In the firelight, the young man's already delicate features appeared even softer, and his eyes shimmered with a warm glow.
She turned to the students of Xihe Palace and smiled slightly, "I have memorized all the students who just spoke. Tomorrow, when they practice swordsmanship, you will stand by and practice your horse stance. You have time to joke around, it seems you haven't settled down yet."
These were clearly cruel words, yet she spoke them slowly and softly, as if it were care rather than punishment—truly the whispers of the devil.
Unable to provoke the two pressure-generating monsters, the boys sighed and dispersed, returning to their seats. Some began to cleanse themselves, preparing to rest.
Just then, the soft sound of branches being parted behind me rustled past my mind.
Yun Zhixiao turned her head, and when she saw who it was, her smile brightened.
"Good evening, young friend."
Hearing the voice, Yue Qifeng looked over and said with delight, "Young friend Shen!"
Sensing the familiar presence, her pupils contracted slightly, seemingly quite surprised. Then, she suddenly laughed and said with a smile, "It seems that Emperor Taihui was blessed by the stars and acquired a genius of unparalleled talent!"
Yun Zhixiao nodded, "You've actually reached the Nascent Soul Realm. Young friend, your future is truly limitless."
"Thanks, seniors." Shen Lixia smiled and walked to their side. "Everyone has their own destiny."
A flash of light appeared in her hand, and in an instant, three cups were produced.
"I'm truly sorry for eavesdropping on your conversation earlier. However, since we can't cooperate openly, why not... get to know each other a little?"
Just like researching the teacher's question style and format before a final exam, understanding your opponent's information before a battle is equally important.
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A note from the author: This is a piece about everyone catching up and chatting.
(Don't worry, the stinking cannon fodder won't live long ^_^)
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