Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
“Master of the Vegetable Family, what’s the matter?” Shen Ying asked.
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What the hell is Master of the Vegetable Family? Why did he feel like the Great Immortal was always calling him something different?
“Great… Great Immortal Shen.” Xuan Yuanyu stepped forward and calmed himself down. He remembered what he had come for. “I heard that four disciples from your Invincible Sect has made it into the finals. I have specially come to congratulate your honorable sect.”
“Patriarch, you’re too kind,” Lonemoon said as he stepped into view. “Five disciples from your Xuan Yuan Family have also made it into the finals. We’ll take this chance to congratulate you too, Patriarch.”
“The disciples from my sect cannot compare to yours.” Xuan Yuanyu smiled even more politely. Lonemoon and Xuan Yuanyu exchanged one line for another, praising one another’s sect. After a while, Xuan Yuanyu retrieved a bottle of pills from his bag and handed it over. “Oh yes, these pills are Spirit Condensing Pills. They will help to nurse your Spirit Qi. They’re not that special, but they will have a better effect if you consume them together with the nourishing elixirs from before. They’re perfect for your disciples. Take it as a congratulatory gift from me to you.”
Lonemoon eyed the bottle and realized that they were indeed fifth-grade pills. He did not go out of his way to turn down the gift and graciously accepted the patriarch’s kind intentions. “Well, thank you, Patriarch Xuan Yuanyu. If you have any urgent need for any rare herbs in the future, feel free to come to our Invincible Sect. We will try our best to assist you.”
Lonemoon looked pointedly at the radish next to him who had a cocky expression on its face. Xuan Yuanyu followed his gaze subconsciously.
“What, do you want me to flower?”
“…” A certain image flashed past Xuan Yuanyu’s mind and everybody present pursed their lips at the same time.
It was an extremely awkward scene…
“You… Whatever-Your-Name Patriarch, why were you looking for me?” Shen Ying suddenly broke the heavy silence.
Xuan Yuanyu hesitated before he began, “Well, I was…”
He then fell silent, however, as if he did not know what to say next. After a few seconds, he said, “It’s like this. The patriarch of the Yin Family is extremely curious about you, Great Immortal. He has heard that you have arrived here, so he asked me to come down and ask if you would be willing to meet him.”
“Yin Family?” Shen Ying’s face was blank.
“The Yin Family is the organizer of this great competition.”
Xuan Yuanyu gritted his teeth as he thought about this. He began to inwardly curse that bunch of old foxes, the Yin Family. The Xuan Yuan Family was one of the four aristocratic families and everything that they did attracted the attention of the Upper Azure World. It was no secret that Xuan Yuanyu had been overly warm to Shen Ying. Now, everyone in the three other aristocratic families were trying to guess who she was and the Yin Family was no exception. However, Xuan Yuanyu never would have guessed that Yin Feng would react so differently from the other two families who had remained quiet until now. Yin Feng had went straight up to Xuan Yuanyu and requested for him to invite Shen Ying to meet him.
It was obvious that the Yin Family couldn’t care less who Shen Ying was—all they cared about was being the first to snatch her away. The Yin Family was indeed a family of shrewd businessmen, always acting quickly and effectively. However, because of the relations between the Xuan Yuan Family and the Yin Family, Xuan Yuanyu had no choice but to accede to Yin Feng’s request. That was why he had plucked up his courage and came looking for the Great Immortal.
“What does he want to see me for?” Shen Ying asked.
“Er…” Xuan Yuanyu stiffened up, replying, “Maybe… he just wants to admire your glory and get to know you better.”
“When?”
“Tomorrow, after the competition.”
“Oh, that’s so troublesome.” She had been planning to go home and take a nap immediately after the competition.
“If it’s not convenient for you, Great Immortal, we can always postpone it. Rest assured that I have not told him anything about you.” Afraid that Shen Ying would get mad, Xuan Yuanyu quickly added, “I will go and inform the patriarch of the Yin Family to cancel tomorrow’s banquet immediately.”
A banquet!
Shen Ying’s face lit up as she reached out to hold his arm. “I don’t want to put you in a spot, so I’ve decided that I will go! When is it going to be? What time? And where? Where will it be? Is there a dress code? What color should I wear?”
Xuan Yuanyu: “…”
Lonemoon: “…”
Yi Qing: “…”
——————
The third day.
Finally, they had come to the finals of the competition amongst the sects. There were far more spectators compared to the first day. Even the four aristocratic families were present including the host, the Yin Family.
The finals were to be conducted in pairs. The winners would proceed to the next round and draw lots to decide who would be given a walkover. The top three would be selected from this process. Lonemoon had already briefed the four disciples who made it to the finals the night before. They had already achieved their mini goal: to make it to the top ten. He told them that there was no need to fight to their death, especially for those who were still at the Golden Core stage. After all, their competitors were all disciples from the aristocratic families who had already achieved the Perfected Golden Core stage.
The Foundation Establishment disciples did slightly better. After a round of fighting, however, one of them made it to the top five fighters and was defeated. It was already a pleasant surprise that one of them managed to clinch fifth place. What was more surprising was the Golden Core group. Their sect had actually made it into the top three.
It wasn’t Yu Hong who was a mid-stage Golden Core. Instead, it was Sister Si Yu who had just completed her Core Formation and who looked the weakest out of all of them.
Lonemoon was shocked. He had not even seen her fight. How did she suddenly make it to the top three? He only found out the reason after he asked around…
“A walkover?” Yi Qing hesitated. He did not think this was the reason.
“I heard that one of the top ten fighters got into a personal fight last night and was badly injured. That’s why he withdrew from the competition. She’s lucky to have been given a walkover for two rounds.” So it turned out she hadn’t lifted a finger and made it to the top three.
Lonemoon and Yi Qing exchanged looks, both not knowing what to say.
Sister Si Yu’s crazy luck is… unbeatable!
“Little Green Sister is up.” Shen Ying pointed to the stage.
Indeed, the stage was clear. The contestants, one green-clothed and one blue-clothed, stepped onto the stage. The one in green was Si Yu, and the person opposite from her was a Perfected Golden Core cultivator. From his aura, he looked like he was halfway to advancing to the Nascent Soul stage.
The two of them calmed down and meditated, focusing on the fight before them. It would have been fine had it been Yu Hong up on the stage as she was at least a mid-stage Golden Core cultivator, but it had to be Si Yu… This battle was going to be a tough one. Lonemoon had already thought about how he would comfort the sisters so that their self-esteem would not be hurt.
“I am Yin Yuanfei from the Yin Family. Please show me your ways, Fellow Daoist!” The man in blue cupped his fists and bowed at Si Yu.
It was obvious that Si Yu was nervous from the way she was gripping her sword. She lifted her head to look at her opponent. Breathing in deep, she feigned courage and replied, “I am Si Yu from Invincible Sect! Please show me your ways, Fellow Daoist!”
In the next moment, both of them moved to start the fight. Yin Yuanfei had a rare lightning-elemental Spirit Root. Each of his moves generated a flash of lightning. Given his high cultivation level, the stage was filled with the sound of his lightning bolts in seconds. Si Yu had almost no space left to stand in.
Si Yu could only hide. She had panicked from the moment the battle begun, but she quickly calmed herself down. She alternated between dodging the lightning bolts and using her sword techniques, thus managing to swiftly avoid all the flashes of lightning around her. Within moments, the lightning on stage became mixed with the brilliant flashes of a sword.
“Eh?” Yin Yuanfei hesitated and his eyes clouded with appreciation. He had thought that this Junior Sister had merely been lucky to make it into the finals as she was given walkovers in the previous rounds. He had not expected her to be this capable. She was of a much lower cultivation level than him, yet she was able to defend herself against his bolts of lightning and hold her own .She was indeed worthy of being amongst the top ten fighters. After all, her sword techniques still had room for improvement. His heart fell as his expression became serious. “Good sword techniques, Fellow Daoist!”