The ground was lined with various wooden stakes, sharpened to a point, forming a grid. The competition was to see who could pass through the pointed grid first. The loser had to drink a large bowl of wine, while the winner received various prizes such as a beautiful silk handkerchief, a small jar of expensive wine, or a shiny night pearl.
Tian Fangfang set his sights on that pearl. He gripped his Qianyang Axe, eager to compete. Seeing more and more participants joining in, he greeted Gu Baiying and a few others before heading towards the crowd.
Zanxing was a bit worried and asked Gu Baiying, “Seventh Uncle, is it okay for Senior Brother to go alone?”
Gu Baiying stared at Tian Fangfang’s back and lazily replied, “Let him be.”
As they were speaking, the enthusiastic singing of a young man reached their ears. The tune was cheerful, and Zanxing initially couldn’t make out the words. Gradually, she understood them.
A dark-skinned young man was singing energetically: “Big moon, small moon, brother gets up to be a carpenter, sister-in-law gets up to make shoe soles, mother-in-law gets up to pound glutinous rice, the glutinous rice is fragrant, beating gongs and drums to marry a girl—”
He was about seventeen or eighteen years old, quite handsome, and the bonfire illuminated his young face brightly. His singing was lively, and he threw a brightly colored silk flower towards Meng Ying, who was sitting down. Meng Ying instinctively caught the flower and looked at him. The young man scratched his head awkwardly, while the people around him started jeering and pushing him towards Meng Ying.
Zanxing asked, “What is he doing?”
Douniang quickly explained, “At the Ji She Festival, young men and women of marriageable age sing to each other and exchange tokens to express their feelings. If they like each other, they dance together. This is called Moon Dance. That… fairy sister is so beautiful, this young man is expressing his feelings to her.”
Zanxing looked at the indifferent Meng Ying and then at Mu Cengxiao, who was sitting next to her. Wow, he was trying to steal her right in front of him?
The crowd surrounded the young man and pushed him towards Meng Ying. Probably because Meng Ying was both beautiful and aloof, the initially noisy crowd quieted down as they approached her. Eventually, they didn’t dare to make a sound and silently pushed the young man in front of Meng Ying.
Mu Cengxiao subtly furrowed his brows.
Meng Ying calmly looked at the young man in front of her and asked, “What do you want?”
Her features were stunning, and although the bonfire was blazing, it couldn’t warm her expression in the slightest. The young man was startled, paused, and then mustered the courage to speak, “Miss, would you dance with me?”
This was probably his most polite invitation ever.
Meng Ying’s gaze remained unchanged, her voice calm and steady, “No.”
Mu Cengxiao breathed a slight sigh of relief.
The young man felt a bit dejected, forced a smile, and turned away with his head down.
Zanxing watched the scene with great interest, not minding the chaos. She thought Mu Cengxiao might take some action since there had been no clear development in the relationship between him and Meng Ying so far. The plot had already deviated significantly, and she wondered if it would affect their feelings for each other.
However, despite Meng Ying’s cold rejection of the young man’s affection, it seemed to set a precedent. Before long, countless silk flowers were thrown continuously towards Meng Ying. The young men of Wufan City were eager to invite the fairy to dance, hoping to be the lucky one. Meng Ying kept rejecting one after another. The people of Wufan City, living in a remote area, seemed unaware of the word reserved. The young men’s enthusiasm was as intense as the midday sun, determined to melt the icy mountain at any cost.
Zanxing watched with great interest, thinking that if this continued, it wouldn’t be surprising if Mu Cengxiao ended up fighting with these young men. If not for their current loss of qi, Meng Ying would have probably already taken action and slashed the dance scarf in the center of the bonfire with her sword.
“Senior Sister Meng is really popular.” Zanxing poked the bonfire in front of her with a stick, propped her chin in her hand, and looked at Meng Ying, who was brushing off the silk flowers on her body. She turned to the person next to her and said, “We…”
She stopped mid-sentence.
A young, round-faced girl stood in front of Gu Baiying. Her almond-shaped eyes were bright, her red lips as full as flower petals, and her long hair was braided to one side. In the desert, she resembled a pure and adorable lamb. She nervously clutched her skirt, not daring to look at Gu Baiying, blushing as she spoke, “This young man…”
Before she could finish, Gu Baiying impatiently interrupted, “No.”
The girl looked up in astonishment. Although Gu Baiying’s expression wasn’t as cold as Meng Ying’s, it wasn’t much better.
“S-Sorry!” The girl, looking a bit disappointed, bit her lip and quickly ran off.
Zanxing glanced at Gu Baiying. Noticing her gaze, he asked, “What are you looking at? Jealous?”
Zanxing was speechless.
She replied, “Seventh Uncle, can’t you speak nicely?”
“Why should I speak nicely?”
“People who don’t speak nicely are usually not liked,” Zanxing said.
As soon as she finished speaking, another young girl, wearing a long, tasseled robe, approached. Blushing, she handed a silk flower to Gu Baiying and shyly walked away.
Gu Baiying tilted his head and looked at Zanxing, flicking the silk flower provocatively.
Zanxing was speechless again.
Alright, whether someone is liked or not probably has nothing to do with their personality. Even in a typical male-centered, overpowered protagonist novel, the universal truth that everyone appreciates beauty still applies.
The young girls on the other side called Douniang’s name. Douniang said, “Immortals, please wait here. I’ll go say hello.” She walked over to her friends, who were chatting and occasionally glancing over at Gu Baiying.
Zanxing also looked at Gu Baiying. Whatever else could be said about him, his face was undeniably striking when he wasn’t speaking.
Meanwhile, in the distance, Tian Fangfang had already joined the competition, surrounded by a lively crowd at the wooden grid. Zanxing stood up and said, “I’ll go check on Senior Brother,” then walked towards Tian Fangfang.
After Zanxing left, Men Dong sat by the bonfire. Seeing that no one else was around, he suddenly grabbed Gu Baiying’s wrist.
Gu Baiying frowned slightly.
Men Dong’s expression changed. He was surprised for a moment, then his eyes filled with urgency. He moved closer to Gu Baiying and whispered, “Senior Uncle, have you been forcing your Qi again?”
Gu Baiying shook off his hand and answered nonchalantly, “Stop talking nonsense.”
“You might fool others, but you can’t fool me!” Men Dong’s worry deepened, and he lowered his voice further, “After the incident with the shark demons, I told you that with the current state of your spiritual veins, you must not force your Qi. If you do, your spiritual energy will stagnate, your spiritual veins will burst, and you’ll be in danger.” He thought of something and stared at Gu Baiying incredulously, “Was it when you and Yang Zanxing fell into the painting realm…?”
Gu Baiying’s eyes flickered.
At that time, in the thatched hut within the painting realm, Zanxing’s consciousness had been pulled into the beauty painting. Not knowing the situation inside the painting and worried that if too much time passed, Zanxing’s consciousness would be trapped there forever, Gu Baiying had no choice but to gather his spiritual energy and forcibly break through the painting’s barrier to enter. Although he appeared fine, his spiritual veins were already damaged, and he had felt his weakness clearly upon entering the teleportation array.
However…
Gu Baiying glanced at Men Dong and sharply flicked his finger on the young boy’s head. Men Dong yelped and clutched his head, “Senior Uncle, why did you hit me again?”
“I know my own body best. Right now, it’s not a big deal,” Gu Baiying paused, then warned him, “Don’t let anyone else know.”
“I won’t tell anyone else,” Men Dong let go of his hand and sighed, looking as if he carried a heavy burden. “But you can’t hide your condition forever. This trip has been a disaster. We were supposed to keep an eye on the Qinchong seeds, and now the seeds are still with Yang Zanxing, while you, Senior Uncle, are in increasing danger.”
He persisted, “But… are you really not considering dual cultivation with Yang Zanxing?”
Gu Baiying calmly looked at him, “If you want to die, I can make that happen right now.”
Men Dong immediately shut his mouth and looked towards Zanxing in the distance.
The young woman stood at the edge of the crowd, watching the people dance around the bonfire. The vibrant clothes of the young men and women lit up the desolate desert. The intense drumming seemed endless, and the infectious excitement brought a smile to her face. Yet, she remained an outsider to the celebration, quietly watching the joyful lovers, out of place and with nowhere to hide.
“How pitiful,” Men Dong sighed.
Gu Baiying followed his gaze and asked, puzzled, “What’s pitiful?”
“Look at Senior Sister Meng,” Men Dong indicated. Gu Baiying turned and saw the ground around Meng Ying littered with silk flowers.
“Both are female disciples of the sect, but why is Senior Sister Meng so adored while Yang Zanxing is neglected?”
Gu Baiying raised an eyebrow, “Why?”
“It’s because of their looks, of course,” Men Dong explained, “Senior Sister Meng is as beautiful as a flower, like a fairy in the eyes of these mortals, while Yang Zanxing has a black scar on her face. Senior Uncle,” the boy leaned closer to Gu Baiying, speaking with a surprisingly mature tone, “we’re men. We know men are shallow, superficial, and attracted to beauty. Yang Zanxing must feel very dejected right now. Isn’t that pitiful?”
Gu Baiying flicked him on the forehead, “What do you know about men, you little brat?”
Men Dong, clutching his head in indignation, said, “Anyway, she’s definitely feeling down!”
“So what if she has a scar?” Gu Baiying glanced at Zanxing, “Didn’t Li Danshu give her the Jade Beauty Pill? It’s just a black scar. Is it really that ugly?”
Men Dong was shocked, “It’s not ugly?”
Gu Baiying replied nonchalantly, “Doesn’t seem to make much difference.”
“Senior Uncle,” Men Dong paused for a moment before saying, “you have a unique perspective.”
Meanwhile, Zanxing, who had been staring at the crowd, was suddenly tapped on the shoulder. She turned around to see a handsome young man standing before her.
He said, “Miss, could you help me with something?”