Chapter 310: A Contest Between Personal Disciples

The moon climbed to the treetops, casting a layer of clear radiance. A person wearing a hood stood under the pear tree in the Xianyun Abode, while the interior of the Xianyun Abode was pitch black.

After a long while, a figure walked in from outside the courtyard; it was Lingxiang.

Seeing Lingxiang approach, the person hurriedly stepped forward to bow, and Lingxiang gave a slight gesture to support them, asking, "Has it been completed?"

Hearing this, the person removed their hood; it was Luoli.

"I fear I must disappoint Fairy," Luoli said, a look of difficulty on his face.

Lingxiang did not seem annoyed, only softly comforting, "It is not your fault; it was indeed too rushed." She sighed, "Since it cannot be done, then we can only leave it to fate..."

Luoli's eyes flashed, and he hesitated before speaking: "What Fairy said that day, is it true?"

Lingxiang looked up at the full moon in the sky, and only after a long time did she nod.

That day at Wuji Hall, the Dust-Peering Mirror had revealed the future to Lingxiang; the calamity of Yuanqing was imminent.

Seeing Lingxiang's grave expression, Luoli sighed and took an object from his bosom.

"This little demon's cultivation is shallow, and I am unable to fuse the two spirit beads into one object, but what Fairy requested can be considered half-finished."

Half-finished? What did that mean?

Lingxiang took the object from Luoli's hand and discovered it was wrapped in a thick layer of cotton cloth, with faint points of light leaking out from within.

"With this little demon's ability, I could only utilize the Fire Spirit Bead to this extent. However, if it is for what Fairy said, this is enough. It just cannot stop on its own after three years; it will require the power of the Water Spirit Pearl to retrieve it."

"That will be enough," Lingxiang said, taking an object from her Universe Bag—it was the God-Man Tiger Pattern Mirror. "But this way, I will have to trouble you to make another trip when the time comes to solve the mystery within for him."

Luoli hurriedly bowed with cupped hands: "For the mission of all living beings, I am duty-bound!"

Lingxiang smiled, then entered the house.

Since returning to Yuanqing, Daoist Chiyanzi had been settled in the Lingyun Pavilion. It was precisely because of this that Maidong, who should have been confined to the courtyard, was able to leave, as she was tasked with looking after Chiyanzi.

Maidong was quite diligent in caring for Chiyanzi. Although she occasionally forgot to bring medicine or water, fortunately, under the conditioning of Lingxiang's Pill, Chiyanzi had recovered seven or eight parts, so a mistake or two was of no great consequence.

Moreover, having experienced the previous battle, Chiyanzi understood to some extent what Tumi Xianzi had meant by "dying in one's proper place," so he remained quite forgiving toward a young girl like Maidong.

Children, after all, have mischievous natures; who hadn't been that way once?

Watching Maidong, who was lost in a daze, Chiyanzi smiled with a kind expression, yet he did not know that Maidong was currently complaining in her heart: That dead girl Lingxiang, she didn't even come to find her after returning to Yuanqing.

Since returning to Yuanqing, Maidong had been ordered by Fuyin Zhenren to be confined to the disciple courtyard, so she had no way of knowing about the visit from the Taishang Sect Leader.

In the past few days, Guanchen had been on duty. He kept Fuyin Zhenren's instructions in mind and kept his mouth very tight, telling Maidong nothing. Even when she asked, Guanchen would only say he didn't know, and no matter how Maidong acted out, it was to no avail.

But today was different; today it was Guanlan guarding the Lingyun Pavilion. When Fuyin Zhenren left for Wuji Hall, he was not at Qiuyun Peak, so he did not know the instructions Fuyin Zhenren had given, and Guanchen had not informed him either.

Because of this, early this morning, Maidong managed to pry the information out of Guanlan, and now she was thinking about how to sneak out to join the excitement outside Wuji Hall.

However, although Guanlan did not know Fuyin Zhenren's instructions, he knew that the division of spirits was no small matter, so he only mentioned that Fucang Elder had set up a competition on the Yanwu Stage outside Wuji Hall, without mentioning anything else.

Speaking of excitement, it was indeed lively outside Wuji Hall. Last night, Chengkai's crushing defeat of Baiqing was truly worth watching, so early this morning, the area around the Yanwu Stage was packed with people.

After yesterday's battle, Huiyan also realized Chengkai's prowess and could not help but feel admiration. That Small Elder was young, but his eye for talent was truly quite good.

The one competing on the stage for the Taishang Sect today was a slender disciple named Du Ruo, who stood on the stage holding a seven-foot long sword. He looked spirited and had an extraordinary bearing; he was a personal disciple of Lieyang Zhenren.

"Oh~ so today is personal disciple against personal disciple?" Lingxiang said, cracking pine nuts while sitting with her legs crossed, looking completely indifferent. Her manner was exactly like those dissolute youths down the mountain.

Huiyan couldn't help but twitch his mouth—was this really an Elder of a major sect? But he couldn't say much; after all, it wasn't his own sect, so he had to turn his head away, choosing not to see it to keep his peace of mind.

Long Qi, however, felt that Lingxiang was doing this on purpose. Although Lingxiang had always been eccentric in her actions, she had previously been considered to have a sense of propriety; this was the first time he had seen her act so absurdly. Thinking carefully, Lingxiang had seemed very strange these past two days; although she looked no different from usual, her eyes were not the same as before.

There seemed to be a sadness in Lingxiang's eyes that was different from the past...

Sadness? What was she sad about?

Long Qi could not figure it out. Since returning to the sect, Lingxiang had been acting a bit off. Not only did she drive him and Xin Yi out of Qingwei Peak for no reason, but she also deliberately stirred up trouble between the two sects. Although Lingxiang was erratic, she never acted without a reason, so why was she doing this?

And yesterday, she had left the martial arts arena silently; that was not her style, as she loved watching the excitement.

What exactly was Lingxiang plotting?

Long Qi felt a faint sense of unease in his heart, but he couldn't say exactly what it was. He suddenly remembered the dream he had while at Ding'anju, where Lingxiang had a look of absolute determination...

Just as Long Qi was deep in thought, a burst of cheers erupted from under the Yanwu Stage, and he finally came back to his senses to look at the two people on the stage.

Du Ruo's Mysterious Sect Sword was fully inherited from Lieyang Zhenren. The move "Yaksha Probes the Sea" he had just used swept directly at Chengkai's lower stance, with a sharp momentum like a biting cold wind.

Chengkai had just dodged one move, but did not expect Du Ruo to follow up with another. For a moment, he was unable to pull away to dodge and had to block with the Jinglei Staff in front of him.

The two weapons collided, sparks flew, and a piercing eagle cry rang out. What Chengkai did not expect was that although the person before him was thin, his strength was not inferior to his own. After a few exchanges, Chengkai felt a numbness in the web between his thumb and forefinger.

Not only that, Chengkai had never seen the Mysterious Sect Sword Method and could not see through its flaws for a moment. Coupled with Du Ruo's fierce offensive, he was only able to parry for the time being, and while retreating or dodging, he could not settle his mind to think of a countermeasure.

But even as Chengkai retreated step by step, the other's offensive did not cease; move after move pressed in, forcing him into a bitter struggle.

If this continued, his stamina would not keep up. Just dodging and parrying was not a solution; he had to counterattack to have a chance of winning.

Thinking this, Chengkai swung his long staff to knock the sword away, then kicked back, taking advantage of Du Ruo's dodge to open up some distance.

As soon as he stood firm, Chengkai exhaled, then lowered his body and struck the ground with his long staff.

After a few dull thuds, Lingxiang, who was sitting above, curled her lips: "Mad Demon Staff Method, a decent way to deal with the Mysterious Sect Sword."