Chapter 135: Asking Senior Brother for Help

Ji Yue’s expression turned remarkably sour in an instant. Being stared at by everyone present, she felt profoundly humiliated. As a dignified inner-sect disciple, she had never been treated with such disrespect.

Her companions, who were standing nearby, grew impatient. They had felt something was off from the very beginning. "Ji Yue, if we continue to delay here, there is no need for us to form a team. We can always change our roster before the competition anyway."

Ji Jiu Xuan completely ignored Ji Yue’s ugly expression and held out her hand. "So, Senior Sister, please hand over your token to the brothers from the Discipline Hall for safekeeping. Once Senior Sister Yun returns and the truth is investigated, if the token is indeed yours, it will be returned. If not—" Her eyes narrowed, carrying a sense of danger and threat. "If it is not, then today, Senior Sister will have to pay the price for her actions."

Given that this was a minor matter and Nie Xing Yuan had already given instructions, the members of the Discipline Hall were more than happy to help. Facing the formidable presence of the Discipline Hall, Ji Yue dared not say another word. She handed over her token and said with forced politeness, "Thank you, brothers."

Ji Yue departed, but she understood well what awaited her upon Senior Sister Yun's return. Once she calmed down, she shifted all the blame onto Ji Jiu Xuan, already beginning to scheme about her next steps.

After thanking the brothers and sisters of the Discipline Hall and watching them leave, Feng Hanxiao still felt somewhat dejected. "I never imagined she was that kind of person. I always thought Senior Sister was a good companion—positive and ambitious. Xuanxuan hasn't done anything to her, so why does she dislike her so much, even going so far as to do something like this?"

"In this world, there are thousands of people with all sorts of personalities. Don't take it to heart." It was clear that Ji Yue’s character had simply gone astray.

"Come on, let's hurry into the Trial Pavilion. I haven't been inside yet!" Feng Hanxiao instantly regained her energy, pulling Ji Jiu Xuan toward Tan Yuzhou. "You’re great! Little Tan, your words just now were a timely rain—they helped a lot."

Tan Yuzhou smiled, feeling a bit shy at the rare praise from Feng Hanxiao. "It was nothing, really." He then looked at Ji Jiu Xuan and used a sound transmission technique: "Do you need me to have my senior brother arrange for us to face them in the competition?"

Adjusting the matchups discreetly was perfectly feasible. Since they were so arrogant, constantly calling Ji Jiu Xuan lazy and unproductive, he would make sure she beat them until their faces were swollen like pigs. Being eliminated by someone they looked down upon would certainly be quite amusing.

This suggestion played right into Ji Jiu Xuan's hands. She had been thinking the same thing and had even planned to ask her Junior Martial Uncle for help another day. Now that Tan Yuzhou had brought it up, she asked, "Would it be troublesome?" She had already caused her Junior Martial Uncle plenty of headaches; having Meng Chengfang handle this would probably be better. Even if discovered, Meng Chengfang’s status would make it a non-issue, and no one could claim her Junior Martial Uncle was abusing his power for personal vendettas. But she didn't want to inconvenience others.

"Not at all. I'll tell my senior brother when I go back. He has access to the competition scheduling; it’s a piece of cake, and he can do it without anyone noticing." Tan Yuzhou felt this was trivial for his senior brother, as it wasn't the first time he had done such things.

As they spoke, the three reached the entrance. The formation at the gate swirled with energy, making it impossible to see what was inside. They stepped into the array and placed their tokens into the grooves on the platform. With a flash, the three were instantly transported into a vast, white space.

"Roar!" A silver wolf appeared in an instant, looking fierce. It was a third-rank silver wolf, but its strength was negligible to the three of them. Tan Yuzhou lunged forward with his sword, striking with brutal efficiency, and the wolf died on the spot.

The corpse vanished instantly, replaced by three more. Feng Hanxiao, clutching her Guichen Bow, didn't hesitate; she raised her hand and fired an arrow. Three silver wolves, one for each of them—it was perfect.

The replacement rate of spirit beasts in the trial room was extremely fast. After the three disappeared, six appeared, then eighteen, increasing exponentially. Because this was a team trial, the increasing numbers tested their coordination. Gradually, even under a swarm of wolves, they learned to entrust their backs to one another, focusing intently on the enemies in their respective sectors. When attacking, they coordinated seamlessly, avoiding recklessness and always mindful of each other, offering complete trust.

Ji Jiu Xuan had expected different types of spirit beasts to appear later, but she hadn't anticipated it would only be silver wolves, with only the quantity and level changing. "Why is there only one type of spirit beast?" she wondered. Normally, trials in the pavilion weren't limited to a single type unless requested beforehand.

Hearing this, Tan Yuzhou realized he had forgotten to mention it. "I chose it. When I took the tokens, they said there were two modes. I figured we’d be practicing for several days, so I picked this one. It should change tomorrow."

Exhausted after fighting for so long, Feng Hanxiao panted and said, "That works, too. It’s all training anyway."

The surroundings shifted, and all three were transported out of the Trial Pavilion. Looking at the composed Ji Jiu Xuan, Feng Hanxiao was filled with envy. "Xuanxuan is truly Xuanxuan. Tan Yuzhou and I are exhausted, but you look like nothing even happened." When they were fighting, Xuanxuan hadn't slacked off at all; in fact, she had been even fiercer than them.

Watching how she snatched the kills, one might have thought she was using the opportunity to practice her swordsmanship!

"It’s because I practice body tempering." Her body tempering was well-known, though the uniqueness of her spirit-channeling technique was something she could never reveal. Everyone had different techniques; sometimes, saying too much was worse than saying nothing. Claiming it was just body tempering wasn't wrong, as a strong physique was a huge advantage for any cultivator.

"I’m going to work hard on body tempering, too!" Feng Hanxiao decided she must learn from Xuanxuan and catch up. Otherwise, once Xuanxuan’s cultivation reached a higher level, she wouldn't be able to team up with her anymore. To keep teaming up with Xuanxuan, she had to improve.

Tan Yuzhou nodded as well. When it came to progress, he had to try even harder. The once-arrogant Tan Yuzhou had realized that ever since he met Ji Jiu Xuan, he had been thoroughly outclassed every time. He had thought he was making great progress, but compared to her, his efforts were insignificant. A blazing fire of ambition filled his eyes. Seeing this state upon his return, his elders were more than satisfied.

Feng Chen thought to himself that he should be thicker-skinned in the future; sending Xiaoxiao to live with Junior Niece Ji would be perfectly fine. Meanwhile, Meng Chengfang, seeing his junior brother defeated yet newly motivated, felt that letting him challenge Ji Jiu Xuan had been the most correct decision he had ever made.

"Senior Brother, help us arrange it so we face the group from Wangying Peak, including Ji Yue, in the Grand Competition." Before his father went into seclusion, he had said that if he needed anything, he should go to his senior brother. Besides, with his senior brother's ability, this wouldn't be difficult.

"You want me to rig the match? Aren't you afraid your senior brother will get caught?" The little ingrate—boys really weren't as soft, cute, or thoughtful as little girls. He used to be very happy when his master and mistress entrusted his junior brother to him, but compared to Old Nie’s junior niece, it was truly...

He had heard from Old Nie that Ji Jiu Xuan always thought of him whenever she had something delicious, even making food for him by hand, which smelled divine. She even prepared a share of the spirit herbs she grew for Nie Xing Yuan. She was so clever and obedient; it made people terribly envious.

"Just tell me if you'll agree or not! If not, we'll go find Uncle Nie. Those people keep picking on Ji Jiu Xuan, thinking she's easy to bully because her parents aren't around. We have to teach them a lesson!" Tan Yuzhou was filled with righteous indignation. If it weren't for the sect rules, he would have already knocked their teeth out.