Before the massive Qionghua Hall, the scene resembled the top floor of Wenyuan Pavilion.
A deathly silence hung over the echelon of Qionghua elders and the hundred-plus core disciples, while Bai Fan and the others standing by the arena looked on with eyes nearly tearing at the corners in rage.
Basked in their glares, the languid man in white robes at the center of the grounds merely gave his longsword an offhand flick, instantly splattering the blood from the blade across the ground.
Gripping his sword, the man casually glanced toward the hundred-odd core disciples at the edge of the arena, his narrow, squinting eyes seeming to smile.
Taking his time to sweep his gaze over the crowd, he chuckled, cupped his fists, and bowed toward Senior Brother Li, whose head had already been severed from his shoulders.
"Brother Li, well fought."
"..."
Faced with such humiliation, every disciple present clenched their fists white, yet the white-robed man turned and walked away without the slightest care.
He walked straight toward Xu Yuan and Tianyan.
Or rather, toward the main gates of Qionghua Hall.
His steps were light, yet before Qionghua Hall, where even a dropped pin could be heard, each step felt as though it landed directly on everyone's heart.
Reaching the palace wall gate of Qionghua Hall, just as he was about to pass Xu Yuan and Tianyan, the languid man in loose robes abruptly halted.
"..."
A cold breeze rustled their robes; the air was utterly still.
With a calm expression, Xu Yuan glanced at him from the corner of his eye.
The languid man's squinted eyes also looked sideways back at him.
Their gazes met, placid and unreadable.
Without turning around, the man raised his languid voice and called out clearly:
"The thief who stole the sapling has been slain by my hand. I don't know whether Tianrui will go for the kill, but starting tomorrow, I'll show some mercy. So don't be afraid to take the stage~
"See you all tomorrow."
Amplified by Source Qi, his voice resonated clearly in the ears of every person present.
With that, the man gave an imperious wave to the two inner disciples at the gate, gesturing for them to open the main gates of the Qionghua Hall palace wall.
The two inner disciples glared daggers at Shen Weixiu, the head disciple of Taiqing Dao Palace. Their fists clenched tight, fury blazing in their hearts.
Yet when their eyes met his, they reflexively shrank away from those squinted eyes that always seemed to harbor a mocking smile.
Gritting their teeth, they opened the main gate in silence.
Shen Weixiu let out a soft chuckle, spared another glance at Xu Yuan and Tianyan by the side entrance, and strode out through the main gates.
His back vanished into the swirling clouds and mist, leaving behind an audience steeped in dead silence before the grand hall.
Around this time, Tianrui, the Holy Son of the Overseeing Heaven Pavilion, also appeared ready to depart.
He stepped slowly down from the top of the stairs, pacing unhurriedly toward the open main gates. As he drew near Xu Yuan and Tianyan, the youth slowed his stride slightly.
Xu Yuan thought the boy had noticed Tianyan.
Yet upon meeting those pale golden pupils, Xu Yuan realized the youth wasn't looking at Tianyan at all—he was looking at him.
Exchanging another calm stare with him, Xu Yuan inwardly cursed.
Could these two bastards both be planning to fight a life-and-death duel with him?
After a brief glance, Tianrui gave a slight shake of his head and turned to leave.
After the pair departed, the silence before the grand hall lingered for a dozen breaths before an elderly woman in brown palace robes slowly flew up to collect Senior Brother Li's remains.
"Bastards!!"
A low curse erupted from among the core disciples, and only then did scattered shouts of fury begin echoing across the plaza.
"Scum deserving a thousand cuts! Just because they have the Overseeing Heaven Pavilion and Taiqing Dao Palace backing them, they dare treat our Qionghua Sect like we have no one!"
"Seven life-and-death wager duels—Shen Weixiu and Tianrui actually dare to fight two against seven?!"
"If Senior Sister Saintess hadn't fallen, how could the duels have come to this!"
"Today's duel caught us completely off guard! They caught us unprepared; Senior Brother Li shouldn't have fallen for their provocation!"
Some core disciples cursed in outrage, while others shouted while warily watching the elders' expressions. Xu Yuan stood quietly by the entrance, taking it all in.
The disciples' furious cursing lasted for a dozen breaths before the white-haired, white-bearded Qionghua Sect Master let out a heavy sigh.
"Enough. True disciples remain; the rest of you may disperse."
His voice sounded weary.
Xu Yuan raised an eyebrow and instinctively glanced over at Bai Fan.
He and Tianyan were only core disciples; Bai Fan and his circle were true disciples.
As for why, each true disciple spot represented a massive expenditure of resources and was largely monopolized by the scions of Qionghua's upper echelon. For an orphan like Jinghe, securing such a spot was exceptionally difficult.
Of course, this did not mean these privileged youths lacked strength.
Across the vast Qionghua Sect, there were only sixteen true disciples in total, and half of them were third-rank experts under the age of thirty.
Jinghe would likely have been promoted to true disciple this year, but unfortunately, he was not one yet.
Bai Fan seemed to notice Xu Yuan's gaze. He opened his mouth but said nothing in the end, merely shaking his head at Xu Yuan before quietly making his way into Qionghua Hall.
Senior Brother Li's tragic death had dealt a profound blow to them.
Back at the residence, sunlight streamed through the window lattice into the chamber, blending with a faint waft of sandalwood to create a tranquil atmosphere.
With his hands behind his head, Xu Yuan lay back on the soft bed and stared up at the pure white bed hangings, suddenly speaking up:
"Did your Overseeing Heaven Pavilion always have such prestige? Heh... a third-rank Holy Son sitting on equal footing with a Saint."
Tianyan cradled a porcelain cup in her small hands, quietly sipping tea by the red sandalwood table. Hearing this, she merely murmured, "The Crown Prince of the Great Yan Dynasty receives the exact same treatment when visiting local sects."
Xu Yuan grinned and sat up from the bed. Looking into Tianyan's golden eyes, he asked in a low voice, "Why didn't that Holy Son of the Overseeing Heaven Pavilion react to you at all?"
The golden eyes granted by practicing the Heaven-Deducing Art were far too conspicuous. Even if Tianrui couldn't sense Tianyan's Heaven-Deducing Art, he should have at least looked twice at her golden pupils. Yet he hadn't given them a second glance.
Holding her teacup, Tianyan rolled her eyes at him. "How should I know? It's likely related to this Yuchu identity. I quietly channeled the Heaven Character True Words earlier, and he showed no reaction either."
"Is that so? The Meishen tree spirit must have altered their consciousness so that any information tied to your true self won't draw their notice..."
Xu Yuan analyzed in a low murmur, but halfway through, his eyes narrowed slightly. "Why did you channel the Heaven-Deducing Art earlier?"
Was she trying to use the Heaven-Deducing Art to reunite with her sect?
Tianyan answered frankly, "If this generation's Holy Son could recognize my Heaven-Deducing Art, we could borrow the Overseeing Heaven Pavilion's might to forcibly seize the Meishen cherry tree sapling. If he couldn't, then I can use the Heaven-Deducing Art openly from now on."
Xu Yuan fell silent for a moment before suddenly asking, "Are you so certain he would help you?"
Tianyan shook her head. "I wasn't certain, but it was worth a shot. If Tianrui was going to react, it would have been exposed sooner or later anyway."
Xu Yuan sighed.
Bai Fan and the others had seen Tianyan perform the Heaven-Deducing Art. If Tianrui fought, there was no way he wouldn't recognize it.
At that thought, Xu Yuan grinned. "Do the Holy Sons and Saintesses of your Overseeing Heaven Pavilion all take the surname Tian? This generation's seems to be named Tianrui. Is he related to you by blood?"
Tianyan shot him a sideways glance, her tone cool: "Things have reached this point and you still have the mind to gossip about that?"
Xu Yuan shrugged noncommittally. "Life goes on. Mindset is everything."
With that, he flopped back onto the bed, sounding utterly helpless. "Those two seem to have set their eyes on me. Tsk... out of their minds, honestly."
Tianyan suddenly stifled a giggle over her teacup and said with a smile, "Who told you to inherit such high cultivation? You'll probably break through to the second rank in another year or two, so of course they take you a bit more seriously."
Xu Yuan chuckled. "Still, I thought the old Sect Master was planning to send me up as fodder to test the waters, but he only called the true disciples inside. I guess the old man still has a bit of a conscience."
"Fodder to test the waters?" Tianyan looked puzzled.
"Two against seven—well, two against six now. To win, on average, three of our people have to defeat one of theirs. Neither Shen Weixiu nor Tianrui is someone to mess with, so the first few sent up are obviously just going to probe their techniques."
Tianyan shook her head. "Boring."
"A prodigy like you would think it's boring, of course, since you alone would be enough." Xu Yuan gave a soft chuckle. "Let's head over early tomorrow. I have a feeling this wager duel will require our involvement."
"'Our'?" Tianyan looked at him with amused skepticism.
"Ahem."
Clearing his throat, Xu Yuan ignored her banter and continued on his own, "From what Shen Weixiu said, it sounds like Senior Brother Li stole that Meishen cherry tree sapling. Whether that's true or not, his and Tianrui's purpose here is likely for that sapling. If they take the sapling back to the Overseeing Heaven Pavilion or Taiqing Dao Palace, we'll truly have no chance of getting near it.
"Since that's the case, we'll have to put our lives on the line in that wager duel."
Then he asked, "Are you confident you can beat the Holy Son of the Overseeing Heaven Pavilion?"
Tianyan's beautiful eyes curved into a beaming smile, her tone airy. "A piece of cake."
Xu Yuan was surprised. "Oh? So confident? The guy is a Holy Son, after all."
Tianyan blinked her deep golden eyes and smiled. "Didn't you notice that his Heavenly Pupils are quite faint?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean his Heaven-Deducing Art is far from fully mastered."
Tianyan waved a small hand, a slight smirk playing at the corners of her lips. "There are nine Daos one can comprehend through the Heaven-Deducing Art, split into two tiers: Heaven and Earth. That Tianrui most likely comprehended one of the five Daos of the Earth tier."
"Oh?" Xu Yuan showed interest. "Heaven and Earth tiers?"
Tianyan didn't continue, merely gazing at him with curling eyes.
Xu Yuan rolled his eyes and took a deep breath. "I think if you don't plan on finishing your thought, next time you shouldn't start."
Tianyan gave a soft hmph. "I like stopping halfway. What are you going to do about it?"
Xu Yuan sighed, then asked, "What about Shen Weixiu?"
Tianyan replied just as casually, "I haven't seen his full strength, but it shouldn't be hard."
"Can you do a one-versus-two sweep?" Xu Yuan pressed.
"..."
Tianyan didn't answer right away this time. After pondering for a moment, she shook her head. "That would be difficult."
Xu Yuan frowned. "You're a grand second-rank Origin Realm expert. At equivalent cultivation, you can't even handle two third-ranks in a gauntlet?"
*Clack.* Tianyan set the teacup down firmly on the red sandalwood table and snapped in a clear voice, "Xu Changtian, I'm afflicted with Meishen flower poison right now and have to divide my focus to suppress it! The slightest lapse and it will backlash!"
"Then what do we do?"
"Didn't you say you'd take part too?"
"Heh heh."
A day passed in the blink of an eye.
That afternoon, word came from the Qionghua main peak that the Sect Master and the Grand Elder would host a banquet that evening in Jinghua Hall for the two "distinguished guests," Tianrui and Shen Weixiu.
As core disciples, Xu Yuan and Tianyan attended as well.
The banquet was lavish. Dancers fluttered their long sleeves gracefully, and rich delicacies overflowed the tables. Amid clinking cups and flowing wine, Shen Weixiu in his white robes drank himself into a stupor before retiring.
The next morning, at the hour of Si,
The Qionghua Bell tolled three times as scheduled.
And then,
Bai Fan died.
Chapter 129