Boom—
A figure staggered backward more than a dozen steps, clutching his chest with a muffled groan.
“No wonder they say you’re the top new disciple—you’ve got some skills, alright.”
Xue Zhiping wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. Right now, he looked quite battered. His robe was torn, his hair disheveled, and his eyes bloodshot.
“The young master of the Xue family? Nothing special.”
Lin Ruo clapped his hands lightly and spoke calmly. In stark contrast to Xue Zhiping’s ragged state, Lin Ruo looked just as composed as before.
Hearing that, Xue Zhiping nearly choked with rage. During the fight just now, he had sensed Lin Ruo’s cultivation. He was at the peak stage First Rank. In just a few days, his cultivation had improved that much?!
That serpent demon incident… this guy must’ve gotten huge benefits. And whatever was in the depths of that cave….there had to be some kind of treasure!
“Brother Xue, are you alright?!”
Xue Yiyi put on a concerned expression as she helped Xue Zhiping up, all while sneakily observing Lin Ruo. This guy… was actually this strong?
“I’m fine, Yiyi. I wasn’t even being serious just now!”
Xue Zhiping couldn’t afford to lose face in front of Yiyi, so he quickly took out a pill and bit into it.
Boom—
In an instant, his cultivation surged to middle-stage Second Rank.
“Come on, let’s go again!”
Xue Zhiping lunged straight at Lin Ruo.
Watching the two continue to fight, Xue Yiyi stepped between them and shouted, “Stop it! Both of you, stop fighting!”
Suddenly, the crowd of onlookers parted, and two figures walked through.
One was the veiled senior sister, and the other was a young man.
At that moment, the young man’s mouth twitched slightly. Oh no… what a terribly cliché line!
***
Bai Yuyan had been diligently instructing her junior brother when she heard the demon woman outside the door. She was clearly annoyed.
“Just let Fragrant Flower Pavilion handle this. Do whatever needs to be done.”
Bai Yuyan had no interest in dealing with something like that. Aside from her junior brother, the rest of the new disciples were of no concern to her.
“Honored guest, the manager specifically instructed me to inform you because this involves the disciple of the Moonlight Sword Fairy,” the demon woman said respectfully.
Although Lu Xiyue was very displeased with Lin Ruo and had even requested to strip him of his personal disciple status, that decision was still only known among the elders of Heaven’s Pinnacle Sect.
After all, a sect shouldn’t air its dirty laundry in public. It wouldn’t look good to accept someone as a personal disciple and then immediately revoke it the next day.
Fragrant Flower Pavilion was well aware of the Moonlight Sword Fairy’s temperament. She was not someone to be trifled with.
Wait… the Moonlight Sword Fairy’s disciple, Lin Ruo?!
With that thought, Chu Feng spoke up, “Senior Sister Yuyan, how about we go take a look? After all, they’re our fellow disciples.”
Also, he wanted to get a closer look at this senior brother of his. The supposed protagonist.
If the guy really was ridiculously strong, then Chu Feng definitely needed to cling to that golden back. Who knows? Maybe he could ride the wave and benefit big-time. When one person makes it, everyone around them rises with them, right?
Seeing the look of anticipation on her junior brother’s face, Bai Yuyan of course had no intention of letting him meet that wretched guy.
“No!” she rejected him flatly without a shred of hesitation. She was quick and decisive.
Boom—
At that moment, a powerful shockwave rippled through the air. Even Chu Feng could feel it clearly.
What the hell? Lin Ruo’s that strong?! He caused this much commotion?!
Unlike Chu Feng’s surprise, Bai Yuyan sensed something else within the energy. It was a very particular aura. Thinking back carefully, she realized. It was the Green Needle Talisman!
Right! Back then, Lin Ruo had a talisman crafted by someone at Sixth Rank cultivation. Though technically a Sixth Rank item, its power rivaled that of a Seventh Rank. Unlike disposable one-use talismans, this was a genuine magical artifact.
Which meant… that artifact also belonged to her junior brother!
“Hmm, on second thought,” Bai Yuyan said sweetly, “why don’t we head down and mediate things?”
And so, Chu Feng followed Bai Yuyan downstairs. What happened next was exactly what he walked in on earlier, just in time to hear Xue Yiyi’s line.
Oh! What a terribly cliché line!
Seeing the supervising senior sister arrive, both Xue Zhiping and Lin Ruo immediately stopped fighting. After all, she was at Fourth Rank cultivation. She could suppress them effortlessly.
“Senior sister, Lin Ruo harbors sinister intentions! I strongly suspect that during our last mission, the deaths of our fellow disciples were all because of him!”
Before Lin Ruo could say anything, Xue Zhiping jumped in, firing the first shot. He was actually trying to pin a big accusation on him.
Lin Ruo was unfazed. He was used to this kind of slander by now. Xue Zhiping’s petty tricks? Please, child’s play.
“You’re sure about that?”
Bai Yuyan’s beautiful eyes swept coldly across Xue Zhiping, sending a chill straight down his spine. What a terrifying look!
“Of course!”
Xue Zhiping pounded his chest with conviction. He’d already said it…at this point, he had no choice but to double down.
Not far away, Xue Yiyi almost passed out from frustration. Her cousin….his mediocre talent she could tolerate, but why had his intelligence suddenly dropped off a cliff!?
And yet, what happened next was completely unexpected.
“Very well. In that case, Lin Ruo, according to sect regulations, once you return to the sect, you’ll have to face interrogation by the Discipline Hall!”
Bai Yuyan had been troubled, looking for an excuse to deal with Lin Ruo.
Now look. An excuse had just fallen right into her lap.
Xue Zhiping was dumbfounded when he heard Bai Yuyan’s words. Wait, what? Senior Sister actually believed what he said!?
Off to the side, Chu Feng was equally stunned. Hold up! Senior Sister Yuyan, Lin Ruo is the Moonlight Sword Fairy’s disciple….he’s our master’s disciple! It’s one thing not to take his side, but how could you be helping outsiders?!
In Chu Feng’s eyes, anyone who went against Lin Ruo was also going against the protagonist. And people like that? Nine times out of ten, they were arrogant fools with no self-awareness. They were basically experience points on legs for the protagonist.
Lin Ruo was also shocked by how hastily Bai Yuyan had made her decision.
“Senior Sister, what you’re saying has no evidence whatsoever. I don’t accept it!”
Lin Ruo immediately refuted her.
“Evidence?” Bai Yuyan looked toward Xue Zhiping and said, “He’s the witness. And if I’m not mistaken, your storage pouch likely contains items that belonged to disciples from other sects.”
Lin Ruo had a habit of killing people and then taking everything from their storage pouches. As long as Bai Yuyan could find one or two items, she could use Xue Zhiping as a witness, invoke sect rules, and have Lin Ruo expelled.
Not only would he be stripped of his status as the Moonlight Sword Fairy’s personal disciple, but also as a disciple of the Heaven’s Pinnacle Sect. Ideally, she’d even have his cultivation abolished once and for all.
Hearing this, the confident look on Lin Ruo’s face stiffened. Because there really were items from dead disciples in his storage pouch.
But he hadn’t actually killed those disciples. At the time, he just figured: well, they’re already dead, and the stuff in their pouches is going to waste anyway, so why not take it all?
Seeing Lin Ruo’s embarrassed expression, a flicker of joy flashed through Bai Yuyan’s eyes.
Looks like it’s working!
Naturally, Xue Zhiping also noticed Lin Ruo’s reaction and immediately took the chance to show his loyalty to Bai Yuyan.
“That’s right! I can absolutely be Senior Sister’s witness!”
Chu Feng looked at Senior Sister Yuyan and Xue Zhiping. His mind was struggling to keep up.
It was one thing for Senior Sister Yuyan not to support their master’s disciple…. but why was she actively kicking Lin Ruo while he was down?
Chu Feng was starting to suspect… wait a minute, could we be the villains here!?
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