Chapter 41

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Chapter 41: Title

"You drank last night." Shen Huaiwen stated upon entering the quiet room.

Xia Shi set down her brush, massaging her wrist. "No."

Sunlight streaked across her profile as she stacked copied sect rules, shadows from her lashes revealing faint bruises under tired eyes.

"Alcohol and spiritual power usage." Shen Huaiwen’s gaze swept over her. "Don’t bother lying. You might fool the sect leader, but not me." She placed a medicinal bowl down with deliberate softness. "Well?"

Caught, Xia Shi confessed. "One cup."

"Why channel energy while drinking?"

"The sect leader nearly caught me at Scripture Hall. Used the teleportation formation from Chengxian Restaurant."

A chuckle escaped Shen Huaiwen. "Did she discover you?"

Xia Shi cleared her throat. "She never entered."

"Oh?" Shen Huaiwen sounded puzzled.

This surprised her. Ye Xiao had come to the Scripture Hall to visit the junior sister, so why hadn’t he entered after reaching the doorway?

"Your punishment period ends in a few days. Stay out of trouble and drink your medicine."

With that, Shen Huaiwen departed.

Some time later, a junior disciple from Yuxing Hall arrived.

"By the sect leader’s decree," the young disciple spoke while nervously peeking at the elder lounging by the window.

Xia Shi grunted in acknowledgment.

"Elder Wuwei violated sect rules by drinking in the quiet room. Her punishment is extended by half a month." The disciple retreated hastily, stammering, "Elder Wuwei… message delivered. I’ll take my leave."

Xia Shi: "……"

Since when did Senior Sister Huaiwen become a tattletale?

Another extension? Did they want to keep her imprisoned here forever?

Considering the approaching Immortal Sect Conference, Xia Shi understood her senior sisters’ motives.

Better this way. She shouldn’t attend such events anyway.

Closing her eyes, she exhaled slowly and slumped further against the desk.

Silence reclaimed the quiet room, broken only by steady breathing.

On the conference’s eve, representatives from every notable sect across the Nine Realms had gathered. Only Divine Doctor Valley remained absent due to their long-standing isolation.

The rainbow of sect uniforms – crimson, saffron, emerald, and azure – made Suiyin’s eyes throb. She stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Qin An beneath the eaves, observing the crowd.

"Which sect wears those drab moth-colored robes? Why’s everyone staring at the sky?"

Qin An urgently pulled her sleeve. "Quiet! Those are Taiyi Sect sword cultivators. They’ve always clashed with Sanqing Realm."

"Oh~ Taiyi Sect." Suiyin’s lips curled. "No wonder they look punchable." Her voice carried clearly to the nearby Taiyi disciples.

The lead disciple marched over, hand on sword hilt. "Which sect claims you, Fellow Immortal?"

Having been confined to Scripture Hall before receiving her inner disciple robes, Suiyin still wore the red dress she’d bought with Xia Shi. The Taiyi disciple didn’t recognize her as Sanqing Realm.

A spear shaft blocked the disciple’s path. Lu Ciyou sauntered forward.

"Big men waving blades at girls? How brave."

The Taiyi disciple stiffened but retorted, "Young Master Lu, this isn’t your territory."

"True," Lu Ciyou agreed before countering, "But you’re in Sanqing Realm. Harassing their inner disciples seems… unwise."

"Inner disciples? Her?" The man glared doubtfully at Suiyin.

"Suiyin is the only direct disciple of my Master Fan. Will you believe my words now, Brother Mo?"

Mo Yang turned and saw Yan Li, his expression shifting.

Beside him, Lu Ciyou rolled her eyes and sheathed her spear. "What the hell? She’s everywhere."

"As an inner disciple of the Sanqing Realm, you should think carefully before speaking," Mo Yang sneered, waving dismissively at Yan Li before storming off with his followers.

"Senior Sister!" Qin An hurried down the steps when she spotted Yan Li.

Yan Li smiled faintly and nodded. "Did you get the sword?"

Qin An flushed, holding up the blade. "Thank you, Senior Sister!"

"I owed you a proper replacement." Yan Li’s gaze drifted to the surrounding crowd.

Sanqing Realm disciples pressed close. Lu Ciyou scowled at the sea of faces, muttering, "Where’s A Li?"

The young lady had vanished since morning.

Lu Ciyou wandered through the throng, scanning every corner. Yan Li watched her retreating silhouette, lips pressed tight.

Turning back, she offered Qin An a few words of encouragement before striding away from Lu Ciyou’s path.

Suiyin glanced between their parting figures and hummed in confusion. Strange—they’d been fine yesterday evening.

——

At dawn, sects filed into the conference grounds. Suiyin and Qin An collected their challenge tokens and visited Sword Pavilion for Clear Mind Swords—standard issue for Sanqing Realm initiates. The blades were plain but serviceable for drills.

"Won’t you take a better sword?" Qin An pressed. "Use mine!"

"Then what’ll you wield?"

"We’re in different matches. Share it!" Qin An insisted.

Suiyin hefted the practice blade. "Let’s go."

Qin An bit her tongue. This was wrong—Suiyin should be holding a Shenwu Sword, not this dull training steel. Yes, a gleaming Shenwu befitting her skill.

By the arena, they found the schedule altered: the final trial now opened the competition. Fifty elite disciples from Sanqing Realm, Liujin Pavilion, Taiyi Sect, Qingyun City, and Realm of Canghai drew lots for the first round.

The grand competition’s champion would rise from these fifty.

Suiyin sat beside Yan Li and asked, "What if two disciples from the same sect get drawn? Do they still fight?"

Yan Li answered, "Naturally. If they’re sectmates, one must be eliminated."

"What a raw deal."

As soon as she finished grumbling, the lot-drawer on stage announced the next pair.

"Disciple of Sanqing Realm: Suiyin versus…"

Suiyin’s heart lurched. Her first match already?

"Disciple of Sanqing Realm: Qin An."

Suiyin: "……"

Qin An: "……"

Yan Li: "……"

Standing on the platform, Suiyin grinned at her opponent. "See? We ended up together after all."

Qin An stared uneasily at the Clear Mind Sword in Suiyin’s grip. She stood no chance.

"Might as well forfeit now."

Suiyin encouraged her, "Use Master’s teachings. They must be formid…"

A gale of sword energy interrupted them. Qin An’s figure blurred forward, her movements vastly quicker than a month prior.

"Bring it!"

Suiyin’s blade flashed free. The discarded sword sheath shattered into thirds midair under Qin An’s strike.

Qin An’s eyes tracked Suiyin’s sword hand intently, muscles coiled to counter.

Their clash erupted in an instant.

"Sanqing Realm keeps producing gems," sneered a narrow-eyed man from the highest viewing platform, his voice dripping with mockery. "Sect Leader Ye’s been hiding this one."

Taiyi Sect’s leader Mo Ye didn’t bother hiding his contempt.

"Correction," Ye Xiao countered with frosty politeness. "She chose Sanqing Realm mere weeks ago."

Everyone in the Nine Realms knew the rivalry between Sanqing Realm and Taiyi Sect in sword techniques. While Taiyi Sect trumpeted every talented recruit with fanfare, Ye Xiao’s words hung pointedly: top talents still chose Sanqing.

Mo Ye’s face darkened.

Below, Suiyin catalogued Qin An’s sword moves. The improved speed still unfolded in sluggish clarity before her eyes.

She matched Qin An’s rhythm strike for strike, creating openings for self-correction. Only when Suiyin deliberately retracted her blade did realization dawn on Qin An.

After their final locked blades, Qin An stepped back and bowed to the judge. "I yield."

"Victory goes to Suiyin of Sanqing Realm!"

Returning to the sidelines, Suiyin froze mid-stride as her gaze pierced through the crowd of spectators.

The fleeting figure felt familiar.

Had Xia Shi come?

She started toward it, but Yan Li stopped her.

"No moving around during the grand competition."

Qin An sat back down. Though eliminated in the first round, she showed no dejection—her unsheathed sword trembled with excitement until Yan Li pointed it out.

"Well fought."

Yan Li’s voice made Qin An freeze. She’d assumed the praise was for Suiyin, but when she looked up, her senior sister was watching her.

The brief smile Yan Li gave her before turning back to the arena made Qin An’s heart race. Senior sister had praised her.

The next match was announced.

"Young Lady of Liujin Pavilion Lu Ciyou versus Jiang Ying of Realm of Canghai."

Lu Ciyou examined her opponent with lazy contempt. Jiang Ying’s gaze turned venomous. "What’s that look for?"

"Has Canghai run out of competent disciples?" Lu Ciyou’s spear tip tapped the floor as she scanned their group. "Where’s Jiang Xinian?"

Jiang Ying grinned darkly. "Dead."

His magic sword lashed out in lethal arcs, ignoring the conference’s rule of stopping at first blood.

Lu Ciyou’s spear shot upward, its length overwhelming his blade. Metal screeched as she forced him to dodge the strike aimed at his forehead.

"Jiang Xinian lasted a hundred exchanges." The young lady tilted her head, her expression full of youthful arrogance. "You?" She scoffed.

"Won’t last ten."