VHSTS CH20

By the time Luo Jianqing confirmed that all preparations had been properly arranged, it was already the eve of the Sect Grand Competition.

With the competition right around the corner, Zuo Yunmo still hadn’t broken through to the next realm. He could only smile helplessly at Luo Jianqing and say, “What a pity, Shixiong. I was just a hair’s breadth away from breaking through to the mid-stage of Golden Core; if I had, sparring with you would have been truly exhilarating.”

Hearing this, Luo Jianqing let out a light chuckle. “Shidi, even if you reached the mid-stage of Golden Core, don’t even think about challenging your Shixiong’s authority.”

Zuo Yunmo raised an eyebrow. “I wonder who it was that loved sitting on my shoulders when he was little, every single day…”

“Shidi!”

Zuo Yunmo smiled faintly, pressing an index finger to his lips in a shh gesture.

Completely losing his temper, yet having nowhere to vent it, Luo Jianqing could only think to himself: Tomorrow, up on the martial arena, I will definitely make this disrespectful Second Shidi learn how the characters for “Eldest Shixiong” are written!

That night, Luo Jianqing reported the next day’s arrangements to Xuanlingzi. Upon confirming that Xuanlingzi would not be attending to watch the matches, he felt a faint pang of disappointment, though he knew it was only to be expected. The Sect Grand Competition was merely a series of spars among disciples; even a bout between him and Zuo Yunmo was only at the Golden Core level, how could it possibly catch Xuanlingzi’s eye?

Before Luo Jianqing departed, however, Xuanlingzi spoke in an indifferent tone: “Do not disgrace Yuxiao Peak.”

Luo Jianqing bowed in acknowledgment and took his leave.

Night fell, and a bright moon rose in the east.

All of Taihua Mountain was shrouded in tranquil darkness, so quiet that the distant cries of demonic beasts in the mountain forests could be heard clearly.

With the Sect Grand Competition taking place the next day, countless disciples stayed awake through the night. Some meditated to stabilize their cultivation as much as possible; others drilled their spirit beasts relentlessly to ensure nothing went wrong; still others sparred with familiar shixiong and shidi to sharpen their practical combat skills.

Amidst the pitch-black night, a dark shadow flashed across Yuxiao Peak, slipping effortlessly through layers of restrictive wards and departing the mountain.

Luo Jianqing darted swiftly between the peaks. Clad in a black night-stalker outfit, aside from veiling his face with a black cloth, he had deliberately swallowed a second-grade Face-Concealing Pill, preventing any cultivator below the Soul Formation realm from seeing through his true appearance.

Luo Jianqing wasn’t worried that Xuanlingzi would suspect his whereabouts. When he was young, he had frequently snuck out in the middle of the night with the other six of the Seven Scions of Taihua to play. At first, Xuanlingzi would punish him with reflection; later, after punishing him a bit too harshly one time, when Luo Jianqing stubbornly refused to admit fault while kneeling at the Gate of Admonition until he actually fainted. Xuanlingzi stopped meddling in such escapades altogether.

Having grown up on Taihua Mountain, Luo Jianqing knew the terrain like the back of his hand. Taking a shortcut to Haoming Peak, he bypassed the Inner Sect disciples’ quarters and headed straight toward the Outer Sect residences.

At this hour, quite a few disciples were secretly training inside. Paying them no mind, Luo Jianqing searched briefly before locating the exact person he was looking for.

Even though the Sect Grand Competition started the very next day and his current strength stood zero chance of surviving the first round, Li Xiuchen still sat stiff-faced in the courtyard. Neither cultivating nor practicing martial techniques, he was merely waving a dagger around with a bizarre expression, lost in whatever schemes were running through his head.

In his past life, upon entering Taihua Mountain, Li Xiuchen had received Xuanlingzi’s meticulous guidance.

Despite having no spiritual roots, Xuanlingzi had forcibly pushed Li Xiuchen to the sixth tier of Qi Refining within a single year. Among the twenty-four new disciples, only two had reached the sixth tier of Qi Refining, and the other one possessed first-grade spiritual roots.

Xuanlingzi’s painstaking dedication back then had filled Luo Jianqing with bitter jealousy. In his previous life, Flowing Flame Valley had also opened ahead of schedule; the Qi Refining disciples were divided into three brackets: early, mid, and late stages; competing separately, with the three champions earning the right to enter Flowing Flame Valley.

Nothing had changed in that regard this lifetime, the sole difference was that Li Xiuchen was only at the fourth tier of Qi Refining.

Truth be told, even reaching the fourth tier of Qi Refining was already outrageous. Li Xiuchen had barely trained at all, nor did he have Xuanlingzi as a master, yet he had somehow climbed to the fourth tier. To put it in Xie Zizhuo’s words: “That brat Li Xiuchen definitely has something fishy going on!”

Luo Jianqing didn’t know how Li Xiuchen was cultivating either; after all, Xie Zizhuo had kept people watching him constantly without catching a single glimpse of him training diligently. Still, Luo Jianqing didn’t care about that—nor had he come here tonight to spy on Li Xiuchen.

At this thought, Luo Jianqing concealed his figure and masked his aura.

After the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, Li Xiuchen sheathed the dagger at his waist. The moment he turned around, he suddenly found a masked figure in black standing directly in front of him.

Li Xiuchen’s eyes widened in terror. Just as he opened his mouth to shout, his voice was sealed shut by the intruder.

A raspy, hoarse voice echoed across the courtyard: “You kid look quite pleasing to the eye. Benzuo¹Benzuo (本座): Literally “This Seat.” An authoritative, imposing first-person pronoun used by powerful experts, sect leaders, or mysterious high-ranking figures. takes a liking to you and bestows upon you this magic treasure to help you pass tomorrow’s Sect Grand Competition at Taihua Mountain. No need to thank Benzuo; when fate brings us together again in the future, you will naturally learn who Benzuo is.”

After a long moment, Li Xiuchen slumped weakly to the ground, completely drained of energy—while an extra long sabre²Sabre / Dao (刀) vs. Sword / Jian (劍): In Chinese martial arts and xianxia, jian refers to a double-edged straight sword (associated with elegance and orthodox cultivators like Luo Jianqing), while dao refers to a single-edged curved blade or sabre. now lay on the earth beside him. Still shaken by the terrifying atmosphere moments ago, forget the fact that the intruder had worn a mask; even if the man had been unmasked, Li Xiuchen wouldn’t have been able to see his face clearly at night anyway.

Once his trembling finally subsided, Li Xiuchen practically crawled over to the long sabre and picked it up.

“The heavens are helping me! The heavens truly are helping me! I really am the protagonist! Hahahaha!!!”

Outside the courtyard, Luo Jianqing pulled the black cloth from his face, let out a cold sneer, and flew swiftly away.

__

The next day, Taihua Mountain’s once-every-seven-years Sect Grand Competition commenced right on schedule.

Currently, Taihua Mountain boasted several hundred Qi Refining disciples, over a hundred Foundation Establishment disciples, and ten Golden Core disciples. Among them, all of the Seven Scions of Taihua were at the Golden Core stage, alongside three other shidi who had cultivated diligently enough to break into the Golden Core realm as well.

All the martial arenas were set up on the grand plaza in front of Cangshuang Peak’s Lingyun Hall, while visiting elders from outside sects were seated before Lingyun Hall to spectate this grand martial tournament of the younger generation. This time, three Peak Masters of Taihua Mountain’s seven peaks attended in person, with Sect Master Haoxingzi seated at the very center, presiding over the entire event.

Overseeing the matches were four Soul Formation elders, supported by over twenty Nascent Soul elders stationed around the perimeter of the arenas to intervene and save lives immediately should any accident occur.

Spars among cultivators always carried mortal peril; once fighters went all out, matches easily escalated into fights to the death.

Therefore, high-realm elders had to keep watch closely during the Sect Grand Competition, lest a tragedy unfold.

First up were the Qi Refining matches, beginning with disciples from the first to third tiers. Those bouts offered little excitement. Once they concluded, a collective gasp rippled through the crowd of disciples, not for the junior shidi who had claimed victory, but for the seven figures who had suddenly appeared around the martial arenas.

The Seven Scions of Taihua had all arrived!

Little Shijie Mu Tianxin wore fiery red robes like blazing flames; Sixth Shixiong Xiu Hen possessed a powerfully built, towering physique; Fifth Shixiong Huo Yuchong sported a head of red hair and a volatile temper; Fourth Shixiong Xie Zizhuo was clad in black, waving a folding fan with rakish flair; Third Shijie Wei Qiongyin stood hugging her sword with an icy expression; and Second Shixiong Zuo Yunmo wore a gentle, approachable smile.

Walking at the very forefront of the seven was someone who seemed to draw all the brilliance of heaven and earth onto himself, dazzling like the stars.

A three-petaled blue-green lotus adorned the space between his brows; dressed in his white sect uniform trimmed with blue-green, he was peerlessly handsome, his brows and eyes like a fine painting. Every movement exuded supreme grace, and though his face bore little expression, his cool, unworldly aura instantly set him apart from everyone else, prompting the powerhouses seated before Lingyun Hall to recall a single name at once.

Luo Jianqing.

Luo Jianqing of Taihua Mountain’s Yuxiao Peak.

Even Body Integration powerhouses had long heard this name resound like thunder in their ears.

He was the sole disciple of Taihua Mountain’s Yuxiao Peak, and the closed-door disciple of Xuanlingzi Zunzhe, the number one expert in the cultivation world.

“So that is Luo Jianqing?”

“Truly worthy of Taihua Mountain, merely a junior at the mid-stage of Golden Core, yet I can sense a sky-soaring sword intent radiating from him.”

“Sect Master Haoxingzi, did Xuanlingzi Zunzhe not attend today’s matches?”

Haoxingzi had long prepared for such questions. Although his cultivation surpassed theirs, he was speaking today in his capacity as Sect Master of Taihua Mountain. In a calm, unruffled tone, Haoxingzi replied, “Indeed, that is our Taihua Mountain’s Eldest Shixiong, Luo Jianqing.”

The visitors murmured in admiration once more; even the Tribulation Transcendence elders from the Four Great Sects, Eight Great Clans, and Sixteen Sects kept their eyes fixed intently on Luo Jianqing’s figure without looking away.

Meanwhile, beside the martial arenas, Luo Jianqing was watching the mid-stage Qi Refining matches. Dozens of disciples took the stage in turn, sifting out the weak until, when a plain-looking youth emerged victorious, even the referee elder froze on the spot, speechless for a long moment.

After half a beat, the referee elder announced loudly, “Mid-stage Qi Refining victor: Li Xiuchen, fourth tier of Qi Refining!”

The moment this announcement fell, whispers broke out immediately among the disciples. Xie Zizhuo’s mouth twisted as he hurried over to Luo Jianqing’s side and muttered under his breath, “Shixiong, what kind of nonsense is this?! He won again, him again! Six lucky byes in a row, only fought two matches, and in the end he actually defeated a sixth-tier Qi Refining disciple?! Do you believe that? Because I sure don’t! There’s definitely something fishy about that sabre of his; its power is way too absurd!”

As he spoke, Xie Zizhuo started to step forward to inspect the weapon up close, only for Luo Jianqing to pull him back and advise calmly, “Fourth Shidi, this shidi suffered heavy injuries as well. That sabre of his is indeed a magic treasure, yet since the referee elder did not halt the match, it is within the rules.”

Xie Zizhuo snapped irritably, “The Heavenly Dao is unfair!”

Luo Jianqing let out a soft chuckle. “Shidi, there is no need to be jealous of someone else’s good luck.”

Xie Zizhuo’s eyes practically turned green with anger. “Me, jealous of him?!”

Luo Jianqing raised a hand and smacked Xie Zizhuo squarely on the back of the head, forcing the chatterbox to shut his mouth in grievance, though he still muttered under his breath, “Clearly Shixiong hates him plenty too, what’s gotten into you today…”

Hearing this, Luo Jianqing merely smiled faintly without replying.

Over in the arena, Li Xiuchen cheered and celebrated excitedly, yet scarcely any disciples came over to congratulate him. Even little Liu Xiaoxiao stood amidst the Qinglan Peak disciples, merely watching Li Xiuchen from afar without stepping forward to offer her congratulations.

Seeing this, Luo Jianqing narrowed his eyes in a faint smile and turned his attention to the next round of matches.

Before long, the Qi Refining bracket wrapped up, followed shortly thereafter by the Foundation Establishment disciples, whose numbers were noticeably smaller. At last, only the ten Golden Core disciples remained to compete.

Every gaze in the entire venue converged upon the five martial arenas. Luo Jianqing soared gracefully onto the stage, looked across at the dainty young woman clad in blazing red robes, gave a light sweep of his sleeve, and smiled: “Little Shimei, today… I won’t be able to go easy on you.”

Footnotes:

• 1
  Benzuo (本座): Literally “This Seat.” An authoritative, imposing first-person pronoun used by powerful experts, sect leaders, or mysterious high-ranking figures. ↩︎
• 2
  Sabre / Dao (刀) vs. Sword / Jian (劍): In Chinese martial arts and xianxia, jian refers to a double-edged straight sword (associated with elegance and orthodox cultivators like Luo Jianqing), while dao refers to a single-edged curved blade or sabre. ↩︎