The competition continued day after day, and the number of arenas also kept decreasing.
Qin Xun had secured a spot in the finals on the first day, so every day after waking up, he just followed his master to watch this group of righteous sect disciples fight each other. His days were quite boring.
Ji Chang’an’s strength wasn’t considered top-tier among the Out-of-Body stage cultivators, while Xu Rong at Golden Core stage insisted on going head-to-head with a group of Nascent Soul cultivators. Until the day before the finals, both of them were still fighting desperately on the arena platforms.
The only thing that Yin Lang found somewhat unexpected was that the ‘soul-swapped version’ of Jiang Mingyue had been released. She had now taken the place of the previous spokesperson of Jietian Dao Sect, sitting ‘dignified and virtuous’ at the head of the high platform watching the matches.
Pure white dress and skirt, face covered with a thin veil.
Aside from the somewhat awkward ‘dignified’ posture she was forcing and her gaze constantly following a certain protagonist, she could barely be considered presentable.
It seemed that after suffering consecutive setbacks, this visitor from another world’s deranged mind had finally become somewhat normal.
Yin Lang glanced over lightly and then withdrew his gaze. ‘Jiang Mingyue’s’ objectives didn’t conflict with his for the time being. The original Jietian Saintess was very popular with people, and as long as the other party didn’t actively come seeking death, he had no desire to provoke this behemoth called Jietian Dao Sect at such a critical time.
The gaze that had sent chills down her spine moved away, and ‘Jiang Mingyue’ gasped sharply, her body relaxing slightly. She then realized her entire body was soaked in cold sweat.
This person… what powerful oppressive force.
Just a single glance, yet if they truly fought, wouldn’t she go weak in the knees at first contact, completely unable to fight back?
She recalled the several days she had been confined in the cave dwelling under the pretext of ‘recuperating from injuries,’ and the information she had extracted from the maidservant’s mouth.
The entire cultivation world’s plot had completely gone haywire. Except for a few major plot points that hadn’t changed much, the details had completely deviated from the original novel’s direction.
Not only had the male lead not become a disciple under the original female lead Li Baisu, he had instead become the disciple of a minor character who barely had any ink devoted to him in the original work!
Tianji Daojun, Tribulation Sword Master—these titles sounded intimidating, but in the novel, this type of otherworldly expert whose real name was never even mentioned had a ninety-nine percent chance of meeting a tragic end of sacrificing themselves for the greater good.
This type of character design practically had [Drops protagonist’s exclusive legacy: golden finger] written all over them. How could they possibly match up to a heavyweight character role like the protagonist’s master!
‘Jiang Mingyue,’ who considered herself well-versed in novel tropes, was instantly dumbfounded when faced with this new type of plot development.
Although she had lost Li Baisu, the most competitive strong rival, if the plot didn’t follow the original novel, how could she use her ‘prophet’ advantage to occupy the most important position by the male lead’s side?
Most importantly—
She had probably already ruined this protagonist’s master’s impression of her to negative numbers in that one encounter! A fatal blunder that absolutely couldn’t be salvaged!
In the eyes of a whole group of Tribulation and Mahayana stage cultivators, her movements were really too exaggerated. They all inconspicuously looked over, and some who had good relations with Jietian Dao Sect quietly inquired whether she was feeling unwell.
‘Jiang Mingyue’ stiffly shook her head repeatedly. When she met Shen Muxuan’s puzzled gaze, she instinctively pulled a slightly ‘ingratiating’ smile.
The questioning meaning in his eyes only deepened.
Yin Lang really couldn’t quite understand ‘Jiang Mingyue’s’ intentions.
Especially when the other party specially had a maidservant add a seat next to him, then came over with a plastered smile—he understood it even less.
‘Jiang Mingyue’ pinched her throat, speaking in a thin, affected voice, “I’ve long heard of Daojun’s reputation. Now that I’ve finally met you, you truly live up to your name—in fact, meeting you surpasses your reputation.”
Yin Lang: “You’re too kind. We just met a month ago.”
‘Jiang Mingyue’: “…”
She stiffened slightly, then quickly lowered her head and covered her mouth, laughing twice to mask her embarrassment, explaining, “Look at my memory. Sect affairs have been so busy lately that I actually forgot about what happened a month ago. Please forgive me, Daojun.”
Thinking about it, she added another sentence, “It’s been some days since we’ve met. Daojun’s bearing is even more magnificent than before, your aura is perfectly harmonious. I imagine that given time, you’ll surely break through to the Tribulation stage. Mingyue offers you congratulations in advance.”
Yin Lang: “Thank you, but I just broke through to the Tribulation stage a month ago.”
‘Jiang Mingyue’: “…”
She nearly ground her silver teeth to pieces, barely maintaining her smile while cursing inwardly.
This damned book is completely unreliable! Wasn’t the Tianji Sword Master supposed to only break through and advance after the Tianxuan Secret Treasury?!
‘Jiang Mingyue’ let out two dry laughs, “Is—is that so? It seems Mingyue’s information is too outdated.”
As she spoke, she turned to lightly scold the maidservant behind her. “How do you do your job? How could you fail to promptly inform me of such an important matter?”
The maidservant’s eyes reddened with grievance. “Saintess…”
Yin Lang: “That’s not necessary. After all, the Saintess was also present when Shen broke through. Perhaps your attendants didn’t anticipate that the Saintess’s memory would be this poor.”
‘Jiang Mingyue’: “…” Damn it, there’s no way to continue this conversation!
So Shen Muxuan and the original host were acquainted?
‘Jiang Mingyue’ resentfully clutched her skirt, rapidly thinking about how to smooth over this flaw.
Transmigration novels are all lies. When she woke up in this body, the original host was already gone, leaving no memories behind. She had only managed to avoid being discovered as abnormal through her superb acting skills, but even so, she lived on thin ice.
The maidservant behind her very perceptively helped find an excuse, and ‘Jiang Mingyue’ hurriedly stood up to bow in farewell.
Yin Lang promptly supported her to prevent her from actually bowing, sighing inwardly.
She couldn’t be said to be eighty percent similar to the original host—only completely opposite. With this level of disguise technique, it would be seeing ghosts if Jietian Dao Sect hadn’t noticed her abnormality. Young Princess Li’s worries were completely wasted.
“Master, Martial Nephew Xu is coming over.”
The young man who had been standing with his hands lowered behind him suddenly spoke. ‘Jiang Mingyue’s’ foot that had just been raised fell back to its original position.
While ‘Jiang Mingyue’ was trying hard to get close to Yin Lang, Xu Rong had just completed his last victory before the finals. After adjusting his well-behaved smile, he came scampering over to act spoiled with his master.
His gaze froze on the arms of a man and woman supporting each other, and his smile gradually disappeared.
He asked gently, “Shizun, Saintess, what are you two doing?”
This fickle woman! Not long ago she was still secretly seducing him, and after just a few days of not seeing her, she’s set her sights on his master? Damn it!
‘Jiang Mingyue’ broke into a smile and took a step forward, about to respond.
The maidservant frowned, reached her hand into her sleeve and inconspicuously activated a spell technique. ‘Jiang Mingyue’ just felt somewhat dizzy, raised her hand to support her head, looked up at the sun in confusion, but her body couldn’t muster any strength. She had no choice but to be helped back to her seat.
Not long after, a Tribulation stage cultivator with an unfamiliar face rushed over in a hurry, his face full of anxiety. “Ah, I already told you to rest quietly, rest quietly. Why are you always so stubborn? The moment I take my eyes off you, your injuries flare up again.”
‘Jiang Mingyue’ didn’t understand the situation and responded vaguely a couple of times. Just before being led away, she reluctantly glanced in Xu Rong’s direction.
Xu Rong kept his head lowered, avoiding any eye contact. ‘Jiang Mingyue’ was led away in disappointment.
That evening, a paper crane fluttered into his courtyard.
After reading the contents, Xu Rong hesitated briefly before changing into more concealing clothes and heading to the agreed location.
‘Jiang Mingyue’ waited deep in the bamboo forest. The veil on her face had been torn off, and her dress had also been changed to a more concealing black color. Actually, she had originally wanted to wear something more stunning in red, but helplessly, this flamboyant color was really too different from the original host’s habits. Even mentioning it would draw suspicious looks from the maidservant, so she had to give up.
Xu Rong cautiously first sent out a paper crane to probe the situation. After confirming that only Jiang Mingyue was alone in the forest, he let down his guard slightly and slowly walked in.
Compared to the difficult disguise during the day, ‘Jiang Mingyue’ had somewhat recovered her true nature at this moment. As soon as she saw him, a smile appeared on her face. If it weren’t for worrying that things obtained too easily wouldn’t be cherished, she probably would have pounced on him directly.
Xu Rong said coldly, “What important matter does the Saintess have to summon me here in the middle of the night?”
He hadn’t forgotten the sight of this woman clinging to his master during the day!
‘Jiang Mingyue’ secretly tugged at her sleeve, cursing inwardly at this fickle dog of a man who wouldn’t make a move without seeing the rabbit. She thought her face showed nothing, maintaining a tender expression as she slowly walked forward. “Don’t worry, before leaving I specially placed a substitute dummy in the cave dwelling. They won’t discover our midnight rendezvous. Don’t be nervous.”
She placed herself in quite a low position. Seeing this, Xu Rong’s expression also softened a bit, and he gently consoled her, “During the day, I wasn’t deliberately giving you the cold shoulder. It’s just that with elders present, with you unmarried and me unwed, it really wouldn’t be proper to do anything that would tarnish your reputation.”
He had long since discovered that this Saintess, for some unknown reason, placed extreme importance on ‘status’—or rather, on properly marrying him as a legitimate wife. Although he didn’t know why her various behaviors during this meeting seemed as if she had been placed under an illusion spell, if there were benefits to be gained without suffering losses, how could he not take advantage of them?
This was the Jietian Saintess, the future successor of a super-grade sect second only to Taihua Immortal Sect, a Tribulation stage great cultivator. She showed indifference to others yet displayed only dependence toward him. Even though Xu Rong could see she had ulterior motives, he couldn’t help but enjoy this feeling of a proud beauty lowering herself exclusively for him.
‘Jiang Mingyue’s’ brow was filled with affection that seemed about to melt into water. She nodded shyly and bashfully, her voice like a mosquito’s hum. “I understand.”
Inwardly she cursed at the dog of a man—if this guy wasn’t the Heavenly Dao’s ordained protagonist who could take her along on his meteoric rise, who would be willing to be lovey-dovey with this perverse creature who thinks with his lower half!
Xu Rong had long grown accustomed to her meek and submissive temperament in front of him. He walked close and intimately half-embraced ‘Jiang Mingyue’s’ shoulders and back, asking with a low laugh, “What happened? It’s rare to see you ask me out for a meeting in the middle of the night.”
‘Jiang Mingyue’ took the opportunity to nestle into his embrace. “The Tianxuan Secret Treasury is extremely dangerous. Although you have exceptional talent, after all, you’ve been cultivating for a short time and your foundation can’t compare to those Soul Separation or even Spirit Transformation stage cultivators. I worry about you day and night. After thinking it over, I thought of a certain object. As long as you can obtain it, the danger of this trip will be greatly reduced.”
Xu Rong narrowed his eyes slightly but didn’t immediately ask what this object was. Instead, he said with concern, “From what you’re saying, the place where this thing is stored must be extremely dangerous. How could I allow you to do such a perilous thing? If something were to happen to you, what would I do?”
‘Jiang Mingyue’ was ‘moved’ to tears, reaching out to cover his mouth. “Xu Lang… say no more. I won’t let you take such risks. Rest assured, although this thing is precious, very few people know of its wonderful uses, so it’s not heavily guarded. Before the Secret Treasury opens, I will definitely steal it for you!”
Xu Rong declined several more times but ultimately couldn’t overcome ‘Jiang Mingyue’s’ devoted heart, and could only repeatedly remind her to be extremely careful.
After their dispute, this pair of man and woman nestled together again. Xu Rong asked as if casually. “This treasure you mentioned—what is it?”
The corners of the woman in his arms curved up slightly. “It’s the most supreme treasure in this heaven and earth, a piece of… precious jade that once caused all Dao Integration stage great cultivators to fight over it a thousand years ago.”