Chapter 175

Chapter 175: Where Is His Brain?
“Cough, the weather is quite nice today. Everyone should go on their way.”

“Aiya, the fire in my artifact forging furnace is still burning. I have to hurry back to keep forging.”

“You are all leaving? Then I will go too.”

In the blink of an eye, the elders slipped away. Their figures vanished without a trace.

Yu Zhao looked at Li Fei.

This time Li Fei reacted very quickly. He picked up a wooden number token with both hands and respectfully handed it to Yu Zhao: “Senior Sister Yu, the first round of the Individual Competition will be held ten days from now, at the martial training field a hundred li from Wen Ding Pavilion.”

Yu Zhao nodded and took the token.

Li Fei said again: “There is a resting place inside Wen Ding Pavilion for disciples of Five Elements Dao Sect. Would Senior Sister Yu like to go rest there for a while?”

“Thank you for the trouble.”

“Senior Sister Yu is too polite.”

Li Fei called another fellow disciple over to take his place at the registration table, then personally led Yu Zhao into Wen Ding Pavilion.

After Yu Zhao left, the foot of the mountain grew noisy.

Everyone was talking about the rising star Yu Zhao. Si Tu Xuan instead became someone no one cared about.

Si Tu Xuan narrowed his eyes slightly. His face shifted between cloudy and clear.

A late Golden Core stage cultivator under twenty years old.

Very good. Yu Zhao, you have really caught my attention.

Let me see just how strong you are.

Under Li Fei’s lead, Yu Zhao entered the rooms arranged for Five Elements Dao Sect and rested, preparing for the match in ten days.

Thousands of li away, a flying boat was rushing toward Wen Ding Pavilion.

The flying boat was as tall as a five story building. Complex and mysterious array patterns were carved all over its body. As it moved through the clouds and mist, spiritual light flashed, making it look extremely splendid.

Zhou Jin Yue stood on the deck. Her brows and eyes were like a painting. Even in a plain disciple’s robe, her beauty could not be hidden.

The footsteps of someone approaching paused for a moment, then kept coming forward.

“Fellow Daoist Zhou.”

Zhou Jin Yue turned slightly and returned the greeting: “Fellow Daoist Li.”

Li Jing Rang walked a few steps closer and stood shoulder to shoulder with her.

Zhou Jin Yue’s brows tightened for a moment.

Li Jing Rang, the senior brother of Tai Bai Academy.

Tai Bai Academy and Five Elements Dao Sect had met by chance while traveling. After the elders of both sides discussed it, they decided to travel together.

She and Li Jing Rang had only spoken a few times. They were just casual acquaintances.

On the other hand, Ye Cong Xin got along very well with the disciples of Tai Bai Academy. Zhou Jin Yue had seen them chatting together more than once.

Today, instead of talking about poems and essays with Ye Cong Xin, Li Jing Rang had suddenly come to speak with her.

Just as she was feeling puzzled, Li Jing Rang’s voice sounded.

“Fellow Daoist Zhou, is there some misunderstanding between you and Junior Sister Ye of Lone Moon Peak? In my humble opinion, some things are better said clearly, so they do not affect the friendship between fellow disciples.”

Understanding flashed in Zhou Jin Yue’s eyes, then her face turned cold.

“What does that have to do with you?”

She had no plan to explain anything to Li Jing Rang.

The matters between her and Ye Cong Xin were not something people from Tai Bai Academy could meddle in.

Li Jing Rang froze for a moment, as if he had not expected Zhou Jin Yue to be so blunt.

“I have no ill intent. I only…”

Zhou Jin Yue cut him off, impatient: “Fellow Daoist Li, whether your intent is good or bad, this has nothing to do with you. I hope you will not stand here and try to stir up trouble between me and your junior sister.”

After speaking, Zhou Jin Yue thought to herself: [What bad luck.] She turned and was about to leave.

But Li Jing Rang refused to let it go.

“Fellow Daoist Zhou, you will not talk about it. Are you feeling guilty? As the First Senior Sister of your sect, you cannot treat everyone fairly. That is a failure of duty!”

Zhou Jin Yue suddenly turned back.

Li Jing Rang had fine, handsome features and a tall, straight figure. Just standing there, he gave people a feeling of gentleness and scholar-like grace.

Right now, his face was stern, and his eyes were full of doubt and dissatisfaction toward Zhou Jin Yue.

Zhou Jin Yue only felt as if she had stepped in something filthy. She was completely disgusted.

When she had first met Li Jing Rang, she had thought he was someone with real depth. Now she knew she had been terribly wrong.

“Li Jing Rang, do you even understand Junior Sister Ye? What right do you have to stand here and question me?”

“Of course I understand. Junior Sister Ye is as graceful as an orchid, and her talent is worthy of a celestial. Even more rare, she suffers from a serious illness, yet she still holds to her heart and faces hardship head on. She is truly admirable.”

As he said these words of praise, Li Jing Rang’s face was firm, and his eyes were full of tenderness.

No matter how hard Zhou Jin Yue looked, she could not find a trace of doubt or hesitation on his face.

Zhou Jin Yue was stunned.

Li Jing Rang, the first disciple of Tai Bai Academy, believed others so easily. He had not even checked the truth, yet he rushed out to stand up for someone.

[Where is his brain? Did he leave it at Tai Bai Academy and forget to bring it with him?]

“What is wrong? You cannot speak? Do you still want to argue?”

Seeing that Zhou Jin Yue did not talk, Li Jing Rang thought he had torn off her fake mask of kindness. He looked as if he already had victory in his hands.

Zhou Jin Yue felt disgust rise again. The corner of her lips hooked into a cold smile.

“Li Jing Rang, I remember you are already engaged, are you not? Now you stand up for Ye Cong Xin. Are you falling in love with someone else and planning to throw your fiancée aside?”

It was just throwing dirty water.

[Who cannot do that?]

Li Jing Rang looked as if someone had grabbed his throat. His face turned red at a speed visible to the eye: “Zhou Jin Yue, Junior Sister Ye and I are completely innocent. Do not slander us!”

She said: “I am making a reasonable guess. If you can question me, why can I not question you?”

The best way to fight rumors was not to prove yourself, but to jump out of the trap the other side had set and kick them into it instead.

Besides, Zhou Jin Yue felt her doubts were far more reasonable than Li Jing Rang’s. Seeing him like this, who would believe there was nothing else between him and Ye Cong Xin?

Zhou Jin Yue did not know if Ye Cong Xin had other thoughts, but Li Jing Rang’s heart was clearly not pure.

“We are like a musician and his soulmate, meeting over lofty mountains and flowing water. We talk about poems and songs, wind and moon, flowers and snow. How could a vulgar person like you understand that?”

Their argument finally drew the attention of the other disciples on the boat.

Zhang Jun ran over first: “First Senior Sister, what happened?”

As he asked, he looked Li Jing Rang up and down with suspicion, his eyes holding a faint sense of guard and rejection.

Zhou Jin Yue had just opened her mouth to answer when Lv Li, Fang Cheng Lang, Lan Zi Yu, and the other Five Elements Dao Sect disciples walked over and stood behind her.

No one said anything, but their actions showed silent support.

When the Tai Bai Academy disciples on the boat saw this, they did not know what had happened, but they still rushed down from the boat to back up their own first senior brother.

The two groups stood facing each other, clearly divided, the air growing tense like drawn swords and bent bows.

“Senior Sister Zhou, Senior Brother Li, what are you two doing?”

As the person at the center of the dispute, Ye Cong Xin arrived late.

Zhou Jin Yue raised a brow: “Junior Sister Ye, you came at the right time. Just now, Fellow Daoist Li from Tai Bai Academy suddenly came over and said a whole bunch of strange things to me, and even warned me not to bully you again. As your senior sister, I really cannot explain myself anymore. Why don’t you explain it for me?”

Ye Cong Xin forced a small smile: “Senior Sister Zhou, there must be some misunderstanding here.”

“Another misunderstanding? Just now, Fellow Daoist Li also asked me whether there was a misunderstanding between us. You help Senior Sister make it clear. Exactly who do I have a misunderstanding with?”

All eyes turned to Ye Cong Xin at once.

Ye Cong Xin’s fingers suddenly clenched tight around her robe. Her face grew even paler.