Chapter 106

Chapter 106: The Strength Match Begins

Two test papers were projected with spiritual power above the dueling platform; not only did the Elders review them together, the Flying Cloud Sect disciples judged as well.

Among the three parts of the Young Sect Master trial, sect affairs management and the strength match were the true focus.

In Shen Dao Chen’s view, Shen Sang Ruo’s willful, reckless nature meant she could never understand how to manage a sect.

Bai Mu Mu, sensible and steady, should not disappoint him.

As long as Bai Mu Mu won this round, the Young Sect Master’s seat would be set, and the stone in his heart could finally drop.

But reality did not grant his wish.

The difference between the two test papers was as clear as the difference in how quickly they were turned in.

Shen Sang Ruo’s understanding and insight on every question were flawless.

Bai Mu Mu’s answers, however, barely counted as complete.

After reading Shen Sang Ruo’s responses, the Elders could not stop praising her. Their eyes hardly left her paper, while almost no one cared about Bai Mu Mu’s.

Only a few Elders, for Shen Dao Chen’s sake, forced out two weak compliments for Bai Mu Mu.

The contrast was brutal.

Even Shen Dao Chen, when he saw both papers, was stunned by Shen Sang Ruo’s answers; as Sect Master, he understood best how to run a sect, so he knew exactly how precise and clever her solutions were. [Perhaps I really did underestimate Shen Sang Ruo.]

By comparison, the one he had pinned his hopes on, Bai Mu Mu, was simply average.

He looked at the two of them, his eyes hard to read.

Regarding Shen Sang Ruo, he was surprised. He felt she should not be at this level and even suspected she had cheated. [Did she cheat?] But both test papers had been handled by him personally, and Shen Sang Ruo had not even been in the Flying Cloud Sect recently, so he let the suspicion go.

Maybe he had underestimated Shen Sang Ruo. With her performing so well, as both father and Sect Master, he should show something.

Sensing Shen Dao Chen’s gaze, Shen Sang Ruo still looked straight ahead, calm and level.

If it were the old her, she would have looked back right away, seeking his approval.

When Shen Dao Chen saw she had no reaction, he could not tell what he felt. He moved his eyes away in silence and turned to Bai Mu Mu.

Seeing that Bai Mu Mu clearly had not met his expectations, he could not hide his disappointment.

Even so, he was still biased toward her and only hoped she would push harder in the next round.

Feeling Shen Dao Chen’s favor start to slip, Bai Mu Mu clenched her fingers. [His goodwill is dropping.]

This round was, without question, Shen Sang Ruo’s win.

Now the two were tied one to one, and the suspense over the Young Sect Master spot would come down to the final event.

The mood in the arena grew tense, and to be honest, most people were nervous for Bai Mu Mu.

The schedule was tight. After a short rest, they moved straight to the final strength match.

As Bai Mu Mu walked past Shen Sang Ruo, she lowered her voice: “We’re about to see the final winner. You’ll be under my heel.”

Shen Sang Ruo answered without looking at her: “Your strength is higher than mine, but so what. Here’s a reminder: strength alone does not decide everything, so don’t get too confident.”

Bai Mu Mu drew a deep, meaningful smile.

She knew exactly what kind of person Shen Dao Chen was, and she knew how to use his mindset to reach her goal. [Rules don’t matter.] No matter the outcome of the strength match, the Young Sect Master’s seat could only be hers.

She leaned in with a soft, cruel promise: “Enjoy it. I prepared a surprise for you.”

Her gaze on Shen Sang Ruo turned sharp and vicious.

Shen Sang Ruo lifted her eyes and met Bai Mu Mu’s. Her expression was not excited like Bai Mu Mu imagined, and she did not bother with some harsh line like “you will lose.” Instead, she said, almost out of nowhere: “Do you remember what I once told you?” In her eyes, something heavy and long-held pressed down. [I have waited for this day for a long time.]

Without caring how Bai Mu Mu reacted, she stepped toward the spot for the final strength match.

Bai Mu Mu pulled a mocking, scornful smile and walked to the position opposite her.

Shen Sang Ruo’s calm made a thin anger rise in Bai Mu Mu’s chest; it made her want to tear that calm apart with her own hands.

A flash of malice crossed Bai Mu Mu’s face. After this match, she would be the shining Young Sect Master of the Flying Cloud Sect, the focus of ten thousand eyes, while Shen Sang Ruo would be nothing but a stray hated by all.

The rest time ticked by, second after second. The disciples’ emotions climbed, and the chatter grew loud.

Shen Dao Chen’s solemn voice drove the mood to a peak as he announced: “Final event of the Young Sect Master trial, the strength match!”

He lifted something high, light glinting from it as he declared: “Whoever wins the strength match earns the Young Sect Master’s Token.”

He gave a crisp command: “Give it your all!”

Then his voice rang out: “Begin!”

The two on the platform moved the instant his words fell.

Bai Mu Mu called her weapon by name: “Snowfrost Staff!”

A staff as clear as ice appeared in her hand, its tip a crescent made of ice crystals, tiny snowflakes falling from it without end.

Sharp-eyed people recognized it at once as one of the top-grade artifacts Master Ling Xiao had claimed in the Secret Realm.

Someone explained in a low voice: “Junior Sister Bai has no life-bound artifact, so Master Ling Xiao lent her that staff just for this trial.”

A gasp followed: “Using the Snowfrost Staff as a temporary weapon? That’s too extravagant.”

Though the Snowfrost Staff was not as fine as the Cold Echo Pearl kept in the Treasure Pavilion, it was still a rare artifact in this world.

In some declining sects, it alone would be enough to serve as a sect-guarding treasure.

Another voice said with pride: “Of course. Look at who Junior Sister Bai is: Sect Master Shen’s own daughter and Master Ling Xiao’s closed-door disciple. She’s not like us. An ice staff isn’t even worthy to be her life-bound artifact.”

Someone asked, curious and a bit mocking: “But isn’t Shen Sang Ruo also Sect Master Shen’s adopted daughter and Master Ling Xiao’s former disciple? What’s her artifact?”

A scoff came back: “Whatever it is, it won’t beat Junior Sister Bai’s Snowfrost Staff.”

To them, Bai Mu Mu held all the favor, while Shen Sang Ruo was disliked in the Flying Cloud Sect. Who would ever give Shen Sang Ruo a decent artifact?

Master Ling Xiao’s eyes were cold, a trace of mockery flashing there. This was the benefit of being his disciple; once she left Thunder-Scale Peak, she was nothing. Resources would no longer flow to her. He would make her understand just how ungrateful she was. He waited, wanting to see regret in her eyes. [She left Thunder-Scale Peak. She is nothing without me.]

Someone cried out: “Look, Shen Sang Ruo has drawn her artifact too.”

Another blinked: “What is that? A feather?”

A green feather appeared out of thin air. After Shen Sang Ruo took it in hand and slowly spread it open, the Flying Cloud Sect crowd finally realized it was a fan made of feathers.

Under the sunlight, the Luan Feather Fan shimmered. Every plume flashed with a richer golden glow, and the feathers on the fan quivered slightly.

A murmur spread: “So it’s a feather fan.”

“Doesn’t seem low quality at all.”

The Flying Cloud Sect disciples kept talking.