Chapter 284

Chapter 284: Dare to Bet

Jiang Liu Yun was so angry he could hardly breathe. If the problem with the Heaven-Climbing Steps really blew up, the one who would suffer was his father, so how could he let Jiang Liu Bin mess around: “My sister is amazing. If she says there is a problem, then there is a problem. Jiang Liu Bin, stop making trouble here. If someone dies because of this, the whole Martial Alliance will be shamed.”

Jiang Liu Bin gave a cold laugh: “If you want to let her lead you by the nose, that is your business, but do not drag the entire Martial Alliance down with you. Anyway, I do not believe her nonsense.”

Jiang Liu Yun was about to argue again, but Jiang Liu Yi cut him off: “We are not using people from the Martial Alliance, so you can be quiet.”

Jiang Liu Bin had always been a little afraid of this second brother, yet he still did not want to yield. He truly did not believe the Heaven-Climbing Steps had any problem, and he truly thought Yu Zhi Yi was grandstanding: “No way. The Heaven-Climbing Steps are the symbol of the Martial Alliance. How can you do whatever you want? Even if you take this to my father and Second Uncle, I still have reason on my side.”

Jiang Liu Yi was about to shut him down by pulling rank as the elder brother when a small hand patted his shoulder. His anger paused, and he turned to see Yu Zhi Yi’s calm, lovely face bloom with a gentle, reassuring smile as she said: “Brother, let me.”

Yu Zhi Yi did not care about the life or death of the Martial Alliance, but this matter touched Jiang Yu Chuan, so she could not stand aside. She faced Jiang Liu Bin and said: “If you want to target me, say it straight. What will make you agree to let us act?”

She added in a steady voice: “Do not worry. We will not tear down the Heaven-Climbing Steps.”

Called out so directly, Jiang Liu Bin felt his face heat. He snorted: “Stop talking nonsense. I am not targeting you. I just do not want you to mess around. But since you asked, I am not heartless.”

A nasty smile flashed in his eyes as he laid down his condition: “If you can go down the Heaven-Climbing Steps to the foot and come back to the top within one hour, I will agree.”

Both brothers, Jiang Liu Yi and Jiang Liu Yun, darkened their faces at once and snapped: “Nonsense!”

In their eyes, even though Yu Zhi Yi had immortal methods, those were not the same as the martial skills of people in the Martial World. Letting her catch ghosts was fine, but asking her to use lightness skill? That was impossible.

The Heaven-Climbing Steps were steep and high. A normal person could not even reach the top in an hour. And getting to the top was not the end. People say that going up a mountain is easy and going down is hard. Climbing up was tiring but not as dangerous. Going down pulled you with gravity, and one misstep meant a slip into thin air. From this height, maybe you would not be crushed to dust, but you could still be smashed badly. So going down often took more time and energy than going up.

Jiang Liu Bin stood his ground and said without budging: “I have given you a way. Whether you agree or not is up to you.”

A warm, gentle female voice floated over: “Liu Bin, what happened?”

Chen Xin Yue walked over with measured steps, a soft face holding just the right touch of confusion. Though his mother had warned him again and again that Chen Xin Yue was deep and scheming, Jiang Liu Bin did not believe it. He still felt close to her and said with natural warmth: “Sister Xin Yue.”

With a mocking tone, he repeated how Yu Zhi Yi had claimed there was a problem with the Heaven-Climbing Steps, then explained his bet that she had to go down and back within one hour.

Chen Xin Yue lifted her hand to cover her mouth and said: “This… sister did not grow up in the Martial Alliance. Such a bet is not very fair.”

Yu Zhi Yi raised a brow, while the brothers Jiang Liu Yi and Jiang Liu Yun both nodded in agreement.

Jiang Liu Bin had not expected Chen Xin Yue to speak for Yu Zhi Yi, and he looked at her with a disappointed, scolding expression as he said: “Sister Xin Yue, she has treated you so badly, and you still help her?”

Yu Zhi Yi was speechless and asked plainly: “When did I bully her?”

Jiang Liu Bin gave a cold laugh: “You did not hit her yourself, but you made Brother Yi and Jiang Liu Yun freeze her out, and you made Second Uncle give her a cold face.”

Jiang Liu Yi frowned and said: “Jin’er is kind. She has never told us to freeze anyone out.”

Jiang Liu Yun added in an annoyed voice: “Right, we never froze Sister Xin Yue out. Someone was too foolish and kept picking fights with my sister, so I said a few words.”

Jiang Liu Bin choked and could only say: “…”

Chen Xin Yue sighed softly and said with gentle understanding: “Since sister says there is a problem, then there is a problem. Liu Bin, let us listen to sister.”

[Do not you dare agree. Hold the line. Make that little tramp lose face. Best of all, let her fall off the Heaven-Climbing Steps and die.] Her heart screamed, but her face showed only concern.

Jiang Liu Bin did not disappoint her and pressed harder: “No. If she wants to dig into the Heaven-Climbing Steps, she must prove her skill. Otherwise, why should I believe her?”

Yu Zhi Yi looked him in the eye and said simply: “Fine. I agree.”

She looked deep at Jiang Liu Bin and saw a heavy dead gloom on his face, thick enough to choke the air. She stopped arguing.

“Jin’er, do not act on impulse,” warned Jiang Liu Yi.

“Yes, sister, there is no need. We can go to our eldest uncle,” said Jiang Liu Yun.

Yu Zhi Yi shook her head. This Martial Alliance reeked of hidden tricks. Except for Jiang Yu Chuan’s family, she did not trust anyone here. She was not sure if Jiang Yu Wei knew the steps had been tampered with, and she did not care to guess. While only this hotheaded Jiang Liu Bin was here, it was best to cut the trouble short.

As for alerting the snake in the grass, she thought: [Even better. Only when the snake moves can you catch it.]

“I am not being impulsive. Trust me,” said Yu Zhi Yi. She did not explain more. Very soon they would see she was not acting on anger.

“But there is one more thing,” she added after a pause.

Jiang Liu Bin rolled his eyes and said: “I knew you would try to play tricks…”

Yu Zhi Yi cut him off and said clearly: “If it turns out the Heaven-Climbing Steps really do have a problem, you must apologize to me in front of everyone in the Martial Alliance.”

Jiang Liu Bin did not believe the steps had any problem, and he did not believe she could finish in an hour. He sneered and agreed on the spot.

Chen Xin Yue was overjoyed inside, but she put on a worried face and said: “Sister, you do not have to do this… Fine. I will give you an example. If you can learn one or two moves, it will be easier.”

She spoke out a few lines of an inner cultivation formula in public, then smiled brightly at Yu Zhi Yi and said: “Watch closely. Like this…”

With that, she leaped.

On the long Heaven-Climbing Steps, she was like a fluttering butterfly. Her light skirt danced in the wind like bright wings. The steps ran straight from the mountaintop down to the foot. There were only the slope and no winding turns, so everyone could clearly see Chen Xin Yue’s figure grow smaller and smaller until she became a colored dot.

When she reached the bottom, that dot seemed to bounce and grew larger and larger. In a short while, she returned to full size in their sight.

“I am back,” said Chen Xin Yue with a light pant. “Whew. Sister, did you learn it?”

Jiang Liu Yun could only groan and say: “Sister Xin Yue, even a genius cannot learn a skill in an instant without training. It has only been fifteen minutes.”