Brother, how come you're a witch?

Looking at Lu Jing's arrogant and domineering demeanor, Su Yan felt his toes dig into the ground.

Whispers and undisguised snickers filled the air.

"Who is this person?"

"Don't know him? Is this newbie really that arrogant?"

"I'm the overall champion of the Imperial Sword Invitational Tournament, what champion are you, bro?"

Lu Jing seemed oblivious to the doubts of the crowd, his slightly raised chin and the corners of his mouth revealing the turmoil in his heart.

After ten years of refining his Qi, he has finally established his foundation. Now, he feels that the world is vast and there is much to be done.

"...Pretend you don't know him later, understand?"

Su Yan covered his face, turned around and pointed at Lu Jing, speaking to his team members.

"Uh-huh."

The group members nodded vigorously, and even Ye Jingqiu nodded slightly.

Su Yan raised his hand again, pressed the listening device, and kicked Lu Jing out of the group chat with a thought.

After finishing all that, he breathed a sigh of relief, but then he noticed that his team members were staring at him strangely.

"What's wrong?"

Su Yan's lips twitched, a worse premonition creeping in.

"Team leader, look behind you..." The female team member covered her mouth with her hand and whispered a reminder.

Su Yan immediately turned around, and with that action, he felt more and more gazes directed at him from all directions.

"Haha, Junior Brother Su, I knew you'd support me!"

Lu Jingzheng, in a flamboyant pose, also raised his hand and pointed at Su Yan from afar:

"I am able to stand here today, first of all, I want to thank the sect, my parents, and secondly, my junior brother Su Yan. He is a kind-hearted and persevering person..."

As Lu Jingchang continued his long introduction, more and more eyes focused on Su Yan. His lips twitched, and he really wanted to raise his hands and shout, "I didn't! I didn't!"

"Pfft."

Liu Baishuang, holding her flying sword, stood at a distance watching the spectacle, her gaze gently falling on Su Yan amidst the cacophony of stares.

After a few days apart, he appeared even more sharp and upright, his demeanor as refreshing and warm as the sunrise over a mountain stream.

Liu Baishuang glanced at him, then glanced at him again, listening to Lu Jing still praising Su Yan endlessly, her eyes unable to stop lingering on Su Yan's face.

Why was Ye Jingqiu able to stand so close to see?

Liu Baishuang pouted.

"...I can't help but recall my first encounter with Junior Brother Su Yan; it was a beautiful sunset..."

Lu Jing's impassioned speech continued, while Su Yan was already considering withdrawing from the competition.

A thought struck Liu Baishuang, and she suddenly stepped forward.

She wore a light white gauze dress, her slender waist fluttering gracefully. Her dark hair was tied up with a jade hairpin, and her legs, which were faintly visible through the hem of her dress, were covered with white silk stockings that shimmered like ice crystals and accentuated her soft flesh.

She walked in like a light snowfall, instantly capturing everyone's attention.

Liu Baishuang walked to the front and glanced at Lu Jing. Even Lu Jing, who was currently feeling very good about himself, unconsciously stopped talking and took a small step back.

None of the sword cultivators were looking at Su Yan anymore; they were all staring at Liu Baishuang's back. There was no mockery or sarcasm in their eyes; they just felt that it was only natural for that person to stand there.

Su Yan breathed a sigh of relief, extremely grateful to the little vixen for getting him out of that predicament.

Although she probably didn't mean it that way, she just naturally went to her place.

"After learning what kind of person she is in private, I almost forgot about her glamorous image in other people's eyes."

Su Yan stroked his chin and muttered to himself.

The little demon girl's true personality is somewhat eccentric, competitive, and a little cute. But to those who don't know her, she is otherworldly yet not detached from the world, aloof yet not vulgar, and her talent is exceptional, making her practically perfect. She is the undisputed leader of the younger generation of the Xuanqing Sect.

Even Ye Jingqiu has this kind of perception. I wonder how surprised Little Sword Ancestor will be when he finds out that Su Xue is Liu Baishuang.

Su Yan was inwardly complaining when he saw Liu Baishuang turn around, her hand on her sword, and look around at everyone.

Fellow disciples.

Her voice rang out, clear and melodious like a spring striking jade:

"We have gathered here today only to hone our swordsmanship. Verbal arguments and other unorthodox methods are useless. We should just draw our swords and give it our all."

This statement, while ostensibly belittling Lu Jing, was actually protecting him. Of course, unorthodox methods also include deliberately tripping up or attacking others during competitions.

She's such a good girl...

Su Yan couldn't help but sigh. This way, at least in places where Liu Baishuang could see, the sword cultivators wouldn't go too far with Lu Jing, nor would they go too far with him...

Lu Jing was overwhelmed by Liu Baishuang's aura, and his arrogance from his recent successful Foundation Establishment subsided considerably. He awkwardly retreated to Su Yan's vicinity, but his eyes remained burning with anticipation for the match.

"Clang clang—"

The sound of bells echoed from the distant Sichen Peak.

The sword-issuing area fell completely silent as hundreds of sword cultivators gripped their sword hilts, eager to begin.

"Attention all participating disciples!"

The presiding disciple's voice rang out again through the amplification array, tinged with excitement:

"The competition is about to begin. The results will be determined by the combined time of multiple stages between checkpoints. Please ensure that the crystal on your flying sword is intact and not loose, as this will directly affect the validity of your score."

"If any unexpected situation arises during the race, please go to the nearest checkpoint for assistance."

"Then, let's begin—five breaths countdown."

All the sword cultivators sprang into action.

"five!"

Su Yan slowly drew his sword, pondering a serious question—why is the little vixen wearing such obvious white stockings again?

"Four!"

Ye Jingqiu tossed the sword aside, lightly stepped onto the blade, and moved her slender ankles a few times to adjust her posture.

"three!"

Liu Baishuang gently brushed her fingers along the snow-white tassel on the sword hilt, leaning slightly forward.

"two!"

Lu Jing's eyes flashed with a sharp light, preparing for something big.

"one!"

"Hahaha! Junior Brother Su, I'll be going first!"

"Team leader, let's block their positions!"

"One step on the sword hilt, two releases spiritual power, three unleashes the sword light, four emits a sword cry... Oh well, never mind, charge!"

In an instant, the sound of air being torn apart arose, like a hundred arrows being fired at once!

Su Yan also leaped up on his sword, but he fell behind. Since he could always use the teleportation array at the checkpoint to get to Yanshan no matter how he flew, he might as well take it easy.

Unfortunately, the listening device from a thousand years ago didn't have the function of playing storytelling and music, so it could only fly around aimlessly.

"Su Yan".

Ye Jingqiu's voice came from the side. The wind was strong and the listening device was very soundproof, so Su Yan almost didn't hear it.

He turned to look at Little Sword Ancestor, frowned, and said:

"Don't worry about me, just fly at your own pace."

"Now is not the time to exert our strength."

Ye Jingqiu shook his head, took a small bottle out of his storage bag, and stuffed it into Su Yan's hand:

"Give."

"This is... an aphrodisiac?"

"Yes, everyone was here just now, so I didn't have a chance to give it to you."

Ye Jingqiu nodded and said calmly:

"You're going to Yanshan to investigate matters related to Ning Jiu; this will come in handy."

"You."

Su Yan smiled and shook his head, carefully putting away the antidote incense. Then he raised his hand and patted the little sword ancestor's head:

"Come on, I'll take you flying forward a bit."

As a thousand-year-old swordsman, he decided to demonstrate his advanced sword control skills.