I saved the entire sect by playing idly by letting things fall apart.

Enraged, Chu Xingzhi immediately rolled up his sleeves, ready to fight Ming Xuan. Just as he touched his sword, Ye Qiao raised an eyebrow and exclaimed in an exaggerated tone.

"Come quick, the Sword Inquiry Sect is beating people up!"

Chu Xingzhi was caught off guard by her preemptive strike, unsure whether to draw his sword or not, and stood there awkwardly frozen.

"You..." He had just opened his mouth angrily when Xue Yu, who was standing next to him, replied dejectedly, "It's alright. It's normal for the powerful Wenjian Sect to want to beat up the weak like us."

Chu Xingzhi almost burst into a tirade of curses.

The weak?

Those disciples from the five major sects who were able to participate in the competition were basically of similar strength. If Changming Sect hadn't been counting down for ten thousand years, they wouldn't have been ridiculed so badly. If they were weak, then the other disciples shouldn't be alive either.

Xue Yu's witty remarks made Chu Xingzhi so angry he almost fell over.

Mu Chongxi's eyes darted around, and she instinctively clutched her chest, her voice soft and gentle: "Yes, Junior Sister. You're new here and don't understand. Even a powerful sect like the Sword Inquiry Sect just looks down on each of us on average. It's alright. We've gotten used to it over the years."

"..." Haven't you Changming Sect people gone a bit overboard with the drama?!

Chu Xingzhi's eyes widened in surprise.

"Mu Chongxi," he gritted his teeth, enunciating each word clearly, "If you've got the guts, fight me."

Who looks down on them?

And Mu Chongxi, wasn't he the one with the worst temper before?

Chu Xingzhi had no idea what these people had gone through to become like this. He was furious. His junior brothers and sisters quickly pulled him back, saying, "Second Senior Brother, calm down. Fighting with swords is not allowed before the competition begins."

The junior sister subtly warned, "You'll be locked in the forbidden area and your competition points will be deducted."

Chu Xingzhi desperately tried to calm himself down.

"Don't be angry," the junior brother hurriedly interjected. "What's the point of talking to these good-for-nothings? We can make our move once we're inside the secret realm."

Chu Xingzhi felt comforted. He pursed his lips, glared at them hatefully, and said, "Just you wait. I will never let you get away with this."

"Mmm, you're right. You make a lot of sense." Ye Qiao wasn't annoyed, she smiled and nodded, then said, "Then let's go to sleep."

The disciples of the Sword Inquiry Sect, who had just launched into a long and sarcastic tirade, were rendered speechless by her nonchalant tone once again: "..."

I was so angry I could hardly breathe, I almost died of anger on the spot.

After infuriating the members of the Sword Inquiry Sect, Ye Qiao, fearing a beating, immediately left the scene.

Mu Chongxi almost jumped up when he left.

He danced around excitedly, "Hahaha, it's a pity no one else saw Chu Xingzhi's face at the time, it turned green."

"I should have taken a picture of it."

They had encountered the Sword Inquiry Sect many times during their training trips down the mountain, and friction was inevitable. He never won a verbal battle, but Ye Qiao's outburst left Chu Xingzhi speechless with anger.

Some uninformed onlookers discussed this extensively.

"Looking down on the other four sects, tsk tsk tsk, who gave them the guts?"

Sometimes the power of the masses is invincible; if a rumor is spread enough, a false rumor will naturally become the truth.

Overnight, as the situation escalated, the news that Chu Xingzhi had declared he would crush the other four sects during the competition spread.

What was originally just a friction between two factions has, through this rumor, instantly become a problem between five factions.

"Are all the Sword Inquiry Sect members this arrogant?" Si Miaoyan's voice carried a hint of confusion. "Although their chances this year are indeed very high, that doesn't mean the other four sects are pushovers, does it?"

How dare they? The competition hasn't even started yet, and they're already acting like this.

Who gave the Sword Inquiry Sect the guts?

Upon receiving the news, Chu Xingzhi was left with a blank expression: "???"

what.

When did he ever look down on the other four sects?

Upon hearing of this, the elder of the Sword Inquiry Sect immediately arrived with a cold face and reprimanded Chu Xingzhi, "Looking down on other sect disciples before even starting the competition, who taught you such things?"

Chu Xingzhi opened his mouth: "Isn't this just the usual pre-competition banter?"

The elder's anger deepened. "You can't trample on the reputation of the other four sects like this. Putting aside everything else, even our sect's Ye Qinghan can only be considered to be evenly matched with Zhou Xingyun of the Changming Sect."

"Are you brainless to spread such rumors that create enemies before the competition has even started?"

Chu Xingzhi was even more wronged; he was merely mocking the Changming Sect.

"You should stay here quietly before the competition and not go out and bring shame to our sect," the elder said sternly.

Chu Xingzhi was scolded harshly, which made him even angrier. He couldn't understand how things had developed into this state.

……

Those with a bit of sense quickly investigated the origin of the rumor. Eventually, the senior disciple of Chengfeng Sect found out the truth. He smiled thoughtfully and said, "Wow, I feel like this year's competition is going to be very interesting."

The competition is already this exciting even before it starts; it will be even more spectacular once it begins.

"Ye Qiao?" Duan Hengdao was engrossed in studying the magical artifact in his hand. He paused in his drawing, and his eyes lit up when he heard the familiar name.

"You know her?" The senior brother narrowed his eyes.

"Of course." Duan Hengdao gestured. "Not only that, but strictly speaking, I'm also looking forward to her arrival."

"A brat with a mid-grade spiritual root, only at the early Foundation Establishment stage?" He tapped his junior brother's head and sneered, "Instead of looking forward to her arrival, we should look forward to the surprises that little girl from the Yueqing Sect will bring us this year."

Reaching the Golden Core stage in just over a month, that Yun Que is clearly no ordinary person.

The eldest brother said disdainfully, "Did you break your head while you were out training?" How could you expect to reach the Foundation Establishment stage?

Duan Hengdao slapped his senior brother's hand away in dissatisfaction, "That's not true."

"She's amazing."

Duan Hengdao still can't forget Ye Qiao's antics. He solemnly gave his senior brother a heads-up: "In short, we have to be careful of her when we enter the secret realm."

The eldest brother patted his head, sighed helplessly, and became even more convinced that his junior brother was sick.

……

After a night of chaos, they reunited. Perhaps because of the malicious rumors, the disciples of the Sword Inquiry Sect calmed down. After resting for three days, they set off together for the secret realm they were to enter.

Previously, they were separated by the courtyard, and apart from the Wenjian Sect, they basically never went out and never encountered anyone.

However, once they reunite, they will inevitably have to meet with the Yueqing Sect.

Song Hansheng walked at the very front. He hadn't boarded the flying boat yet. As he passed Ye Qiao, he said maliciously, "Ye Qiao..."

Ye Qiao took a half step back, wary, and said, "What? The competition hasn't even started yet, and you're already trying to get close to me?"

Song Hansheng: "???" Who the hell wants to get close to you?

"Second Senior Sister."

A familiar voice rang out, and this time it was Ye Qiao's turn to have a stomachache. To be honest, when she wanted to annoy someone, no one could leave her speechless.

Only the female lead can do it.

Yun Que called out to the familiar Second Senior Sister again, but this time she was accompanied by three bodyguards.

I have to say... the female lead's charm is boundless.

Besides Su Zhuo and Zhai Chen, who had some connection with the original owner, there was another man by her side, acting as if to protect her.

"Junior Sister Ye Qiao." Zhai Chen's feelings became complicated when he saw that it really was her.

The two hadn't seen each other for more than half a year. The last time they met was because of a mayfly plant, which caused the other to storm down the mountain in a fit of anger.

What Zhai Chen didn't expect was that she would actually be able to enter the Changming Sect.

It seems somewhat unbelievable that he was given the position of a personal disciple.

"Wow." Mingxuan's voice suddenly rose, his arms crossed, using his height advantage to block Ye Qiao, and he met Zhai Chen's gaze directly. "Don't you guys have any junior sisters? Why are you looking at our junior sister with such disgusting eyes?"

Zhai Chen's face turned cold: "Ming Xuan, don't think I'm afraid of you just because you're a member of the Ming family."

Mingxuan, feeling confident, said, "Then let's see how things go in the secret realm. For now, please stay away from my junior sister, thank you."

"Ye Qiao." Su Zhuo, who had been silent until now, finally spoke. He stared at Ye Qiao for a long time, and perhaps having finally accepted the fact that his senior sister, with whom he had grown up, had joined the Changming Sect, his voice turned cold as he pursed his lips and said, "I hope you won't regret this decision."

"Once we enter the secret realm, I will no longer show mercy."

Upon hearing this, Ye Qiao burst out laughing without any hesitation.

It's like he cared so much about the original owner before.

If anyone had ever cared for the original owner even a little, they wouldn't have used the herbs that the other party had gone to great lengths to obtain to please Yun Que.

She grinned at Su Zhuo's words and responded with a firm and powerful middle finger.

Zhou Xingyun frowned, not understanding what her gesture meant.

He listened for a long time and finally understood what kind of grudges and grievances existed between his junior sister and the Yueqing Sect. However, he did not interrupt, after all, he should leave his own affairs to his junior sister to resolve.

If the problem isn't resolved, it's not too late for him to take action.

Not only Zhou Xingyun didn't understand Ye Qiao's actions, but the other three also fell into deep thought.

Is this... some kind of special spellcasting gesture?!

No.

Even if they lose, they shouldn't lose face; as the senior brothers, they should still give their junior sister face.

So the five members of the Changming Sect all raised their middle fingers at them.

The members of the Moon Purity Sect: "..."

I don't know why, but I felt humiliated.

"What do you mean? Are you insulting us?" Su Zhuo seemed to have seen Ye Qiao give the middle finger before, when she did it to her master. He always felt that it was not a good sign.

"Ah." Ye Qiao said sincerely, "How could that be? This is a new type of spell-casting hand gesture from our Changming Sect."

—No, which sect is so foolish as to use the middle finger as a gesture for casting spells?