The morning sun streamed across the martial arena. At the cry of a crane, the noisy venue fell silent in an instant.
Every disciple of the Tianjue Sect stood in neat formation, their dark blue robes blending into one vast expanse.
The sect master wore a purple robe embroidered with gold trim. Sitting quietly in the seat of honor, he raised his eyes slightly and swept his gaze over the disciples below, a commanding presence in his eyes.
“Miss, I think you have an even more imposing air than the sect master,” Liuli whispered from among the disciples.
She hoped her mistress wouldn’t become the second sect master.
Ji Zhaoxi choked. “Liuli, maybe take those rose-tinted glasses off for a moment.”
Liuli was a little unhappy. Her mistress was always saying things like that.
Clearly, whenever Miss got serious, she looked incredibly dignified!
“The Grand Examination begins! Newcomers’ Trial!”
At the deacon elder’s command, the martial arena instantly erupted into activity.
Dozens of new disciples stepped onto the dueling platform, all of them looking somewhat nervous.
“I’ve only been at Tianjue Sect for half a month. Why do I have to participate too?” one disciple on the platform asked in despair.
The disciple beside him explained, “Everyone who’s been in the sect for less than five years participates together.”
“But I’ve spent this entire half month carrying water…”
The disciple next to him consoled him. “Don’t worry. I’ll go easy on you later.”
“…”
Ji Zhaoxi and Liuli stood toward the back, craning their necks in an attempt to see what prizes were being offered on the platform.
The crowd in front of them was packed too tightly, and she couldn’t see a thing. Just then, her gaze drifted toward the high platform as if guided by some unseen force.
Above the countless dark blue robes, Ji Zhaoxi’s eyes met Wen Shubai’s.
His calm eyes stirred the moment they met hers.
His face was slightly pale, and his hand clenched tightly around his sword. He looked like a criminal awaiting judgment.
Their gazes crossed for barely half a second.
Ji Zhaoxi abruptly lowered her head and stiffly wiped down her heavy sword. In her panic, she accidentally undid the tassel attached to it.
At almost the exact same moment, Wen Shubai, seated beside the sect master, lowered his gaze as well. He stared at the moon-white robe he wore, his breathing suddenly becoming uneven.
The new disciples on the platform continued their matches. Below, Gu Wuyou kept praying that he wouldn’t be paired with Ji Zhaoxi later.
That girl never knew how to hold back…
Heaven, please protect him.
One round ended, and the next was about to begin.
The deacon elder held a scroll of golden silk and called out in a booming voice, “Arena C, participating disciples: Liu Fuyin, Li Xiao, Gu Wuyou, Zhao Kui…”
Gu Wuyou closed his eyes and silently chanted, “Not Ji Zhaoxi… not Ji Zhaoxi…”
The deacon elder’s voice continued, “Wang Cheng, Ji Zhaoxi, Qin Ran…”
Gu Wuyou let out a despairing laugh.
Someone beside him sympathetically patted him on the shoulder.
Ever since the Lotus Steps incident, Ji Zhaoxi had become completely famous.
“Miss! Good luck!” Liuli shouted excitedly.
This was a battle between the Liu and Ji family heirs!
When Liu Fuyin glanced over, Liuli reluctantly added, “You too, I suppose. Good luck.”
The corner of Liu Fuyin’s mouth twitched.
That girl, Ji Zhaoxi, was exactly like her—thoroughly annoying.
The atmosphere in the martial arena grew unbearably tense. As the golden bell rang out with a resounding boom, the melee erupted.
Several people tried to join forces and take Ji Zhaoxi down first. As long swords came at her from every direction, Ji Zhaoxi didn’t even draw the sword in her hand. Relying solely on brute force, she blocked the incoming blades in one sweep.
“Bang!”
After several muffled impacts, two disciples with shaky foundations flew from the platform like kites with their strings cut.
Gu Wuyou lay peacefully on the ground.
It was finally over.
Although he had no idea why those people had dragged him into dealing with Ji Zhaoxi, at least he had shown some courage for once.
The disciple lying beside him muttered, “I want to go back to carrying water…”
The atmosphere on the platform changed completely.
Below, Liuli was so excited she could barely contain herself. Her mistress was simply amazing! A true genius!
A disciple at the sixth level of Qi Refinement saw this and shouted, launching countless sword rays toward Ji Zhaoxi.
Ji Zhaoxi frowned deeply.
Perhaps this was what it meant to be strong. There were so many people on the platform, yet everyone was focusing on her!
Rather than retreat, she charged forward. With a fierce upward swing, her heavy sword shattered the sky full of sword shadows. The disciple opposite her groaned and dropped directly to his knees.
On the high platform, the second elder was delighted by what he saw.
“Master, this disciple only joined Tianjue Sect recently, yet her talent is extraordinary.”
The sect master’s gaze remained fixed on Ji Zhaoxi, a trace of appreciation in his eyes. “Indeed. She is quite impressive.”
The second elder beamed. Ji Zhaoxi had been brought into the sect by him, so her performance reflected well on him too.
He joked, “Shubai, it seems you’ve been doing your utmost as her master.”
Then the second elder explained to the sect master, “Several of the elders are away from the sect, so this disciple has yet to be assigned a master. For now, Shubai has been teaching her.”
Wen Shubai’s gaze followed Ji Zhaoxi’s every movement, filled with concentration and possessiveness. He watched her dodge each ambush and could even predict where she would land next from the slightest shift in her body.
That was the tacit understanding they had forged through countless days and nights of training together.
The battle in the martial arena continued. The remaining disciples were all highly skilled, working together with perfect coordination as they closed in from both sides.
Ji Zhaoxi felt as though she were some villainous final boss. Everyone really was joining forces to take her down…
Facing two opponents at once, she swung her heavy sword through the air and forcibly caught their combined strike. Sparks flew where the blades collided. Ji Zhaoxi flipped neatly through the air and kicked both of them squarely in the abdomen.
“Miss is amazing!” Liuli cheered while eating snacks and applauding.
She was the successor of the Ji family!
The defeated successor of the Liu family happened to be standing beside her, watching Ji Zhaoxi’s heroic performance alongside her.
Liuli glanced at Liu Fuyin. She hadn’t expected Liu Fuyin to be defeated by her mistress so quickly.
Liu Fuyin watched Ji Zhaoxi’s sheer ferocity in action and fell silent.
She couldn’t blame herself. Ji Zhaoxi’s way of wielding her sword was simply too savage…
With those few swings, Ji Zhaoxi looked as though she were chopping up a pig.
After all the new disciples in the martial arena had finished their matches, the ancient bell rang once more. The arena suddenly began to shake violently.
A blue-gray fog surged forth and swallowed the six disciples who had been selected from the final matches.
Ji Zhaoxi suddenly felt the ground vanish beneath her feet. The cheers around her—and his gaze—were all torn away in that instant.
“The Path of Questioning the Heart. See your true self.”
The deacon elder’s voice came from the heavens, carrying a hint of authority.
Ji Zhaoxi had no inner demons. One illusion after another appeared before her, only to be hacked apart by her sword each time.
Her vision was filled with desolation and mist.
Just then, her parents suddenly appeared before her eyes, along with several tiny pigs no bigger than her thumb.
“What are we going to do? All the pigs at home have mutated. They’re so small—our family’s going to go broke…”
“How did the pigs become so tiny? One of them isn’t even enough to fill someone’s teeth! What are we supposed to do?”
Her parents cried louder than the other.
Ji Zhaoxi cut the illusion apart without hesitation.
First, her mother would never cry as stupidly as her father.
Second, she absolutely refused to look at such an ominous sight!
The pigs at Old Ji’s place had to grow as big as possible.
