Gan Xuehua could feel the many stares boring into her back. Curiosity, intrigue, malice, competitiveness, she felt them all. Had it been the former Gan Xuehua, she would have undoubtedly buckled under all these gazes, but the current Gan Xuehua held firm and returned to the spot occupied by the Gan Dynasty.
Upon her return, the Gan Emperor immediately took her aside. “Xuehua, I know this competition is very important to you. However, it’d be best to surrender in the next match.”
Gan Xuehua glanced at the Gan Emperor. She thought he would push her to get number one after seeing her strength.
The Gan Emperor misunderstood her look, thinking it was unwillingness. “Don’t think of short-term interests. Even if you win, you might not be able to keep your earnings, and you might even invite disaster. I can promise you that as long as you forfeit your next match, I will give you all the benefits equal to one who entered the top ten of the tournament.”
“I understand, Emperor-Father,” Gan Xuehua said.
The Gan Emperor looked at his daughter. Although she agreed, how many young people were willing to give up fame and glory? If it was him, he would resolutely reject the order, but since Gan Xuehua verbally agreed, he could only drop it.
The father-daughter returned to the ground. They watched as the rest of the match commenced and ended. Once the last match of the day finished, everyone returned to their residence for the night.
“I really didn’t expect her to hide so deeply,” Tianyi said with a sigh. He just changed into his nightwear while Daoyi was brushing her hair in front of a mirror. “I don’t think I would have been able to win so easily as a core formation master. That or I knocked myself out first because of blood loss.”
“You mean Gan Xuehua?” Daoyi asked.
“Who else?”
“I mean, she won her matches, but all the matches seemed strange,” Daoyi said.
“You think she cheated or reached an agreement with her tournaments?” Tianyi asked. “Impossible. There was no way she could know which people I arranged for her to fight.”
In fact, Tianyi also rigged the fight in the Immortal Court’s favor. He made it so that the disciples of the Immortal Court wouldn’t meet each other too early. He also matched the weak against the strong so that the strong would knock each other out early in the tournament. This care also extended to Luo Peishan.
As for how he categorized the weak and the strong? It was based solely on the vigor of the qi and power of their martial body. Even if they hid it well, they couldn’t escape Tianyi’s sight. According to these criteria, Gan Xuehua was only middling at best. However, he didn’t underestimate a fellow reincarnator.
Although Tianyi could detect the quality of qi and power of their martial body, he couldn’t detect their comprehension until they displayed them. Perhaps his mother could, but he wasn’t Mengfei. “I think Gan Xuehua might have mastered a concept.”
Daoyi turned around. “Really, in the Core Formation Realm? Didn’t you only start comprehending concepts in the Nascent Soul Realm?”
“I don’t remember. I think I started in the Nascent Soul Realm, but there’s also a chance I started in the Core Formation Realm. It’s been too long, so I forgot,” Tianyi said.
“Mastering a concept is really OP. Gan Xuehua is clearly weaker than the top geniuses, but she can overcome them so easily because of the concept,” Tianyi said with a sigh.
“Do you know what concept she mastered?”
“I don’t know.”
Daoyi turned from the mirror and looked at Tianyi in surprise. “You don’t even know what law it relates to with your broad knowledge?”
Tianyi shook his head. “I dabbled in a lot of concepts and laws, but I don’t dare say I can recognize every single concept I come across. If I had to guess, it would have to be something related to concealment.”
“Concealment? I thought that would be something more suited for Chunye.”
“Speaking of her, what happened to her?” Tianyi asked. “I tried searching for her, but it was as if she disappeared from the Huang Realm entirely.”
“I heard Master encountered someone named Chunsang while attacking the Leakless Sect. Do. Do you think it’s her?”
“Chunsang? The names sound similar, but I can’t think of a reason why Chunye would use a different name. If it was for an assassination or something related to that, yes, but in the middle of a battle, it’s practically useless. It’s probably not her. Who knows, she might have stumbled onto some inheritance that brought her out of the Huang Realm.”
Tianyi suddenly turned to her with a playful smirk. “If this was a novel, she’d be the protagonist while you’d be her arch nemesis, destined to die under her hands. Aren’t you scared?”
“You’re still on about that?” Daoyi rolled her eyes. “If I can’t beat her, I’ll let you deal with her. Besides, who’s to say I’m not the protagonist of the novel?”
“Well, for one, you’re attached to me. Aside from your early years in the Jiang Ducal Estate, I can’t think of you having suffered any setbacks,” Tianyi said. “But say that you are, then what would Gan Xuehua be?”
“A minor character or a hidden boss?” Daoyi replied. “However, are you sure that there wasn’t anything fishy about Gan Xuehua’s match?”
“I’m sure,” Tianyi said. “I thought her opponents might have thrown the match, but I saw that their masters were scolding them harshly for their failure. Disciples don’t just represent themselves, but also the sect behind them. How could they just throw the match just because they want to?”
“You’re right,” Daoyi said. She stood up from her seat and slid into the bed. “Well, whatever the reason, we should be able to discover the peculiarity of Gan Xuehua by the end of the tournament.”
Tianyi followed Daoyi under the blankets. "Speaking of which, Yan Nie should come tomorrow.”
Most of the immortals of the Cultivator Alliance joined the Buzhou Immortal Sect after the war. However, Yan Nie was one of the few that didn’t. According to Daoyi, he likely resented the method the Buzhou Immortal Sect used to conquer the Huang Realm—using several hidden chess pieces to make everyone think they possessed less strength than they actually did.
Tianyi didn’t think it was particularly wrong, but that might be because he stood on the Buzhou Immortal Sect’s side. If one day someone told him the Buzhou Immortal Sect was actually the secret chess piece of another force, and that they would integrate back, he didn’t know if he could accept it.
Still, that didn’t mean Yan Nie rebelled against the Buzhou Immortal Sect. It would be a horribly foolish move. His master, Monarch Pillrabbit, joined the Buzhou Immortal Sect’s Alchemy Subhall, now the Immortal Court’s Bureau of Alchemy.
Tianyi and Daoyi had revealed their identity as reincarnators to Yan Nie after his master and the Cloud Goddess Cult fully integrated into the Buzhou Immortal Sect. He had hoped that Yan Nie’s status would arouse Xi Ri’s interest, but alas, the latter only reacted coldly.
Still, it was nice to have another reincarnator to talk to. They even got an invitation to Yan Nie’s wedding.
When Gan Xuehua stepped into the venue, she noticed a powerful gaze on her. It was unlike the hidden probes she felt yesterday. This one was open and upfront. She turned her attention to a relatively handsome male sitting in the area designated to immortal monarchs. His handsomeness wasn’t the noble elegance of Xi Tianyi, but a rugged manly handsomeness.
More importantly, she recognized him. He was the Divine Flame Monarch, Yan Nie.
She had never interacted with the man, but she had seen his image in the Xiyinet—specifically listed on the Top Ten Immortal Monarchs Most Likely to Become Immortal Sovereigns. Aside from that list, there were even lists dedicated to ranking the most beautiful woman, man, and other useless lists.
Gan Xuehua didn’t know the accuracy of the lists. It could be a decoy thrown out by the Immortal Court for all she knew, but the Divine Flame Monarch’s life was undoubtedly a legend.
Although the Divine Flame Monarch was born to a cultivation family, the advantage given to him was only moderately better than a pure mortal family. Even if you compare it to the Gan Dynasty, one was in the heavens, while the other was stuck in the mud. Yet, he managed to grow and become acknowledged as one of the strongest immortal monarchs.
Perhaps noticing her stare, the Divine Flame Monarch smiled at Gan Xuehua, puzzling her. However, she didn’t have time to figure out why he smiled at her, as it was time for her to step into the arena.
Her fifth opponent was a disciple of a third-rate force like the Gan Dynasty. On Earth, his appearance would have been outstanding, but it could only be described as average here. Before the referee could even announce the start of the match, her opponent forfeited.
Gan Xuehua’s mouth twitched. She wanted to forfeit, but her opponent desired it even more. Since her foe had already forfeited, there was no point in her forfeiting, lest she raise suspicion. She returned to her seat without much incident.
Time passed, and match after match ended. Finally, it was her turn again. Gan Xuehua stepped up to the arena, and this time her opponent was a disciple wrapped in many layers of clothing. He was Dufeng of the Black Halo Sect, a third-rate force like the Gan Dynasty.
“Are both of you ready?” the referee asked.
“Yes,” her foe said. Only now did she know Dufeng’s gender from his low, raspy voice.
Gan Xuehua opened her mouth, ready to forfeit, but halted as her gaze became cold. She moved her hand and body for a bit before turning to the referee. “Using poison before the match is considered a foul, correct?”
The referee paused and then turned toward Dufeng before turning back to Gan Xuehua. “Disciple Gan, if your accusations are false, you will be disqualified, understood?”
Gan Xuehua frowned and turned toward the referee. Did this true immortal not smell something off in the air? Gan Xuehua only thought the air smelled off at first, but when she opened her mouth, she felt a slight dissociation between her intent and her movement.
“I’m sure,” Gan Xuehua said with absolute confidence.
The referee frowned. He was about to disqualify Gan Xuehua because he didn’t sense anything wrong, but her confidence made him hesitate. Not to mention that he didn’t think a proud genius like Gan Xuehua would lie without reason. Furthermore, he sensed Dufeng’s heartbeat increasing the moment she finished speaking.
It would be fine if Gan Xuehua really was lying to disqualify her opponent, but what if she wasn’t?
If his actions caused a blight to appear on the Immortal Court’s reputation, he would face punishment. Rather than taking the chance, the true immortal decided to ask an expert’s advice. At the very most, it would waste some time.
With his choice made, the true immortal transmitted a message asking Grand Elder Xia Meng for an official of the Bureau of Alchemy to verify Gan Xuehua’s accusation. When an immortal monarch alchemist appeared in the arena, the true immortal was ninety percent sure of Gan Xuehua’s words since he sensed panic from Dufeng.
“Official Pillrabbit, please,” the referee said as he saluted.
Gan Xuehua observed the gentle-looking old man wearing a green coat over white robes. She recognized him for the sole fact that he was the Divine Flame Monarch’s master. For some reason she didn’t understand, he gave her a smile.
Monarch Pillrabbit looked away from Gan Xuehua and glanced at Dufeng, causing the latter’s heart to almost stop beating. He held out his hand and held out an object. However, to the confusion of many, they saw nothing in his hand. “This is the Poison Enticement Pill. It’s almost completely invisible, but it has a special feature. All poison near it will be attracted and absorbed by it, causing it to be stained.”
Under everyone’s eyes, the clear pill in Monarch Pillrabbit’s hand gained a smoky color. “So it’s the Silent Madness Poison.”
