"Ugh."
Bai Shuying groaned in pain. She lay on the ground, finding it difficult to move her body.
"Why was it so difficult to release more of my Qi before the collision?"
Bai Shuying wondered in frustration. She still had a quarter of her Qi reserves left to slam that disgusting bastard in the face, but she suddenly could not expel more of it.
Bai Shuying tried to use her arms to prop up her upper body.
"Ugh, damn, that hurts!"
Bearing the pain, she took items out of her spatial ring and prepared for her plan B, but she dared not take any Qi replenishing pills; her meridian channels were burning.
"Master said I was a Yin freak, so why am I burning on the inside?"
Bai Shuying was about to cry; luckily, she had the regeneration trait, which was repairing her body, visible to the human eye. Her external cuts were closing, and her internal damages were healing. Bai Shuying dipped her finger in her blood and started to draw shapes on the ground slightly in front of her, then tucked two items each in her sleeves.
Honestly, with Bai Shuying's stamina and regeneration traits, she was a classic tank if only her body wasn't soft and squishy, truly a shame she was a half-fox, not a half-turtle.
Bai Shuying turned her gaze slightly to the side, where her broken sword lay. She let out a bitter laugh.
"Well, rest in peace, my good pal, even if we knew each other for a short time, ugh."
Bai Shuying felt she pulled something and obediently lay back down on the ground, her eyes half closed like a dead vixen, letting her body do its magic.
The blue mist slowly dispersed, revealing to the audience what was hidden. On the right lay Bai Shuying; her body was bloody, covered in sword marks, her robes in tatters, but it did not reveal any of her sensitive areas, while on the left, Xiao Wuji was not looking too good as well.
His face was pale as a sheet of white paper, half of his upper body was covered in ice, while his right leg had shards of a broken sword embedded into his flesh.
"Hiss."
The audience took a sharp inhale. Ye Fei did not announce a winner yet. She could tell both Xiao Wuji and Bai Shuying were conscious and still willing to fight.
Hua Xiran, Hua Qingyan, Su Meilin, and everyone else familiar with Bai Shuying were concerned about her; she looked pretty beat up.
The first to make their move was Xiao Wuji.
"Hahahahaha!"
He laughed wildly, using his only able hand to take out a Qi replenishing pill, which he placed into his mouth, then he slowly limped his way to Bai Shuying with a nasty smile.
"What now? You were so arrogant and proud! Now look at you!"
Xiao Wuji said loudly while Bai Shuying was confused internally.
When was I arrogant and proud? I just didn't want to talk to you!
"Now you're helpless!"
Xiao Wuji licked his lips. Everyone in the audience was disgusted by him; it was a different matter if you do it in private, but putting it out in the open, people could not help but glance at Elder Mo. Elder Mo showed no expression, but on the inside, she was happy.
Yes, Wuji beat that bastard Xiao Bai!
Ye Mingyue watched coldly from her seat.
As Xiao Wuji took one more step near Bai Shuying, a pattern lit up below his foot, and blue frost surged into his body, freezing him in place.
Everyone was stunned while Bai Shuying fully opened her eyes, smiling like a fox who had successfully pulled off a prank.
Bai Shuying set up a small spirit formation using her Yin Qi-infused blood as the medium. The small formation was a trap that sent Yin Qi into the body, freezing the person who stepped on it.
Bai Shuying flicked her right wrist, and a talisman appeared in her hand. Seeing it and unable to do anything, Xiao Wuji gulped nervously. Bai Shuying did not care and activated the spirit tier talisman by infusing her Qi inside.
"Ugh."
Fuck! It still hurts!
As the Qi traveled out of her body, it felt as if she drank a cup of boiling water. The spirit tier talisman absorbed her energy, then released chilling air. Soon, a burst of ice slammed into Xiao Wuji's body, but Bai Shuying was stunned.
The crowd was also shocked at the turn of events by Bai Shuying, but they were also stunned by Xiao Wuji.
Xiao Wuji felt his organs freeze; a few stopped functioning, encased in ice, but the bulk of the damage was taken by the profound grade armour he wore under his robes that shattered, turning into dust from Bai Shuying's constant attacks.
"Hahahaha, so you were relying on a talisman!"
Xiao Wuji, who was nervous before, now became more confident; victory was a sure thing for him.
"Oh, just one talisman?"
Bai Shuying said with a smirk.
Xiao Wuji froze. Bai Shuying flicked her left hand, activating her second spirit-tier talisman, which shot out a ball of ice, hitting Xiao Wuji in the face with great force, sending him bouncing on the ground until he plopped on the floor, not moving.
Su Meilin smiled brightly, thinking.
What a fox!
The audience who were stunned before became stunned again, and everyone was thinking.
Damn, how many tricks does this girl have?!
Ye Fei floated down, near Xiao Wuji, checking his state. Honestly, when she saw his pointy nose now crooked, she could not help but glance at Bai Shuying, thinking.
My goodness, how much do you hate his nose, junior sister?
"It would seem Xiao Wuji has lost consciousness…"
Ye Fai said while taking a pause, looking at the audience, then she smiled, announcing.
"The winner is… BAI! SHU! YING!"
From the elders to the outer disciples, everyone started to stand up one by one.
"Great job! Junior Sister!"
"Nice fight!"
"Bai Shuying! Bai Shuying! Bai Shuying!"
Clap! Clap! Clap!
Bai Shuying stood motionless, her mind still reeling, until the first voice rang out. Then another. Soon, the entire arena erupted in cheers, her fellow sect members pressing forward with bright eyes and proud smiles. No one knew who had begun it, but like wildfire, the chant spread, each clap of their hands a thunderous beat that seemed to shake the very ground beneath her feet.
"IMPOSSIBLE!"
A loud shout destroyed the harmonious atmosphere. The pressure from a nascent soul cultivator bore down on everyone. Bai Shuying, who was still injured, spat out blood from her mouth, and her face became paler. She turned her gaze with much difficulty to where the shout came from.
There, standing with an angry face, with fire spewing from her eyes, was Mo Xingyu.
"She used formations and talismans. How can this be considered a victory? She should be disqualified!"
Mo Xingyu never expected to lose; her second disciple was a god damn third-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator. She could not help but look at Xiao Wuji as if looking at trash.
Mo Xingyu gritted her teeth, but soon, a greater pressure weighed heavily on her, forcing her to suppress her aura. She turned her angry eyes with a hint of fear to Hua Xiran, who was looking at her extremely coldly.
"Ye Fei, did Bai Shuying break any rules?"
Hearing the Sect Master call her, Ye Fei quickly stood up and said.
"No, Bai Shuying did not break any rules. Before the match began, I asked both Bai Shuying and Xiao Wuji if they had a secondary profession. Bai Shuying replied that she dabbles in Alchemy, Formations, Talismans, and Refining. Xiao Wuji said he did not have one, but during the match, he took a Qi replenishing pill, breaking the rule, disqualifying himself instead."
Hua Xiran glanced at Hua Qingyan's seat, but realized she was not there. Ever since Hua Qingyan increased her cultivation, it has made it difficult for Hua Xiran to keep track of her. Soon, Hua Xiran's gaze turned to Bai Shuying, and her mouth opened slightly.
In the field, Hua Qingyan supported the pale Bai Shuying, injecting her Qi inside her body. Bai Shuying's body did not reject the energy, but welcomed it due to all the energy exchanges the two had done; their bodies Qi were very familiar with each other.
"Hmph, you expect me to believe that girl has attainments in all four professions?"
Mo Xingyu snorted and expressed her doubts.
"Elder Mo, she is a certified Apprentice Alchemist."
Elder Lin Xi, the head of the Alchemy Hall, chimed in. Mo Xingyu looked at her with displeasure while Lin Xi shrugged her shoulders.
Just telling the truth.
Lin Xi thought in her mind.
"She is also an Apprentice Talisman Craftsman and Formation Disciple."
Elder Yuan Ji, the head of the Multi Hall, added.
"Do you have anything more to say, Elder Mo?"
Mo Xingyu looked at Hua Xiran, who spoke to her. Mo Xingyu clenched her fist; she absolutely did not want to give away the Yang Qi crystal, which was her ticket to the soul transformation realm, but she was helpless. If she wanted to keep it, she would need to rebel.
Mo Xingyu struggled and glanced at Bai Shuying in the arena, being hugged by Hua Qingyan.
Thinking about Xiao Bai's good works, her chest started to rise and fall. She closed her eyes and reopened them; now they were filled with resolve. She shot a glance at Inner Elders: Wan Qing, Lie Yan, Meng Yun, Yong Zheng, Ruo Han, Jiang Wu, Zhan Tie, and Han Fei.
When Han Fei felt her gaze, she started to sweat and panic on the inside.
Ma'am, please do not look at me! We are not on the same team!
Han Fei quickly averted her eyes, but soon a message appeared in her mind.
"Hmph, if you don't want your fetish out in the open, you better help."
Han Fei's face turned red in anger. She sent a voice transmission back.
"We had a deal, bastard, one time, and it's buried!"
Poor Han Fei regretted letting him enter her back door. The cultivation world is much more conservative than it appears; people are ashamed to have their preferences discussed in public, unlike the modern world Bai Shuying is from. Some countries are very open and adamant in letting the world know what they like.
"So, what? Do you dare to or not?"
Han Fei glared at Zhan Tie, then paused for a moment, and remembered what Xiao Bai wrote in her third volume of Love in the Ashes, "Butterflies hurling themselves at flames."
Su Yan and Mo Xinyu were heading towards mutual destruction due to love.
"I'll take you down with me then!"
Han Fei was not going to let Hua Xiran down again; she refused! Zhan Tie smiled at her useless struggle.
"Oh, how are you going to do that?"
Han Fei smiled.
"I'll let everyone know you like it too!"
Hiss!
Zhan Tie clenched his butt.
"Who will believe you? You have no proof!"
Zhan Tie said with a smug smile. Han Fai snorted and said.
"Proof? Do I need it? As long as everyone knows, who cares about proof!"
Zhan Tie became pale. Han Fei was right. As long as she threw dirty water on him as well, even if he gets rid of it, the smell will linger. People will always have doubts as long as the seed is planted.
All the Inner Elders except Han Fei that Mo Xingyu looked at stood up, nodding at each other.