The Arrogant Immortal
Chapter 230 - 229: Someone Said You’re Evil

Chapter 230: Chapter 229: Someone Said You’re Evil

The formation was lifted, and the fog dissipated, gradually revealing the figures of the two on the stage. At the same time, the audience all around were curious—it had been such a short time, no longer than it takes to drop one’s trousers and fart. How on earth had Lin Wangqing lost the battle so quickly, and in such a baffling manner?

The crowd whispered among themselves.

"Eh, what happened here?"

"Is anyone going to explain? I want to know!"

"I’d like to know, too..."

Disciples asked around, left and right.

Those who did not understand were itching to know the truth.

Kuangguan caught sight of something, "It seems like Lin Wangqing couldn’t control the formation and suffered backlash while trying to force it? I saw that he seemed to have sustained some internal injuries before."

"Big Brother, did you see that?"

"Not clearly, I’m guessing too."

Elsewhere, others had similar conjectures.

The elders who knew the situation kept a straight face, but inside some of them were truly shocked.

Someone asked sheepishly, "When did that girl change the formation?"

"Couldn’t see it clearly."

"Was it during the combat movement, while casting a technique?"

"You didn’t see clearly either?"

"Haha, just caught a glimpse, a tiny glimpse."

None wanted to admit they hadn’t noticed and feigned understanding.

The elders cared about their pride, too.

Xie Jiuniang stood on the platform, her back ramrod straight, her magic sword already put away. In fact, nobody knew that the spiritual power in her dantian was less than twenty percent.

Fighting this person was quite exhausting.

The elder acting as the referee on the platform asked, "Yuanxi, will you continue?"

"Not anymore, I will return tomorrow."

Xie Jiuniang felt tired today and didn’t want any mishaps to cause embarrassment midway, so it was better to prudently end today’s challenge.

As night deepened, lights twinkled all around the arena.

They illuminated the myriad oddities of darkness, all being the personal lighting tools used by the cultivators.

The elder announced the end of today’s battles.

Xie Jiuniang didn’t call for the Little Immortal Crane to return to the Inner Sect’s Zhengyang Peak but instead took out an Isolation Array Plate and began to set it up on the platform. When the fog began to rise, everyone realized she didn’t seem to plan on leaving; she intended to recover her spiritual energy right there on the platform.

"Master, why aren’t we going back?" Jian Lingyan asked, puzzled.

Xie Jiuniang replied, "It’s quite a waste of time going back and forth."

As she settled into a seated position, she finally took out her items to recover spiritual power and slowly digested the day’s gains.

She pinpointed her deficiencies in combat, contemplated them one by one, and turned them all into her own battle experience.

In fact, she made a discovery at that time.

Such battles did offer experience, but not as profound as those fought on the brink of life and death.

However, accumulating experience in this manner had its benefits. At least when danger approached, it provided her with a slightly better chance to survive.

She meditated throughout the night.

When Xie Jiuniang awoke from her meditation, her body’s spiritual energy had recovered to its optimal state, and even her divine sense was replenished. It might have been an illusion, but...

From these bouts of combat, her spiritual power recovery seemed to have sped up a smidgen?

Her divine sense had grown just a smidgen as well?

Whatever the case, it was all good news!

Some of the audience had left, but more had stayed behind.

And a continuous stream of cultivators were still arriving to watch the excitement, with Xuanyuan You and his peers charging admission most eagerly.

On the first day, there were tens of thousands of people on-site.

Now on the third day, there were over a million people—it wasn’t an exaggeration to call it a sea of humanity.

A battle between mere Foundation Establishment Disciples had escalated into such a grand event, surprising everyone.

The drawing power of a prodigy was extraordinary.

Most of those who came were drawn by Xie Jiuniang, the newly risen prodigy. Many couldn’t comprehend how someone with a three Spirit Roots could have made the list, and they came to catch a glimpse of her grace.

Some people were drawn here by gossip.

In the past two days, the events that occurred on the challenge arena spread in all directions, creating an uproar, and were nearly becoming a household topic.

Some say that this freshly emerged prodigy is very different from the rest.

His actions and style are unpredictable, his skin is thicker than anyone else’s, and his stunts are one after another, missing this excitement means no chance next time.

Xi’an City was bustling with extraordinary activity.

The people who came to watch the excitement, plus those drawn by the upcoming date for recruiting new disciples, made the whole Xi’an City overcrowded.

Many people set up tents outside the city, or unfolded Law Houses to reside in.

Xie Jiuniang tidied up her appearance and pinched herself with the Dust Cleansing Technique twice, instantly becoming a fresh and clean little fairy.

"Dog owner, there are so many people outside." Jian Lingyan found it incredible.

Xie Jiuniang put away the Array Plate, looked around, and suddenly froze.

Indeed, so many people!

The remaining seventy to eighty matches, following yesterday’s pace, could be finished in one day.

At the center of the high platform, a little girl stood against the wind.

The morning breeze blew, causing her vestment robe to flutter.

Although she looked like just a half-grown child, she exuded an air of valiant grace that made no one dare to underestimate her.

Then a youth stepped up to the stage and handed her a booklet.

"Silence!"

As soon as Xie Jiuniang spoke, the surroundings instantly fell quiet.

All eyes focused on her in an instant, waiting for her next words.

Xie Jiuniang flipped through the name list handed over by Xuanyuan You, then announced loudly, "Today is the third day of the challenges, and I believe everyone is clear about the process. According to the challenge list, there are still... fifty-one people who want to come on stage."

Originally, there were more people.

A portion of them had given up on the chance to step on the stage.

Who wouldn’t like it if they didn’t need to expend energy and didn’t have to return their Spirit Stones?

Xie Jiuniang also subtly egged on, "To the friends below who have decided to challenge, is there anyone changing their minds? It doesn’t have to be just a martial contest; you can opt for a literary one. Frankly, after fighting for two days, I’m also a bit fed up."

Afterward, she threw the name list to Xuanyuan You below the platform and continued, "If you think of other ways to compete, like drawing lots for luck, that’s fine too."

As soon as she said this, the faces of some people who knew her tendencies took on a strange look.

Someone whispered in discussion, "Who would be foolish enough to spend millions to draw lots?"

"Then you’re not worldly enough, heh. Some people have spent a million for nothing, not even stepping on the platform."

"You’re right, going up to draw lots to decide the winner at least puts you on the arena."

"It’s called a challenge, but why does it seem like folly? I’ve heard that someone previously just added a hundred thousand to win," voiced some people’s true thoughts.

The main issue with the newly risen star was that he colluded so openly.

They had never seen a prodigy bow so readily just for mere Spirit Stones. From this, it became clear that the thoughts of the new star were unpredictable and carried a hint of deviance.

"Dog owner," Jian Lingyan said, "down there someone called you deviant, they also said you’d bow for Spirit Stones without any pride befitting a prodigy."

"Mouths are on other people’s faces, they can say whatever they want." In the beginning, just after her rebirth, Xie Jiuniang might have cared about her reputation, as it could affect her chances of finding a mentor to some extent.

Now she had already succeeded in becoming a disciple.

With the backing of a Sect, as long as interests were maintained, reputation didn’t matter much.

Look, many people around were displeased with her, but under the suppression of the many powerful figures of Tianxu Sect, could they do anything to her? Even their occasional clamor had to be cautious.

Retaliation, name-calling, those were not options.

Xie Jiuniang glanced at the crowd below, "Who is the first challenger today?"

Just at that moment, another person appeared on the platform.

It was not a challenging disciple, but a Sect Elder who was acting as the judge, his waist hung with a gourd of wine.

He smiled amiably and asked, "My little niece, you seem refreshed after a night’s rest."

"You too, Elder, look very spirited," Xie Jiuniang responded with the same smiling eyes, like a little fox.

"Haha."

The Elder laughed openly, then his gaze swept to the audience below, "The challenger, Cong Donghua, Foundation Establishment fifth layer."

As his voice faded, a breath of fragrant wind caressed the air.

A glamorous woman appeared on the stage, her eyes and brows captivating, stirring up a commotion among the crowd below.