Was it you that night?
Chapter 180 - 178: Trampled Upon

Chapter 180: Chapter 178: Trampled Upon

Shen Qinghe also knew she was an oddity, she pulled Shen Zhiyao to a less crowded place to stand, and still heard disciples from other sects sizing her up.

"That one dressed like a country girl, is she really Shen Qinghe from the Sky Pole Sect? Isn’t she supposed to be as beautiful as a celestial fairy, why such poor taste?" The speaker was a male cultivator from the Soul-Seizing House.

He had long heard of Shen Qinghe’s great name, firstly for Shen Qinghe’s talent for cultivation, and secondly because her reputation had grown significantly, much of which was due to her beauty.

As for whether Shen Qinghe was flirtatious or not, it didn’t matter. After all, which beautiful female cultivator wasn’t surrounded by scandal?

He had arrived at Yuheng Mountain with great expectations, thinking he would finally get the chance to see her beauty, but this was it?

A male disciple from the Qianlong Pavilion chimed in, "It’s definitely her by her figure. I had the fortune to catch a glimpse of Fairy Qinghe at the opening of the Red Moon Secret Realm last time. She was so stunning I thought her otherworldly, and I’ve heard she’s even more beautiful now. Maybe that’s why Fairy Qinghe has deliberately made herself look unattractive?"

Another male cultivator from the Qianlong Pavilion agreed, "Exactly! It’s quite possible she dressed like this because she’s tired of her devastating beauty drawing too much attention."

"One would think Shen Qinghe is intentionally using this method to draw attention. No matter how beautiful she is, can she compare to Nan Sheng’s beauty?" another male cultivator from the Soul-Seizing House added.

He wasn’t the least bit interested in whether Shen Qinghe was beautiful or not, but he was interested in her soul.

Shen Qinghe’s cultivation base had advanced quickly after consuming Snow Bone Grass. If he could devour Shen Qinghe’s soul, by taking over Shen Qinghe, his cultivation base would surely receive a tremendous boost, making him a culatation genius unparalleled in The Four Seas and Eight Wilds.

As soon as the male cultivator’s voice fell, everyone looked toward where Nan Sheng was standing.

It had to be admitted, Nan Sheng truly fulfilled all of a man’s desires for a woman. Not only did she have a delicate face that inspired pity, but her figure was incredibly appealing—pure yet easily stirring men’s desires—a beauty like hers was a rare gem among humans.

Could Shen Qinghe be more beautiful than Nan Sheng?

"I heard that Xiao Chen no longer wants Nan Sheng because he’s infatuated with Shen Qinghe," said another male cultivator nonchalantly.

Everyone turned to look in the direction of the voice, only to see a tall and handsome male cultivator dressed flamboyantly, with a rascal’s smirk on his face, the very image of a wastrel.

Upon seeing this man’s face, everyone tacitly fell silent.

The reason was simple: his name was Meng Yun, a powerhouse of the Thousand Dreams Retreat.

The Thousand Dreams Retreat was a place feared by all cultivators, for they had the ability to invade your dreams at any time and could even snatch your body while you dreamed.

Meng Yun lived up to his name; countless cultivators had perished in his dreams. His harmless-looking smile masked a powerhouse who could quietly kill you in your dreams.

Bored by the silence, Meng Yun lost interest.

He turned his eyes and saw Nan Sheng looking over. In the moment their gazes met, the air seemed to still for an instant.

Meng Yun had seen the world and, of course, he had numerous female cultivators throwing themselves at him, but a female cultivator like Nan Sheng, who could flirt with him just with her eyes, was rare indeed.

He watched Nan Sheng with a half-smile, curious to see how she would attract his attention.

Although Nan Sheng had never met Meng Yun, she had read about such a character in the texts, and Meng Yun was one of her followers in the original work.

Judging by Meng Yun’s face and physique, he was her preferred type.

She favored the bad boys, like the blatantly bad Wu Ke, and the current Meng Yun, but her favorite type was the kind like Xiao Chen, who was rotten to the core yet on the surface appeared to be the perfect gentleman.

Pity that Xiao Chen’s eyes now saw only Shen Qinghe. She had seen it clearly just before when the Shen sisters had walked away, Xiao Chen had immediately followed them.

Meng Yun saw that Nan Sheng made no further move and began walking towards Shen Qinghe’s direction.

His curiosity was quite strong. While Nan Sheng was certainly a beauty that one could recognize at a glance, he was not greatly interested in her. Instead, it was Shen Qinghe, who deliberately made herself look ugly, that piqued his curiosity even more.

Seeing Meng Yun no longer paying attention to her and instead heading towards Shen Qinghe, Nan Sheng’s pretty face darkened.

It was like this again.

In the past, wherever she went, she would attract the gaze of male cultivators. Today, though Shen Qinghe dressed so ugly and didn’t even show her face, she still became the focus of everyone’s attention.

Was Shen Qinghe deliberately capturing men’s attention in this manner?

Shen Qinghe, distressed by the ugly clothes she was wearing, naturally didn’t know of Nan Sheng’s malicious speculation. This was the first time in her life she had worn such uncomfortable attire.

When she was a child, her father would dress her up like a little fairy every day, never fussing over such trivial matters as clothes.

Dressed like this today, she felt too ashamed to meet anyone and just wanted to find a quiet place to hide.

But no sooner had the Shen sisters sought refuge in a less crowded area than Xiao Chen followed them, and he even tried to lift up Shen Qinghe’s veil hat to take a better look.

Shen Zhiyao quickly stopped Xiao Chen’s presumptuous actions, "Big Senior Brother, what are you doing?"

Xiao Chen pointed at Shen Qinghe’s garment and asked, "Why is Qinghe dressed like this?"

"Because she wants to, why do there have to be so many whys?" Shen Zhiyao replied irritably.

Xiao Chen saw Shen Qinghe shrink off to the side, looking aggrieved like a quail, and suddenly found it amusing. A trace of a smile flashed in his eyes as he said gently, "Qinghe looks quite good like this."

Covering up her face and wearing that outfit would fend off a lot of lustful stares from men.

"Good in what way?" the Shen sisters said in unison.

A glint appeared in Xiao Chen’s eyes, and a sudden inspiration struck him, "Could it be that Mr. Wuya asked Qinghe to dress like this!"

As a man, of course, he understood the base thoughts of men.

Shen Qinghe hadn’t expected Xiao Chen to guess correctly with just one try, and she instinctively deflected the association with Dongfang Wuya, "I just wanted to try a new style, what does Mr. Wuya have to do with it?"

Seeing her defending Dongfang Wuya, Xiao Chen felt a sour taste in his heart and jeered, curving his lips, "He treats you so miserably, and you’re still speaking up for him?"

"Big Senior Brother shouldn’t talk nonsense. Whatever Mr. Wuya does, it’s for my sake. There’s no need for Big Senior Brother to interfere," Shen Qinghe said, displeased with Xiao Chen’s disparagement of Dongfang Wuya.

Xiao Chen felt that Shen Qinghe was poisoned by Dongfang Wuya, still speaking up for him at a time like this.

He was about to speak ill of Dongfang Wuya again when a careless voice suddenly rang beside him, "Is this Fairy Qinghe? I wonder if I am fortunate enough to see Fairy Qinghe’s graceful and delicate presence?"

Xiao Chen’s brow furrowed tightly upon hearing this voice. When he turned around, he came face to face with Meng Yun, and his expression soured.

"Qinghe is not good-looking; stay away from her!" Xiao Chen said bluntly.

Meng Yun laughed at this comment, sizing up Shen Qinghe’s attire, and added his own perspective, "Xiao Chen, isn’t your fiancée Nan Sheng? What now, have you fallen out of love with her and set your sights on Fairy Qinghe?"