A Consequence of Opposing the Heroine’s Halo (GL) - Chapter 27

For the sake of that single Foundation Establishment Pill, the number of disciples participating in the Grand Competition was massive. Many hoped to try their luck, specifically picking opponents weaker than themselves to challenge. As a result, the arenas were filled with the embarrassing sight of “small fry pecking at each other.”

Two weaklings would trade a punch here and a palm strike there; they’d fight for the time it takes to burn half an incense stick without even producing a single spark. It was neither painful nor itchy—a classic case of “occupying the latrine without having a movement.” The audience below was bored to tears.

After another half-incense stick of time, the two little chicks on stage were still pecking at each other. Finally, someone couldn’t take it anymore and ran to complain to the resting Xun Qiu.

At this moment, Xun Qiu was so bored that she had brought out all her long-treasured dharma treasures. The Universe Fan fanned her automatically, and the Soaring Eagle Flame-Feather Satin was pulled high to block the sun. Xun Qiu suspended herself in the air, using two tails as a lounge chair and one tail as a blanket over her belly.

She sipped spirit dew while watching a massive, long-running soap opera automatically generated from mortal novels on a crystal projection, showing absolutely zero interest in the competition.

Seeing someone come to complain, she finally looked up and lazily scanned the martial field. Out of the seven arenas, six were just treading water. She propped up her head and thought for a moment; it really was a waste of time. She sent out a voice transmission, adding a new rule: “If anyone questions the strength of the two people currently fighting on stage, you may challenge both at once to blast them off the platform!”

Xun Qiu squinted her eyes with a smile, clearly the type who enjoyed watching a spectacle.

As soon as she spoke, the crowd below grew lively. Several disciples who had been dissatisfied for a long time jumped onto the stages and drove the weaklings away. Those scheduled to fight later didn’t dare slack off anymore and quickly forfeited.

Consequently, it was soon Bai Tong’s turn. After Ma Shi jumped onto an arena and blasted away the two occupants, he issued a direct invitation to Bai Tong.

Seeing it was Ma Shi, the crowd went silent. No one dared to be rowdy; after all, this guy was only one step away from Foundation Establishment.

Seeing that Bai Tong was about to fight, Xun Qiu’s drooping fox ears suddenly perked up. Her previous boredom vanished, and she propped her head on her hand, looking toward the center with great interest.

As she looked at the thin figure on the stage, a golden flicker of light passed through her right eye. Having cultivated the Eye of Insight, she had discovered Bai Tong’s uniqueness the moment she first saw her. Bai Tong was a lucky child favored by the Heavenly Dao, blessed with a providence far beyond ordinary people.

When the Eye of Insight is trained to its peak, one can know the future and peek into the secrets of heaven. It is a secret divine technique passed down through the Tianshui Clan, descendants of ancient gods. Xun Qiu’s mother was a Tianshui, so she possessed half of the god-clan bloodline and could cultivate one Eye of Insight.

A million years ago, the Heavenly Dao divided the world into the Upper and Lower Realms. The Tianshui Clan, out of love for their homeland, chose to remain in the Lower Realm. As spiritual qi grew scarce in the Lower Realm, the god-blood grew thinner over time. Unless a “throwback” (atavism) occurred, no one could train the technique to its ultimate state. Thus, the Eye of Insight had declined over the years, becoming something of a “chicken rib”—useless to keep, but a pity to discard.

On the martial field, Bai Tong leaped lightly onto the arena. Both bowed to each other, and the battle began.

Ma Shi was not only a late-stage Qi Refining cultivator but was also tall and sturdy. Seeing him face off against a frail little girl who had only recently entered the Heaven Class was quite jarring.

Someone in the crowd muttered, “Overestimating herself.” Gradually, similar insults spread through the crowd—some were pitying, some were sympathetic, but most were mocking.

“Where does she get the nerve to accept Ma Shi’s challenge?”

The chaotic discussions rang in Liu Sanye’s ears. When she heard such a comment, she finally couldn’t take it anymore. Her fists clenched until her knuckles cracked, and she glared back fiercely at the speaker. “Why don’t you talk about how shameless Ma Shi is for challenging a little girl?!”

Publicly challenged by a little brat, the guy was momentarily stunned. He replied blankly, “Who the hell are you?”

A sense of helplessness washed over Liu Sanye again. She thought: They’re just melon-eating spectators; they don’t care about others. To shut them up, the process didn’t matter. Winners are kings and losers are bandits; they only care about the outcome. As long as Bai Tong won, all the rumors would collapse on their own.

Liu Sanye wanted to shout words of encouragement, but then she thought: winning is good, but losing isn’t the end of the world as long as Bai Tong is safe. She squeezed into the front row, staring fixedly at that shameless Ma Shi.

On the arena, Ma Shi opened with the vicious Mysterious Yin Divine Claw, every strike aimed at Bai Tong’s vitals. Though young, Bai Tong’s comprehension was extraordinary. After narrowly dodging the first claw, she found the flaw in the move. Her Jade Frost Sword came out; the tip held the claw back while the hilt dropped rapidly. Her body glided underneath like a swimming dragon, neutralizing Ma Shi’s second wave of attacks in an instant.

Unfortunately, her strength was insufficient. Ma Shi had a protective layer of external qi; despite her strike, she only managed to nick the skin on his wrist. Had their realms been equal, she surely would have sliced his hand off.

Below the stage, Liu Sanye’s eyes were full of surprise, but her worry didn’t fade. She knew this first round was only because Ma Shi had underestimated his opponent.

Sure enough, seeing that he couldn’t win immediately, Ma Shi’s face darkened. He pulled a shining purple-gold long-blade from his storage bag—also a Saint-Rank treasure. He looked at Bai Tong and said, “I didn’t expect you to reach the middle stage of Qi Refining in just a few months.”

The crowd broke into a literal uproar. “What! She’s already at the middle stage?!”

“She’s only been in the Heaven Class for a few months! Holy crap, is she a monster?”

“No wonder she’s so arrogant and ignores everyone; she actually has the capital to be proud.”

“So that’s why she dared to accept the challenge. I see, I see!”

“Hey, look at the real point! Am I the only one who noticed she just traded a blow with a late-stage cultivator and came out fine?!”

“She’s only twelve or thirteen. To be this good… even if she loses, it’s excusable. She’s still small.”

Amidst the chorus of wonder and praise, Guan Rong’s face grew increasingly pale. Liu Sanye, however, puffed out her chest with a strange sense of pride. Hearing everyone praise Bai Tong made her a hundred times happier than being praised herself. She thought smugly: See that? That’s my friend—and a super good one at that!

Across the way, Guan Rong saw Liu Sanye’s “punchable” face and grew even angrier. Even if Ma Shi won now, people wouldn’t think it was particularly shameful for Bai Tong. This was truly “trying to steal a chicken only to lose the rice.”

The whispers continued, but they began to drift in a strange direction.

“Middle stage against late stage… there’s no real competition here.”

“We get it, you’re a genius. Wouldn’t it be better to just forfeit? Why bother and waste everyone’s time?”

“Even if she is a genius, she shouldn’t be this arrogant. She should at least show some respect to her seniors.”

Liu Sanye looked at these “weeds” who blew whichever way the wind took them. “Please get it straight: Ma Shi was the one who issued the challenge and provoked her first, okay?!” She was furious, but was silenced by someone asking, “Then why did she accept it?”

Fine. She gave up. At this critical moment, she had to stay calm.

Liu Sanye focused on the stage. Bai Tong’s expression was somber. She gripped the Jade Frost Sword and launched the first attack. Spiritual qi surged around her, condensing into frost that flew toward Ma Shi like fine needles. Ma Shi showed no fear and didn’t even dodge; he projected his qi as a shield and charged at her with his broad blade.

Liu Sanye broke into a cold sweat. Luckily, Bai Tong’s reactions were lightning-fast; she performed a horizontal slash with the Jade Frost Sword, using the momentum to flip over Ma Shi’s back. But Ma Shi wouldn’t let her succeed; in a flash, he intercepted her with his blade while his other hand formed an eagle-claw, lunging upward to lock her throat. His fingertips were wreathed in roaring flames. One hit from that would cost her at least half her life—it was incredibly sinister.

To everyone’s surprise, Bai Tong didn’t retreat. She moved forward instead, twirling her sword to generate bone-chilling cold as she closed in to stab at Ma Shi’s eyes. Ma Shi was forced to switch from offense to defense, grabbing the Jade Frost Sword with his bare hand.

Bai Tong decisively let go of the sword and retreated rapidly. As she backed away, her hands formed the signs for the Dust-Spirit Sword Manual. A howling gale rose in response to the incantation. The Jade Frost Sword began to vibrate with a crisp ringing sound; starting from the blade, bone-piercing ice began to crawl into the blood of Ma Shi’s cut hand. His blood began to freeze into frost, inch by inch, visible to the naked eye.

Ma Shi threw the sword away in shock and tapped his own acupoints to stop the spread of the ice. He yelled in fury, “What kind of spell is this?!”

Bai Tong didn’t answer. She summoned the Jade Frost Sword back to her side. The sword rose with a dragon-like cry and returned to hover beside her, humming.

Ma Shi gritted his teeth, veins popping on his plain face. As a late-stage cultivator, he was being repeatedly outplayed by a little girl. His initial composure was gone; he now only wanted to kill her at any cost.

Suddenly, Ma Shi’s strength began to grow rapidly. The spiritual power in his meridians began to circulate at an unnatural speed. From below, Liu Sanye saw that his eyes were becoming bloodshot.

Startled, Liu Sanye ran toward Xun Qiu as fast as her feet would take her. “Elder Xun! Elder Xun!”

Elder Xun, who was enjoying the show, waved her off. “What’s the rush? Don’t interrupt my show.”

Liu Sanye reported frantically, “I want to report Ma Shi for cheating! He’s using a forbidden technique! Look, his eyes are red!”

Xun Qiu frowned. “Nonsense. Ma Shi isn’t using a forbidden technique. That is the final style of his cultivation method: ‘Rising from Ruin, Life in Death.’ It requires enduring great pain, but it is not a forbidden technique.”

“But—”

Xun Qiu cut her off. “As long as it isn’t a demonic technique meant to harm others, it isn’t forbidden in my Hegui Sect. Do you understand?”

Liu Sanye looked between the arena and the elder. “But Bai Tong will be in danger! Isn’t she your favorite student?!”

Xun Qiu smiled. “Don’t worry. Bai Tong will be fine. If something happens to her, then she isn’t the disciple I’m satisfied with.”

Liu Sanye’s heart went cold. “So, you only like Bai Tong because she’s capable?”

Xun Qiu sipped her spirit dew and looked at Liu Sanye with her harmless, beautiful face. “Yes. If she weren’t capable, why would I like her? Isn’t that basic common sense?”

To Liu Sanye, those words sounded like: I only like her because she’s the protagonist. So all that talk about being “satisfied” when she first saw Bai Tong was just nonsense? Xun Qiu was only good to her because she was blinded by the Protagonist Aura!

Liu Sanye was furious. Feeling that Xun Qiu was completely unreliable, she stomped back to her spot.

Xun Qiu watched her go, shaking her head and sighing. “Young people these days, running to me for every little thing that won’t even kill anyone.”