Chapter 1624: Blocking Obstacle Yue Long

At this moment, Yun Jianyue directly yelled at Elder Xu of Mount Luofu. Not to be outdone, Elder Xu quickly yelled back, and the two soon engaged in a heated shouting match.

The disciples from various sects on the field had never witnessed such a scene. It was as if students were watching their teachers quarrel at school, and each one excitedly watched the show unfold.

The sect leaders also had strange expressions. They had long heard that Elder Peng from Kongming Island had a fiery temper, and witnessing it today, she was indeed formidable.

At this point, Yun Jianyue was getting carried away with the argument. It was normal for Qiu Honglei, with her limited experience, to feel a bit daunted in such a situation. But who was she? The Demonic Sect Leader who had emerged from a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. Even if her identity were exposed, what could these people do to her?

Although she couldn't defeat all these people if they teamed up, escaping with her cultivation level would be no problem.

As for Qiu Honglei, she genuinely couldn't escape, but those people wouldn't dare make things difficult for her.

Otherwise, the leaders of the various sects also had wives, children, and families, didn't they? Although Wang Wuxie hadn't married or had children, he had a beloved disciple. Moreover, the Zhengyang Sect was a large and prosperous organization. If she truly went mad, all of them would have to pay the price.

So she wasn't afraid at all, especially since they weren't in the wrong this time.

Elder Xu of Mount Luofu dejectedly realized he couldn't win the argument against the other party. He could only turn to Wang Wuxie beside him for help, pleading, "Sect Leader Wang, you must uphold justice for the severely injured disciple below!"

Wang Wuxie, who had been enjoying the spectacle, stiffened. However, he quickly nodded, then looked at the leaders of the other sects and asked, "Gentlemen, what are your thoughts on this matter?"

Guan Chouhai, Wan Tongtian, and others secretly cursed Wang Wuxie for being an old fox, as he had directly thrown the hot potato onto them.

In such a situation, no matter which side they took, they were bound to offend the other.

Although Mount Luofu and Kongming Island had always been among the weaker of the Nine Daoist Sects, and they weren't afraid of offending them, that didn't mean they were willing to needlessly make a powerful enemy over something completely unrelated to them.

So, the few of them kept to themselves, all waiting for someone else to set the tone first. Then they could just follow along and smooth things over. This way, no one would be offended, and everyone would be happy.

Unfortunately, everyone was intelligent, and no one wanted to be the scapegoat.

As for Yan Xuehen, she was naturally aloof. No one even considered that she would offer an opinion.

Just as the atmosphere was about to become awkward, a nonchalant voice suddenly spoke up: "If I'm not mistaken, the previous rules prohibited intentional killing or crippling actions. But looking at this young man below, although his injuries are not light, there's absolutely no danger to his life. And if he rests for a while, he can recover completely. There's no permanent damage like severed limbs or destroyed meridians."

"If Mount Luofu is willing to provide some healing elixirs," the voice continued, "he can probably still participate in the latter half of the competition. So, Miss Peng from Kongming Island hasn't violated any rules."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone in the arena looked strange. No one expected this young man to be the one to speak up so brashly. But this was fine; many people actually thought the same. However, saying it out loud would needlessly offend Mount Luofu. Now, if Mount Luofu harbored resentment, it could only be directed at this young man.

Yan Xuehen subconsciously glanced at Peng Wuyan in the arena again. Her appearance was indeed nothing to praise, so it seemed Zu An wasn't acting out of lust. "This young man actually has a good sense of justice," she thought.

In the arena, Qiu Honglei, who had been feeling anxious, suddenly beamed with joy. She hadn't expected Zu An to still help her even though she was disguised like this. "Is this what they call a tacit understanding?" she wondered. "He truly has me in his heart."

Even Yun Jianyue was somewhat dazed. For so many years, she had been accustomed to a life of danger, facing perilous situations alone. Often, she was the one shielding others from harm. That's why she had no qualms about yelling back at Elder Xu just now, even preparing to fight her way out of Mount Zi.

But now, suddenly, there was a man who could help her share the burden. That feeling was truly wonderful...

*Pah, pah, pah*, what was she thinking? He didn't know their identities as master and disciple. Moreover, Honglei was now disguised with this appearance. This lecherous fellow was clearly not acting for beauty's sake; his actions were entirely out of a sense of justice.

A demoness from their Demonic Sect ending up with a man brimming with justice... if that got out, they'd be laughed to death...

At this moment, Elder Xu of Mount Luofu shouted, "What do you, a person without any cultivation, understand?!"

It was true that his disciple could return to the field after healing, but what was the point? Missing so many rounds, he was certainly out of contention for second place.

This disciple was a highly favored contestant from Mount Luofu. They had originally hoped he might secure an additional spot. Now that their hopes for advancement were lost, Mount Luofu naturally wouldn't accept it.

Zu An's expression turned cold. "As an imperial envoy," he said, "may I take that as you disrespecting the imperial court?"

Elder Xu's face changed. Although Mount Luofu had a long history, its current strength was vastly inferior to the imperial court. How could he dare incur such a grave accusation? "Hmph," he retorted, "this is our Daoist Sect Grand Competition, an internal matter of our Daoist sects. Why drag the imperial court into this?"

Zu An spread his hands. "Because I am both a judge and an imperial envoy," he replied. "Just like Sect Leader Wang is both the host and an imperial tutor."

Wang Wuxie never expected the other party to drag him into the fray. His meaning was clear: by pointing out that everyone served the imperial court, they should be on the same side.

Although he was displeased, he could only grudgingly acknowledge the fact. He cleared his throat, just about to step in and mediate, when he suddenly heard Yan Xuehen beside him speak up: "I think there's some truth to what Sir Zu said. Although this disciple is severely injured, he hasn't reached the standard for permanent disability."

"As for Miss Peng from Kongming Island," she continued, "it's understandable that she acted a bit hastily, likely considering the subsequent matches."

Yan Xuehen had always been very popular. The moment she spoke, the others quickly chimed in to support her.

Wang Wuxie was stunned. "Is this really the Yan Xuehen I know?" he wondered.

She, whose nature was as cold and aloof as a snow mountain, when did she become so enthusiastic about mundane matters?

"Something's fishy!"

Unfortunately, no matter how hard he racked his brain, he couldn't figure out what was wrong. He could only deal with the immediate situation first. Concerned that Mount Luofu would vent its anger on Yan Xuehen, he spoke to appease Elder Xu. At the same time, in his capacity as host, he produced a bottle of miraculous elixirs to heal the disciple. Only then was Mount Luofu's dissatisfaction grudgingly appeased.

When Qiu Honglei returned to her side, she quietly said to Yun Jianyue: "Master, I actually found Grandmaster Yan to be quite nice."

"Hmph, that's just her usual hypocrisy and a means to win people's hearts," Yun Jianyue said somewhat sourly, watching the sect leaders' solicitous manner towards Yan Xuehen just now.

"Master, you're just jealous..." Qiu Honglei opened her mouth, but fearing a beating, she didn't utter the words.

The group matches continued. After the lesson learned from the unfortunate fellow from Mount Luofu, virtually no one else was stubborn enough to challenge the chief disciples. Instead, they focused on winning more matches to contend for the few spots as the best second-place finishers.

Zhao Xiaodie was one of them. She had the bad luck of being grouped with Wu Xiaofan, so she wisely conceded defeat directly. However, against others, she showed no mercy, cleanly defeating her opponents every time.

In most cases, her Butterfly Dance steps were enough to defeat opponents. When encountering stronger opponents, her poison would often lay them out.

Of course, once a winner was decided, she would promptly provide an antidote. This didn't cause as much controversy as Qiu Honglei had just now.

Because she had been unsettled and had mostly stayed indoors for the past few days, disciples from various sects only saw her for the first time today.

They were all amazed by her exquisite beauty and her movements, which resembled a colorful butterfly in flight.

Furthermore, she was very strong; in her group rankings, she only lost the match against Wu Xiaofan. This garnered her considerable popularity.

Many people began discreetly inquiring about the identity of this beautiful girl. Especially after learning she was actually the King of Qi's daughter, many handsome young men's eyes lit up with excitement.

Their gazes towards her were filled with eager hopes of marrying into her influential family.

Due to these various factors, she became a popular goddess at this year's competition, comparable to Chu Chuyan and Pei Mianman.

She wasn't unaware of the eager gazes from those around her. Normally, she would surely have felt proud and pleased, but this time, she couldn't care less. Instead, she repeatedly looked towards a certain figure on the stage.

"Something's going on between them!" Yun Jianyue suddenly snorted coldly.

"What's going on?" Qiu Honglei was startled.

Yun Jianyue pointed her chin towards the young girl in the center, who fluttered like a butterfly: "Something must have happened between Zu An and this woman. Look at her wistful gaze; it's full of love, hate, and complex emotions."

"Really? I don't see it," Qiu Honglei said, looking at her suspiciously. "Master, I've noticed that ever since you returned from the demon race, you seem to have become an expert in matters of the heart."

Yun Jianyue's heart skipped a beat. She replied calmly, "I taught you all your charm techniques, so what's so strange about me understanding these things?"

"Is that so?" Qiu Honglei remained skeptical.

Also suspicious was Yan Xuehen in the distance. She also keenly noticed Zhao Xiaodie's gaze towards Zu An. She thought, "Weren't the King of Qi and Zu An on bad terms? It seemed they had a conflict last time at Prince Yan's manor..."

At this moment, Zu An's attention was entirely on Pei Mianman. Big Mianman had been on a winning streak, but unfortunately, she was about to face another strong contestant who had also been winning consistently.

It was Zhi Yin from Li Hentian!