Under the mask, Fang Yuan’s gaze was sharp as a blade.
But then, he turned his gaze back to the flame in his hand.
“Whew, that was close!” Among the crowd, a female disciple of Lingyuanzhai let out a sigh of relief.
“Senior Sister Qin Juan, what was dangerous? I clearly saw Senior Sister Jinhwang use two refining path killer moves in a row and caught up in one go.” Sun Yao, another Lingyuanzhai disciple sitting next to Qin Juan, with slightly chubby cheeks, asked curiously.
“Junior Sister Sun Yao, you need to understand that this competition is different from what we’ve seen before. This is a martial contest! In a martial contest, Gu Masters can intervene with each other, disrupting each other’s Gu refining.” Qin Juan explained patiently.
“Ah, really? I already find Gu refining very difficult. To be disrupted while refining… Oh my…” Sun Yao covered her mouth, a look of disbelief on her face. “This martial contest is pure torture. Who came up with such a tricky rule?”
“No.” Qin Juan nodded approvingly. “Resisting interference is one of the most important aspects of the refining path. In our future cultivation, we might encounter situations where we are refining Gu and suddenly ambushed by enemies. In fact, often when we leave the sect to complete missions, our Gu worms might be damaged for various reasons, forcing us to refine new Gu in the wilderness to cope.”
“By the same logic, when we face a powerful enemy and find them refining Gu, we also choose to launch a sneak attack, catch them off guard, and seize the initiative to create a favorable battle situation. That is the practical significance of a martial contest. Junior Sister Sun Yao, you should know that during Gu refining, a Gu Master needs to be absolutely focused. Because a single mistake will cause failure and backlash. But when refining in the wild, you still need to reserve some attention to monitor your surroundings.”
“Senior Sister Jinhwang just used two refining path killer moves in a row, which was quite risky. Because at the moment of activating the moves, her concentration would naturally shift to the Gu worms forming the moves. If it were an ordinary Gu Master, they would likely have lost control of the flame due to distraction, causing the refining to fail. If at that moment, the demon Fang Yuan had attacked Senior Sister Jinhwang, it would have caused her considerable trouble.”
After hearing Qin Juan’s explanation, Sun Yao finally understood: “So that’s it. That was indeed quite dangerous. Lucky for us that the demon Fang Yuan didn’t attack.”
Because Fang Yuan had repeatedly used blood path refining techniques at critical moments, the Lingyuanzhai disciples, who already held a negative view of him, privately referred to him as a demon.
However, there were actually plenty of demons among the ten ancient sects of Zhongzhou.
For example, the Third Elder Tiger Demon Master of Xianhe Sect was originally a demonic Gu Immortal before being recruited and absorbed by Xianhe Sect.
The one who took this to the extreme was, ironically, Lingyuanzhai itself.
In the past, Sword Immortal Bo Qing was a demonic cultivator with a strong murderous aura, but he was moved by the emotions of the fairy Moyao of that generation and brought into Lingyuanzhai.
Nowadays, the story of White Clear Fairy and Feng Jiuge is also well known. Feng Jiuge also started as a bona fide demonic cultivator.
Zhongzhou is vast, full of geniuses. From time to time, some exceptionally bright demonic cultivators or independent cultivators burst onto the scene.
To maintain the overall order and protect their own interests, the ten ancient sects of Zhongzhou absorbed these figures; it was the only way and the best method to sustain the situation.
“She didn’t attack? Too bad…” Feng Jinhuang sighed inwardly. One of the two flames burning before her suddenly extinguished.
“What happened?” A low murmur rippled through the audience.
“Could it be that the demon Fang Yuan already made his move? Did he disrupt Senior Sister, causing half of her refining to fail? That demon is so cunning! What kind of attack was it? We didn’t even see it.” Sun Yao exclaimed anxiously, her words full of disgust towards Fang Yuan.
“No, that’s not right. The elder officiating this competition hasn’t announced anything. That proves Fang Yuan the demon didn’t attack just now. I see!” Qin Juan’s eyes lit up as she suddenly understood. “Senior Sister faked using two refining path killer moves in a row, but it was actually a trap to lure Fang Yuan into attacking her. Once Fang Yuan attacked, his mind would be concentrated on his attacking method for a split second, exposing a flaw. Senior Sister could then counterattack with a high chance of success.”
“Oh, is that so?” Sun Yao’s full lips parted slightly, amazed by the intellectual battle behind the contest.
Qin Juan’s expression became serious: “I was also kept in the dark just now. So the truth is Senior Sister set a trap, but the demon Fang Yuan saw through it and didn’t take the bait… Junior Sister Sun Yao, watch closely. This match will be extremely brilliant. Both sides are definitely the best of this generation.”
“Mm!” Sun Yao nodded, her large eyes fixed intently on the stage.
The ten ancient sects of Zhongzhou have always been in fierce competition, not only among Gu Immortals but also involving disciple rivalry.
In this generation, the most outstanding among the ten ancient sects of Zhongzhou was undoubtedly Feng Jinhwang.
But in the dispute over the Fox Immortal Blessed Land, Fang Yuan suddenly appeared and knocked Feng Jinhwang down. The subsequent details were not accessible to disciples like Sun Yao and Qin Juan. Even the disciples of Xianhe Sect and most of the elders believed that Fang Yuan was a genius disciple secretly nurtured by Xianhe Sect.