In the quarterfinals, Bai Qingxue faced a female disciple from Chixia Peak who was at the seventh level of Qi Refining and possessed fire-attribute spiritual power.
The opponent was tall with a cold expression, dressed in a crimson Daoist robe. Standing on the stage, she looked like a ball of burning fire.
Reaching the quarterfinals was naturally not a matter of luck.
As soon as the deacon gave the command, the opponent struck first.
Crimson spiritual power surged from her palms, transforming into a fire snake that swept toward Bai Qingxue. The temperature on the stage rose abruptly, and the air shimmered with the heat.
Bai Qingxue did not retreat.
Mystic Frost spiritual power quickly condensed into an ice wall before her. When the fire snake collided with it, the clash of ice and fire produced a piercing hiss, and white mist instantly filled the entire stage.
The ice wall melted rapidly under the fire snake's burn, but Bai Qingxue moved silently through the mist. The Frost Condensation Sword left its sheath, the chill gathered at its tip thicker and heavier than usual.
Ice Seal.
The tip of the Frost Condensation Sword thrust toward the opponent's right shoulder.
The Chixia Peak disciple dodged to the side while striking back with a reverse palm. The wind from her palm carried scorching spiritual power. Bai Qingxue did not evade, taking the hit squarely on her shoulder. It was painful but not debilitating, and her sword had already tapped the opponent's wrist.
The Frost did not remain on the surface; instead, it burrowed inward along the meridians.
The female disciple's pupils constricted. She felt her spiritual power being slowly eroded by something.
She attempted to circulate her fire spiritual power to dispel the chill, but the cold only grew more intense. It surged against the flow of her power, spreading from her wrist to her arm, and then to her shoulder.
Soon, her entire right arm began to stiffen, and the circulation of her spiritual power nearly ground to a halt.
“What is this...?” she blurted out.
Exclamations erupted from below the stage.
“What's happening? Why did she suddenly stop using techniques?”
“Can't you tell? She obviously got hit by something.”
“This Bai Qingxue... where on earth did she come from?”
Bai Qingxue gave her no chance to breathe. Her sword tip struck again, this time hitting the left shoulder. As the Frost spread, both of the disciple's shoulders were frozen, leaving her arms hanging uselessly at her sides.
Gritting her teeth, she tried to attack with her feet, but Bai Qingxue had already stepped back, pointing her sword at the woman's chest without following through.
“You lose,” Bai Qingxue said.
The female disciple glared at Bai Qingxue, her eyes full of resentment.
Her spiritual power was still there, and her body was intact, but with her shoulders frozen and her arms immobilized, she no longer had the ability to resist.
She knew Bai Qingxue was right. After a moment of silence, she spoke. “I admit defeat.”
After the deacon announced Bai Qingxue’s victory...
Bai Qingxue sheathed her sword and turned to walk off the stage.
In the spectator stands, Su Zhaoyan leaned back in her chair with her legs crossed, looking relaxed.
She began to applaud the moment Bai Qingxue sheathed her sword. The clapping wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally clear in the surrounding silence.
Several Chixia Peak disciples nearby were stunned, exchanging confused glances.
Their Senior Sister, the Chief of Chixia Peak, was applauding the opponent???
One bold junior sister couldn't help but speak up. “Senior Sister, it was our Chixia Peak disciple who lost...”
Su Zhaoyan turned her head and gave the girl a lazy look. “I know.”
“Then why are you...”
“It was a brilliant match from both sides. Is there a problem?” Su Zhaoyan’s voice wasn't loud, but everyone around her heard it.
The junior sister opened her mouth but swallowed her remaining words.
Su Zhaoyan looked away and continued watching Bai Qingxue walk down from the stage, her fingers lightly tapping the armrest.
But Bai Qingxue wasn't the only thing on her mind.
Her gaze swept across the crowd to another corner of the stands, where Lu Xueqing stood with her shoulders tensed.
Su Zhaoyan watched for a few moments, looked back at Bai Qingxue on the stage, and then withdrew her gaze.
The same thought surfaced in her mind again: What are you so nervous about?
Su Zhaoyan hadn't mentioned it to anyone, but from the moment she first saw the way Lu Xueqing stood beside Bai Qingxue, she had found the situation very interesting.
She had known Lu Xueqing for quite some time and had never seen her act that way toward anyone.
That wasn't the way a senior sister looked at a junior sister.
As Bai Qingxue walked off the stage, her gaze swept across the stands. The applauding Su Zhaoyan was particularly conspicuous. Seeing Bai Qingxue look her way, Su Zhaoyan’s lips curved upward, and she gave a small wave.
Bai Qingxue glanced at her without nodding. She simply looked away and continued toward the rest area.
Su Zhaoyan’s hand paused for a second, and then she laughed.
She didn't mind being ignored; after all, she hadn't come here to support Bai Qingxue in the first place.
She was only here to see how Lu Xueqing would react.
The junior sister leaned in again. “Senior Sister, why did you stop waving?”
Su Zhaoyan tilted her head and glanced at her, a slight smile playing on her lips.
“Junior Sister, why are you so concerned about me?” Su Zhaoyan’s tone was lazy, her voice rising slightly at the end as if she were teasing a child.
She didn't say the second half of the sentence, but her eyes clearly signaled that she wouldn't be grateful for the attention.
The girl’s face flushed, and she lowered her head, not daring to ask anything else.
In the rest area, Lu Xueqing stood by the railing, watching from a distance as Bai Qingxue approached.
She had watched the entire match from the stands, seeing Bai Qingxue forced behind the ice wall by the fire snake, watching her endure the palm strike, and seeing her win sword stroke by sword stroke.
Lu Xueqing’s hand had been gripping the railing the entire time, and she only breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Bai Qingxue emerge victorious.
But when she saw Su Zhaoyan applauding, her brow furrowed.
And when she saw Su Zhaoyan wave at Bai Qingxue, her frown deepened.
Seeing Bai Qingxue walking over now, Lu Xueqing immediately let go of the railing.
“Junior Sister!” Lu Xueqing called out. Her voice wasn't loud, but it was enough for Bai Qingxue to hear.
Bai Qingxue looked up, glanced in her direction, and gave a slight nod.
Lu Xueqing stood there without saying another word.
The corner of her mouth twitched slightly before she quickly flattened it again, but Shen Yao, who was standing nearby, still caught it.
Shen Yao leaned in and whispered, “Senior Sister, what were you smiling about just now?”
“I wasn't smiling,” Lu Xueqing said.
Shen Yao curled her lip, not daring to press further. But in her mind, she thought, You clearly were; the corners of your mouth were definitely turned up.
Bai Qingxue walked to the rest area, sat down, and closed her eyes to regulate her breathing.
Up in the stands, Su Zhaoyan remained seated. Her gaze traveled over the crowd to land on Lu Xueqing, noting everything from the white-knuckled grip on the railing to the way she leaned forward while calling out to her junior sister, and finally, that fleeting curve of her lips after Bai Qingxue’s nod.
Lu Xueqing thought no one had noticed, but Su Zhaoyan had seen it all.
“Interesting,” Su Zhaoyan whispered.
“Lu Xueqing, you couldn't possibly...”
Su Zhaoyan didn't finish her sentence; she just smiled and looked away.
Rate on N.U.
