Chapter 52 : A Gentle Rub
Yun Qingyue, now carrying the little white tiger away, remained unaware of the Tiandao Sect disciples' wariness and schemes. Having won her match too quickly with a single sword strike, she now headed toward other arenas, only to discover that most battles had barely begun.
Among the ten arenas across the plaza, four featured disciples from Mount Mingxia.
Perhaps out of senior disciple responsibility, Yun Qingyue not only noted these disciples' names and arena locations but also planned to watch now that she had won her own match. The first arena she reached was adjacent to hers, where an obscure Inner Sect disciple from Mount Mingxia was competing. His luck was decent—his opponent was also an equally unknown Inner Sect disciple. The two exchanged blows in a lively battle.
Yun Qingyue paused to observe for nearly a quarter-hour, noting that the disciple's techniques were proficient. Though not extraordinary, they were solid and without error. His opponent was similar, and if their battle continued, the outcome would likely depend on who could outlast the other.
The two fought vigorously on the arena, eliciting continuous cheers from below. However, for someone who had already discerned both competitors' capabilities, such a battle became somewhat tedious. Having assessed the situation, Yun Qingyue didn't linger long, soon carrying the little white tiger toward the next arena. The little white tiger, thoroughly enjoying the spectacle, felt somewhat regretful at being carried away.
The second arena with a Mount Mingxia disciple was relatively distant, separated by three other arenas. Fortunately, as Yun Qingyue passed through, the noisy disciples crowded below the arenas instinctively made way.
Upon reaching this arena, Jiang Mo looked up and discovered that the competitor was actually someone half-familiar.
It was Chu Yang, whom they had seen yesterday. His luck couldn't be considered good—after defending the arena for seventeen rounds yesterday, even with his profound cultivation, he had inevitably sustained injuries. Not only had he failed to achieve his goal, but his match had been scheduled in the first round today, leaving him no extra time to recover. Moreover, his opponent was an Inner Sect sword cultivator of considerable skill. By now, after some fierce combat, both were in tattered robes stained with blood.
Sword cultivators often proved the most formidable opponents, sharp as their swords and possessing unyielding courage. Yesterday, this sharpness and courage had allowed Chu Yang to dominate the arena. Today, unfortunately, two sword cultivators stood on the same platform.
Meeting on a narrow path, neither showed any intention of yielding, their battle filled with crisscrossing sword energy.
The little white tiger, having been here only two months and witnessing few cultivator battles, remained an inexperienced tiger. Unable to comprehend the profound mysteries in Senior Sister's seemingly ordinary sword strike, she was nonetheless captivated by the almost tangible sword energy exchanged between the two. Her golden tiger eyes remained fixed on their battle, occasionally gripping Senior Sister's arm tightly during tense moments.
Yun Qingyue had been intently observing the match when she felt a slight pain on her arm. Looking down, she discovered the little white tiger had gripped her arm in excitement, unconsciously extending her claws.
The tiger cub was still young, her tender claws not sharp enough to penetrate Yun Qingyue's magical robes, much less harm her. However, this distracted Yun Qingyue's attention from the arena. She raised her hand to remove the little white tiger's paw and, seeing her confused look, asked: "Is the battle on the arena exciting?"
The little white tiger nodded instinctively, then glanced at her removed paw, realizing she hadn't properly retracted her claws. Her tiger face immediately changed color, no longer concerned with watching the arena as she tried to pull at Senior Sister's sleeve: "How are you? Are you hurt?"
Yun Qingyue naturally couldn't understand the tiger's calls, but she clearly saw the urgency and regret in her demeanor. The slight displeasure she had felt instantly vanished. Before the little white tiger could actually pull back her sleeve, Yun Qingyue gently pressed down on the tiger paw, intuitively responding: "Don't worry, I'm fine. I'm not hurt."
The little white tiger remained concerned despite these words. Before she could insist on checking, System coolly remarked beside her: "Host, rest assured. Senior Sister isn't lying to you. With your combat power, you couldn't harm Senior Sister, let alone break through the defense of her magical robes."
Though meant to reassure, these words stung.
The little white tiger glanced at System, which had retreated to a safe distance. Rather than struggling to swat it, she waited until it was off-guard before swiftly flicking her tail, precisely sending the dazzling light orb flying. After disciplining System, her tension eased. Realizing it would be inappropriate to pull at Senior Sister's sleeve in public, she abandoned her inspection.
Out of guilt, however, she carefully retracted her claws completely, then gently rubbed Senior Sister's arm with her soft paw pads. While rubbing, she secretly observed Senior Sister's expression. Seeing no sign of pain, she finally believed she was truly unharmed.
Yun Qingyue noticed the little white tiger's careful actions, warmth filling her crystalline eyes.
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Yesterday, when Chu Yang defended the arena, Yun Qingyue had shown unusual attention while watching. Jiang Mo had expected that today, she would similarly give Chu Yang more attention, but unexpectedly, after their brief interaction, she didn't linger, heading directly to the next arena instead.
Calculating the time, she had stayed at this arena for just a moment, even less time than at the previous one.
Of course, Chu Yang wasn't particularly important, merely appearing frequently these past two days. Since Senior Sister had no interest in watching and wanted to leave with the tiger, the little white tiger showed no reluctance either. On the contrary, after becoming so engrossed in watching that she nearly injured Senior Sister, she even felt some transferred resentment toward Chu Yang. Though not enough to do anything about it, she was content not to linger or watch further.
The person and tiger thus left Chu Yang's arena, unaware of the glance he cast their way from the platform—with a Golden Core cultivator's keen perception, Yun Qingyue might have sensed the gaze, but with the plaza packed with people, it was impossible to determine exactly who had looked over, so she didn't investigate further, missing this encounter.
Without Yun Qingyue and the little white tiger watching, Chu Yang's arena remained bustling. His reputation had soared after yesterday's defense matches, attracting many spectators today. Combined with his somewhat formidable opponent, after that glance, he had no time to focus on anything else.
Behind them, the two sword cultivators continued their intense battle while Yun Qingyue, carrying the little white tiger, arrived at the last arena.
Spells flashed and heavy swords swept across the seemingly sturdy arena, occasionally creating large craters... This time, the competitor was truly familiar—none other than the second junior brother from Mount Mingxia, Zhong Heng.
However, due to their earlier delay, Yun Qingyue and the little white tiger arrived somewhat late, with the match approaching its conclusion. Zhong Heng's opponent was a female cultivator, from which peak was unclear, though her cultivation suggested she was also a true disciple. After their fierce battle, the female cultivator had exhausted all her techniques and was now cornered, defeat imminent.
Seeing Zhong Heng show no mercy for fragile beauty, swinging his heavy sword toward her face, the female cultivator, forced to the edge of the arena, gritted her teeth in frustration. Without hesitation, she called out: "Wait, I surrender."
As her words fell, the heavy sword halted in mid-air, just half a palm's distance from her face.
The sword had stopped, but the generated airflow still stirred the female cultivator's long hair, making it billow slightly. She glanced at the sword so close to her, raised her hand to push the blade away, then shot Zhong Heng a hateful glare before leaping decisively off the arena.
Zhong Heng received the glare with bewilderment, but since winning was what mattered, he happily returned his heavy sword to the scabbard on his back. Without waiting for the elder to announce the result, he jumped down from the arena and ran a few steps to Yun Qingyue. After looking her up and down, he dejectedly sighed: "I lost again."
Outsiders who heard this were confused, as he had clearly just won on the arena. As if to confirm that everyone hadn't misunderstood, the elder presiding over this arena had already mounted the platform and announced Zhong Heng's victory.
But only Yun Qingyue knew that the "loss" Zhong Heng referred to wasn't about the arena but in comparison to her—this junior brother, older than her in age, seemed quite fixated on surpassing her. Not only had he pestered her for a match on his first day back, but now he was even comparing their victory speeds. With different opponents, what meaning did such a comparison have?
A trace of helplessness flashed in Yun Qingyue's eyes, but she had experienced Zhong Heng's stubbornness too many times over the years and couldn't be bothered to say anything. Moreover, his competitive spirit wasn't necessarily a bad thing, and his dejection and frustration would be temporary.
Sure enough, after just two seconds of disappointment, Zhong Heng raised his head again: "I really want to have a proper match with Senior Sister."
Seeing the eager light in his eyes, Yun Qingyue turned away with the little white tiger: "Then just keep winning, all the way to the end. Eventually, we'll meet." Though she spoke lightly, the pride in her words was no less than anyone else's.
Zhong Heng simply smiled, finding nothing inappropriate, and acknowledged her words as he followed.
The first round of arena matches gradually concluded, followed by the second, the third... until the sixth round of matches ended, marking the conclusion of today's competition. The first round of arena matches finally had its results—the names densely written on the jade wall instantly halved, from the original 115 participants to just 58 after today's eliminations.
By then, the sun was setting on the horizon. The second round of arena matches would clearly have to wait until tomorrow, though there was no rush.
The disciples gradually dispersed, gathering in small groups as they left, still discussing the exciting moments from various matches. As the various escape lights disappeared into the distance, the Small Spirit Peak plaza, bustling all day, finally returned to tranquility.
Yun Qingyue and Zhong Heng hadn't stayed until the end. After watching several senior disciples' matches, they left Small Spirit Peak—the senior disciples' strength was universally impressive, but it must be said that Hou Ying had been the most unfortunate. Although the opponents of the other senior disciples had also been quickly defeated, they had all been shown some mercy, not suffering such a complete annihilation.
But victory was victory, and Yun Qingyue didn't feel she had done anything wrong. After watching the matches, she took the little white tiger and left Small Spirit Peak. It was still early, and she didn't return to the guest room on Mount Tianyang to cultivate.
Under the little white tiger's puzzled gaze, she asked: "Have these days been boring? Would you like me to take you to play on the back mountain?"