When Golden Finger Meets Salted Fish

Chu Yang, who had just been full of vigor on the arena, was ordered to be detained by the Sect Leader in the blink of an eye.

Peak Master Qingxu personally took action, sealing his cultivation and sending him to the Enforcement Hall for detention. But the matter didn't end there. First, Chu Yang had allegedly used demonic energy to harm You Yi from Tiandao Sect. Although there was no definitive evidence, an explanation still had to be given to Tiandao Sect. Second, the origin of his demonic sword, and whether his own background was problematic, all needed to be thoroughly investigated.

The righteous path and the demonic path had always been irreconcilable. It was only because the demonic path had been relatively quiet in recent years that both sides hadn't engaged in major conflicts. But the demonic path's troublemaking intentions never died, and friction and confrontations between the two sides had never ceased.

If investigations proved that Chu Yang truly had no connection to the demonic path, that would be fine. But if he was found to have even the slightest suspicion, his fate likely wouldn't be good.

The disciples who had witnessed the entire process sighed in dismay, but since it involved the demonic path, naturally no one felt sympathy for him. As for the atmosphere among the three sects becoming awkward again due to his actions, that was a concern for the Sect Leader and peak masters. Not only the ordinary disciples watching the spectacle, but even Yun Qingyue and Tan Xin, who had made it to the final round of the competition, had no say in the matter.

Yun Qingyue had observed the entire process from below the arena. When the abnormality in Chu Yang was discovered, her taut nerves finally relaxed a bit. However, she instinctively felt that the suspicions about Chu Yang weren't limited to just that sword, but more about him personally.

"Senior Sister, let's go back. You still have a competition tomorrow," Zhong Heng, having finished watching the spectacle, actively called to Yun Qingyue, and couldn't help but mutter, "What was Chu Yang thinking, taking such a crooked path? Earlier, when I saw him fighting evenly with Tan Xin, I thought he might make another comeback and win, but who would have thought that his success until now relied on such methods!"

Zhong Heng's words were merely sighs of regret, faintly carrying a sense of disappointment. But at this time, there were many people around discussing Chu Yang, and their comments were even harsher, especially since Chu Yang's dark horse status had indeed made many people jealous.

Yun Qingyue had good hearing and caught all the discussions around her. After walking a few steps with Zhong Heng while holding the little white tiger, she suddenly stopped.

Zhong Heng was still muttering something, and noticing she had stopped, he turned back and asked, "What's wrong, Senior Sister?"

Yun Qingyue looked back and saw Tan Xin being helped to his feet by several fellow disciples on the arena—the young monk's cultivation was indeed profound, and with Buddhist cultivation methods' natural suppression of demonic energy, he was the first to discover Chu Yang's abnormality. But the previous duel hadn't been easy for him either; his current condition showed that he must have been injured as well.

Seeing this, Zhong Heng's gaze followed Yun Qingyue's and also spotted Tan Xin, who had almost been forgotten. He frowned, saying with complicated feelings, "Tan Xin seems injured... Senior Sister, do you want to go check on him?"

Yun Qingyue nodded, and conveniently without needing to find an excuse, she took out a bottle of pills and walked over openly.

Tan Xin had red lips and white teeth, appearing very young, and indeed was the youngest among all the disciples. Normally, his fellow disciples would take extra care of him, let alone this time when he had been injured, making his fellow disciples surrounding him extremely concerned. Seeing Yun Qingyue approach at this time, some of the more impulsive ones instinctively stepped forward, wanting to shield their little brother behind them.

Fortunately, Tan Xin wasn't affected by Chu Yang and stepped forward on his own, putting his palms together in greeting: "Senior Sister Yun."

Yun Qingyue stopped three steps away, returned the gesture, and then handed over the pills, saying, "This is the Yuqing Pill refined by my Uncle-Master Qinglan, which is quite beneficial for healing injuries. Today's incident was a mistake on our Xuanqing Sect's part, and I hope it won't affect tomorrow's competition."

Buddha Sect naturally didn't lack good medicine, especially since Tan Xin was Buddha's Disciple, and Buddha Sect's elders would certainly not begrudge giving him medicine. However, since Yun Qingyue had come to deliver the medicine out of goodwill, Tan Xin naturally wouldn't refuse. After accepting it and expressing his thanks, he thought for a moment and still said to her: "As for that disciple Chu Yang, Senior Sister Yun should be more careful in the future. This humble monk cannot see through him clearly."

Tan Xin's warning was just this one sentence, and after saying it, he bid farewell and left with his fellow disciples.

But Yun Qingyue, who already had suspicions, understood the deeper meaning in his words—the problem wasn't the sword but Chu Yang himself. Although a Spirit Division elder had personally examined him and confirmed that he cultivated orthodox methods, it still hadn't dispelled Tan Xin's doubts.

Yun Qingyue stood there lost in thought for a moment, then handed the little white tiger to Zhong Heng who had followed, and went to find her master Qingyu.

༻༺❀༻✧⋆｡°✩☽༓☾✩°｡⋆✧༺❀༻༺

What Yun Qingyue said to her master, and how the sect would deal with Chu Yang, were unknown to outsiders. Although this match had taken an unexpected turn, the final round of the martial arts competition still had to continue.

After a peaceful night, with the bells ringing on Mount Lingxia the next day, Yun Qingyue and Tan Xin were once again standing on the arena.

Yun Qingyue stood on the arena with her sword, her crystal eyes looking at her final opponent opposite her—Buddha Sect's Tan Xin, young in age but with unfathomably deep cultivation. The Three Sect Martial Arts Competition had come down to just the two of them, and the outcome of this match not only concerned the honor of their sects but also related to the distribution of benefits among the three sects for the next sixty years.

She hadn't expected to surpass several senior brothers and reach this final step, but since she was already standing here, she absolutely couldn't be careless!

"Yun Qingyue of Xuanqing Sect, please advise me," Yun Qingyue said softly, her long sword pointed diagonally at the ground.

The young monk had recovered overnight, and today he appeared to have recovered, standing on the arena still with his composed demeanor. Hearing Yun Qingyue announce herself, he put his palms together and said, "Senior Sister Yun, for our contest today, how about we decide with a single strike?"

Yun Qingyue was slightly stunned, not expecting Tan Xin to make such a request, and then immediately thought of his injury from yesterday. Although she had sent the Yuqing Pill, and Buddha Sect certainly didn't lack medicine, probably no one could use Azure Essence Spirit Marrow as medicine like the little white tiger did. Even if the injuries had recovered overnight, damage to one's spiritual energy would still affect the competition. It was probably because of this that Tan Xin proposed deciding the winner with a single strike, right?

In the blink of an eye, Yun Qingyue had figured out the connection. She had no intention of taking advantage of someone, especially since the Chu Yang incident was ultimately Xuanqing Sect's fault. So she nodded and readily agreed: "Very well."

Hearing this, the young monk's eyes curved slightly, as if he smiled, and then he once again threw out that string of white jade prayer beads.

The white jade prayer beads hung in mid-air, and as Tan Xin formed Buddhist mudras with his hands, the thread connecting the prayer beads broke silently. The broken prayer beads didn't scatter but instead rotated and arranged themselves into a formation. Before anyone could see the pattern of that formation, there was a burst of golden light... It was still Buddha-light, but unlike yesterday's warm and gentle Buddha-light, today's Buddha-light had become dazzling, as if suddenly transforming from a loving Buddha to a fierce Vajra.

Tan Xin changed his usual arena style, immediately launching an offensive move. With the premise of deciding victory in a single strike, defense was not the way to win.

Yun Qingyue's reaction wasn't slow either. As Tan Xin formed his mudras, she also made hand seals and swung her sword—as a sword cultivator, even if she discovered her opponent attacking, she would never prioritize defense. She unleashed her strongest sword strike so far, using offense as defense, an unstoppable force. Frost sword intent instantly froze the arena, froze the air, and even froze that dazzling Buddha-light...

When their techniques collided, the spectators below the arena instinctively closed their eyes. It seemed as if there was a huge roaring sound, impacting people's minds until they were blank. Yet it also seemed as if there was no sound at all, a silence that made people uneasy.

After a moment, someone finally opened their eyes, and looking up at the arena, they saw a scene of complete calm.

There was no dazzling Buddha-light, no terrifying frost. The only two people standing on the arena had straight postures with fluttering robes, like a peaceful and beautiful painting. Fighting, victory or defeat, seemed to have nothing to do with them.

More and more people opened their eyes, and faced with such a scene, everyone looked at each other in bewilderment. Some people couldn't even react, thinking what they had seen before was their own illusion, confusedly asking those around them: "What, what happened? Is the match already over? Did they actually attack each other? Who won?"

Their companions were equally confused, shaking their heads, also not knowing the outcome.

Until someone on the arena moved—Tan Xin extended his hand and opened it, revealing the scattered white jade prayer beads lying quietly in his palm, counting about ten remaining, clearly fewer than the original string. If anyone had sharp eyes, they might see a bit of white powder in his palm, or notice the scattered fragments of white jade on the arena.

Tan Xin looked at the prayer beads in his palm, recited a Buddhist invocation, and frankly said: "This humble monk has lost."

Once these words were spoken, there was first a moment of silence below the arena, followed by cheers rising to the sky. This was Xuanqing Sect's territory, and now the champion was also their senior sister from Xuanqing Sect. The excitement of the crowd was naturally evident.

Zhong Heng, holding the little white tiger, was stunned for a moment, seemingly not expecting the match to end so quickly, and also not expecting Senior Sister to win so easily. When he came to his senses, he was extremely delighted. With the barrier on the arena preventing him from going up, in order to release his excitement without thinking, he grabbed the little white tiger perched on his shoulder and tossed her into the air, even forgetting about the precious identity of Jianbing.

The little white tiger was completely bewildered. She had only reacted half a beat slower, and by the time she came to her senses, she was already in the air—the little white tiger, who had reached Golden Core cultivation but still couldn't fly, quickly fell back down with her claws and paws flailing. Before Zhong Heng could catch her and throw her again, she twisted her body and stomped one foot on Zhong Heng's face.

Caught off guard by the stomp to his face, Zhong Heng let out a loud "Wah!", but the little white tiger had been startled by him just now, and she didn't feel the slightest bit guilty or remorseful. She deliberately put extra force into this step, stomping hard on Zhong Heng's face, and then used the momentum to leap toward the arena... with a clear target of heading straight for her Senior Sister.

Yun Qingyue was still recovering from the previous battle. Although it was only a single exchange, a single move between high-level practitioners already represented a lot. She was still in a daze when suddenly a white furry ball pounced into her arms.

Tan Xin seemed somewhat surprised after seeing the little white tiger clearly, but the little white tiger didn't care. She pounced on Yun Qingyue and made several "aowu" cries, sounding milky and sweet like she was acting spoiled.

The killing aura around Yun Qingyue dissipated. She sheathed her sword and held the little white tiger, then finally said to Tan Xin: "Thank you for your concession, Junior Brother."