Extreme Spirit Chaos Technique

Although Lei Yue’er’s expressions and actions were nearly identical to Lei Yun’Er’s, her soft voice couldn’t muster the same imposing aura. Instead, it just sounded incredibly cute.

Mu Chen chuckled mischievously. He quickly pulled a few crystals from the bodies, grinned, and said, "Quick, quick. Time to split the loot."

Lei Yun’Er was instantly displeased. She pouted, "What do you mean, ’split the loot’? You make it sound like we’re doing something bad."

"Heh, it’s close enough. I didn’t expect an extra haul this time. Look."

As he spoke, Mu Chen dangled three black crystals in front of the two girls. "To think these six people had collected three black crystals. It seems three members of the Black Camp are out."

Lei Yun’Er said, "That’s perfectly normal. In recent years, every faction battle has ended with the Black Camp being almost completely wiped out, so it’s a given that the White Camp will get black crystals. But this time is different, because this time we have a huge freak like you, Brother Mu Chen."

"What huge freak?" Mu Chen said irritably. He tossed three crystals into Lei Yun’Er’s hands, placed another three in Lei Yue’er’s hands, and finally put the last three away. Standing up, he dusted off his hands and asked, "How many crystals do we have in total now?"

Lei Yun’Er said, "You don’t even count your own. How would I know?"

Lei Yue’er smiled. "Luckily, I’ve been keeping count. My crystal total is ninety-nine, so Brother Mu Chen’s and Big Sister’s should also be ninety-nine. That’s two hundred ninety-seven in total, which is one-fifth of all the White Camp’s crystals."

"We have that many already?" Mu Chen clicked his tongue in amazement, then smiled slightly. "That’s good. We’re getting closer and closer to first place."

With that, Mu Chen turned around. Lei Yun’Er and Lei Yue’er quite naturally took his hands, and they continued walking forward, as if nothing they might encounter ahead could stir the slightest bit of fear in them. However, just as Mu Chen led them away, a faint smile appeared on his lips, hidden from everyone by his mask.

A few minutes after Mu Chen left, a figure in white appeared with a SWISH among some boulders. Inside a rocky alcove stood five people. Judging by their appearance, they were, without exception, all students from the White Camp.

"Yang Fan, did you hear that?" a tall, thin man asked.

Yang Fan gave the man an indifferent glance and said coldly, "I heard. From the sound of his voice and the color of his hair, it must be Mu Chen. And he has two girls at the Eighth Ring Emperor Realm with him. Also, I’ll say this one last time, Sun Yong: if you ever use that commanding tone with me again, don’t say I didn’t warn you."

"Two girls at the Eighth Ring Emperor Realm?" At this moment, a third person spoke up, addressing Yang Fan and Sun Yong. "You two, put aside your personal grudges for now. The problem we face is this Mu Chen, who’s already a threat to the White Camp’s dominance. Don’t forget, rumor has it that he defeated Shan Tianyu."

The speaker was Wang Jie, the one who had gathered these five. After watching the battle between Mu Chen and Fang Bin, he had sought out Yang Fan, Sun Yong, Wu Lei, and Shenlin, planning to ambush Mu Chen during the faction battle. They would be the first to defeat him, thereby neutralizing his impact on the White Camp’s dominance.

Who would have thought that while the five had indeed agreed to his request, there was already intense competition among experts. This was especially true for the five of them who, along with Water Monarch Fang Bin, were known as the six great experts of the second layer. The animosity between them was immense, not to mention their respective factions were complete rivals.

"Pfft. Defeated Shan Tianyu? Wang Jie, you’ve got to be kidding. I remember all five of us were in seclusion on the second layer, trying for a breakthrough. None of us saw it with our own eyes. It’s just rumors spread by those lower-level students. How credible can that be? It was probably some faction from above deliberately slandering Tianyu." Wu Lei waved his hand dismissively, his tone flat.

Wang Jie didn’t retort, simply saying in a cold voice, "Don’t forget Mu Chen’s performance in the arena tournament just now. He’s the guy who defeated even Fang Bin."

Wu Lei said with contempt, "Anyone with eyes could see that Fang Bin colluded with that Mu Chen guy. We’re talking about three hundred days’ worth of Cultivation Resources."

Yang Fan’s gaze remained indifferent. He hadn’t wanted to get involved in their argument, but he was the only one of the five who had seen Mu Chen with his own eyes. His sharp senses told him that this Mu Chen was definitely not simple. Therefore, he had to speak up and remind them.

"It’s better to be cautious. Even if Fang Bin and Mu Chen were colluding to cheat, you think the arena’s Guardian Elder Council wouldn’t notice? Besides, if they were going to team up, Fang Bin had no reason to be the one to lose. After all, he only asked about Mu Chen’s identity at the very end, didn’t he? And among us, I’m the only one who’s actually seen the guy. Forgive me for being blunt, but he is truly not simple. He’s already amassed two hundred and ninety-seven white crystals. You should know better than I do what that means."

Wu Lei shrugged. "Three hundred days of resources. Even if they split it, that’s a full one hundred and fifty days each. For a prize that big, I’d be willing to lose once, too. As for why the arena’s Elders didn’t intervene, they were probably taking a nap. I have to say, Yang Fan, this isn’t like you. Since when are you afraid of a newcomer? Don’t tell me you’re spooked by a few rumors about him?"

Hearing this, Yang Fan snorted coldly. "I’ve said my piece. Believe it or not."

With that, he turned, walked to the side, and leaned against a boulder, tilting his head back to look at the sky.

Just then, Shenlin, who had remained silent, finally spoke. "It’s all just empty talk without proof right now. Whether you believe the rumors or not, we’ll have to face him eventually. As for who’s right and who’s wrong, we’ll find out after one battle. If we keep arguing like this, we’ll have defeated ourselves before we even fight anyone. You all need to take a good look. This is a faction battle, not the Inner Mountain, and not an individual duel. Right now, we are all wearing white Concealing Garments, which proves that for at least these twelve hours, we are on the same side."

It had to be said, Shenlin’s words carried a lot of weight. After hearing him, the others fell silent. They exchanged glances and gave slight nods.

Seeing this, Shenlin softened his tone and said to Yang Fan, "You just said Mu Chen isn’t simple. What makes you say that?"

This time, Yang Fan’s expression wasn’t as cold as it had been with the others. "You could call it intuition," he said. "Also, while I was watching them, I kept getting the feeling that I’d been discovered."

The other four frowned at his words. Shenlin said, "That’s impossible. You’re a Dark Attribute Martial Artist. If you completely conceal your aura, even we would have an extremely hard time detecting you. How could a mere Seventh-Ring Martial Sect possibly notice?"

Yang Fan shook his head. "I don’t know. But I deliberately tested him a few more times afterward, and he showed no reaction. So I can only conclude it was my imagination. But the very fact that he could give me that feeling proves he’s not simple."

Shenlin rubbed his temples. He admitted he was getting a bit dizzy from all this. "How about this: we’ve done our scouting and haven’t gotten any useful information. Why don’t we just start the plan and crush him?"

"I agree!"

The four chorused their agreement. It was obvious they also knew that further discussion would lead nowhere. Since they couldn’t know their enemy, they would have to let the battle decide. It was time to see if this Mu Chen was really as legendary as the stories claimed.

...

"Brother Mu Chen, are you a Direct Lineage descendant of some great family? I feel like there’s a mysterious air about you."

At this very moment, Mu Chen, Lei Yun’Er, and Lei Yue’er had walked into a flower garden with a magnificent view. The garden was vast, the line of sight was extremely open, and there was basically no cover.

They chose this place to rest for two reasons. First, the field of view was wide. If any students from the White Camp were nearby, it would have the effect of luring a snake out of its hole. They could then play the pig to eat the tiger, directly looting the others’ crystals to line their own pockets.

They had been using this method from the very beginning. So, not only did they not look for hidden places, but they deliberately sought out environments that would expose them more obviously, just like this place.

Of course, more important than the first reason was that this place was beautiful, and both Lei Yun’Er and Lei Yue’er loved it. Seeing these two girls, who were like sisters to him, happy helped to make up for some of his own fragmented childhood. To be honest, over the past half-day, watching Yun’Er and Yue’Er’s constant cheerful laughter had unknowingly eased some of the heavy pressure in his heart.

"Mysterious?" Mu Chen laughed self-deprecatingly. "What’s so mysterious about me? I’m just an ordinary person, as ordinary as they come. If you had to use one word to describe me, it’d be better to say I’m a person with many secrets. As for being a Direct Lineage descendant of a great family... don’t make fun of me. I’m just a lonely boy from a small, remote Empire."

Lei Yun’Er huffed irritably. "You really don’t know how to humor a girl. You say you’re a person with many secrets, so tell us, what secrets do you have?"

Lei Yue’er tugged on Lei Yun’Er’s sleeve. "Big Sister, if they’re secrets, then of course he can’t tell."

Lei Yun’Er broke into a sweat. ’What a helpful teammate.’ She poked Lei Yue’er on the forehead, annoyed, and said with a laugh, "Aren’t you the smart one."

"Of course I am."

Watching Lei Yue’er and Lei Yun’Er’s cute antics and their heartwarming banter, Mu Chen felt for a moment like he was their older brother. ’It would be wonderful to have two sisters like them.’

Lost in this fantasy, Mu Chen’s thoughts drifted to Little Spirit. Ever since the day Little Spirit had manifested her own form, he hadn’t let her out again. And she, as always, was so well-behaved, never once complaining to him.

He discreetly caressed the Star-Shattering Seal on his right arm. Mu Chen truly wanted to call out "sister." However, just as he was about to do so, his expression suddenly changed. He then chuckled softly and said, "They’re here?"