Zanxing

Chapter 75 - Causing Trouble (1)

Mu Chengxiao stood in front of Tian Fangfang.

"Junior Brother Mu?" Tian Fangfang was surprised as well. Usually, Mu Chengxiao kept to himself, rarely speaking; it was rare for him to show such brotherly affection, which touched Tian Fangfang. "Are you here to help?"

"Help?" Tan Tianxin's sword was blocked, and his face looked very displeased. He mocked, "With a broken iron sword? That's laughable."

"Young Master Tan," Tian Fangfang remembered Xu Lingzi's advice and spoke amicably, "We have no hostility toward you. This young master only owes you some spirit stones; why not settle this peacefully?"

"He won't settle peacefully." It was Mu Chengxiao who spoke. He looked at Tan Tianxin, his tone calm: "His intention from the start was to make them out of the competition."

"Out of the competition?" Tian Fangfang was puzzled.

"You're here to participate in the secret realm trial, right?" Mu Chengxiao looked at the young man on the ground, who was anxiously holding his brother, and upon hearing this, he nodded. "My brother and I are here to represent Liuli Sect in the secret realm trial."

Liuli Sect—Zanxing had heard of this name. It was a small sect, previously known as "Liu Li Mountain Villa." This small sect had also participated in the war between humans and demons, though they mostly sat it out. Nevertheless, they managed to endure until the end, which gave them a bit of fame. They then renamed themselves "Liuli Sect," but their power remained weak, and often overlooked. It seemed that they were indeed being bullied by the people from Chihua Sect.

"Then that's it," Mu Chengxiao said. "This Young Master Tan is also here to participate in the secret realm trial. The secret realm is not very large, and there are many people. Fewer competitors naturally mean more opportunities." He turned to look at Tan Tianxin: "Isn't that right, Young Master Tan?"

Inside "Qiang Qiang Gambling House," no one spoke for a while.

The secret realm of Li'er Country would not open until five days later, but the competition had already begun the moment they set foot on this land.

Perhaps this disciple from Liuli Sect accidentally owed Tan Tianxin some spirit stones, or perhaps he was caught in someone else's scheme from the start. However, in this ruthless world of cultivation, it only takes one reason—no matter how ridiculous or full of holes that reason might sound—just having a reason is enough.

Tan Tianxin's smile faltered as he looked at Mu Chengxiao with curiosity: "What's your name?"

"Taiyan Sect, Mu Chengxiao," the youth said coldly.

Zanxing: "......"

In the original story, the plot of face-slapping was usually the same—an antagonist provokes, the protagonist accepts the challenge, immediately slaps the face, and everyone is left dumbfounded as the scene erupts. But Zanxing remembered clearly that Mu Chengxiao had never introduced himself like this right from the start.

This wasn't in the original story.

The young man in the blue robe next to her gasped in surprise, saying, "So it's that run-down sect; this is going to be interesting."

Zanxing frowned. What did "run-down sect" mean? It sounded like this person was also a disciple of some sect.

Over there, Tan Tianxin, upon hearing this, was first taken aback, and then his expression turned strange. He said, "Taiyan Sect?"

Within the gambling house, there were also other sect disciples. In the cultivation world, it was no secret that Taiyan Sect and Chihua Sect were arch-enemies. Everyone was eager to watch, and not a single person was willing to leave, waiting to see how it would end.

"I didn't expect it to be Taiyan Sect meddling," Tan Tianxin laughed a few times before suddenly glaring at Mu Chengxiao and viciously saying, "Is it just you two from Taiyan Sect? Are you the geniuses participating in this trial? Taiyan Sect has fallen to this extent?"

"Whether we have fallen or not is not for you to decide," Mu Chengxiao retorted coldly.

"Good," Tan Tianxin stepped back and simply said, "Then let's give it a try." Huang Fan and He Ri suddenly appeared from the gambling house, both wearing dark gray robes. Tan Tianxin held his long sword, saying, "Let these wild dogs see what a real big sect is like!"

The two men, holding long swords, lunged at Mu Chengxiao and Tian Fangfang.

"Three against two, how shameless." Zanxing sent a sound transmission to Gu Baiying, drew her iron staff from her waist, and charged forward. "Senior Brother, I'm here to help!"

In the "Qiang Qiang Gambling House," chaos erupted.

Mu Chengxiao faced off against Tan Tianxin, Tian Fangfang against He Ri, and Zan Xing found herself up against a cultivator named Huang Fan. This Huang Fan looked quite young, probably in his early twenties. Since everyone in the secret realm trial was new talents recruited by various sects over the past decade, they naturally wouldn't be very old. However, as soon as the fight started, Zanxing realized just how formidable her opponent was.

Taiyan Sect emphasized quality education, and within their sect, there were various types of magical tools. For instance, Zanxing used a staff, Mu Chengxiao used a sword, and Tian Fangfang used an axe, each having their own characteristics. In contrast, the Chihua Sect only used swords. Their sword techniques were extremely ruthless, and their spiritual power carried a murderous aura, not at all ethereal; when they wielded their swords, they didn't seem like sect disciples but rather like mercenaries who killed without emotion, tools devoid of feelings.

When the tip of the sword struck the edge of the Panhua Staff, it made a crisp sound. Huang Fan sneered, "Taiyan Sect really looks bad; you're actually letting your disciples use such low-level magical tools, it's really unbearable to watch."

"Magical tools aren't about being high-level," Zanxing replied, "but about the person using them." After saying that, the tip of her rod pointed, and a vast sea of flowers blossomed from the rod's body, rippling in the air like the moonlit waves, seemingly trying to absorb the opponent's long sword.

Seeing this, Huang Fan realized it wasn't good and quickly pulled back his sword. Zanxing's Panhua Staff struck him back two steps, and he revealed a look of astonishment.

"Chihua Sect really looks bad," Zanxing returned his words verbatim, "to accept such a low-level disciple is truly unbearable."

Huang Fan's expression darkened, and he shouted, "Shut up, ugly!" He then lunged forward again, and where the rod and sword met, sparks suddenly flew. The continuous flow of flowers extinguished the sparks and wrapped around the opponent's long sword. Huang Fan began to retreat step by step. Zanxing felt a thrill of joy but suddenly sensed a gust of wind approaching from behind. Tian Fangfang shouted, "Junior Sister, be careful!"

It was a sneak attack! Zanxing turned to dodge, but Huang Fan had already thrust his sword toward her chest.

The main character was right in front of her, and yet two against one was directed at her, the cannon fodder—wasn't the original story a bit too unfair?

Mimi let out a shriek, and a bright spearhead shot out from the side, easily deflecting the fierce long sword. The force of the spear sent the long sword's owner staggering back, hitting himself in the face with his own sword hilt.

The air in the arena seemed to stagnate.

Zanxing looked ahead.

"Junior disciples," the youth stood in front of her, facing away, his voice filled with impatience, "You've caused trouble in less than fifteen minutes; you really know how to make things difficult."