Admire him?
Befriend him?
Xu Yimeng was taken aback, his pale face instantly flushing with color, his back straightening.
He had thought this person was here to pick a fight, but it turned out he wanted to befriend him.
An inner disciple of Qinghua Sect…
If he could build a good relationship with an inner disciple of Qinghua Sect, even if the Bijian Sect were destroyed, he could have them take him in. With luck, he might even be accepted as a disciple of Qinghua Sect.
Not to boast, but with his peerless talent of a mutated Ice Spiritual Root, as long as the elders of Qinghua Sect weren’t blind, they would be scrambling to take him as a disciple.
Once he found a Qinghua Sect elder to rely on as a backer, wouldn’t the resources and conditions be far more comfortable than staying in Bijian Sect?
Xu Yimeng smiled hypocritically, “I also admire Brother Hua. It is my honor to befriend someone as outstanding as you.”
Putting on an act, Xu Yimeng cupped his hands and said, “Brother Hua, it’s getting late. You should quickly lose to me in one move, and then we brothers can go have a drink together.”
“Alright.” Fu Ruheng also cupped his hands, his messy black hair falling over his dark, profound peach-blossom eyes.
“Brother Xu, make your move.”
“Brother Hua, remember to lose convincingly.” Xu Yimeng commanded with a forceful attitude, showing no hint of asking for a favor.
He smirked, circulating the spiritual power within his body. Sharp ice spikes began to condense one by one in mid-air, their cross-sections gleaming with an extreme, bone-chilling cold.
The ice spikes shifted direction in the air, their sharp tips pointing directly at Fu Ruheng.
The disciples below were witnessing Xu Yimeng condense so many ice spikes for the first time, and they were all stunned by the scene, their expressions excited.
“Senior Brother Xu Yimeng is so strong.”
“Ahhh, I really want to marry Senior Brother Xu Yimeng. With a Dao Companion like him, what more could one ask for!”
“Go away, go away. Xu Yimeng wouldn’t look at someone ugly.”
“…So many ice spikes. Do you think the guy on the other side will be turned into a pincushion?”
“Being turned into a pincushion is a good thing. The dogs in the sect will have something to eat again, hahaha.”
In the eyes of the Bijian Sect disciples, the lives of others had always been cheap.
Their eyes bulged with excitement as they eagerly awaited the imagined scene to unfold.
Fu Ruheng stood still, unmoving.
Just as the ice spikes were about to strike his limbs, Xu Yimeng “considerately” transmitted a message:
“Brother Hua, you should still put up a bit of a defense. My Ice Spiritual Root is different from others—I wouldn’t want you to actually get frostbite.”
Fu Ruheng smiled faintly, “Brother Xu’s Ice Spiritual Root certainly looks impressive.”
Xu Yimeng took it as a compliment, his smirk widening even more. He boasted without hesitation, “It’s alright. If the four sects hadn’t canceled my spot, I could’ve taken the top three rankings with my eyes closed.”
Fu Ruheng unexpectedly poured cold water on him, “Thanks to the person who awakened the mutated Ice Spiritual Root, otherwise Brother Xu wouldn’t be thriving like this.”
Xu Yimeng froze.
It was only then that he remembered—the spiritual root talent he had been proudly boasting about was actually stolen from someone else.
His own innate spiritual root talent could only allow him to produce a tiny spark.
Xu Yimeng felt a surge of anger, as if he had been insulted, but he had no grounds to refute it, nor any reason to mock Fu Ruheng. He could only mutter resentfully:
“I did it all for that little beggar’s own good. If I hadn’t taken his spiritual root talent, he would’ve been targeted by others for standing out too much. It’s better this way…”
Xu Yimeng fell silent, for he saw that on Fu Ruheng’s fingers, wrapped in black gloves, hovered a small ice spike, identical to the one he had condensed—even the color was a perfect replica.
“Ice Spiritual Root?!” Xu Yimeng’s pupils contracted, and he nearly lost his voice. “How could you possibly have an Ice Spiritual Root?”
Mutated Spiritual Roots were one in ten thousand. How could two individuals with Ice Spiritual Root talent appear within such a short time?
Xu Yimeng couldn’t believe it. His eyes were practically glued to the tiny ice spike Fu Ruheng had condensed. His twisted mouth straightened, and a sudden sense of panic welled up inside him.
As he stared at the cloaked figure whose face remained hidden, a bizarre and unbelievable thought crossed his mind…
Could it be… could it be that little beggar?
Xu Yimeng shook his head. No, it couldn’t be that little beggar.
It had only been a month since he had dug out the little beggar’s Spiritual Root.
Even if the little beggar had somehow rebuilt his Spiritual Root, it was absolutely impossible for him to reach the Earth Realm within a month.
This was just a coincidence.
Hua Xu just happened to have an Ice Spiritual Root too. That was all.
Xu Yimeng kept comforting himself. Meanwhile, the disciples below, seeing the ice spike hovering on Fu Ruheng’s finger, were momentarily stunned before erupting into a cacophony of chatter, like ducks let loose in a marketplace.
“Holy shit, an Ice Spiritual Root?”
“There’s a hidden genius in our sect?”
“But his ice spike is so small. Its quality probably can’t compare to Senior Brother Xu Yimeng’s, right?”
“Even if the quality is inferior, it’s still stronger than the common Five Elements Spiritual Roots!”
“No wonder, no wonder he dared to jump up for the match. He actually has the strength!”
“What are you talking about? He’s only at the third level of the Mystic Realm. He definitely can’t beat Senior Brother Xu Yimeng.”
“Our opinions don’t matter; we have to see for ourselves… Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit! He blocked Senior Brother Xu Yimeng’s ice spike formation with just one tiny ice spike like that?”
Xu Yimeng’s ice spikes resembled a “Myriad Swords Returning to the Source”—layer upon layer of ice spikes, grand and imposing. Fu Ruheng’s ice spike was tiny, as slender as a finger. Yet, it was precisely this one small ice spike whose oppressive aura overwhelmed dozens of thick, sturdy ice spikes.
The scene was both comical and absurd.
How absurd was it? It was like a newborn baby punching a giant and sending him flying.
It was incredibly hard to comprehend, incredibly hard to believe such a sight.
Xu Yimeng tilted his head back, questioning his very existence. Was this really not an illusion realm?
How could such a tiny ice spike possibly block the ice spike formation he had exhausted his spiritual power to condense?
Fu Ruheng lowered his hand. Xu Yimeng’s ice spike formation shattered into fine ice powder, drifting down from the sky like a heavy snowfall, dreamlike in its snowy splendor.
He curved his lips slightly. “Brother Xu, my apologies. I didn’t control my strength well and ended up breaking your technique.”
He blew away the white ice powder from his shoulder, his voice slightly light. “Brother Xu, let’s have another round. I’ll hold back a bit more.”
Xu Yimeng snapped back to reality, his lips pursed with envy and jealousy. “It’s fine, it’s not Brother Hua’s fault. Brother Hua is exceptionally talented and has profound cultivation. It’s my own shallow skill that caused Brother Hua to misjudge the strength.”
Xu Yimeng was utterly miserable. Today was supposed to be his personal showcase. First, he inexplicably heard the news that the Bi Jian Sect was being targeted by the Four Sects, and now, out of nowhere, an inner disciple from the Four Sects appeared and shattered his ultimate move with a single tiny ice spike.
It wasn’t hard to see that this person’s Ice Spiritual Root was of higher quality than his own.
A Spiritual Root seized through forbidden methods would inevitably suffer a reduction in quality.
If that little beggar’s Ice Spiritual Root hadn’t been dug out, its quality should be about the same as Hua Xu’s Ice Spiritual Root.
Xu Yimeng felt indignant inside but forced a smile. “Brother Hua, allow me to take some Elixirs to replenish my spiritual power.”
Fu Ruheng responded with a friendly attitude, “Please go ahead.”
Staring at the screen, Ruan Ruoyin saw a small thought bubble above Fu Ruheng’s head—
a little demon sharpening a knife.
The little demon’s wings fluttered, looking particularly bouncy and cute.
Even though she knew this was Zaizai’s idea of tricking someone, Ruan Ruoyin was still utterly charmed.
More of these little thought bubbles, please—she didn’t mind at all.
Ruan Ruoyin coveted the demon’s little wings, but her guilty hand ended up stroking Zaizai’s little face instead.
Her movements were a bit rough—she stroked Zaizai’s left cheek for a moment, then his right cheek, showing the kind of affection a child has when encountering something fun.
Fu Ruheng was momentarily stunned, letting her touch him.
A thoughtful glint flashed in his cold peach-blossom eyes.
Was that person happy because of these snowflake-like ice particles?
Did she like snowy scenery…