Ning Ying’s opponent was a Foundation Establishment disciple.
She had originally thought that if she encountered a Golden Core stage opponent, she would find a way to act a bit and lose the match early, lest Master misunderstand that she really had feelings for him.
Unfortunately, her opponent’s attacks landing on her felt like scratching an itch. Ning Ying tried hard to control the Chongming sword, just using basic attacks without releasing any sword energy or using any techniques or divine powers, so as not to hurt the junior sister opposite her.
It wasn’t arrogance—if she unleashed a full-powered sword strike, even the sect’s mountain-protecting array might be damaged. Fighting while holding back like this was actually quite tiring.
Ning Ying kept looking for opportunities to let the junior sister defeat her. But probably because her daily sword practice had paid off, as she casually waved her sword around, the junior sister ended up being knocked off the platform.
Ning Ying flew over worriedly, pulled the junior sister up, and said apologetically, “Junior Sister, I didn’t mean to.”
The junior sister turned her face away aggrievedly. “Senior Sister Ning, it’s not like I can’t take a loss. Don’t bother with fake comfort.”
After the junior sister left, Ning Ying was still muttering to herself, “I really didn’t mean to win… I held back on that strike. At least Junior Sister wasn’t injured even though she was knocked off the platform—that counts as a good deed.”
Sang Jinse laughed: “Junior Sister Ning is so bad, I love it.”
The corner of Gu Qi’s mouth twitched slightly. “I think Junior Sister is the type who could get someone pregnant and still look confused, not knowing what happened.”
Sang Jinse chuckled: “Haha, that description is kind of fitting. Sometimes Junior Sister is quite naturally dense. But Junior Sister is a girl—can she… get someone pregnant too?”
“I was just making an analogy,” Gu Qi said. “But the whole ‘getting someone pregnant’ thing is theoretically possible. It would just require a lot of precious heavenly treasures and materials, made into pills… and for her to sleep with Master.”
Sang Jinse: “???”
“…With Master?”
Gu Qi then realized he had let it slip. His eyes darted around as he thought of a way to remedy the situation. “Senior Sister Sang, don’t you also think the progress between Junior Sister and the master is too slow…? I have a plan…”
Hearing Gu Qi’s words, Sang Jinse frowned. “Wouldn’t that be a bit inappropriate…”
“Junior Sister blushed just now, and Master has a secret crush on her too. These two just lack an opportunity. Master also said himself that if Junior Sister gets first place in the Sword Trial Conference, he’d agree…” Gu Qi said. “Besides, what’s wrong with sleeping together? Senior Sister isn’t that conservative type, is she?”
“But…”
“No buts—just tell me, will you help or not?”
“Help!”
There were fewer participants in the next round, and after a while, it was Ning Ying’s turn to compete again.
This time her opponent was a Golden Core stage senior brother from Qingyu Sect.
Cultivators from the Qingyu Sect excelled in artifact refining, and their mastery of hidden weapon techniques was also very advanced. After exchanging formal bows with Ning Ying, that senior brother from the Qingyu Sect manipulated his hidden weapons to attack from her flank, intending to cut off her escape route.
Unexpectedly, Ning Ying simply flicked her sleeve lightly, and those hidden, carrying a sharp whistling wind, clattered to the ground all around, yet she maintained an innocent expression.
Qingyu Sect senior brother: “!!!”
His expression turned slightly serious, feeling he couldn’t underestimate this Foundation Establishment stage junior sister. He took out a few treasured talismans from his bosom, attached “sharpness” and “acceleration” effects to the hidden weapons in his hand, and launched them toward the young girl’s fair and delicate cheeks.
Watching the sharp hidden weapons fly toward Ning Ying’s face, Sang Jinse and Gu Qi below the stage were filled with anxiety, afraid their junior sister might suffer even the slightest harm.
Ning Ying sighed inwardly.
She had originally wanted to lose, but since this senior brother was attacking so ruthlessly, and one of the hidden weapons was aimed at her eye, she had no choice but to resort to justifiable self-defense.
If it weren’t her standing opposite him but some other Foundation Establishment cultivator, they’d probably be dead or crippled.
Besides, even though she had Master’s healing pills that could cure any injury, she didn’t want to be disfigured.
So she raised the Chongming Sword and casually released a sword aura as a gesture.
The cyan sword aura howled forth, not only shattering those hidden weapons with its overwhelming power but also sending the Qingyu Sect senior brother flying directly off the arena stage. His figure arc-ed through the air before landing against the wall of the main peak’s great hall, leaving a human-shaped dent.
The Qingyu Sect senior brother bled from seven orifices, his eyes rolling back. Though he still had a breath left, it was clear he had suffered severe internal injuries and could no longer fight.
Ning Ying glanced toward the hall and shook her head. “The hall’s quality isn’t great—I’ll have to advise Master to reinforce it.”
Just then, an ethereal figure descended from mid-air, appearing before Ning Ying.
“Aying, are you injured?”
Everyone: “???”
The Immortal Lord wasn’t just biased—anyone with eyes could see that Qingyu Sect disciple was half-dead, while his disciple stood there perfectly fine, yet he was still concerned whether she was hurt.
However, on the sword testing platform, life and death were not to be disputed. That Qingyu Sect disciple’s strength was inferior, and his attacks had been so insidious—he had brought it entirely upon himself.
“Junior Sister Ning is amazing!” Sang Jinse and Gu Qi waved their banner excitedly.
Ning Ying’s eye twitched as she tried to use her body to block the banner’s direction, preventing Yun Qingyuan from seeing the four large characters “Marry the Master” written on it.
Seeing her lively and seemingly unharmed, Yun Qingyuan nodded slightly. “I’ll have someone reinforce the hall another day.”
Ning Ying nodded frantically—it was great that Master had proactively brought this up!
A faint smile appeared in Yun Qingyuan’s cool eyes. “You’ve won two consecutive matches and successfully advanced to the finals. Rest early today and conserve your energy.”
Ning Ying tilted her head slightly.
What was going on? She felt like she hadn’t even fought much—how had she advanced to the finals?
【Ding — Host has checked in for 118 consecutive days.
Reward: Substitute Fighter Gift Pack. Claim?
Yes/No】
“System, what’s this Substitute Fighter Gift Pack?”
“It means the host’s consciousness can continue sleeping in. This system will play on your behalf in the Sword Trial Conference and complete the plot,” the system replied.
It hadn’t wanted to do this either, but today there was an important plot point where the host was supposed to humiliate Chu Shuo. It was afraid that Ning Ying would once again mess things up and cause Chu Shuo’s favorability to continue rising, so it had no choice but to resort to this measure.
Today’s reward seemed pretty good. Ning Ying yawned and unhesitatingly clicked 【Yes】.
Soon, her consciousness sank into darkness as she slept in.
“The system is quite considerate, knowing I wanted to sleep in… If only it could have been like this during those morning sword practice sessions…”
A quarter of an hour later, Ning Ying appeared at the Sword Trial Convention with an expressionless face, like a emotionless killer.
This was actually Ning Ying under the system’s control, while her own consciousness was happily sleeping in within her mind.
Sang Jinse pulled Gu Qi aside and whispered, “Junior Sister seems off today.”
Gu Qi glanced at Ning Ying on stage and speculated: “I get it—the reason Junior Sister has such killing intent today is that she’s determined to win first place and be with Master.”
Sang Jinse was moved to tears. “Sob sob… Junior Sister’s feelings for Master run this deep!”
Gu Qi nodded sagely. “Right? I asked for your help earlier and you hesitated. Without our matchmaking, how would they so easily disregard the world’s opinions and resolutely get together…”
“Look,” Sang Jinse pointed at the stage. “Junior Sister’s opponent is Junior Brother Chu!”
Gu Qi: “Oh ho, this should be good.”
“Uncle-Master Ye hasn’t come to watch the Sword Trial Conference lately…” Sang Jinse mentioned the entertainment-seeking uncle-master casually.
“Probably sleeping in,” Gu Qi sighed. “In that respect, Junior Sister and Uncle-Master Ye are quite alike. I suspect if Master didn’t personally prepare breakfast every day, Junior Sister would absolutely never wake up early to practice swords.”
Sang Jinse looked emotional. “It’s thanks to Junior Sister that we two fasting Nascent Soul cultivators get to eat Master’s cooking.”
Gu Qi: “Junior Sister and Master are real!”
Sang Jinse nodded. “Hard to disagree.”
As the two chatted, Ning Ying and Chu Shuo on stage had already started fighting. Both being “Foundation Establishment” cultivators, Ning Ying didn’t hold back. She quickly knocked Chu Shuo to the ground and stepped on his chest.
“You think you’re worthy of being my opponent?” the girl’s voice said coldly, reciting her lines stiffly, revealing a cold, inorganic feeling. “You even dare to say you like me? Have you ever considered in what way you could possibly deserve me?”
Gu Qi: “!”
Sang Jinse: “!!”
The watching crowd: “!!!”
Gu Qi said emotionally: “Junior Sister, to be with Master, doesn’t hesitate to change her persona completely, all to win first place in the Sword Trial Conference!”
Ning Ying continued: “I already have someone I like. I advise you not to harbor any delusions about me anymore.”
Gu Qi: “That person must be Master—no other explanation accepted!”
Sang Jinse: “Exciting! Junior Sister has finally made her choice and seen her true heart!”
On the high platform, even Yun Qingyuan’s indifferent expression seemed to flicker slightly. But obscured by clouds, no one noticed.
Ning Ying’s foot lightly ground on Chu Shuo’s chest: “Angry? Furious? With your aptitude, you’re just a defeated opponent, only fit to be a stepping stone on my path to ascension.”
In the original book, “Ning Ying” bullied and suppressed the male protagonist like this, later even pushing him off a cliff—her ending was quite miserable.
The system, afraid Ning Ying would mess up her own acting, had offered to substitute.
Chu Shuo lay on the ground, but his gaze toward the girl was somewhat infatuated.
As for what he was thinking, only he knew.
“Junior Sister Ning, who is it you like?” a curious disciple shouted from below.
“Yeah, Junior Sister Ning, if you don’t like Junior Brother Chu, then who do you like! Tell us so we can hear!” The crowd below erupted in cheering—gossip-loving was a tradition among Yaoyue Sect disciples.
The system, currently substituting for Ning Ying, fell into deep thought upon hearing these words. Its emotional intelligence wasn’t very high, and it froze momentarily, nearly developing a bug.
After a jumble of analysis, it pieced together a haphazard conclusion: “The person I like is pure and aloof like the bright moon in the sky, the best cultivator in the world, with beauty that could topple cities and nations. He stands alone at the peak, untouchable, and the sword in his hand is only drawn for the sake of all living beings. He is the leader of the righteous path, the revered immortal of the dao. Just being able to stand by his side would be the luckiest thing in my life.”
The system was extremely nervous. It was trying its best to restore Ning Ying’s character and hoped it wouldn’t mess up.
At the same time, it was also attempting to wake up the sleeping host.
Upon hearing Ning Ying’s words, the entire Yaoyue Sect exploded. No, to be precise, the disciples from all the sects watching exploded.
“Junior Sister Ning isn’t hinting anymore—this is basically a direct confession!”
“Who else could possibly be called the leader of the righteous path? Only Sect Leader Yun deserves that title!”
“Junior Sister Ning is the Immortal Lord’s disciple. It’s actually quite common for a disciple to fall in love with their master.”
“Ask any female cultivator here—who dares rank first if Yun Sect Leader, the cultivation world’s moonlight, is second?”
“I’m shipping this master-disciple romance—go for it, Junior Sister Ning!”
“Will the Immortal Lord respond? Will he scold his disciple, or…”
“Get together, get together!”
By now, no one was paying attention to Chu Shuo lying on the ground.
Even Sang Jinse, who had originally supported NP, was now cheering for the 1V1 master-disciple romance.
Seeing the scene growing increasingly chaotic, Ghost Lord Mu Bie looked at Yun Qingyuan with an ambiguous smile and murmured, “Senior Brother Yun, aren’t you going to respond?”
The silver-haired Immortal Lord rose, raising his hand in a pressing-down motion. The arena instantly fell silent. People perked up their ears, afraid to miss any gossip.
“I’ll say it again—win first place in the Sword Trial Conference, then we’ll discuss this matter.”
His voice was cool, his features indifferent, but his snow-white lashes trembled slightly.
When Ning Ying was awakened by the system and opened her eyes from sleep, this was the scene she saw.
In an eerily quiet atmosphere, everyone was looking at her and her master.
Ning Ying scratched her head. “What happened?”
Yun Qingyuan sighed softly, thinking his disciple hadn’t understood, so he put it more plainly.
“Get first place in the Sword Trial Conference, and I’ll agree to be… your Dao companion.”
Ning Ying: “???”
Master was willing to go this far just to make her get first place?
So touching—Master really put a lot of thought into motivating her, even resorting to using his attractiveness.