Pei Jingyu was a summoner.
The instant the match formally began, his hands flew through a series of seals.
Within a blink, a huge, fathomless vortex swirled into being at his side.
Just as Shi Xunyang came sweeping in, sword raised —
a beast's roar rolled out of the vortex.
And then.
Ning Ruan watched an enormous creature — something between a cat and a fox — come soaring out of the whirlpool.
Its coat of white fur streamed in the wind.
Most wondrous of all, the big fellow had a pair of small, pure-white wings on its back.
With one beat of those wings, the massive creature blurred into afterimages.
In a breath it was in front of Pei Jingyu.
Blocking Shi Xunyang's longsword.
The latter's face flashed with open astonishment, as if he couldn't believe it.
His sword light hadn't left so much as a scratch on that animal?
"Little White — go. Get him."
Pei Jingyu chuckled through a yawn and sat down right where he stood.
Slender fingers propping up his chin, his tone the distilled essence of laziness: "Little Black, you go too."
The longsword Shi Xunyang had only just steadied nearly slipped from his grip.
Light flashed through his eyes as he whipped his gaze in every direction.
Below the stage, the gawking crowd froze as one.
"Who the hell is Little Black?"
"Wait — he can summon TWO spirit beasts? Is this a joke?"
"Two? Where? I only see one! Where's Little Black?"
No one could see where Little Black was.
No one but Ning Ruan.
She could see it with perfect clarity: right behind Shi Xunyang, a shapeless blob of darkness, features impossible to make out, was plastered snugly against his back.
And Shi Xunyang hadn't reacted in the slightest.
He was still up there warily watching Little White while hunting for Little Black.
Which was, frankly, absurd.
Ning Ruan: ...
So this was a summoned creature.
It was... damnably adorable.
She wanted to squish it so bad!
Ning Ruan's expression remained grave and solemn.
On the surface, at least, she appeared to be worrying about her senior brother.
Such a pity she wasn't a summoner.
Among the crowd of dads back in Longevity Village, there had been, one, no healer — and two, no summoner either.
No chance to study the field at all.
On the challenge stage.
Shi Xunyang — sensing no trace of any second creature — wore the expression of a man who had seen through everything.
He sneered at Pei Jingyu:
"Cheap theatrics."
This time, he held nothing back.
Sword qi wrapped in raging flame swept toward Pei Jingyu like a tide blotting out the sky.
Even the crowd standing below could feel the scorch of it from midair.
"That's the Blazing Sword for you... to think he's already this powerful."
"Same awakened fire element, but a sword cultivator's offense really does cut sharper than a pure fire-element spirit master's."
"The Xueyang Peak direct disciple... is about to lose, I fear."
"..."
Except.
What happened next —
landed like a slap across every watching face.
The crowd froze in disbelief where they stood.
Mouths hanging open, unable to close for a long, long time.
The imagined scene — the Xueyang Peak direct disciple blasted off the stage — never came.
Instead, Shi Xunyang's thunderous ultimate simply cut out, as though someone had severed its spiritual power supply mid-cast.
The sword qi vanished.
Even the raging flame that had all but ignited half the sky guttered out to nothing.
And then Shi Xunyang, as if possessed, was swatted flying by the summoned beast called Little White — without a shred of resistance in him.
One single, feather-light paw!
In the last moment before consciousness fled, Shi Xunyang had exactly one thought: he'd been played!
Third Realm summoner, his ass.
If THAT was a Third Realm summoner, then what did that make him — a sword cultivator newly arrived at the Fifth Realm who hadn't lasted half a quarter-hour?
Silence!
Below the challenge stage, silence like death.
It held until Pei Jingyu recalled his summoned beasts.
And gave another lazy yawn.
Only then did the Spirit Martial Pavilion elder officiating the match snap back to reality.
He hurried forward, dispelled the defensive light-skin, and called out:
"The match is concluded — victory to Pei Jingyu of Xueyang Peak!"
"Elder, that's wrong." Pei Jingyu, on the verge of stepping down, suddenly stopped, tone languid.
The elder blinked. "What's wrong?"
Pei Jingyu corrected him with utmost sincerity:
"Not Xueyang Peak. Invincible Peak.
Our Invincible Peak is simply invincible!"
The elder: ...
Fine. Fine. You're invincible. You're proud. You're inflated past all rescue.
He watched Pei Jingyu saunter off the stage.
Then hurried over and pressed his right hand lightly over Shi Xunyang.
The dense white glow unique to a light-element spirit master's healing power bloomed to life.
And that was the moment.
The crowd below finally, fully woke up.
"The Blazing Sword, Shi Xunyang... actually lost..."
"No. I'm dreaming. It didn't even take a quarter-hour — how can he have lost?"
"Wait. Shi Xunyang lost. He actually lost. Then the spirit stones we just bet... oh gods!"
"The spirit stones? It's over. It's all over. I put my entire fortune on that match!"
"Finished. Genuinely finished this time. How many missions will it take to earn back today's losses?"
"No, but — Shi Xunyang is one of the Ten Great Prodigies! How does he lose? How could he possibly lose?"
"..."
Ignoring the wailing and gnashing of teeth below.
Ning Ruan walked briskly to Pei Jingyu's side, her clear eyes practically glowing.
She was raring to go:
"So... Fourth Senior Brother. You're injured too, right? As it happens, I'm a light-element spirit master. Shall I heal you in a bit?"
"Little Sister, I prefer medicinal pills.
Why not give me spirit stones and I'll buy my own — or you could just give me pills directly. Either works."
"Fourth Senior Brother, you're trying to scam me out of spirit stones, aren't you?"
"...Little Sister, you misunderstand me. I am absolutely not that kind of person."
"...Then let me heal you."
Pei Jingyu: ...
No, seriously — was something deeply wrong with his Little Sister?
Who on earth chased people around trying to heal them?
Setting aside that he wasn't injured —
even if he had been, the raw eagerness in her eyes was profoundly alarming!
"Ning Ruan! Stop right there!"
A girl's voice, saturated with resentment, rang out behind her.
Only then did Ning Ruan remember: her half-sister had been down here watching too.
"Ning Ruan, I will never let this go. Sooner or later I'll kill you with my own hands."
Ning Ruan didn't slow down.
But Li Yu, trailed by two of her senior brothers, chased her down and blocked the path ahead.
"Oh. Suit yourself." Ning Ruan nodded.
That adulterous pair had killed her mother; she'd repaid them with one dead, one crippled.
Li Yu was innocent of that — so Ning Ruan hadn't killed her.
But Li Yu was also bound up in her mother's death from root to branch — so courtesy wasn't on the table either.
Li Yu seeking revenge for her own mother: perfectly reasonable.
And whoever tried to kill her, Ning Ruan killing them right back: also perfectly fair... The only wrinkle was that the Crimson Heaven Sect permitted disciples to spar but not to endanger lives.
"Ning Ruan, do you truly believe joining Xueyang Peak puts you beyond my reach?"
Li Yu's eyes were rimmed red, hatred and fury tangled together.
She loathed, loathed that eternally unruffled look on the woman's face.
Talent or no talent, she was a light-element spirit master with zero offensive power — what gave her the right to look so certain of victory?!
Before Ning Ruan could answer.
Pei Jingyu had already furrowed his brow, displeasure crossing that exquisite, kind-looking face:
"Correction: it's Invincible Peak!"
Li Yu bit down hard on her lip, shot Pei Jingyu one glare, and decided she now understood exactly what Ning Ruan's confidence rested on:
"You think hiding behind your senior brothers will protect you forever?"
Ning Ruan: ...
She drew a deep breath.
Then flipped her hand, produced six Thunderclap Bombs, and pitched them at the three people opposite without a heartbeat of hesitation...