Ning Ruan's destination was Yuzhu Peak.
The Lecture Hall occupied three peaks in all.
Besides Yuzhu Peak,
there were Yuqing Peak and Yuxiu Peak.
All three served as lecture grounds for the Crimson Heaven Sect's inner and direct disciples.
Outer disciples had three different peaks of their own.
The Crimson Heaven Sect had only seven Peak LORDS, but its actual mountains numbered far more than seven.
Feiyan Peak, under the Spirit Martial Pavilion's administration,
for example, was not one of the Seven Peaks at all.
Riding the Scarlet Feather Kite, Ning Ruan arrived at Yuzhu Peak's Lecture Hall with time to spare.
Along the way —
though the mirrors and the Li Clan scandal remained the topic of the hour,
the castoff Li daughter herself, the Invincible Peak direct disciple at the story's center,
went entirely unrecognized.
At most, eyes lingered on the white robe and red sash she hadn't yet changed out of.
A sword cultivator. A direct disciple.
Those two identities alone made her difficult not to notice.
...
Presumably because a light-element titan was lecturing today,
even though the appointed hour hadn't arrived,
the light-element classroom was packed to the last crooked corner.
Even outside the hall, disciples hoping to audit had crammed the entryway.
"If I'd known the crowd would be like this, I'd have come at dawn. I could kick myself!"
"Kick away, it won't help. Elder Yu Yuan of Suiyun Peak is teaching today. Even several direct disciples have come to listen."
"Wasn't Elder Yu Yuan in seclusion?"
"She came out ages ago. Word is it's because Peak Lord Lu of Suiyun Peak is due out of seclusion soon as well, so..."
"Eh? So WHAT? Isn't Suiyun Peak all sword cultivators? Where'd they get a light-element elder?"
"Oh, right, you only just made inner sect, Junior Sister, so you wouldn't know. Elder Yu Yuan was originally an elder of the main peak, Tianshu.
Then, later, she requested the move to Suiyun Peak herself.
As for why... heh. The story WE heard is that Elder Yu went to be near the water and catch the moon first — hoping to become Peak Lord Lu's dao companion."
"Don't get me started — the whole business makes my blood boil. Elder Yu may be a light-element spirit master, but in talent AND looks she's top-shelf.
Who doesn't adore Elder Yu? And of all people she has to fall for that block of ice, Peak Lord Lu."
"Speaking of Peak Lord Lu — cold or not probably depends on WHO'S asking. To us? Ice, guaranteed.
But to his precious little disciple, Senior Sister Li? Rather more than warm.
I've personally seen Peak Lord Lu SMILE at Senior Sister Li."
"..."
Ning Ruan had come to hear a lecture — and was being force-fed fresh Li Yu gossip anyway.
And by the sound of it... premium-grade gossip at that.
A setup like this made it genuinely difficult not to think of the novels she'd read back on Blue Star.
The aloof master.
The everyone's-darling disciple.
Oh — and a vicious female supporting character pining for the master.
The déjà vu was overwhelming!
She shook her head.
And walked straight in.
Which was the precise moment the disciples busy dissecting "The Untold Story of Peak Lord Lu and Elder Yu" finally noticed her existence.
"Wait. White robe, red sash — ANOTHER direct disciple?"
"Direct disciple, sure, but she's carrying a sword casket. A sword cultivator, no?
Aren't sword cultivators supposed to attend lectures on the summit? What's she doing at OURS?"
"Looking for someone, maybe?"
That truly was the only sensible explanation.
It's not as if a sword cultivator would attend a light-element lecture.
Even freeloading an education had RULES.
But shortly —
the crowd still outside watched that direct-disciple sword cultivator walk in and produce, on the spot, six whole mid-grade spirit stones.
A clear voice rang out from the back row:
"Six spirit stones. Anyone willing to trade seats?"
Not just the back row — practically every disciple in the rear half of the hall, already seated and waiting like good students, swiveled around in unison.
"Holy hell — SIX mid-grade spirit stones? To trade SEATS? Is she insane, or am I?"
"Who's insane doesn't matter. We inner disciples draw four mid-grades a MONTH, and she's opening at six. Anyone who turns down free spirit stones is the real lunatic.
Senior Sister! Look at me! I'll trade. I am SO willing to trade."
"This is Elder Yu's lecture — it only comes once a month... but a free-money event like this doesn't come once a YEAR. So...
Senior Sister, trade with ME instead. My seat's better."
"You people have no shame. Senior Sister, take mine."
"Mine! Trade for mine!"
"Take MINE!"
"..."
Ning Ruan: ...
No. Look.
She genuinely just wanted to hear a lecture and ask a question afterward.
Nobody said anything about making a scene.
It was six mid-grade spirit stones. How was THAT making a scene?
By now even the front-row disciples were shooting her puzzled looks.