Chapter 45: Someone’s Cheating
“How could this happen? How could Senior Sister Chen Lu lose? She had the upper hand just now! This can’t be real! I must be dreaming!”
“My house! My big villa!”
An unknown number of people fled the place, weeping bitter tears.
On the competition stage, Chen Lu lay collapsed on the ground, her pupils having lost their focus.
Defeated!
She was actually defeated.
How could I have been defeated?
Lin Qingyue took a deep breath. She had succeeded, but it wasn’t her achievement alone. After being encouraged by her Senior Brother’s gaze, she had felt a surge of power.
“As long as you’re still watching me, I won’t let you down!”
…
Chen Lu actually lost?
Su Yan was deeply shaken by this result. He didn’t know what he had missed while he was distracted.
How had Chen Lu, who had the upper hand just now, suddenly been defeated?
“The winner is Junior Sister Lin…” the hosting disciple shouted loudly.
Lin Qingyue walked off the stage and trotted over to Su Yan’s side.
“Senior Brother!”
Lin Qingyue looked at him with an expectant expression, just like a little beast wanting a reward.
Su Yan smiled slightly. Just as he was about to praise her, the system suddenly popped up.
[Option 1: Praise your little junior sister’s performance. (Reward for completion: Low-grade magic tool, the Fine Wheel Sword)]
[Option 2: Ignore your little junior sister and continue watching the competition. (Reward for completion: Mid-grade magic tool, the Spirit-Containing Saber)]
[Option 3: Scold your little junior sister and express your dissatisfaction. (Reward for completion: Random skill point +1)]
According to the system’s usual practice, the first two options were always the most difficult. This time, it was the opposite.
Su Yan was a little surprised. What made him even more dumbfounded was that the system was actually instigating him to scold his junior sister.
“Isn’t she your favorite cub? Didn’t you force me to give her benefits before?”
The system didn’t speak.
Su Yan began to think.
The first option was the easiest. He just had to praise his junior sister to complete it. But a low-grade magic tool was too useless. The second option was the same.
At this thought, Su Yan opened his mouth and said, “Junior Sister, you think you’re very impressive. Should I praise you?”
“Huh?”
Lin Qingyue was stunned. This was not what she had imagined. She had won. Why was her Senior Brother unhappy?
Su Yan said with a serious face, “I know what Master meant. She wanted you to build a solid foundation through the competition. But I’m not happy with a victory obtained like this.”
“Why?”
Lin Qingyue was very puzzled. She didn’t know what she had done to displease her Senior Brother.
Su Yan continued, “It’s a good thing to be able to forge ahead when you encounter a strong enemy. But your moves were reckless, and many of your attacks were a waste of effort. If you weren’t so eager for success, you wouldn’t be injured now.”
Hearing this, Lin Qingyue lowered her head in shame.
Thinking about it carefully, when she heard the discussions of the people around her, although she didn’t show it on her face, she had indeed felt the pressure in her heart.
That’s why she had launched a series of reckless attacks at the beginning of the battle, which had allowed her opponent to easily find a flaw.
So embarrassing!
Lin Qingyue’s face was red, and her head was almost buried in her chest.
[Mission complete. Reward has been distributed.]
[Random skill, Culinary Arts level +1]
Seeing the system distribute the reward, Su Yan was secretly delighted. But when he saw the enhanced skill, his face fell again.
This was the cultivation world! What was the use of being good at cooking?
He complained about the system in his heart, but now was not the time to think about these things.
Since the mission was completed, the next step was to take remedial measures. If he lowered his little junior sister’s affection for him, it would really not be worth the loss.
At this thought, Su Yan’s expression softened. He said, “Swords have no eyes. I hope you can be more cautious. I don’t want to see you get hurt again.”
“Senior Brother!”
Hearing Su Yan say this, Lin Qingyue was so moved she didn’t know what to say.
What had she done to deserve such concern from her Senior Brother? Had she saved the world in her previous life, which was why she had met him?
Su Yan said, “It seems you’ve realized your mistake. Then let me heal you. The next match is about to begin.”
Su Yan used the Nourishing Dew technique to heal Lin Qingyue’s body. Her face became rosy, and she no longer looked injured at all.
Su Yan smiled lightly and said, “It’s your turn next. Keep up the good work. Be careful and don’t be impulsive again.”
Lin Qingyue nodded forcefully. Before leaving, she really wanted to hug her Senior Brother, but in the end, she restrained this impulse.
Compared to a brief hug, she wanted to have him for a long time. For a better future, now was not the time to indulge in romantic feelings.
…
By now, the competition was halfway through. Lin Qingyue had passed through all the rounds with her own strength, and no one dared to underestimate her anymore.
At this moment, in the audience stands, a beautiful woman was watching the competition. Her name was Gu Yanran. As a direct disciple of Heavenly Jade Peak, her cultivation was already at the early Golden Core stage. She had no interest in the competitions of these Qi Refinement juniors.
If it weren’t for her own younger sister also participating in the competition, she wouldn’t have come here at all.
She had thought that after her guidance, her younger sister would be able to win the championship. But now, the situation was a little different.
“The winner is Lin Qingyue!”
Gu Yanran’s full chest trembled slightly. Including this time, it was the eighth time.
That woman named Lin Qingyue had actually made it to the finals smoothly. Her next opponent was her sister, which made her very worried. Her sister wouldn’t lose, would she?
If someone had told her before this that a newcomer who had been in the sect for less than three months could beat her sister, Gu Yanran would have sneered in disdain, thinking that person must be crazy.
But now it was different. It was strange, too strange!
Gu Yanran had observed this woman carefully. Her strength was only at the late Qi Refinement stage, and her aura was extremely unstable, clearly having broken through not long ago.
Logically, with such strength, she should have been eliminated long ago. But this woman named Lin Qingyue, every time she was about to lose, would mutter something.
“A hundred people’s what? Is this some kind of spell?”
Gu Yanran’s brows furrowed tightly. If she didn’t know that there was a referee watching on the field, she would have suspected that Lin Qingyue was cheating.
However, the suspicion she had dismissed before now resurfaced. A comeback once was one thing, but a second, a third, and now who knows how many times—this was too much.
“If my sister runs into her, will it end well? Should I do something?”
If it were a normal competition, Gu Yanran would of course not interfere. But the situation was too strange now. She couldn’t help but suspect that there was something shady about this competition.
“With Junior Brother Su’s looks, as long as he whimpers a little, no woman can resist. Was the referee bribed?”
At this thought, Gu Yanran couldn’t sit still any longer. For the sake of her younger sister’s ranking, she had to stop the other party.
