Next to Misty Mountain, within Xiangdao Mountain.
At this very moment.
On the Wayless Sect’s plaza.
Baize was hunched over, his gaze fixed on a figure in the plaza, his eyes brimming with satisfaction.
In the plaza, a young man with a longbow stood.
This young man was continuously drawing the bow and shooting arrows.
The arrows, blessed with mana, seemed to come alive, possessing not only immense power but also tracking ability.
Every arrow shot by the young man easily hit distant targets set up across the field.
Each target was almost a few kilometers away.
Yet the young man hit them with ease.
It was clear just how skilled this young man was.
This young man was Baize’s new disciple.
The new disciple was named ’Long Lichuan,’ and he was born an archer.
That’s what Baize thought.
Any bow in Long Lichuan’s hands was like an extension of his arm, easily controlled.
Furthermore, his talent for cultivation was exceptional.
Merely a novice for less than ten days, he had already reached the Mid-stage Qi Refining Peak, and it was estimated that within another month, he could step into the Foundation Establishment Realm.
Such talent made Baize very satisfied.
Especially compared with Ning Fan, he was even more pleased, indescribably so.
Remembering Ning Fan gave Baize a headache.
That disciple who was like a complete fool.
It probably wouldn’t be long before he was surpassed by this new disciple, Long Lichuan.
And undoubtedly surpassed in every single aspect.
Come, let him see what this foolish disciple was up to.
Baize shook his head slightly and, after telling Long Lichuan to continue his practice and cultivation, walked towards the back mountain.
There, he successfully found his foolish disciple, Ning Fan.
By a tree on the back mountain.
Ning Fan held an Inverse Edge, continuously unsheathing it to slash at the tree.
Each draw and slash on the tree left only a shallow mark.
Clearly, he wasn’t exerting much force.
Just such a shallow slash, and then the Inverse Edge was sheathed again.
In this continuous cycle of drawing and slashing.
There was nothing fancy or extravagant about it.
"This guy..."
Baize shook his head, feeling helpless.
He had practically given up on this disciple.
If this one could succeed, he, Baize, would write his name in reverse.
Considering this disciple.
He probably couldn’t even beat his Second Disciple, Long Lichuan, by now.
Might as well have the two disciples spar with each other.
It would also let Ning Fan realize just how inadequate he really was, wouldn’t it?
Feasible.
Determined to have this disciple come to his senses, Baize called both disciples to the Wayless Sect’s plaza and explained the situation to them.
When the two heard that they would spar.
Long Lichuan remained as calm as an ancient well.
As for Ning Fan, he let out an exclamation of surprise.
"Respected Master, you want me to, to spar with Second Disciple?"
Ning Fan said in disbelief.
"What, are you afraid you can’t beat him?"
Baize looked unemotionally at this inept disciple.
"No, no."
Ning Fan hurriedly shook his head.
He feared that his junior brother would be too severely beaten by him.
He recalled that this junior brother had joined not even half a month ago.
How could he possibly spar with him?
"Then that settles it. Both of you spar now, immediately, right away."
Baize said with utmost decisiveness.
Seeing this.
Neither Ning Fan nor Long Lichuan had anything to say, so they had to agree.
In the plaza.
The two assumed their positions.
Long Lichuan held a bow in his left hand and an arrow in his right, ready for everything.
Ning Fan, on the other hand, held the handle of the Inverse Edge with one hand and, without a word, slightly lowered his head.
"Begin."
Baize announced the start directly.
As his words fell,
Long Lichuan swiftly created distance between himself and Ning Fan, attempting to shoot arrows from afar like a kite stringing Ning Fan along.
But he had barely taken a step.
A streak of white light suddenly flashed before his eyes.
The next moment, Long Lichuan stood there, dumbfounded.
His bow and arrow had snapped into two halves.
A strand of hair had been sliced through and was gently falling to the ground.
Long Lichuan slightly turned his head to look.
Somehow, at some point, his senior brother Ning Fan was already standing behind him, hand still on the hilt of his sword, silent, everything just as before, except for their positions being swapped.
"Second Disciple, you... have lost."
Ning Fan slowly spoke.
"Senior Brother, I’ve lost."
Long Lichuan set down his broken longbow and said with a wry smile.
"Disciple, you... when did you learn this move? Why didn’t you tell me?"
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Baize, too, came over, looking both shocked and delighted.
He truly had not expected Ning Fan to have strengthened so much.
This slash clearly had the standard of the Golden Core Realm.
He thought Ning Fan had ruined himself.
And yet, he had given him such a surprise.
Nevertheless, he was somewhat puzzled.
Why had Ning Fan become so strong without telling him?
Could it be that Ning Fan no longer trusted him, his Respected Master?
"All these skills were taught to me by a fellow sister at the Wayless Sect. Sister Si said, ’One must grow quietly and then dazzle the master.’ So, I’ve been practicing hard without making a fuss."
Ning Fan answered with utmost respect.
Hiss...
This?
Growing quietly and then dazzling the master?
Truly a disciple of Daoist Chu.
Clever play.
Indeed clever play.
Baize was also taken aback.
He hadn’t expected that all disciples of Daoist Chu liked to play this way.
And they even led his disciple astray.
About this,
Baize only wanted to say, ’Well taught.’
He loved this kind of surprise too much.
Perhaps Daoist Chu also fancied such surprises.
Baize silently took note of how to interact with Chu Yuan.
Quietly come, then give a big surprise.
"Very good, Disciple, you’ve done very well."
"And Chuan’er, don’t be discouraged either. After all, your senior brother started practicing earlier than you, so it’s normal to lose. Also..."
Baize was just about to have a nice chat with his two disciples.
Suddenly, he seemed to sense something.
He abruptly looked towards Misty Mountain.
A flash of golden light was there but a moment.
Ordinary people couldn’t possibly see what it was; they could only make out a smear of gold.
But Baize was no ordinary person.
He could see clearly the scene within the golden light.
Wasn’t that Chu Yuan?
Had Daoist Chu finally returned?
Baize immediately thought of going to thank Chu Yuan properly.
Daoist Chu was a person of substance.
Not only did he help him find a genius disciple like Long Lichuan,
but someone from the Wayless Sect also gave guidance to Ning Fan.
This favor, Baize could not forget.
However, he had nothing to help Chu Yuan with at the moment; he could only pay a visit to express his gratitude with words.
Just as Baize was preparing to leave,
he suddenly froze again.
This time, he cast his gaze towards the sky in the southwest.
This aura is...
The aura of those four pigs?
These four creatures, they’re still alive? They’ve survived until now?
And moreover, these four creatures, seem to be approaching him?
"You two, go to the back mountain for a while; something is going to happen here soon."
Baize instructed his two disciples, his gaze turning sharp as he locked onto the distant firmament...