When Ji Yuan opened his eyes, he was aching all over and he saw that he was on a bed. "I didn't die? Haha… wait... my senior sister..."
"You have awakened?" A voice full of coyness had greeted him.
Ji Yuan turned his head and was startled that it was the Smiling Divine Maiden that was greeting him. "Senior sister? You have saved me?"
The Smiling Divine Maiden sighed and her golden eyes were softly upon Ji Yuan, "It seems that your divine sense has become dull and you cannot even sense my presence until you've seen me."
Ji Yuan frowned when he tried to recall the incident earlier; he remembered that he was only trying to pull his senior sister away but a fight between the 4 divine consorts had suddenly broken out and he was caught in the midst of their fights.
By the time he had realized that he was their unfortunate target, it was already too late; these 4 divine consorts had the raw power of a great saintess and their spirit talismans had also further empowered their spirit profound attacks.
He had no idea how many dozens of talismans did he manage to tank before he was knocked out…
Wait a minute…
Ji Yuan was suddenly frowning at the Smiling Divine Maiden when he remembered that she was the one that had knocked him out, "Senior sister, why did you knock me out for?"
The Smiling Divine Maiden said with a faint smile, "You! You dare to ask me? Do you have any decent respect for your senior sister?"
Ji Yuan had suddenly remembered why he was being knocked out because he was staring at where he should not be looking. "I was just happening to be looking at that direction…"
The Smiling Divine Maiden interrupted him with a coquettish giggle, "You are lucky that they have been quite merciful on you."
Ji Yuan: …
Ji Yuan: …
Ji Yuan: …
"You call their profound attacks on me merciful?"
The Smiling Divine Maiden nodded with a wry smile, "You have no idea how powerful a divine consort is, do you? They are spirit cultivators that have vast reserves of spiritual force in their spiritual sea. And they are more powerful than any of the celestial spirit cultivators. While not the same as a defense cultivator but they can easily renew their profound animus to tank your hits."
Ji Yuan nodded; all the celestial cultivators depend on their profound animus for protection and without their spiritual force in their spiritual seas, they would be weak and unable to muster their profound strength.
The Smiling Divine Maiden continued with a soft sigh, "And they also have 2 spirit animus as well. Since they are the spirit race, they are also capable of empowering their spirit talismans to a much stronger profound attack. But they did not use on you. So am I not wrong to say that they have been merciful toward you?"
Ji Yuan muttered weakly, "Spirit cultivators are too strong and they are naturals. I can barely maintain the profound animus of my demonic cherubim spirit…"
Using his demonic cherubim spirit would consume 25% of Ji Yuan's inner spiritual seas. This was a lot better now since he had to consume 50% of his inner spiritual sea in the past.
And he would lose his profound animus spirit if he had lower than 25% spiritual force in his inner spiritual sea.
He was actually grateful to Ling Feiyue for her Ambrosia Divine Profound Pill, a priceless sixth rank divine pill that could strength the spiritual sea of a cultivator. (See Chapter 203).
He asked the Smiling Divine Maiden, "Do the divine consorts have any weakness? How do we defeat them then?"
Chu Lixue the Smiling Divine Maiden smiled nonchalantly, "For some reasons, they are unable to use any divine swords. Divine swords won't enhance their spiritual profound strength. So, this may be their main weaknesses."
Ji Yuan pondered as he said. "So, if we can hit them a few times directly with our most powerful profound attacks, we may be able to kill them?"
The Smiling Divine Maiden giggled as she knocked him down onto the bed, "What are you thinking? Are you thinking of fighting them? For?"
Ji Yuan got up immediately and he was solemn, "Of course I am doing this to save my senior sister. I don't care about my trial anymore. As long as I can get senior sister out of here, I am happy enough."
The Smiling Divine Maiden giggled with a flustered coquettish look, "I think that you are mistaken about something. I am not under any threat by Divine Consort Dongfang Xin and I am helping her willingly."
Ji Yuan blinked his eyes, "What? But at the stage you…"
The Smiling Divine Maiden faintly smiled, "I am a champion of the Divine Consort Dongfang Xin. I am helping her with the show that you saw earlier so that I can gain Trust Points from her."
Ji Yuan muttered weakly, "You can gain Trust Points in this manner?"
The Smiling Divine Maiden rested her right fingers on his chest as she smiled with some exasperation, "Xiao Muhan had told me just now that the two of you are thinking of hitting off with the divine consorts for your Trust Points, am I right?"
Ji Yuan smiled bitterly but he did not say anything; it was because he did not want to be hit by his extraordinary beautiful senior sister for saying the wrong words.
The Smiling Divine Maiden continued with an alluring smile and her alluring golden eyes were moving mesmerzing on Ji Yuan, "And the two of you are thinking that this is a celestial man's paradise and the celestial maidens should just use their golden talismans to quit this trial, am I right?"
Ji Yuan could not resist a weak chuckle, "Hahaha… No?"
The Smiling Divine Maiden laughed softly and she was holding her belly, "Did the two of you mistaken Trust Points for 'Seduction Points' or 'Banging Points' instead?"
Ji Yuan began to cover his face with extreme awkwardness.
The Smiling Divine Maiden laughed softly, "The trial is impartial. How is it possible for it to favor one gender over the other? It seems that almost all the celestial men that comes to this trial is all thinking the same thing. So, do you know why I am helping Divine Consort Dongfang Xin now?"
Ji Yuan nodded slowly but he quickly asked, "You have met the other celestials?"
The Smiling Divine Maiden nodded with a faint smile, "There is this Xi Huangdi that is also champion of Dongfang Xin as well."
Ji Yuan immediately growled and he looked unhappy, "What?! Senior sister, you are in the same camp as that rascal Xi Huangdi?!"
The Smiling Divine Maiden nodded, "I have met Dongfang Xin first. And that is why I am in her camp."
Ji Yuan panicky said, "Quit her camp. I just don't like that Xi Huangdi. He looks like an evil cultivator for sure."
The Smiling Divine Maiden took a look at Ji Yuan before she slowly displayed a faint smile, "Or are you jealous? You are afraid that I may fall in love with him? Well, it is about time that I look for myself a cultivation partner. And he looks just like a fine cultivator to me."
Ji Yuan: …
Ji Yuan: …
Ji Yuan: …
He decided to use his trump card now to threaten her; In this aspect, he was never a gentleman.
"If senior sister even talks to him then I am afraid that I have to tell your father about your bad deeds today."
The Smiling Divine Maiden: …
"Ji Yuan, you! This is just a show and moreover, all the maidens here dressed like this in this place…"
Ji Yuan interrupted her as he suddenly caught hold of her slender hands and he said with great awkwardness, "But we are celestial cultivators. And moreover, you… belong to me. Have you forgotten that your father has erm... betrothed you to me? So you are my consort-to-be. So I can't have you running about with other man..."
The Smiling Divine Maiden pulled her hands from him and she was smiling coyly, "I am not falling for your tricks like my two sisters, Zhi Jiugong and Lu Jiangsu. My old man has accidentally let it slip that your 'duel' over me is just a fake duel. To think that I was so touched by you for a moment."
Ji Yuan muttered weakly, "Hahaha… our duel is the only way out. Your father doesn't want to kill you and I really want to help you so we fake our duel. But I really like you and your 2 protege sisters as well so... isn't this the reason why you are staying behind in the Celestial Realm too?"
The Smiling Divine Maiden hastily interrupted with an alluring smile, "Because my two protege sisters are staying in the Celestial Realm because of you. They are my sisters for thousands of years and I am too used to being with them. Also, I have finally reconciled with my father and I also have a half-sister Yang Mi. Hmm, you want the older and younger sister to both serve you as well? Fat hope!"
Ji Yuan had already reached out his hand to catch hold of his senior sister but she had danced away to the door.
He said weakly, "Senior sister, I really like you and you are my consort-to-be..."
The Smiling Divine Maiden said with a faint but alluring smile, "When you are unconsciousness, I've heard you calling out Jiajia so many times. But you did not even mention any of us. Who you really like is actually this maiden by the name of Jiajia."
Ji Yuan was startled, "Did I really call out Jiajia several times?"
It was true that deep down, he had been extremely anxious about how Jiajia was faring outside the Empyrean Warrior Labyrinth; he keeps having a bad brooding that something really bad has happened to his Jiajia and he is only too eager to return to her side. Moreover he feels that he had grown stronger now and he should be of some help to her, right?
This bad brooding had taken root in his heart ever since he had experienced the heart breaking pain between the True Devil God and the Great Beyond Goddess.
But he had quickly tried laughed it off; Jiajia and I are a couple, unlike the True Devil God and the Great Beyond Goddess. What happens to them, will never happens to us.
While he had been pondering, the Smiling Divine Maiden smiled alluringly out of reach from him, "By the way, I have some bad news for you."
Ji Yuan was already smiling bitterly when he got rejected just like this but he asked, "What is it? You want to tell me that you do not like me now?"
The Smiling Divine Maiden smiled wryly, "Good try but it is not. I want to tell you that your brother Xiao Muhan is now a champion of Divine Consort Sun Dingjun."
Ji Yuan was startled, "What the heck? He has become a champion?! What exactly is a champion?"
The Smiling Divine Maiden sighed softly, "You have better curry the favor of Divine Consort Sun Dingjun first if you have the time. That is, if you want to save your friend Xiao Muhan. In this place, the celestials are given a choice of being a champion for the divine consorts. Only a champion is allowed to take care in the upcoming great games of the spiritas tower. This event shall take place in 30 days."
Ji Yuan asked curiously, "So Xiao Muhan has chosen to be a champion of the Divine Consort Sun Dingjun?"
He was actually thinking: He has decided to curry the favor of that beautiful Divine Consort Sun Dingjun instead?
She answered, "He is a male celestial. Therefore, he did not have a choice in this and he is being forced to become a champion for Divine Consort Sun Dingjun. He is an idiot for advertising his presence in front of the 4 divine consorts."
JI Yuan muttered weakly, "I am just surprised that Divine Consort Tang Manni did not want him… wait a minute. Since he is being forced, so you must be forced too, am I right? So, you are not willing to be a champion of the Divine Consort Dongfang Xin?"
The Smiling Divine Maiden smiled alluringly, "Only the male celestials will be forced. The female celestials are given a choice. This place is friendly to the maidens and not to the men."
Ji Yuan muttered weakly, "I've just thought that senior sister has said that the trial is completely impartial to the genders…"
The Smiling Divine Maiden said alluringly as she ignored the question that Ji Yuan had just asked, "I have another bad news for you."
Ji Yuan: …
He muttered weakly, "Senior sister, can't you finish telling me all the bad news at once? You are dumping me?"
The Smiling Divine Maiden sighed softly, "I didn't want to tell you this until the very last. You have to stay in this room until 1 of the 4 divine consorts has claimed you as their champion. At least they have a common consensus on this."
Ji Yuan: …
With that the Smiling Divine Maiden had returned an alluring smile at him before she displayed an alluring sway as she exited the room.
Ji Yuan blinked his eyes; his senior sister did not even allow him to touch her…
He was already searching his spatial storage for any replenishing profound pills that he could find and he was frowning unhappily to himself: No one greens me. Senior sister is my consort-to-be and I have the support of her father. It doesn't matter what she says. This Xi Huangdi is going to be dead...
Xiang Li muttered: Big Brother, can you hear me? I completely agree with you that no one shall green you. Maiden Chu Lixue is ours for sure...
She was getting a little bleary in her eyes because Ji Yuan had been ignoring her for some time.
But the Smiling Divine Maiden was actually thinking when she had left: I am sorry junior brother but this is a trial. You ought to have focus your affections on the divine consorts and not on me. Ji Yuan, I do love you and I am curious to meet this Jiajia of yours.
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Author Note:
1. This is quite a long chapter and I didn't want to break it into 2 chapters.
2. I'd really appreciate it if the readers can contribute power stones to this story as a show of support even if you are reading from other websites. This means alot to me and the story. Many thanks!
3. I have also update the Romantic Cultivatior wikia with new images, esp for Number 1, Divine Consort Dongfang Xin, the Smiling Divine Maiden, Shui Xisi, Yun Chi etc. I have shifted from a water color theme to a semi-realistic look after some testing. In case the readers do not know, these images are originals and 100% unique.
The source of this c𝐨ntent is fre𝒆w(e)bn(o)vel