My best friend asked me if I was still doing system tasks.

"How have they been doing lately?"

There are countless affairs inside and outside the sect. The Discipline Hall not only has to serve the sect, but the elders also need to cultivate. However, Tao Man and Jiang Shiren would inquire about Ruan Chayan and the other two every few days.

The disciple reports that Yue Shu was moving between Ruan Chayan and Luo Hanying, but did not see Yue Shu having any intimate contact with anyone else;

Ruan Chayan lived a peaceful life every day, rarely seeing anyone, just cultivating on her own, and only going out to Xinglin Peak to buy medicinal herbs.

Luo Hanying stayed in her cave during the day and never went out. Every few nights, she would leave her cave to wander around and chat with the patrolling disciples, trying to find out the details of the Shiren Sect's defenses.

Ruan Chayan and Luo Hanying hadn't seen each other for several days. They wondered if Le Shu was relaying a message for them, but recently, disciples living near Le Shu said that Le Shu had gone into seclusion.

Jiang Shiren said, "The relationship between these three is quite strange."

Tao Man echoed, "I also find it strange. Logically, shouldn't it be Ruan Chayan or Le Shu who went to investigate? Why is it that Luo Hanying, whose cultivation is only average, is busy running around, while the other two seem to be doing nothing?"

"Didn't Sect Leader Li say that Daoist Venerable said Luo Hanying's soul has some problems?"

Jiang Shiren put down the jade slip in his hand. "Maybe they're being controlled by Ruan Chayan and Le Shu? We've seen this kind of thing quite often over the years."

Tao Man pondered for a moment: "They're inquiring about the details of our Shiren Sect's defenses. Could it be that some faction in Nanyue Shenzhou wants to attack the Shiren Sect?"

"I'm afraid it's not a righteous sect, is it?" Jiang Shiren didn't believe that there would be such a sect or family in Nan Yue Shenzhou. He thought it was very likely that the Demon Realm was eyeing the Shi Ren Sect, or it was some shady evil cultivation organization.

Tao Man chose to shut down his brain: "I'll save up for two more days and then report back to the two sect leaders about the recent events."

"...On another note, the sect leader wants us to find fault with them, but how can we do that if they don't even leave their rooms?"

Jiang Shiren, quick-witted, said, "They can't have someone else collect their disciples' monthly allowance on their behalf. Let Hongyan Hall handle it."

I remember the disciples who were monitoring them reported that Ruan Chayan and Luo Hanying had said bad things about Shansi Garden, exaggerating the situation. Let's put them in solitary confinement; they'll be fine once the registration period is over.”

*

Ruan Chayan patted Huajiao's belly as she asked, "Do you know about the Lanxi Secret Realm?"

Luo Hanying replied slowly, "What secret realm? I don't know. I've been taking a fasting pill to suppress my appetite and haven't left my cave."

"Are you still studying that formation?"

Ruan Chayan asked in surprise, "Didn't you already solve it? What are you still studying? You sound so tired, even your voice sounds off."

Luo Hanying sat down, leaning on the table, and said lazily, "Isn't it that I can't replicate this formation?"

I don't know which step went wrong, but the array plate broke down after just one moment on it.

Ruan Chayan was speechless and recounted the events of the Lanxi Secret Realm.

On the sixth day of next month, the Cloud Bell Square will host a Dao-telling arena competition for the four realms of Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, and Nascent Soul. The top fifty in each realm will qualify to enter the Lanxi Secret Realm.

It is said that the Lanxi Secret Realm is divided into three areas, each containing the most original lineage of the Shiren Sect.

In previous years, the elders of the Shiren Sect often threw in magical artifacts that they no longer needed. The place was filled with countless rare treasures, and even unruly spirit beasts were exiled there.

Luo Hanying was uninterested: [“With tens of thousands of people from the Shiren Sect vying for only two hundred spots, is there any chance we can get one?”]

Ruan Chayan also felt that the two of them were in a tough spot, but that wasn't her goal: "Isolating the country will only lead to regression. What I mean is that we should all go and see for ourselves."

Whether or not we can enter the secret realm is secondary.

Luo Hanying thought about it and agreed: "That's right."

Let's register together then.

After about ten days of peace, trouble came knocking again for Ruan Chayan and Luo Hanying.

When Ruan Chayan and Luo Hanying went to Hongyan Hall to collect their monthly allowance for disciples, they encountered many disciples who were watching them and whispering among themselves.

The cultivator's senses were keen, and the two of them heard every single word clearly.

They all said that the two of them were lawless, arrogant, unorthodox, and disrespectful to their teachers.

Luo Hanying couldn't understand what they were saying: ["What the heck? When did we ever talk back to the elders? How come I didn't know?"]

Ruan Chayan frowned, also confused: [“I haven’t seen any elders lately, where did this rumor come from? Could they have mistaken me for someone else?”]

"Oh, isn't this Junior Sister Ruan and Junior Sister Luo?"

Wen Chenrui's voice held a deeper meaning.

Ruan Chayan and Luo Hanying greeted the smiling man with bows, one after the other.

Wen Chenrui got straight to the point: "My two junior sisters are quite famous now. I wonder what your opinions are on Shansi Garden?"

Luo Hanying's expression darkened at the mention of Shansi Garden. Ruan Chayan glanced at Luo Hanying, clearly both of them remembering what happened in the Discipline Hall a while ago.

"I wonder how we became celebrities?" Ruan Chayan said calmly. "I hope Senior Brother Wen can answer our questions."

Wen Chenrui remained outwardly calm and composed: "Why ask when you already know the answer? We are fully aware of your disrespect towards Shansi Garden."

Luo Hanying glanced at Wen Chenrui, whose emotions were unclear, then at Ruan Chayan, who was suppressing her emotions, and pinched her brow, saying, "This was my fault..."

"It's not your fault, you're just telling the truth."

Ruan Chayan was always protective of her own. She couldn't bear to see Luo Hanying suffer any injustice, so she simply laid it all out: "I admit that we have some dissatisfaction with Shansi Garden, but it doesn't amount to disrespecting the elders, fellow disciples, and fellow students."

I think everyone was too emotional. After the two senior students who overheard us saying those words finished speaking about us, the story got distorted as it spread.

Luo Hanying followed up, saying, "I did say that the food at Shansi Garden wasn't good, but I didn't mean to say that Shansi Garden or anyone from Shiren Sect was bad."

Ruan Chayan didn't give Wen Chenrui a chance to speak. While scanning the people around her, she said, "If Senior Brother doesn't believe me, and if the fellow disciples listening to our conversation don't believe me, I can go to Shansi Garden right now to cook and prove that our dissatisfaction is objective."

This is the fastest way to prove yourself.

Ruan Chayan and Luo Hanying didn't want to fall into the trap of proving themselves, but this time they had indeed said the wrong thing.

The status of Shansiyuan in Shiren Sect is by no means ordinary. When everyone first enters the sect, they cannot abstain from grains. It is Shansiyuan who works hard to find suitable spiritual food to cook for them. If the two of them cannot explain clearly and continue to let these people spread rumors, how will they be able to establish themselves in Shiren Sect in the future?