Firefly Journey

"I said, do we really have to fight?"

Standing opposite the wind chimes, Lin Yuanran said with a rather helpless expression.

The semi-finals ended quickly, and the battle for first place became an internal war between Fengling and Lin Yuanran.

Feng Ling's expression was cold as she said, "Don't expect me to let you off the hook. Even brothers should keep their accounts separate. This is a good opportunity to test your abilities."

"I'll fight you and see what your strength really is."

Lin Yuanran smiled wryly, thinking to himself, "I've shown you my trump card, no, I've even shown you my underwear. A comparison will tell you who's stronger and who's weaker. Why would we have to fight?"

Of course, Lin Yuanran believed that the underwear referred to the clothes he hung out to dry in Torreg Town, and not any other metaphor.

"Alright, if you insist, I'm happy to oblige."

"Then use your full strength!"

Feng Ling's face sparkled with excitement, as if finding a reason to fight Lin Yuanran was a remarkable thing.

"Well... here I come!"

Lin Yuanran conjured a giant fire dragon and roared as it charged toward the wind chime.

Fengling raised an eyebrow. Finally, it looked decent. She just wondered how much the boy who used to hunch over and hoe the ground in front of the wooden house had grown up over the years.

Just as the wind chime was about to use its lightning to crush the fire dragon, the fire dragon suddenly dissipated, turning into flames that spread everywhere.

Wind Chime was somewhat annoyed: "Are you sick?"

Lin Yuanran took two steps closer and shrugged: "Have you forgotten? You taught me the Great Flame Dragon and the Fireball spell, why would I use them against you?"

"I will never lay a hand on you, not even for a friendly spar."

Lin Yuanran smiled and waved his right hand, saying, "I admit defeat!"

Originally, both of them were dark horses, and no one could have imagined that they would stand on the final stage. What was even more unexpected was that after they rambled on for a while, Lin Yuanran actually gave up without even fighting.

The seven high-ranking members of the Star Moon Alliance, all of whom belonged to the Qing generation, knew perfectly well that these two undercover agents had come as a team. Since they were working together, they certainly wouldn't fight each other to the death.

After Lin Yuanran announced his surrender, he left the dueling area without waiting for the verdict.

The wind chime punched the air.

"What a boring thing."

Qingyang Daoist had no choice but to announce that Fengling had won the final, which was met with a huge cheer from the crowd.

Actually, compared to the past when it was always the direct disciples, especially the renowned senior brother Yan Jinglei who won first place, everyone was tired of seeing that and preferred this kind of plot reversal, since they could empathize with it.

Most of the viewers were ordinary disciples, but Fengling secured the only spot in the top eight for an ordinary disciple and emerged as a dark horse all the way to the end, which deserves everyone's cheers.

Even those who had encountered Feng Ling and been instantly defeated by her were now cheering for her.

After announcing that Wind Chime was the winner, Daoist Qingyang took the opportunity to present the martial arts competition rewards, which were quite generous, including some rare spiritual plants and several cultivation manuals.

The spiritual plants are useful and can be given to Lin Yuanran for alchemy. As for the cultivation techniques, they are useless. Their cultivation systems are not the same as those on Earth. Even if they can switch between them, they cannot change their cultivation path halfway through.

Fengling patted her waist and put all the rewards into "Venus".

Chu Muyu, who was in the spectator area, immediately stood up and rushed to the front of the many high-ranking members of the Star Moon Alliance. She said with a smile, "Congratulations! Your sect has produced another one, no, two remarkable figures."

"Perhaps." Daoist Qingtang only gave an ambiguous answer, after all, it was still unknown whether the appearance of Lin Yuanran and the other person would be a blessing or a curse for the Star Moon Alliance.

“Before they become Jade Pool Realm experts, they can go out and gain more experience. Well, I mean I want to swap one of them.”

Qingtang Daoist knew what she was up to. This kind of situation had happened before; it was common for the four sects to exchange disciples.

If Fengling were a native disciple of the Star Moon Alliance, Daoist Qingtang might have considered it for a long time. But given the current situation, he was eager to send her away. It would be best if someone offered to do so, so he decided to go with the flow.

"You really have a sharp eye." Sect Leader Qingtang smiled. "I have no problem with it, but we'll have to see what she thinks."

"It's fine as long as you agree." Chu Muyu gently covered her mouth and blinked, exuding charm. "Thank you, Senior Brother Qingtang."

The Taoist Qingyun frowned, immediately becoming somewhat displeased.

Qingtang Daoist was completely unmoved by her act.

"Elder Chu, you are too kind. However, although we share the same origin, we belong to different sects, and our seniority is no longer traceable. Please do not address me in this way."

"Okay." Chu Muyu didn't seem to mind.

Beneath her seductive demeanor, a hint of smug satisfaction at having finally achieved her long-cherished wish flashed through her eyes.

Following closely behind, Zheng Bafang of the Fire Cloud Sect and Fan Cai of the Vajra Gate also arrived at this place.

Master Qingtang had already made arrangements regarding the exchange of disciple slots.

"Fellow Daoist Zheng, as you've probably seen, the second place winner in the martial arts competition possesses fire-attribute magic, which is a perfect match for your Fire Cloud Sect. What I mean is..."

"No problem, Fellow Daoist Qingtang, our Fire Cloud Sect has no objections."

With these two hot potatoes finally out of the way, Daoist Qingtang breathed a sigh of relief.

Chu Muyu and Zheng Bafang felt they had gotten a great deal, as the Star Moon Alliance's exchange disciples were never the first or second place winners in the past.

With the matter settled, Zheng Bafang returned to his sect's delegation and informed everyone of the chosen disciples for the exchange.

Upon hearing this, Tang Shenglian immediately became somewhat agitated.

"What? Send that white-haired brat to our sect?"

Zheng Bafang smiled and said, "I know you have some prejudice against him because he defeated Yan Jinglei, but you should also know that it wasn't a real defeat; he just left on his own."

"If they hadn't been in such a hurry to break through their current level, and both of them had used all their strength, the outcome would still have been uncertain."

"I know, but I'm just not happy about it," Tang Shenglian muttered.

"This isn't something you or I can decide. We'll return to the sect tomorrow, and if you want to see him, then go see him."

"Oh."

Tang Shenglian turned and left, as if she had been waiting for those words.

“This child…” Zheng Bafang shook his head helplessly.

A giant fire lotus fell on Yue Lai Peak, landing in front of Yan Jinglei's cave.

After realizing the opportunity to break through his cultivation level, Yan Jinglei immediately chose to go into seclusion. He had waited far too long for this day and dared not delay even for a moment.

Tang Shenglian descended from the Fire Lotus Cloud, staring at the closed cave, remaining silent for a long time.

Two hours later, she turned and left, but stopped after taking a few steps.

"Senior Brother Yan, I'm going back tomorrow."

A breeze blew by, but there was no answer.

As expected, Tang Shenglian chuckled self-deprecatingly and mounted the Fire Lotus.

"Bon Voyage."

Upon hearing this, Tang Shenglian was overjoyed and hurriedly stopped Huo Lianyun from leaving, turning back instead.

"Senior brother, weren't you in seclusion?"

"I am in seclusion, but that doesn't prevent me from speaking."

"Oh, I just came to see you, I'll be leaving soon."

"If it's convenient, you can chat with me."