"… Good, very good!" Li Yunyi was furious at Chu Danfeng's series of personal attacks. "Then we'll see!"
Chu Danfeng casually opened his folding fan, even with a faint smile on his face, "I'm at your service anytime."
Li Yunyi snorted coldly and walked away.
Chu Danfeng felt that he could at least score 80 points for pretending - one was furious, the other was cool and unrestrained, the difference was obvious.
They were facing the high platform. On this side were disciples from various sects or young independent cultivators who had obtained the qualifications to enter the secret realm. Hua Tingxuan noticed that these young cultivators who had watched the scene just now were whispering about Chu Danfeng's demeanor and appearance, and their eyes were cast in his direction from all directions.
Hua Tingxuan blocked those gazes calmly, held Chu Danfeng's right hand holding the fan, and murmured: "Little Senior Brother..."
Chu Danfeng patted the back of his hand with his left hand proudly: "Don't worry, I will help you vent your anger."
“… Hmm!” Hua Tingxuan touched the smooth and tender back of his senior brother’s hand, and thought sweetly in his heart: Junior brother is so soft-hearted, he just protected me when I was scolded as a ‘bastard without a father or a mother’. If I can get his pity, having no father or a mother may not be a bad thing, and all the hardships I have suffered in the past will be worth it.
After an unknown amount of time, a female disciple from Bixia Pavilion stood up and used the art of transmitting sound over a thousand miles to send a voice filled with spiritual power to everyone's ears, asking everyone to be quiet.
Chu Danfeng thought to himself: Oh no, this should be the pre-match mobilization meeting for the "Master's Competition", and the process is finally going to go through.
Sure enough, Qi Liuzhu, the head of the Bixia Pavilion on the stage, spoke first as the "organizer". Qi Liuzhu had a profound cultivation and her age could not be seen. Although she was a beautiful woman, she had the dignity of a superior and was very noble. When Headmaster Qi was "mobilizing before the game", the disciples below the stage were also discussing quietly.
"I heard that Pavilion Master Qi is planning to use the sect's competition to look for a talented and virtuous young man to be his son-in-law. Judging from Pavilion Master's appearance, his daughter should be a beauty as well."
"Bixia Pavilion is a place of wealth and gold, and is as rich as a country. Not to mention that the young Pavilion Master Qi Wanglan is a beauty, even if she is ugly, there are still people who want to marry her."
"So, Qi Wanglan will also enter the secret realm this time. Doesn't that mean everyone of us will have the opportunity to come into contact with her?"
"Everyone, go away. I heard that the young master has a bad temper and is overbearing. It's not easy for ordinary people to serve her. I don't know what kind of man can catch her eye."
Chu Danfeng listened to these discussions and thought: Of course, you nameless cannon fodder supporting roles are not in her eyes. The wealthy young master belongs to my sixth junior brother! I know this part of the plot. Qi Wanglan will deliberately pretend to be ugly, but it’s not unrecognizable. She has a birthmark on her chest.
As for how the birthmark was seen, it was naturally a benefit for the male protagonist.
Wow, he is so lucky, but... that was all in the original novel. Now that the child has grown up, it seems he has never held the hand of a female cultivator. He has a childhood sweetheart of that age by his side for thirteen years, but his current progress in conquering the girl is still "0".
…I am really disappointing.
Chu Danfeng glanced at Hua Tingxuan with worry and reproach.
Hua Tingxuan: “???”
At this time, Pavilion Master Qi on the stage finally got to the point and announced the rules: "Those under the age of fifty who are at the Jindan stage or below can enter the 'Luofeng Secret Realm'. The treasures obtained in the secret realm belong to the individual. Before entering the secret realm, each person will be given 10 spirit beads. The spirit beads can be exchanged for items with certain 'residents' in the secret realm, and can also be earned from the 'residents'..."
In short, the role of spirit beads in the secret realm is equivalent to "spiritual stones", which is a circulating currency. However, no one is willing to spend them, because in the end, the disciples will be ranked according to the number of spirit beads they own. This ranking will not only make the former famous, but also related to the reputation of major sects. Each sect will usually promise additional rewards to their disciples that are linked to the number of spirit beads, and Shuangji Sect is no exception.
Chu Danfeng was someone who had read the original novel, and was well aware of the "hard currency" status of the spirit beads. This "Luofeng Secret Realm" also had another name, called the "Ghost Town Secret Realm". It was different from ordinary secret realms in that it had NPCs - a large portion of the NPCs were ghosts - and the maps were also complex and varied. If you kept the spirit beads, you could sometimes even snatch your life back from the hands of the brutal ghost NPCs.
As the secret realm draws to a close, some casual cultivators exchange their spirit beads for treasures found by disciples of the sect, each taking what they need. There are also people with bad intentions who steal and rob, using whatever means possible to obtain spirit beads and compete for rankings...
"'Luofeng' is a secret realm of 'Earth' level difficulty, and cannot guarantee the safety of the cultivators. Before entering the secret realm, you must sign a life and death agreement first. If you regret it, you still have a chance to withdraw." Qi Liuzhu finally announced.
Naturally, no one quit.
The secret realms of the great competitions between masters throughout the ages are all evaluated for difficulty and divided into four levels: "Heaven, Earth, Xuan, and Huang". The heaven-level secret realms were no longer used thousands of years ago because they were too brutal and caused heavy casualties. Therefore, the difficulty of the "Earth" level is the highest.
But high risk also means high returns. In secret realms of "Earth" level difficulty, the probability of finding rare treasures is also greater.
The rules were announced and the ceremony was held, after which all the sect leaders withdrew and escorted their own disciples into the secret realm.
It's just that the leader of a behemoth like the Shuangji Sect is unable to take care of everyone, so Chu Danfeng and others were escorted by their own master himself. Meng Cangyu was a person who didn't show his emotions, so he only told the three disciples to take good care of the little sister - the only disciples from Lixu Peak who met the requirements and were qualified to enter the secret realm were Fang Qingya, Chu Danfeng, Hua Tingxuan and Lin Shuer - and then sent them to the entrance of the secret realm.
And at the entrance to the secret realm, several people ran into Li Yunyi, who treated them completely differently.
Li Jing and Qi Liuxin personally escorted Li Yunyi.
Chu Danfeng finally understood why Young Master Li was so spoiled and still acted like a baby at such a big age - the couple took great care of their only son, especially Qi Liuxin, who held Li Yunyi's hand and gave him repeated instructions on every detail. Although Li Jing was not as exaggerated as his own wife, he was no less so.
With his hands behind his back, he instructed all the disciples to take good care of the young master, and stuffed a dozen top-grade talismans into Li Yunyi's mustard seed bag.
Chu Danfeng felt very uncomfortable watching this scene.
It turns out that Li Jing, who abandoned his wife, could also be a good father, but he gave all his fatherly love to Li Yunyi. Hua Tingxuan was displaced and bullied as a child and almost died. Even his surname was a lie made up by this person.
Chu Danfeng suddenly felt even more distressed for his own child.
"Dad, it's them! You have to take charge of Yier!" Li Yunyi suddenly grabbed Li Jing's sleeve, pointed at Chu Danfeng and Hua Tingxuan and spoke.
"You're so old, yet you still act like a spoiled child." Island Master Li spoke in a doting tone. He followed his son's gaze, but was stunned when he met Hua Tingxuan's eyes.
Chu Danfeng couldn't help but uttered "Pooh" heavily in his heart.
Li Jing looks like a middle-aged man, but one can still vaguely see the demeanor of his youth. He has an upright posture and an immortal look. Especially his eyebrows and eyes are quite similar to Hua Tingxuan, both of them have narrow and long phoenix eyes.
As the saying goes, "Ugly people are all weird, but good-looking people all have similarities." Bystanders may not see anything, but the person involved knows it clearly in their hearts.
Li Jing must have recognized his biological son at first sight.
Li Yunyi still pulled his sleeves and complained: "Dad, they were the ones who bullied me that day. You should talk to the 'Uncle in the Bamboo Hat' and ask him to teach them a lesson for me. But don't hurt the pretty boy surnamed Chu. He is the 'most beautiful man' and his face is the most valuable. I know how to cherish women. As long as he kneels down and apologizes to me, that's enough..."
Li Jing did not respond to his son. He whispered a few words to his wife and walked straight to Hua Ting Xuan. He looked back at Qi Liuxin and asked in a low voice: "You... Are you disciples of Elder Meng from Lixu Peak of Shuangji Sect?"
Chu Danfeng knew that this question was not addressed to him, so he remained silent.
Hua Tingxuan clasped his fists and said, "I am Hua Tingxuan from Lixu Peak, and this is my senior brother. What advice do you have for me, senior?"
This answer was very calm and generous, which was completely different from Li Yunyi's childish behavior of being spoiled and bossy at every turn. Seeing that Hua Tingxuan was young but had an extraordinary demeanor, Li Jing sighed softly, "Tingxuan... Little friend Hua, I... ah, my son offended me the other day, I'm here to apologize on his behalf."
Hua Tingxuan smiled and said, "It's okay, it's just a small misunderstanding. Young Master Li is just a bit outspoken. I actually envy his character."
Li Jing: "Oh? How do you mean?"
Hua Tingxuan slightly lowered his eyelashes, with a fleeting look of loneliness in his expression: "Young Master Li has a father like you who loves him so much, and such a happy family, so he can be so innocent, unlike me..."
Chu Danfeng felt even worse after hearing this. He wanted to fan away the scumbag Li who had cheated on his wife, but he was concerned that Li was Xuan'er's biological father after all, so he couldn't do it.
Hua Tingxuan quietly peeked at his senior brother's expression, and then heard Li Jing ask: "Tingxuan, are you not doing well?"
Chu Danfeng's eyes were almost rolled up to the sky. You can figure it out with your toes. How can a child without a father or a mother and without the ability to protect himself live a good life
Hua Tingxuan shook his head: "I'm fine."
He held Chu Danfeng's hand and smiled at Li Jing, "My little brother raised me. From now on, I will have enough to eat, warm clothes, and a clean bamboo bed to sleep on. I don't have to sleep in a dilapidated shack that leaks wind and rain anymore. There will be no children chasing me and calling me a monster anymore."
This answer was really heartbreaking. On the surface, it sounded good, but in reality, it was a complete loss of sympathy. Both Li Jing and Chu Danfeng looked unhappy.
As if he finally noticed Li Jing's expression, Hua Tingxuan apologized, "Ah, I'm sorry. I don't know why, but when I saw you, I felt so happy that I couldn't help but say a few more words. I lost my composure."
"Fifth Brother, Sixth Brother, let's go! Fourth Brother is urging us to go!" Lin Shu'er appeared out of nowhere, grabbed Chu Danfeng's sleeve in a hurry, and dragged him away without saying anything.
It just so happened that Chu Danfeng didn't want to see the scumbag old Li again, so he simply left the space to the father and son and followed Lin Shuer sullenly.
Seeing his senior brother leaving, Hua Tingxuan hurriedly followed him. Li Jing grabbed him in a hurry, "Tingxuan! Where are you going?"
Hua Tingxuan turned around, his expression had returned to being cold, no longer feeling any joy at seeing a senior. He looked at him like a fool and said, "Of course, we are going to enter the secret realm."
After saying that, he flicked his sleeves and followed his junior brother.