Chapter Ninety-Three: Who Gave Them the Right

“Let us go. We should reach the safe point as quickly as possible.”

Shen Qingyun spoke. The black storm occurred most frequently along the rim of the central region, and where it did, herbs and monsters alike became far scarcer.

Thus, all they needed to do was avoid the storms and make it to safety.

In a single sentence, he brought everyone into agreement. They cast aside their worries and pressed on with all their strength.

Along the way, Shen Qingyun and the others saw a black storm suddenly rise and sweep up a monster that had been walking along. Within a few heartbeats, the creature was ground into pulped flesh by the tempest, leaving not even bones behind.

At the sight, Ling Xiao and the others were shaken. They had already thought they had overestimated the power of the black storm, never imagining that they had actually underestimated it.

They did not know how strong the monsters in this ghost valley were, but for one to reach the central region, its strength must surely be formidable. Yet even such a creature survived in the storm for only a dozen breaths before being utterly annihilated.

Fortunately, their luck was decent, and with Shen Qingyun among them, he was able to foresee in advance whether storms would appear on the road ahead.

As they walked, Qiao Xinran suddenly stopped, drawing puzzled looks from the others.

She reached into her dimensional pouch and took out a jade pendant of vivid green, upon which a faint glow flickered on and off.

“It is Senior Sister Yu!” Qiao Xinran and Qiao Xinyu exchanged a look.

This jade pendant had been given to the sisters by Yu Xun after their playful scuffling on the ark. She had said that if they encountered danger, they were to use the pendant, and she would know what was happening here and rush over at top speed to provide aid.

However, the two sisters had fared rather smoothly along the way, and in time they had all but forgotten about the pendant.

Now, however, it had begun to glow on its own. What did that mean? Yu Xun was contacting them!

Glancing at Shen Qingyun and seeing that his expression remained unchanged, Qiao Xinran then infused spiritual energy into the pendant.

At once, Yu Xun’s voice came through.

“Junior Sister, how are you?” Her voice was urgent, every word filled with concern.

“My sister and I are both fine. What about you, Senior Sister Yu?”

Qiao Xinran blinked, perplexed.

“So long as you are unharmed, that is good.”

Yu Xun sounded as though she had let out a breath of relief. After a brief pause, she went on, “Junior Sister, quickly tell Shen Qingyun not to enter the central ring!”

Qiao Xinyu leaned closer and asked, “Senior Sister, why must we not enter the central ring?”

“It is the little junior sister!” Yu Xun said, then continued, “The central ring is far too terrifying. There are black storms there. With your strength, if you enter, you will surely be wiped out. Hurry and tell Shen Qingyun to have you remain where you are and await rescue from the sect!”

“What? Senior Sister, are you all right?” the sisters asked in alarm, speaking at the same time.

“I am fine. Only, three of our junior brothers were killed in the storm!” Yu Xun’s tone sank at once. Then she urged them on, “What are you standing there for? Go tell Shen Qingyun, quickly!”

“Senior Sister Yu, we have already entered the central region.”

Shen Qingyun suddenly spoke, and the other end of the pendant fell into brief silence.

“Shen Qingyun!” Yu Xun said after a long while, each syllable pronounced with icy emphasis.

“Mm?”

Shen Qingyun lifted a brow. For some reason, an image of Yu Xun saying his name with clenched teeth surfaced in his mind. Just how much bitterness must there have been in that tone?

After speaking his name, Yu Xun let out a faint, helpless sigh, as though she had realized that continuing to argue with Shen Qingyun now was useless.

“Shen Qingyun, since you brought them in, then bring them to the safe point to see me, unharmed! If I see even the slightest mishap befall them, I will twist off your head and use it as a ball!”

Hearing this, Shen Qingyun’s brows rose again. This Senior Sister Yu was truly rather fierce.

Qiao Xinran put away the jade pendant and offered Shen Qingyun an apologetic smile, explaining, “Um, Senior Sister Yu is actually a very kind person. At Flower Valley she looked after my sister and me a great deal. She would not usually be like that…”

She seemed about to say “fierce,” but decided at the last moment that it would not be proper, and so left it unsaid.

“It is nothing.”

Shen Qingyun waved it off without concern. He understood that Yu Xun was simply too worried about the sisters. Otherwise, it would indeed be difficult for any woman to speak such words.

“Let us continue on,” Shen Qingyun said.

The others nodded in agreement, though inwardly they felt a little envious of the sisters. In Shen Qingyun’s group, he had looked after them with considerable care. Unexpectedly, in another group as well, someone was equally concerned for them.

Was this the treatment afforded to disciples with heavenly spirit roots?

...

By the time they reached the safe point, Shen Qingyun and the others discovered that there was only one team there, and it was composed mainly of women. Who else could it be but Yu Xun’s group?

Seeing them arrive, Yu Xun immediately came forward. When she noticed that only seven remained from Shen Qingyun’s party, her brow rose slightly.

“What happened to the others in your group?”

When they had set out from the first safe point, Shen Qingyun’s team had been at full strength. Yet by the second safe point, only seven of them remained. Could the trial still continue like this?

“No, I cannot let the junior sisters stay in his group any longer,” Yu Xun thought darkly.

Looking at Shen Qingyun, Yu Xun drew a deep breath. “Shen Qingyun, this is the team you are leading?”

Shen Qingyun lifted the corner of his brow. “That is right. Is there a problem?”

“A problem?” Yu Xun sneered. “There were nineteen of you when you set out, including yourself. And now? Counting you, there are only seven. Where are the twelve other disciples from East Bamboo Peak?”

“The way you lead a team, you will end in total annihilation sooner or later!” Yu Xun said to him in a lecturing tone. “No. I cannot let them remain in your group. You could not even protect so many disciples from your own peak, let alone the two of them, who do not belong to East Bamboo Peak!”

Seeing Yu Xun launch into a barrage at Shen Qingyun without even asking for the full story, Ling Xiao and the others could no longer tolerate it. Su Ye even spoke up.

“Senior Sister Yu, you misunderstand—”

“Shut your mouth!”

Yu Xun glared at Su Ye and snapped, “And you have the standing to speak here?”

Thus reprimanded, Su Ye’s lips moved, his face full of grievance.

Yu Xun had gone too far, and even Shen Qingyun could no longer stand by. There was always a limit to things, and she had clearly crossed it.

“Senior Sister Yu, I can understand your concern for the safety of the two sisters. That you came up and scolded me without distinguishing right from wrong, I can let pass as well. But who gave you the right to berate my team member?”

At the final sentence, Shen Qingyun’s voice suddenly rose by eight degrees, instantly echoing across the entire safe point.

Yu Xun was also stunned by the sudden escalation, and then anger flooded her eyes. “How dare you speak to me like that? You have the audacity of a wild rogue!”

Shen Qingyun’s gaze was contemptuous. “And if I do speak to you like that, what of it?”

My team members are not for someone like you to insult at will.

“Blind to your own death!”

Spiritual energy surged in Yu Xun’s palm as she said coldly, “If I do not teach you a lesson today, you will not understand what it means to respect your elders!”

“Wait!”

A figure suddenly appeared between the two of them. When Yu Xun saw who it was, she immediately dispersed the spiritual energy in her palm. Frowning, she said, “Xinran, what are you doing? Step aside!”

“Senior Sister Yu, it is a misunderstanding, all of it is a misunderstanding!”

Qiao Xinran spoke to Yu Xun anxiously, then turned to Shen Qingyun and said, “Young Master Shen, please do not be angry.”

Shen Qingyun lifted a brow. I am not angry.