Chapter 43.1

Can I Practice Here? (1)

When Ji Qingzhou reached the end of the line with her head down, she registered the ice and snow beneath her feet.

Even though she knew the final result from the get go, she still felt a thread of uneasiness in her chest. Her toes tapped the ground, brushing away the snow accumulated on the ice.

It was finally over, Ji Qingzhou sighed lightly.

Soon after, another person appeared beside her. Meng Yaolan stood beside Ji Qingzhou, having also completed the four assessments, and her speed was not at all slow.

However, under Ji Qingzhou’s amazing performance, her cooperation with her spirit beast was mediocre.

Meng Yaolan didn’t feel much annoyed about this. She nodded to Ji Qingzhou and praised her, “Miss Ji, your performance is truly outstanding.”

“En.” Ji Qingzhou responded to her. When she answered, her voice was muffled, and she didn’t sound happy.

After Meng Yaolan parted with her Profound Frost Beast, she did not have much emotional fluctuations, because the way she got along with her beast from the very start was the relationship between a superior and a subordinate. There was no extra emotion, that was why she left so simply.

But because of this alienation, her cooperation with the Profound Frost Beast could not be perfect, and she was surpassed by Ji Qingzhou.

Of course, only Meng Yaolan knew that after Ji Qingzhou overtook her in the Peach Garden, her speed slowed down since she could not get the first place. She could vaguely guess that Ji Qingzhou’s goal was to be in the top three in the internal assessment. She wanted to see why Ji Qingzhou wanted to be in the top three.

After hearing Ji Qingzhou’s muffled reply, Meng Yaolan was a little surprised. She had seen Ji Qingzhou hug the Profound Frost Beast before leaving.

“Can’t you bear it?” Meng Yaolan’s tone contained a hint of doubt, as if expressing incredulity that she had such a feeling.

“En,” Ji Qingzhou replied again. She raised her head and looked into the distance.

A faint melancholy prevailed deep in her eyes. Her eyes widened slightly, somewhat at a loss for words. Her emotions were mild, but this little mood swing looked so obvious on her face.

“Sorry,” Meng Yaolan said to her.

“It’s nothing.” Ji Qingzhou waited for Elder Qu Ting to announce the results.

The rest of the disciples who participated in the assessment all arrived at the finish line one after the other. Because of Ji Qingzhou’s outstanding performance, she got full marks. Meng Yaolan, who was second only to her, only got 80 points because of the huge time gap.

Ji Qingzhou’s annual test ranking had risen rapidly among the disciples, but it was still not as good as the cultivator in the front row, especially Meng Yaolan. Although she only scored 80 points in the Beast Mastery Class, she was still far ahead.

This was already the best result of the Beast Mastery class, but Ji Qingzhou was not too excited. After everyone dispersed and left, she remained standing alone on the Snow Lake.

“Qingzhou, are you not going back?” Elder Qu Ting asked her.

The cultivators who came to watch were all talking about her. Ji Qingzhou even noticed Qiu Mingxue, who seemed to be unable to accept such a result, staring at her in the crowd.

Ji Qingzhou didn’t want to leave the venue immediately to meet those cultivators, so she waited for a long time in the Snow Lake, waiting for the crowd to disperse. Soon, her stomach growled with hunger.

“All right, they all left.” Elder Qu Ting said to her with a smile, “Your Shixiong is still waiting for you outside.”

“Xiao Yu-shixiong?” Ji Qingzhou was taken aback. She didn’t expect Shen Rongyu to wait for her outside.

“Do you call him Xiao Yu? It’s a strange name.” Elder Qu Ting nodded. “I just saw him outside the Beast Spirit Valley.”

Ji Qingzhou bade Elder Qu Ting goodbye and trotted out to the Beast Spirit Valley.

Shen Rongyu was indeed waiting outside the immortal abode. He was leaning against the tree outside the valley, and above his head were maple leaves dyed red by autumn colors. There was no wind during the day, and the withered leaves hung lazily above his head.

With his sword in hand, he glanced up at the autumn sunlight leaking from the forest. His eyes were as calm as the lake, but with a layer of ice frozen inside.

Hearing Ji Qingzhou’s footsteps, he turned his head to look at her. The ugly jade pendant around his waist was still conspicuous, but his superior temperament gave it a different artistic sense.

“Xiao Yu-shixiong.” Ji Qingzhou stepped forward. She didn’t know what he was waiting for. Was he waiting for her today?

As soon as she finished saying these words, her stomach grumbled a little. While she was waiting for the cultivator onlookers to leave, she had missed her meal. In the morning, her physical strength and magic power were excessively consumed, so she was starving.

Shen Rongyu held her wrist, the corners of his lips rose, and his tone was tinged with a smile: “The clockwork is loose again.”

A steady stream of spirit qi was passed into her body through him, and the magic power she had just consumed in the Beast Mastery Class assessment was quickly replenished.