Chapter 88 - Behind the Middle Peak

Shui Yuner watched Xue Qilin’s back silently.

After the lass’s figure disappeared from her field of vision, the girl finally withdrew her gaze.

“Senior Disciple Sister Huang, I’m sorry for putting you in an awkward situation.”

“It’s okay.”

Huang Shanshan shook her head.

“That little Junior Disciple Sister… um, or is it little Senior Disciple Sister? Is she the disciple of an inner temple Elder?”

“I don’t know.”

That identity shouldn’t be mentioned.

It’s too scary, too hard to believe.

Who would believe that the person who came looking for me just now is the Merak Temple Young Ancestor. Shui Yuner smiled bitterly within.

“I see ah…”

Then came a brief silence.

“Senior Disciple Sister Huang, can you tell me about the tournament?”

Shui Yuner reopened the conversation with this topic.

“Oh, you’re going to take part in the tournament, Junior Disciple Sister Shui?”

“Yes, I am. Senior Disciple Sister Huang, what about you?”

“I’m also going to participate. However, I can only be regarded as an extra…”

With that, Huang Shanshan shook her head in self-deprecation.

“Senior Disciple Sister Huang, even you can’t rank among the best?”

In Shui Yuner’s view, Huang Shanshan is already very strong.

When they swapped pointers just now, Shui Yuner was virtually at a complete disadvantage. And the other party hasn’t even used true qi. It was a contest of pure skill.

“Junior Disciple Sister Shui, do not underestimate outer temple… Even though it’s just outer temple, but there is no lack of talented individuals here. There is not a small number of people who have stepped into the Human Realm or have touched the threshold, not to mention that there are several people who are famous outside… With my ability, it’s already good if I can enter the top 20.”

After taking a breath, Huang Shanshan continued: “And another thing, the tournament emphasizes more on aptitude than the strength achieved through years of hard work.”

Speaking till here, Huang Shanshan assumed a dejected tone.

“You should know that martial practitioners emphasize talent. If you don’t have talent, then even if you work hard, you won’t go far on the martial path. This is a truth that has been unchanged for thousands of years… the only truth.”

The last three words were emphasized heavily.

“My talent can only be considered as mediocre. Inner temple is very picky. Of course, if you work hard, it’s not like it’s impossible to join inner temple… but the chances are very slim. This is already the seventh year that I compete.”

Seven years – how many seven years are there in life? Five? Ten? Who knows.

However, Shui Yuner doesn’t even have one behind her belt.

She doesn’t want to spend seven years to get into inner temple.

She doesn’t have time to waste. She must enter inner temple.

However…

“There’s something I want to say, but I don’t know if I should…”

Huang Shanshan revealed a look of hesitation.

“Senior Disciple Sister Huang, I regard you as a friend.”

“Oh, my bad.”

Huang Shanshan spoke with a bitter smile.

Then, with a serious look, she asked in a low voice: “Junior Disciple Sister Shui, your qi passageways seem to be innately blocked?”

How does she know. Shui Yuner’s eyes widened.

“That’s what I heard. Recently, there has been a rumor circulating in outer temple that you came here through connections.”

“Rumor?”

“Mhm, and it seems that you and the Law Enforcement Elder have clashed and so on… Is this really the case?”

“It’s true.”

Shui Yuner answered with a frown.

“So, is that agreement true as well?”

“Agreement?” Shui Yuner pretended not to be sure, “Do you mean my agreement with the Law Enforcement Elder? The one about the tournament?”

Huang Shanshan nodded.

Did someone hear my conversation with the Law Enforcement Elder? How did it spread? Shui Yuner frowned even more.

And what bothers the girl even more is that this rumor is likely to make her the center of attention.

The pressure from the masses will indirectly deepen the binding force of the agreement.

In this way, she is forced into a dead end.

If she can’t get a good result in the tournament, then even if the Law Enforcement Elder relents, and even if Temple Master Qi speaks up, it’ll still be difficult to turn things around.

Because she accepted this agreement.

If she doesn’t honor the agreement, she will give a bad impression to everyone in outer temple and even inner temple.

This puts her in a tight spot.

“Why did you make such an agreement?”

Holding her cheecks, Huang Shanshan sighed, distressed.

Does she really care about me…? Although she’s fully aware that such a misgiving is bad form, but Shui Yuner still can’t stop herself from being suspicious.

“I had no other choice. After all, the Law Enforcement Elder has already made a concession. I don’t have the qualifications to enter outer temple to begin with.”

“Oh, you’re right… But with your current strength, it’s really…”

Probably not wanting to embarrass Shui Yuner, Huang Shanshan didn’t say the word “insufficient”.

I know. Shui Yuner has a bitter look on her face.

“I could only agree! By agreeing, I at least got a chance. If I didn’t agree…”

With that, Shui Yuner smiled wryly.

Even though the girl knows that Xue Jiujiu is Xue Qilin, that it was probably because of her she was able to join outer temple. However, she isn’t sure how much weight the Law Enforcement Elder who grasps real power carries in the Merak Temple.

What if his words carry more weight than Xue Qilin’s?

Better to be safe than sorry.

The Merak Temple is her hope. She mustn’t give up this hope, even if it’s only a glimmer of hope.

Although Shui Yuner knows that there isn’t just one way – she could choose another method to take revenge, but she wants to rely on her own strength.

No, maybe Shui Yuner only believes in her own strength.

… only believes in herself.

Shui Yuner smiled wryly once more.

This time there is a little self-deprecation in the smile.

“You’re working hard, Junior Disciple Sister Shui.”

Shui Yuner shook her head slowly.

“However, there isn’t much time left to the tournament…”

Huang Shanshan voiced Shui Yuner’s greatest worry.

Compared with other outer temple disciples, Shui Yuner’s physique isn’t much worse. After all, most outer temple disciples still haven’t cultivated true qi.

The only difference between Shui Yuner and other outer temple disciple is experience, the accumulated experience.

Although she has a limited foundation in martial arts, but compared to other people in outer temple who have devoted themselves to the practice of martial arts, she is lagging far behind.

What she lacks most now is time.

It is because she recognizes her own shortcomings that she goes all out – even to the point of forgetting to eat and sleep, to improve her swordsmanship.

If the tournament wasn’t limited to the use of practice swords, then she might have chosen to use another weapon to enhance her chances. The blade she is hiding in the pipa is a razor-sharp artifact.

“Despite this, I have no other way but to work hard.”

“If only you weren’t born with blocked qi passageways. You’re progressing very fast. I think you have a sense for martial arts. Generally speaking, for people with this kind of sense, even if their talent isn’t good, it’s not difficult to advance to the Human Realm. However, you have no talent at all. You can’t turn spiritual qi into true qi. There’s no way around this…”

This is the difference between having and not having.

If a person has no talent, then no matter how hard they work, it’s all in vain.

Is there really no way? Shui Yuner’s eyes dimmed.

“Speaking of which, it seems that the Great Ancestor has studied how to open congested qi passageways…”

Huang Shanshan looked down, a pensive look on her face.

“The Great Ancestor?”

“The Young Ancestor’s Senior Disciple Brother, our former Temple Master.”

As she spoke, her expression was that of yearning and her tone that of admiration.

“Are you referring to Senior Qi Guiyuan? The sole martial practitioner in the last 500 years who entered the Immortal Realm and successfully broke through the void?”

Immortal Realm is the most remote location on the martial path.

Those who reached immortality and broke through the fetters of the world are martial practitioners whose name will recorded in the annals of history and spread forever.

Qi Guiyuan is no exception.

“That’s right. Even Senior Beiming has to admire him somewhat. He is the Merak Temple’s greatest pride.”

Even though he is no longer here, but Huang Shanshan still spoke with deep pride when she mentioned him.

Qi Guiyuan still dwells in the hearts of everyone in the Merak Temple, and is inscribed in the abyss of the soul of all martial practitioners.

And such a character has studied a way to resolve innately blocked qi passageways?

At this moment, the sky covered with dark clouds in her heart seemed to welcome a brand new dawn.

“Did the Great Ancestor succeed?”

Shui Yuner’s eyes lit up, and she asked impatiently.

“… I don’t know.”

After a long moment, this sentence finally flowed out of Huang Shanshan’s mouth unhurriedly.

Seeing Shui Yuner’s look of disappointment, Huang Shanshan hurriedly continued.

“Sorry, I shouldn’t have mentioned this…”

“It’s fine.” Shui Yuner shook her head lightly while speaking.

“I don’t know if I should say this…”

Huang Shanshan hesitated, and her eyes fell on the ground.

She must be struggling inside. Knowing this, Shui Yuner didn’t urge her, and just waited quietly.

“There is a rumor…” Huang Shanshan emphasized, “It’s just a rumor.”

Shui Yuner nodded, indicating that she understood.

Appearing like she made up her mind, Huang Shanshan leaned close to Shui Yuner’s ear.

She whispered a sentence, at which Shui Yuner’s eyes widened.

“Take this with a grain of salt. Besides, you can’t get into that place anyway… However, if that thing is real, then even if your qi passageways are blocked, you might be able to become a master.”

“Um…”

Then, Shui Yuner looked up.

Her eyes seem to penetrate the Middle Peak that fills her field of vision and reach some place behind it.

Is there something she wants there?