Chapter 47: He Wanted Lin Chuyun to Belong Only to Him… Part 1

Lin Chuyun was a little bewildered.

In the original book, it was said that the original host was harsh on his disciples, not giving them even half a Spirit Stone. The sect’s managers, seeing that Feng Xixing had no one to protect him, constantly bullied him. Coupled with how pitifully Feng Xixing was dressed at their first meeting, Lin Chuyun had always thought his disciple was a poor, unloved little waif.

And now, this little waif was telling him: No, Shizun, actually, you’re the only poor one here.

After hesitating for a long time, Lin Chuyun still asked, “So many Spirit Stones… who gave them to you?”

It wasn’t that he didn’t trust his little disciple. He was just a bit worried. His little disciple was so good-looking and so well-behaved; he hadn’t been deceived by someone, had he?

Feng Xixing lowered his eyes and smiled. “Xixing happened to discover them by chance.”

Seeing his little disciple say this, Lin Chuyun didn’t press further.

Although Feng Xixing in the original book was a villain, his appearances were extremely few. Naturally, the book wouldn’t detail every grotto he visited and every opportunity he encountered, as it did for Bai Linghan. Perhaps his little disciple had obtained these Spirit Stones from some grotto before he himself had transmigrated.

As for why his little disciple had so many Spirit Stones, yet dressed so poorly at their first meeting—Lin Chuyun thought about it for a moment and then pushed the blame onto the original host.

Knowing the original host’s character, if he discovered Feng Xixing possessed so many Spirit Stones, he would certainly have found an excuse to seize them for himself. His little disciple must have deliberately dressed so shabbily all along to prevent the original host from learning about his Spirit Stones.

So, the fact that his little disciple was now proactively telling him about the Spirit Stones… didn’t that prove his little disciple trusted him even more now?

This thought instantly lifted Lin Chuyun’s spirits. He gently stroked the ends of his little disciple’s hair and earnestly assured him, “Don’t worry, Shizun will absolutely keep it a secret for you!”

Feng Xixing didn’t really care about keeping it a secret. He was slightly curious about what scenarios Lin Chuyun’s mind had concocted.

These Spirit Stones were indeed discovered by Feng Xixing by chance. To be more precise, he discovered them in his previous life.

At that time, he had just recently Entered the Devil Path and managed to escape from Star Point Sect, only to be discovered by other cultivators. The continent’s cultivators would absolutely show no mercy to a Devil Cultivator, forcing Feng Xixing to flee once more. During his flight, he happened upon the entrance to a Teleportation Formation.

Back then, he only wanted to use the formation to shake off pursuit, but unexpectedly, the formation teleported him to the entrance of a grotto.

That grotto was rich with Spirit Qi and filled with the scent of medicine. Unfortunately, the master of that grotto harbored an extreme hatred for Devil Cultivators, going so far as to set up layers of Restrictions forbidding any Devil Cultivator from entering.

If he had been a Devil Cultivator at the Out-of-Body stage back then, Feng Xixing could have forcibly broken the Restrictions. But he was merely a newly turned Devil Cultivator with no means to breach them. In the end, he had no choice but to leave.

In this life, Feng Xixing took the opportunity while Gu Jingshan had brought his Shizun to Spirit Herb Peak to descend the mountain alone. Following the path in his memories, he found the grotto. This time, because he had not Entered the Devil Path, the Restrictions weren’t triggered, and he gained entry smoothly.

These Spirit Stones were what he obtained from that grotto. Aside from them, there was also a slightly strange Spirit Tool. Thinking of that Spirit Tool, Feng Xixing’s brow furrowed a bit tighter.

“Little disciple?” Seeing Feng Xixing lost in thought about something, Lin Chuyun leaned in and waved a hand before his eyes. “What are you thinking about?”

Feng Xixing snapped out of his reverie and gently shook his head. “It’s nothing. I was just spacing out.”

Lin Chuyun had to admire his little disciple’s state of mind. The match was about to start, yet he could still calm his mind enough to daydream. Lin Chuyun himself couldn’t manage that. If it weren’t for the need to maintain the image of an Immortal Lord, he’d probably be pacing anxiously right now.

A quarter of an hour later, the Grand Tournament officially began.

Eight streaks of white light flew out from the four stone platforms, each streak entering the chest of a participating disciple. The light that entered Feng Xixing’s chest corresponded to the stone platform on the left. Following the direction of the other streak of light, Lin Chuyun saw Xu Quanfeng with a bitter expression on his face.

Lin Chuyun: Suddenly, I’m not nervous anymore.

Xu Quanfeng was also sighing inwardly. He hadn’t expected to run into Junior Brother Feng. He’d sparred with Feng Xixing before, and back then, they’d traded wins and losses. But ever since Feng Xixing returned from the Thunder Echo Grotto, he had never beaten him again.

Not to mention, Feng Xixing now had a Spirit Sword.

The white light on the participants gradually dimmed, but Feng Xixing didn’t head straight for the platform. Instead, he looked at Lin Chuyun expectantly. At first, Lin Chuyun was bewildered, but then he saw a nearby participant being hugged and encouraged by his senior brother, and he immediately understood.

Lin Chuyun reached out and embraced Feng Xixing—though due to the height difference, it looked more like Feng Xixing was holding him—then patted his little disciple on the back. “Go on. Your teacher will be cheering for you.”

Feng Xixing felt Lin Chuyun in his arms, completely oblivious to the intimacy. A faint, grassy fragrance filled his senses, softening the usual icy chill. His expression gentled, and he laughed softly. “Rest assured, Shizun. Your disciple will definitely win.”

The warm breath fell on the tip of his ear. Lin Chuyun instinctively released his hands and stepped back twice. Feng Xixing didn’t notice his strange reaction and turned, leaping onto the stone platform.

Lin Chuyun stood rooted to the spot for a long while before lifting a hand to touch the tip of his own ear. When his little disciple spoke just now, his breath landed right there, and for some reason, it was as if… his breath had transferred its heat to him.

Once the participants on all four stone platforms were ready, the Steward announced the official start of the four matches.

The disciples who had made it this far were no nobodies. Before the Steward’s voice had even faded, two of the platforms exploded with tremendous noise. The clashing Spirit Powers surged outward in all directions but were blocked by the Barriers surrounding the platforms.

On Feng Xixing’s platform, however, neither of the two combatants showed any intention of making a move.

Xu Quanfeng looked at Feng Xixing, his expression tinged with resignation. “Junior Brother Feng, please be merciful.”

It was a standard polite remark, but Feng Xixing shook his head very seriously. “No.”

Xu Quanfeng’s mouth twitched. “There’s no need to be so ruthless, is there? I haven’t offended you.”

Feng Xixing, however, glanced down from the platform at Lin Chuyun, who was watching him with a worried expression, and explained, “If I show mercy, Shizun will worry.”

After all, Shizun seemed quite concerned about those Spirit Stones. If he held back and Shizun mistakenly thought he might lose and started worrying, then what?

“…” Xu Quanfeng, however, thought Feng Xixing was saying Lin Chuyun would worry about him getting injured. He was speechless.

Ever since returning from the Thunder Echo Grotto, Junior Brother Feng had inexplicably developed a habit of showing off his master. Although the current Immortal Lord Lin was indeed much gentler and much more protective of Junior Brother Feng… who didn’t have a Shizun?!

Xu Quanfeng retorted indignantly, “My Shizun worries about me just as much!”

Feng Xixing knew Xu Quanfeng had misunderstood his words, but he didn’t bother to explain. Instead, he played along and asked, “Is Peak Lord Jiang here by the platform right now, too?”

Xu Quanfeng was speechless. His master was a complete artifact-refining fanatic. Asking him to stop refining to come watch a match was simply impossible. Looking again at Immortal Lord Lin, who was standing right beside the platform with a worried face, Xu Quanfeng inexplicably felt like he’d already lost a round before the fight even began.

But this actually ignited his fighting spirit. So what if he’d never beaten Feng Xixing before? Matches were inherently uncertain. Maybe this time, he could win!

The two on the platform spoke no more. Xu Quanfeng’s Spirit Sword was the first to leave its sheath, sweeping toward Feng Xixing with several blades of wind. Feng Xixing retreated two steps, setting up a defensive barrier of ice frost around him.

Wind Blades continuously hammered against the ice frost. After withstanding most of the assault, the ice frost was ultimately shattered completely. The remaining Wind Blades rapidly closed in on Feng Xixing, but he shattered them with his sword sheath.

Xu Quanfeng’s gaze landed on the Spirit Sword in Feng Xixing’s hand, his expression growing serious. Although Feng Xixing had never drawn his Spirit Sword on the arena so far, Xu Quanfeng had witnessed the Artifact Lightning tribulation of that sword and was naturally wary of it.

The two on the platform were still probing each other. Seeing that Feng Xixing could completely hold off Xu Quanfeng’s attacks, Lin Chuyun’s mood gradually calmed. But right then, the stone platform beside him suddenly erupted in waves of astonished cries.

Lin Chuyun turned his head to look. It was the other stone platform, which had been quiet from the start. But now, that platform was far from quiet. The intense clashes even shook the Barrier several times, and the surrounding disciples retreated one after another, afraid of being caught in the crossfire.

Because they moved back, Lin Chuyun could clearly see the people standing on the platform. He actually recognized one of them.

The Green Water Sword in Bai Linghan’s hand was several times sharper than it had been in the Thunder Echo Grotto, and a Water Dragon could faintly be seen coiling around it. With a casual wave of his hand, Bai Linghan sent several Water Blades stabbing out. These Water Blades were many times stronger than the ones Wu Ge had used before, breaking through the Earthen Wall in front of the other person after only a few strikes.

The other person reacted quickly too, sidestepping to avoid the Water Blade attack, but was still grazed on the arm.

“Could Senior Brother Shan be about to lose?!” Seeing this, the surrounding disciples couldn’t help but whisper amongst themselves.

Lin Chuyun then learned that the other disciple was Shan Tian of Spirit Stone Peak. This Senior Brother Shan’s Spirit Power was indeed profound, even carrying a faint aura of imminent breakthrough. He’d probably reach the Nascent Soul Stage within the next couple of days.

The two on the platform showed each other no mercy, but anyone could see that Shan Tian was being suppressed by Bai Linghan.

Lin Chuyun couldn’t help but frown. Just seven days ago, Bai Linghan’s aura had just barely been at the Golden Core Late Stage. But now, he could sense that Bai Linghan’s Spirit Power was almost equal to Shan Tian’s. In half a month at most, he would likely advance to the Nascent Soul Stage as well.

How could he be cultivating this fast?!

Lin Chuyun initially thought it was the plot compensating him, giving Bai Linghan some Spirit Medicine to boost his cultivation by leaps and bounds. But no matter what Spirit Medicine it was, nothing could make a person go from the Golden Core Late Stage to being on the verge of the Nascent Soul Stage in just seven short days.

His suspicion grew heavier, but he still couldn’t detect anything unusual about Bai Linghan. If he had to pinpoint something, it was that Bai Linghan’s Spirit Power occasionally felt somewhat… loose.

As if it had been forcibly piled up.

Lin Chuyun quickly searched through his memories, but couldn’t find any such pill in the original book. He did, however, recall a few lines about this Senior Brother Shan. It said that after witnessing Immortal Exalt Fang fail his tribulation, this disciple developed a Heart Devil. When he tried to break through to the Nascent Soul Stage, he was plagued by this Heart Devil and ultimately failed.

But it didn’t say whether he had won first place in the Disciple Grand Competition or not.

While Lin Chuyun was searching his thoughts, the two on the platform had exchanged blows several more times. Although Shan Tian had managed to land a few hits on Bai Linghan, he had sustained many more wounds himself.

Seeing that dragging it out any longer was disadvantageous, Shan Tian’s gaze hardened. He took out a small, palm-sized cauldron. The moment the small cauldron appeared, it seemed to absorb the surrounding light, dimming the area considerably.

Bai Linghan glanced at the small cauldron, but merely chuckled lightly. “Is Senior Brother Shan finally getting serious?”

Shan Tian didn’t reply. Spirit Power poured into the small cauldron. In the blink of an eye, it expanded continuously, turning into a giant black cauldron nearly four meters high.

“Suppress!” Shan Tian gritted his teeth, struck the cauldron’s body with a palm, and injected another surge of Spirit Power into it.

As his voice fell, the giant cauldron soared into the air and flew to hover above Bai Linghan’s head. Bai Linghan raised his hand and realized his movements were several times more difficult than before, and even the flow of his Spirit Power had slowed.