Chapter 149 - 39 of Sword Sect's Longevity Feast Ceremony_1

Could it be that something remarkable happened while I was inside? What opportunity had this Fifth Junior Brother encountered? Seeing Xi Qingyi looking at him with a puzzled expression, Su Bei raised an eyebrow but said nothing. With his hands behind his back, exuding an air of detachment, he watched Sword Sect Disciples busily constructing the arena. He spoke to his prodigal disciple with a tone of earnestness, "Disciple, when those Sects and royal families start to arrive, no matter which Sect challenges a Sword Sect Disciple, you are not to participate. Do you hear me?" "Not a single one!" Xiao Ruoching looked at Su Bei, somewhat puzzled. Did her master not want her to win glory for him? Apparently seeing the confusion in her eyes, Su Bei reached out and tapped her on the head, saying with exasperation, "Lying low is the most important thing. Understand? Why stick your neck out for nothing? Fighting doesn't bring rewards..." "You need to conserve your strength, so you can take first place for your master in the competition of the Twenty-One Provinces!" "That would truly bring honor to your master!" "..." Xiao Ruoching nodded thoughtfully. BOOM— The ancient and sonorous sound echoed throughout the entire Sword Sect. The nine dragons carved on the grand Han Baiyu Mountain Gate seemed to come alive at that moment, displaying to the whole world the majestic and profound legacy of the Underworld Sword Sect from millennia ago! The time was nearly upon them. A group of Sword Sect Disciples stood in formation, their backs ramrod straight, with grave expressions. They were stationed outside the Mountain Gate, inspecting the representatives of various Great Sects and their Disciples who had been invited to the ceremony by the Sword Sect. Among the Sects of the Twenty-One Provinces, there were thousands, but the ones truly known throughout the land were only a few dozen. The strength of a Sect is not something to boast about; it is a manifestation of the collective might, from the outermost Disciples to the Sect Leader and Elders. However, since the Cataclysm of Ten Thousand Clans a thousand years ago, the Sacred Land's control over the world had brought much peace. Confrontations were no longer settled by strength as in the old days. The ranking of these Sects in terms of power was mostly showcased during the competitions held every few decades. It was also displayed when a great event occurred within a Sect, and it invited Sects from across the land to witness the occasion. These grand ceremonies were, in truth, opportunities for the Great Sects to spar and demonstrate their strength to the rest of the world. "Dongfeng Ancient Country, Mo Family, Mo Zhan arrives!" A Sword Sect Disciple's voice could be heard from afar. Su Bei's brows raised slightly as if he sensed something. Instinctively, he looked towards the Mountain Gate. Sure enough, a head of silver hair entered his view. The sun shone on her delicate face. Her eyes were cold, and her countenance expressed an unapproachable pride. Looking at her dressed in a moon-colored robe, exuding nobility and elegance, it was hard to believe that this girl was the same one... who would drug an undergarment and send it his way? Could it be that she took the wrong gift when she gave it to him? Su Bei pursed his lips and remained silent. Mo Li seemed to feel Su Bei's gaze. Her eyes narrowed as she looked in his direction, gripping the Longsword in her hand tightly. A meaningful smile appeared on her lips, and her embroidered shoes crunched on the snow. Next to her, Mo Xiaoqiang suddenly felt a chill surrounding him and subconsciously tightened his tiger-skin coat, muttering, "This Sword Sect is really cold... I wonder where Elder Su is?" "..." Su Bei stood not far from the entrance and listened for a while. It seemed he only heard one familiar name. He shook his head and prepared to take Xiao Ruoching to study a hundred cultivation methods somewhere. Suddenly, the loud voice of a Sword Sect Disciple was heard: "Star Moon Sect, Sect Master, Yu Hongxiu arrives!" Su Bei paused in his steps. His mind was instantly filled with the amorous scene at the Red Pavilion. He hadn't expected Yu Hongxiu, the head of such a great Sect, to come personally to the Sword Sect? For some reason, Su Bei felt a chill creep down his spine, and his right eyelid twitched uncontrollably. It felt as if some indescribable catastrophe was about to befall him. As expected, the next moment, the hair on his arms stood on end, and a fragrant breeze lingered at his nose. Su Bei swallowed nervously and turned to look at Yu Hongxiu. Yu Hongxiu wore a bright red gossamer dress, outlining her sinuous figure provocatively, with the bold color adding an extra allure. What was even more heart-stopping was that she seemed to be wearing the flesh-colored stockings he had given her! She blinked her autumnal eyes at Su Bei and shifted slightly. Her posture was pliant and graceful, like the most beautiful flower swaying in the wind. Fragrance filled the air as she chuckled and said, "Tsk, it seems little brother is doing quite well in the Sword Sect." With that, her beautiful eyes glanced towards Xiao Ruoching, who was looking at her with a cold expression, and she continued, "With such a disciple accompanying little brother every day, no wonder he was reluctant to accept sister's invitation to the Star Moon Sect!" Su Bei looked helplessly at Yu Hongxiu, cleared his throat, and was about to call her sister, but seeing his prodigal disciple's face turning even darker, he casually changed his phrasing, "Sis... Headmistress Yu, it's been a while. How is the newspaper coming along?" Seeing Su Bei mention the newspaper, Yu Hongxiu moved gracefully to find a place to sit. The enchanting shape of her body was outlined by the red gossamer. Though nothing was exposed, it was incredibly heart-stirring. Her slender legs, lightly propped up, were full and straight, perfectly proportioned, and seemed incredibly firm and pert... "Am I beautiful, little brother?" Su Bei couldn't help but admire this woman from the bottom of his heart; she seemed to be able to switch to any state at will. The belle who turned the world upside down was inherently unique in her charms. Every one of Yu Hongxiu's allurements seemed to emanate from her bones, without a trace of pretense, and each was so captivating, so soul-ensnaring. Su Bei was just about to find an excuse to distance himself from this enchantress, when suddenly, a cold snort from Wenren Pingxin reached his ears, "Vixen? What cheap trick are you trying to pull here?" Yu Hongxiu's eyes narrowed slightly as she looked at Wenren Pingxin approaching from behind Su Bei. Then, as if to deliberately provoke her, she hugged Su Bei into her arms and giggled, "Oh my? Isn't this the Great Elder? So free? Still have time to come here and concern yourself with Yu Hongxiu?" "..." However, her gaze seemed thoughtfully fixed on the silk stockings embroidered with Su Bei's family logo on Wenren Pingxin's legs. Wenren Pingxin noticed the surprised look Yu Hongxiu had when looking at her legs and felt a delightful satisfaction from the bottom of her heart. Striding over to Yu Hongxiu with her hands on her hips, she snatched Su Bei back and said with a smile that didn't reach her eyes, "Nowhere near as leisurely as Headmistress Yu, who, as a Sect Master, has made the special journey all the way to the Sword Sect to attend the Second Elder's birthday celebration." Su Bei, caught between four large dumplings, found his breathing extremely difficult. By now, he had realized that his senior sister and this Yu Hongxiu were probably not on good terms with each other. He never imagined that one day he would become the sacrificial lamb caught between four dumplings... The damned dumplings could suffocate you! In the distance, the voices of Sword Sect Disciples could be faintly heard: "Wuhua Palace, Elder Luo Ritian, arrives!" "Wudao Pass, Elder Ye Liangchen, arrives!" "Cang Jing Sect, Elder Ji Mingbu, arrives!" "..." Xiao Ruoching looked at her own master being tormented by the two women with a strange expression, standing to the side, not daring to make a sound. At this moment, outside the Sword Sect's White Jade Mountain Gate, a meandering procession like a long dragon was making its way up the mountain path, with about a thousand riders. A flock of light cranes cried out, embedding themselves into the crystal-clear azure sky from afar. The wind brushed through the snow-capped pines, their needles trembling. From amidst the carriage procession, faint sounds of guqin music echoed in the distance. Empress Lin Jinyu of the Dongfeng Ancient Country, dressed in formal attire, sat in the palanquin, quietly looking at the scenery outside the window. Perhaps because she hadn't left the Imperial Palace for many years, all of this seemed fascinating to her. "Your Majesty, we are approaching the Sword Sect!" a maidservant whispered softly. Lin Jinyu nodded, extended her delicate hand gloved in silk, and drew back the palanquin's curtain. Gazing in the direction of the Sword Sect's mountain gate, she murmured to herself, "So this is the Sword Sect... It doesn't have the grandeur and solemnity of Luodu, but there's a sense of loneliness yet pride..." "Is that person named Su Bei an elder of this sect?" "Present my card and say that I, representing the Dongfeng Royal Family, have come to the Sword Sect to observe the ceremony." "..." ... Today, Su Bei had already changed into more formal attire: a moon-white coronet and white robes. However, after being tormented by the two women, his clothes had instantly become crumpled. These two unfortunate women had clearly turned him into the medium for their rivalry. Regrettably, he still couldn't beat them. Su Bei took a deep breath, and at that moment, he set himself an ambitious goal! One day, with the Big Treasure Sword in hand, he would make them both kneel and take turns singing "Conquest" to him! Do not belittle the young for being kidney-poor! As Su Bei was trying to figure out how to extricate himself, suddenly the voices of Sword Sect Disciples rose, louder than ever: "Dongfeng Ancient Country, Royal Family, Empress Lin arrives!" Yu Hongxiu and Wenren Pingxin let go of Su Bei, stood up, and after exchanging a glance, flew together toward the mountain gate of the Sword Sect. Su Bei, gasping for air, felt for the first time how joyful it was to breathe fresh air! As he patted his rear and got up, suddenly the voices of Sword Sect Disciples rang out again in the distance: "South Wind Ancient Country, Royal Family, daughter of the Confucian Sage, Li Zijun arrives!" "..." Xiao Ruoching's eyes instantly narrowed, and she stood up with a tremble, her gaze profound as she looked into the distance. Su Bei blinked, noticing his disciple suddenly seemed interested in this person named Li Zijun, and asked with some confusion, "What's the matter, disciple? Is there something special about this Li Zijun?" Hearing her master's question, Xiao Ruoching's heart skipped a beat. Her reaction had been too obvious! Could her master have noticed something...? She turned around gently, trying her best to appear natural, and then looked at Su Bei with a serious expression and said, "Well, your disciple has just heard of this lady." "After all, she is the rumored daughter of Confucian Sage Li Qiu, and it's my first time seeing her..." Su Bei nodded. His interest in this Li Zijun was piqued. The daughter of a Confucian Sage? Her talents must be exceptional...