Chapter 3: The Incident at Flowerless Palace (5)
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In the Small Thousand World of the Heavenly Sword Sect,
Luo Ying had been holed up in the Main Peak’s training hall since returning from Thousand Bird City, relentlessly smashing all the combat projections of varying levels and strengths into oblivion.
This included Fu Yetian.
From ten seconds in the duel, to five seconds, and finally, with just one glance at him, Luo Ying could take him down in a single blow, leaving Fu Yetian’s projection with absolutely no chance to fight back.
Watching her huff and puff while guzzling wine to drown her sorrows, the male character following her around fell silent.
The word had spread throughout the Small Thousand World about the Heavenly Sword Sect returning with its tail between its legs from Thousand Bird City.
Especially the pitiful sight of those battered and bruised remnants of warriors left others gasping in shock.
The Sect Leader had forbidden discussions on this matter.
Everyone followed the rule on the surface, but privately, they couldn’t stop exaggerating the prowess of the Extermination of Immortals crew.
To make matters worse, the players within the Heavenly Sword Sect had already watched the entire debacle unfold through livestreams, with NPCs quickly catching wind of the details of the battle in Thousand Bird City as well.
Luo Ying initially thought that the formidable stick-wielding boy was the Exile mentioned by her master, but upon closer inspection, she realized she had faced him before on the East Sea Islands.
If she wasn’t mistaken, that boy was the Evil Incarnation of the Monster King.
So, she was very much aware of his strength.
If it came to blows, she probably wouldn’t last five moves against him.
Yet, shockingly, this powerful incarnation of the Monster King was unexpectedly bested by the Cold Moon Witch.
She had witnessed it firsthand; the boy nearly split the Floating City in half with a single stick swing, yet the witch casually blocked it.
With just one move, she completely shattered the boy’s fighting spirit.
This indicated that the Cold Moon Witch might be even stronger than the Monster King in his prime. Otherwise, how could one explain the lack of resistance from the Monster King’s incarnation?
Luo Ying couldn’t help but feel crushed.
Ironically, she had previously wanted to duel the witch; if it ever came to a real fight, wouldn’t that be like throwing a rock at a tank and humiliating herself?
Upon returning to the Immortal Gate, she immediately reported everything she’d seen to the Sect Leader, then focused on her cultivation.
She was training harder than ever; a colossal threat loomed right before her eyes—how could she not feel anxious and urgent?
As for Fu Yetian, it seemed she had entirely stopped caring about him after this journey.
Even though she had been trapped on the islands by his schemes, it reflected one undeniable fact: Fu Yetian was no longer the all-powerful inner sect champion who crushed her back in the day. If he were, why would he resort to traps against her?
She had been growing.
If it weren’t for the heart demon that was Fu Yetian, she might have been even stronger by now.
Realizing this, Fu Yetian finally stepped down from his pedestal in her heart.
The object of her admiration, whom she had never stopped thinking of even after he defected from the Heavenly Sword Sect, miraculously faded away after returning.
The shackles that had held her back ceased to exist,
And just days later, Luo Ying distinctly felt the long-lost joy of progress—finally, she couldn’t stop training!
With the battle at Thousand Bird City concluded, the combat hall immediately upgraded the Cold Moon Witch’s projection power to SSS level.
Though it couldn’t fully simulate a real person, the current strength of the witch’s projection was enough to wipe the floor with 99% of the disciples in the sect.
Even Luo Ying couldn’t last fifty moves against it.
That afternoon, Luo Ying returned to the training hall again.
She had received a message from White Peach, learning that she had taken over as the leader of the Flowerless Palace, which finally eased her mind.
As for the other disciple, Fatty, he would return when he was done playing in the Flowerless Palace.
After all, his steadfast determination to remain there to help White Peach suggested he had a little crush on her. There was no need for her to meddle in such adult affairs.
However, Luo Ying had completely forgotten that Fatty had been disguised as a girl to stay close to White Peach. Who could predict how this plot would unfold?
Standing outside the ring, the male character quietly watched Luo Ying and the witch’s projection engage in a back-and-forth battle, lost deep in thought.
Perhaps it was due to not interacting much with his true self lately, but he unexpectedly felt a bit distant from it.
It seemed that the closest person to him now, Luo Ying, was a living, breathing, trustworthy individual.
After all, he had always been one with his true self.
His true self could switch between him and the girl’s body at will.
But for a long while, he hadn’t relied on invisibility, operating in that state where the true self controlled the body while he remained hidden at the back, knowing everything (he needed to understand everything, or how could he quickly blend into the environment when the true self left him to face the world?).
So, had the true self given up on him?
This was a question the male character pondered.
But he soon was at ease; this question didn’t really matter.
If it weren’t for the true self, he wouldn’t even be in this world, and the system wouldn’t have split its awareness to give him a chance to experience this life.
Perhaps the true self hoped he could live a separate, undisturbed life, which was why it had paused the awareness-swapping mechanism.
Of course, he was still part of the true self; he couldn’t do anything contrary to its interests, after all, if the true self died, he would be stuck in an eternal loop of doom.
Thinking back to this,
Suddenly, there was a loud “bang” from the ring.
Luo Ying had pierced through the witch’s projection, breaking the black snow whirlwind with her sword, the tip resting against the witch’s pointed chin.
“You lost…”
As soon as Luo Ying’s words fell, the witch’s projection instantaneously turned into a wisp of shadow and vanished.
“Phew… phew…”
Luo Ying breathed heavily as she stepped off the stage.
Although she won, it was her first victory after losing ten times.
The simulated projections on the stage were, after all, somewhat mechanical; once you figured out their tactics, you could counter them easily. But in real combat, how often do you get a second chance?
Seeing Luo Ying show no signs of joy,
The male character quickly stepped up, grinning, “Congratulations, Master Sister, on breaking through another bottleneck! It won’t be long before you become the number one in the Heavenly Sword Sect, besides the Sect Leader!”
Luo Ying took the towel he offered and wiped her sweat, saying, “If someone else said that, I’d slap them and at least give them an eye-roll. But why is it that when you say it, I feel so happy?”
The male character chuckled, “Because what I say comes from the heart. There’s not a hint of deceit; heaven and earth can bear witness, and my conscience can bear witness.”
Luo Ying huffed, “If only your skills matched your silver tongue.”
The male character replied with a grin, “Thanks to Master Sister’s diligent teachings, I’ve been making huge strides lately. Fatty won’t lose face for Falling Sunset Peak.”
Just as they were chatting, the male character’s expression suddenly froze, his formerly beaming smile hardening into a cold stare.
Luo Ying glanced at him, seemingly unfazed, but her demeanor turned progressively cooler. “Long time no see.”
Lin Nan responded, “Master Sister, why do you say that? I’ve always been by your side.”
Luo Ying shrugged, “Maybe.”
For some reason, when the so-called Lin Nan personality of Fatty returned, it suddenly gave her a significant pressure that had never appeared before.
Unable to resist, she asked, “Who exactly are you?”
…
P.S. It’s been a while since we last saw the male character… Where are the votes?
