The series of moves by Chu Lingwei left the cultivators facing her utterly unprepared. They only felt a surge of spiritual energy that swept them off the competition stage.
"Junior Sister, you're amazing."
Ye Xuan, who had rushed forward to protect Chu Lingwei, was startled by her swift movement. He then witnessed her knock out nearly a hundred cultivators with a single move, and he couldn't help but exclaim.
"Hurry up and fight," Chu Lingwei glared at Ye Xuan, annoyed that he was thinking of other things at a time like this.
Ye Xuan snapped back to reality, grabbed his spiritual artifact, and, imitating Chu Lingwei's attacks, began to strike at others relentlessly.
The two of them alone quickly eliminated many cultivators.
Witnessing the combat power of the Xiuling Academy, the cultivators on the stage began to distance themselves from them.
On this stage, reaching the top one hundred meant advancing to the next round. There was no need for them to confront the members of Xiuling Academy at this juncture.
"Senior Sister, are we still fighting?" In less than a moment, there were no cultivators left around them. Ye Xuan watched the others fight amongst themselves with great enthusiasm, while their area seemed rather deserted.
This was nothing like the battle he had imagined, and he looked at Chu Lingwei with a hint of bewilderment.
"No need. As long as they don't come for us, we win," Chu Lingwei shook her head. In truth, she wasn't that bloodthirsty.
Ye Xuan nodded and stood by Chu Lingwei's side, vigilantly scanning their surroundings. He thought to himself that if anyone looked their way, he would be the first to charge forward.
Unfortunately, no cultivator dared to charge towards them until only one hundred remained on the stage.
"We... we won?"
Ye Xuan looked at his competition token, which indicated his victory, and found it hard to believe.
"Let's go, we can head back."
Chu Lingwei jumped off the stage and went to Nangong Luo's side.
"Junior Sister, not bad. With just one move, you've made so many cultivators resent you." Nangong Luo teased his junior sister. Her sudden maneuver had left many cultivators without even a chance to retaliate, and they truly detested Chu Lingwei.
"Isn't this a competition? Of course, I had to give it my all," Chu Lingwei rubbed her nose. She couldn't be blamed for this.
Nangong Luo burst into laughter. "Yes, that's right. Junior Sister has brought honor to our Xiuling Academy on the very first day. Come, Second Senior Brother will treat you to a proper celebration."
Chu Lingwei: "..." Her Second Senior Brother was definitely being sarcastic.
"Weiwei, why are you back so soon?" An Tao, who had been holed up in her room and hadn't dared to step outside, immediately rushed out upon hearing Chu Lingwei's return.
Seeing Nangong Luo beside her, her face flushed. She stepped forward respectfully and bowed to him, "An Tao thanks Fellow Daoist Nangong for your rescue."
"Fellow Daoist An, when did we rescue you? Junior Sister simply couldn't bear to part with you, so we invited you to stay a few more days. What rescue are you talking about?"
Nangong Luo casually opened his folding fan, fanning himself gently, with no smile in his eyes.
An Tao paused for a moment, then quickly understood Nangong Luo's meaning. "Yes, Weiwei couldn't bear to part with me, which is why she wanted me to stay a few more days."
"Mm."
Nangong Luo walked to the table, waved his hand, and a spread of food and wine appeared. He poured himself a cup of spiritual wine and, smiling, raised it to Chu Lingwei. "Junior Sister, congratulations on passing the first round."
Chu Lingwei looked at the wine in her Second Senior Brother's hand, wondering why she had a feeling of being mocked.
"Thank you, Second Senior Brother." Chu Lingwei recalled her performance during the competition and found nothing amiss. She picked up the wine cup and drank it down in one gulp.
"Come, let's drink together." Nangong Luo laughed heartily and invited An Tao and Chu Lingwei to sit down. The three of them began to drink.
When Leng Xingzhi returned, Nangong Luo was leisurely sipping wine at the table, while Chu Lingwei and An Tao were both unconscious, slumped over the table. Even her two small beasts were drowsy, swaying unsteadily on the ground.
"Why did you let her drink?" Leng Xingzhi walked to Chu Lingwei's side. Seeing her flushed face and deep slumber, he looked at Nangong Luo with displeasure.
"Today, Junior Sister won the competition, and we were very happy. We drank a little too much, and I didn't expect Junior Sister to be so unable to hold her liquor," Nangong Luo said, amused. Junior Sister had only drunk three cups before passing out at the table. What could he have done?
Leng Xingzhi shot Nangong Luo a cold glance, then stepped forward, lifted Chu Lingwei, and carried her back to her room.
Nangong Luo shook his head, stood up, sent An Tao back to her room, and then left the courtyard.
When Chu Lingwei woke up, her head was throbbing with pain.
"Does drinking alcohol make cultivators' heads hurt too?" Chu Lingwei gently tapped her head, finding it unbelievable.
"Cultivators can also get injured." Leng Xingzhi entered the room with a hangover soup. Hearing his junior sister's words, he couldn't help but feel exasperated and amused.
Chu Lingwei saw her Eldest Senior Brother, lowered her hand, and smiled sheepishly. Her drunken state had been witnessed by her Eldest Senior Brother.
"Here, drink this soup. Your head should stop hurting," Leng Xingzhi placed the hangover soup in Chu Lingwei's hand.
"Thank you, Eldest Senior Brother." Chu Lingwei took the soup and drank it down in one gulp. The surging spiritual energy cleared her mind, and the headache subsided at a visible rate.
"Tomorrow is the second round of the competition. Do not be careless," Leng Xingzhi took back the bowl. Recalling Chu Lingwei's docile appearance after getting drunk yesterday, his gaze became even more tender.
"Don't worry, Eldest Senior Brother. I definitely won't lose."
After yesterday's chaotic free-for-all, only one thousand people truly remained in the competition. This was only the beginning.
Everyone entered a one-on-one match, determined by drawing lots.
Due to the large number of participants, dozens of arenas would be in constant operation simultaneously each day. After two days, the first batch of winners would proceed to the next round of battles.
This was a war of attrition.
And it was also a battle of quick decisions. One-on-one combat was, in fact, quite fast.
"I'm just afraid you'll get tired." Leng Xingzhi never worried about Chu Lingwei's matches. Thinking about it carefully, all her practical combat training had been taught by him, and he knew her strength best.
Chu Lingwei suddenly heard her Eldest Senior Brother's concern. A place in her heart involuntarily skipped a beat, and she looked at Leng Xingzhi in a daze.
Her Eldest Senior Brother seemed even gentler than usual today.
"Alright, rest a while longer." Leng Xingzhi helped Chu Lingwei lie back down, tucked her in, and left the room with the bowl.
Chu Lingwei was still a little dazed even after her Eldest Senior Brother had left.
"Weiwei, you're unhappy again." Feng Ming's unhappy voice reached Chu Lingwei's ears. "I knew it. Whenever Eldest Senior Brother appears, you get unhappy."
Chu Lingwei: "..." Was she unhappy?
"Feng Ming, don't talk nonsense." Huan Mao wanted to cover Feng Ming's mouth upon hearing her voice. Eldest Senior Brother was right there, and she dared to say such things.
"I'm not talking nonsense." Feng Ming, angered, jumped out of the space and burrowed into Chu Lingwei's arms.