Huo Lin'er's reputation at the academy was far greater than Ji Mo's. Not only was she beautiful, but she was also the inner disciple of the Tianshan Sword Sect and a Qi Plundering Boundary master. Girls like her naturally attracted a lot of attention, but Huo Lin'er was usually a little hot-tempered. Therefore, many men did not have the courage to approach her even if they had the intention to. It was also the reason why Huo Lin'er was nicknamed the Fiery Rose.
At that moment, Ji Mo and Huo Lin'er walked and chatted happily together, drawing attention from other people who shot him weird stares.
"Ji Mo seems to be very close with Huo Lin'er recently. When did their relationship become so intimate?"
"I heard that Ji Mo is Senior Sister Huo's sparring partner. He must've benefited from her judging from the speedy progress of his cultivation base."
"Hmph, what a shame to rely on a woman to upgrade his strength!"
Whispers went around, and at the same time, many male disciples stared at Ji Mo with admiration and envy.
"Why don't we walk separately? Judging by how they're looking at me, I'm worried that I might be eaten alive," Ji Mo said dejectedly.
Huo Lin'er smiled charmingly. "What? Are you afraid? Some people don't even have the chance to savor the flesh of a swan."
'Err…are you the swan? You're just a turkey at most!' Ji Mo secretly laughed as he mocked her in his heart. It was not because of how Huo Lin'er looked but rather her red-hot temper. Who would dare to provoke her?
"Huo Lin'er, haven't seen you in a long while."
At that point, a voice came from afar. Despite coming from a distance, every word was crisp and clear. It was the sultry voice of a woman that could weaken anyone's knees.
Hearing that voice, Huo Lin'er came to a halt and frowned unconsciously.
Ji Mo looked behind and saw a few people walk in. They were led by a man and a woman who were dressed in the Tianshan Sword Sect clothes and carried ancient swords on their backs, brimming with vigor. The man was very handsome with eyes as bright as the stars, and he had an air of arrogance which he did not bother to disguise.
The woman was beautiful and enchanting just like Huo Lin'er. However, her figure was even shapelier as she had generous hips and a tiny waist. As she strode forward, her skirt swung about her smooth, porcelain legs which dazzled everyone.
Followed closely behind them were a few outer disciples from Tianyuan Academy. Among them were Nangong Ye, Dong Hao who guarded the archive, and Xia Jiaojiao. The trio seemed respectful and had a smile on their faces as they gazed at the couple in front. After all, the latter were the inner disciples of the Tianshan Sword Sect and it was normal to butter up to them.
"Lu Susu! She really is here!" Huo Lin'er glared at the beautiful woman.
'Is that her love rival?' Ji Mo thought.
When Huo Lin'er had asked Ji Mo to be her sparring partner to cultivate the Flaming Sword Qi, it probably was to deal with her love rival. Moreover, with the appearance of Lu Susu and the way Huo Lin'er glared at her, Ji Mo instinctively guessed that he was right.
However, what he was curious about was why these two Tianshan Sword Sect inner disciples came to Tianyuan Academy.
"Huo Lin'er, I see that you're living life freely outside." Lu Susu walked up to them. As otherworldly as her beauty was, anyone could see the hostility in her eyes.
Behind her stood the young man whose arrogant eyes cast a glance at Huo Lin'er without even looking at Ji Mo as though he was not there.
They were the inner disciples of the Tianshan Sword Sect after all, so they could not be bothered about people like Ji Mo.
However, behind those two people, Nangong Ye stared at Ji Mo dangerously. Xia Jiaojiao and Dong Hao also barely glanced at him before turning away as though he was insignificant.
"Your concern is unnecessary," Huo Lin'er replied indifferently to Lu Susu's sarcasm.
Lu Susu smiled and briefly glanced at Ji Mo. She laughed and said with a sneer, "Why? I heard that you're keeping a toyboy. Is this the kid? Haha...Junior Sister Huo Lin'er, your taste is really getting worse, or should I say that you have a unique fetish?"
"You…" Huo Lin'er gritted her teeth and her eyebrows twitched slightly as she was dumbfounded by Lu Susu's sarcasm.
'Hey, have I even offended her?' Ji Mo felt slightly uneasy. He was aware of the feud between Huo Lin'er and Lu Susu, but he was only a spectator who joined in the excitement. He did not expect to be ridiculed by Lu Susu.
Huo Lin'er stared furiously at Lu Susu with her beautiful, round eyes and retorted, "Aren't you the same?"
She looked at the young man behind her rival and laughed, "Leng Jianyun, when did you get together with Senior Sister Lu? It's really out of my expectation that an arrogant person like Senior Sister Lu would have such a terrible eye."
That sentence immediately made the young man, whose name was Leng Jianyun, feel awkward.
Lu Susu chuckled. "That's better than being as ravenous as you. No matter how bad Jianyun is, he's still stronger than any outer disciple that you can find. You have such a unique taste."
The two girls were going against each other while exchanging threatening glares. Sparks collided in the air.
Nevertheless, Ji Mo, who stood aside, felt slightly uncomfortable. The two women's mockery from the beginning had become a competition between each other's new beaus. What did that even mean? Although he and Huo Lin'er were close, they had not reached that stage yet.
Curiously, he looked at Leng Jianyun and their eyes met. Ji Mo clearly caught the man's condescending glance and was slightly scornful. Since Leng Jianyun was the inner disciple of the Tianshan Sword Sect, he paid Ji Mo no mind.
At that moment, Dong Hao asked pointlessly, "Ji Mo, I heard you're joining the Hunting Games, aren't you?"
"Mm-hmm." Ji Mo simply nodded.
"Hehe, I didn't expect that someone like you could join the hunt. I heard that you snatched the spot from someone else," Dong Hao replied with narrowed eyes.
"Is there anything wrong with relying on my own abilities?" Ji Mo smirked.
"Although you're putting effort into your cultivation, let me remind you that you'll be facing vicious demonic beasts in the Hunting Games. It's not a game, so don't go out and fail to come back," Dong Hao said coldly.
"You don't have to worry about that." Ji Mo held a grudge against Dong Hao and he could not care less about his mockery.
"So, you are Ji Mo?" Leng Jianyun looked at Ji Mo again, but the contempt in his eyes turned viciously threatening while sending chills down one's spine., "I've heard Nan Hao's cultivation partner mention you. Apparently, you beat his sworn brother up. Nan Hao was still angry about it before he went for his closed-door cultivation. You're lucky he didn't come looking for you."
Ji Mo remained silent. Exchanging stares with Leng Jianyun did not scare him at all.
Leng Jianyun taunted, "Nan Hao will soon be the inner disciple of the Tianshan Sword Sect. The gap between both of your abilities will be like heaven and earth. I'll give you a piece of advice: don't offend those who shouldn't be offended. Be clear about who you are. How can a shallow-water shrimp go against a deep-sea dragon?"
Whoever heard those words knew it was meant to mock him. Although Leng Jianyun bore no grudge against Ji Mo, when Lu Susu and Huo Lin'er compared both of them, he felt annoyed. However, he did not want to argue with Huo Lin'er, so he projected his hatred toward Ji Mo.
"Senior Brother Leng speaks the truth." Nangong Ye nodded and laughed at Ji Mo. "Some people aren't aware of their own strengths, thinking that they are superior by relying on improper methods for an upgrade in strength. In fact, they're just clowns. What a deluded laughing stock to even think of making Big Brother Nan Hao an enemy!"
"Haha, not bad. It looks like someone is only trying to impress," said Xia Jiaojiao who had been silent all the while.
Ji Mo frowned slightly at their sarcasm. The Celestial Devil Power that was restrained in his body was slightly provoked, but he regained his composure quickly. Lu Susu and Leng Jianyun were Qi Plundering Boundary masters, so he would not be able to defeat them. Attacking them under these circumstances would not benefit him at all.
He could only tolerate them and be patient now. When the Hunting Games began, he would be able to take his revenge.