"Xuanji!"
Someone called out to her, their voice piercingly sharp.
Instinctively, she tried to look toward the source of the sound when suddenly a blur obscured her vision, and she found herself without strength in her legs. Her knees buckled, and she fell to the ground, seated. Something warm trickled down her head, dying her vision red.
What was happening? It all seemed so strange...
She was abruptly pulled up by someone. Du Minxing's anxious face appeared before her, obscured behind a veil of crimson, his features slightly blurry.
"You're bleeding! Linglong, quick, get the medicine!" His voice sounded muffled, as if it was filtered through layers of cotton.
Soon someone parted her hair, and a cool substance was applied to it. Later, someone bandaged her head and wiped her face with a wet cloth.
"Hey! Talk to me! How are you? Don't scare us!"
Zhong Minyan gently slapped her cheeks, his own face pale with fright.
Xuanji blinked. The intense redness began to fade. She reached up to touch her neatly bandaged head, feeling utterly confused.
"I... what happened to me?" she asked in a low voice.
"You were struck by lightning... Are you alright now?" Linglong sobbed, choking on her words, clinging to her hand, unwilling to let go.
"But... it doesn't hurt at all..." she attempted to move. Rolling up to sit, she glanced around and moved her shoulders and arms, "I just felt dizzy earlier, but I feel much better now."
Everyone stared in shock as she stood up with no apparent difficulty, aside from a bandage wrapped around her head looking no different than usual.
Du Minxing was still concerned, steadying her gently, "Are you sure you're okay? If you feel unwell at all, you must say something."
Having been struck by lightning and still bouncing around, it was either she was incredibly lucky or Wu Tong's spell was flawed, lacking in lethality.
Xuanji touched the wound at the top of her head, which felt numb, unfeeling, and although it had bled, it didn't hurt at all.
She brought out the bead she had in her palm, "Maybe it was the lightning hitting the bead that spared me serious harm..."
Du Minxing shook his head, about to speak, when suddenly they heard uproar at the Zhe Character Arena. They turned to see their fellow sect member, Duanping, lying on the ground, his clothes charred and torn as if scorched by fire. Fortunately, he wasn't seriously injured, just knocked unconscious, unlikely to wake up anytime soon.
Onsite doctors took his pulse while the younger disciples watching were uneasily whispering among themselves, some cursing, some sighing, and the more hot-tempered ones grabbed Wu Tong, intending to beat him up.
Wu Tong, about to be hit, just smiled nonchalantly. Just as a fist was about to strike his face, Elder Huan Yang from down below suddenly shouted, "Stop! Everyone off the arena! Don't act recklessly!"
Although begrudging, the numerous disciples of the Shaoyang Sect dared not disobey the order and reluctantly let him go, grumbling as they descended from the arena.
Elder Huan Yang, his face a shade of iron blue, squatted to check on his disciple first ensuring he was not seriously hurt, then he looked up, his gaze sharp as it swept over Wu Tong's face.
"Young man, to think you would use the Five Thunders Technique. Dianjing Valley truly houses hidden dragons and crouching tigers," he said coldly, "This round, Shaoyang loses, Dianjing wins!"
Wu Tong smiled carelessly and bowed to him, preparing to leave the stage amidst the cheers of the Dianjing Valley disciples. He did not anticipate Elder Huan Yang sternly calling out, "Wait!"
Turning back, he said with a playful grin, "Do you have any further advice, old man? I'm all ears."
In such a setting, the proper address would have been 'Elder Huan Yang,' his casual 'old man,' showed utmost disrespect. Not only did the faces of Chu Lei and other spectators from the arena change, but Valley Master Rong of Dianjing also looked displeased, quietly shaking his head.
Elder Huan Yang, ever cunning, remained composed, looked at him for a moment, and then said, "It's indeed praiseworthy for a young man to achieve such power, but the Five Thunders Technique is a lethal move, its murderous aura overwhelming. Using it in a competition like this is an overkill. Fortunately, you controlled it well; otherwise, what would you do if bystanders got hurt?"
Wu Tong chuckled, "Everyone here is a cultivator and naturally knows how to dodge. If someone gets hurt, that only shows their lack of skill, not my fault."
Elder Huan Yang coldly responded, "The purpose of the Flower Pinning Conference is to spar with restraint, not to slaughter. I hope you use the Five Thunders Technique more cautiously in the future."
Wu Tong shrugged his shoulders, noncommittally, and hopped off the stage, walking away.
"Hey, Xuanji..." Linglong held her and whispered fiercely, "He indirectly insulted your skills. I must give him a harsh lesson later!"
"No, no need..." Xuanji, aware of her penchant for stirring trouble, responded, "I indeed lack skills, unable to dodge the Heavenly Thunder... It's not his fault."
"That's not the way to look at it." Even the usually amiable Du Minxing was angered this time, frowning deeply, "The Flower Pinning Conference is meant to be a friendly contest where we stop at making contact, yet he used a lethal move to win. This is indeed dishonorable. Furthermore, he injured innocents around him. Such actions are far from the benevolent conduct of a cultivator!"
Linglong furiously added, "Exactly! And he also hurt my sister. I must chop him into pieces!"
Zhong Minyan, seeing her ready to spring into action, quickly grabbed her and whispered low, "What can you do? You are no match for him! This matter should be settled by our masters; it's not our place to intervene!"
Linglong stamped her foot and said impatiently, "Xiao Liuzi is always so discouraging! Is he the only one in the world who knows how to use spells? Humph, I know them too! Let's see who has more talismans!"
"Even so, in a contest of spells, you, too, would lose to him."
Yu Sifeng's voice suddenly came from the side. Xuanji quickly turned around only to see him standing not far away, his face pale but his eyes warm, looking at the bandage wrapped around her head with pity.
"Ah, Si Feng..." She called out, suddenly remembering that she had heard someone call her just as she was struck by lightning. Now, it seemed likely it had been him.
"I'm, I'm fine." She stammered, "It doesn't hurt or itch, and my head isn't dizzy. I just bled a little... His thunder wasn't very powerful..."
Yu Sifeng shook his head, came over to examine her injury, his gaze icy, and spoke softly, "He actually injured you."
I'm fine... Xuanji started to explain, but for some reason, seeing his eyes cold as shattered ice, she suddenly found herself unable to speak another word.
"What did you mean by what you just said?!" Linglong pointed at his nose and yelled, "I can't win against him, can you?!"
Yu Sifeng didn't even look at her but touched Xuanji's head gently and said, "I can't win either. None of us can. Besides, causing a scene outside the arena, your father, too, would be in a difficult position."
Hearing him mention Chu Lei, Linglong's fiery temper subsided by half, but she was still not convinced, "If you truly care about Xuanji, all of us together should take him on. I don't believe we can't win!"
Xuanji quickly grabbed her hand and urged, "Dear sister, I'm really okay. Please don't stir up trouble. If we anger Father, we might end up locked in Mingxia Cave again! I really don't want to go back there."
Linglong, persuaded by her pleading tone, finally relented.
Just then, they saw Wu Tong climbing off the stage. He didn't go to the inner area but jumped out of the arena, likely not interested in watching the other contests and preferring to rest. Truly full of arrogance.
The moment Linglong saw his sly, faked smile, she felt her anger rise. As he approached, she gathered her energy to glare at him intensely.
Probably feeling the intensity of her gaze, Wu Tong quickly realized someone was watching him. He turned his head and met Linglong's furiously burning eyes. He paused, seemingly puzzled by why a pretty little girl would look at him that way. His gaze swept over, landing on Xuanji, who still had bandages and bloodstains on her face from his recent use of the Five Thunders Technique.
He then understood.
Seeing Linglong's furious expression, he insolently smiled, scraped his finger over his face indicating their inferior cultivation, embarrassing themselves.
"I can't take it anymore!" Linglong hissed quietly, "I'm going to beat him to death right now!"
She clenched the broken gold at her waist, itching to stab him thousands of times until he resembled a hornet's nest.
Xuanji held tightly onto her sleeve, not letting her move. She looked up, saw Wu Tong showing disdain with a smirk and then turning to walk away. She could even guess what he was probably murmuring at the moment, perhaps saying things like 'The Shaoyang Sect is nothing special,' or 'The Sect Leader's daughter is as frail as a reed.'
She bit her lower lip, yet remained stationary.
"I have a way to curtail his arrogance," Yu Sifeng suddenly spoke softly.
At his words, several children turned to look at him.
"After all, the Flower Pinning Conference is ongoing for several more days. No one knows what might happen in the next few days," he said with a lighthearted smile. "Perhaps he might get sick from bad food, ending up too weak to move, or maybe a venomous snake might accidentally bite him, making it impossible for him to cultivate. Or perhaps he, being new here, is unfamiliar with the terrain of Shaoyang Peak and might break his leg..."
Everyone blinked, waiting for him to conclude.
"In short, anything is possible." He laughed coldly, like a little devil.