In a distance not so far away, under the rustling leaves of a canopy, Noire and Tianshi stood side by side on a thick protruding branch.
Noire happened to watch the match from beginning to this point in time and so did Tianshi.
Although Tianshi wanted to interfere at first, Noire stopped her and requested to watch the events unfold.
Currently, as Ning's muffled hums of misery enveloped Tianshi's perception, her eyes turned bloodshot as murderous intent began to ooze from her skin like a substance.
If not for Noire holding hands with her, she would have long launched to decapitate Yang Jin.
What infuriated her, even more, was the blockade of disciples with hearts akin to stone, and the so-called Elder that watched everything like some show behind a brazen hill.
Noire could feel Tianshi's rage, his hand was being squeezed to oblivion after all, but he kept patient.
...
About half an incense stick later, the hums subsided.
Yang Jin stood there with his whip and an ugly face decorated his expression.
He was huffing in exhaustion, and Ning'er had already passed out from the intense pain. Till the end, she didn't utter a single complaint or word of surrender.
Seeing this, the Elder announced Yang's victory. And although unwilling, the disciples allowed Yue to rush towards the stage as she instantly dropped to her knees, desperately trying to pick up Ning'er off the ground.
No one dared help her, in the cultivation world, minding one's business was a skill.
The scene further frustrated Yang Jin, and unable to suppress his anger, he reached with his hand to snatch Yue by her dark strands of hair.
Thud!
CRACK!
Suddenly, with a faint thud, Tianshi appeared like a ghost between Yue and Jin, her face had a hideous expression as her digits clamped onto Jin's wrist, the clenching force of her Eighth Twilight Stage instantly crushed Jin's bones into powder.
Everything happened so fast, even the Elder had no time to react.
They only registered Tianshi's arrival when an ear-piercing howl of pain resounded.
Jin's face turned red, purple, white, and an ever-changing cycle of myriad colors overrode his skin.
The disciples within a dozen meters range squatted and hugged their heads in horror from the audible agony.
"Scram!"
Not bothering to listen to his weeping any longer, Tianshi kicked Jin's ribcage with the back of her heel, launching him like a bullet towards the log of a vacant tree in the distance.
The impact caused turmoil in the canopy and the leaves fell like star glitter.
The Elder's face was fuming with anger, rage overtook his system as he rushed at Tianshi while yelling.
"PRESUMPTUOUS!"
The dust from Tianshi's landing was yet to dissolve, not many were able to identify her except for Yue and Jin, thus the Elder absent-mindedly launched at her.
Boom!
Tianshi's cultivation base exploded, dense Qi Essence bathed in inferno flames spread like a wall from the depths of hell to greet the clueless elder.
The flames instantly enveloped the jade altar, save for Yue and Ning'er, everyone was launched off the altar with terrific momentum, the Elder wasn't exempt.
He was only a Third Twilight Stage, not to mention being a low elemental mastery cultivator.
Against Tianshi's vigorous whirlpool of flames, he was instantly shot out like a rag doll with a mouthful of blood.
Once the raging flame subsided, Yue snapped back to reality and bowed to Tianshi, sincerely thanking her.
Everyone else has already begun to disperse the moment Tianshi shouted 'scram', they didn't even want to see the conclusive result of this mess.
Tianshi's face then softened as she looked at Yue with complicated emotions in her vertical pupils, she nodded and said, "He said don't blame yourself, if you sold your dignity to save a friend, he would have been disappointed with you."
Yue looked at Tianshi with complex yet misty eyes... "H-he?" Yue asked in a trembling voice.
Tianshi nodded, "We were watching all along." She then motioned with her chin towards a tree branch in the distance.
Following Tianshi's directions, Yue finally noticed the man she longed for in the past four months.
It was hard, really hard.
But she didn't cower or bend to anyone else no matter who they were, she didn't want to stain his image.
Now he stood there with a composed aura like usual, proud and domineering.
Furthermore, in their first reunion after four months, she was able to obtain his praise and approval.
She was content with this.
Biting her bottom lip, she choked lightly on her words as she tried to thank him, but tears rolled down her cheek once again as she looked down at Ning'er and her condition.
Swoosh~
As if reading her concerns, Noire appeared like a ghost in a lotus position near Ning'er.
He was holding a golden liquid in what appeared to be a potion bottle. Although the bottle is sealed, the refreshing fragrance that denoted the medical efficiency this liquid contained had Yue weak in her knees.
Even Tianshi's eyes flashed with shock.
A preserved liquid medicine! Usually, medicine comes in the form of pills because it was easier to preserve as such.
Alchemy is a broad and profound dao.
Mending spiritual herbs into medicine requires skill and experience, yet the hard part was the preservation of these medicines. If not preserved, the spiritual essence would decline in due time and the medicine will render useless, just a pile of ordinary herbs.
People condensed the medical liquid into pills with various inscriptions for perseverance.
Alas, a good portion of the spirituality is lost in the process.
Still, medicine in its liquid state could mean two things!
One, Noire had recently created the medicine. Tianshi eliminated this possibility for obvious reasons.
Second, Noire either has connections with an esteemed alchemy master that can preserve the spiritual essence of medicine in its liquid state, or that Noire himself is also an alchemy master!
Each of these in itself is a shocking revelation!
Yue is clueless about these details, but not Tianshi.
The more she knew about Noire, the more shrouded in mystery he became, it's simply overbearing!
...
Half a day later, Ning'er woke up in a comfortable bed.
Feeling a slight headache, she then remembered the face-off.
Her face instantly paled and she hurriedly left the bed. However, she was bewildered a moment after, her ankle was healed and her Qi essence has restored...
'What happened?' She wondered.
Then she noticed that this isn't a bedroom of an Outer Court disciple... It's simply too luxurious and exquisite.
Her robes are also clean and well preserved.
She was really confused, 'Am I dreaming? Or have I accidentally died?' She thought with a panicked expression.