Into the forest

"What did you just say?" He Lan asked in disbelieve, astonished at the words she'd just heard.

Xiao Su looked at her in surprise. It was only then that she remembered she hadn't told He Lan why she was entering the contest, since the Clan labelled it as confidential information. She trusted He Lan and was confident no one would find out if she did tell her, but she respected the Clan and had no desire to break their rules for no good reason. She thought about it for a second before concluding that she couldn't tell He Lan about the changes to the rules, but she could tell her what she was aiming for. "I'm aiming to enter the top sixteen this time, as for why, I can't tell you but I absolutely need to," She answered earnestly.

He Lan put her head in her palms as she felt a headache setting in. Xiao Su not telling her the reason wasn't a problem, she'd told her enough for her to guess. She knew Xiao Su was preparing to enter the competition, but she'd thought she only entered to change the Clan's opinion of her, so she'd always attached more importance to the successful completion of the sealing rather than the actual contest. Now she knew there were stakes and Xiao Su needed to enter the top sixteen, unfortunately she also knew Xiao Su had no chance of making the top sixteen.

Though there's only two other Golden Generation members competing, this generation being openly acknowledged as the strongest Xiao generation is not solely the merit of the Golden Generation. Though the term, 'Golden Generation', officially refers to the twenty-six geniuses who have [Vigor], those that'd made their names known despite having to compete with those geniuses are no less exceptional, they're not to be underestimated. In comparison, Xiao Su was too lacking.

In talent, He Lan didn't believe anyone could top Xiao Su, but the opponents are also talented, and she lost pretty much everywhere else across the board. Her cultivation of 4th stage, Human Path, could only sit in the middle ranks of this contest, she's had no formal training, little to no combat experience, she hasn't been able to practice her skills for six years, and now most of her qi is sealed. He Lan didn't just think Xiao Su couldn't do it, she knew Xiao Su couldn't do it, at least not in her current state.

He Lan sighed into her hands before looking up at Xiao Su and saying, "We're going to the forest," in an unwilling tone.

"What?!" Xiao Su exclaimed in confusion.

…

"Goddess Su!" The guys at He Lan's courtyard cheered in joy as Xiao Su entered.

"Hey! It's good to see you guys!" Xiao Su answered with her own enthusiastic cheer. She was currently at He Lan's central courtyard, interacting with everyone familiarly. He Lan occasionally brought Xiao Su over so that she could know the group. He Lan didn't tell her the full purpose of the group, since she might object, but since the group is designed to help Xiao Su escape and get a fresh start if needs be, it wouldn't do for her to have no bonds with the people in it.

Xiao Su was happily high-fiving, fist bumping and patting shoulders with everyone. She was mostly shunned at the Clan, but here she always received a passionate reception, it made her happy. However, a sudden sharp chill washed over the group and broke up the happy revelry.

Everyone took four steps back from Xiao Su and cleared a path to reveal He Lan, dressed in an immaculate maid outfit, radiating cold killing intent. She walked forward and grabbed Xiao Su's hand before carefully scrubbing it clean with a wet cloth.

The group looked on in indignation. 'We're not that dirty!' they grumbled in their minds as they gave He Lan a dirty look. He Lan turned and gave them a sharp glare that made them all avert their eyes while breaking into a cold sweat. 'Fine, you're the boss' sister so we won't haggle with you' they excused their timidity. He Lan snorted in contempt and went back to cleaning Xiao Su's hands.

"It's not dirty," Xiao Su complained grumpily but she doesn't pull her hand away.

Satisfied that they were restored to pristine condition, He Lan said, "Ye Tai is coming with the carriage, we'll leave when he gets here," in a more respectful tone than usual. He Lan's identity to the group is the boss' sister, as well as Xiao Su's maid. Though, Xiao Su's identity was a member of an unknown clan, only those who'd fully earned He Lan's trust knew she was from the Xiao Clan.

Xiao Su spent the time chatting with them, under He Lan's supervision. They enjoyed Xiao Su's visits. The number of girls in the group could be counted on two hands, and Xiao Su was by far the easiest to talk to, she was friendly and sincere, though a bit blunt at times, and she possessed immense cultivation knowledge that she readily shared with them, which, to these impoverished cultivators, was a godsend gift, which is why they called her goddess Su. After twenty or so minutes, the carriage arrived, and it was time to leave.

"Oh, so you finally broke through brat," a scrawny, tall man with a thin sword at his hip, said as he rubbed Xiao Su's head. His eyes were filled with affection despite his harsh tone. The man was Ye Tai, one of the people He Lan considers a lucky treasure.

"Of course, I'm growing every day, I'll soon reach your level," Xiao Su replied proudly.

Ye Tai laughed loudly. "Don't get ahead of yourself, looking at how long it took you to reach the 4th stage it'll be a while before you reach me," He said while still chuckling lightly. Xiao Su pouted slightly but couldn't figure out a way to argue since Ye Tai didn't know about her deviation.

While the two were talking, Li Qing walked up to He Lan on the side and said, "It's been done," In an almost inaudible voice.

"Good." He Lan responded in kind.

Li Qing looked over Xiao Su arguing playfully with Ye Tai and hesitated for a while before saying, "I'm not sure about the Boss' plan here, is this really safe He Lan?"

"It's necessary" she said with a sigh. "Don't worry, I'll protect her. Ye Tai will follow along too," She reassured her a little.

Li Qing slowly nodded in resignation, "Very well, I'll leave it to you guys. Just remember, we can't take the repercussions." She said with a worried look still in her eyes. Li Qing was the unofficial deputy boss of the group, a position of great trust, she was naturally informed of Xiao Su's true status.

"Noted." He Lan accepted as she moved to stop Ye Tai from touching Xiao Su any furthur.

…

Xiao Su's leave had finally caused a stir in the clan. No steps were needed to leave the compound for a day, but since she'd be gone for a few days it was necessary to inform the clan on where she was going and when she expected to be back, so they can investigate if she doesn't return, so, Xiao Su informed them that she was going to the Stone Forest to train. Xiao Su had never applied for leave before, much less to train. The shock was biggest among the higher echelon of the clan, as her disinterest in cultivation was taken as a fact by them, so this alone was enough to cause a small stir, but it didn't end there. The competition starts in three days. Though Xiao Su didn't actually have to do anything until the fifth day of the contest, it was still necessary for her to sign up before it started. Since she wasn't sure when she'd return from the forest, she signed up before leaving, making her intentions clear.

Some wondered if she was entering due to the new rules, but most didn't care why she was entering, they were more curious on what she could do. [Limitless] is the ability that only the founder has possessed before, even knowing her rank and her years of neglecting training, many were anticipating her performance. Xiao Da prayed for her safety as he concocted a pill, Xiao Tai did an uncontrollable happy dance in his tea garden, Xiao Ren sat in the courtyard they used to meet in and stared into space, and…

"Please avenge me brother!" The boy said as he bowed on his knees before the hulking figure. The boy was Xiao Peng, who'd lost to Xiao Su over a month ago. After being beaten so clearly, he didn't have the courage to challenge Xiao Su again, but he still nursed the hatred from this encounter within him, waiting for an opportunity, and now he felt his chance had come.

"You lost to a waste and now you come to grovel," A deep voice said with disgust.

Xiao Peng trembled as he bowed deeper and said, "That's wrong brother. It's true that I'm unhappy about the cheap tricks she pulled, but I swear I was thinking about you. It's common knowledge that your status is on the rise right now, for her to waltz through our courtyard and assault your younger brother is clearly an offense aimed at you!"

The big figure rolled his eyes before saying, "Whatever, get off the floor and find out where she's heading," in an annoyed tone.

Xiao Peng lifted his head and exclaimed, "You mean you'll-".

"Go do as I said." The voice cut him off coldly. Xiao Peng immediately got off the floor and scurried off without another word. The big figure sighed in exasperation. The big figure was Xiao Zhen, he was Xiao Peng's older brother and a rising star in the clan. He was the top pick to earn number one in the competition, and he was also one of the members of the Golden Generation. He was tall with broad shoulders and a muscular physic, giving him an extremely overwhelming presence.

He sighed out loud in disappointment. Obviously, he didn't buy into Xiao Peng's exaggerated portrayal of events, he knew his brother and he certainly wasn't innocent. 'Ever since mother died he's spoiled him,' he cursed his father in his mind. He firmly believed that if his father was half as rough on his brother as he was on him, that Xiao Peng wouldn't even be comparable to the waste he is now. Still, he agreed to go. 'Even if he is a waste, he's still my little brother,' he thought protectively, not realizing he was guilty of the same sin he cursed his father for.

As for Xiao Su herself, he honestly didn't care about Xiao Su at all. [Limitless] or not, she was still just a 3rd stage, human path cultivator with little experience. He believed her entering was just a desperate attempt to save her benefits, he thought nothing of her, he'd just teach her a lesson so she knew her place. His real competition was Xiao Qin, the other Golden Generation's member in this contest. Their cultivation base was the same, they both possessed [Vigor] and, due to the rules of the contest, they couldn't bring personal weapons, so he'd lost his advantage of a better background. 'First will be him or me… I'm looking forward to it' he thought in anticipation.

…

The Stone Forest, A forest half a day's journey from Arma City. It held a lot of resources and fueled much of the city's trade. The central area of the forest is said to have trees made of stone and is extremely hazardous, filled with dangerous monsters. The outskirts, however, was much like a regular forest and housed animals and low-level beasts, it made a good hunting ground for human path cultivators.

"We're here," The carriage driver announced.

"Ah, I can finally stretch my legs," Ye Tai celebrated as he got off the carriage and stretched. He'd gotten a cheap carriage with small room and regular horses for draught animals. It was fine for the relatively short Xiao Su and He Lan, but it was a tough ride for himself. "Saving money is a road paved in hardship," He sighed to himself.

He Lan ignored him as she helped XIao Su out, who asked, "How expensive is a carriage?" in curiosity.

"Ah, I forgot that you were a rich brat," Ye Tai said with disgust, but still began to explain it to her.

While Ye Tai explained different prices and carriages to her, He Lan checked the map of the forest to ensure they were in the right area. Once satisfied, she thanked the driver and told him he could go back. Once the carriage was leaving, He Lan turned to Xiao Su and said, "Take out what you need from your ring, you should never be unprepared in the forest," in a grave tone.

Xiao Su tensed at the sudden change in atmosphere and looked at the forest for the first time. It was covered in green and tall trees that minimized the amount of sun coming in and looked full of life, yet, at the same time, she could feel an air of intimidation and violence, she could tell that many beings have fought here, it was both beautiful and intimidating. Xiao Su nodded tensely to He Lan's words, feeling excited, scared, happy and anxious all at the same time.

She accessed her space ring, a task much easier now that her qi deviation was controllable, and pulled out her spear. It was an unimpressive looking thing, the handle looked old and worn, and the blade was covered in black burn marks that made it seem almost completely black if not for a few flecks of silver still being visible, but still Xiao Su looked at the spear with affection in her eyes. As if finding strength from it, she looked up at He Lan with strong eyes and said, "I'm ready."

"Then let's go," He Lan said and started walking into the forest, Xiao Su and Ye Tai close behind her.