Chapter 8.03 – Entering The Competition

Editor: meowmiao

A long time after Xiang Han left, a smile continued to linger on Chen Shu Ze's face; his feelings unable to stabilise.

Thinking of how his senior praised him and possibly thought of accepting him as a disciple, the corners of Chen Shu Ze's lips couldn't help but rise.

Xiang Han lingered by the window and glanced at him before giving a final evaluation. [He's still a little dumb.]

[Don't worry. He's normal in front of others.] Big A was helpless. He didn't know what was wrong with the General in this world to have such a foolish look whenever he saw Xiang Han.

Xiang Han didn't stay long before turning around to leave. Since Chen Shu Ze could see him, it would be extremely humiliating if he was discovered.

At this moment, Chen Shu Ze had almost reached the stage of wanting to store away everything Xiang Han had touched. However, just as he was preparing to keep the stone bench in his Qiankun pouch, Chu Ming returned. With a flick of his sleeves, he sat down.

Chen Shu Ze was immediately dumbfounded. He…He… didn't even dare to sit there, where did Chu Ming get those guts from? It's too much! This was where his senior had just sat!

After coming back to his senses, Chen Shu Ze's face immediately darkened. It seemed as if a cloud of resentment was brewing above his head.

However, Chu Ming didn't seem to have noticed the changes and even uncourteously picked up a jug to pour himself a cup of tea before gulping it all down.

"Hm? This tea seems to have quite a bit of spiritual energy. Is it a high grade spiritual tea?" Chu Ming asked in surprise.

Chen Shu Ze's face was dark enough to drip ink. This was the high grade spiritual tea he had personally prepared for Senior. With only ten pieces of this tea leaf, he was reluctant to drink it himself. The worst had yet to come. The cup Chu Ming used was the jade cup he had prepared for Senior, the one he could never bear to use!

There was at least something to rejoice about. Fortunately, Senior hadn't drunk the tea. If he did, wouldn't Chu Ming be using his senior's cup? Just thinking about it was unbearable!

Chu Ming was startled by his resentment and hurriedly lowered the cup to ask, "What's wrong with you?" His tone had a tinge of guilt. Could Chen Shu Ze have noticed that he went to see Xiao Yue?

Chu Ming thought: Xiao Yue was Chen Shu Ze's fiancée after all. Now that she was getting along well with him, Chen Shu Ze would definitely feel a little uncomfortable no matter how magnanimous he was.

He judged others by his own worth and felt that whether Chen Shu Ze liked her or not, the fact that his fiancée got along with other men would surely undermine his dignity as a man. Although Chen Shu Ze said that he didn't care about it, who knew what he truly thought in his heart?

Chu Ming was incredibly apologetic. Afraid that Chen Shu Ze would bring it up again, he didn't give the other person a chance to speak before shifting the topic. "Oh right, I went around and found out who it was that created trouble for me."

"Who?" Chen Shu Ze recovered quickly before growing doubtful. Did someone create trouble for them today?

Chu Ming immediately fumed, "Liu Han Zhou, he's Liu Meng'er's granduncle, one of the four elders of the Qing Xuan Sect."

"He's an elder?" Chen Shu Ze's eyes lit up. Earlier, his senior seemed to have said that perhaps an elder may be willing to accept him as a disciple. Was this hinting at something? Sure enough, Senior admired him and wanted to accept him as a disciple.

The more Chen Shu Ze thought about it, the more sure he was of his guess. The corners of his lips raised but in the next second, his dream was shattered.

"What are you happy about?" Chu Ming was a little annoyed. "Although he is an elder, I heard he got in through nepotism and even allowed Liu Meng'er to become an inner sect disciple. He's just waiting to accept her as a disciple once the competition is over."

"Accept her as a disciple?" Chen Shu Ze's mood fell back into the abyss. At every selection, the elders would select one disciple at most. Sometimes, there would even be none. If Senior Liu intended to accept Liu Meng'er… what about him?

Perhaps, Senior Liu wanted to accept him as an attendant? In fact, being an attendant wasn't bad since he could at least be a little closer to his senior. Chen Shu Ze comforted himself before thinking miserably, who asked him to have a pseudo spiritual root with no hopes of reaching the Foundation Building stage?

Chu Ming began to mock again, "However, with how high-profile she's being, she's clearly unafraid of losing too wretchedly."

"But she's Senior Liu's grandniece. Even if she loses… she might still become a disciple," Chen Shu Ze said with hesitation.

"Not necessarily." Chu Ming shook his head with a mysterious smile.

Chen Shu Ze no longer spoke. Instead, he looked down at the stone bench and abruptly picked it up unhappily. "You've sat long enough, hurry up and leave."

"Ah, isn't it just sitting down for a bit."

Chen Shu Ze directly pushed him out and shut the door, grimacing at the stone bench.

What if Senior Liu was just casually comforting him and didn't even have thoughts of accepting him as an attendant? How could he enter the inner sect with his qualifications and get closer to Senior Liu?

Chen Shu Ze subconsciously reached out his hand and lightly touched the stone bench, but when he remembered that Chu Ming had just been sitting on it, his expression instantly became…hard to describe.

After wallowing for one night, he woke up the next day looking a little haggard. He took a Qi replenishing pill and meditated for a while before going out.

He had just accepted the task of planting grains yesterday and was about to head over. Chu Ming went to see Xiao Yue early in the morning, so he didn't accompany him.

After Xiang Han heard that Chen Shu Ze had received this task, he camped out at the Spirit Valley Garden. At present, he was laying on a branch of an ancient tree while reading his novel.

[Oh, it's really unbearable to not connect to the Internet. I can only look at old novels that were saved before.]

After lamenting, he lowered his head and glanced at Chen Shu Ze who had come to the garden to work hard. He took out a talisman and directly helped provide water.

However, Chen Shu Ze was standing in the middle of the field. In an instant, he became completely drenched.

Xiang Han: "Um…"

He quickly threw out two more spells to clean up before using a technique to enable him to walk on air and down the tree.

"S-Senior?" Chen Shu Ze came back to his senses, feeling his mood soar.

"En." Xiang Han gave a reply before asking nonchalantly, "You're the one cleaning up this valley?"

"Replying to Senior, that is right. But I only just took over."

Xiang Han nodded and praised him, "Not bad."

Chen Shu Ze was elated but he quickly realised that he wasn't the one who previously tidied up the valley. The one his senior was praising… wasn't him. He immediately deflated.

"The competition is tomorrow, aren't you going to practise?" Afraid that he wouldn't participate, Xiang Han came to remind him.

"Senior, actually… I haven't decided whether or not to participate," Chen Shu Ze finally said with much hesitation.

Xiang Han frowned. "Because of your spiritual root?"

Chen Shu Ze lowered his head. Although he didn't speak, the implication was obvious.

With a sigh, Xiang Han wanted to give him more advice but suddenly saw the other person look up with expectation. "Senior, if I win against Liu Shijie, will you consider accepting me as an… attendant?"

He originally wanted to say 'disciple', but upon further consideration, which elder would choose a disciple who could never reach the Foundation Building stage? Thus, he quickly changed his words.

Attendant? What was that? Xiang Han shook his head. "No."

The hope in Chen Shu Ze's eyes died and he silently lowered his head. Before he could sink into despair, Xiang Han continued, "There is a greater chance to be a disciple. But Liu Meng'er's cultivation is higher than yours. You… need to work hard."

Chen Shu Ze was frozen to the spot. He only came back to reality once Xiang Han had left.

Crazed glee immediately overcame him as he threw aside his work in the valley and went back.

Chu Ming was coincidentally at his residence and was surprised to see him return so early. "You're done with your work?"

"No." Chen Shu Ze only threw out a single word before rushing into his room.

Chu Ming looked up at the sky in confusion. "You actually abandoned your task? The sun didn't come out from the west today though?"

Chen Shu Ze couldn't be bothered with him. He quickly found his identity tile and rushed off to sign up.

"Ah, where are you going?" Chu Ming asked with a shout but never received a reply.

On the day of the competition, Chen Shu Ze was dressed neatly without a single hair out of place; his expression was tense yet hopeful.

Chu Ming helplessly remarked, "It's just cheering me on, is there a need to go to such an extent? As a participant, I'm not even as nervous as you."

Chen Shu Ze shook his head apologetically. "Brother Chu, I'm afraid I won't be able to watch your match."

"Huh? Why?"

"Because I also signed up for the disciple selection competition." Chen Shu Ze clenched his fists, his tone filled with determination.

"But you only have a pseudo spiritual root." Chu Ming instinctively replied. It wasn't that he looked down on Chen Shu Ze. In his heart, he was clear that this person was a mix between a human and demon, with aptitude beyond the norm; he was not a waste. But in the lower realm, no one could see Chen Shu Ze's true potential. Even if he emerged at the top in this competition, there may be no one willing to accept him as a disciple.

However, Chu Ming quickly realized he misspoke and hurriedly tried to explain. "No, Shu Ze, don't misunderstand. What I meant to say is… According to Qing Xuan sect rules, there is no point in participating. Why don't you wait till I've reached the Foundation Building stage to help you look for an opportunity? My natural ability will surely be of use. Believe me, with your ability to reach the fifth rank of the Qi Condensation stage despite having a five element spiritual waste root, you're definitely not lacking…"

Chen Shu Ze gave a faint smile and interrupted him with a shake of his head. "Brother Chu, I understand what you mean, but I still wish to try."

He had known Chu Ming for five years and knew that this was merely the other's brash way of speaking. Moreover, over the last five years, they had mutually helped each other out many times. He was honestly thankful for such a brother and wouldn't bicker over something like this.

Realising that he couldn't convince Chen Shu Ze, Chu Ming only shook his head. "Forget it, since you've already signed up, do your best. With your cultivation, you should be able to sweep away everyone in the first division of the Qi Condensation stage."

The cultivators who participated in the first division of the Qi Condensation stage competition all had a cultivation base of the fifth rank or lower. Meanwhile, the cultivators in the second division were above the sixth rank of the Qi Condensation stage but below the Foundation Building stage. Aside from these two, there was also the Foundation Building stage division. According to regulations, a cultivator at a lower level can bypass the ranks and challenge those above them, but a cultivator with a high cultivation level could not do the opposite.

However, bypassing meant that every opponent they encountered would surely be stronger than themselves. Thus, they may be eliminated early on and leave no chance for them to showcase their talents in front of the sect elders, let alone be accepted as a direct disciple.

Hearing Chen Shu Ze's words, Chu Ming was a little surprised. He turned back and muttered,

"He must be the true protagonist, right? Forget it, just hope that he'll be able to emerge when the time comes."

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