"Are those two people crazy? Why are they picking a fight with us out of nowhere?"
Feng Qingyang was so angry he wanted to curse.
He had been feeling quite pleased with himself recently. Although his ranking among the top ten in this grand competition was on the lower end, he was still a remarkable individual qualified to enter the secret realm, and his ego was rapidly inflating.
The actions of these two today had been like a slap that sent him tumbling from the heavens, making him realize the vast difference between himself and true masters.
"Shangguan Yuquan, that name sounds familiar,"
Bei Xinghan, who had always been taciturn, suddenly spoke.
He was also extremely annoyed at this moment, but when he heard the man announce his name, a complex and subtle feeling flashed through his mind.
"It sounds familiar to me too," Xiao Qi chimed in, his brow furrowed as he tried hard to recall where he might have heard this name.
"He was fourth place in the previous two sect grand competitions, Shangguan Yuquan from Daqi Sect."
Lu Zaiye casually dropped this bombshell.
"He's from Daqi Sect?"
All eyes immediately turned to Yu Xiaoyu.
Yu Xiaoyu's face turned red instantly. She lowered her head and said softly, "Yes, yes."
When she heard Shangguan Yuquan announce his name, she had already recognized the senior disciple she had only heard about.
She had even studied the notes left by this senior disciple back then.
"But he hasn't appeared in the sect for a long time, and I haven't heard any news of him either. I don't know why he would do this," Yu Xiaoyu explained with a blush, finally exclaiming loudly, "I'm sorry!"
Then she bowed deeply to everyone.
"It's not your fault."
Xu Yi pulled her up, a thoughtful expression on his face.
Shangguan Yuquan had not shown her any special treatment because of Yu Xiaoyu's identity; instead, he had treated everyone equally. It seemed he didn't consider Yu Xiaoyu a fellow disciple.
Moreover, his parting words, "Next time we meet, I won't hold back," were spoken with such certainty that they would meet again.
Why was he so sure?
Although the woman accompanying him had spoken up to defuse the situation, her actions clearly indicated she hadn't taken them seriously.
Xu Yi felt that the appearance of these two, while seemingly without purpose, was also like a deliberate show of force, as if warning them to show more respect in the future.
Xu Yi had vague ideas forming in his mind, but they couldn't be connected, giving rise to a feeling of anxious restlessness.
"Ah!" Xiong Zhuangzhuang slapped his head fiercely and shouted, "I remember! That female cultivator is Senior Sister Wanyan from our Imperial Beast Sect, her full name is Wanyan Xue. She also participated in the grand competition in the previous two sessions, and she was the first place!"
That woman was actually from the Imperial Beast Sect.
Everyone exchanged glances, sensing something was amiss.
"That's not right. I heard the elders say she was recruited by Kunlun Academy. How can she be here?"
Xiong Zhuangzhuang asked, stroking his head in confusion, his thick black eyebrows furrowed.
"Kunlun Academy!"
In a flash, Xu Yi finally pieced together the scattered thoughts in his mind, his face showing a look of realization.
So that's how it is.
A cold smile tugged at Xu Yi's lips. It seemed they would meet again soon.
"Isn't she an Imperial Beast Sect disciple? How can she also join Kunlun Academy?"
Bai Shan tilted his head, his fair and plump face etched with confusion.
Except for him, everyone present was a disciple of the five major sects, and naturally knew more hidden secrets than he did.
It was widely known throughout the Nine Provinces Continent that there were five major sects, but few knew that above the five major sects, there was Kunlun Academy.
The location of Kunlun Academy was extremely well-hidden, and it rarely appeared in the world. Its disciples numbered no more than a hundred, yet it could suppress the five major sects to become a super force. The most crucial reason for this was that all disciples of Kunlun Academy came from the five major sects.
Or rather, Kunlun Academy was composed of the elite disciples from the five major sects.
No one knew when Kunlun Academy was established, only that since its establishment, it had begun to demand disciples from the five major sects. And no matter what their private thoughts were, the five major sects ultimately agreed.
Furthermore, Kunlun Academy accepted very few people each time, so the five major sects did not have much dissatisfaction. Instead, they often competed for the number of disciples entering Kunlun Academy.
"So we also have a chance to join Kunlun Academy? Is that right?"
Bai Shan's eyes lit up astonishingly.
Kunlun Academy.
That was the most prominent force in the Nine Provinces Continent.
Being able to join it was also a recognition of one's own strength.
"They came to our doorstep to declare war. It seems they are not very welcoming towards us."
Xu Yi raised his eyebrows slightly and sighed.
"Aren't they just proud because they've cultivated for a few hundred years longer than us? We'll eventually make them pay for looking down on us once we join Kunlun Academy."
Feng Qingyang angrily kicked a large rock away.
"That's right."
Xiao Qi also raised his head defiantly, his eyes flashing with fighting spirit.
"Hong Jing, what do you think?"
Seeing Hong Jing gently twirling his prayer beads and remaining silent, Xu Yi tossed the question to him.
"Buddhism cultivates the mind. The Buddha Son surely does not take those two to heart,"
Xiao Qi quickly explained for Hong Jing, fearing everyone might misunderstand.
"No," Hong Jing suddenly shook his head, his voice low. "I'm just thinking that the direction they went happens to be the direction of Ping'an City, so I have some doubts about their purpose this time."
Everyone was shocked to hear this.
Their current journey was for the Myriad Buddha Sect's secret realm. If these two were present, the treasures in the secret realm would certainly be snatched up by them, and they would return empty-handed.
"But isn't the Myriad Buddha Sect's secret realm only known to you?"
Yu Xiaoyu's words slightly put everyone at ease.
"Have you forgotten that there are also disciples from the Myriad Buddha Sect in Kunlun Academy?"
Everyone: !!!
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's set off immediately, so they don't snatch all the good things."
Xiong Zhuangzhuang anxiously summoned his flying artifact, leaped onto it, and took off.
The others looked expectantly at Hong Jing, as if waiting for his approval to immediately mount their artifacts.
"As Xu Yi suggested."
Hong Jing was also worried that the secret realm would be preempted and was curious about the purpose of those two, so he no longer insisted.
Everyone quickly took out their flying artifacts, ready to depart at a moment's notice.
"Wait a moment."
Xu Yi suddenly called out to the others, then grabbed Lu Zaiye's hand and raised it high. "We can ride the Divine Speed Ship. This is a sixth-tier flying artifact, enough to accommodate all of us."
Xu Yi had been too busy recently and had forgotten about the existence of the Divine Speed Ship until Lu Zaiye took it out just now.
Even more surprisingly, Lu Zaiye had brought the Divine Speed Ship back to Xuanji Sect and asked the elders skilled in artifact refining to repair all its damage.
With the Divine Speed Ship, they could achieve maximum speed and there would be no worry of anyone falling behind.
Upon hearing this, everyone looked at the artifacts beneath their feet and immediately decided to abandon their own artifacts and follow Xu Yi.
Lu Zaiye felt the touch of his hand, and a smile quickly flashed across his eyes.