NOVEL NEXT Chapter 55: What Was There to Fear
Lou Mu Yan and the Lightning Leopard fought for around an incense stick of time, then she felt bored, and decided to end the battle.
This Tier 4 Demonic Beast was domesticated too early by a Spirit Beast Master, so it’s wildness could no longer compare to the other Demonic Beasts in the wild that had spent their lives in a world where the weak became food to the strong. In fact, its strength was still much inferior to that of a Middle-Phase Sword Spirit.
Lou Mu Yan’s eyes sharpened when the Lightning Leopard pounced towards her again, her jade-like hands gestured a few times and a solid Fire Elemental Energy Condensation Taoist Seal danced in the palm of her hand.
When the Lightning Leopard was close, she lightly tapped her toes, flashed by the Lightning Leopard’s side, then pushed the Taoist Seal in her hand directly into the Lightning Leopard’s body.
[ROAR!!] All the Lightning Leopard could feel were its internal organs and yao’fu1 burning as if ignited by flames. It fell from the sky, its expression pained as its body twitched uncontrollably.
Lou Mu Yan’s eyes were cold. Every attack of this Demonic Beast headed for her face and her dan’tian. Not only did it want to destroy her face, but it also wanted to take the opportunity to destroy her dan’tian. Even if it was instructed to do so by Gu Yan Ran, it was still unforgivable.
Every time they clashed, she had already used her Fire Elemental Energy to draw talismans and hit the talisman into the Lightning Leopard’s body. She could kill it given an opportunity. Except the Academy had stipulated that during the Grand Competition, they couldn’t harm one’s life, so she changed it to destroying its yao’fu and completely turn it into a trash beast.
The yao’fu of a Demonic Beast was similar to the human’s dan’tian. The Spiritual Force2 absorbed by the Demonic Beast was required to go through the yao’fu to be converted into Demonic Energy, that’s why Demonic Beast’s with a destroyed yao’fu would become no different to any other wild beast.
“What?” The people on the stands were dumbfounded, “Lou Mu Yan actually defeated a Tier 4 Demonic Beast, I’m not seeing things right?”
“My Heavens! Lou Mu Yan’s so violent, I like it so much!” A male student rubbed his eyes and revealed his admiration.
“Yeah! As expected, a beauty’s a beauty, even when they’re so violent they’re so charming.”
This was how it was in a world where strength was respected. Without strength, no matter how strong one’s family background was or how beautiful one was, one would always be looked down upon by others, and crowned with the title of ‘trash’. If one’s strength was recognised by the public, then the hearts of the people would change as well, and one would win the respect of others.
“Well fuck3, Lou Mu Yan this tigress is too violent.” Xiao Zi Ang stared at Lou Mu Yan with a look of excitement on his face.
Following his exclamation, his shoulder was ‘greeted’ with a slap from Lou Mu Ting, “You’re the tigress, your entire family are tigresses. My little sister’s such a likeable beauty, how’s she a tigress?”
Lou Mu Bai also turned his head and glanced at Xiao Zi Ang faintly, his eyes filled with evident unhappiness.
Yun Lan also looked at him unhappily and said disapprovingly: “Cousin simply has an honest temperament, take good care of that mouth of yours.”
Xiao Zi Ang shrank his neck into his shoulders—it was just a slip of the tongue He looked at Yun Luo, aggrieved, begging for help, but seeing he also had an expression of disapproval, he instantly deflated and smiled awkwardly: “I’m joking, joking.”
“…”
Lou Mu Yan defeating the Tier 4 Demonic Beast made everyone in the audience seats, including the distinguished guests, completely stunned. Not only did she fight across levels, but her speed was also so fast. Just how much strength did she hide?
“Lou Mu Yan, what did you do to the Lightning Leopard?” Gu Yan Ran suddenly felt that the connection between her and Lightning Leopard was gradually weakening. Seeing her Spirit Pet rolling on the floor in agony, her heart constricted, but anger quickly replaced everything.
Lou Mu Yan raised an eyebrow: “It’s just as you see.”
“You dare injure my Spirit Pet.” Gu Yan Ran’s grim gaze ruined that soft and delicate appearance of hers, and now appeared like a colourful, venomous serpent that desired to swallow Lou Mu Yan alive.
Lou Mu Yan sneered, “Gu Yan Ran, aren’t you thinking too highly of yourself? I don’t even care for you, let alone just a Spirit Pet. If I want to injure, I’ll injure. If you can’t accept it then come bite me.”
“Lou Mu Yan, you’ve really forced me this time.” Gu Yan Ran’s face was slightly distorted.
She enquired from her elder sister that the Trial they would participate in after the Grand Competition was different from the past. If one won, then the opportunities gained would be hundred times better than what one could obtain from cultivating in the Empire Academy. So this time she must obtain the only quota.
Lou Mu Yan’s arched eyebrows furrowed—it seemed that Gu Yan Ran still had a trick up her sleeves, “Whatever tricks you have just use it.”
Gu Yan Ran bit her lower lip, with a grieving appearance as if saying ‘you forced me’, then she focused all her energy into the green jade pendant around her neck. An energy that didn’t belong to her overflowed from the jade pendant and entered her body.
Surprise flashed past Lou Mu Yan’s eyes. Gu Yan Ran actually wanted to borrow someone else’s strength. With her strong Mental Energy, she naturally discovered that there was a hidden power that was sealed in the jade pendant, and it wasn’t weak at all.
The sealed wind attribute Elemental Energy penetrated into Gu Yan Ran’s meridians, then finally converged around her dan’tian, lingering. Due to the yellow seal and control of the talisman incantation, however, the energy couldn’t enter her dan’tian.
Gu Yan Ran clasped the longsword in her hand tightly, and with a thought, she controlled that energy and forcefully shattered the Void Talisman that Lou Mu Yan drew. Following, the energy plunged into her dan’tian, swiftly operating.
Feeling that the talisman incantation in the dan’tian was broken, Gu Yan Ran revealed a gleeful smile. She immediately absorbed the wind attribute Elemental Energy and transformed it for her own use.
Lou Mu Yan knew of it the moment the Void Talisman shattered. Half-hidden beneath her sleeves, she began to pinch a few gestures with her hands, waiting for Gu Yan Ran to make a move.
Gradually, an unnatural redness rose on Gu Yan Ran’s small face, and a violent energy surged in her body.
What shocked the spectators was that Gu Yan Ran’s cultivation base was steadily rising. She rose from Advanced-Phase Great Sword Master to Peak-Phase Great Sword Master, then broke through to Initial-Phase Sword Spirit, but there wasn’t any sign of stopping. Once she broke through to Advanced-Phase Sword Spirit, it only stopped because her physique couldn’t handle it.
“Today sure is exciting! Lou Mu Yan’s monstrous, but this Gu Yan Ran also kept revealing her hidden cards. This competition’s even more exciting than the Heaven Class.”
“Let’s continue to watch a good show. I feel that Lou Mu Yan’s in danger this time. Gu Yan Ran’s aura this time is much stronger than the Lightning Leopard before.”
“Lou Mu Yan’s in danger now, the battle this time sure was full of twists and turns.”
The students in the audience were discussing quietly. The strength that the two displayed were both amazing and shocking, so they began to speculate the result of this competition. Currently, more people stood on Gu Yan Ran’s side again.
“Lou Mu Yan, I think it’s more appropriate for you to go back to the trash that you were. Today, let me send you there.” Gu Yan Ran’s face was flushed red. It was evident that the energy within her body was a little unbearable for her, but it also brought to her an indescribable sense of excitement.
Today, she must beat Lou Mu Yan back to her original shape and let her fall into the dust.
There was slight ridicule on Lou Mu Yan’s face—Gu Yan Ran’s way of inverting the branch and the root4 sure wasn’t something she’d agree with.
She could feel that the strength Gu Yan Ran borrowed was extremely invasive. Once the Elemental Energy dissipated, it would bring great hidden dangers to the body.
But this was Gu Yan Ran’s choice. She had never shown kindness towards an enemy before. She initially wanted to try to not break the rules during the competition and secretly disable Gu Yan Ran, but now she changed her mind.
Since Gu Yan Ran wholeheartedly wanted to turn her back into trash in public, then she naturally would deal with Gu Yan Ran as she was doing to her.
In the face of exceptional strength, what did the rules count for. It was enough to just take advantage of the holes in the rules.
Gu Yan Ran who stood opposite her successfully aroused her once unbridled and fearless temperament. Facing this world, what was there to fear!
Translated product by May Our 梦 Come True
1the literal translation of 妖府 is Demon Mansion, but it’s equivalent to the human ‘dan’tian’, so I’ll leave it as pin’yin like I did with ‘dan’tian’. Luckily what a ‘yao’fu’ is gets explained in this chapter.
2the word was originally Elemental Energy, but I think it was a typo by the author.
3I swear it sounds so weird translating swear words HAHA. He said 我靠 (wo kao) which is a swear word.
4aka putting the cart before the horse, meaning to be confused and reversing the order/importance of things.
Random Note: I just want to thank everyone who’s read it this far! Regardless of whether you’ll continue reading until the end, or if you’ll put it on hold, or if you’ll drop this novel in the near/far future, thank you for at least picking it up and trying it out. 🙂 More daily updates to come, and hopefully I’ll be able to find some time to update more than one chapter a day again, eventually. Thanks again!