54. The Sect Tournament
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Just three days after the wedding, the sun rose on the tournament day, and an excited crowd had gathered at the Yue City Central Arena!
The Yue City Central Arena was much larger than the smaller arenas sect warriors or disciples used for normal practice or duels, and its high pillars towered over the crowd.
There were raised seats around for prominent figures, and then regular stepped seats or standing spots for everyone else.
"Welcome to Yueyan Sect's 153rd Sect Tournament!" One of the Sect Elders, Elder Zhou, announced in a loud excited voice, which razzled the crowd further.
Spectator 1, "It's Elder Zhou!"
Spectator 2, "Wah! He rarely comes out!"
Spectator 3, "Back then, he won for so many years, both as a disciple and Sect Warrior!"
Elder Zhou was the youngest Sect Elder, achieving Astral Tier at just thirty-five!
This made him highly admired, and he was the new goal among the current disciples, who sought to surpass him.
"Today, we will all see which of our young'uns have been working hard these past three years!" Elder Zhou was saying. "And now! I announce! The tournament has officially started!!"
There was a loud and raucous cheer as Sect Warriors and disciples alike processed round the arena.
The disciples were starting first, so the Sect Warriors left the platform, and under Elder Zhou's instructions, the eligible disciples all filed to the center.
For disciples, the minimum participation age was eighteen, so this was the first opportunity for Xu Weiyan, Xu Lin, Xu Wen, and Xu Lian.
There were two sections for the disciples, Senior and Junior, and all of them were in the 'Junior' category for disciples younger than twenty five, so they milled around in a group of more than sixty disciples, while the Seniors stood in another group of about forty.
Greetings flew here and as friends, comrades, and even siblings gathered. Most of the Xu Disciples stood together, their hairbands gleaming in the early sunlight, but Xu Haoyuan made a point of standing off to one side.
No one could really fault Haoyuan for his decisions during the Eye-eater mission, but when compared to how swiftly and efficiently Xu Weiyan had minimized the damage, he was once again lacking.
Meanwhile, amidst the Xu disciples, Xu Lian had pointedly not attended Weiyan's wedding, and she was now shooting Weiyan challenging looks!
"Sis, your intentions are too clear on your face." Xu Wen patted her head. "It's too late, just let go of Zhang Luoyin."
"No!" Xu Lian shook her head. "I know some blades of grass that are more engaging than Sister Weiyan! I'll impress Zhang Luoyin in the tournament, and wait till he's tired of her!"
"Are you cursing your own cousin's marriage?!" Xu Lin reprimanded. "It's better to destroy a nine-tier tower than break apart a couple!"
"Hmph! They aren't exactly 'two mandarin ducks'! I won't acknowledge the marriage!" Xu Lian retorted, but Xu Wen and Xu Lin comically stepped away from her.
"If you're going against Sister Weiyan, I don't know you." Xu Wen stated.
"You're my twin!" She reminded him, but he simply nodded.
"Umh. We even have similar auras." He nodded. "That's why I must keep my distance. If Sister Weiyan gets angry, I don't want to be mistakenly hit by her attack."
"Me too!" Xu Lin pointed at himself. "Our names sound too similar... I feel endangered!"
"You-!" She pouted. "Tch!"
"Ei? Speaking of Zhang Luoyin... Where is he?" Xu Lin asked, and they all looked around. "Over there!"
Luoyin and Xu Min approached the group.
Xu Min had gone to the Yan house, specifically so Luoyin wouldn't have to come here alone.
"You're far too nice!" Luoyin had said, but happily accompanied him to the Arena.
Now, as they approached, Xu Lian gasped in shock. "Zh- Zh- Zhang Luoyin's face is-!" She stuttered in awe, eyeing the perfect face, and those gaze-drawing dimples!
Xu Lin, "We were also surprised at the wedding!"
Xu Wen, "There, there..." He patted her head again, but she fisted her hands.
"I can't let Sister Weiyan keep him!"
"He's not some collectible treasure!" Xu Lin and Xu Wen chorused.
Meanwhile, the other disciples eyed Zhang Luoyin in open curiosity.
More than a few ladies had rounded eyes at the sight of his face, with one or two suddenly drawing closer for no reason! But what everyone wanted to know was how Zhang Luoyin intended to participate in the tournament...
"I bet he'll be kicked out in the first round!"
"I'll bet he's scared off before the first round!"
This made several of them laugh, and Xu Min jumped to his defense, insulting the disciple who had spoken, which led to a mild quarrel.
But Luoyin barely heard anything, as his light brown irises instantly lit on Weiyan...
She was dressed in the normal light blue robes for clan disciples, and Luoyin was convinced these clothes were bewitched in some way...
Why else should his eyes trail their length, from the Xu headband around Weiyan's head, to the Xu Clan belt encircling her narrow waist, which was teased by the ends of her long luscious hair, flowing from a stylish ponytail, and then down to her booted feet?
Weiyan suddenly turned to him, and as their gazes briefly locked, her eyes widened ever-so-slightly...
These awkward newlyweds lived in the same house, but hadn't seen each other since the wedding night.
In fact, their courtyards were on opposite sides of the household!
Weiyan hastily turned away, and after a moment, so did Luoyin.
However...
The sight of Luoyin had caused Weiyan to flush, but, 'I don't deserve him!'
Whereas Luoyin scowled with a bitter feeling when she turned away, 'Tch! Heartless! Won't even look at me!'
And meanwhile...
"Psst! Oye!" Xu Lin leaned over to whisper with Xu Wen. The two never saw eye-to-eye, but had grown closer after the Eye-eater mission. "Is it me, or is this couple less-than-harmonious?!"
"Mind your own affairs." Xu Wen simply responded.
"Ni-!"
But Xu Lian had overheard them and she smiled, sidling over to Luoyin.
"Zhang Luoyin, I hear the first stage of the tournament is usually a day-long hunt in pairs... Can I pair with you?!"
Luoyin was thankful eyes could not kill... He would certainly be dead already as every pair of eyes within earshot swivelled to him so fast!
"Er..." He suddenly grabbed Xu Min's arm and yanked him closer, cutting off his quarrel with the other disciples. "I've already partnered with Xu Min!"
Xu Min did not hesitate.
"Ah, yes! Zhang Yin and I agreed on the way here!"
'Brother! You're too good!' Luoyin gratefully thought, as Xu Lian scowled.
"We start with the Junior Category!" Elder Zhou's voice was welcome!
"First round is the twenty-four-hour hunt, beginning by noon, and by noon tomorrow, we'll have our first set of winners proceeding to the second round!"
His words were met with a loud cheer, but he raised a hand to calm them after some time.
"I will ask the Seniors to leave the platform now, while the Juniors divide into pairs for the hunt.
The disciples began to split into pairs, while the crowd openly discussed who had what chance to shine.
But then there was a sudden silence as someone suddenly landed onto the platform, his aura raising a fine cloud of dust.
He straightened and dusted himself as the dust cleared, and there were numerous gasps.
"Zhang Cheng?!"
"It's 1st Disciple Zhang!"
"I thought he was suspended!"
"Is that a Clan Headband on his head?!"
Zhang Cheng indeed wore the Xu Clan headband and Clan belt, and in one of the raised seats, Zhang Furen smiled.
Not only had she turned over her son's suspension, she had convinced the Xu Elders to use his marriage with Xu Linhua as grounds for making him a Xu Disciple.
Beside her, Linhua beamed in admiration as Zhang Cheng strutted over to the Junior Disciple group.
"Yo." He began, heading straight for the Xu Disciples. "If it isn't the collection of entitled wastes..." He turned to Xu Haoyuan. "My dear Head Disciple, now that I'm a Xu disciple, how long do you think you can hold on to your title?"
'Hmph.' A smirk creeped onto Luoyin's face. 'I knew this fellow wouldn't disappoint me!' He thought, stepping forward.
"Elder brother, how delightful of you to finally join us!" He gestured around. "Come, come, let's all applaud this 'likeable' fellow, umh?! Snuck in through a window to challenge the house owners!"
The disciples around all snickered and Zhang Cheng's smug look vanished in a flash.
"Zhang Luoyin!!" Zhang Cheng took a threatening step towards Luoyin, but stopped when he remembered where he was.
Luoyin suddenly turned dead serious, his face, the mirror of genuine worry for his brother. "But my dear elder brother, I must ask... Is the thing on your neck even functional?
"Even if you become the Head Disciple now, aren't you twenty-four already?! HOW LONG CAN YOU HOLD ON TO YOUR TITLE??!!"
The question was a reminder that Zhang Cheng would be a senior soon, so becoming 'Head Disciple' now was pointless, and it sent the disciples scattering with laughter, including Xu Haoyuan who had looked glum before now, and Xu Weiyan,
who covered her mouth with her sleeve and turned away to hide her own laughter.
Zhang Cheng looked like he would kill Luoyin without hesitation if the two were alone, and several were worried for Luoyin.
"Would he be safe during the tournament?!!"
"And there's so much at stake here!"
Zhang Luoyin and Xu Min were twenty-three, while Xu Haoyuan and Zhang Cheng were twenty-four...
This was the last chance for all four of them to participate in the Junior Category, as they would all be seniors before the next tournament.
Plus, with the recent series of embarrassments attached to Zheng Chang's name, Zhang Cheng would certainly want to make a splash here, and using Zhang Luoyin as his stepping stone was the fastest way.
That knowledge, combined with his severely pissed expression, did not bode well for Zhang Luoyin, if the two ever met in this tournament!
But the Zhang Luoyin in question did not seem bothered.
Instead, his eyes darted to the entry Archway of the Arena, where a lady in bright red robes stood staring at him, her hair covering most of her face.
'That thing has followed me since I stepped outside today...' He thought.
The lady had never drawn close, but Luoyin had sensed her, even in the crowded marketplace, following him from a distance.
'The word is not 'follow'. I'm being 'haunted'.'
The woman was a ghost!
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