Yun Zi'an paid no attention to what cultivation techniques the remaining disciples demonstrated; she simply couldn't control herself from stealing one glance after another at Zhang Jingyun.
When the demonstrations ended, Lu Zhengyi pointed out the disciples' shortcomings one by one and then drifted away.
The disciples finally eased their tense spirits, gathering together to vent. "The master's standards are way too harsh! I'm just glad I passed this time."
Kou Xingwei turned to complain to Gu Lingbo, "I really have nothing to do with Senior Sister Li's female disciple! I don't know where the master heard that rumor."
"Ha!" Knowing full well Kou Xingwei's habit of leaving a trail of romance wherever he went, Gu Lingbo reached out and pushed him away. "Senior Brother, don't stand so close to me. I'm afraid people will start spreading rumors about us, too."
"Huh? Junior Sister, has your senior brother really become that kind of person in your eyes?"
Gu Lingbo rolled her eyes. "What do you think?"
Everyone clustered together, bantering and laughing lively. Meanwhile, Zhang Jingyun sat quietly beneath that large tree, staring blankly ahead.
There was no expression on his face, as if he were pondering the mistakes he had just made.
A gentle breeze blew, rustling the leaves, and Zhang Jingyun's hair fluttered softly in the wind. At that moment, Yun Zi'an felt he was utterly unfamiliar.
In her memories, shouldn't Zhang Jingyun have been arrogant above all else? Shouldn't he have trampled everyone beneath his feet?
So he, too, could be reprimanded, defeated by others, and reduced to a mere background character!
The long-standing, invincible filter Yun Zi'an had for Zhang Jingyun developed a crack, yet it brought her no joy.
She quietly walked over to Gu Lingbo and asked softly, "Senior Sister Gu, could I ask you something about... um... Fifth Senior Brother?"
"Huh?" Hearing this, Gu Lingbo looked at Yun Zi'an in utter astonishment. "You want to ask about Fifth Junior Brother?"
"What's wrong? Can't I?"
"No, it's just that I assumed you'd ask about Second Senior Brother or Third Senior Brother. I never expected you'd be more interested in Fifth Junior Brother."
"Why?"
"Because..." Gu Lingbo explained, "because Second Senior Brother is decisive and overwhelmingly powerful, and Third Senior Brother is handsome with an elegant demeanor. Who knows how many female disciples are secretly in love with them?"
Yun Zi'an twitched the corners of her mouth in speechlessness. "Senior Sister, you misunderstood. I just find it strange why Fifth Senior Brother doesn't use sword techniques."
"Does Fifth Junior Brother even know sword techniques?" Gu Lingbo looked blank. "When I went on missions with him, I only ever saw him use Ten-Star Annihilation."
"He doesn't even have a personal sword. Junior Sister, why would you think Fifth Junior Brother knows sword techniques?"
"Well... because..." Yun Zi'an stammered, "because most male cultivators use sword techniques, so I assumed Fifth Senior Brother did too. Turns out he doesn't!"
"I'm sorry, I misunderstood."
Yun Zi'an realized she had still overestimated Zhang Jingyun. He wasn't just mediocre now—he had even stopped using sword techniques. Heaven knows what on earth had happened to him over these past few years.
"Junior Sister Yun, did you and Fifth Junior Brother know each other before?"
"No!" Yun Zi'an retorted without the slightest hesitation. "How could I possibly know Fifth Senior Brother? Senior Sister, you mustn't let your imagination run wild."
"Really? I just always felt like you've been paying a lot of attention to Fifth Junior Brother."
"I haven't." Yun Zi'an put on a calm demeanor and forced a few laughs. "Senior Sister, your intuition is wrong."
Gu Lingbo looked at Yun Zi'an, then at Zhang Jingyun. No matter how she looked at it, the two didn't seem a match at all, so she discarded that lingering shred of suspicion.
Following Gu Lingbo's gaze, Yun Zi'an glanced at Zhang Jingyun once more. At that exact moment, a male disciple walked over to Zhang Jingyun's side.
The male disciple bent down and said to Zhang Jingyun, "Fifth Senior Brother, are you still reflecting on that mistake from earlier?"
"Don't trap yourself in a dead end and suffer a deviation in your cultivation. Honestly, I think you've improved a lot compared to last time."
Zhang Jingyun stood up and said in a gentle tone, "Don't worry, I won't let a trivial matter like this cause a deviation or leave a mental block in my heart."
Seeing Zhang Jingyun chatting and laughing with that person, Yun Zi'an felt her pupils constrict.
That disciple had utterly mediocre talent, yet Zhang Jingyun was actually willing to associate with him.
Yun Zi'an's expression flickered uncertainly, and she couldn't help recalling the things Zhang Jingyun used to say to her: "You're too weak; I can't be bothered to waste words on you."
"These are principles only the strong can understand. It's only normal that you don't get it."
"Stop hanging around with idiots, or you'll turn into an idiot yourself."
Suddenly, Yun Zi'an felt a crushing tightness in her chest, making it almost impossible to breathe. She pressed hard against her chest and slowly squatted down.
***
For ordinary people, the cultivation tasks of the Tandao Sect were extremely heavy, but for Zhang Jingyun, they were a breeze.
He could finish his daily quota in just a single morning, and the remaining half-day would be spent taking on other tasks or occasionally spacing out like he did today.
That newly arrived princess felt very familiar to Zhang Jingyun, but try as he might, he couldn't remember who she was.
This wasn't a good sign. People whom he felt familiar with but couldn't recall were usually enemies, because he used to belong to that rather arrogant sort who would draw their swords at the slightest disagreement.
He hadn't made many friends, but enemies were a dime a dozen.
Still, Zhang Jingyun didn't take Yun Zi'an to heart, nor did he ever think of walking up to her and asking, "Did we have a feud in the past?"
When leaving the Martial Arts Arena that morning, Song Lian had handed Zhang Jingyun a letter, telling him to deliver it to the Zhuo Family.
This Zhuo Family was extremely famous throughout the entire cultivation world, having once produced three Sword Saints. Currently, the family head's daughter, Zhuo Zhenru, was said to have a sword heart as clear as crystal; after nearly a hundred sparring matches with other sword cultivators, she had never once tasted defeat, practically making her the Zhuo Family's fourth Sword Saint.
Zhang Jingyun knew nothing about the Zhuo Family, let alone that they had such a brilliant and dazzling sword cultivator like Zhuo Zhenru.
Had it been in the past, he might have gone to the Zhuo Family to seek out Zhuo Zhenru for a sparring match.
As for now... now that he wasn't even a sword cultivator anymore, what kind of sparring was there to talk about? Whoever wanted to be the number one sword cultivator in the world could go right ahead.
Unhurriedly, Zhang Jingyun tucked the letter into his lapel and walked toward the Zhuo Family residence.
When he arrived at the Zhuo Family estate, what met his eyes was an exceptionally lively scene. A delicate and pretty young woman was dancing with a sword in the courtyard, her posture as light and graceful as a fluttering butterfly.
A large crowd surrounded the young woman. Some wore looks of awe, others expressions of total concentration, completely captivated by her.
Zhang Jingyun quickly spotted Zhuo Sheng, the head of the Zhuo Family, among the crowd. He originally intended to step forward and deliver the letter, but looking at the lively scene before him, he felt it clearly wasn't the right time. After a brief moment of thought, he simply stood among the crowd and quietly watched the young woman's sword dance.
Praises from the surrounding onlookers rose and fell in waves: "As expected of Miss Zhuo! It took her only half a month to fully master this set of Twin-Star Sword Technique."
"Even the family head back in his youth couldn't match this kind of talent."
"The Zhuo Family truly lives up to its name as a family of sword cultivators!"
"Miss Zhuo must be the most formidable sword cultivator of the younger generation."
Silently listening to everyone's comments without a word, Zhang Jingyun found it somewhat boring and hoped it would end soon so he could deliver his letter and head back.
At that moment, Zhuo Zhenru in the center was dancing faster and faster. Although she had mastered all the moves of the Twin-Star Sword Technique, the rhythm felt off every time she practiced it.
Either she was a bit too fast, or a bit too slow. She tried desperately to adjust her rhythm, but no matter what, she just couldn't find the crucial key.
*No... the Twin-Star Sword Technique is definitely not like this. I haven't fully mastered it at all.*
Just as Zhuo Zhenru thought this, she thrust out her sword, but used a fraction too much force, causing her recovery to be a split second too slow.
Zhuo Zhenru's expression changed, and she thought to herself, *I actually messed up a move! Fortunately, it's just a minor mistake; surely no one noticed.*
"Splendid!" As if echoing Zhuo Zhenru's hopeful guess, the crowd burst into applause. "Miss's sword thrust just now was both fast and fierce—it even produced a sonic boom!"
"Whew!" Hearing this, Zhuo Zhenru let out a long breath of relief, believing she had successfully covered up her mistake.
Yet when she raised her head, she was struck to see a young man staring at her with a puzzled gaze.
*Finished!* A chill ran down Zhuo Zhenru's back. *Did he see it? That look in his eyes—he definitely saw it. He knows I messed up.*
"Making a mistake in front of so many people is just too humiliating!" Zhuo Zhenru bit her lower lip, her pretty face flushing red at a visible rate.