Volume 8, Chapter 525 – Tell Me, Who Is the Real Monster (Part 6)

“What?”

Upon hearing this, Elder Zhou’s aggressive momentum instantly stalled, and the other high-ranking members of the sect also wore expressions of shock and confusion.

“Master, are you serious? Her? A stinky little girl with only eight points of bloodline purity, what right does she have to replace me?”

Hua Yu’s face turned ashen, her once-charming expression completely vanishing.

“That’s right, Sect Master! You must not act on impulse! Although this girl has some talent, a mere eight-point bloodline can’t possibly bear the future of the Huarong Sect!”

Elder Zhou quickly snapped back to reality and immediately tried to persuade her.

“And then what? It’s not my fault my disciple is useless. Can you find someone better than her?”

Hua Ruyi countered indifferently.

“I admit I can’t find anyone better, but there are at least a dozen in the Huarong Sect who are comparable to her. For example, my personal disciple, or the personal disciples of everyone present, most of them have reached eight points in bloodline purity. Isn’t that right, everyone?”

Elder Zhou rallied the crowd.

“Indeed, my personal disciple Tang Jing also has an eight-point bloodline. Not only is she older and more experienced, but her cultivation is also higher. If Jiang Ling can become the Holy Maiden, why can’t my disciple?”

“And my personal disciple Hua Meng, aside from Hua Yu, she has the highest cultivation among the younger generation. Even if we were to rank by strength, it should be her turn. Why should this brat who just joined the Huarong Sect get the position?”

“Sect Master, though you hold authority, the selection of the Holy Maiden concerns the future of the Huarong Sect. Sect rules grant us the right to participate, I do not agree to Jiang Ling becoming the Holy Maiden!”

“I also disagree!”

As expected, the group of elders took the bait and stood up one after another to oppose the decision.

“See, Sect Master? Jiang Ling cannot convince the masses. If you insist on having your way, you might not just lose Hua Yu as a disciple, you might also lose the support of everyone present.”

Elder Zhou’s tone was laced with mockery.

“Are you threatening me?”

Hua Ruyi’s expression instantly turned ice-cold. Even a fool could see that Elder Zhou had ulterior motives and was dead set on pushing this marriage alliance.

“You misunderstand. This isn’t a threat, just a well-meaning reminder.”

Elder Zhou spoke with an air of arrogance, as if she had nothing to fear.

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“Master, Elder Zhou may be blunt, but she isn’t wrong. With that brat’s talent, even the betrothal gifts Cao Yang would give after I marry him would be more than she could earn in a lifetime.”

Hua Yu sneered as she glanced at Cheng Hongling and Qi Huang.

“Betrothal gifts?”

Qi Huang and Cheng Hongling exchanged a look, nearly laughing in disbelief.

“Oh?”

Shi Yuqi smirked faintly before turning to Cheng Hongling. “Disciple, it seems that to spare the Sect Master any further trouble, you’ll have to show these elders what you’re capable of.”

Hearing this, the elders all turned their gazes toward Cheng Hongling, their faces filled with skepticism.

“Uh…”

Cheng Hongling was at a complete loss for words. The Anemia Paste had already worn off, even if she wanted to demonstrate, she couldn’t.

Qi Huang also wore an awkward expression as her mind raced for a solution. She was someone who prized her dignity above all else, there was no way she would allow herself to be humiliated in such a setting.

“Niece Shi, what exactly do you mean by ‘showing us’?”

Elder Zhou, growing impatient at Cheng Hongling’s lack of response, pressed the question.

“To be frank, my disciple practices a secret ancestral technique. The speed at which she absorbs spiritual energy surpasses even those with nine-point bloodline purity.”

Shi Yuqi boasted proudly.

“Really? I find that hard to believe.”

Elder Zhou immediately voiced her skepticism.

“Senior Sister Shi, do you take us for three-year-old children? If such a technique truly existed, it would already be common knowledge.”

Hua Yu scoffed disdainfully.

“Exactly. If such a technique existed, why would anyone bother competing for geniuses? They’d just compete for the technique itself. How could it possibly end up in the hands of some backwater girl’s family?”

Elder Zhou chimed in.

“Niece Shi isn’t lying. Jiang Ling does indeed possess a secret method, I witnessed it myself earlier.”

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Hua Ruyi stepped in to mediate.

“In that case, why not have her demonstrate, as Niece Shi suggested? Otherwise, how can empty words convince anyone?”

Elder Zhou taunted.

“Indeed, I’d love to see what kind of technique can ignore the limitations of bloodline purity.”

Hua Yu wore a look of amusement, as if watching a play unfold.

Cheng Hongling hesitated, her usually aloof demeanor now tinged with urgency. She sent a mental message to her doppelgänger:

“What do we do? If we don’t put on a show, those two women, the old and the young, will never let this go.”

“Demonstrate what? The Anemia Paste has worn off. If we use the Doppelgänger Method now, it won’t be a performance, it’ll be suicide.”

Qi Huang was exasperated. Though she was no stranger to risking her life for the sake of appearances, she only did so when there was a chance of survival. This? This was a guaranteed death sentence. Only a fool would go through with it.

“Then what excuse can we use to refuse?”

Cheng Hongling rubbed her temples in frustration.

“Leave it to me!”

Qi Huang flashed a confident smile.

“What’s the hold-up? Could it be that this is all a lie?”

Hua Yu’s mocking voice rang out.

“Sect Master, the selection of the Holy Maiden is a matter of great importance to the entire Huarong Sect. If she tries to bluff her way through this, I doubt anyone here will accept it.”

Elder Zhou seized the opportunity to pile on the pressure.

“What’s going on?”

Even Hua Ruyi couldn’t stay composed any longer and stepped forward to inquire.

“I don’t know!”

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Shi Yuqi replied awkwardly.

Instead of answering directly, Qi Huang strode to the center of the hall and declared loudly:

“Esteemed elders, have you forgotten what Sect Master Hua said earlier? This technique of mine is an ancestral secret. How can I possibly demonstrate it in public? What if one of you steals it?”

“Exactly. My disciple trusts the Sect Master, but that doesn’t mean she trusts every single person here.”

Shi Yuqi immediately caught on and backed her up.

“What a pathetic excuse!”

Hua Yu rolled her eyes, now fully convinced that they were lying.

“Jiang Ling, if you don’t demonstrate, how can you convince everyone? And if you can’t convince everyone, how can you take the position of Holy Maiden?”

Elder Zhou fired off question after question.

“It’s simple. Though I can’t let you observe the cultivation process, you’re free to inspect my current cultivation level. Use your divine senses to examine me today, and we’ll reconvene tomorrow to verify the results.”

Qi Huang proposed a compromise.

The elders exchanged glances before nodding in agreement.

“That is indeed a viable solution.”

Hua Ruyi also voiced her approval.

Elder Zhou and Hua Yu shared a look before surprisingly remaining silent. After all, cultivation levels couldn’t be faked.

“Lower your divine sense barrier and let them see.”

Qi Huang then instructed her main body, relieved that this was an all-female sect. Otherwise, this issue might have been even harder to resolve.

Cheng Hongling knew there was no better option at this point, so she openly retracted her protective divine sense.

Dozens of elders in the hall immediately released their divine senses to probe her, including Hua Ruyi.

“To think her cultivation has truly reached the early third level of the Incarnation Realm.”

“Maybe she concealed her true strength when she first joined the sect?”

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“That doesn’t matter now. As long as we record her current state and check again tomorrow morning, we’ll see how much she’s improved.”

“How much progress can one make in a single day? Even a nine-point genius’s growth would be barely noticeable.”

“Why worry? That’s her problem.”

The elders murmured among themselves, knowing that this matter concerned the Huarong Sect’s future and couldn’t be taken lightly.

“Did you notice something odd about her True Qi? It doesn’t seem the same as ours.”

“Yes, even within her Qi Sea, it’s overflowing with cold energy, so much so that her ‘True Qi Incarnation’ has solidified into an ‘ice figure’ rather than the ‘water figure’ we have. The temperature is clearly much lower than ours.”

“Could this be the unique effect of her ancestral cultivation technique?”

With so many people probing, it was inevitable that someone would notice the peculiarities of Cheng Hongling’s True Qi. Fortunately, no one recognized the Water Exquisite Art, so they simply attributed it to the uniqueness of her so-called ancestral technique.

“Is everyone clear now? As of this moment, my main body’s cultivation is only at one-sixth of the third level of the Incarnation Realm. We’ll meet again tomorrow morning to verify. If my progress is faster than Hua Yu’s, that will prove my ancestral technique is genuine.”

Qi Huang reiterated the plan.

“Fine. One day. Let’s see what tricks you can pull.”

Hua Yu spoke with utter confidence.

“Tricks?”

Qi Huang grinned brightly before retrieving a slip of paper from her main body, one that recorded Hua Yu’s cultivation progress.

“This documents the time you took to advance through each level of the Incarnation Realm, correct?”

She unfolded the paper and held it up for all to see.

“That’s right. And?”

Hua Yu smirked slightly, clearly proud of her achievements.

“Nothing much. I’ll just break your records, steal your title, and send you off to marry in grand style. That’s the ‘trick’ I’m going to play.”

Qi Huang’s smile was anything but kind.