Chapter 14: Do You Dare to Compete With Me?

When Shen Yue said that, the disciples from Heartless Peak weren’t the only ones shocked—even the onlookers were left completely stunned!

When Li Shuang was on Lingxu Peak, she had been reclusive, rarely interacting with anyone outside of her own peak’s disciples.

Those few disciples from Lingxu Peak, however, often went around spreading gossip about her.

They said she was jealous of Ye Zhaozhao.

They said she liked to take all the credit.

They said she had to control every little thing.

They said she was as cold as ice, lacking Ye Zhaozhao’s gentle kindness.

They said she was selfish and never considered others.

In short, in the words of those few from Lingxu Peak, Li Shuang was nothing short of a loathsome female demon.

But, if Li Shuang was truly as detestable as they claimed, how could Shen Yue’s statement—"The Frost Flower goes to Ye Zhaozhao every month"—possibly be true?

A selfish, ice-cold senior sister whose own cultivation resources included an item that was tacitly understood to belong to Ye Zhaozhao every month?

That wasn’t being selfish—that was being a complete sucker!

Seeing everyone’s reaction, Ye Zhaozhao felt a flicker of panic.

Everyone on Lingxu Peak was used to treating Li Shuang’s things as their own. Li Shuang never spoke of it to outsiders, so Shen Yue never thought anything of it.

Ye Zhaozhao didn’t think there was anything wrong with it either!

But she was a little smarter than Shen Yue. At least she understood some social graces and knew that if this continued, it would be bad for her reputation.

Ye Zhaozhao hurriedly said, "No, that’s not it. I was just speaking casually. It was Senior Sister who offered it to me."

Ye Zhaozhao looked at Li Shuang with an aggrieved expression. "Senior Sister, you have to help me explain! Otherwise, I won’t be able to clear this up."

’She knew Li Shuang’s personality!’

’Her father died at birth, and she lost her mother when she was young. She wandered alone for years until, by a stroke of fate, she arrived at the Sword Sect to take the entrance test.’

’On her way to the Sword Sect, Master Lingxu saw her traveling alone, took pity on her, and gave her a ride to the main gate.’

’Later, Li Shuang was found to possess a Top-grade Ice Spirit Root, causing the entire sect to fight over her. But as soon as Master Lingxu made his offer, she chose Lingxu Peak without a second thought. She took on the responsibilities of managing the peak and teaching her juniors, all without a single regret.’

’People like Li Shuang, who suffered too much in their youth, would repay even the smallest act of kindness a hundred, even a thousand times over!’

’Ye Zhaozhao was confident that for the sake of Lingxu Peak’s reputation, Li Shuang would smooth things over for her this time, just as she had countless times before!’

Li Shuang regarded Ye Zhaozhao calmly and spoke in a placid tone. "You can all laugh if you want. In the twenty years since I joined the sect, my resources only passed through my hands for the first few years. In the years since, I haven’t even known what the sect has been giving me for my cultivation. As it turns out, all of you seem to know more about it than I do. And one more thing, Ye Zhaozhao. Stop calling me Senior Sister. I don’t want to hear it."

Li Shuang’s tone was light, devoid of accusation or blame. She was simply stating a fact.

The crowd was dumbfounded.

’Something isn’t right.’

’The way those people from Lingxu Peak talked, you’d think Li Shuang was some tyrannical demon who controlled everything.’

’What kind of demon can’t even control her own cultivation resources!’

’There’s something seriously wrong with the people from Lingxu Peak!’

In an instant, the way the crowd looked at Shen Yue and Ye Zhaozhao grew even stranger.

Ye Zhaozhao’s expression shifted slightly.

’Li Shuang!’

’Why couldn’t she just have gone along with what I said and quietly admitted it? Why did she have to say all that!’

Ye Zhaozhao glanced at her system panel. She had kept calling Li Shuang "Senior Sister" to provoke her, hoping to make her recall her life on Lingxu Peak and trigger an emotional outburst.

’But Li Shuang’s negative emotion value was still 0! Clearly, the title no longer had any effect on her.’

She gritted her teeth slightly. ’Li Shuang is so emotionally stable. If my own negative emotions could be quantified, I’d probably have a mountain of points by now!’

Ye Zhaozhao’s eyes reddened as she looked at Shen Yue with a wronged expression. "Second Senior Brother, let’s just go. We never blamed Senior Sister Li for what happened on the Snow Mountain that day, but she still holds a grudge against us. Now that she’s said all this, we can’t even defend ourselves."

Ye Zhaozhao looked as though she had been grievously wronged with no way to seek justice.

Shen Yue had a short fuse. Gritting his teeth, he glared at Li Shuang. "Li Shuang! Stop playing the victim. I admit it, I used your resources. But wasn’t that what you wanted? When my Swordsmanship improved, rumors started spreading that I only got so far because of your help! Weren’t you the one who spread them? I took a few of your sword stones, and my success suddenly became all your doing! You take the glory, I take the sword stones—that was the deal you wanted! So what’s the meaning of all this now?"

Shen Yue’s expression was venomous.

’He was a genius of the Sword Dao! With or without Li Shuang, he was still a genius of the Sword Dao!’

’At first, he had been grateful for Li Shuang’s guidance.’

’But later, all of his achievements were credited to Li Shuang’s instruction!’

’Only then did he see his Senior Sister’s true intentions.’

’She coveted fame and glory, so she didn’t hesitate to belittle her own sect-mates to secure her position.’

’How could such a scheming person possibly compare to his Junior Sister!’

Li Shuang said calmly, "Everyone knows that when I’m not on a mission, I’m on Lingxu Peak. What connections would I have to spread such rumors? Shen Yue, I’ll say this one last time: I did not spread them."

’All the help she had given Shen Yue might as well have been fed to the dogs.’

’But she would not admit to something she hadn’t done.’

"If you didn’t spread them, who did? Those rumors built up your reputation, Li Shuang, but they made everyone think I’m just someone who relies on his Senior Sister!" Shen Yue sneered. "If your cultivation hadn’t regressed instead of advancing over the past ten years, few people would believe I actually made it on my own!"

Ye Zhaozhao’s eyes flickered, and she said softly, "Actually, Second Senior Brother, you were always a genius of the Sword Dao. In terms of pure Talent for the Sword Dao, Senior Sister Li is probably far inferior to you."

Ye Zhaozhao’s voice was filled with adoration.

Shen Yue subconsciously puffed out his chest. His gaze was sharp as he stared at Li Shuang. "You were always pointing out flaws in my Swordsmanship, lording your status as Senior Sister over me! Li Shuang, you are no longer a disciple of Lingxu Peak, and now you’re slandering our home peak’s name in front of everyone. Today, I officially challenge you! I will prove that my Swordsmanship has never been inferior to yours!"

Shen Yue stared intently at Li Shuang. "No Cultivation involved. Just Swordsmanship. Do you dare to compete with me?"

’He didn’t think anything Li Shuang said would benefit him.’

’He was a genius. What did he need her guidance for?’

’Today, in front of everyone, he would clear his name!’