Su Lihua always felt that Ling Xiaoyou’s words were strange, but she couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was off, so she shook her head and asked:
“Enough about us. What were you all doing yesterday? Were you really just staying in the hotel the whole day?”
“No, not at all. We were out shopping, just like you.”
Ling Xiaoyou spread her hands.
“Only we didn’t play as long as you did, just a little browsing.”
Hearing this, the Su sisters showed no particular reaction, only nodding in understanding.
But Bai Shuanglian gave Ling Xiaoyou a helpless look.
‘A little browsing?’
She remembered clearly that yesterday they’d been out from morning until late at night.
Still, Bai Shuanglian didn’t intend to call her out.
She simply listened quietly.
“Well, I admit my sister and I did go a bit overboard, but since we’re here anyway, we might as well enjoy ourselves.”
Su Lihua waved a hand, uttering a line that any person from Eastern Radiance would find unarguable.
With that, she turned her gaze to the venue and said to the others:
“Alright, enough talk. Let’s head inside and take a look. I’ve never been in there before!”
Seeing Su Lihua so excited, Ling Xiaoyou gave her a puzzled glance, then recalling something, asked:
“You’ve never been here? Then didn’t you come watch your sister’s matches earlier?”
At this, Su Lihua’s expression stiffened.
She awkwardly averted her eyes, scratched her cheek, and said:
“That day… I slept in, so I let my sister go alone.”
“Oh…”
Ling Xiaoyou felt a bit sorry for Su Taosheng.
She poured her heart out for her younger sister, yet when it was time for her competition, her little sister didn’t even want to come because she overslept.
Ling Xiaoyou glanced at Su Taosheng, but the latter said nothing, only looking at her sister and sighing softly.
Everything was left unsaid.
After entering the venue, the group took Su Lihua around to familiarize her with the place.
Then, feeling that time was about up, they returned to their respective rest chambers.
In the rest chamber belonging to the Ghostly Resentment Office, Ling Xiaoyou looked at the empty room and suddenly found it a bit uncomfortable.
After all, before this, the place had been nearly full of people from their office.
Now only she remained.
She sighed softly.
‘Well, since I’m the only one left from the Ghostly Resentment Office in this tournament, I have to bear it all alone.’
Oh, it wasn’t night yet, so it wasn’t time to get emotional.
Never mind.
Ling Xiaoyou let her thoughts run wild, then plopped down on the sofa, sprawled out like a salted fish, and waited for the match to begin.
‘Since I’m the only one left in the rest chamber, I don’t need to keep up any elegant image. I’ll just be like I am at home.’
With that thought, she pulled a bag of potato chips from her Space Ring, paired it with her mobile phone, and started munching “crunch, crunch” while scrolling through silly short videos.
Just as she finished the third bag of chips, a light screen abruptly appeared above the coffee table in front of her.
Ling Xiaoyou dumped the remaining chips into her mouth, puffed out her cheeks as she chewed, and the little “crunch, crunch” sounds kept coming from her small mouth.
“Mmm, it’s finally starting.”
An image appeared on the light screen.
In the picture, the same white-haired, kindly little old man was shown, holding a piece of paper and a microphone.
Thinking the Association President was about to launch into another long speech, Ling Xiaoyou was about to pull out another bag of chips when she heard him clear his throat and say:
“Next, I shall announce the match-ups for the upcoming rounds.”
“First, the grouping for the highest realms: the Yin Generals and Nascent Soul Stage. Shao Yueyue versus Su Kun, Ye Jingdan versus…”
As she listened to the President’s recitation, Ling Xiaoyou glanced at the little old man in surprise.
She hadn’t expected him to get straight to the point without a long-winded speech.
Since that was the case, she put the chips back and listened patiently to the match list.
Soon, she heard Bai Shuanglian and Su Taosheng’s names.
“…Du Yuanhuai versus Bai Shuanglian, Su Taosheng versus Zhen Wu.”
As the President’s words fell, portraits of the contestants appeared on the light screen.
Ling Xiaoyou looked.
Bai Shuanglian’s opponent was a young woman around her twenties, with a delicate appearance and an unremarkable figure.
Su Taosheng’s opponent was a young man with an ordinary face and an ordinary build.
‘Hmm, none of these opponents seem all that impressive.’
Ling Xiaoyou muttered to herself, then continued listening as the President read out the remaining match-ups.
The grouping for Spirit Core and Golden Core was nothing special.
Ling Xiaoyou wasn’t in that division, and she didn’t know anyone in it, so she only half-listened before tuning out.
She was mainly waiting for her own grouping and opponent.
The President’s reading wasn’t slow; in fact, it was rather fast.
After the Spirit Core and Golden Core groups appeared on the light screen, he continued with the Soul Gathering and Foundation Establishment match-ups:
“Sheng Tao versus Yan Yiming…”
Ling Xiaoyou waited a little, and soon she heard her own name.
“…Ling Xiaoyou versus Hui Jue.”
‘Hui Jue?’
Ling Xiaoyou was startled.
The name sounded a bit strange.
Was “Hui” a surname?
But when she saw her opponent’s photo, it dawned on her.
Oh, so he’s a monk.
She nodded her little head in understanding, surprised that a monk was participating in this Xuantian Martial Tournament.
And judging by the introduction, this monk was also a Ghost.
Probably from the Ghost Temple, she figured.
Ling Xiaoyou thought this not because she knew much about the Ghost Temple, but simply because…
The Underworld had only one temple: the Ghost Temple!
After all, the Underworld was full of ghosts.
What ghost would still believe in Buddhism?
Just as she was thinking this, she saw that the President had finished reading the Form Condensation and Yuan Condensation groupings.
As for Wandering Yin and Qi Drawing…
Sorry, those realms were too low to participate in the tournament.
After finishing the groupings, the perspective shifted, and the image froze on the host.
The host first greeted the audience, then waved his hand.
On the big screen, various small spaces appeared.
There were mountains, isolated islands, deserts, volcanoes…
These were the venues for the upcoming matches.
The host’s voice came through the light screen:
“Alright then. Next, please welcome our contestants to enter!”
Hearing this, Ling Xiaoyou casually tossed the empty chip bag into the trash, and then saw a Light Gate appear once again by the door of the rest chamber.
She looked at those small spaces, thought for a moment, and stepped into the Light Gate.