Qin Moyu shook her head and asked in confusion, "Do we know each other?"
"No, no, no, I don't know him." The boy quickly waved his hand, scratched his face awkwardly, and said, "I just wanted to ask someone if they had seen my friend."
The boy said in frustration, "My name is Zhong Fei. I came with my friend, but I've been looking for him for a long time and I can't find him. I don't know where he went."
"He might not have come out of the illusion yet, don't worry," Qin Moyu comforted him.
Zhong Fei sighed: "I hope so. I walked around and you were the only one who wasn't carrying a sword, so I dared to greet you. I'm sorry to bother you."
"Is there anyone else here besides us?" Qin Moyu looked around in surprise.
“Yes, but they’re on the other side.” Zhong Fei gestured for Qin Moyu to follow him. They went through a door and into another courtyard, where seven or eight people were standing, all carrying swords, just as Zhong Fei had said.
The group of people were dressed differently, but none of them seemed easy to get along with, which explains why Zhong Fei didn't dare to greet them.
The courtyard here is very large and simply furnished, bare without even a blade of grass, but it can easily accommodate dozens of people. Qin Moyu was even more puzzled as to why she was the only one who was brought to the previous courtyard.
When Zhong Fei and Qin Moyu entered the courtyard, they attracted the attention of several people. Among them, a man wearing a headband and with tattoos on his face seemed to have a special interest in Qin Moyu.
Qin Moyu glanced around but didn't see Shen Yebai. Feeling disheartened, she wanted to return to the courtyard she had left.
After all, the courtyard was more comfortable than this bare place.
But to Qin Moyu's utter surprise, the man wearing a headband followed him to another courtyard and blocked his path with his sword.
The man was tall and imposing, exuding a powerful aura, which suggested he was quite capable.
"Is something the matter?" Qin Moyu frowned, and Zhong Fei hid behind Qin Moyu in fear.
This man's appearance and demeanor don't seem to belong to anyone from Dongzhou.
"You're very good-looking, and I'm very strong." The man had a stern face, and the tattoos on his face made him look even more fierce. Anyone who didn't know better would think that Qin Moyu had a blood feud with him for killing his wife and taking his child.
"So?" Qin Moyu became wary and took a step back slightly.
The man frowned and said loudly, "Be my Daoist partner."
After saying that, he stared intently at Qin Moyu, still with that fierce expression as if he were facing his father's killer.
--ha?
Qin Moyu was stunned, and Zhong Fei was stunned too.
Zhong Fei was the first to react, and whispered, "He should be a demonic cultivator from the Western Continent. The people there are fierce and respect the strong."
Qin Moyu's lips twitched slightly, and she hesitated before saying, "Th...thank you?"
The man's eyes lit up, and Qin Moyu quickly added, "Thank you for praising my looks, but I can't be your Daoist partner."
The man asked, puzzled, "Why? I'm very strong."
Seemingly to prove he wasn't lying, he took the sword he was carrying on his back—a heavy sword about half his height—and slashed it fiercely to the side.
The powerful and domineering sword energy carved a long gash in the ground, leaving devastation in its wake, and the flying stone fragments made the courtyard a mess.
This was just a casual strike from a man, yet it possessed such power. Indeed, those who could cross continents to come to the Guanlan Sect were extraordinary.
"What's wrong? What happened?!"
Before Qin Moyu could speak, another person rushed in. Qin Moyu looked at him and thought that this person's attire was... really indescribable, and his eyes were almost blind.
It's not that they wore particularly outlandish clothes, but rather that they were extremely flamboyant.
Her bright royal blue robe was embroidered with extravagant and gorgeous embroidery. She was adorned from head to toe with exquisite accessories, which looked very expensive. Even her hair was combed meticulously and seemed to have been oiled. In the sunlight, it looked like a mirror that could reflect light. She practically had "Come and rob me, I'm super rich" written on her face.
Putting all that aside, the person who came was Gu Jia, whom Qin Moyu had met on the day she went to register.
"Wife!" Gu Jia's eyes lit up when he saw Qin Moyu, and he rushed over.
Qin Moyu looked completely bewildered, glancing left and right before turning to Zhong Fei and asking, "Is this your Daoist partner?"
Zhong Fei's head was almost shaken off, and he looked terrified: "I don't know him!"
Qin Moyu watched as Gu Jia walked up to her and shyly but loudly called out, "Wife!"
The demonic cultivator was displeased upon hearing this. He held his heavy sword between the two and said fiercely, "Nonsense!"
"And who are you? No, you actually destroyed my carefully arranged courtyard!" Gu Jia only then noticed the marks left by the demonic cultivator and his eyes widened immediately.
"Do you even know how expensive my plants are! Can you afford to pay for them?!"
"No...you guys..." Qin Moyu tried to speak, but the two completely ignored him.
"Enough with the nonsense. According to the rules, let's duel. Whoever survives can become his Daoist partner!"
As he spoke, the demonic cultivator swung his heavy sword at Gu Jia, who quickly dodged and angrily retaliated.
The demonic cultivator's swordsmanship was expansive and powerful. Gu Jia's attack was easily blocked by his sword. The heavy sword in his hand was as if it were nothing, and he could slash and cut smoothly.
Unfortunately, Gu Jia's movements were unpredictable, allowing him to dodge all attacks from the demonic cultivators. Although Gu Jia couldn't retaliate, the fact that he still had time to curse showed that he had a backup plan.
They were fighting fiercely, and Qin Moyu felt like she was suffocating. She couldn't understand why the rest area had inexplicably turned into a battlefield, with flying stones and sand covering her face.
and……
"It hurts so much, waaaaah! It's so dangerous outside... Luo Yuan, why aren't you coming out yet? Waaaaah..."
Qin Moyu silently turned around and saw Zhong Fei, who had been hit on the head by a stone, clutching his head and howling in pain.