The More Beautiful and Ruthless on Stage

After Jiang Yuan was helped down by the disciples of Bai Sang Peak, the noise around the Sword Debate Platform had not yet subsided when the new drawing jade tablets lit up with a soft light in mid-air.

Lin Wanqing held the booklet and looked at the rows of figures standing up at the female cultivators' seats, lowering her voice slightly.

"Senior Brother Mo, is the competition for the Holy Maiden starting soon?"

Mo Chengyue closed Bai Sangfeng's file and looked up at the other side of the stands.

"It seems so."

Xie Buci waved his folding fan, his peach blossom eyes sweeping over the female cultivators' seats, and he looked much more energetic than before.

"We've finally reached this part. The sect competition would be half as fun if female cultivators didn't take the stage."

Qin Wanzhuang glanced at him sideways.

"You'd better talk about fighting."

Xie Buci immediately straightened his expression.

"Of course it's a battle, Second Junior Sister. How can you think so little of your Senior Brother?"

Wenren Ji, holding his sword, added a sentence earnestly.

"You're shallow."

Xie Buci held the fan in his palm, looking very hurt.

"Junior brother, sword cultivators can be honest, but they can't be honest to the point of hurting their senior brother every time."

Yu Jianhuan chuckled softly, her rose-purple dress spreading out to the side of her seat, the silver bells on her slender wrists jingling gently in the breeze.

"Senior Brother Xie, don't feel wronged. Today, with the opening of the Saintess selection, the excitement among the female cultivators is much more interesting than that among the male cultivators."

Lin Wanqing's eyes lit up.

"Are you very familiar with Senior Sister Yu?"

Yu Jianhuan tapped her chin with her nail-painted fingertips, her voice soft yet sharp.

"They're very familiar with each other. The female cultivators compete for titles, resources, the elders' favor, and even a word of praise. Their methods are far more subtle than the moves on stage."

Su Qingying sat not far away, her plain dress draped over a blue sash, her black hair tied up with a jade hairpin, her cool profile illuminated by the spiritual light of the battle platform.

"Some rely on swords, some on cunning, some on their background, and some on a face that makes people lower their guard."

Jin Qiaoqiao leaned back in her chair, her phoenix eyes sweeping over the female cultivators' seats, her dark hair shimmering with iridescent colors in the sunlight.

"Among the demon race, when vying for the throne of the queen, the first to fall is often not the weakest, but the one who is first seen."

Mo Chengyue listened attentively, his fingers resting on the edge of the file.

"Therefore, we must see clearly today which peak will become the Holy Maiden in the future, and also see if she will affect the peaceful life of Qingquan Peak."

Lin Wanqing blinked.

"Senior Brother Mo, weren't you just here to watch the fun?"

Mo Chengyue spoke sincerely.

"I'm just watching the show."

Xie Buci smiled.

"Third brother, you're making this look like a secret investigation by a sect."

Qin Wanzhuang said.

"Be poor, but look at the people around you."

Mo Chengyue nodded.

"Second Senior Sister, don't worry, I'm always very conservative when it comes to judging people."

Yu Jianhuan covered her lips.

"So conservative that they can pinpoint whether someone's next move is to harm others or to play the victim?"

Mo Chengyue sighed.

"Senior Sister Yu, don't spread rumors about me. I'm just a guard at the Scripture Pavilion. My job is to move books and dust them. I occasionally get scolded by Elder Chen."

Lin Wanqing whispered.

"Elder Chen reprimanded you because you used the forbidden index to prop up the window frame."

Mo Chengyue looked at her.

"Junior Sister Lin, some things are not suitable to be said in public."

Xie Buci laughed so hard his shoulders swayed slightly.

"It's too late, everyone around could hear it."

Several disciples from the outer peaks nearby indeed craned their necks.

"Does the guard at the library have to stand on the window sill?"

"The key point is that he dared to use the restricted index pad."

"No wonder Elder Chen always has a stern face."

"Now I'm even more convinced that he wasn't just a regular guard."

Mo Chengyue really wanted to get himself involved in the case file.

On the battle platform, the elder in charge raised his hand to signal that the female cultivator candidate battle had officially begun.

Two lines of names appeared on the jade tablet used for drawing lots.

The first to take the stage was a female cultivator from Jade Rain Peak, facing off against a pipa-playing cultivator from Purple Bamboo Peak.

The aura surrounding the female cultivators' seats changed color at that moment.

Earlier, when the male cultivators were vying for the position, many people were still chatting and laughing in hushed tones, but now many of them sat up straight, their hairpins swaying slightly, their sleeves pressed flat, and even the curve of their lips had become more discerning.

Lin Wanqing whispered.

"Why are you all suddenly silent?"

Yu Jianhuan said lazily.

"Because the former saintess has resigned."

Su Qingying answered.

"When Lin Miaoyin was in power, many people were not qualified to stand in the spotlight."

Qin Wanzhuang said.

"The seats are empty now."

Jin Qiaoqiao said.

"Once the cage door is open, everyone wants to see who gets out first."

Xie Buci waved his fan and said.

"To put it nicely, it's called a battle of the elites; to put it bluntly, it's called a redistribution of spoils among the peaks."

Mo Chengyue nodded.

"Our senior brother is finally acting like a proper person today."

Xie Buci went to see him.

"Third brother, the way you praise people makes people want to punch you."

Wenren Jidao.

He's right.

Xie Buci closed his eyes briefly.

"Junior brother, you can leave the line."

The battle on the stage has already begun.

The female cultivator from Yulin Peak moved with graceful movements, her soft silk sleeves swirling around several times, her footwork carrying a seductive charm.

Zizhu Peak Pipa Xiu sat on the mid-air altar, her fingertips plucking the strings, and the sound blades emanated outwards in layers, forcing Ruan Ling to stay away.

Lin Wanqing watched with bated breath.

"Who is stronger between these two?"

Yu Jianhuan said.

"That one on Jade Peak is pretending to be weak. There are barbed talismans hidden behind her soft silk robe. If an opponent gets close, they will be scarred on the face."

Su Qingying said.

"That one from Purple Bamboo Peak isn't innocent either. Every time she plucks a low string, her spiritual energy drills into the other person's ear meridian."

Qin Wanzhuang said.

"Everyone wants to win in a spectacular way."

Mo Chengyue said.

"So they haven't used the real stuff yet."

Lin Wanqing lowered her head and made a note.

"The first criterion for a saintly candidate is that the more beautiful she looks on stage, the dirtier her hands are."

Mo Chengyue looked over.

"Junior Sister Lin, I didn't say that."

Lin Wanqing nodded obediently.

"I know, I figured it out myself."

Xie Buci was delighted.

"Third brother, you'll find it hard to escape the notes in the library in the future."

The first match was both intense and dangerous, with Zizhu Peak's Pipa Xiu ultimately winning by a narrow margin by using a sound lock to seal Ruan Ling.

Applause erupted from the audience, but not as loudly as the male cultivators.

Among the female cultivators, many merely exchanged glances, their smiles dignified, yet their eyes betrayed their calculations.

In the second match, a sword cultivator from Biyun Peak took to the stage to face a female alchemist from Tianxiang Peak.

The female disciple of Danxiu had a gentle appearance, her light apricot-colored skirt swayed gently in the wind, and the fragrance of medicine wafted from her sleeves. She began by bowing.

"Senior sister's swordsmanship is superb; please show mercy."

Sword cultivators of Biyun Peak.

"On the sword-fighting stage, each will rely on their own skills."

"Danxiu, the female disciple, said softly."

"I am merely a cultivator of alchemy, and I am not skilled in combat."

Su Qingying frowned slightly.

"She's lying."

Lin Wanqing asked.

"Where can I scam people?"

Su Qingying said.

"The calluses on my wrists aren't from where I was refining pills, but from where I was using hidden weapons."

Yu Jianhuan laughed lightly.

"Feigning weakness is very common among female cultivators. If they win, they call it overcoming the strong with the weak; if they lose, they call it pitiful."

Qin Wanzhuang said.

"trouble."

Mo Chengyue said.

"But it works."

As expected, the alchemist on the stage released a medicinal mist during the third move, and the silver needles under his sleeves traveled through the mist, almost sealing the spiritual meridian in the right arm of the sword cultivator from Biyun Peak.

The swordsman from Biyun Peak stepped back half a step, his sword light slashing across the medicinal mist, forcefully using his sword energy to force his opponent out of the arena.

Lin Wanqing breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness we won."

Su Qingying said.

"If the sword cultivator had been even half a breath later, he would have suffered a very ugly defeat."

Xie Buci said.

"The competition for female cultivators has only just begun, but the atmosphere is already more intense than that for male cultivators."

Jin Qiaoqiao said.

"Because the position of saint is not just a title."

Mo Chengyue said.

"The Holy Maiden has access to the sect's core resources, can represent the sect in external affairs, and can influence the allocation of resources among the female cultivators of each peak."

Yu Jianhuan looked at him and said with a smile.

"Junior Brother Mo knows so much."

Mo Chengyue said.

"Reading makes one safe."

Qin Wanzhuang said.

Stop talking nonsense.

Wenren Jidao.

"Keep watching."