Chapter 194: Going Through the Motions

On the martial arena.

With a clear clashing sound.

The blade in Yan Luo’s hand spun and was knocked away, landing askew in the blue stone slab beside her.

As for herself, she was shaken by the force of Chen Yuyang’s sweep, staggering back several steps before barely steadying herself.

This battle.

Chen Yuyang and she hadn’t used any spiritual power; it was purely a clash of sword techniques.

And naturally, the result was Yan Luo’s defeat.

However, despite losing, Yan Luo’s pretty face showed not a trace of discouragement or dejection.

Instead, she wore a bright smile, as if this was exactly how it should be.

Defeated?

Of course she should be defeated.

How could she possibly be a match for Yuyang?

He was a formidable figure who could skip levels to kill a Golden Core cultivator while still in Foundation Establishment, and now at the peak of Golden Core, defeating her, a cultivator who had just entered Nascent Soul, was naturally effortless.

The man she had her eyes on deserved to be this amazing!

Looking at the tall and upright figure before her, Yan Luo’s eyes sparkled with undisguised admiration and anticipation.

Xuan Ke stood not far away, her eyes wide with shock.

This was the first time she had so vividly seen someone truly cross an entire major realm to defeat an opponent.

Even though neither party used spiritual power, the gap in realms meant there should also be differences in strength, speed, reaction, and perception.

But Yuyang easily bridged those gaps and claimed victory.

Moreover, her opponent was no nobody—it was Yan Luo, the eldest miss of the Yan family.

Possessing the Pure Yang Supreme Body, she was already an outstanding figure among her peers.

The significance of defeating her was far beyond that of defeating an ordinary Nascent Soul cultivator.

On the other hand, Xuan Ke was also amazed by Chen Yuyang’s sword technique.

The swordsmanship Yan Luo practiced came from Nie Qi, the deputy sect master of Sword Gate Mountain.

And Nie Qi had once been a famous prodigy in the North Domain.

His sword mastery had reached an astonishing level.

Under his guidance, Yan Luo’s swordsmanship was also exceptional.

Yet, she still couldn’t beat him.

“Yuyang, did I perform well enough?”

Yan Luo, who had just lost, excitedly ran up to Chen Yuyang, lifted her little face, and asked for his opinion.

Chen Yuyang looked the young woman up and down and said indifferently, “Acceptable.”

“However, your combat style is a bit stiff. You rely too much on the explosive power brought by the Pure Yang Supreme Body, lacking variety.”

“But that’s normal. That’s the main thing to improve in the Nascent Soul stage. All of this takes time to settle.”

Hearing such an evaluation, Yan Luo wasn’t annoyed. Instead, she continued with a smile, “So that means I haven’t had enough actual combat practice, right? Then Yuyang, you’ll have to spar with me more often in the future so I can gain experience and make my combat style perfect sooner.”

Pulling on Chen Yuyang’s sleeve, she even added a hint of coquettishness to her tone, which shocked Xuan Ke even more.

Was this still the Yan Luo she knew?

Chen Yuyang didn’t deny it.

Because one’s personal combat style really does need a lot of actual combat to hone.

Especially certain ideas and variations in sword techniques can only be verified and perfected in real battles.

As for the idea of closing one’s eyes in seclusion and suddenly having an epiphany of a peerless sword art to become invincible—that almost never happens in reality.

All techniques require adaptability, countless tests in actual combat, revisions, and re-testing, until they reach the state that best suits oneself.

Only then can they be called perfect.

Xuan Ke gradually came back to her senses and stepped forward, her gaze falling on Chen Yuyang with interest.

“Fellow Daoist Chen, shall we begin again? Watching your fight with Yan Luo just now gave me some new ideas I’d like to test with you.”

Just as Chen Yuyang was about to agree, Yan Luo on the side wasn’t pleased.

She stepped between the two, hugging the young man’s arm and huffing, “Hey, you woman. Yuyang has already fought so many rounds in a row. He’s consumed a lot of spiritual power and stamina. He needs to rest first.”

“You keep pressing him to spar with you like this? If you don’t care, I do.”

Saying such intimate words made Yan Luo blush.

But this time, she was determined to win Chen Yuyang over, so being shy was fine.

She was even thinking about doing more embarrassing things with him.

Xuan Ke was taken aback.

Reminded by Yan Luo, she realized she had been a bit too eager and had neglected Chen Yuyang.

Though she was annoyed with Yan Luo’s attitude, she had to admit the logic was sound.

Xuan Ke quickly nodded.

“I’m sorry, Fellow Daoist Chen. I wasn’t considerate.”

“In that case, let’s go to the inner room to rest. I’ll have the servants prepare tea and snacks right away.”

“Shouldn’t those things have been prepared and waiting from the beginning?”

Yan Luo muttered softly, loud enough for Xuan Ke to hear.

Xuan Ke’s eyelid twitched uncontrollably.

‘This girl is deliberately trying to embarrass me!’

‘No… wait. The way she’s acting… could it be… guarding her food?’

Xuan Ke’s heart tightened.

‘This girl treats Chen Yuyang as her man and is afraid I’ll take him away. Hmph, who would want to steal your man?’

‘He’s excellent, but he’s not my type.’

But then, a thought crossed her mind, and Xuan Ke suddenly smiled slightly.

“You know, calling you ‘Fellow Daoist Chen’ all the time does feel a bit distant.”

“If you don’t mind, can I just call you by your name?”

“Sure.”

Chen Yuyang’s expression was calm.

He didn’t care about addresses.

How can it be ‘sure’?!

It’s very much not okay!

However, Yan Luo furiously retorted in her heart.

But despite her dissatisfaction, she said nothing.

After all, Chen Yuyang had agreed himself.

If she spoke up, wouldn’t it make her seem jealous and annoy Yuyang?

The three of them went together to the side courtyard to rest.

As soon as the tea was served, Xuan Ke personally poured a cup for Chen Yuyang and then naturally asked, “Yuyang, are you and your shimei still staying at the inn in the city?”

“Yes.”

Chen Yuyang picked up the teacup, his eyes fixed on the tea.

“Staying at an inn is quite inconvenient.”

Xuan Ke immediately followed up, concern in her eyes.

“My Xuan residence may not be luxurious, but it has many courtyards and plenty of empty rooms.”

“Yuyang, you are my honored guest. Why not come and stay at my Xuan residence with your shimei?”

“Your shimei should also be intensively training in preparation for the secret realm expedition, right? In that case, my Xuan residence has dedicated cultivation quiet rooms with spirit gathering arrays. The spiritual energy is abundant, which is very beneficial for cultivation.”

“Miss Xuan’s kindness, I gratefully accept.”

Chen Yuyang put down his teacup, his tone still flat.

“However, my shimei and I came down the mountain mainly to experience the mortal world and all its facets. Staying at an inn better suits our original intentions.”

Although Chen Yuyang intended to build a good relationship with the Xuan family, and the Xuan family seemed willing to befriend him and the Hehuan Sect for now, that didn’t mean he fully trusted the Xuan family yet.

After all, there was still Xuan Bi in the family whose stance was unclear.

Thinking this, Chen Yuyang picked up his teacup, lowered his head to savor the tea, and said no more.

Xuan Ke’s smile remained unchanged, and she didn’t insist.

Yan Luo sat to the side, listening to their conversation, and secretly cheered in her heart.

‘Good rejection! This woman actually wanted to get close to Yuyang.’

‘Hmph, dream on.’

‘How could the block of wood that I, this miss, haven’t even gotten my hands on be so easily lured away by you?’

After a while, feeling the atmosphere had grown a bit quiet, Xuan Ke spoke again.

“Speaking of which, Yuyang, two days ago, our Xuan family received an invitation from your sect.”

“The letter said that your Shizun will soon hold a promotion ceremony. During that time, she will also give lectures for three days and is widely inviting fellow cultivators to attend the banquet.”

Chen Yuyang just nodded slightly upon hearing this.

This was something he had asked Tai Lingxuan to do, so there was nothing surprising.

“After the secret realm opens, Grandfather also plans to set off for the Hehuan Sect banquet,” Xuan Ke continued.

Chen Yuyang raised an eyebrow slightly.

The Xuan family’s old ancestor personally attending—that really was honoring the Hehuan Sect.

Chen Yuyang nodded, a note of gratitude in his tone.

“Then I thank Elder Xuan for his kindness.”

“Elder Xuan’s willingness to attend the banquet is truly a blessing for my Shizun and the sect. As a disciple, I share in the honor.”

“Ah, what’s the point of saying such boring things? My grandfather also received an invitation and is going. What’s so special about it?”

Yan Luo grew impatient, especially since she found the topic utterly dull.

Finally having time with Yuyang, she didn’t want to talk about this stuff.

It would be best to talk about…

Well, with Xuan Ke here being a nuisance, she couldn’t say it anyway.

After a pause, Yan Luo continued, “Yuyang, during your training journey these days, did you encounter anything interesting? Can you tell me?”

Interesting experiences from training?

Chen Yuyang paused.

He didn’t think he had encountered anything.

But since Yan Luo had brought it up, Chen Yuyang slowly began to speak, briefly recounting his experiences during this period.

Naturally, that included Li Ji’s matter.

Throughout the whole process, Chen Yuyang spoke concisely, just a few words.

However, that was enough to shock the two young women.

“There are such things in this world…”

Xuan Ke listened with her brows slightly furrowed, her eyes full of disbelief.

“To repay a debt, she would even sell her own biological daughter…”

She had grown up in the Xuan family.

Though she knew competition within the clan was fierce, conflicts were common, and familial bonds were relatively weak, it was still far from what Chen Yuyang described.

At least, she couldn’t imagine, nor did she think her father would do such a thing.

“And that Young Master Zhang is really scummy!”

Yan Luo clenched her fist, angrily saying, “For his own selfish desires, he used such despicable means to harm others. He deserves to be killed!”

She had been raised by her grandfather, with a stubborn personality and a clear sense of love and hate.

She couldn’t stand things like this.

But for Chen Yuyang, this was just an ordinary incident during his journey.

After a hundred lives of tempering, he had seen things far more bizarre and cruel.

“Yuyang, is there anything else?”

After a while, Yan Luo looked at him expectantly and continued to ask with interest.

Chen Yuyang shook his head.

Even with his experience, similar stories could fill three days and three nights without end.

But he never liked using others’ misfortunes as topics of conversation.

Chen Yuyang understood in his heart that these two had been born into great families and had never been out to see the world, so they didn’t know how truly sinister the world could be or how cold-hearted people could become.

Without saying more, Chen Yuyang drained his tea in one gulp and stood up.

“I’ve rested enough. Let’s spar a few more rounds.”

The two women exchanged a glance and stood up as well.

Back on the training ground, the three of them sparred with each other again.

During this time, although Xuan Ke wanted to get closer to Chen Yuyang, he remained somewhat indifferent, overly polite.

Coupled with Yan Luo’s presence, Xuan Ke couldn’t find a chance to say the words she had prepared to narrow their distance.

In the afternoon, after a few lukewarm matches, Chen Yuyang found an opportunity to take his leave and returned to the inn.