Hearing those words, Gu Ming felt a bit of a headache. At this moment, he finally understood what Feng Qing’er had told him.
‘Saintess Mountain is not so easy to enter.’
‘Being a son-in-law of the Ling family is not that easy, either.’
It turned out that both sects had internal conflicts. The Saintess of Saintess Mountain was struggling for power with the Second Elder, and the Second Young Miss of Lingyun Pavilion was at odds with her father. Did these two sects simply not know how to survive without internal strife?
He could already imagine his future days at Saintess Mountain. As the Personal Disciple of the Saintess, it was hard for the faction led by the Second Elder not to cause trouble for him. And look at that—wasn’t this exactly what was happening?
He had just entered the sect, and they were already trying to intimidate him. They made him walk the red carpet to become the center of everyone’s attention, creating a massive social death scene.
“Lord Nameless, we actually don’t need to pay any attention to the Second Elder’s arrangements. We can just take another path…” Xiao Yue said in a low voice. “It is just a bit of a detour.”
“There is no need.” Gu Ming shook his head slightly. ‘If I take another path, wouldn’t that mean I’m afraid of them?’
No matter what, he could not lose his momentum.
‘If you want me to walk, I’ll show you how I walk.’
Gu Ming made up his mind and took the lead in stepping onto the red carpet.
“Lord Nameless, please wait for me…” Seeing this, Xiao Yue hurriedly chased after him. However, she was still flustered and appeared clumsy, looking quite unreliable.
After Gu Ming stepped onto the red carpet, many Outer Disciples gathered on both sides. They watched Gu Ming on the carpet and could not help but point and whisper about him.
“He’s the Saintess’s Personal Disciple? He really looks the part. No wonder there are rumors that the Saintess opened a back door specifically for him.”
“Someone checked his opponents from the Martial Arts Tournament. They were all pure trash; they wouldn’t even be fit to carry the shoes of us Outer Disciples. As for his opponent in the finals, that Sword Fanatic who manifested a Sword Domain, how could such a strong person in the Dao of the sword actually surrender in the end?”
“So, the Sword Fanatic must have been someone the Saintess hired temporarily just to get him into the sect.”
“Exactly. They never mentioned taking a Personal Disciple in any of the previous tournaments, but they suddenly decided to do so this time. If there isn’t something fishy going on, I’ll eat my hat.”
“Sigh, it’s just the Saintess’s usual way of doing things. Who can stop her? Even the Great Elder has retired to the second line.”
“Damn it, is no one going to go up and beat that pretty boy? He’s so annoying to look at.”
…
Negative comments came one after another until Gu Ming’s ears felt like they were growing calluses. Moreover, these people did not hold back at all. They spoke as loudly as possible, intentionally trying to make Gu Ming look bad.
Gu Ming remained indifferent. The best way to deal with such comments was to ignore them.
The less he cared and the more upright he walked, the more those people gnashed their teeth in hatred.
He simply loved seeing them in a state of incompetent rage.
Compared to the thick-skinned Gu Ming, Xiao Yue was much thinner-skinned.
Although she was not the focus of the discussion, being watched by so many people made her bury her head deep. Her cheeks were bright red, and she did not dare look ahead, walking with her head bowed.
She regretted not being able to persuade Gu Ming to take the other path, but now she could only follow behind him. After all, the Saintess had specifically instructed her to take good care of Gu Ming.
As she walked, she failed to stop in time and bumped directly into Gu Ming’s back. She was forced back a few steps, staggering for a moment before stabilizing herself.
Clutching her forehead, she looked at the figure that had stopped in front of her and felt confused.
‘Is there something ahead?’
Xiao Yue stepped to the side slightly, and her eyes suddenly lit up. Not far ahead was a 100-step staircase. At the very top of the stairs stood a massive archway.
That was the gate to the Inner Sect of Saintess Mountain. Only by walking up those steps could they reach the Inner Sect area.
Once they reached the Inner Sect, they would almost be at their destination.
Xiao Yue could not help but feel happy, but her expression soon froze. A young man was sitting on the 100-step staircase.
The young man had a thin face and sharp eyes. He held a long spear in his hand, blocking their path forward. It was obvious at a glance that he had ill intentions.
Xiao Yue let out a startled cry.
“Do you know him?” Gu Ming turned back and asked.
“He is the grandson of the Second Elder, Long Feiyu,” Xiao Yue whispered. “He really likes the Saintess and has been trying to convince the Second Elder to ease the tension between them. However, neither side pays him any attention.”
“The Second Elder sent word that easing tensions is fine, but the Saintess must give up her power within the sect. The Saintess refused,” Xiao Yue added.
‘So that’s how it is.’
Gu Ming understood perfectly. Great, he had another love rival.
“You are Nameless?” Long Feiyu tilted his chin up slightly, looking down at Gu Ming with contempt as if he were looking at an ant. “If you want to enter the Inner Sect, then crawl through my legs.”
Before Gu Ming could speak, Xiao Yue jumped out from behind him. Though she was usually timid, her voice was surprisingly firm as she said, “I won’t allow you to bully Lord Nameless.”
Gu Ming gave a bitter smile. ‘I’m not that weak,’ he thought.
“Hmph.” Long Feiyu gave a cold snort. “Xiao Yue, you are no match for me, and my target isn’t you. Move aside, and I won’t hold your insolence against you.”
Xiao Yue shook her head, stubborn. “The Saintess instructed me to take good care of Lord Nameless and not let anyone hurt him.”
Hearing this, Long Feiyu’s expression darkened. His brow furrowed, and jealousy flared in his eyes like a rising flame. His voice practically squeezed through the gaps in his teeth:
“Shen Lingxi, do you love that face so much? Fine, today, I will destroy that face. Let’s see how you’ll love him then!”
With that, Long Feiyu rose from the steps and lunged forward, charging toward Gu Ming with a speed that left people breathless.
Long Feiyu’s move earned cheers from many onlookers, and several people even began to root for him.
They were sick to death of Gu Ming, who had supposedly used a back door.
Facing Long Feiyu’s approach, Xiao Yue was no longer flustered. Instead, a look of resolve appeared in her eyes.
But before Xiao Yue could act, Gu Ming lightly pressed his hand on her shoulder. When she turned back in surprise, she saw Gu Ming bypassing her to step forward alone.
‘Since the target is me, I can’t exactly be a coward.’
Gu Ming already had a plan. Since everyone thought so highly of Long Feiyu, he would use him to kill the chicken to warn the monkeys, making that group of gossiping mouths shut up.
FORBIDDEN.
Gu Ming once again spoke a True Word, briefly freezing Long Feiyu. Then, he took one step, two steps… his figure vanished from Long Feiyu’s sight. When he reappeared, he was already right in front of him.
Long Feiyu’s eyes widened in horror. He wanted to move, but he found that his body was completely immobilized. The shock in his eyes grew even deeper.
Immediately following that, a powerful force struck his abdomen. Gu Ming sent him flying with a single kick.
Long Feiyu flew backward, crashing straight into the staircase.