Even though the red car had been flying through the sky at high speeds, the driver hadn"t bothered to bring the roof up, choosing to expose himself to the open air. Probably to show off his handsome face and longish hair that allowed him to look like some bishounen poster boy for a boy band. Even with the winds from the drive buffeting him, his hair remained smooth, and his appearance was not unkempt at all.

No doubt he had exuded some qi to protect his physical appearance, but why he bothered to waste his qi on such trivial matters was beyond anyone"s guess. The vanity of the elite was certainly something else altogether.

"Ooh…"

"Whoa…"

Obviously, Zhu Jiao and I was far from the only ones who had noticed the red flash. The moment it showed up upon the horizon, almost everyone in the campsite had turned toward it. The onlookers couldn"t help but be amazed and impressed at the flashy entrance, or perhaps they were envious that the driver owned such a super-expensive car.

How the f.u.c.k did he not draw any attention? I wondered. With such noise and speed, never mind the bright color, the convertible was sure to have drawn the attention of every predatory magical beast in the forest. Yet he managed to survive and drive to the campsite without any problems. That was baffling, to say the least.

"Lin Lang Tian!"

"…seriously?! Are you seriously going to steal an antagonist from Wu Dong Qian Kun?!" I yelled at Zhu Jiao before smacking him in the head. "There"s no such character in reality!"

"Sorry," Zhu Jiao apologized as he rubbed his head. "For some reason, I keep thinking of myself as Lin Dong."

"That"s not Lin Lang…whoever you said, in any case," one of the crowd informed us. "That"s Lei Yong Chun."

"Lei Yong Chun?!"

I wasn"t able to believe what I had just heard. The guy who a.s.saulted Wu Ling Academy actually had the audacity to show up like this, as if nothing had happened? Wasn"t he afraid of what Wu Ling Academy would do to him?

Beside me, Zhu Jiao clenched his fists and tensed, having the same reaction. He glared at Lei Yong Chun"s convertible, and I was reminded that he was one of those student council members who fought against Lei Yong Chun that night, when the academy was attacked. He had grown a lot stronger since then, and I was sure that if the two were to fight right now, the outcome would be very different from that fateful night.

Speaking of which, later I learned that the reason why Lei Yong Chun could drive his convertible through the sky flashily without any problems wasn"t because the magical beasts didn"t attack him. He had already killed every single demonic creature stupid enough to cross his path and a.s.sault him. I didn"t know it at that time, but he had left a trail of smoking, convulsing magical beasts" carca.s.ses in his wake during his drive there, blasting them apart instantly with his lightning techniques.

So much for being a martial artist. This cultivator thing was beginning to look more like magicians who had some sort of Daoist aesthetic and principles than actual martial arts. I guess that"s why they differentiated wuxia from xianxia.

The red, flashy convertible shot forward, leaving sonic booms in its wake and causing the trees below to sway. A few people had to cover their ears as they winced, unable to withstand the sharp crack that thundered from Lei Yong Chun"s car. The red convertible finally slowed to a stop, hovering in the air before plunging down like some Vertical Take Off and Landing aircraft. The wheels, which had been tucked under its frame, slowly rotated out in order for the luxurious-looking convertible to land safely on the ground.

Lei Yong Chun switched off the engine and stood up, swinging the door open before stepping out. Like before, he was dressed casually in a shirt and khaki pants, looking every bit the cool dude who posed on a male fashion magazine. He grinned flippantly at many of the crowd, most of who were charmed by his easy charisma.

"You…"

"Hey, calm down." I grabbed Zhu Jiao"s shoulder firmly before he could step forward to confront Lei Yong Chun here. "Let"s not make a scene. We"re not here to start a fight."

"But…!" Zhu Jiao protested hotly. "That b.a.s.t.a.r.d attacked Wu Ling Academy! He"s…!"

"Not our enemy right now," I told him. "Our objective is the tomb, not revenge. If you attack him right now, without any reason, you"ll get into trouble."

Zhu Jiao shook his head, unconvinced, but fortunately someone else beat him to it. Amongst the crowd, a familiar figure emerged.

"What are you doing here, First Senior?"

Zhu Jiao"s eyes widened. "Ning Xue!"

Bai Ning Xue strode out of the crowd, the people parting for her as easily as water around Moses. She wasn"t alone, accompanied by a couple of White Tiger Sect disciples who I recognized as students from the academy. Kuang Hu was one of them, his eyes narrowed sharply to glare at his first senior in an intense manner.

The guy couldn"t wait to be let off the reins to attack Lei Yong Chun like the mad tiger that he was.

"You have the nerve to show your face here, after attacking our academy!" Kuang Hu growled, but Bai Ning Xue raised a hand to stop him.

"Why not?" Lei Yong Chun shrugged flippantly. "There"s no rule saying that I"m not allowed to explore the tomb. The elders and Sect Leader sent me too, as you already know."

"You…!"

"We won"t work with you," Bai Ning Xue told Lei Yong Chun, cutting off Kuang Hu before he could bellow something that would shame the White Tiger Sect. her tone was icy as she stared at her senior. "Not after what you"ve done."

"I understand." Lei Yong Chun held his hands up in surrender. Then his eyes turned sharp. "But you know that my actions are sanctioned by the Martial Arts Alliance itself, and that half the elders support my decision to take down Wu Ling Academy. I have not committed any crime."

There were murmurs in the crowd as everyone tried to grasp the situation. Lei Yong Chun"s attack on Wu Ling Academy was not well doc.u.mented, so not everyone knew what was going on, but even so, they was vaguely aware that it had happened. That Lei Yong Chun was not branded a criminal and persecuted by the Martial Arts Alliance meant that he was telling the truth. That the Martial Arts Alliance, or at least a significant portion of them, had approved of his actions.

Unfortunately, that did not go down well with Bai Ning Xue and the disciples of the White Tiger Sect who were also Wu Ling Academy students.

"We should join them," Zhu Jiao told me and hurried to the front, to stand by Bai Ning Xue"s side. The White Tiger Sect disciples were having a face-off, but eventually Bai Ning Xue turned away, her beautiful face as impa.s.sive as ever.

"No one is blaming you. I"m only saying that we can"t trust you."

"Fair enough." Lei Yong Chun shrugged. Turning back to his car, he hit a switch and the rooftop automatically folded over and formed a canopy over the formerly open-top compartment. Meanwhile, Bai Ning Xue and her entourage disappeared back into the crowd, but not before Zhu Jiao and I could catch up with them.

"Ning Xue!"

"Zhu Jiao." Bai Niing Xue turned around when she heard Zhu Jiao"s voice. He waved at her and she nodded briefly in acknowledgement.

"Hey, do you mind if we join you? Safety in numbers and all that."

Bai Ning Xue"s brow creased a little, but after glancing at the other disciples in her group, she nodded.

"I don"t see a problem."

"We can trust you more than First Senior, at least!" Kuang Hu growled, casting another glare in the direction of Lei Yong Chun. Even though he wasn"t present that night, he still had some enmity with the head disciple of his sect.

I was to late learn that Lei Yong Chun hadn"t been attacking the academy only once, but several times over the course of a few years, but we usually had teachers and staff helping us fend him off.

We had barely taken a few steps in the direction of the tomb when the crowd went wild again. This time, something flashed from the heavens.

"Lei Yong Chun, you"re early as always!"

The voice was punctuated by the roar of a motorbike. A flying motorcycle burst out of the canopy of the forest and hurtled toward the open campsite, its golden frame glittering in the sunlight. Spinning the motorbike stylishly, he landed gracefully and skidded across the ground, leaving a trail in the soil as he swung his mount around to face Lei Yong Chun.

"I should have brough my motorbike too…" Zhu Jiao muttered darkly when he saw how much attention the newcomer was getting. I didn"t tell him that I wouldn"t have been able to follow him if he did. I was not going to ride on the back of the motorbike, and we would be ripe targets for any demonic creatures in the forest.

Later, as usual, I would learn that this fella was powerful enough to slay whatever magical beasts and demonic creatures that tried to attack him during his journey here.

"Jiang Jun Hao."

Lei Yong Chun acknowledge the newcomer. The crowd were chattering excitedly among themselves, and one of them actually yelled.

"Brother Jun Hao, you"re here too!"

A group of tightly-knitted disciples in boue and white robes surged forward to meet him. Their delight was evident on their faces as they gathered around the newcomer. Jiang Jun Hao chuckled as he got off his motorbike and waved at them.

"That"s the Heavenly Way Sect," one of the White Tiger Sect disciples whispered.

"Heavenly Way Sect?" Zhu Jiao repeated, as usual the clueless protagonist who needed someone to explain stuff to him.

"One of the eight major sects," I reminded him.

"Oh…!"

Yeah…oh was right indeed.

"I"m surprised that the Heavenly Way Sect only sent Jiang Jun Hao." Bai Ning Xue was looking thoughtful. Everyone turned to stare at her.

"Why? Isn"t Jiang Jun Hao among the strongest in the sect? He"s second only to the next successor to the sect leader." Kuang Hu was looking bewildered.

"That"s exactly why." Bai Ning Xue turned to look at us. "As you know, Jiang Hun Hao"s adopted brother, Huang Song Chun, is the next successor to the sect leader, and he"s stronger than Jiang Jun Hao. Even First Senior Yong Chun has to respect and tread Huang Song Chun with caution. Over the years, the two have sparred several times, but they have yet to determine a clear victor between the two of them."

"I see…so it"s surprising that they sent Jiang Jun Hao instead of Huang Song Chun."

"Why can"t they send both?" I muttered, rolling my eyes. Why did it have to be one or the other? The other sects were sending all the other disciples without restraint. Okay, I get that they didn"t dare to send out the masters and elders of the sects because they were afraid of provoking the other sects to make a move against them, but even then this was ridiculous.

"That"s an awesome bike…"

Zhu Jiao was more interested in Jiang Jun Hao"s bike than anything else. I had to admit, it looked really cool, resembling Kaneda"s motorbike from Akira. All those hi-tech features and cyberpunk aesthetic. Wait, was Akira considered cyberpunk?

Well, whatever. This was not an academic paper discussing the finer points of genre and aesthetics.

"So the Heavenly Way Sect sent you…" Lei Yong Chun was smiling as he greeted Jiang Jun Hao. He held out a hand. "I look forward to working with you."

"Hey, are you looking down on me or something?" Jiang Jun Hao must have noticed something in Lei Yong Chun"s smile, for he scowled defensively. "Brother Song Chun is at the critical juncture of his isolated training, that"s why he couldn"t come. He"s trying to make a breakthrough. Once he does, he"ll be stronger than you, Yong Chun! But yeah…if he had shown up, then all the treasures, artifacts and weapons in the tomb will belong to the Heavenly Way Sect!"

"Ha ha ha! I"ve not see you for a year, Jiang Hun Hao, but you"re as arrogant as ever!"

A sharp, feminine voice echoed from across the horizon. Everyone glanced up, only to see a helicopter descend upon the clearing. A young girl leaped out of the helicopter and landed in front of everyone. Even though she looked small, dressed in a green and blue dress, with her hair reaching to her shoulders, she exuded potent power.

"The genius Nan Ke from the Red Phoenix Sect? Isn"t she…the successor to the Red Phoenix Sect, the senior of Feng Tian Yong?"

"I"ve never heard of her," I muttered honestly when one of the White Tiger Sect disciples exclaimed dramatically. Above, the helicopter hovered in the skies for a few more minutes, but at a gesture from Nan Ke, it soared away.

"If I"m not mistaken, her fighting style is similar to yours, Fei Wu." For some reason, Bai Ning Xue deigned to address me. I c.o.c.ked my head.

"Similar to mine?"

"She uses a two-sword style," Bai Ning Xue explained. Right. Just because I also used two swords occasionally didn"t mean our fighting styles were similar. That was like saying every swordman"s fighting style was similar to each other because they use a sword. Or a spear user. Or an archer. That was just so vague.

I wasn"t in the mood to argue with her, though, so I merely nodded.

"Wow…these guys are all at the Pure Spirit Stage, at the very least."

Kuang Hu looked a little pale as he stared at the three figures in admiration. He clenched his fists tightly, despair creeping onto his usually wild and fierce features.

"How will we ever be able to catch up…?"

"Well, for one thing, you guys have artificial qi," I reminded him. "And for another, even though they are all of the younger generation, they"re older than us by a few years. If you work hard enough, you"ll still have the chance to surpa.s.s them in future."

Of course, I didn"t mention the stupid stages and realms. The artificial qi I mentioned had made such matters a lot more complex. How did you define if one was at a certain stage or realm? By the quant.i.ty of qi he possessed? If that was the case, I was pretty sure the Wu Ling Academy students possessed far more qi than the likes of Lei Yong Chun.

Even so, that was true last year and even then Lei Yong Chun effortlessly defeated a bunch of students, each of who had more qi than himself. How did he do so? Just because he was at a higher stage? What did that mean if it"s not about the amount of qi?

Purity of qi.

I nodded to myself, faintly recollecting my fight with him. Even though our exchange was brief, it wsas more than enough for me to tell that Lei Yong Chun"s qi was pure. Even purer than mine, and definitely much purer than the artificial qi that coursed through the Wu Ling Academy students" veins. Or qi channels, but you know what I mean.

Perhaps, rather than quant.i.ty, it was quality that mattered more. The purer one"s qi was, the more powerful the effects he could bring about, rather than relying on concepts of brute force such as having more qi.

"Nan Ke…so you actually traveled all the way from the south to join the fun, eh?" Jiang Jun Hao chuckled as he turned to face the girl. "Hmm, seems like you"ve even brought your sect"s treasures…the Two Southern Wings."

The Two Southern Wings were the two swords that Bai Ning Xue mentioned earlier, that Nan Ke wielded. They were the treasure weapons of the Red Phoenix Sect, rumored by most to be cla.s.sified as a divine artifact crafted in the heavens themselves. While such legends were undoubtedly exaggerated, it was true that the Southern Wings were priceless and powerful beyond measure. They glittered a fiery ruby red from where they were sheathed at Nan Ke"s sides.

"Of course. Why would I miss this? Even my fellow disciples are here." as she said that, I caught sight of Feng Tian Yong and the other Red Phoenix Sect disciples fighting their way to the front to link up with their senior. From what I heard, Nan Ke was ahead of Feng Tian Yong in the hierarchy even though he had seniority, because of her sheer talent that allowed her to be catapulted into being first in line as the successor for the Red Phoenix Sect. she turned to Feng Tian Yong and the others. "Ah, Senior Tian Yong, you"re here with the others."

"Junior Ke! Good to see that you can join us. We"ve scouted the area as requested…" Feng Tian Yong glanced around at the curious crowd, and then shook his head. "We"ll brief you later when there are less people around."

"Thank you. I"ll be counting on you."

"Ha ha ha!" Jiang Jun Hao laughed. "You"re depending on your seniors and fellow disciples?"

"Are you not?" Nan Ke c.o.c.ked her head toward the group of Heavenly Way Sect disciples who had gathered behind him. "You"ll be a fool not to rely on your comrades. No matter how strong you are, the tomb is still a dangerous place full of mysteries and demonic creatures. If you choose not to rely on others, you"ll only be handicapping yourself and taking unnecessary risks. There is strength in numbers, and there is no shame in working together as a team to overcome all adversities. You"ll be a fool if you want to show off and do everything on your own."

"That"s…" Jiang Jun Hao"s smiled faded as he found himself unable to counter Nan Ke"s point. I found that I could get along well with her. Unlike the arrogant, self-centered martial artists who dominated the sphere of wuxia and xianxia stories, here was one genius who actually recognized the importance of teamwork, harmony and cooperation!

"Nan Ke is right," Lei Yong Chun agreed as he glanced in the direction where his car just got through. "It"ll be impossible to get through the tomb alone. Indeed, you"re right that individual strength does matter, and with the intricacies and traps throughout tomb, there is a very high chance that we"ll end up separated eventually. But before that, we can mitigate the danger by traveling in groups and working together."

"Says the guy who just got ostracized by his sect members for attacking their school," Jiang Jun Hao scoffed. Lei Yong Chun continued to smile.

"Embara.s.sing as it may be, I have torn an irreparable hole in the relationship between myself and my juniors. It"s only natural that they don"t trust me. That"s my mistake."

"Hah! So after all that big talk, you"re going to…"

"…have no choice but to call upon other friends for help," Lei Yong Chun finished smoothly. He glanced at the crowd. "Sui Sha Yu, are you done with the preliminary scouting?"

"Yeah, just waiting for you to come break the seal."

A tomboyish girl with tanned skin, short hair and a curvy body sauntered outward. She was wearing black leather, the pants hugging her hips tightly as they swayed seductively, and her dark leather jacket terminated just below her waist, allowing her b.u.t.t to be visible. Interestingly enough, that was where the majority of the male martial artists" gazes lingered to.

"…"

Bai Ning Xue scowled in disapproval, and Zhu Jiao quickly tried to placate her.

"You"re more beautiful, Ning Xue!"

"That"s not the problem," she said coldly.

"Um, yeah, her dress code is outrageous. She should display more decency!" a female White Tiger Sect disciple shouted, her voice shrill. Apparently the White Tiger Sect disciples were sensitive to her mood as well.

"I don"t care what she wears, she can be buck naked if she wants."

"Then why are you so upset, Senior Ning Xue?" Kuang Hu asked. Bai Ning Xue sighed and swept her gaze across the rest.

"Do you really not know who Sui Sha Yu is?"

Everyone glanced at each other and shook their heads. Zhu Jiao turned to me, hoping for an answer, but I merely shrugged. The only clue I had was…

"…is she Liquid Shark? A successor to one of the five Heavenly Paths or something?"

Obviously I was making a wild guess from reading Veritas, but Bai Ning Xue nodded. I couldn"t help but choke in surprise when she confirmed that I was right.

"Senior Sui Sha Yu is from the Liquid Shark Sect…a sect that has ambiguous connections to the demonic sects. Many in the Martial Arts Alliance actually suspect that it is a demonic sect. She is known for the ma.s.sacre at Flowing Spring Peak, where she ruthlessly murdered a bunch of Spitfire Sect members, tearing them from limb to limb."

Everyone couldn"t help but suppress a shudder.

"I know Senior Yong Chun has…unsavory links to the dark side of the Jianghu, but I never thought he would sink so low as to a.s.sociate himself with such a cruel murderess." Bai Ning Xue"s icy gaze continued to rest upon Sui Sha Yu

Having noticed Bai Ning Xue"s hostility, Sui Sha Yu merely clung to Lei Yong Chun"s arm and leaned close, pressing her body against his.

"Jealous, aren"t we?" she asked sweetly, but there was a dangerous undercurrent in her voice that could only be interpreted as, "back off, b.i.t.c.h…he"s mine."

Bai Ning Xue suddenly burst out laughing, much to everyone"s confusion.

"I think you"ve misunderstood something."

She reached out and squeezed Zhu Jiao"s hand, who was surprised. He glanced from Bai Ning Xue to Sui Sha Yu, not sure what to make of their conflicting glares. Despite being a strong martial artist, he began wilting under the hostility between the two girls, which almost materialized visibly as sparks, their qi clashing invisibly in the air and suffocating everyone.

"I don"t harbor that sort of feelings for First Senior. You can have him if you want. I"m just disappointed that he chose to a.s.sociate with someone like you. I thought better of him."

"Hey, hey! Sha Yu is not that bad!" Lei Yong Chun protested, but his current beau only seemed to cling to him tighter.

"Are you sure you"re not jealous? Sui Sha Yu responded, trying to stoke the flames a lot more. Bai Ning Xue"s rage receded, replaced by amus.e.m.e.nt.

"You can believe whatever you want." She leaned in closer to rest her head on a stunned Zhu Jiao"s shoulder. "Personally, I think Zhu Jiao is a much better person than First Senior, and I would choose him over Senior Yong Chun every time."

"Your loss." Sui Sha Yu shrugged. Bai Ning Xue"s smile widened.

"No, my gain."

"Um…" Zhu Jiao shifted uncomfortably, looking as if he wanted to escape the center of attention. He glanced at me for help, but I shook my head helplessly. That was what you get for being the protagonist of a wuxia/xianxia story.

"Oho…I would like to test him someday." Sui Sha Yu looked intrigured, the corners of her mouth inclining upward a little.

"Please don"t," Zhu Jiao pleaded, looking as if he was about to die from embarra.s.sment. It took everything I had to stop myself from bursting out laughing at his predicament. From a glance, I could tell that Kuang Hu and the other White Tiger Sect disciples were sharing the same problem as me. Even from far away, I could see the amused expression on Feng Tian Yong as he stood at Nan Ke"s side, a grin curling on his face as he was centimeters away from laughing out loud.

I briefly wondered if Bai Ning Xue was laughing inwardly too and doing this on purpose, but more likely she was sincerely proud of her relationship with Zhu Jiao. From what I knew of her character, she didn"t have a sense of humor or mischief.

"Ahem…"

Jiang Jun Hao cleared his throat, clearly annoyed by the romantic drama that was transpiring in front of him. I noticed that all of the Heavenly Way Sect disciples were male, and his hand was twitching, as if he wanted to wrap it around a girl, but there was no girl nearby for him to hug. Good thing, too, or he would be s.e.xually hara.s.sing her.

"I don"t mean to interrupt you ladies, but if you want to squabble, please do it elsewhere. We"re here to explore the tomb, not to show off who has what sort of boyfriend. With that said…" he turned and pointed a finger at the shimmering barrier around the mountainpeak. "Why don"t we start breaking the seal?"

"There"s no hurry," Lei Yong Chun a.s.sured him unhurriedly. "We still need to wait for one more person."

"Who are we waiting for? Don"t tell me you plan to wait until all the elite disciples of the eight major sects show up?"

Jiang Jun Hao could hardly hide his impatience.

Lei Yong Chun"s smile grew mysterious and I suddenly felt a chill. "Whoever said the exploration of the tomb is limited only to the eight major sects? Or to the orthodox sects and members of the Martial Arts Alliance at that?"

"What?!" Jiang Jun Hao"s eyes widened. "You mean…it can"t be…!"

All around the elite disciples, the crowd began to murmur and chatter excitedly. The White Tiger Sect disciples were looking around nervously and whispering in low tones, except Kuang Hu, who was snarling fiercely with an aggressive smile.

"Oh…this will be interesting," he growled as he stretched his fingers in glee. The bloodl.u.s.t practically oozed off him.

In contrast, Bai Ning Xue looked extremely furious. Letting go of Zhu Jiao"s arm, she strode forward to confront her first senior.

"Senior Yong Chun, you can"t possibly have…?"

"No, I didn"t do anything."

Lei Yong Chun shook his head, and then he smiled, mischief glittering in those dark, unfathomable eyes.

"But by that same token, I also didn"t do anything to stop them either."

"You…!"

Before Bai Ning Xue could finish her sentence, Lei Yong Chun glanced away from her, his grin widening.

"Oh. They"re here!"

At that moment, I couldn"t help but feel an ominous presence. Above, a dark armored personnel carrier slammed down on earth, and cultivators in dark, black robes flooded out. The crowd instinctively recoiled and retreated when they sensed the demonic yin qi that swirled out of them.

That said, I didn"t really see much of a difference. The so-called "demonic" qi was not that different from normal qi. It just had a higher concentration of yin, and I guess, if I really had to describe it, it felt malevolent, aggressive and predatory. But the same could be said of any orthodox martial artists. It wasn"t as if the Martial Arts Alliance was benevolent and pacifistic either, and so-called orthodox martial artists were known to have preyed on the weaker ones.

"The demonic sects…!"

"Why are they here?!"

"Get ready!"

All the gathered sects were getting into formation, readying for combat. However, Lei Yong Chun held up a hand.

"There is no need to worry. They"re not here to fight. Like us, their only objective is to explore the tomb. Let"s avoid unnecessary bloodshed."

"Thank you, Brother Yong Chun."

Everyone"s gazes were immediately drawn to the hovering armored personnel carrier when that melodious voice carried across the clearing, seeming to drown out even the roar of the huge vehicle"s engines. Several people even swayed intoxicated, at the mere sound.

"This…"

I gulped when I detected an extremely formidable presence from within the armored personnel carrier, the source being so potent that it almost drowned out that of even Lei Yong Chun"s. But Lei Yong Chun was holding back and hiding his true strength, so perhaps that was also one of the reasons why this newcomer felt so empowering.

A girl in a light blue gown slowly strolled down the ramp and joined her dark-robed fellow disciples, and turned to bow her head respectfully toward Lei Yong Chun.

"It"s been a while, Brother Yong Chun and Sister Sha Yu."

"It has indeed, Qing Zhu."

"My, you"ve grown even more beautiful again, Qing Zhu!"

Smiling, Lei Yong Chun and Sui Sha Yu strode forward to meet up with the newcomers, completely unconcerned by the dark-robed demonic sect disciples.

Then it hit me. Unable to get support from his fellow White Tiger Sect disciples, perhaps the other friends that Lei Yong Chun mentioned were the demonic sects.