"Oh?"

Su Pei was surprised. She hadn't expected Ji Sisi to still protect Su Xuan so fiercely, even knowing he was an imposter.

She also hadn't realized that after she'd already rejected Su Xuan's participation in the trial, he would actually disguise himself as someone else to attend anyway. Was the Blood Immortal Vine that important to him?

She didn't know that Su Xuan was actually a very family-oriented person. He desperately wanted the Blood Immortal Vine so the Third Elder of his sect could refine a life-saving elixir, allowing him to return home with it as soon as possible...

Ji Sisi's body trembled slightly.

Heaven only knew what kind of inner turmoil she was experiencing.

Her own cousin was suddenly not her cousin anymore, but a dashing young gentleman with such ethereal good looks! She really should have realized it sooner. This cousin might not be that cousin. Her actual cousin was a coward who lacked any real manliness, and his actions weren't always upright. How could he suddenly become so charming, so... bewitching?

"Huh? Where's Valley Bully?"

"This gentleman is wearing Valley Bully's clothes!"

"How did he change so much?"

"Was he in disguise before?"

Before long, the Trialists from the bottom of the pit had all climbed up. They were utterly astonished to see the transformed Su Xuan. If Ji Sisi hadn't been holding him, they would have suspected Valley Bully had been sent to the afterlife by some merciful god! But this version of Valley Bully was much easier on the eyes! And far more likable!

"Miss Sisi, what's going on here?" Wu Bo asked in confusion, approaching Su Xuan with Zhu Hongyun and Min Wen in tow.

Ji Sisi just held onto Su Xuan, not saying a word.

When Wu Bo asked again, she simply replied, "This is my cousin!"

"Don't just stand there!" Wu Bo urged her. "The boss just displayed his awesome power down in the pit, wiping out a horde of monsters that crawled out from underground. His cultivation is severely depleted; you need to get him somewhere to rest, quickly!"

He didn't care what Su Xuan had turned into. Even if he became a big, rough man, as long as he was still so damn impressive, he was his boss!

"Hold on a moment."

Yu Xian Sect's Sect Leader, Su Pei, raised her hand to halt the proceedings. In front of all the Trialists, she announced, "The man you call Valley Bully is actually named Su Xuan, and he is a Longevity Realm Expert. He assumed someone else's identity to participate. Therefore, his trial results are void. As for the rest of you, do you want to confirm your rankings now, or would you rather rest for the night and discuss it then?"

By this point, it was already evening. The sky was not yet completely dark, but stars had begun to twinkle into view. The Trialists were indeed in need of rest.

"Sect Leader Su, isn't this a little unreasonable?"

"Do you have any idea what kind of monsters appeared at the bottom of the pit?"

"Some of those monsters were at the Longevity Realm! There was no way we could have dealt with them!"

"If it weren't for Valley Bully's selfless rescue, we all would have died down there!"

"If we had all died, would this trial of yours even have any meaning?"

"Shouldn't you reconsider your ridiculous rules?"

"What's this nonsense about no Longevity Realm Experts allowed?!"

"Even a Longevity Realm Expert could have been killed by monsters like those!"

"You can't disqualify Valley Bully or void his results!"

"He is the rightful first-place winner of this trial!"

The Trialists all began talking at once, their tone growing disrespectful toward Su Pei.

The prominent figures of the Yu Xian Sect standing behind Su Pei scowled, their imposing auras flaring.

But this silent intimidation only agitated the Trialists further. One of them even shouted that he was forfeiting his results and threw his weapon to the ground.

CLANG!

CLANG!

Once he took the lead, the others also threw down their weapons and the Blood Immortal Vines they had gathered. One by one, they declared they were renouncing their results and any potential rewards.

"Sect Leader..."

Protector Cai Wei, who had previously interacted with Su Xuan, sensed the situation was deteriorating. He walked up to Su Pei and whispered a few words to her.

Su Pei pursed her lips, appearing to contemplate his advice. A moment later, she raised her hand and addressed the Trialists. "Everyone, please return to your guest rooms to rest. I will give you all a satisfactory answer in the morning."

"Protector Cai," Su Pei then said, pointing at Su Xuan, "please help this Young Master Su back to his guest room."

"No problem."

Cai Wei nodded. He knew full well that if they didn't get Su Xuan out of here now, these Trialists would refuse to leave. He could also understand why they were so protective of Su Xuan. Even though Su Xuan had robbed them, he had genuinely saved their lives in the pit! Robbing people was an unwritten rule of the trial. But saving a life? That was a matter of great righteousness!

Cai Wei put two fingers to his lips and blew a shrill whistle.

From a distant thicket came a rustling, and then a massive white serpent emerged. The serpent slithered straight to Cai Wei's side, its gaze filled with wariness as it looked at Su Xuan.

"Miss, how about you carry your cousin onto the white serpent?" Cai Wei asked Ji Sisi.

"Okay."

As a girl, Ji Sisi was naturally a bit afraid of snakes. But wanting Su Xuan to get some rest and recover sooner, she mustered her courage and helped him onto the great serpent's back.

Cai Wei also stepped onto its back and gave a command. The white serpent immediately began to move, slithering swiftly toward the exit of the Valley of Thousand Snakes.

"Let's go! Let's get out of here too!"

"We'll wait for Sect Leader Su's answer tomorrow!"

Seeing Su Xuan leave, the Trialists gave Su Pei one last meaningful look before departing together.

The Valley of Thousand Snakes instantly fell silent.

Su Pei, however, did not leave right away. She stood at the edge of the great pit and muttered to herself in a voice only she could hear, "Ancestor Meng, did you arrange for him to come and help in the grand scheme of things?"

"Miss, please help me feed this elixir to your cousin!"

While riding the white serpent toward the exit of the Valley of Thousand Snakes, Cai Wei took out a high-quality recovery elixir and handed it to Ji Sisi.

Ji Sisi accepted it without ceremony and tried to place it in Su Xuan's mouth.

But she was immediately dumbfounded.

She saw that Su Xuan's mouth was already stuffed with elixirs of an even higher quality than the one Cai Wei had given her. Perhaps because he had no water and lacked the strength to swallow, he hadn't been able to get them down.

Cai Wei was also stunned by the sight. He faltered for a moment before saying, "Miss, perhaps you could give him some water?"

Ji Sisi hurriedly untied a beautifully crafted, exquisitely embroidered waterskin from her waist. She opened the stopper and tried to pour some water into Su Xuan's mouth, but it just spilled out, as he was unable to swallow.

After a moment's thought, Ji Sisi looked up at Cai Wei and said, "Turn around. Don't look at me."

Cai Wei shrugged and turned to face forward.

Ji Sisi bit her lip, took a large gulp of water from the waterskin, and then, leaning toward Su Xuan's lips, she lowered her head…

「And that night」

Su Pei didn't get much rest. She convened a meeting with the sect's elders, but the atmosphere was tense. The name "Su Xuan" was on nearly everyone's lips...

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