Chapter 129

Ning Ning and the others rested for a moment before quickly getting up to continue their journey. As the group gradually moved farther away, the young man hidden in the shadows finally took a step forward, quietly bending down.

His dewy white fingertips glided over the lush green grass, finally landing on the rectangular jade hidden deep in the bushes.

They had won this contest.

Rong Ci responded quickly. There was still some time before the Xuanxu Sword Sect arrived at the waterfall. Despite a slight hiccup along the way, as long as they opened the secret door quickly, Niguang Island would still be able to obtain the Sun Blaze Bow.

Liu Ying was exhausted and completely disinterested, not wanting to see the bow that had caused her so much trouble. So, she bid farewell first and wearily returned to the resting place.

The rest of the disciples from Niguang Island were excited, urging him to open the secret door.

Unlike the fake jade, the jade pendant in Rong Ci’s hand appeared much heavier, with a deep green color resembling a clear pool, serene without a hint of ripple.

He lazily smiled and quietly instructed those around him, “Once we obtain the Sun Blaze Bow, we’ll set up an ambush here. Ancient artifacts are immensely powerful; even Nascent Soul stage sword cultivators would struggle to resist. I want to see how they’ll respond.”

The young man’s voice was clear and pleasant, but it inexplicably carried a bone-chilling chill. Amidst the cold and harsh sounds of the waterfall crashing against the rocks, the intent to kill became even more palpable.

The splashing mist made him squint slightly. Rong Ci gently stroked the jade pendant and placed it in the recess of the secret door.

The jade pendant fell heavily.

Behind him, the deafening roar of the waterfall continued, while the secret door in front remained motionless, quiet as death.

As time passed, Rong Ci’s brows gradually furrowed, his patience wearing thin.

This couldn’t be happening.

Why… was there still no response?

“Oh, isn’t this everyone from Niguang Island?”

Just as the six members of Niguang Island fell into silence, a lively and cheerful female voice suddenly came from behind.

That voice carried a hint of mischief, and when it entered their ears along with the sound of the waterfall, it felt like sharp knives stabbing into Rong Ci’s head.

He seemed to understand something, yet he understood nothing at all.

Turning around outside the waterfall, he indeed saw Ning Ning’s harmless and smiling face. “What’s wrong? Are you waiting for the door to open?”

That expression, that tone—it was so hypocritical it was almost laughable.

Rong Ci twitched the corner of his mouth, not intending to waste words with her. “So, this jade pendant is also fake?”

“What do you mean by ‘also’?”

Ning Ning stood beside Pei Ji, her smiling face shining brightly against the nearby wood.

“I only prepared one fake jade.”

She admitted it quite quickly, without any sense of guilt, as casual as discussing what to eat for dinner.

Rong Ci’s head throbbed, perhaps understanding a bit of how Liu Ying felt when she was with this group of people. After suppressing his anger, he forced a smile and said, “Just one?”

But clearly, neither of the two pieces of jade could open the door.

Wait.

One real and one fake. If neither could open the door behind the waterfall, then—

No. It can’t be.

“Quite unexpected, isn’t it?”

Seeing his paler complexion, He Zhizhou pointed to the waterfall behind Rong Ci. “Actually, the jade that Liu Ying obtained was indeed real. The problem lies with this door—it’s been fake from the beginning.”

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This story is a bit complicated.

When they first met Liu Ying at the foot of the Western Mountain, Ning Ning immediately opened a small group chat via voice transmission, getting straight to the point: “There’s something off about this girl.”

He Zhizhou still vividly remembered Ning Ning’s clever manipulation of Xiaochongshan and always considered her a genius in terms of intelligence, so he immediately responded, “What do you mean?”

“She claims to be fleeing from Niguang Island and ended up here, but there’s not a single blade of grass on the Western Mountain, no place to conceal her figure.”

“If she truly wanted to escape, upon seeing this scene, she should have turned around and left, finding a densely forested area to hide. But instead of heading down, she went up the mountain and even ran to the halfway point—do you think she and Niguang Island are both idiots, one running amok and the other unable to see prey in such an open space?”

Ning Ning paused for a moment, then scrutinized the tearful girl. “Moreover, as a music cultivator, even the most important instrument, the zither, could be damaged, yet she has no serious injuries on her body, only a few torn clothes… it doesn’t make sense.”

Her reasoning made sense. After thinking it over, Xu Ye honestly asked, “Did she appear on the Western Mountain to deliberately approach us? Could she be eyeing the Sun Blaze Bow?”

“It might be people from Niguang Island.”

It wasn’t Ning Ning who answered his question, but Pei Ji, who had always been silent.

When he transmitted his voice, he also had a cold expression. Seeing Ning Ning looking towards him, he awkwardly lowered his eyes. “She was able to wait for us on the Western Mountain, which means she knows our plans and whereabouts like the back of her hand—meaning she has conducted surveillance and eavesdropping.”

“Among all the sects, only Niguang Island has the strongest and most skilled concealment techniques. They can monitor without being detected, and it’s probably only them.”

Xu Ye understood this and continued, “Moreover, they hold a grudge against Ning Ning, so they will definitely take the opportunity to retaliate during this trial!”

“Once we test it, we’ll know if it’s people from Niguang Island.”

Ning Ning smiled slightly, adding a hint of teasing to her tone. “Later, Pei Ji and I will leave first. If she deliberately approaches you guys, it’s almost a certainty—don’t lose your resolve, or else she might charm you away.”

He Zhizhou looked at her with wide eyes, speaking with righteous indignation, “Am I that kind of person? Don’t worry, if this really is a seducer from Niguang Island, I’ll let her learn what it means to bask in the harmonious light of socialism today.”

As it turned out, they didn’t need the two of them to probe deliberately. Miss Liu’s professionalism was too good. In no time, she approached directly, being both flirtatious and showing off her shoulders, and ended up receiving a thorough lesson from He Zhizhou about positive and negative electric charges.

“Confirmed, it’s Niguang Island.”

When Ning Ning returned and Miss Liu persistently clung to Pei Ji, Xu Ye honestly sent her a voice transmission: “Why don’t we just snatch the tokens from her? Niguang Island has always been dominant, so Miss Liu should have several of them.”

But Ning Ning shook her head.

Then, with her eyes downcast, she smiled at him. “Several? How is that enough? Young people should have dreams, so let’s do something big.”

“Big?”

He Zhizhou was still immersed in his physics, but upon hearing this, all his attention was drawn in: “Are you saying… the others from Niguang Island?”

Ning Ning nodded gently, her gaze lingering on the backs of Pei Ji and Miss Liu as they walked ahead. Perhaps seeing the former’s tactical withdrawal, she couldn’t help but chuckle softly.

“Niguang Island’s movements are elusive. Although they are good at collective action, it’s difficult to find their hiding place.”

She continued, “If we want them all to appear together, it would have to be because of something very important, like—”

Xu Ye suddenly realized, “Like when they find the jade pendant and will definitely go together to get the Sun Blaze Bow!”

“That’s right. The reason Miss Liu is acting alone is because of her undercover identity. The Sun Blaze Bow is a divine artifact of the spirit foxes and is of great importance. To prevent others from interfering and taking it away, they will definitely go together to retrieve it—by then, we’ll be able to capture all of Niguang Island.”

Ning Ning’s eyes curled with amusement, her tone rising like the tail of a cat, “So, we must ensure that Miss Liu gets the jade pendant.”

“But if she gets the real one, the people of Niguang Island are best at concealment techniques and will definitely reach the destination before us to get the Sun Blaze Bow.”

He Zhizhou rubbed his chin, analyzing, “If we create a fake one using illusions, Miss Liu will definitely inspect it carefully when she gets the jade pendant and will easily discover that it’s not authentic.”