LIGHTNOVELSTORY Chapter 8: Ambush
"A pervert? No, I'm not."
Su Login tried hard to make his voice sound decent this time, he didn't want to show weakness in front of that senior.
It was clear that Dai Yuzui was someone strong, he walked through the forest without worrying too much about being attacked by the Magical Beasts.
That's why Su Login needed to maintain a firm and confident stance, he wouldn't give his senior any room to realize that he was someone inferior.
Pretending to be strong when he was weak, and pretending to be weak when he was strong, that's what years of experience had taught Su Login.
Dai Yuzui was making it clear that he was strong, although this intimidated those below him, it only made it easier for those stronger than him to know what his limit was.
"I see, so what's junior brother doing here? It's still early for the Peach Tree Trial, and someone like junior brother doesn't seem qualified to take part."
"Peach Tree Trial?"
Su Login realized that there was an advantage to being Dai Yuzui's junior, he could pretend that he didn't know much about the sect. It was a discreet way of increasing his knowledge of common sense.
"Haven't they explained it to the junior brothers yet? The South Hall is creating disciples with very limited knowledge."
There was a tone of superiority in Dai Yuzui's voice as he spoke.
"Junior brother should know that there are four Halls on the Plain of the Ancestral Peach Tree, each with a part of the forest…"
"However, there is a deeper part of the forest that few can reach. The first layer is the part of the forest that is in the Halls, the second layer is three clearings, the third layer is two seas of trees and the last layer is where the Ancestral Peach Tree lives."
"In total, there are nine Districts on the Plain of the Ancestral Peach Tree."
Su Login listened carefully to his arrogant senior's explanation, he needed to remember that he belonged to the South Hall and also about how the plain was divided, so he wouldn't attract suspicion.
"The Peach Tree Trial is the chance to advance to the other Districts beyond the four Halls."
Su Login took a moment to understand this. According to what Dai Yuzui had said, it wasn't that simple to enter the other layers beyond the first.
"As the Trial only takes place every hundred years, I need to be on my guard so that no one tries to disturb the junior brothers and sisters in the forest."
As he said this, Dai Yuzui looked around, remembering at that moment that he still had work to do.
"Ah, forgive me, junior brother, but I need to finish my inspection. I recommend you go back to the South Hall temple, you're in a rather depressing situation."
Dai Yuzui bowed one last time and rode off on his Flying Sword.
Su Login noticed that the senior didn't make a sound as he flew, which explained why he had arrived there without the young man noticing him.
I'm still pretty weak, but this encounter has helped me increase my knowledge. For now, I'll keep a closer eye on Dai Yuzui.
Having that senior flying back and forth through the forest could have been a problem, but he soon realized that the place would be filled with juniors too when the Peach Tree Trial began.
The young man known as Su Login was weak and had no talent for cultivation; he would be the target of many unwanted looks if they noticed that he had suddenly started to get stronger.
Of course, he wouldn't lower his head if they tried to intimidate him and would give his all to destroy his enemies, but as long as he could be discreet, he would be discreet, to avoid unnecessary conflicts.
Dai Yuzui may still be nearby, since he can fly without making much noise, I'll retire for the day and rest at my base. If he's around, he'll think I'm retreating.
Su Login walked and moved away from the lake, he walked for several minutes before realizing that he had moved away from the place where he had met the senior. He materialized his Flying Sword and returned to his tree.
***
Collect.
[Congratulations, you have received 'Common Golden Willow Leaves'.]
[Golden Willow Leaves: Golden-looking leaves that can be used to create medicinal teas. When eaten raw, they can speed up the recovery of wounds].
Su Login didn't think it would be useful and consumed the leaves, but was surprised by what happened.
[The 'Golden Willow Leaf' has been successfully consumed. Congratulations, the Player has received 5 XP].
He has only consumed one leaf.
There used to be ten leaves in his Inventory, now there were only nine left. Su Login smiled a little when he saw that he would receive a lot of XP with that item.
That message appeared in front of him nine more times, he had consumed all the Golden Willow Leaves, but he didn't receive the message that he was going to advance in Level.
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[Su Login, 14 Years Old]
[Level: 4]
[XP: 119 / 120]
[Qi: 59 / 2,500]
[Race: Human | Cultivation: Celestial]
[Realm: Unavailable]
[Strength: 10 | Defense: 5]
[Agility: 3 | Qi Gain: 1]
[Intelligence: 1 | Technique: 1]
-----------------------------------------
It's not possible! What a petty system, it could have given me 1 XP bonus.
Su Login lost his composure for a second, but sighed and realized that he could only accept that, there was nothing to complain about, the math was right.
The young man checked his Inventory and saw the Common Cultivation History Book next to two Wooden Horns.
He had already read that book and wouldn't learn anything more if he revised it. Although he would receive little XP for having used it, it would be enough to Level up.
[The 'Common Cultivation History Book' has been successfully consumed. Congratulations, the Player has received 10 XP].
[Congratulations on reaching Level 5!]
[You have received 'Analysis'.]
[Analysis (Level 1): Skill able to see behind living beings, how much can be seen depends on the level of the skill].
It was the skill he had been waiting for all this time. With Analysis, he could have more advantages over his enemies, although at the first levels it wasn't as effective.
Su Login put Analysis to one side for a moment and focused on distributing the Points he received as he leveled up.
This time, he put three points into Strength, one point into Intelligence and one point into Technique, realizing that he was neglecting those attributes that were also important.
In the end, his Status screen looked like this:
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[Su Login, 14 Years Old]
[Level: 5]
[XP: 9 / 150]
[Qi: 59 / 2,500]
[Race: Human | Cultivation: Celestial]
[Realm: Unavailable]
[Strength: 13 | Defense: 5]
[Agility: 3 | Qi Gain: 1]
[Intelligence: 2 | Technique: 2]
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They weren't impressive attributes yet, but if he increased his physical strength by training in the forest, it would help him in battle.
Su Login stood up and stretched before mounting his Flying Sword and heading in the direction of the place he had been the day before.
The young man was vigilant, paying attention to see if Dai Yuzui was around, but when he didn't see anyone, he continued to fly deeper into the forest.
He flew for thirty minutes, but didn't find any more Wooden Horned Squirrels, it was unusual for him to move around for so long without encountering any enemies.
"What's that?"
Su Login stopped when he saw two fallen bodies just ahead. They were two young men wearing robes similar to the one Dai Yuzui wore, but they wore red sashes around their waists.
The two young men didn't seem to be dead, but their breathing was slow and there were wounds all over their bodies; this was not the work of a Wooden Horned Squirrel.
Su Login looked ahead and saw a Magical Beast emerging from a nearby bush, it seemed to be waiting for the young man to approach, but it lost patience and revealed itself.
[Ebony Whispering Serpent.]
The voice that emerged was that of the System after Su Login after using his skill. At Level 1, Analysis could only show the name of the person being analyzed, but it was useful in some situations.
Su Login stared at the Magical Beast in front of him.
The two young men on the ground didn't appear to be weak, but they had both been wounded by the serpent, which meant that this creature used tricks and deception to capture its prey.
It seemed to be a strong enemy that he was not yet prepared to face, but he didn't dare run away, because he was thinking about how much XP he would receive if he defeated that Magical Beast.
He wasn't being reckless, because he knew that although it would be difficult, killing that creature was still within his capabilities, he just needed to concentrate on the fight.
However, as he walked a little closer, he heard a strange noise behind his back. Glancing around, he realized that the two young men on the ground had turned into two serpents like the one in front of him.
I should have used Analysis on them, I was careless.
Su Login remained calm and materialized the Flying Sword in his hand. He was calm and poised, because he realized that it was as he thought, his enemy wasn't that strong, it was just cunning and would use dirty tricks to kill him.
He was used to dealing with that sort of thing, after all, he had also used tricks like that when his opponent was stronger.