Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Chapter 820 - Finals

Qin Yu began to feel a bit of a headache for leading the Xue Sisters away and causing Luo He to lose face in front of the entire crowd. He started to think that perhaps he really was too softhearted. They had just met by coincidence, so why did he make things hard for himself by helping them?

Moreover, his actions today would surely arouse the suspicions of others. As for the Xue Sisters who were quietly following behind him, what was he going to do with them in the future? It wasn’t as if he could ask them to leave with him and then just toss them to the side afterwards.

Qin Yu took a deep breath and came to a stop. Those following behind him seemed to understand what he wanted to do and all stopped in unison.

Senior Lin glanced at Qin Yu, a light flashing in his eyes for a moment. Although he didn’t say anything, Qin Yu knew that this angry and ornery old man definitely had certain harsh opinions on him. For instance, that he cared too much about women, romance, and whatnot.

Yun Die tried her best to appear calm but she couldn’t conceal the sadness in her eyes. It was as if she was asking why her teacher was like this.

Dorelis had a mocking expression on her face, one that was completely in the open. She gave Qin Yu the side eye, as if asking him how he would continue pretending to be a righteous man in the future.

Qin Yu had an even greater headache!

He rubbed his forehead and decided to ignore their looks. He thought that since he could still stand tall and sit straight, he would let them think what they wanted.

When his eyes fell on the Xue Sisters, he thought for a moment and slowly said, “That person Luo He isn’t as simple as he seems. If you follow him, I fear you will have problems in the future.”

With just a few words he had called the sisters away and ruined their stroke of good fortune. Disregarding all else, he needed to give an explanation first. But, this explanation was a bit forced as there was no evidence for it at all. Was there a problem just because he said there was a problem?

But unexpectedly, the Xue Sisters nodded and believed him without asking any questions.

Senior Lin’s eyes flashed again. Yun Die was even sadder. And Dorelis’ taunting skills were fully fired.

Qin Yu was left speechless. For better or worse, shouldn’t these two young women ask him some questions about the situation? Now his explanation seemed even more unclear.

But in the end, the sisters were only like this because they trusted him. Was he going to complain that they trusted him too much?

Qin Yu rubbed his nose and coughed lightly. But when he saw the Xue Sisters looking at him with eyes full of anticipation, he had no idea what to say next.

He carefully considered things and then sighed inwardly. “I have no idea what problem you two have encountered, but even if you want to look for a backer, you still have to make sure your mind and judgment is clear and you can’t wander in blindly. For now, don’t worry and stay on the island. If you have any problems, we will discuss it after the tournament is over. How about it?”

Xue Yueyue blurted out, “Great!”

Her eyes sparkled. From the looks of it, if it wasn’t for her big sister holding her back then she would have thrown herself into Qin Yu’s arms.

Xue Qingqing bowed respectfully. “Big Brother Qin, we are staying in Courtyard No. 37 in the eastern residential area. If you ask around you will be able to find us. From now on, us sisters aren’t planning on coming out. So we will have to wish Big Brother Qin good luck in the finals ahead of time.”

When she finished speaking she dragged the unwilling Xue Yueyue away. The girl only stopped turning around when they left the group’s line of sight. Even an idiot could tell how much she didn’t want to leave.

“Big Brother Qin, tsk tsk, this name is so sweet that it makes it hard for me to breathe.” Dorelis patted Qin Yu’s shoulder. “Alright, be honest with me. What did you do to those two sisters that they are so obedient and trusting of you and letting you decide everything for them?”

Qin Yu was expressionless. He stated in a few sentences how he knew the Xue Sisters. Then, without giving Dorelis the chance to pester him further, he looked ahead, “The reason I interfered is because I was helping some old acquaintances. But what about you? Don’t tell me that you just wanted to have some fun so you decided to coordinate with me and develop such an interesting play.”

Senior Lin’s pupils shrank. He was also curious about this.

Dorelis was unexpectedly honest. She shrugged her shoulders and said, “It’s simple. You think there is something wrong with that Luo He and I also feel he is unpleasant to my eyes.” She furrowed her eyebrows as if preparing her words. She said, “This person…he has an imposing personality and his appearance isn’t bad. His smile is gentle, his attitude is congenial, and he has a superficial level of charm. But, I feel that something is wrong. If I wasn’t sure that I had never encountered his aura before, I would have almost believed he was one of my enemies who changed their appearance to deal with me!”

Although this statement was ridiculous and unfounded, Qin Yu believed it because he also felt this way. While he thought this, he didn’t reveal anything on the surface. He turned and walked away without looking at Dorelis.

“We’ve been outside for too long. It’s time we return.”

After he walked far away, it was only then that Dorelis recovered. The topic had been diverted by that slippery eel Qin Yu once again. He didn’t clarify his relationship with those two beautiful young women.

“Stop! Don’t run!”

Without turning back, when Qin Yu heard these words, his pace quickened.

The finals continued as scheduled.

This time, only the top 100 ranked people were eligible to participate. The number of participants dropped sharply and the crowd no longer had the sense of depression that went as far as one could see.

But the attention on the finals didn’t diminish just because the number of people had lessened. In fact, it reached an unprecedented peak.

Whether it was the Beast Trainer Alliance or the cultivators who had come to participate and observe, they were all waiting for the final victor to appear.

The 100 chosen participants stood in the square, listening to the Alliance Elder narrate the rules. Due to an array formation, his crisp voice spread to everyone’s ears.

“For the finals, we have decided to use a method of randomized competition. The jade tokens that we just returned to you have been altered. After entering the martial field for the finals, regardless of what methods you use, as long as you can defeat nine opponents, capture their jade tokens, and maintain this amount until the end, you will be one of the final ten participants in the tournament.

“Of course, each person can only hold ten participating jade tokens at most. After gathering ten, you cannot gain any more. Now let me give all of you a warning. There are certain dangers in the martial field. If you feel that you cannot deal with them, then you can choose to withdraw. Simply yell out to the skies that you wish to withdraw and you will immediately be transmitted outside to prevent any unnecessary damages.”

As Qin Yu was listening he suddenly frowned. He looked to the side.

Separated by several people, Su Hongyi was glaring at him. When their gazes met, she wrinkled her nose and coughed, turning away and not sparing him a second glance.

To her side, East Han slightly frowned. When he looked at Qin Yu there was a cold intent in his eyes.

Qin Yu didn’t care about this at all. His eyes fell on Luo He. His intuition told him that this person knew he was looking at him.

From start to finish, Luo He kept his eyes closed and didn’t reveal any expression.

Not even giving him a glance?

Qin Yu thought that this was the reason. Perhaps this person didn’t want Qin Yu to discover something through his eyes.

He thought back to what Dorelis said and how she didn’t find him pleasing to the eyes. He turned away, a cold intent gushing out in his heart.

If they could pass the finals in peace then that would be good, because he didn’t want to cause any trouble. Otherwise, he would need to find an opportunity to figure out where this hostility came from.

As Qin Yu’s thoughts were racing, the Alliance Elder finally finished speaking. “…The finals will now begin. I wish all of you success!”

A massive array formation opened in the square. A strong light erupted and space warped. According to the direction of the alliance cultivators, the 100 chosen cultivators stepped in one after another as the crowd watched. Their figures rippled before they vanished from sight.

Qin Yu had a calm expression. The tearing strength that tugged at his body didn’t affect him at all. Moments later when everything subsided, he opened his eyes to discover that he was in a cave.

The cave’s entrance wasn’t too far away; Qin Yu could see the weak light sprinkling down from outside. He swept his divine sense around. When he discovered nothing was wrong, he flew out from the cave.

Rumble rumble –

His surroundings brightened and a sea breeze met him, carrying with it the smell of salt. A great wave crashed into the cliff below.

Looking down, the steep mountainside dropped down more than a hundred thousand feet. Everything down below was black water. Giant sea birds spread their wings up against the wind, their sharp eyes locked onto Qin Yu.

To these sea birds, Qin Yu who had just come out from the cave was no different from fish that rose up above the waves; both were prey to be hunted and eaten.

But unfortunately, they had chosen the wrong target today.

Qin Yu lifted a hand and grasped at the air. A formidable strength gushed out from the void. Like an invisible swamp, it wrapped around a sea bird. Fear flooded its eyes. It furiously cried out and tried to escape, but found that it couldn’t.

Tapping his feet, Qin Yu landed directly on its back. With a slap of his hand the sea bird wailed and flew up into the skies.

Hu –

The sea bird carried Qin Yu on its back as it flew up at an almost straight angle, flying up the cliff. But at this moment, Qin Yu suddenly drew backwards as quick as lightning.

In the next moment, a shadow threw itself over and bit down on the sea bird’s neck. Before it could even cry out loud it had already lost its life.

The creature that bit the sea bird to death was a monster beast in the form of a cheetah. It had two tails, and a pair of dark yellow eyes stared at Qin Yu. A threatening growl came from its mouth.

Qin Yu was expressionless. He allowed the monster beast to drag the sea bird’s corpse away. Soon, all that remained was a bloodstain on the ground that vanished out of his line of sight.

But before long, the scent of new blood attracted new hunters. It wasn’t simple for this cheetah-like monster beast to have sole possession of the food.

Loud roars came from the dense woods, followed by loud thunderous rumbles. Standing near the cliff, Qin Yu could feel the sound of the trembling earth.

The competition didn’t last long before it ended. Without surprise, the sea bird was divided up and eaten clean. Pairs of giant eyes appeared in the shadowy woods and locked onto Qin Yu.

But in the end, none of the monster beasts rushed out. After a brief confrontation, they withdrew deep into the forest.

Qin Yu furrowed his eyebrows. This was the martial field chosen by the alliance? He couldn’t see how it was related to beast trainers at all. Could this be a competition of cultivation?

Compared to the exquisite processes of the primaries and semi-finals, this seemed a bit rough.

Whatever. No matter what, the rules of the tournament were already set in place. It was better for him to figure out how to seize nine other tokens.

Shua –

Qin Yu’s figure flickered and he drilled into the forest, disappearing from sight.