Everyone except Ge Xiang stared with wide eyes, many swallowing audibly.
Ge Xiang, however, continued to gaze at the sky, thinking, "What's the act? Who's inferior to you?"
Shui Han first nodded slightly towards the white-bearded old man standing with his hands behind his back at the mountain entrance, "Thank you for your hard work, Steward Yu!"
Steward Yu replied calmly, "This is my duty to categorize."
Then, Shui Han adopted a cold, weary demeanor and scanned the crowd, "Are all present? Since everyone is here, I will briefly explain the rules. The competition is limited to one day. You will enter the mountain to search for spirit stones. The immortal group that obtains the most spirit stones of the highest grade will win. If some have higher grades and others have larger quantities, they will be valued and scored accordingly. The highest total score wins. However, you cannot recklessly excavate the mountain. If anyone brings out ordinary stones, points will be deducted based on the size of the stones. If poisonous stones are found, points will be deducted doubly."
"Within your immortal groups, you must cooperate wholeheartedly. Between immortal groups, you must not harm each other's harmony. Harmony comes first, competition second."
"If everyone is ready, please take out your storage bags and open them. I need to confirm that no one has brought spirit stones into the mountain."
At this moment, Qiang Senrui of the Xin family chuckled, "Are you going to search us? Miss Shui Han, feel free to search us."
Shui Han glared at him, her eyes flashing like swords, making Qiang Senrui take a step back, almost falling to the ground.
No one dared to speak further. They all spread out their storage bags before them, allowing Steward Yu to inspect them one by one.
After a quick glance around, Steward Yu nodded, "You may begin. Enter the mountain."
Everyone charged in as if in a race.
Only Mo Qi walked slowly, swaying lazily.
Shui Han glanced at his retreating back, then leaped up, flying past him from above and to his side.
Mo Qi looked somewhat surprised, "Miss Shui Han, are you also participating in the competition?"
Shui Han turned back, gave him a cold look, and then flew away.
What?
Did she have to be this aloof?
Gu Da Hu sped along for a while and realized someone was missing. He turned to Wu Lei and said, "Mo Qi isn't following us."
Wu Lei shrugged, "If he doesn't follow, we'll have one less burden. Isn't that better?"
Gu Da Hu shook his head, "Although his cultivation is not strong, I heard his artifact refining skills are quite high."
Duan Gan Xin glanced at him sideways, "Are you boosting others' morale while diminishing our own? If his artifact refining skills are high, does that mean we are all just famous for nothing? Everyone has their own specialty. He isn't dedicated to this as a profession, how can he be compared to us?"
Gu Da Hu continued, "I heard he created a magical artifact that swept away the demon army, defeating them utterly and forcing them to retreat, and they haven't dared to cross the border since."
Wu Lei said dismissively, "Perhaps he just learned this specific technique from someone else and knows nothing about other artifact refining methods."
Gu Da Hu nodded as if suddenly enlightened, "I also think you're right. Otherwise, it would be too embarrassing, making us who specialize in refining artifacts seem like we're not doing our proper jobs."
Wu Lei's expression was slightly awkward, "What you said..."
Gu Da Hu immediately put on a fawning smile, his eyes narrowing into slits, "You're different. You cultivate both internally and externally, developing comprehensively. That's why the Zhou family sent you here."
Mo Qi also sped up at this point, always following Shui Han.
He was merely curious, wanting to see where Shui Han was going and what she was doing.
At one point, Shui Han glanced back and saw him constantly following her.
She felt a pang of unease, surely another lecher, a pervert!
She couldn't be bothered with him!
She sped up and rushed forward.
Seeing her suddenly accelerate, Mo Qi knew he wouldn't be able to catch up at his normal pace. He then unleashed his Golden Light Shrinking Ground Technique, his body transforming into a point of light that streaked through the air. Shui Han ahead was also like a streak of red light weaving through the air.
Shui Han flew for a while and was somewhat surprised to find she still hadn't shaken off Mo Qi. Continuously fleeing wasn't a solution; it made her seem like she owed him something.
She immediately stopped in mid-air and turned back, waiting for him to catch up.
Mo Qi stopped, but his forward momentum didn't decrease. He remembered Jia Guan, and if he crashed into her, would he still have his life?
He hurriedly used all his strength to brake fiercely.
Dangerously close, he stopped just about a fist's distance from her.
It was truly a close call. In some places, there was a fist's distance between them, while in others, they were almost touching.
A fragrant breeze wafted towards him, and he could feel her fragrant breath and the thumping of her heart.
Mo Qi hastily retreated a few steps, suppressing the turmoil in his heart, and looked at her with neither subservience nor arrogance.
Shui Han's face was frosty, and her eyes held a hint of killing intent. She spoke in a voice so cold it made one tremble, "Why are you following me?"
Mo Qi coughed dryly, "Miss Shui Han, I mean no offense. I just wanted to ask why you came in with us?"
"Why should I tell you?" Shui Han stared at him, making him feel uneasy.
"Uh," Mo Qi cleared his throat, "I thought, if you weren't participating in the competition, you shouldn't have come in. Because if you were to secretly help anyone during this process, wouldn't that make the competition unfair?"
"Ridiculous," no matter how aloof Shui Han was, she felt an urge to laugh and cry at this moment. "I am the referee. If I don't come in, who will maintain the fairness of the competition and ensure your safety?"
"Oh," as if very understanding, Mo Qi nodded, "That's true." Suddenly, his tone shifted, "But to ensure absolute fairness in the competition, I think it's best if I follow you. I'm afraid that if you can't resist helping someone, it would not only affect the fairness of the competition but also the reputation of Sky City."
Shui Han trembled with anger, but she felt his twisted logic was irrefutable, and she had no effective words to retort.
Killing him directly seemed impossible.
"Aren't you participating in the competition?" Shui Han asked, her chest heaving.
"Who says I can't look for spirit stones while following you?" Mo Qi said with a smile in his eyes.
There was a hint of confidence and a touch of flirtatiousness in his gaze.
Shui Han felt he was trying to approach her in this manner and despised him inwardly. She didn't want to look at him anymore or say another word to him. She immediately turned to leave, "If you want to follow, then follow. But I must warn you, you must stay at least three zhang away from me and not speak to me."
"Alright," Mo Qi agreed and followed.
By staying near Shui Han, he also got a clear view of everyone else's competition.
The four members of the Xin family were indeed not looking for spirit stones. They consistently followed the four members of the Wang family, their gazes unfriendly.
The four members of the Wang family knew the Xin family had ill intentions, so they kept turning left and right, as if strolling, and did not take any action.
The two generals of the Ge family, Cai Xun and Tai Zheng, had their eyes on Gu Da Hu and Duan Gan Xin, making these two also hesitant. Ge Xiang consistently stayed around their artifact refining master, Chuan De. At this moment, Fu Chuan De was freely searching for spirit stones everywhere, constantly putting them into his storage bag.
Ji Wei of the Xin family watched this unfold, feeling anxious. If this continued, they would only watch the Ge family win.
Ji Wei said to Yuan Jia Dong beside him, "I think we should change our strategy. Let's have the four of us attack Ge Xiang and then snatch the spirit stones from Fu Chuan De."
Yuan Jia Dong shook his head decisively, "Absolutely not. Even if the four of us attack her alone, we might not have a winning chance. Moreover, Cai Xun and Tai Zheng haven't gone far; they could return to help at any moment, putting us in a passive position. Unless it's a last resort, do not make a move against the Ge family."
Qiang Sen Rui also nodded repeatedly, "General Yuan speaks wisely."
Dou Jing suddenly said in a low voice, "Why don't we just look for spirit stones ourselves? We're not unfamiliar with spirit stones. Why place all our hopes on others?"
Ji Wei glanced at him sideways, "It might be alright in other places, but inside here, there are poisonous spirit stones everywhere. If we accidentally pick up a poisonous spirit stone, it will devour our spiritual energy and deduct double points. The most crucial point is that poisonous spirit stones look exactly the same as ordinary spirit stones. Most people can't distinguish them. If we act rashly, we're likely to fall into a trap."
Dou Jing sighed, "It would be good if the Xin family sent even one artifact refiner. Relying solely on snatching isn't a viable method."
Qiang Sen Rui nodded, "Yes, the Celestial Master might have miscalculated."
Yuan Jia Dong, however, said calmly, "Why are you in a hurry? There's still plenty of time. I don't believe these four from the Wang family can remain so patient. They can't just be leisurely forever, can they? They didn't come here for sightseeing."
However, up to this point, the four members of the Wang family were indeed very leisurely. They would occasionally sit down to rest, chat amongst themselves, then stand up to walk around, casually admiring the scenery, as if they had no intention of looking for spirit stones.
At this moment, Wu Lei, who was not being watched, was hiding and dodging. Seeing that no one was paying attention to him, he quietly put some spirit stones into his storage bag, like a thief.
Mo Qi, following behind Shui Han, quietly released Xiao Bu Dian. Xiao Bu Dian hopped and skipped, quickly disappearing among the rocks.
Shui Han found a high vantage point with good visibility and stopped, sitting down on the grassy ground beneath a tree.
Mo Qi unhesitatingly sat down at a distance of three zhang from her.
Shui Han glanced at him, snorted softly, and then shifted her gaze elsewhere.
Mo Qi, on the other hand, acted as if Shui Han didn't exist, humming a song to himself as if no one was around. Soon, he lay down and let out a comfortable sound, "Ah."
Shui Han looked at him with disgust, wanting to get up and leave.
At this moment, Xiao Bu Dian returned, a storage bag in its mouth.
Mo Qi patted its head, took the storage bag from its mouth, and then hung another empty storage bag on its mouth. Xiao Bu Dian hopped and skipped away again.
Shui Han was stunned!
Seeing his nonchalant demeanor, she had thought he was just here to play. She hadn't expected him to be working so hard behind the scenes.
What a cunning move, to have deceived even her, let alone others.
And he was using her as a shield!
How sly!