Chapter Ninety-Three: Real Combat

Wang Li put on a perfect show of concern and raised a hand. “Since things have come to this, further words are useless. Remember this well for the future: never act on impulse. Think before you move, so you do not make another reckless mistake.”

Yun Jingzi had not expected Wang Li to change gears so quickly. He did not press her for responsibility at all, and she could not help feeling a trace of goodwill toward him.

“I will keep your teaching in mind, Deacon Wang.”

Taking the opening, Yun Jingzi asked, “May I be so bold as to ask how Deacon Wang came to this final point?”

She had always been curious about the rules by which the Heavenly Selection allowed people to pass through.

From the very beginning, the Heavenly Selection had been absurdly unreasonable, forcibly dragging people into the trial. The rules it gave were a complete mess. Before the first stage had even ended, two people had already reached the finish, and after that she herself had somehow triggered a hidden rule. If she did not sort it out, she would always feel unsettled.

There was also another reason: she wanted to probe Wang Li’s depth. Was he so powerful that, like her, he had triggered some hidden rule? Or had he simply come here by his own strength?

If it was the former, that meant Wang Li was not as terrifying as the rumors claimed. At the very least, his cultivation level was still within the range recognized by the Heavenly Selection’s rules. In that case, she might still have a chance to obtain the sacred artifact. If it was the latter...

Then she might as well lie flat and cling to Wang Li’s thigh.

From the years she had spent undergoing the trial in the little city, and from the information she had gathered from other participants, she had already confirmed that outsiders could not enter the Heavenly Selection ruins. At the very least, Earth Immortal experts could not get in. If Wang Li had been expelled from the selection and then somehow returned, then his strength would be outrageously beyond reason.

Wang Li understood her intention as well. With a stern expression, he said, “Last time, I was expelled from the relic world by the will of the world itself. Yet my heart was with the tens of thousands of disciples of Pure Yang Temple, so I reentered this world. I did not want to enrage the world’s will again, so I remained here, intending to help the disciples of Pure Yang Temple seize the sacred artifact.”

These words were not entirely bluster. He truly had been repelled by the world’s will, and he had indeed slipped back in. Since he was already putting on the guise of a mysterious master, he might as well help himself by finding a partner for Ling Xiao, while also eliminating one more competitor for her.

Sure enough, the moment Wang Li finished speaking, Yun Jingzi nearly dropped to her knees.

“Overriding the world’s will... just how strong must one be for that?”

While she was stunned by Wang Li’s unfathomable strength, she also caught another meaning in his words: helping the disciples of Pure Yang Temple obtain the sacred artifact.

“Deacon Wang truly cares for Pure Yang Temple!”

At once, her thoughts turned lively.

With such an expert protecting her, obtaining the sacred artifact would surely be as easy as reaching into her own pocket.

Just as she was excitedly preparing to draw closer to Wang Li, he cut short her beautiful fantasy.

“The sacred artifact is different from ordinary treasures. It is obtained only by the one fated for it. You are not destined for it.”

Wang Li’s words struck Yun Jingzi’s mind like a fist, leaving her as though she had been hit by lightning.

“How can you tell?”

Yun Jingzi still wanted to struggle a little. What if Wang Li could influence who the sacred artifact chose?

She did not doubt Wang Li’s words in the slightest. A great expert who could bypass the world’s will would not bother lying to her.

Wang Li fell silent for a moment.

“Nervously, Yun Jingzi asked, “Do you know who the one fated for it is?”

“Ling Xiao.”

Wang Li answered without the slightest hesitation.

Since he was asking for help in the form of backup, the target had to be clear. But to keep Yun Jingzi from feeling resentful, Wang Li needed her to help of her own accord rather than out of dissatisfaction.

“You need not be disappointed. Each person has their own destined path. Yours is not here, so there is no need to force it. Your fate lies elsewhere. When the time comes, it will naturally come to you, and it may not be any worse than this sacred artifact.”

It was impossible to make a genius like Yun Jingzi abandon the Heavenly Selection with words alone. In the end, strength would have to do the talking.

Besides, Wang Li also wanted to test his combat ability in practice. Merely farming experience through simulated battle scenes was still somewhat lacking. What was more, after dozens of simulated sparring sessions, he no longer feared Yun Jingzi. He could not say he would beat her into submission, but he could certainly make her understand that if he did not help her, she would have no chance of seizing the sacred artifact.

So he said, “Though you are destined to be without the sacred artifact, I do not wish to obstruct your pursuit without cause. I will give you one chance. Defeat me, and I will help you seize the sacred artifact by force. If you lose, then you will help Ling Xiao obtain it. What do you say?”

Yun Jingzi blinked. Then she laughed awkwardly. “Deacon Wang is joking, surely? How would a disciple dare to spar with a deacon?”

Come now. With you as a senior, crushing a junior like me would be as easy as lifting a hand.

Still, she was rather pleased. At the very least, Wang Li had explained why he was blocking her from obtaining the sacred artifact. Unlike some old seniors, he was not unreasonable. It was just that the senior’s way of giving her a way down from the tiger seemed a bit...

Wang Li could hear the faint reluctance in her voice. “When I fight you, I will suppress my cultivation to the first level of the Spirit Transformation realm. Do you dare to battle then?”

Yun Jingzi’s eyes lit up.

If Wang Li were to attack her directly, she held no hope at all. But if he tied his own hands, then she truly did want to exchange a few moves with him.

Win or lose, even if defeat was certain, she could at least gain some experience. Perhaps she might even receive some guidance. That would be capital to brag about later, would it not?

So she agreed with unusual promptness.

Yun Jingzi was very clear-minded. She had no foolish, brainless train of thought. With the senior’s strength standing right there, she could tell at a glance that Wang Li valued Ling Xiao. With such a heavyweight stirring up the waters, the sacred artifact was destined to escape her grasp, and so she no longer had any other thoughts.

Wang Li, however, had not expected Yun Jingzi to be so cooperative. He did not stand on ceremony either. After telling Jiang Yue to keep her distance, he took his stance and prepared to strike.

Jiang Yue looked at the two of them with an enigmatic smile, then squinted and pulled out a small conch shell before slipping off into a corner.

Wang Li and Yun Jingzi both noticed her little move, but neither took it to heart.

A recording, that was all. It was not as though they were doing anything shameful. What was there to fear?

Before making his move, Wang Li hurriedly ran a few more simulations. Once he had confirmed the best method of attack, he cast aside all airs of a great expert and opened with the full force of Soul Suppression Scripture, striking directly at Yun Jingzi’s soul.

As for whether it was undignified for a senior expert to strike first—well, did anyone really think fistfights came with rules?

Anyone who thought that way would probably already have grass growing on their grave mound.

Hadn’t even the junior, Yun Jingzi, said nothing?

In a fight, striking first is nothing to be ashamed of.

Yun Jingzi knew exactly what her weakness was, and she was shocked that Wang Li could see it. That only made her more certain of his identity as a senior powerhouse.

Unless he was many levels above her, how could he tell at a glance that the weakness lay in her soul?

Shock aside, since they were going to exchange blows, she still had to resist a little.

Her soul had been sealed, giving this all-rounder a clear weakness, but in every other respect her power was formidable. She was not without means to counter Wang Li’s soul attack.

She formed hand seals, and her figure instantly vanished into the surrounding space.

If you cannot even see me, how are you going to hit me?