The person whose gaze she met was someone she despised, weak, frail, and did not know how to make use of opportunities. She was dumb enough to not accept Qin Wen's goodwill, allowing herself to be humiliated in this arena, ranked last - Zhong Xi.

Noticing Xue Yueliang's intense gaze, fear gripped her as she looked down, clutching onto the end of her robes, not knowing where to go or how to hide. Xue Yueliang's disgust increased, only being returned to reality by Hei Yu throwing Mao Ya out of the arena, marking her victory.

It doesn't even feel like a victory, Xue Yueliang frowned, regretting her use of the bloodline's power.

I'll only use it in matters of life and death. She promised herself.

Master better compensate me for this. She left as a parting thought.

She stepped down from the arena, neither her usual smile nor calm in her demeanour, just a bitter taste in her mouth. By the time she got off, the Qi that was suppressing her injuries faded away, causing her to hack out a mouthful of blood, and her walking was unstable, but Li Hua appeared by her side supporting her,

"Take this," she said, helping her swallow a fragrant pill.

It smoothly went down her throat, landing in her dantian, being acclimated into her spiritual Qi, and flowing along her meridians, giving a warm, healing feeling. The smooth healing nor the wonderful feeling eased Xue Yueliang's frustrations, murmuring a short thank you before sighing.

"What happened?" Li Hua asked, puzzled. "You won the battle; you ranked first. I thought you would be celebrating."

"I was," Xue Yuliang began, wrapping her arm around Li Hua's shoulder, staining her tunic with her blood, "I just didn't expect what happened next." She buried her head into her shoulder, hiding her distress from others, feeling mentally exhausted.

The bloodline link between her and Zhong Xi was firmer than hers with Qin Wen - her half-sister.

There were only two ways this could happen, either Zhong Xi had a purer bloodline, or she was my full sister.

The former was basically impossible, so the latter was the only one that made sense.

"It really puts a damper on things." She complained. Li Hua was startled by her sudden proximity but did not push her away, running her fingers through her hair in an attempt to comfort her, not saying anything. They stayed like that, frozen in time until Xue Yueliang finally broke the silence.

"I just- I don't know what I'm supposed to do," She sighed, straightening up.

She did not know if this was supposed to change things between them.

If she had never found out, she would ignore her and moved on with her life, but will this still be the best move for me?

"I never thought the great you would have a problem you can't solve." Li Hua giggled, seeing Xue Yueliang calm down.

Xue Yueliang rolled her eyes, about to speak but was interrupted by a loud gong. The fights in the arena stop, leading to the automatic victory of those trying to defend their places, and curses rang out.

The loudest of all belonged to a burly man. He was so close to winning the battle, but just as he was about to land the final blow, the time ran out, and he was transported out. Ignoring the injuries on his body, he stamped his foot on the ground, causing spider-like cracks to form on the earth, and people kept their distance, not wanting to be the target of his frustrations.

Coincidentally, when the clearing opened up, the only people left were Li Hua and Xue Yueliang, chatting amongst themselves, as Xue Yueliang finally understood why she had offended Mao Ya before meaning to.

"That is pretty embarrassing," Li Hua sympathised, understanding the shame Mao Ya would feel when he regained consciousness.

"Even his attendant and younger brother have a higher rank than him," Xue Yueliang snorted, "Sucks to be him."

When thinking about challenging him last minute, she was afraid she could not protect her ranking from others, but she had forgotten this very obvious benefit.

Somehow, the sight of them chatting had frustrated him, stomping toward them, "Xue Yueliang, this is all your fault!"

"And, who are you?" She asked, her head turned slightly.

The man huffed and puffed but did not say another word, brewing in his own anger, so Xue Yueliang turned a blind eye toward him, revelling in her victory with Li Hua.

Suddenly, she heard a roar, and a fist came whirling toward her, followed by an exclamation, "War Hammer Strike!"

Looking at Pan Niu, she snorted, "Fiery Wind Blades."

She remarked as flaming hot energy rushed at him. Hei Yu, who was sitting beside enlarged, swiped his claw at him, and Li Hua grabbed her bow, shooting an arrow toward his eye, all their attack landing within seconds of each other.

Xue Yueliang frowned as anger clouded his judgement, causing him to continue with the attack rather than defend himself, and she formed a barrier to protect herself, but surprisingly, she was not the one who blocked the attack. A silver barrier appeared in front of her perfectly absorbing the attack, leaving Xue Yueliang completely unharmed.

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Unlike her, Pan Niu's injuries worsened, the fiery wind blades burrowing deeper into his injuries, engulfing his organs, Li Hua's arrow poked into his eye, blinding him on his left eye, and Hei Yu's claws left him within an inch of his life.

"Settle down, young cultivators."

A booming voice sounded commanding respect from all who heard it.

"Aggressors will not be protected by the formation. All those who disobey rules can only rely on themselves!"

People's gazes naturally landed on Pan Niu's pitiful figure, no one daring to make a move to help him.

Suddenly, the silver barrier in front of Xue Yueliang flashed, and an identical attack to the one Pan Niu made flew off, landing on his beaten and battered body, "Urgh."

A loud groan sounded, his eyes widening before his body stiffened.

"Pfft-" In the sombre silence, a stifled laugh was heard, ruining the atmosphere while Xue Yueliang hid her face behind Li Hua.

"He- He killed himself." She giggled, finding his manner of death truly pathetic.

"Um, that's not..." Li Hua said, not knowing if she should tell her to stop laughing.

"Well, he definitely did get rid of his anger." She continued, unable to compose herself, "He will never feel angry again." The Dragonoid shot a cold look at the corpse, then the duo, before waving his hand, causing the corpse to disappear.

"Anyways," he continued, "For those ranking eleventh and below, congratulations on your placings. Your rewards will appear before you; take them, then feel free to go."

With the landing of his words, shimmering pouches with a golden sheen appeared in front of them, releasing their rewards.

The medicinal pills' aroma, the glow of precious treasures, and the squeals of delight from the cultivators filled the giant colosseum. Receiving their treasures, the people quickly disappeared, hiding their gains; although they won them fairly, whether or not they could return alive and enjoy them was up in the air.

"Senior Sister Hua, we will wait outside for you." Li Yuan said, cupping his fists. During these three days, he had dropped a ranking, allowing him to leave early this time, but his drop caused Li Hua to doubt him, "You didn't do this on purpose, right?"

"Of course not," he replied, feeling wronged, "I would not mess around with a mission given to me."

Since Sun Wei would have a higher ranking than her, the Silver Armour Sect sought to have two people in the top ten, but this plan did not work out.

"I'll see you later then." Li Hua sighed, wondering how she could overcome her weaknesses; these types of trials always put her at a disadvantage.

Like this, various groups said goodbye to their representatives, and the colosseum was clearing out until an urgent voice interrupted.

"Is it possible to swap places with someone if both parties are willing?" Mo Mei asked, plucking every bit of courage she had,

"I'm afraid not." Was the simple response. Her face paled as she asked again, "What if I dropped out? Can I give my place to someone else?"

"No, everyone below you would move up a ranking." The people's movements stopped, staring at her with glittery eyes, Li Yuan leading them.

"I-" Mo Mei did not know what to say, her arms wrapped around herself as she shivered.

"Do you think he used to hit her?" Xue Yueliang whispered to Li Hua, enjoying the public outburst.

"It wouldn't be surprising. Nobles are known for mistreating their subordinates." Li Hua whispered back, though there was no reason to.

"Don't you feel bad for her?"

Zhong Xi appeared in her mind again, and the disgust returned, "I don't do things like that." She replied, ignoring the uncomfortable feeling that appeared in her heart.

Li Hua sighed, walking over to Mo Mei's side, placing her hand on her shoulder, and whispering something inaudible to anyone but them. Whatever she said seemed to calm her down as she regained her usual hateful expression. She whispered something to Lei Fu, who helped the prince out, and she closed her eyes, calming her thoughts.

"You're incredible," Dai Xing said, appearing beside Li Hua with admiration in his eyes. "How did you calm her so quickly?"

Li Hua rolled her eyes, wondering what possessed him to come over, saying, "Easy. I told her to minimise her punishment."

"But she didn't do anything to get her in trouble?" Dai Xing asked, frowning.

"If she hadn't, why was she so afraid of punishment?" Li Hua replied back. "It doesn't matter what we think. She follows Mao Ya." She added, "Don't you follow him too? I think you should prepare yourself for his anger." The contempt in her voice was obvious.

"My brother isn't so small-minded." Dai Xing defended him without thinking.

"Oh, really?" Xue Yueliang interrupted, "Then, how is his relationship with the First Princess, Yao Niang?"

Dai Xing's expression turned ugly, realising something, but was not willing to change his mind. "She has both designs on the throne and rights to it. It's only right he will view her as a threat."

"Oh, and he will believe you have neither?" Xue Yueliang argued, happy to put doubt between the brothers, "It's not fun having the calculative kind as an ally."

Li Hua's expression turned strange, looking at Xue Yueliang. Aren't you the calculative kind?

Noticing her gaze, Xue Yueliang ignored it, poking Li Hua and winking, "But hey, if the royal family doesn't work out, I'm sure Li Hua could find you a place in the Silver Armour Sect."

"Huh?"

"With such a large sect, I'm sure you always need more people."

Li Hua's gaze flitted between them, finally answering, "Yeah, we could always use a new cleaner or two, but I think a prince would be too overqualified for that." She appeared very bitter saying this, like the words, were forced out of her mouth, eliciting a laugh from the other two.

"As long as you acknowledge my qualifications." He winked, causing Li Hua to roll her eyes. Though he appeared as easy-going as before, a hint of guardedness appeared in his eyes, but that didn't bother Xue Yueliang. It doesn't matter if he trusts me as long as he doesn't trust Mao Ya too. She smiled, looking at the bickering duo.

He could also protect Li Hua from me.

She never had many friends in her previous life, and those she formed died or left. She did not wish something bad to happen to Li Hua, but she did not know how her future priorities would change. The more powerful Li Hua and her allies were, the less chance she would ever place her in danger.

I really hope it never comes to that.

Finally, the massive stadium cleared, leaving behind only ten people.

"For the top ten, congratulations, you have proven yourselves to be exceptional, strong, and resourceful." He said, looking at every one of them.

"In the world of cultivation, there are multitudes of paths to take to immortality, each representing its own Dao. Out of the multitudes, there isn't a right or wrong answer, evil or just method, only a method that suits you and will allow you to achieve your full potential and, perhaps - immortality."

He stopped, allowing the awe and excitement from the juniors to calm down, listening with a burning curiosity to hear his next words, "The path you started is a long one, and in commemoration of the first time this Sacred Ground had been opened, you will receive an additional award."

"Many powerful experts of the past have left their insight into the Dao for younger generations to benefit from, and today you will get the chance to glean understanding from these experts."

Watching the giddy excitement in their eyes, he smiled, adding, "There even is a scroll from a sage at the peak of the Soul Transformation Realm, unrivalled in his generation!"

"Wow!"

At this point, not only those within the arena were surprised, but everyone watching, youngsters and the elderly alike. This opportunity did not come often, and the envy directed to the top ten increased manyfold, to the point if it were given form, it would engulf them whole.