Chapter 1993: Is Him Is Him Is Him

Zhang Xuan, unaware of the situation, hastened all the way to the drill ground on the mountaintop. It didn't take him long to arrive.

The area was already packed with people. Tens of thousands of inner disciples, upon receiving the message, had stopped their cultivation and gathered here.

Following the crowd, Zhang Xuan found a corner and hid. With so many people around, he figured no one would notice an ordinary person like him.

“I believe you’ve all guessed why I’ve called you here!” In the middle of the crowd, an elder surveyed his surroundings, his voice reaching everyone’s ears.

It was Huang You, the Second Elder of the Inner Sect. Upon hearing the elder’s words, all the inner disciples flushed red and lowered their heads. Having just been challenged and defeated in the Spirit Communication Hall, even the densest among them understood why the elder had summoned them.

“The Inner Sect of the Cloud Soaring Sword Pavilion has existed for thousands of years, and this is the first time such a situation has occurred! Although I don’t know who among you ‘I Am Low-Key’ is, to defeat five thousand people of the same level single-handedly is certainly a groundbreaking achievement for the Sword Pavilion! He deserves commendation. But the rest of you, five thousand people attacking, and you couldn’t even defeat one person... I just want to ask, what have you learned all these years? Have you just been freeloading in the sect every day?” Huang You looked at the crowd, his face devoid of any expression, making it impossible to tell if he was angry or pleased.

Hearing the reprimand, everyone’s faces flushed crimson with embarrassment. Five thousand people attacking, yet being defeated by one individual... it was indeed a profound humiliation that no amount of argument could dispute. However... it seemed that the elder himself had also been defeated when he secretly went to challenge him. It was a case of the pot calling the kettle black.

“We are indeed no match for this ‘I Am Low-Key’, but... could someone so powerful be a core disciple in disguise?” an inner disciple couldn’t help but ask. His words immediately resonated with many. Everyone knew the limits of an inner disciple’s strength. While it was plausible for someone a bit stronger than average to emerge, someone this powerful was perplexing.

“Elder Mu and I, along with others, specifically went to the Sword Pavilion Pavilion to check. The opponent’s strength is genuinely at the peak of the Void Shattering realm! This is the result of our inquiry...” As if aware of their suspicions, Huang You’s expression remained calm as he pointed a finger. A recorded image appeared in the air, showing the scene of the elders’ previous inquiry. Soon, the wall displayed the cultivation level, exactly as he had stated.

“Peak of Void Shattering... an inner disciple!” “Can an inner disciple truly be that strong?” “Can someone at the same level be so powerful?” After witnessing this, everyone understood that “I Am Low-Key” was indeed a genuine inner disciple, and all their previous doubts vanished.

“What do you have to say now?” After the video finished playing, Elder Huang You looked at them coldly, his voice laced with indifference: “If you can’t win, you assume the opponent is a core disciple... Have you ever looked for the reasons within yourselves?” Without waiting for an answer, his aura grew sharper and heavier, making it difficult for anyone to breathe. “At the same level, why is ‘I Am Low-Key’ so powerful? It’s because, just like his nickname suggests, he is so low-key that no one knows or notices him! He never participates in competitions, never contends with others, and rarely even takes action! His sole focus is cultivation, cultivation, and more cultivation! He has poured countless times more effort and sweat than others to achieve what he has today! And what about you?” His voice grew even louder: “You spend all your days competing, flaunting your identity, seeking attention, while your cultivation takes a back seat... How can you cultivate peerless sword techniques and become true masters?”

Everyone was utterly mortified with shame. Zhang Xuan stroked his chin. He never participated in competitions, never contended with others... because he had only arrived at the Sword Pavilion less than a day ago. However, it was true that his cultivation had required countless times more effort and a low profile than others.

“Therefore, don’t complain about failure; it’s because you haven’t put in enough effort. While you may not be as talented as others, you also haven’t worked as hard!” Elder Huang’s voice continued: “Starting today, I hope you can reclaim the honor you’ve lost and make our Inner Sect even stronger! Can you do it? Do you have the confidence?” “Yes!” “We do!” One by one, fists clenched, and teeth gritted among the crowd.

Seeing their soaring morale, Zhang Xuan breathed a sigh of relief. He had thought his identity had been discovered and had rushed over in alarm. It turned out he was being used as a negative example to inspire the crowd.

“My words are done. Since you have confidence, I will wait and see!” Elder Huang You nodded, waving his hand. “Additionally, whoever among you is ‘I Am Low-Key,’ it would be best if you came to find me proactively...” “Time to go...” Relieved that his specific identity hadn’t been discovered, Zhang Xuan stepped out from his hiding spot. Just as he was wondering if he should go to the Raindrop Pavilion, an urgent shout rang out: “It’s him, it’s him, it’s really him, I found him...”

The voice was extremely sudden and urgent, immediately drawing the attention of countless people. Zhang Xuan also turned his head, and at a glance, his hair stood on end, and he nearly fainted. The person who had shouted was pointing directly at him, and all the disciples’ gazes simultaneously turned his way.

“Damn...” His scalp tingled, Zhang Xuan was losing his mind. Could he really have been recognized just like that? If so, how could he remain low-key? More importantly, if his identity were confirmed, he wouldn’t even need to cultivate anymore; countless people would come to challenge him daily, driving him crazy with annoyance... After all, everyone wanted to make a name for themselves and stand out. If they couldn’t defeat five thousand people, defeating him would count as an even greater achievement...

“It’s not me, it’s not me, you’ve got the wrong person...” Zhang Xuan turned and ran, as fast as a wild horse unleashed, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

“Don’t run...” The inner disciple who had shouted was stunned to see the man escape so quickly. Just as he was about to give chase, he felt an intense pressure beside him. Elder Huang You had appeared beside him at some point. “You just said, ‘it’s him.’ Who is he?”

“It’s someone who sells fake medicine... oh, no, real medicine!” The disciple quickly bowed. “...” Elder Huang You’s face twitched. He wished he could slap the idiot in front of him to death. He was talking about “I Am Low-Key,” and this guy started yelling “It’s him, it’s him,” scaring the other person into a panicked escape... He had thought he found the expert who defeated five thousand, only to find it was just a medicine seller... One shouldn’t get that excited about meeting a medicine seller!

“It’s... Senior Sister Bai Ruanqing looking for him, she couldn’t find him, and just saw him, so she was a bit excited...” Seeing Elder Huang’s displeased expression, the disciple quickly explained. This disciple, though not the closest one to Zhang Xuan’s stall, was a member of the inner sect’s trading area at the time and had seen Zhang Xuan’s appearance. Zhang Xuan simply hadn’t paid much attention to him.

“Bai Ruanqing is looking for him?” Elder Huang You frowned. As an elder, he had heard of Bai Ruanqing, a core disciple and Elder Bai Ye’s granddaughter. What would she want with an inner disciple?

“Yes, it seems she bought some of his medicine, and it worked quite well, so she wants to buy more...” the disciple replied. “Go help Bai Ruanqing find him, and don’t upset her...” Thinking it was “I Am Low-Key,” but finding out it wasn’t, Elder Huang You lost interest and waved his hand dismissively.

“Understood...” The disciple nodded vigorously, not waiting to find Liu Luojie and the others, and quickly pursued in the direction Zhang Xuan had vanished down the mountain.

“That was close...” After running an unknown distance and finding no one pursuing him, Zhang Xuan finally stopped and rubbed his forehead. He just wanted to live an ordinary, low-key life... Was that so difficult? But... he really didn’t want to be so outstanding!

“Someone found out, my identity must be exposed...” Zhang Xuan pondered. Although he didn’t know how it leaked, as long as he didn’t admit it and didn’t reveal his strength, they shouldn’t find evidence to prove he was “I Am Low-Key”!

“I must destroy this ‘I Am Low-Key’ Spirit Communication Jade Token...” If he didn’t destroy it, once caught, a simple check would easily reveal his true identity, and he would have no way to deny it.

“Fortunately, the Sword Pavilion coins I earned from the previous bet were stored on an unregistered card, so they can’t be traced. I don’t have to worry about losing them...” With a flip of his wrist, he took out the “I Am Low-Key” Spirit Communication Jade Token and crushed it casually. Only then did Zhang Xuan breathe a sigh of relief. Within the Spirit Communication Hall, duels were frequent, and being defeated was common. Therefore, many people placed their transactional funds on unregistered cards. No matter how many jade tokens they changed, they could easily retrieve their money upon entering. So, even if the jade token was destroyed, the money would not be lost.

After completing these actions, Zhang Xuan relaxed. He then noticed that the person who had pointed at him earlier had caught up. Looking behind the person, he didn’t see anyone else, which eased Zhang Xuan’s mind, though he was filled with confusion. That guy had already called him “I Am Low-Key.” Shouldn’t Elder Huang You and the others have chased after him too? Why was there only one person? Were they afraid of startling him? Nevertheless, no matter what, no matter what the other person said, he simply wouldn’t admit it! After all, the jade token had already been crushed, leaving no evidence.

“Brother, you run so fast...” The disciple from earlier came up, breathing heavily. Although Zhang Xuan had used a relatively slow speed to escape, so as not to seem suspicious, it was still not a speed that could be easily matched.

“Good thing I was the first to recognize you and catch up, haha, I’m rich now...” His eyes gleaming, the disciple looked at Zhang Xuan as if he had found a treasure.

“Recognize me? Don’t talk nonsense, I’m not that incredibly heroic, unmatched, handsome man known as ‘I Am Low-Key.’ He shines brightly like the sun... while I’m just an ordinary inner disciple, insignificant... Careless talk can get you killed!” Zhang Xuan quickly waved his hand.

“‘I Am Low-Key’? I didn’t say... you were ‘I Am Low-Key’?” The disciple paused, looking somewhat dazed.