Chapter 216: Guidance

Yan Yuqing was mortified on the spot! Jiang Fan had actually overheard her ignorant remarks. She wished she could find a hole to crawl into. Her face was crimson with shame, and she didn't dare to meet Jiang Fan's gaze.

Burying her head in her chest, she said with a burning face: "Martial Uncle, don't, don't listen to their nonsense. I never said that."

Her two best friends frowned. "Yuqing, but that's exactly what you said... Mmmph!"

Yan Yuqing quickly clapped her hands over their mouths and said menacingly, "Say another word and we all die!"

Only then did her two friends quiet down. Their small faces were filled with confusion. What was wrong with Yan Yuqing? Could it be that this Jiang Fan had something on her, making her so afraid of him?

The cheerful girl pried Yan Yuqing's hands away and said with a defiant look: "Hey! You're about our age, what right do you have to be Yan Yuqing's Martial Uncle?"

"Exactly!" The other girl also spoke up indignantly for Yan Yuqing, "You have to convince us first."

Jiang Fan was exasperated. What could they do if they weren't convinced? Seeing that they were speaking out for Yan Yuqing and had no ill intentions, Jiang Fan said with interest, "How can I convince you?"

This... The two girls had only wanted to stand up for their friend. They hadn't thought about how they would actually test Jiang Fan.

Suddenly, the cheerful girl pointed to the erected arena. "Later, you can go on stage and spar with the elites of our Grand Supremacy Sect. If you perform well, then we'll acknowledge you as Yan Yuqing's Martial Uncle."

Jiang Fan asked, surprised, "As an outer sect disciple, can I also participate in your Grand Supremacy Sect's disciple competition?"

Yan Yuqing was almost driven mad by her two friends. She quickly said, "Martial Uncle, don't listen to these two girls' nonsense. They're talking about the friendly matches. Every year, during our Grand Supremacy Sect's disciple competition, disciples from other sects specially come to observe. So, after the main competition concludes, a special friendly match session is arranged. Outer sect disciples can step forward and challenge one of our sect's disciples. Alternatively, our sect's disciples can also request a spar with an observing outer sect disciple."

Jiang Fan understood. The Grand Supremacy Sect was one of the three most powerful sects. The strength of its disciples was of great interest to other sects, which is why external observers always came for the disciple competition. And the Grand Supremacy Sect, to showcase its disciples' prowess, simply and generously hosted friendly matches. This allowed visitors to experience the strength of the Grand Supremacy Sect's disciples firsthand. It must be said that the Grand Supremacy Sect was very confident in its disciples' abilities.

Jiang Fan smiled. "Let's skip the sparring; it's easy to hurt feelings. Just watching is fine."

The Grand Supremacy Sect's sparring matches were intended to display the strength of its disciples. If a disciple won, it was all well and good. But if they lost, the Grand Supremacy Sect would lose some face.

"Hmph!" the two female disciples drawled, rolling their eyes in unison. They clearly thought Jiang Fan was apprehensive and dared not step onto the stage.

Yan Yuqing wished she could strangle them both, but instead, she explained with a wry smile: "Martial Uncle, these two are my friends. One is Cheng Xiaoleng, a sword genius from Hidden Sword Peak. The other is Chai Yingrong, a palm technique master from Green Bamboo Peak. They're both spoiled by their masters and fellow disciples and speak without thinking, so please don't take them seriously."

Cheng Xiaoleng, the cheerful one, pouted. "Who are you talking about? If you're so capable, then come fight on stage!"

Jiang Fan simply smiled and remained silent. He strolled over to a section of the audience seats. He sat down casually and quietly waited for the competition to begin.

Just then, a stir went through the disciples. "Hua Xiangchen, the Senior Disciple Brother from Sect Leader Peak, is here! And Senior Disciple Sister Li Shiqian from Hidden Sword Peak. Senior Disciple Brother Wang Yunge from Green Bamboo Peak is also here. They're all sect elites; they don't even need to participate in the selection to qualify for the beast tide frontline. Why are they still coming?"

"Naturally, they're here to hold the line for our Grand Supremacy Sect. Didn't you notice there are many observers from other sects this time? If there's someone exceptionally strong among them whom our regular disciples can't contend with, then these elites will step forward to uphold the sect's reputation."

The new disciples suddenly understood. The Grand Supremacy Sect dared to set up sparring matches because it had the confidence not to lose to anyone. Hua Xiangchen and the other sect elites were their trump cards.

Hua Xiangchen arrived, surrounded by an admiring crowd. From afar, he spotted Yan Yuqing, who stood out from the crowd like a crane among chickens. She wore a long, wide-sleeved goose-yellow dress, her face fair and refined, with bright eyes and white teeth. Standing among the other disciples, she was a refreshing sight. Though not as stunning as Xia Chaoge, she was undeniably a beauty.

He waved to Yan Yuqing from a distance. "Junior Sister Yuqing, come join us to watch the matches. I'll introduce you to Junior Sister Li and Junior Brother Wang."

Yan Yuqing had always sought to mingle among the sect's elite disciples. She had always aimed to befriend the prodigies from various peaks. However, birds of a feather flock together. Among the top prodigies, only Hua Xiangchen frequently interacted with Yan Yuqing, and that was mainly to get closer to Xia Chaoge. Prodigies like Li Shiqian and Wang Yunge, who possessed exceptional strength, rarely bothered with her. Now that he was making the introduction, he believed Yan Yuqing would quickly blend in with them. And Yan Yuqing, he assumed, would be overjoyed.

Cheng Xiaoleng and Chai Yingrong also urged her, beaming with delight: "Yuqing, hurry and go! Haven't you wanted to get to know Senior Sister Li and Senior Brother Wang for a long time?"

However, to everyone's surprise, Yan Yuqing merely cupped her hands in salute from a distance to Li Shiqian and Wang Yunge: "Yuqing greets Senior Sister Li and Senior Brother Wang. Junior Sister must accompany her Martial Uncle and is unable to join you. I hope you will forgive me."

She had already acknowledged Jiang Fan as her Martial Uncle. With an elder present, she naturally couldn't abandon him. This reaction made Hua Xiangchen's expression stiffen slightly. The imagined scene of Yan Yuqing, eyes full of joy, trotting over, did not materialize. Instead, she politely refused?

Li Shiqian felt a bit put out; she had always been indifferent to Yan Yuqing. Today, when given a chance to gain favor, she was actually ungrateful? "Heh, this Junior Sister Yan certainly puts on airs."

Wang Yunge was also displeased. "It seems Junior Sister Yan looks down on me, Wang."

Hua Xiangchen quickly tried to smooth things over for Yan Yuqing. "One can't blame Junior Sister Yuqing for this. She naturally wants to get to know Junior Sister Li and Junior Brother Wang. However, Divine Physician Shangguan forced her to accompany that Martial Uncle. Although she's extremely reluctant, she has no choice."

Hearing this, Li Shiqian and Wang Yunge's gazes turned to Jiang Fan, who was beside Yan Yuqing. They frowned in unison. "Is he that rootless disciple from the Azure Cloud Sect? Doesn't Yan Yuqing feel embarrassed acknowledging someone like him as her Martial Uncle?"

Hua Xiangchen smiled wryly, "Junior Sister Yuqing is also acting under duress. Alright, let's take our seats. After her match, I'll have her send some fine spirit wine to apologize to Junior Sister Li and Junior Brother Wang."

As the disciples took their seats, the Grand Supremacy Sect's disciple competition began. One similarity with the Azure Cloud Sect was that elite disciples were exempt from the main competition. Therefore, only disciples below the eighth layer of Foundation Establishment were sparring and competing against each other.

"Next match: Yan Yuqing of Divine Physician Peak, against Feng Haoyuan of Bagua Gate!"

Cheng Xiaoleng and Chai Yingrong's expressions changed abruptly. "Yuqing, you're so unlucky! You actually ran into that guy!"

Cheng Xiaoleng gave Yan Yuqing a look of pity. Chai Yingrong also said with a dejected face, "This draw is too unfair. Feng Haoyuan is a key talent cultivated by Bagua Gate; his cultivation has reached the seventh layer of Foundation Establishment, and he practices powerful leg techniques. He just defeated someone at the same cultivation level with only three leg moves."

Cheng Xiaoleng said, "Exactly! Our Yuqing is only at the sixth layer of Foundation Establishment; how can she compare?"

Yan Yuqing's face turned even paler. She secretly thought she was too unlucky. She had met the strongest opponent. She took a deep breath, stood up, and said, "Martial Uncle, I'm going now."

Jiang Fan, however, looked at Feng Haoyuan meaningfully and said: "Do you want to win against him?"