My Arch-Nemesis is My Wife! - Chapter 2

Qi Zhen glared at Ye Lan Jialuo with dissatisfaction. However, since the “Covering the Heavens and Shrouding the Sun” herb was right before his eyes, he was determined to claim it without alerting Xue Yunbi. Despite his irritation, he held his ground.

Ye Lan Jialuo caught Qi Zhen’s look and immediately understood. He quickly signaled Shenzhang Lingxi. Having spent over a century together, Shenzhang Lingxi caught the drift instantly. He took a deep breath and muttered under his breath, “Man, I really wish a snow monster would show up right about now.”

Just as he stepped out to draw Xue Yunbi away, the mountain suddenly began to shudder. Sensing something was wrong, Ye Lan Jialuo lunged forward and yanked the mid-flight Shenzhang Lingxi back. At that moment, a strange, guttural roar echoed through the sky, kicking up a massive cloud of snow and frost.

The footsteps nearby stopped, replaced instantly by the sounds of a fierce battle.

“Talk about a godsend,” the three thought. Seizing the opportunity, they rushed forward to claim the “Covering the Heavens.”

The herb consisted of tender green sprouts, each bearing five slender, resilient leaves. A warm, golden light radiated from the center of the stalks, accompanied by a faint, elegant fragrance. As they held them, a gentle warmth seeped into their palms. It was truly a rare treasure.

Wasting no time, they integrated the herbs into their spiritual seas. Ordinarily, forcing a foreign object into one’s spiritual sea would cause excruciating pain, yet the three felt no discomfort at all.

The moment the herb settled, the demonic energy coursing through their meridians surged wildly before being completely sealed within their spiritual seas. With their powers suppressed, the dark aura surrounding them vanished instantly. The vivid demonic marks on their foreheads faded, their auras became pure and clean, and even their features shifted. They now looked like nothing more than ordinary mortals.

They exchanged glances, stunned by the transformation. They could barely recognize each other, let alone worry about the Tianyan Sect seeing through them.

Just as they finished their “makeover,” the sounds of battle nearby ceased. Before they could discuss their next move, the white-clad figure of Xue Yunbi suddenly materialized in front of them.

His sudden appearance gave them a fright, and out of sheer guilt, they remained dead silent.

Xue Yunbi frowned at the sight of them. With a flick of his sleeve, he used his powers to pull them up from the cliffside before asking, “Did you see any members of the Demon Race just now?”

Relieved that their disguise held, the three breathed a silent sigh of relief.

Qi Zhen started to answer, “No.”

“We saw them!” Ye Lan Jialuo interrupted loudly, cutting him off.

Qi Zhen shot him a look. Seeing their conflicting stories, Xue Yunbi pressed, “Did you see them or not?”

Ye Lan Jialuo quickly corrected, “I think we did. A dark, misty mass. But I couldn’t be sure if it was a demon.”

“Demons are shrouded in black mist to hide their true forms. If you see them, you must stay far away,” Xue Yunbi explained before asking, “Which way did the mist go?”

Ye Lan Jialuo shook his head. “I don’t know. We were just walking along when the avalanche hit. We got stuck and weren’t really paying attention.”

Xue Yunbi paused for a moment. “And what are you three doing here?”

Ye Lan Jialuo’s lies came as easily as breathing. “Immortal Lord, we are on our way to the Tianyan Sect to seek apprenticeship.”

Xue Yunbi looked skeptical. “This place is thirty thousand miles from the sect. By the time you walk there, the recruitment ceremony will be long over.” He scrutinized them once more and added, quite bluntly, “In my estimation, none of you possesses the talent for cultivation. You would be better off going home and finding a different trade. Don’t waste your energy on this journey.”

Hearing such a blunt dismissal, Qi Zhen was so incensed his eyes rolled back in his head. He stayed like that for so long that Xue Yunbi noticed. “What’s wrong with his eyes?”

Ye Lan Jialuo, who had been focused on his performance, looked over and saw Qi Zhen looking like he was about to faint from rage. He quickly grabbed him. “Big Brother! Are you alright?”

Qi Zhen brushed his hand away irritably. “I’m fine.”

Ye Lan Jialuo realized Qi Zhen was fuming. It made sense as a top-tier genius of his generation, being told to his face that he had “no talent” was a massive insult. He quickly smoothed things over. “My brother has an eye condition. It’s not serious, just a bit of a twitch. Immortal Lord, it has been our lifelong dream to study at the Tianyan Sect. If we don’t make it, we’ll regret it for the rest of our lives. Please, have mercy and help us.”

Ye Lan Jialuo spoke with such sincerity that his eyes actually welled up. Xue Yunbi looked at him and sighed. “Since you are so determined, I will take you there myself.”

Surprised by the easy success, Ye Lan Jialuo pressed his palms together. “Thank you, Immortal Lord!”

Shenzhang Lingxi chimed in, “Many thanks, Immortal Lord!”

“Very well. Let us go.”

Xue Yunbi took them into the air. To accommodate the “mortals,” he purposely slowed his flight speed.

Qi Zhen sat on the flying sword, staring at Xue Yunbi’s tall, elegant back. He was so close he felt he could almost feel the man’s body heat. A thought flashed through his mind: Isn’t this the perfect time to strike? Why bother going to the sect? I could just kill him right here and be done with it.

He tried to summon his divine weapon mentally, at the same time clenching his fist to strike Xue Yunbi in the lower back.

The sudden shove caught Xue Yunbi off guard, nearly knocking him off the sword. He managed to steady himself and turned back, confused. He found Qi Zhen collapsed in Ye Lan Jialuo’s arms, his hand twitching as if he had suffered a seizure.

“What happened to him?”

Ye Lan Jialuo sniffled theatrically, his voice trembling. “The thought of actually going to the Tianyan Sect… Big Brother was so overexcited he’s had a sudden flare-up of his ‘old ailment’!”

Shenzhang Lingxi started wailing alongside him, making the scene look remarkably convincing. Xue Yunbi clarified, “I am only taking you to the sect. Whether you are accepted depends entirely on yourselves.”

Ye Lan Jialuo kept his head down, his lips pressed into a thin line to keep from laughing. “We… we understand,” he squeezed out.

Qi Zhen remained “unconscious” in Ye Lan Jialuo’s arms until they reached the Tianyan Sect. Xue Yunbi dropped them off in a secluded area and departed.

The moment he was gone, Qi Zhen snapped his eyes open and cursed loudly. “That man is insufferable! Absolutely insufferable!”

Shenzhang Lingxi asked curiously, “My Lord, why did you suddenly shove him?”

Qi Zhen was too embarrassed to admit he had failed to summon his weapon. Turning his shame into anger, he snapped, “I hate the guy! If I don’t shove him, what am I supposed to do? Kiss him?”

Shenzhang Lingxi was dazed by the logic, but after a moment’s thought, he nodded. “Your Lordship is wise.”

Qi Zhen got even angrier. “Shut up!”

Ye Lan Jialuo got down to business. “My Lord, now that we’re at the Tianyan Sect, we need aliases.”

Their real names were like thunderclaps in the Spiritual Realm—mentioning them would cause a riot. But Qi Zhen clearly couldn’t be bothered with such details. He glanced at Ye Lan Jialuo. “You come up with something.”

Ye Lan Jialuo thought for a second. “Your Lordship will be Chu Tianming. I’ll be Luo Jiazuo, and Shenzhang will be Luo Jiayou. From now on, we call you ‘Big Brother’.”

Shenzhang Lingxi looked like he wanted to complain about his name, but Qi Zhen finalized it with a wave of his hand. “Fine. Let’s enter the sect.”

“Big Brother, I checked on the way in,” Ye Lan Jialuo said. “The main gates aren’t open yet. The recruitment ceremony hasn’t started. Let’s find an inn at the foot of the mountain to rest and gather some intel.”

Since Ye Lan Jialuo knew the Spiritual Realm better, Qi Zhen agreed.

They headed down to the mountain base. Originally, there were no inns there, but several had been hastily built for the occasion. Rooms were scarce. Even though Ye Lan Jialuo paid a premium, they only managed to secure one tiny room.

Qi Zhen was displeased, but with no other options, he had to endure it.

Ye Lan Jialuo went out daily to scout for information. He soon learned that the ceremony would officially begin in three days. There would be three trials between the mountain gate and the main hall, designed by nine Peak Masters. To ensure order and safety, each stage would be overseen by an Immortal Lord.

“What does it mean to have an Immortal Lord ‘overseeing’ the stage?” Shenzhang Lingxi asked.

“The source wasn’t specific,” Ye Lan Jialuo replied. “But it sounds like an Immortal Lord will be physically present to watch the candidates.”

Qi Zhen asked the important question: “Which stage is Xue Yunbi in charge of?”

“Only the nine Immortal Lords know that themselves,” Ye Lan Jialuo answered.

Qi Zhen calculated. “Nine people, three stages… does that mean three per stage?”

“Again, only they know.”

Qi Zhen figured that if he knew where Xue Yunbi was, he could kill him at close range during the trial. He ordered the two, “Find out if Xue Yunbi will be there in person.”

However, even by the time the gates opened and the ceremony began, they hadn’t discovered his location.

The mountain gates opened on schedule. A massive crowd—at least twenty thousand people—swarmed the entrance. Qi Zhen and his companions stood at the very back. Through the sea of people, they couldn’t even see the faces of the sect members speaking at the front.

Qi Zhen sighed in disbelief. “What’s so great about this Tianyan Sect that so many people show up?”

His comment immediately triggered the people in front of him. They turned around and glared. “What did you just say?”

Ye Lan Jialuo quickly played peacemaker. “Sorry, sorry! We didn’t mean anything by it. It’s just so crowded, my brother is getting a bit anxious.”

“Even if you’re anxious, you shouldn’t speak like that!” someone huffed.

Qi Zhen, who had never taken such attitude in his life, was ready to start swinging. Ye Lan Jialuo and Shenzhang Lingxi held him back with everything they had. Ye Lan Jialuo whispered, “Big Brother, remember why we’re here. Just endure it!”

Thinking of his goal to kill Xue Yunbi, Qi Zhen managed to simmer down. He shook off their hands. “I get it.”

The two breathed a sigh of relief.

As the small commotion ended, the pleasantries from the Tianyan Sect concluded, and the first trial began.

“This trial is named ‘Benevolence.’ All participants must survive in the current environment for five days. Anyone who dies or surrenders will be disqualified and escorted away.”

As the announcement finished, the scenery shifted violently.

A massive sun hung in the sky, so large it seemed to swallow the horizon. A wave of scorching heat instantly enveloped everyone. As far as the eye could see, the trees were withered, the earth was cracked, and visible heat waves distorted the air.

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