Chapter 405: Uninvited Guests

"...How skewed is it? Mhmm," Yun Xi repeated the question with a thoughtful expression before responding, "Like earlier, I mentioned the fee of 30 Contribution points an Outer Sect Disciple would need to pay if they wanted to enter the Beast Ground, right?"

Yi Chen and the rest nodded when they heard her question.

Seeing this, Yun Xi continued, "If you were to exchange those thirty Contribution points in terms of spirit stones from the sect, what you’ll receive will amount to 30 High Grade Spirit Stones, which is the official exchange rate.

However, that doesn’t mean that you could avail the same facility of entering the Beast Ground with those 30 High Grade Spirit Stones. If you want to use the spirit stones to enter the Beast Ground, then the cost will become 120 High Grade Spirit Stones instead of only 30 Contribution Points."

"This..." Yi Chen’s eyes widened when he heard this, ’So the difference is that skewed...’

At the same time, Dong Yun, who had been listening from the side, exclaimed intensely, "Four times?! Isn’t that too much??"

Hearing those words, Yun Xi smiled patiently and explained, "Junior Brother, as I’ve said earlier..."

While Yun Xi was explaining the reason behind the skewed prices, Yi Chen glanced towards Dong Yun once again and narrowed his eyes.

’This guy... He’s just acting dumb so that he could exchange a few more words with her now, isn’t he?’ Yi Chen thought to himself while looking at Dong Yun’s overly enthusiastic expression as he listened to Yun Xi’s explanation.

"...Therefore, it not only reduces the disparity between the disciples coming from different backgrounds but also pushes them to keep doing the Sect’s Missions, which are regularly updated in the Mission Hall."

Yun Xi finished her explanation with a gentle smile, seeing that Dong Yun’s doubt was cleared.

However, before she could relax, Feng Min and others also asked a few more questions that they had been keeping in their minds all along as everyone slowly started to eat their lunch.

As a result of this continuous series of questions, the lunch, which usually would have lasted for only thirty minutes, had stretched by more than an hour.

By now, the entire dining hall was filled with several Outer Sect Disciples, and the number of piercing gazes Yi Chen could feel on his back had significantly increased.

’They keep looking at him as if I’m some exotic species...’

Yi Chen thought to himself, feeling on edge because of all the stares, but still tried his best to listen to everything Yun Xi was explaining to the rest of his group members.

However, just then a series of steps drew Yi Chen’s attention, making him turn towards his right.

Step.

Step.

Step.

"Well, well, well, isn’t this Sister Yun Xi? I wonder what it is you’re helping our juniors with when you can’t even help yourself?"

The man said in an obnoxious tone as his hand firmly pressed onto Yun Xi’s shoulder the very next moment, making her entire body tremble in response.

Sensing her reaction, the grin on the man’s face widened as he leaned closer to Yun Xi’s ear the next second and asked in a cheeky voice, "Pray tell, Sister Yun Xi, maybe even a failure can have words of insight which can help everyone else but themselves? Isn’t that right, brothers?"

He glanced towards his two friends the next moment, who had similar gloating expressions on their faces, just like him.

"Brother Liu jests! Hahaha, how could someone like her ever have anything useful to say?"

"That’s the best joke I’ve heard in years, Brother Liu! Listening to a mute would be more beneficial than listening to someone like her for guidance hahaha..."

"Ah, you two are indeed right. There’s no way for her to have anything useful, then..." Liu Shen stroked his chin with an amused smile on his face as he said the next moment, "...could it be that she’s trying to suck up to our Juniors so that they will help her collect the required Contribution points? Hahaha."

Yun Xi, who had been silently enduring each and every word that came out of their mouth all this while, lost control of herself the moment she heard that sentence.

"Liu Shen!"

With blood-red eyes, she roared at the top of her lungs while glaring at him, with hatred evident in her eyes. If looks could kill, then Liu Shen would have died a thousand times over just from how intense Yun Xi’s glare was. [A/N: I always wanted to try writing this line xD]

However, her reaction only seemed to have induced a sense of annoyance in Liu Shen’s face, as he wasn’t expecting her to retaliate at all.

Looking around at all the people who were looking in his direction and murmuring things, he couldn’t help but feel humiliation welling up in his innards because of her sudden act of defiance.

Therefore, meeting her eyes the very next second, he said in a cold voice, "Glare at me for two more seconds, and I’ll take that as a challenge for an official duel."

’!!!’

The moment Yun Xi heard those words, her gaze faltered, and before even a second could fully pass, she turned away, affixing her gaze to the floor, which seemed to be the most comforting thing in the entire dining hall at that moment.

An immense sense of shame and anger washed over her the very next instant, but she could only grit her teeth in frustration, clearly knowing that she was no match for Liu Shen in a duel.

"Tch."

Liu Shen clicked his tongue in annoyance, seeing this scene, and muttered for everyone to hear, "How disappointing. I thought that since this was your last year in our sect, you had finally grown some spine... I guess I was expecting too much from a disgrace like you."

"Hahahaha!"

His two buddies laughed loudly from behind the very next moment, clearly stoking Liu Shen’s ego. At the same time, many soft chuckles could also be heard from other Senior Outer Sect Disciples who had been observing the events taking place all along while carrying an amused expression on their faces.

Meanwhile, Yi Chen, who had been silently observing everything, was carrying an intense frown on his face.

’She didn’t even provoke them and was just talking with us, minding her own business. Why did they come all the way here to poke and humiliate her? Do they do this to her every day?’

He thought while feeling both angry and confused at the sight of these bullies.

Since Yun Xi had helped them a lot, he naturally didn’t appreciate the scene that was playing right in front of his eyes.

Just then, Yi Chen saw the man named Liu Shen turning in his direction and, with a smile on his face, said, "So you’re Yi Chen..."

The moment he heard those words, he realised something the very next moment.

’I-It was all because of me...?’

He thought, feeling a little guilty towards Yun Xi, who had genuinely helped them out of the goodwill in her heart.

Meanwhile, not knowing what was going on in Yi Chen’s mind, Liu Shen continued, "...you shouldn’t spend too much time with such losers lest you accidentally become one of them as well, Junior Brother Chen."

The cocky smile on Liu Shen’s face turned to a welcoming one as he stretched his hand in Yi Chen’s direction the very next moment.

"I’m Liu Shen. A Ninth Meridian Refinement Stage cultivator. The two behind me are my friends who are both in the Eight Meridian Refinement Stage."

He pointed behind him with his thumb and continued, "Instead of relying on someone like her, Brother Chen can come to us anytime in the future whenever you’re in doubt.

It would be a pity if a talent like you gets ruined after listening to a failure like her, who herself has been stuck in the Ninth Meridian Refinement Stage for almost a decade."

Yun Xi, who had been hearing this from the side, bit her lip tightly as she felt a choking sensation in her chest because of overwhelming emotions that were rising inside her at the moment.

However, clearly aware of her circumstances, she was forced to accept everything silently.

Meanwhile, Yi Chen glanced at the hand that had been stretched in his direction all of a sudden before slightly shifting his gaze towards the silently sitting Yun Xi.

He noticed a trail of blood trickling down the edges of her lips the next moment.

As if sensing his gaze, she suddenly raised her head a little the next moment to meet his eyes.

Noticing Liu Shen’s hand that was stretched in Yi Chen’s direction, she forced out a comforting smile towards Yi Chen the next instant, as if telling him not to be bothered by her.

The moment Yi Chen noticed her smile, something ignited within his being.

Meanwhile, Yun Xi, who saw Yi Chen retreat his gaze the next moment and stretch his hand forward to meet Liu Shen’s, subtly nodded to herself, ’Yes, that’s how it should be...’

Although she thought that, the tears welling up in her eyes, which despised her own weakness, told a different story.

However, just at that instant, her eyes suddenly widened in disbelief.

PAT!

Instead of meeting his stretched-out hand, Yi Chen forcefully slapped the back of Liu Shen’s hand and glared at him.

"Who I spend my time with is not for someone else to decide."

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