Chapter 24: The Year-End Tournament

Outside the window, large snowflakes fell thick and fast. Gu Weiyu leaned against the window, reached out her hand to catch a drifting snowflake, and watched as it melted in her palm.

The end of the year was approaching, and she wondered how her father, mother, and Little Stone were faring. It had been half a year since she last returned home, and she missed them dearly.

“Young miss, don’t dawdle—be careful not to catch a chill!” Crescent came in and quickly tried to stop her.

“Oh, Crescent, just let me play a little longer! We cultivators don’t catch cold that easily, do we?” Gu Weiyu blinked her eyes, feigning pitiful innocence.

“Young miss, hurry and eat your breakfast while it’s still hot!” Crescent said, choosing not to argue further. She set the food box on the table and brought out various steaming morning treats.

Remembering she still had to go to Yanxi Hall for her cultivation practice that day, Gu Weiyu reluctantly tore herself away from the window and sat down at the table. She picked up two buns and stuffed them into Crescent’s hands before lowering her head to eat.

Crescent felt a warmth blossom in her heart; she knew the young miss was thoughtful enough to remember she had not eaten either. Standing to the side, she took a small bite of the bun.

After breakfast, Gu Weiyu left with Crescent. Halfway down the path, they saw Liuguang waving at them. “Eleventh Miss, Twelfth Young Master will be here soon!”

With that, he hurriedly ran back to the courtyard, while a giggle sounded from the side—Gu Weihuan had arrived. “Twelfth Brother must have overslept again! Poor Liuguang, always having to fetch him.”

Before long, Gu Qingyun arrived with Liuguang, and the three of them headed together toward Yanxi Hall.

“The year-end competition is just days away, but I haven’t even reached the second level of Qi Refining. I’ll surely be at the bottom!” Gu Qingyun fretted about the upcoming contest as they walked.

“Twelfth Brother, it took me over a year to break through to Qi Refining Level Two, and I still haven’t reached Level Three. Don’t worry!” Gu Weihuan consoled him.

“The difference in strength between the first three levels of Qi Refining isn’t that great. The key lies in how well you can use your spells!” Gu Weiyu spoke with confidence, recalling the jade slip left by their great-grandfather. “I’ve told you to practice your spells regularly—have you done so?”

Gu Qingyun nodded obediently. “Eleventh Sister, I’ve been practicing everything you told me to. Will it really help?”

“How about this: when we get back today, the three of us have a little competition of our own?” Gu Weiyu suggested.

Gu Qingyun’s eyes lit up, and he turned to Gu Weihuan. “Ninth Sister, you’ll join us too?”

Gu Weihuan nodded eagerly. She had always placed last in previous years, but this year, Eleventh Sister had taught her many offensive and defensive spells. She was finally looking forward to the competition!

As they talked, they arrived before Yanxi Hall. With the year-end contest looming, everyone was quieter than usual. These days, when they came to Yanxi Hall, all focused on their cultivation.

After all, the rankings of the year-end competition would determine the resources they could receive in the coming year.

As the hour of Shen approached, Gu Qingyun quietly tugged at the sleeves of Gu Weiyu and Gu Weihuan. The three exchanged a glance, then slowly rose and slipped outside.

Yanxi Hall was silent. Aside from their departure, everyone else remained diligently in meditation.

“Why did Ninth Sister and the others leave?” Eighth Young Master Gu Qinghu opened his eyes at the noise.

“What else? Giving up, I suppose. Might as well not bother,” Gu Weifang remarked, thinking they were simply resigned to failure.

Gu Qinghu gave her a sidelong glance, then closed his eyes again to cultivate. Gu Weifang pursed her lips, thinking sitting here was dull and pointless. Since there were already three people sure to place at the bottom, she too got up and left.

“Wow, so Fireball can be used like that?”

“Careful, here I come!”

“Eleventh Sister, how are you so fast?”

“Didn’t I teach you Wind Step? If you can’t win, just run!”

In Emerald Bamboo Courtyard, the three of them took turns sparring, and soon the courtyard was alive with shouts and laughter.

Three days passed in a blink, and the annual clan competition arrived.

Early that morning, the younger generation from Yanxi Hall were led by Second Grandfather to the clan’s martial arena, reserved for the yearly contest.

After entering and bowing to the seated elders, Gu Weiyu joined the others at the side. She glanced around the hall. Patriarch Gu Jun sat at the center, the first seat beside him was empty, then an elderly man and an old woman sat in succession.

Gu Weihuan leaned close to Gu Weiyu’s ear and whispered, “That’s Fifth Great-Grandfather and Tenth Great-Aunt.”

Below the old woman was another empty seat, where Second Grandfather went to sit. Below him was another elder, reputedly Fifth Grandfather, who was in charge of the Hall of Tasks.

Great-Grandfather still hadn’t arrived. Was that empty seat reserved for him? But knowing how lazy he was, she doubted he would show up today.

More people filtered in. Gu Weiyu recognized only a few, relying on Gu Weihuan’s quiet explanations. She widened her eyes, hoping to remember more faces from the clan.

“Sixteenth Uncle!”

When Gu Hui entered, Gu Weiyu couldn’t help but call out softly. He glanced her way, gave a slight nod, and stood aside.

“It’s Tenth Aunt!” Gu Weihuan whispered excitedly.

“My cousin Xingyun is here too!” Gu Weifang puffed out her chest with pride.

Gu Weiyu looked over and indeed saw Gu Qing and Lu Xingyun enter together.

“This is our Gu family’s clan competition. How can an outsider come and watch?” Gu Weiyu muttered under her breath, frowning.

“Ha! Shows how little you know! My cousin Xingyun is already engaged to Tenth Aunt—how is he an outsider?” Gu Weifang retorted dramatically.

Gu Weiyu truly hadn’t known this. As she thought about it, Gu Qing and Lu Xingyun had only known each other for half a year, and yet they were already engaged?

She sneaked another glance their way—Tenth Aunt was all smiles, constantly turning to speak to Lu Xingyun, who responded with polite nods, his expression distant, somehow out of place.

Tenth Aunt was clearly deeply smitten, but Lu Xingyun hardly looked like a young man enamored by love.

As she pondered this, a man in blue robes stepped forward with a small register in his hand and announced in a resonant voice, “The competition begins. The first round is the paired matches. First group: Gu Qingsong versus Gu Qinghao.”

The contest had two rounds—the first consisted of paired matches, with opponents selected based on their cultivation level. The victor would earn more cultivation resources.

Gu Qingsong and Gu Qinghao faced each other. Both were at the fourth level of Qi Refining, evenly matched and fighting to a standstill.

But as they were both only at the early stages of Qi Refining, their spiritual energy was limited, and their spells looked more like child’s play—there was little to impress those of higher cultivation.

Gu Weiyu watched intently when a light scoff sounded in her ear: “Third Brother is bound to win again this year. No matter how hard Sixth Brother tries, it’s useless. That’s just fate.”