Such a coincidence?

"It's her!"

The person was a tall, slender young woman, dressed in a black robe with wide sleeves, carrying a long sword. Her hair was tied up high at the back of her head, and she had bright eyes, white teeth, and skin like congealed fat, appearing fresh and lovely.

However, this wasn't the most important thing. The most important thing was that Lu Ming recognized the person's appearance.

It was the same young woman from outside Shuofeng City, by the roadside, who had ordered someone to give him a package inside the carriage.

Although it was just a fleeting glance, he still remembered that face vividly.

"You know her?"

Cui Bai asked, noticing Lu Ming's expression, a hint of confusion in his voice.

"Yes." Lu Ming nodded, confirming once more.

"Do you want to go say hello?" Cui Bai asked, slightly surprised but not thinking too much of it.

Lu Ming glanced back and saw that the line was almost at him. He said, "I'll register first, then I'll say hello."

In truth, he was still hesitant about whether he should go say hello.

After all, she might not even remember him anymore.

Soon, he didn't have time to think further, as it was his turn.

"Identification token," the registering elder said.

Lu Ming quickly handed it over.

The elder took it, registered him, and gave him a participant's pass with a number: Team Ten, Number Sixty-Nine.

Registration was complete.

Next was Cui Bai's turn.

Lu Ming moved aside, but didn't leave. He had decided to greet her and express his thanks, which he hadn't had the chance to do last time.

After all, that package had been very helpful to him.

Otherwise, just surviving would have taken him a long time.

Cui Bai finished registering and saw Lu Ming waiting. Understanding why, he didn't disturb him and left on his own.

Registration was fast, so it was soon her turn.

The elder frowned as he took her identification token. "Zhu Ningyun, why are you ranked last?"

"Replying to the elder, the Sect Master and Elder Gongsun wanted to speak with me, so I was late."

"I see. Then you can only take Team Ten, Number Ninety-Two."

"Yes."

"I didn't expect her to be Zhu Ningyun. That makes sense; I was wondering how someone who just joined the Inner Sect could cultivate so quickly."

Not far away, Lu Ming overheard their conversation. He was surprised but also felt a sense of sudden realization.

Seeing her finish registering, he quickly walked over.

"Something wrong?"

Suddenly being blocked, Zhu Ningyun frowned.

Lu Ming directly asked, "More than a year ago, outside Shuofeng City, by the roadside, there was a beggar. You ordered someone to give him a package. Do you remember?"

"Beggar?"

Zhu Ningyun heard him and began to recall with a puzzled expression. Soon, the figure who had immediately lowered his head after seeing her appeared in her mind.

"I remember."

As she recalled, her confusion deepened. Looking at Lu Ming, she asked, "Are you... his relative?"

Lu Ming coughed lightly and explained, "That was me. I've started practicing martial arts now."

"Oh."

Zhu Ningyun nodded, holding her sword. Just as Lu Ming wondered why her reaction wasn't stronger, she suddenly exclaimed:

"It's you?"

"It is."

"Impossible... Back then you were still... and now you are..."

She kept scrutinizing Lu Ming, seeing that he was at the Mid True Qi Realm, and his bearing and demeanor were completely inconsistent with the image in her memory.

Her expression shifted between disbelief, surprise, and utter incredulity.

It was quite a show.

"To be honest, before I met you, I just had a Mysterious Encounter, and then you gave me ten taels of silver as startup capital," Lu Ming added.

"Then your talent..."

After careful observation, Zhu Ningyun confirmed that although Lu Ming's bearing and demeanor had changed drastically, his facial features hadn't changed much.

So she believed him for the most part.

However, she quickly realized another problem.

At that time, he clearly had no cultivation. Now, if you think about it, he hasn't actually cultivated for very long.

And his realm is the same as hers.

This was somewhat unbelievable.

Lu Ming couldn't possibly say, "I'm faster than you, right?" He simply said, "In short, we are here to thank you."

"That's not necessary. I was just feeling generous at the time and acted on impulse."

Zhu Ningyun still found it hard to believe. After all, her impulsive act seemed to have created a person.

This feeling was very strange.

Lu Ming chuckled, "During this time, I've also saved many people while on missions. When they thanked me, I often said the same thing."

"Now it's my turn, and I can finally understand their feeling of being at a loss for words, as the kindness is too great."

"Then what did you do back then?"

Zhu Ningyun was a little surprised, surprised that he would suddenly say that, and surprised that he was already doing missions.

"Simple, I finished the deed and left, hiding my merits and fame."

"A beautiful line of poetry, with a sense of a carefree knight-errant. That's a good idea too. Goodbye."

Zhu Ningyun praised him and then suddenly leaped away.

Her departure was naturally a joke. The two were considered old acquaintances, so they felt a sense of closeness and continued chatting.

By the way, Lu Ming invited her to Cuiyun Tower for a meal as a token of his gratitude.

They didn't part until dusk.

In the Sect Master's main hall, Li Ansheng, the Sect Master of Wuji Sect, was discussing matters with Gongsun He.

"Are the preparations for the Inner Sect Grand Competition all done?" Li Ansheng asked.

"Don't worry, everything is ready."

Li Ansheng nodded and was about to say something else when a disciple reported that Zhu Ningyun requested an audience.

"It's this girl. Let her in quickly."

Li Ansheng immediately stopped talking.

Soon, Zhu Ningyun walked in. After paying her respects, she remained silent.

This left Li Ansheng and Gongsun He, sitting at the head of the hall, somewhat bewildered.

Gongsun He cleared his throat, breaking the silence, and asked, "Ningyun, didn't you go to sign up for the Grand Competition preliminaries? What happened, did you miss it?"

"Replying to Elder, I made it," Zhu Ningyun replied.

"Then why are you here?" Gongsun He asked, confused.

Zhu Ningyun directly asked, "Elder, Sect Master, is there someone in the sect with higher cultivation talent than me?"

The two were stunned, "Why would you ask that?"

Zhu Ningyun then recounted her encounter with Lu Ming.

After listening, the two breathed a sigh of relief. It turned out Lu Ming hadn't been exposed. However, they were instantly filled with astonishment.

When Lu Ming joined the sect, he had told them everything except for the matter of the jade pendant. They naturally knew about the kind person who had helped him outside the city.

They had never expected that person to be this talented and favored disciple standing before them.

"Could such a coincidence exist?" Li Ansheng turned his head.

"The facts are right before us," Gongsun He spread his hands.

"Good, good."

Li Ansheng suddenly laughed heartily, "Such a coincidence is related to my Wuji Sect. This indicates that our sect's rise is seemingly blessed by heaven!"

"Chu Yunxiao's contribution is not small in this matter, otherwise Lu Ming would have gone to the Nine Heavens Sect," Gongsun He added.

"Heavily reward Chu Yunxiao!"

"Ah?"

Gongsun He had only mentioned it casually and never expected such a reaction. He quickly said, "He has already been rewarded twice."

"Reward him again!"

Gongsun He rubbed his forehead helplessly.

And so, Chu Yunxiao once again inexplicably received a reward.

"Sect Master, what about me?"

Zhu Ningyun suddenly said.

The two of them only then reacted to the third person present. Gongsun He chuckled, "Ningyun, what reward do you want?"

Zhu Ningyun replied, "I want to participate in the secret realm trial after the Grand Competition."

"Absolutely not," Li Ansheng immediately refused, standing up. "It's incredibly dangerous inside; you absolutely cannot go."

"I'm not afraid of death. Besides, Lu Ming's talent is even better than mine, and he's already left the sect to complete many missions."

Zhu Ningyun retorted immediately.

"Ningyun, your situation is different. Not being afraid of death is a good quality for a martial artist, but there's a difference between not being afraid of death and actively seeking it out."

"But you can't protect me forever, can you? How am I supposed to grow like that?"

Zhu Ningyun said with a sob.

Silence fell over the room. Gongsun He opened his mouth, unsure of what to say. Li Ansheng, however, suddenly spoke up:

"Alright, as long as you make it into the top thirty in this Inner Sect Grand Competition, no, the top twenty, no, the top ten. As long as you make it into the top ten, and reach the Peak True Qi Realm when the secret realm begins, I'll agree to let you go."

"Okay, I promise! Just watch me!"

Zhu Ningyun's tears turned to a smile, and she left immediately, afraid they would go back on their word.

"Hiss, Sect Master, don't you feel like you've been tricked?"

"Do I?"

Li Ansheng stroked his chin, feeling that he might have been, but he wouldn't admit it. "Don't worry. Those young fellows in the top ten all have unique skills and are not easy opponents."

"Although Ningyun has good talent, her time is ultimately too short, and her foundation is not strong enough. She definitely won't make it into the top ten."

"Even the top thirty is questionable. I only said that to be safe."

He was full of confidence.

"I just heard from young Ningyun that Lu Ming is also at Mid True Qi Realm now. What rank do you think he can achieve?"