Could it be such a coincidence?

"It's her!"

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

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 from inside the carriage.

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

"You know her?" Cui Bai asked, noticing Lu Ming's expression.

"Yes," Lu Ming confirmed, nodding.

"Do you want to go say hello?" Cui Bai asked. He was a little surprised but didn't think much of it.

Lu Ming glanced back and saw that the queue was almost at his turn. He said, "I'll say hello after I register."

He was actually still hesitant about whether to go say hello. After all, she might not remember him at all.

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 token with a number: Team Ten, Number Sixty-Nine. His registration was complete.

Next, it was Cui Bai's turn.

Lu Ming moved aside but didn't leave. He had decided to go say hello and express his gratitude, which he hadn't had the chance to do last time. That package had been very helpful. 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.

The registration process was fast, so it was soon her turn. The elder took her identification token and frowned, "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 number ninety-two in Team Ten."

"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?" Zhu Ningyun frowned, suddenly being blocked.

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's brow furrowed as she recalled. Soon, the figure who immediately lowered his head after seeing her appeared in her mind.

"I remember." Recalling it, her eyes showed more confusion. She looked at Lu Ming and asked, "Are you... his family or friend?"

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..." She kept scrutinizing Lu Ming, seeing that he had reached the middle stage of the Zhen Qi Realm. 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 had just encountered a fortuitous 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 appearance and demeanor had changed drastically, his facial features hadn't altered much.

Thus, she believed him about eighty to ninety percent.

However, she quickly realized another problem.

At that time, he clearly had no cultivation base. Now, if she calculated it, he hadn't actually been cultivating for very long.

And yet, his realm was the same as hers.

This was somewhat unbelievable.

Lu Ming could have said, "I'm faster than you," but he simply said, "In short, we're here to thank you."

"There's no need. I was just acting on a whim back then, doing a good deed."

Zhu Ningyun still found it hard to believe. After all, her "good deed" seemed to have created a person.

This feeling was quite peculiar.

Lu Ming, however, chuckled, "During this time, I've also rescued many people while doing missions. When they thank me, I often say the same thing."

"Now that it's my turn, I can truly understand their sense of awkwardness. After all, the kindness is too great."

"Then what did you do back then?"

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

"Simple. Action done, I left, my deeds and name hidden deep."

"A beautiful line of poetry, it has a sense of a carefree knight-errant, and it's a good idea. Goodbye."

Zhu Ningyun praised him, then suddenly leaped away.

The remark about leaving was naturally a jest. The two were old acquaintances, after all, so they felt a sense of closeness and ended up chatting.

Incidentally, Lu Ming invited her to eat at Cuiyun Tower to express his gratitude.

They parted ways only at dusk.

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

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

"Rest assured, everything is ready."

Li Ansheng nodded. Just as he was about to say something else, a disciple reported that Zhu Ningyun was requesting 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, seated at the head, somewhat bewildered.

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

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

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

Zhu Ningyun directly stated, "Elders, Sect Master, is there someone in the sect whose cultivation talent is higher than mine?"

The two were startled, "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 exposed anything. However, they were instantly filled with astonishment.

When Lu Ming joined the sect, he had told them everything except about the Jade Pendant. They naturally knew about the matter of him being helped by a kind person outside the city.

They had never imagined that the person would be this talented and favored young lady before them.

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

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

"Good, good!"

Li Ansheng suddenly let out a hearty laugh, "Such a coincidental event is actually related to my Wuji Sect. This indicates that our sect's rise seems to be heaven-sent!"

"Chu Yunxiao's contribution in this is not small. 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. He never expected such a reaction and quickly said, "He's already been rewarded twice."

"Reward him again!"

Gongsun He helplessly rubbed his forehead.

And so, Chu Yunxiao inexplicably received another reward.

"Sect Master, what about me?"

Zhu Ningyun suddenly said.

The two of them only then realized there was a third person present. Gongsun He chuckled, "Ningyun, what reward do you want?"

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

"Absolutely not," Li Ansheng immediately refused, standing up. "It's extremely 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.

The two shared an awkward smile, and Gongsun He played the good cop, saying:

"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."

"But you can't protect me forever, can you? How am I supposed to grow?" Zhu Ningyun asked, her voice trembling with tears.

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

"Fine. If you can enter the top thirty in this inner sect grand competition, no, the top twenty, no, the top ten, if you can enter the top ten, and reach the peak of the Zhen Qi Realm by the time the secret realm begins, I will agree to let you go."

"Okay, I promise! Just watch me," Zhu Ningyun said, her tears turning to a smile. She left immediately, afraid they would change their minds.

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

"Have I?"

Li Ansheng stroked his chin, feeling a little bit like it, but he wouldn't admit it. "Don't worry. Those young fellows in the top ten all have unique skills; they aren't easy to deal with."

"Although Ningyun has good talent, her time is ultimately too short, and her foundation isn't deep 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.

Gongsun He nodded and asked again:

"I just heard that girl Ningyun say Lu Ming is also in the middle stage of Zhen Qi. What rank do you think he can achieve?"