The Opening Move

As the saying went, venture too deep into the woods and lose your way; behind the green veil, deadly traps lay hidden. Even standing outside that vast primeval forest, Bian Chunchou broke into a sweat for every contestant. Help. Just thinking about the day he would have to compete made sweat run down his back.

"Ah, I see Senior Brother He! He... how did he run into Zhou Ji? They're actually fighting!"

Bian Chunchou narrated the match as it unfolded. With his rich vocabulary and boundless enthusiasm, even he thought it was a shame the Heaven-Shattering Sword Sect had not hired him as a commentator.

Elsewhere, Zhou Ji's father watched his son's movements with growing unease. The longer he watched, the deeper his frown became.

Zhou Ji seemed to be deliberately seeking out disciples of the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion.

"Elder Li, when you brought Zhou Ji back yesterday, what exactly happened?"

Elder Li was the Golden Core cultivator who had knocked Zhou Ji unconscious and taken him away the day before. He was employed by the Zhou Household, but he had not sold himself into its service, so his manner was hardly humble. "There was a Nascent Soul True Lord on the platform at the time. I naturally didn't dare eavesdrop. I only caught a glimpse of the eldest young master pestering a woman."

"A woman? Did you see her face clearly?"

Elder Li shook his head. "That Nascent Soul True Lord was angry, so I didn't dare raise my head. But I vaguely saw the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion's emblem on her cuff."

Shock crossed Zhou Ji's father's face. "The Heavenly Secrets Pavilion? Why didn't you say so yesterday?"

He knew his son well. Zhou Ji had been under his control since childhood. Disciples of the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion often