Chapter 60: A Deadly Confrontation

"Wait for me."

Su Qingxue heard his voice but didn’t stop.

Long Feng soon caught up and walked beside her. For a while, neither of them spoke. The lively sounds from the tournament gradually became distant behind them.

Su Qingxue’s mood was clearly not very good. Her brows were slightly furrowed, and her expression remained somewhat cold.

Long Feng glanced at her from the corner of his eye.

"What’s wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Really?"

"Really."

Her answer was short, as if don’t want to talk.

Long Feng smiled inwardly. She’s clearly unhappy. But he didn’t point it out. Instead, he continued walking beside her.

After a short silence, he casually reached toward her hand. His fingers lightly brushed against hers before gently taking hold of her hand.

Su Qingxue’s body stiffened. She immediately glanced at him.

"What are you doing?"

Long Feng looked completely innocent.

"Walking."

"Then why are you holding my hand?"

"Because we’re walking together."

Su Qingxue frowned slightly and tried to pull her hand away. Long Feng loosened his grip slightly, but didn’t completely let go.

She tried once more. This time, however, her movement wasn’t nearly as determined.

Long Feng noticed it and a faint smile appeared in his heart. But he didn’t press too hard. Instead, he continued walking while holding her hand naturally.

After a while, Su Qingxue finally stopped struggling. Her cheeks had become faintly warm.

"You’re becoming more shameless."

Long Feng smiled. "You only noticed now?"

Su Qingxue glanced at him but didn’t answer.

The two continued walking. The path gradually became quieter.

They passed several courtyards before reaching a secluded area at the edge of the inner sect.

A large ancient tree stood there, its thick branches spreading overhead and casting a cool shadow onto the ground.

Long Feng slowed down.

"Let’s rest here for a while."

"I should go back."

Su Qingxue took a step forward, but Long Feng moved slightly closer.

The two were now standing beneath the tree. The distance between them was much closer than before.

Su Qingxue’s expression changed. A faint flush appeared on her face.

"Long Feng..."

Her voice was softer than before, trembling slightly.

Long Feng didn’t let the moment slip away. Stepping into her space, he closed the distance between them, cutting off her escape.

He came so close that she could feel the heat radiating from him.

He leaned down, his face inches from hers. His eyes locked onto her lips, making his intentions undeniable.

"Yes?" he murmured, his breath brushing against her skin.

She hesitated for a split second, caught in the gravity of his gaze. As his head tilted, closing the final gap for a kiss, a sudden wave of panic and shyness hit her.

She instinctively placed her hands against his chest, offering a slow, hesitant resistance.

Sensing her retreat, Long Feng’s grip tightened around her slender waist for a brief, breathless second, pulling her closer into the heat of his body.

The tension between them snapped taut. For a moment, she was trapped. But as she gathered herself and used real force to push against his chest, wanting to break free, and he didn’t fight her.

He immediately stopped and didn’t force her, nor did he awkwardly step back.

He simply released his grip, anchoring himself right there, letting her choose her own distance.

Breathing heavily, Su Qingxue took a hurried step backward.

"I really should go." She quickly turned around and began to run.

This time, Long Feng didn’t chase her. He simply stood beneath the tree, his heart hammering against his ribs, and watched her retreating figure.

Su Qingxue ran several steps before glancing back over her shoulder. Their eyes met for an instant. And Long Feng smiled, as gentle as he could force himself to be.

Seeing that look, she immediately turned her head back and sprinted away into the distance.

Watching her delicate figure disappear into the distance, Long Feng couldn’t help but chuckle.

This woman was far more difficult to approach than he had expected. But that only made things more interesting.

His gaze lingered on the path where she had disappeared.

"An untouched flower..."

A faint, mischievous smile appeared on his face.

"It seems plucking you won’t be as easy as I thought."

On the other side, the second-level Golden Core Realm disciple had been defeated. He lay on the battle platform for several breaths before finally forcing himself to sit up.

Blood stained the corner of his mouth, and his chest rose and fell heavily.

"Damn..."

He swallowed a healing pill and circulated his spiritual energy to suppress his injuries.

The pill’s medicinal power quickly spread through his body, allowing the worst of his injuries to stabilize.

Although he had lost, his eyes remained unwilling.

"Ye Wuxie..."

He clenched his fists. He had clearly possessed the advantage in cultivation, yet he had still been defeated.

The surrounding disciples gradually dispersed. The tournament continued around them.

The Golden Core Realm disciple stood up and quietly left. He didn’t notice Long Feng watching him from the crowd.

Just like they talked about, he began walking toward the back mountains.

His injuries were indeed serious, and remaining in the crowded area would only attract unnecessary attention.

The back mountains of the Azura Heaven Sect were vast. Unlike the main inner region, this place was covered almost entirely by dense forests.

Ancient trees rose toward the sky. Thick vines wrapped around their trunks, while wild grass covered the uneven ground.

Occasionally, some distant beast roars could be heard.

However, unlike the truly wild areas outside the sect, the beasts here were under the control of the Azura Heaven Sect.

The sect had deliberately kept this region as a natural training ground.

Some powerful beasts were restricted to particular regions, while the weaker ones were periodically driven away.

If one went deep enough into the mountains, the area eventually connected to the vast Crimson Sun Mountain Range. But for the disciples of the sect, this region was still considered part of the sect’s territory.

The Golden Core Realm disciple came deep into the forest, but he still didn’t find Long Feng around there.

"Where is he left behind, why hasn’t he come yet?"

His injury started hurting again, so he sat down right there cross-legged beneath an ancient tree and began circulating his cultivation technique.

But not long after the man began recovering, a faint sound came from the forest. The disciple’s eyes suddenly opened.

"Who’s there?"

However, No one answered him. The surrounding trees remained motionless. Then—

Whoosh!

A figure suddenly appeared between the trees. It was none other than Ye Wuxie.

"You!" Seeing him, the man’s expression changed instantly.

"Did you really think I would let you leave after what you did?"

Ye Wuxie looked at him with a cold gaze and a faint smile came across his lips.

The Golden Core Realm disciple immediately stood up. His injuries had only partially recovered.

"You’ve come to kill me?"

"You used a pill to temporarily increase your strength and also poison." Ye Wuxie didn’t deny it. His gaze became colder.

"I don’t like killing people without reason, but you gave me a reason."

The disciple’s expression became ugly. Seeing Ye Wuxie slowly approaching him, he clenched his teeth.

He expected this day after losing the match, but he did not think it would come so soon, fear couldn’t help but rise within him.

"I only followed someone else’s suggestion."

"That doesn’t matter." Ye Wuxie’s eyes flashed. "You attacked me."

The disciple immediately circulated his spiritual energy. Although his injuries hadn’t fully healed, he couldn’t simply wait for death.

"Then let’s see who dies!"

He rushed forward.

Boom!

Their battle erupted among the trees.

Ye Wuxie’s movement technique immediately displayed its terrifying advantage. His figure flickered from one position to another.

The Golden Core Realm disciple could barely follow him.

Bang!

A palm struck his shoulder. He stumbled backward. Another attack came from his side. He barely blocked it.

"Fast!"

The Golden Core Realm disciple’s heart sank.

Ye Wuxie’s strength was stronger than it had been during their previous fight. Moreover, his injuries had already recovered significantly.

He clearly hadn’t shown his full strength on the battle platform.

Ye Wuxie disappeared again. The disciple immediately raised his guard. But Ye Wuxie appeared behind him.

Bang!

"Ugh!" The force slammed into his back and sent him crashing through a tree. Blood sprayed from his mouth.

Ye Wuxie looked at him coldly.

"You should have known better than to provoke me."

He raised his hand and a powerful aura began gathering around his fist.

Looking at his death so close to him, the disciple’s expression changed. But at this moment, a mocking voice suddenly came from the side.

"Brother Ye, that’s enough."

Hearing the familiar yet hateful voice, Ye Wuxie’s expression immediately darkened. He turned to that bastard.

Long Feng slowly stepped out from behind the trees. A mocking smile held upon his lips as he asked.

"What a heavy killing intent! Don’t you know that it’s prohibited to kill fellow disciple privately in the sect?"

The Golden Core Realm disciple looked at him with relief.

"Brother Long Feng, save me from this demon!"

"You look like you’re having quite a difficult time." Long Feng look at his pleading look and smiled.

Ye Wuxie stared at him intensely, before asking.

"Did you plan this?"

That would be too much luck if he was just about to kill this person and Long Feng arrived right at the exact moment. This meant only one thing: it was a well-planned conspiracy by him.