Chapter 637 - The Scum Is Awkward

"Li Yan! What took you so long?" Tang Li asked when they heard Li Yan's footsteps approaching them.

"I, uh… rested for a minute." Li Yan answered. Actually, he just made a fishing rod on the spot.

No one doubted him since they also are tired due to their intense fight against the demons earlier. Aside from fighting harder for their fight to be more convincing, they also didn't forget to earn points! Thus, they feel happy to see that they earned many points from earlier.

Their hard work is paid! They thought as they sighed in relief. There is smile on their faces and they even hummed as they fish. They didn't notice Li Yan's awkward expression changed as he sat on a large rock beside them and started to fish, too.

Confessing, huh? Li Yan thought when he recalled Qi Lan confessing to He Shun earlier. How brave… he thought and smiled as he watched the fishes under the clear, running water swim freely. When he thinks of the word 'confess', only one person's face appears in his mind – Kang Ce.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Then, he resumed waiting for a fish to bite his bait. He doesn't know that Tang Li actually has forgotten to deactivate his Cleansing Stone, leaving everyone able to watch them fishing.

So, a certain person also saw Li Yan's absent-minded appearance.

…

"Tang Li, this child…" Tang Teng helplessly sighed since he knows that Tang Li has forgotten to deactivate his Cleansing Stone again and thus it was left open for everyone to watch them fish.

"Kang-shixiong." Xiao Le called. He still calls Kang Ce 'shixiong' since he has gotten used to it.

"Hm?" Kang Ce answered. But, his gaze remained on that one participant.

"Li Yan's complexion doesn't look good. Was he also injured earlier?" Xiao Le worriedly asked.

Li Nanzi's attention was immediately caught when Li Yan was mentioned. He also looked at Li Yan. "Ai… what is wrong with him?" he asked and frowned. His expression looked displeased. But, they can see that his eyes are actually filled with worry.

The other sect leaders smiled. Obviously, they know that Li Nanzi deeply cares of his disciples, especially Li Yan who came from the same clan as him. It is just that he hides his care from them. He is just awkward when it comes to matters like this, and so he doesn't show it, much less admit it.

Well, it is not like they are ones to talk, though, since they are also like Li Nanzi, who likes to hide their emotions in front of others, especially the ones they care the most.

…

Back inside the special space, Wen Yan and Fei Yinzi stood on top of a tree, overlooking their surroundings in case there were demons that might approach them.

"What are those two doing?" Wen Yan asked when he saw Qi Lan is holding He Shun's hand while He Shun sat still on his spot.

"What?" Fei Yinzi asked and turned. He saw Qi Lan was talking to He Shun.

Qi Lan's expression is always indifferent, but this time, his expression is very serious and… solemn?

Fei Yinzi tilted his head as he observed the two. There seems to be something subtle about their actions. Maybe he is just overthinking it, thus he decided to ignore the two. He then looked at the stream, where Tang Li, Li Yan, Wen Wen and Cui Xiao are currently fishing.

Wen Yan is also looking at them. "… poor fishes." He muttered when he saw the fishes caught on the net after Cui Xiao pulled it up with the help of Tang Li.

"… en." Fei Yinzi's brow twitched.

Cui Xiao is really good in laying traps. Among them four fishing, she is the one who has the most fishes caught. The Huakai Sect's bad luck was passed down to their disciples thus Tang Li is very unlucky, so he still hasn't caught any fish. Even Li Yan, who rarely looked absent-minded, already caught some fishes.

As for Wen Wen – "Wen Wen is getting better in fishing!" Wen Yan exclaimed in delight as he watched Wen Wen catch another fish that took his bait.

Fei Yinzi knows that Wen Yan isn't complimenting Wen Wen just because Wen Wen is his younger brother. The Jixu Peak and Chengshi Peak are separated by a river so Fei Yinzi and Wen Wen often play there. Of course, they also catch fish there. So, they have practiced their fishing skills always by competing against each other on who can catch more fishes. The fishes that they caught would then be distributed to the other peaks, especially to the Hexie Peak where Xie Lan and Fan Wen resided.

Of course, they also give the Xinfaxian residents sometimes when they have abundant catch. This made the residents give them some fruits and meat in exchange, as well as some herbal leaves that they have picked or bought in some places.

"Something's coming." Fei Yinzi spoke as his ear twitched.

Wen Yan also turned. "Demons." His eyes narrowed.

"There shouldn't be many of them." Fei Yinzi said when he saw a group of demons coming their way.

They must have followed the scent of blood since Qi Lan was injured.

"Get your bow and arrows ready." Wen Yan said as he opened his qiankun pouch and took out a bow and quiver filled with arrows.

Fei Yinzi nodded and followed him. They don't want to use their spiritual energy to deal with these demons since not only will it waste their strength, but it would also attract more demons to their side. They have to be careful.

WHOOSH! The first arrow was released and it accurately hit the demon in the lead on its head. THUD! The demon fell on the ground dead.

…

Qi Lan and He Shun don't know that they were guarded by two young men who are acting like door gods as they accurately shot each demon down without wasting an arrow.

"Q – Qi Lan-ge…" He Shun nervously called when Qi Lan suddenly held his hand.

"Do you not believe me?" Qi Lan asked He Shun as he looked at him in the eyes. "I like you. I sincerely like you. Or else, why would I always stick to you?" he asked him.

He Shun fell silent. He also knows this fact. There is nothing for Qi Lan to gain for in following him, much less protecting him at the cost of his life. So… Qi Lan really likes him? he thought as he looked at Qi Lan.

"He Shun." Qi Lan called. "You must have already noticed." He said.

He Shun froze. He knows what Qi Lan meant. He turned and his eyes fell on Qi Lan's sword.

"En. I re-forged my weapon and turned it into a sword." Qi Lan spoke with a heavy tone. "That was a special iron in our land… yes. It is as you think." He looked at He Shun's face. "I was from the enemy camp. More so – " he took a deep breath. " – I am the son of the leader of their group." He told him.

This, He Shun didn't expect. His eyes widened in shock. "You…" he muttered. "What about your scar on your back?" he asked.

"I had an accident when I was young and I almost died." Qi Lan honestly answered.

Silence fell.

"You won't ask why I am here?" Qi Lan asked.

"You are not a bad person." He Shun said.

Qi Lan smiled. "I ran away from home… I don't want to lead my father's group." He confessed. "He killed all of my friends… I decided to leave and when I arrived here, I changed my appearance to hide from them." he explained.

"Why did you join the Intersect Competition?" He Shun asked.

"Because this will be one of their targets." Qi Lan answered. "They want to cripple this land's strength so they can conquer this land. But, they must know by now that all of the people here are hard bone to chew." He smiled, feeling pleased. "They wouldn't have expected that there would be that person named Cheng Sheng to foil their plans." He chuckled.

He Shun smiled. He knows how capable Cheng Sheng is.

"But, Cheng Sheng can't join the Intersect Competition, so I decided to join to thwart those people's plans." Qi Lan continued. "You are all innocent… you young men… I also hate my father's deeds so I want to help you." He explained. "Fortunately, until now, no one has died yet… but…" his voice trailed off.

He Shun nodded in understanding. "Things are getting trickier now." He sighed.

Not only the demons that were left to them to hunt for points were stronger than the ones before, these demons also have gained a leader to counterattack against them participants! Worse, it is not just a mere counterattacking anymore… instead, they really want to annihilate them!