Accompanied by the sound of a flute that carried a slightly melancholic tone.
In the lake pavilion, the two cultivation partners of Ma Shitu, who had previously harmonized perfectly, suddenly stopped sounding good.
It was like a hotel chef preparing a fine dish.
Originally, everyone praised it unanimously.
But what no one expected was that the special chef in charge of national banquets, Ba Sang, would bring an exceptionally good dish.
In this way, the dish that was once considered so good now seemed ordinary.
The same happened with Ma Shitu and his partner.
At first, their compatibility was seen by everyone else as an ideal pair.
But the appearance of Tang Yu caused their score to drop from one hundred to eighty.
And Tang Yu's perfect score naturally led Hu Lingbao to start playing alongside him.
At that moment, when Ma Shitu was about to fuse his soul with his partner Hu Lingbao's, he was abruptly interrupted.
The shock caused him to suffer an instant backlash, nearly losing control, his body beginning to tremble violently as if having convulsions.
However, Hu Lingbao showed no signs of being affected.
It was like a lock about to be opened by a key, and at the last moment, the key is swapped for another. What about the lock? It just needs to open, right?
When Tang Yu began to practice in Ma Shitu's place, Hu Lingbao immediately realized that it wasn't her partner, but her master Tang Yu who had arrived.
This inexplicably excited her.
A charming blush appeared on her face.
When the incense stick finished burning, Ma Shitu was the first to recover. After nearly falling into complete loss of control, he fiercely struggled with his inner demons, almost being consumed by them.
Regaining his composure, Ma Shitu broke into a cold sweat.
He quickly wiped his face and looked at his partner to make sure she was alright.
At the moment Ma Shitu looked at her, Hu Lingbao also slowly opened her eyes.
With a shy and somewhat dazed expression, she looked at him until their eyes met, and then she felt a bit nervous and stammered.
"Shitu…"
Noticing Hu Lingbao's expression, Ma Shitu suddenly felt his mind go blank.
She had not been on the verge of losing control, but had continued fusing her soul.
But he had already started fighting his inner demons.
So she…?
Suddenly, he looked around and his gaze landed on Tang Yu, who was holding a jade flute.
Tang Yu was also recovering.
Seeing Ma Shitu's furious expression, Tang Yu turned around and tried to leave.
"Stop!"
At that moment, Ma Shitu was so angry he didn't even think about why Tang Yu, injured, was there.
Hearing Ma Shitu call out to him, Tang Yu coughed a couple of times and said,
"Little Ma, is that how you talk to your master? Can't you see I'm not feeling well?"
The phrase "little Ma" drove Ma Shitu mad.
He ran toward Tang Yu and, gritting his teeth, shouted,
"You call this not feeling well?! Are you seriously going to keep practicing with this bastard right in front of me?! You're an animal!"
"Ma Shitu! Let me explain!"
Seeing that Ma Shitu was completely enraged and looked like he was about to fight his master, Hu Lingbao, feeling guilty, quickly tried to stop him.
"What are you going to explain? What a pair of damn dogs!"
Finally, Ma Shitu came to his senses, and in that moment, he realized something was off in his relationship with Hu Lingbao.
She had even broken through the threshold before him, which might have something to do with this guy.
"Little Ma, how can you speak to your partner like that? I know today's events affected you greatly,"
"But this really was a misunderstanding. I was seriously injured, went out for some air, and just happened to hear the two of you playing together."
"Upon hearing your music, something stirred in my heart, so I thought I'd join you to play along."
"But I didn't expect this to happen, and by the time I realized, it was already too late."
After saying this, Tang Yu showed a remorseful expression and stomped the ground.
"I really didn't come to separate you two, what I wanted was to join you!"
"Go to hell!"
Ma Shitu was enraged by Tang Yu's words about "coming to join you."
Is it necessary to come out to the wilderness for something like this?
He no longer cared about the difference in levels between them, and unleashed all his power at the peak of the Golden Core realm, immediately casting a powerful spell at Tang Yu.
"Little Ma, calm down. Acting on impulse won't solve anything."
Tang Yu quickly dodged several of his opponent's attacks and turned to flee.
However, Ma Shitu no longer wanted to hear a word. It was clear he was ready to fight Tang Yu to the death today.
Seeing Tang Yu run, he chased after him with all his strength, continuing to launch attacks.
The fight between them drew the attention of many disciples from the Hehuan Sect of the Arts Academy.
They all came out to watch the spectacle.
"My goodness, has Ma Shitu gone mad?!"
"Wasn't the senior master seriously injured? He doesn't seem to have any problems."
"What's wrong with this kid? Does he dare to strike the master?"
Regarding Ma Shitu's reckless action of attacking Tang Yu,
Everyone was shocked, and some couldn't believe what they were seeing.
At that moment, Ma Shitu formed a hand seal, the temperature within a hundred-meter radius dropped drastically, and then dozens of massive ice pillars formed in the air.
Those ice pillars shot at great speed toward Tang Yu.
Fortunately, Tang Yu's cultivation in the Nascent Soul realm wasn't weak, and he was able to dodge the ice pillars with exceptional agility and speed.
However, when he dodged, the disciples watching below were affected.
Not everyone had cultivation in the Nascent Soul realm, and those at that level would already be elders — why would they still be disciples?
Ma Shitu's attack at the peak of the Golden Core realm wasn't something to be trifled with.
The crowd quickly scattered or defended themselves from the incoming attacks.
One of the women, who was quite close to Tang Yu and named Su Ji, at that moment had a large pregnant belly.
She only had cultivation at the mid-stage Foundation Establishment realm.
She saw an ice pillar about to fall near her.
Afraid of being caught in it, Su Ji instinctively took a few steps back.
But she tripped over a large stone and fell to the ground.
A red stain appeared on her skirt, and then the stain continued to spread.
Realizing that the baby in her womb likely wouldn't survive, Su Ji sat on the ground and began to sob bitterly.
Her partner, seeing this, also collapsed, rushing over to her and shouting.
"Ji, your baby! Ji, your baby is dead!"
Several women who were close to Su Ji also screamed in grief.
"Oh! What sorrow! What sorrow!"
While fleeing, Tang Yu saw this, and his expression darkened. Upon reaching Su Ji, he pulled out a medicinal pill and threw it to her for immediate use.
Ma Shitu himself, who had also fallen to the ground, quickly ran toward Tang Yu to continue the fight.
Seeing him come, Tang Yu felt a strange pressure, something he had never experienced before.
Before Ma Shitu could strike again,
Tang Yu launched a punch without thinking.
At that moment, all the male cultivators of the Hehuan Sect felt an overwhelming pressure from a terrifying force.
Ma Shitu, who had been pursuing Tang Yu, was instantly struck, crashing several meters into the ground.
Faced with a blow containing such power, not only could he not resist it, but the fact that he didn't die on the spot was pure luck.
This sudden fight also drew the elders.
Upon arriving and understanding the situation,
Several elders discussed and decided to take the seriously injured Ma Shitu to the Hall of Justice.
Since Ma Shitu was one of the key disciples being nurtured by the Hehuan Sect, and due to Tang Yu's involvement,
Elder Liu from the Hall of Justice personally took charge of the matter.
In the Hehuan Sect, Elder Liu is known for being strictly impartial; any violation of the rules, even by the sect leader, he wouldn't hesitate to challenge.
"You two explain clearly what happened," said Elder Liu with a stern face as he looked at them both.
Ma Shitu had already been helped by another elder to treat his injuries, and his internal condition had stabilized. With a pale face, he coughed a few times and began to complain.
"Please, Elder Liu, give me justice. Tang Yu, relying on his position and higher cultivation, has been oppressing me. Today, he took advantage of my partner and me while we were cultivating…"
When Ma Shitu finished recounting what had happened,
Several elders looked at Tang Yu with surprised expressions.
Tang Yu, without showing any expression, without shame, said,
"Elder Liu, I didn't know they were cultivating. I'm simply a music enthusiast, and when I saw how perfectly they were playing, I couldn't help but join in. Who would have thought something like this would happen…!"
Tang Yu sighed deeply, with a look of regret.
After hearing both sides, Elder Liu looked at them carefully.
After a moment of reflection, he spoke slowly.
"I understand, both of you have made mistakes. Although Brother Tang Yu did not do it intentionally, he certainly caused harm to Ma Shitu. According to the rules, Brother Tang Yu will be fined fifty medium-grade spirit stones. Do you have any objection, Brother Tang Yu?"
"I am willing to accept the punishment."
Tang Yu searched in his storage ring and, as always, all the materials were high-grade spirit stones, so he could only take one out and give it to Elder Liu, saying,
"I didn't bring any change, there's no need to give me anything back."
Elder Liu accepted the spirit stone and then looked at Ma Shitu and scolded him harshly.
"Ma Shitu, you acted impulsively by attacking Master Tang Yu. This incident is somewhat excusable, I won't blame you too much."
"But you hurt others, endangering the life of the baby in a disciple's womb. If it hadn't been for Brother Tang Yu giving her a medicinal pill in time, you would have caused a disaster!"
"According to the sect's rules, I punish you with working in the Forging Hall for six hours a day from now on, for a total of one hundred years, to make up for your fault."
"…"
Ma Shitu really wanted, damn it, to burst into tears at that moment.
Elder Liu? His iron face and impartiality?
Is this what they call punishing both equally with fifty lashes?
Is the rod he uses on that bastard made of paper, but the one for me made from an ancestral artifact?
"What is it? Do you have something to say?"
Seeing that Ma Shitu did not respond, Elder Liu's face turned slightly dark.
"The disciple has no objection, I gladly accept the punishment."
After gritting his teeth and accepting it, Ma Shitu turned around furiously and left.
Once Ma Shitu had left, Elder Liu let out a bitter smile and said, "Is this Ma Shitu really a traitor to the sect?"
It had been Tang Yu who had conveyed the order to do this after arriving here.
Otherwise, with his character, he never would have covered for Tang Yu, not even if Tang Yu had a higher rank.
"The evidence is conclusive, but I ask the other elders not to find out about this. This man can still be of use to me."
Tang Yu said with a smile.
"Understood. The master's plan must be for the development of the sect. If there's anything we can help with, don't hesitate to ask."
Elder Liu and the other elders spoke in unison.
Tang Yu, smiling and giving a respectful salute, took his leave from the elders and floated away.
With an extremely complex mood, Ma Shitu, upon returning to his cave, the first thing he did was look for his partner, Hu Lingbao, to confront her.
Since when had she been with Tang Yu?
Was it possible that the last time she broke through her limit was because she had been practicing with that damned Tang Yu?
But after searching the entire cave, he couldn't find Hu Lingbao. Instead, he found a letter on the table.
Upon opening it, he realized it was a letter left by Hu Lingbao.
The content of the letter was quite simple. Hu Lingbao felt they were no longer compatible as a couple, that their fate had come to an end, and that she was going to travel around to relax or something like that.
After reading the letter, Ma Shitu collapsed into the chair, nearly losing his will to carry on completely.
He had been living a peaceful life, and now his partner was gone, but the "horns" he had certainly earned.
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