Lin Yun was stunned by those words, but he understood the intent behind them. He felt a warmth rising from his chest, but did he really have a choice to ignore this challenge? When he raised his head, he could see Xin Yan’s eyes flickering.

“But aren’t you going as well? If I can’t go, then you can’t either,” said Lin Yun. He recalled that Xin Yan’s name was among the quota. He was also worried about Xin Yan’s safety in the Demonlotus Realm. There weren’t many people that he cared about in the Sword Firmament Pavilion, but Xin Yan was definitely one of them.

“That’s not the same. You’re still young and you still have plenty of chances in the future. I’m three years older than you and I’m slowly losing my chances. If I miss this opportunity, then I might be stuck in the eighth stage for a long time,” smiled Xin Yan. She then changed the topic, “Do you think that your senior sister is weak? The other sects also won’t target me. After all, my worth isn’t as high as yours.”

“That’s right. The Primal Origin Sect even went as far as trying to kill you, not to mention that there’s still the Heavenly Profound Sect. You crippled Bai Yu back in the Princess Manor, so the Heavenly Profound Sect will surely not let that matter rest.” Tang Tong nodded his head in agreement with Xin Yan.

They were trying to persuade Lin Yun against participating in the Demonlotus Realm. They weren’t jealous of Lin Yun. They knew that the reality of the situation was that he was still young, so there was no need for him to take the risk. As for them, what Xin Yan said was correct. They were stuck in the eighth stage for at least a year, which was a really long time for them. They couldn’t afford to gamble on the future anymore at their age.

“Most importantly, the Demonlotus Realm is extremely mysterious and suppresses cosmic artifacts. So the Scarletflame War Flag will be useless there,” added Tang Tong.

“Junio Brother, I’ve never asked you for anything. So just this one time, please promise me that you won’t.” In the end, Xin Yan looked at Lin Yun with a grave expression.

“Then I won’t accept the challenge,” said Lin Yun. This was the first time that Xin Yan had ever begged him for something.

Xin Yan immediately revealed a bright smile of relief. She pinched Lin Yun’s cheeks and sweetly said, “That’s more like it.”

Half a day later, a piece of shocking news spread throughout the Sword Firmament Pavilion. Lin Yun refused to accept the challenge and gave up his quota to enter the Demonlotus Realm.

“What? Senior Brother Lin refused the challenge? That’s so unlike him.”

“I heard that he defeated three people in the Princess Manor and even fearlessly faced two opponents by himself.”

“That’s weird. That’s really weird.”

When Guardian Plum received the news, he was full of shock. He was drinking tea with Luo Feng, so he frowned and questioned Luo Feng, “Why did he give up? That’s so unlike him.”

“I’m afraid it’s because of that lass Xin Yan. That lass has treated Lin Yun like her own brother. She looked for me several times to try and remove Lin Yun from the quota,” smiled Luo Feng.

Guardian Plum helplessly smiled, “It didn’t sit well with me either, but there was nothing I could do about it since it was something determined by the Pavilion Master.”

The two fell silent when they thought about the Pavilion Master.

“Forget it.” Guardian Plum sighed. “There’s no way the sect will force him to go if he isn’t willing. Ling Yan has been stuck in the eighth stage for two years, right?”

“Yeah, it has been two years,” nodded Luo Feng.

“The late phase of the Profound Martial Realm is hard to make a breakthrough in… Since he has this intention, then let him go to the Demonlotus Realm. The sect won’t lose anything even if Lin Yun isn’t willing to go, not to mention that the consequences aren’t something I can accept if he dies in there.” Guardian Plum shook his head at the thought of it.

After Lin Yun bade farewell to Xin Yan, he returned to his courtyard and resumed his cultivation. The Aquaselenic Sword still had three ultimate moves left for him to learn - Luminous Moon, Myriad Frost, and Moon Reflection.

If he could successfully practice the three moves, the Aquaselenic Sword would reach complete mastery. 

His Aquaselenic Sword had flaws right now, but the flaws wouldn’t be easy to break with his quasi-xiantian sword intent. On the contrary, it would only end with him and his opponent being injured. But Lin Yun was a perfectionist, so he was determined to complete the last three moves.

As for the Demonlotus Realm, Lin Yun wasn’t the type who would regret his decision once it was made, so it wasn’t in his mind anymore. Three days later, a figure in the Contribution Hall attracted everyone’s attention.

“Look! It’s Senior Brother Ling Yan!”

“I heard that he went to the Bloodbone Forest for a mission to prepare for his fight with Lin Yun.”

“Judging from his aura, he’s a lot stronger than he was a month ago.”

“I wonder how he will feel if he learns that Lin Yun rejected his challenge.”

“He must be relieved. After all, Lin Yun’s achievements in the Princess Manor were shocking. Plus, he must have gotten stronger after two months. Ling Yan might have the advantage in his cultivation, but the odds of him winning aren’t high.”

Ling Yan wasn’t bothered by the gazes on him. He was ranked tenth on the Earth Ranking, so he was used to basking in everyone’s attention. But when he heard that Lin Yun rejected his challenge, he couldn’t help but doubt the news. He had no idea if it was true.

Cultivators rarely rejected a challenge, not to mention that the Demonlotus Realm’s quota was at stake. Could it be that Lin Yun did not want it? Anyhow, Ling Yan refused to believe it. Right at this moment, a disciple who had a close relationship with him rushed over and smiled, “Senior Brother, congratulations. Lin Yun knows that he’s not your opponent, so he returned your challenge.”

“Not my opponent?” Ling Yan frowned as he looked at the challenge. 

The face of the disciple who came to return to challenge changed. He had no idea what was wrong with Senior Brother Ling Yan because no hint of joy could be seen on Ling Yan’s face. Suddenly, his origin energy surged and he waved his hand. The challenge was torn apart, shocking everyone in the surroundings.

“Is he trying to tell everyone that I’m bullying him because I’m older? This is outrageous!” Ling Yan’s face was dark as he emitted a cold aura. 

With a cold face, he headed to the Locket Mountain without turning back. The disciples in the surroundings were shocked, but they soon had joy written on their faces and they quickly followed behind.

“I never expected that Senior Brother Ling Yan would have a violent temper.”

“It looks like he’s rather confident in his ability. He probably doesn't need Lin Yun to give him the quota.”

“Haha, there will be a good show to watch this time. Come, let’s hurry to the Locket Mountain.”

“Hahaha! It looks like a battle is unavoidable. Come, let’s go. With Senior Brother Ling Yan’s strength, this will be an interesting fight. After all, this will be a fight with Lin Yun whose fame spread throughout the Great Qin Empire.”

It didn’t take long for a large group to gather behind Ling Yan. It was composed of disciples that Ling Yan had passed on the way to Locket Mountain. Their eyes lit up when they saw the crowd and they quickly followed behind. This led to more and more people following closely behind. By the time Ling Yan arrived at the Locket Mountain, there were thousands of people with him.

Everyone in the Sword Firmament Pavilion that had time to spare had rushed over. Ling Yan was rather happy with the crowd following behind him. After all, this meant that the entire sect would immediately know the result. He wanted to defeat Lin Yun with as many witnesses as possible. Otherwise, people would say that his qualification wasn’t sufficient.

“Senior Brother Ling Yan, what are you trying to do?” A disciple from the Locket Mountain had already noticed Ling Yan and the crowd following behind him.

“It has nothing to do with you. Get lost.” A cold light flashed in Ling Yan’s eyes and he threw his palm out. When his origin energy fluctuated, the disciple was sent flying away. He was ranked tenth on the Earth Ranking, and he wasn’t someone that the disciple could resist.

When he pressed on into the Locket Mountain, none of the disciples who came to stop him could withstand an attack from him. Just like that, Ling Yan came to the residence of the Locket Mountain’s disciple without drawing his sword.

The disciples gathered behind him were shocked when they witnessed what Ling Yan did. But they soon understood why Ling Yan was so furious.

“Refuse my challenge? You’re not going to have it that easy! I’ll make you fully convinced of your defeat!” Ling Yan’s eyes flashed with a cold light as he yelled outside of Lin Yun’s residence. Every step he took would cause his aura to surge and accumulate.