Little Alpaca – Chapter 44

Volume 1: Little Alpaca

This is exactly the same as what was written in the original text!

On the day the Xianlu Sect Trial Assembly arrived, all the disciples of the sect gathered early at the Trial Stage of Changqing Pavilion to wait.

The Trial Stage was based on seven long pillars, suspended in the air on all four sides, standing high above Changqing Pavilion’s Xiyun Pond¹.

The water of Xiyun Pond was ice-cold, its cold air resembling clouds and mist, slowly flowing around the Trial Stage.

In the sky, thin clouds veiled the sun, allowing a few strands of golden light to shine through, spilling onto the high stage. At first glance, it was like a divine realm.

At this moment, the Three Honored Ones² had not yet arrived, and the trials had not yet begun. The disciples of the three pavilions were all dressed in white, differing only in the magical artifacts they carried. They were currently in groups of three and five, chattering excitedly amongst themselves, creating a lively scene.

Yi Qiu followed closely by You Yan’s side, finding a place convenient for watching the battles.

Disciples from the Xianlu Sect approached to strike up a conversation, but You Yan was completely uninterested, too lazy to even give a single response, only silently stroking the fluff on the back of the little alpaca’s neck.

Yi Qiu could naturally see that You Yan found those disciples noisy.

As an alpaca, an alpaca who had decided to give her master all her love, she felt it was necessary to drive away all the annoying fellows for her master.

Thus, the little alpaca, who had little attack power, put on an extremely impatient expression. Whenever she saw someone trying to approach You Yan, she would immediately “tui” a mouthful onto the ground as a warning.

As a result, this area became much quieter.

She didn’t know if it was an illusion, but Yi Qiu always felt that every time she scared someone away, You Yan would gently pinch and knead the back of her neck. Those slightly cool fingertips were soft and gentle, and the kneading was very comfortable.

Was this a reward from the bird woman?

Thinking this, Yi Qiu instantly puffed out her chest with pride—who says alpacas can’t do anything but eat, drink, poop, and pee?

Wasn’t she able to help You Yan drive away those little toads who want to eat swan meat³ by spitting?

No, that wasn’t the right analogy.

Whether those Xianlu Sect disciples were toads or not was debatable, but You Yan was definitely not a swan. She was a big poisonous bird with thorns on her butt. Just thinking about it was scary; one bite would probably shorten your lifespan and send you back to your mother’s womb!

Today’s Changqing Pavilion was exceptionally lively. It was only early morning, yet nearly two hundred people had already gathered.

Yi Qiu hadn’t been in such a lively scene for a long time. Her small eyes were filled with joy as she stood beside You Yan, craning her neck to look around curiously.

She saw that not far to her right, Jiang Yuyao stood alone holding her sword, her face cold. The disciples beside her all actively kept a certain distance, as if none dared to approach.

And on the side of Huamo Pavilion, Chao Yun had a gentle smile on her face, with many chattering and smiling young girls standing beside her. It was not hard to see that everyone liked her very much.

Speaking of which, Xianlu Sect’s Jiang Yuyao and Chao Yun, whether standing alone or being the center of attention⁴, were both particularly eye-catching existences, easily found with just a glance.

But that little pig trotter Luo Mingyuan was quite different. He shrank into a corner and tried his best to stand behind the crowd, working very hard to minimize his presence. It took Yi Qiu three sweeps through the crowd to finally find him.

Compared to the last time they met, his complexion was a few shades paler. Under the stray hairs on his forehead, there seemed to be a bruise. It was unknown which Shixiong⁵ had beaten him up again.

According to the plot in the novel, Luo Mingyuan did indeed get a beating before the Trial Assembly, but that was because he had actively signed up for it. Several Shixiong from the same dormitory laughed at him for overestimating himself. When he didn’t respond, they used the excuse of “testing Shidi’s⁶ weight” in advance to teach him a lesson.

But now, that boy probably didn’t even know he had been signed up, yet he still got a baffling beating. It seemed that those who liked to bully people didn’t need a reason to bully people at all.

From the perspective of his character design, Luo Mingyuan was truly a pitiful, unlucky child, abandoned by his parents right after birth.

Fortunately, his adoptive parents were unable to have children and had always treated him as their own, which was how he came to know what a home was.

However, his half-demon constitution would always attract many sinister things. His adoptive parents had no other choice; to protect the child from being harmed by demons and evil, they painstakingly searched everywhere for traces of “immortals” and finally sent him to the Xianlu Sect.

It was precisely because of this that Luo Mingyuan had always had deep feelings for his adoptive parents. Even though his life after joining the immortal sect had not been good, every time he went down the mountain to see them, he would always report the good and hide the bad.

The thought that in the subsequent plot, he would personally watch his adoptive parents, who were so good to him, die at the hands of his most beloved Shijie⁷, made Yi Qiu feel a bit of pity.

“Quite pitiful, isn’t he?”

“Yeah…” Yi Qiu responded softly.

The next second, she abruptly turned her head to look at You Yan beside her, her eyes full of awkwardness: “Eh… this, well, I just…”

You Yan raised an eyebrow and asked in return: “Just what?”

The corners of Yi Qiu’s mouth couldn’t help but twitch a couple of times. Then she cleared her throat and said: “I just feel this kid is such a coward, being bullied every day and not even knowing how to fight back!”

As the little alpaca said this, her ear was suddenly pinched by You Yan, and her entire head was lifted up a bit.

“Eiya…” Why are you pinching the grass mud horse’s ear again!

“Why don’t you know how to fight back?” You Yan smiled and let go, her eyes curving, filled with mirth.

Yi Qiu was instantly choked up, standing there baring her teeth for a long time, unable to utter a single word of rebuttal.

Strange, truly strange!

What does this bird woman mean? Is she speaking up for Luo Mingyuan?

Did the sun rise from the west today?

Or could it be… Luo Mingyuan is also a bird in essence, and out of kinship, the bird woman feels some pity for the bird man who has fallen on hard times?

Forget it, the grass mud horse doesn’t want to guess the bird woman’s thoughts.

The little alpaca squeezed a “hmpf” from her nose, flung her head to the side, and put on an angry look.

You Yan smiled without a word, just using her index finger to flick her small, pointed ear again and again, flicking it once and making it move, as if she could never get tired of playing with it.

Yi Qiu took three deep breaths in a row, then turned her head back and glared at You Yan.

However, this angry glare did not cause any harm to the great villain before her. Not only that, but it also made her lips curl into a light laugh.

Just as Yi Qiu was about to complain, she heard the system pop up and call out.

【You Yan Favorability +10】

Fine, fine, for the sake of the favorability points, I won’t be angry for now.

The little alpaca opened her mouth and exhaled forcefully three times, finally suppressing the bellyful of annoyance.

Before long, the Three Honored Ones of the Xianlu Sect arrived one after another, each making an entrance as cool as the wind⁸.

The first to arrive was Mu Qingshuang, known among the immortal sects as the Judge’s Brush.

She wore a long ink-black robe, arriving by treading on the wind. With a twirl of her waist, she had already landed steadily on the high stage.

This female Honored One of over forty years, though not exceptionally beautiful in appearance, had an excellent temperament. Every gesture possessed a kind of ink-scroll beauty.

The second to arrive was the Sect Master of Xianlu Sect, the Honored Sword⁹ Jiang Xuan, revered by all in the immortal sects.

He also used that kind of anti-Newtonian movement technique, flying over from some unknown direction. When he landed, with a flick of his sleeve, he stood with his hands behind his back, his white robes dancing in the wind.

The Zither Immortal, Chu Tinglan, was the last to arrive late, and also the only one willing to condescend to walk on his own two feet.

His face was handsome and clear, making it impossible to discern his age. He wore a green robe, carried a jade qin on his back, and his long hair was tied up in a crown. Followed by everyone’s gaze, he walked unhurriedly to his designated position, possessing the air of an immortal.

“These mortals certainly have quite the pomp and circumstance,” You Yan simply closed her eyes, clearly not having the slightest interest in this.

Yi Qiu was different. She had never seen such a scene before and was extremely excited in her heart. For a moment, she was like a giraffe, stretching her neck as long as it could go, afraid of missing anything.

The following scene was very much like a flag-raising ceremony at school. The Three Honored Ones of Xianlu stood on high, using their internal energy to amplify their voices and give a few nonsense speeches in turn. Then they announced the start of the Trial Assembly. The Three Honored Ones used magical arts to conduct a live drawing of lots. The person whose name was drawn would immediately go on stage for a duel.

The swords of Changqing Pavilion, the qins of Liuxian Pavilion, and the brushes of Huamo Pavilion—the disciples of the three pavilions each had their own strengths. Yi Qiu was dazzled watching from the side.

Although she knew that these cultivating mortals might not be able to compare to a single feather on You Yan’s body in their entire lives.

But to her, such a competition was incredibly exciting, countless times more exciting than those TV dramas on the market with their confusing camera work, fifty-cent special effects, and various slow-motion shots.

But no matter how exciting it was, watching for a long time would still cause visual fatigue.

With over two hundred disciples in the Xianlu Sect competing one-on-one, it could really make a person sleepy. That was no exaggeration at all.

Watching the competition go from morning to afternoon, with a break for a meal in between, and then starting again, the little alpaca was so tired she kept yawning on the side.

You Yan had, at some point, moved a small stool over and found a shady spot under a tree to lean back and sit leisurely.

Yi Qiu lay beside her, her little head resting diagonally on You Yan’s arm, her eyes closed, dozing off lightly and restlessly.

You Yan remained motionless, letting her lean on her for a long time without a single word of complaint.

Suddenly, Sect Master Jiang Xuan hesitantly read out a name—He Xiuzhu¹⁰.

Yi Qiu, who was already sleeping restlessly, woke up with a start, her drowsy little head instantly lifting from You Yan’s arm.

“Liuxian Pavilion’s He Xiuzhu, against, against…” Jiang Xuan couldn’t help but frown.

Mu Qingshuang at the side raised her eyebrows and glanced at the paper slip in Jiang Xuan’s hand, a trace of surprise flashing in her eyes as well.

“Shige¹¹, don’t keep us in suspense,” Chu Tinglan said faintly. “Could it be that my disciple’s luck is too good, encountering either Yuyao or Chao Yun in the preliminary trial?”

Hearing this, Jiang Xuan no longer hesitated: “Liuxian Pavilion’s He Xiuzhu against Changqing Pavilion’s… Luo Mingyuan.”

This is it! This is exactly the same as in the original text!

The Zither Immortal Chu Tinglan’s most prized disciple, He Xiuzhu, had by sheer coincidence been matched against the publicly acknowledged good-for-nothing of Xianlu Sect—Luo Mingyuan—in the preliminary stage of the Trial Assembly.

He thought he had victory in his grasp, little did he know he was up against a cheater¹², and would end up losing face all the way to his grandmother’s house¹³.

However, at this moment, no one present could have foreseen what an incredible thing was about to happen.

They just looked in one direction with various expressions.

And the person at whom all eyes were directed was, at this moment, completely bewildered, having not figured out what the current situation was at all.

The next second, He Xiuzhu leaped into the air and landed steadily on the Trial Stage, his gaze fixed on Luo Mingyuan: “Shidi, I can give you a ten-move handicap.”

“I’m begging you, stop pretending. How ugly will it be when you lose later,” Yi Qiu couldn’t help but mutter under her breath.

“Oh?” You Yan lowered her gaze and glanced at Yi Qiu.

Yi Qiu suddenly felt a chill on the back of her neck and couldn’t help but take a deep breath.

Grass mud horse, who gave you permission to say your inner OS¹⁴ out loud!

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