Chapter 176: A Night of Tension

It was already very dark outside.

The wind howled fiercely, and occasionally, dark shadows flickered across the white paper windows.

To Wang Yanglin, these were all normal occurrences, but after hearing that conversation earlier, a sense of tension quietly crept into his heart.

Wang Yanglin furrowed his brows, slightly relaxed them, and let out a faint self-deprecating chuckle.

How could there possibly be ghosts in this world? Besides, his senior and junior brothers were all living nearby—should ghosts really appear, they would be crushed without mercy.

Without further hesitation, Wang Yanglin sat cross-legged on his bed and resumed his cultivation.

Outside, everything was quiet, not a sound to be heard.

Yet at that moment, Wang Yanglin suddenly sensed something outside his room and immediately opened his eyes.

The moment he opened them, he was startled—outside the paper window, a shadowy figure stood silently, motionless…

“Who… is that?” Wang Yanglin said in a low, cautious voice.

Yet even then, the figure remained silent, unmoving, eerily still.

Wang Yanglin’s breathing quickened, his heart pounding rapidly. Finally, gritting his teeth, he swiftly appeared at the door and flung it open.

He wanted to see exactly who dared to play ghost tricks here.

Yet outside, there was no one. Looking from the outside, the shadow on the paper window had also vanished.

Wang Yanglin swallowed hard, then quickly stuck his head into the room to look at the paper window again, only to be horrified to find the shadow still there.

Even more terrifying, the shadow was now moving, as if its neck was twisted, its long tongue sticking out.

“Who…” At that moment, Wang Yanglin roared in anger.

“Senior brother, what’s wrong?” That roar startled others nearby.

“Nothing,” Wang Yanglin gradually calmed his uneasy heart. “Junior brother, have you noticed anything unusual on your side?”

“No,” the disciple replied, puzzled. Then he approached Wang Yanglin and asked curiously, “Senior brother, are you just too nervous?”

“No…” Wang Yanglin exhaled, relieved. Could it really be just his imagination? Yet at that moment, Wang Yanglin’s eyes suddenly widened—he saw behind his junior brother a ghostly figure in white robes, long hair covering its face.

Wang Yanglin, horrified, took several steps back. Blinking, the white-robed figure he had just seen instantly disappeared.

“Senior brother, what’s wrong…”

At this point, Wang Yanglin’s breathing was quickened. “Nothing. I must have seen wrong. Just too nervous…”

“Oh, Senior brother, get some rest early. Don’t be too nervous.”

“Okay.”

…

After returning to his room, Wang Yanglin picked up the teapot intending to pour himself a cup of water to calm his nerves, but at that moment, he suddenly noticed that the liquid pouring from the teapot was actually bright red blood.

Wang Yanglin’s body trembled, the teapot slipped from his hands and crashed to the ground, shattering into pieces.

Even more terrifying was the sight on his bed—there were now some blood-red words written there.

“I died so unjustly…”

At that moment, Wang Yanglin staggered backward, staring in horror at everything before him.

Those crimson words sent shockwaves through his heart.

Lin Fan, hidden in invisibility, watched Wang Yanglin’s terrified expression and couldn’t help but smile slightly.

That should be enough of a scare. It was time to try someone else.

As a result of this fright, Wang Yanglin spent the entire night without sleep, maintaining a state of high alert.

It was a sleepless night, and for some disciples of Jiuxiao Sect, it was a night filled with heart-pounding terror.

The next day.

The official commencement of the “Strongest Prodigy Battle” began.

This grand event was held at Zhongtian Peak, where the sect’s largest arena was located.

Surrounding the arena were arrays personally arranged by Elder Lü Mingyang of Zhongtian Peak, ensuring that the combatants could fully display their skills without endangering the spectators.

At Zhongtian Peak now, the crowd was enormous. Disciples from the sects were arriving one after another, eagerly anticipating this once-every-three-years “Strongest Prodigy Battle.” Not only were they hoping for their sect’s victory, but they also wanted to witness the heroic postures of their sect’s prodigy seniors.

At this moment, Lin Fan was discussing matters with Elder Wuya, originally having no intention of joining the commotion of the Strongest Prodigy Battle. However, Elder Wuya had forcibly insisted that he step onto the stage.

“Lin Fan, as I said yesterday, you are already recognized as a prodigy of the sect, so this time, please bear with it and participate in a match,” Elder Wuya said.

Lin Fan looked at Elder Wuya, “Elder, don’t tell me you have no confidence in the sect’s disciples?”

Lin Fan indeed had this suspicion. In his view, Elder Wuya must have had no suitable candidates in mind, so he could only place his hopes on Lin Fan himself—after all, Lin Fan was always so brilliant wherever he went.

Elder Wuya gave Lin Fan a sidelong glance, his eyes seemingly saying, “You know too much.”

“The disciples of Jiuxiao Sect have arrived,” a commotion arose from the crowd, automatically parting a path.

At the forefront was Elder Liang Yichu, followed by the prodigy disciples of Jiuxiao Sect.

What surprised the disciples of the sect, however, was that some of the Jiuxiao Sect’s disciples appeared somewhat off.

They looked as if they hadn’t rested for days, their faces pale and exhausted.

“Hey, look at those disciples from Jiuxiao Sect. What’s wrong with them? They look so tired.”

“I don’t know either. Look at that disciple’s haggard appearance—he seems about to collapse.”

…

Wang Yanglin, following behind in the formation, was listless. The events of the previous night had left him in a state of high tension throughout the entire night.

He hadn’t dared to close his eyes even for a moment, fearing that something terrifying might happen the moment he did.

Lin Fan looked at Wang Yanglin’s condition with some helplessness. Despite his high cultivation level, he was still so cowardly.

Afraid of ghosts? That would be a laughingstock if it ever got out.

Without further comment, Lin Fan moved to where the inner sect prodigy disciples were gathered.

Zong Hentian sat there motionless, meditating with his eyes closed.

“How are you doing?” Lin Fan approached and patted his shoulder, asking.

“Master Lin, okay,” Zong Hentian replied. His heart was somewhat nervous now, especially when he saw the imposing presence of Xin Feng, his eyelids twitching slightly.

“Master Lin, good luck,” Ye Shaotian said as he approached from afar.

“Okay,” Lin Fan nodded.

“Master Lin, we will be cheering for you all the way. This time, the prodigy disciples from Jiuxiao Sect seem much stronger than the last round. Please be extra cautious,” Ye Shaotian said. Although they were outer sect disciples, their talent and comprehension were not much worse than those of the inner sect disciples. It was just that their cultivation had not yet reached the level of the inner sect disciples.

But in their view, that was only a matter of time.

Perhaps in the next round, they would have their chance to participate.