Chapter 4174 — Shangguan Tianxia Watches the Duel
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 2
What he did not know was that although Huang Xiaotao had begun as a Soaring Heavens Pavilion disciple, her time there had been brief, and the vast gulf in their stations meant the two would never have had even a chance to meet—so how could they ever have become friends?
Under ordinary circumstances, only those of matching rank shared a common tongue; those who could be Shangguan Lan'er's confidantes were princess-class figures like Ning Xuefei, and a disciple of common roots like Huang Xiaotao plainly did not meet the requirements.
Her true acquaintance with Shangguan Lan'er had in fact begun only in the last few days, and the thing they had in common—or rather, the source of their growing closeness—was none other than Wei Zhao himself.
"Sister Xiaotao, is what you told me before really true? Is our little junior brother really able to hold his own even against a Golden Core expert?" Shangguan Lan'er asked once more, anxiety in her voice, as she watched Wei Zhao step onto the arena.
This young thing truly does care for Wei Zhao, Huang Xiaotao thought with an inward sigh, and it was for that very reason that, several days ago, she had seen Shangguan Lan'er fretting and worrying herself sick over it, and knowing she was Wei Zhao's girlfriend, had gone up to comfort her and told her of the matter.
At first, Huang Xiaotao had never dreamed that this lofty eldest young miss of the Shangguan house could be so innocent and unassuming, entirely without airs, and in no time the two had become friends—so much so that today Shangguan Lan'er had even dragged her here to cheer Wei Zhao on.
Of course, even without Shangguan Lan'er, Huang Xiaotao would surely have come herself; she simply would not have stood in so central a spot.
Still, Huang Xiaotao was glad to have become good friends with Shangguan Lan'er—not because of the girl's noble station, for she was not the sort to covet vanity, but because Shangguan Lan'er was Wei Zhao's girlfriend. If she got on good terms with her first, then at least there would be one less obstacle later on when she and Wei Zhao were together.
"Mmhm, of course it's all true. That day, though we fled early, we could still feel the aura of the fighting behind us—our opponent was absolutely a Golden Core expert, and Wei Zhao has come through unscathed, which proves at the very least that he can hold his own against an early-stage Golden Core expert. So don't worry, Lan'er," Huang Xiaotao said with utter certainty.
Those words comforted Shangguan Lan'er, but they comforted herself as well; after all, the matter was only her own conjecture—she dared not be a hundred percent sure.
Earlier, when that Golden Core expert had tipped off Su Zhaohe, he had not mentioned his own strength at all—he was a wandering cultivator, after all, and no one would pay him any mind.
The reason he kept silent was simple: the whole affair was too humiliating. A mid-stage Golden Core expert, badly wounded by a whelp at the peak of late-stage Foundation Establishment—if word of that got out, he would be laughed out of every hall in the land. (To be continued..) R752