Clearly, the genius talk wasn't enough to convince the three from the Xuanqing Heavenly Sect.
Being able to join the Xuanqing Heavenly Sect and become an inner disciple already made one a genius beyond the reach of ordinary people in the world's eyes.
The three naturally turned their gazes to Chen Baiqing, who was the squad leader and had spoken normally.
After all, the two had come together.
If Cui Hao was truly a weakling, then this back door was probably opened by Chen Baiqing.
Chen Baiqing didn't explain much, getting straight to the point:
"Since everyone has introduced themselves, we can consider ourselves acquainted. I hope we'll work together with one heart from now on."
The body cultivator Wang Chuan nodded with a slightly wooden expression, accepting Chen Baiqing's statement.
Lu Lingyi smiled lightly, neither agreeing nor questioning.
"Brother Cui's statement is rather too vague." Li Zhuhua smiled and spoke. "If Brother Cui truly is at the Golden Core realm, you should explain more clearly. After all, sect trials aren't a sightseeing trip."
"Sect brotherhood—if we encounter danger, we also need to protect Brother Cui. Between life and death, misjudgments about teammates are often where things go wrong."
Cui Hao was about to speak but was stopped by Chen Baiqing's hand.
Chen Baiqing's expression was calm:
"Take his Golden Core cultivation as carrying a burden. If you really rely on him, you'll be finished."
Li Zhuhua pursed his lips lightly. He hadn't expected Chen Baiqing to be this direct.
There might be inside story here, but the squad matter had been jointly drafted by the External Affairs Hall elder and the Sect Teaching elder.
It wasn't something that could be explained simply as a burden.
Li Zhuhua could only bow in the end:
"Yes, Squad Leader."
After appeasing the three, it was time to appease her own junior brother.
Chen Baiqing's gaze turned gently to Cui Hao, her eyes flicking slightly.
Cui Hao was a master at reading the room in the sect and naturally understood Third Senior Sister's meaning—true respect had to be earned through one's own abilities.
But Cui Hao himself didn't care much, instead smiling rather freely.
Seeing things settled, Lu Lingyi finally spoke:
"According to past unspoken rules, we'll probably need to live together here for two days. Whether sparring or chatting, we get to know each other a bit before executing the mission."
"Does the Squad Leader have any plans?"
Chen Baiqing glanced around. There were six rooms in total, three of the side rooms already marked as occupied—the three had already chosen their rooms. The only main room here was presumably the default for the squad leader.
Hearing the question, she responded naturally:
"No particular plans. Just relax. Everyone likes different things. I don't really like making people do things they don't enjoy. Everyone can do what they want—chat, spar, whatever."
"Naturally, as squad leader, if you want to know more about me, you can also come to me."
Lu Lingyi's face held a warm smile, nodding gently at this:
"The Squad Leader is quite free-spirited."
Chen Baiqing smiled. They clearly hadn't understood who the truly free-spirited one was.
She glanced at Cui Hao, then stood and headed toward the empty main room.
Leaving this scene to Cui Hao to handle was fine now. After all, blind boasting came with a price—this could also serve as a lesson for Cui Hao. As Third Senior Sister, she wouldn't cover for her junior brother in everything.
If he couldn't even handle this, she'd pack him up and send him back to Master.
Under everyone's gaze, Chen Baiqing pushed open the main room door, then turned, closed it, and there was no more sound.
The three's gazes naturally turned to Cui Hao again.
Cui Hao's expression was calm:
"Since the Squad Leader has no plans, why not hear my proposal?"
Lu Lingyi looked at Cui Hao's confident expression and asked with genuine curiosity:
"What good plan does Brother Cui have?"
"Life is nothing but fine wine and games." Cui Hao took out several bottles of wine from his space ring. "I learned a little game from my master called Truth."
"We play drinking games—the loser has to answer a question, and the last one standing gets to ask. Every question must be answered truthfully. If you can't answer, drink a cup. Naturally, questions can't be repeated."
"This is spiritual wine—as long as you don't use spiritual energy to suppress it, you'll get drunk."
"Whoever gets drunk first loses, and whoever loses first will have to play the small role during future actions."
Hearing this, Lu Lingyi's eyes lit up, a sincere smile on her face.
This game truly had merit.
Difficult questions could be avoided by drinking, so questions that could be answered naturally didn't require lies.
The punishment wasn't really punishment but a way out.
Truth was truth, and it also let teammates know what they wanted to know.
Originally somewhat offensive questions could be attributed to the game, without damaging harmony.
Sure enough, someone who could join the squad at the Golden Core realm must have exceptional qualities.
This genius claim must have another meaning.
Lu Lingyi decisively agreed:
"I'll participate."
"Sounds interesting—I'm in too." Li Zhuhua also smiled and nodded.
Wang Chuan, seeing both agree, also accepted.
Cui Hao placed the spiritual wine on the table, rolled up his sleeves, and looked at everyone with considerable confidence.
The four naturally gathered around.
Hands went out immediately.
After just a few rounds, Cui Hao lost cleanly first.
The winner was Lu Lingyi.
Her gaze swept over everyone, then she looked directly at Cui Hao, smiling as she asked:
"What is your relationship with the Squad Leader?"
Cui Hao's expression showed slight annoyance, but he answered straightforwardly:
"We share the same master—senior brother and sister."
Lu Lingyi got her answer, nodded in satisfaction, and reached out to continue.
Another round, and Cui Hao was out first again.
Lu Lingyi won to the end again, so she continued questioning Cui Hao:
"You're only at the Golden Core realm. By rights, you shouldn't be able to participate in the experience squad. How did you get here?"
Cui Hao's expression was still annoyed:
"Naturally Master arranged for me to come."
Another round.
The result was still the same.
Lu Lingyi's smile was gentle, but the questions started getting out of line:
"Then what do you think Master's purpose was in arranging for you to come?"
Cui Hao's expression shifted, his gaze naturally turning to the wine cups on the table, but ultimately he still chose to answer:
"My Golden Core cultivation isn't much help. Master probably wants me to keep an eye on Senior Sister."
Lu Lingyi's smile didn't change, naturally reaching out again.
Li Zhuhua and Wang Chuan exchanged a glance and also reached out to continue.
"Wait!"
Cui Hao suddenly reached out to refuse, his gaze puzzled sweeping over the three:
"Your cultivation is far higher than mine—can you see my hand gestures? How am I the first to lose every round?"
Lu Lingyi's peach-blossom eyes blinked gently, which was her answer.
"Unfair, unfair! Let's change the game."
Cui Hao took out several dice cups and dice made of extremely special materials from his space ring.
"These dice cups are made of spirit-calming stone that blocks divine sense and spiritual energy, with special small formations on top. The dice are the same."
"Having wins and losses is what makes it a game—how can I be the only one losing? Let's use dice size to determine the winner."
Lu Lingyi reached out and took one set of dice and dice cup, observing it carefully for a moment, confirming that Cui Hao was telling the truth.
This material wasn't cheap, yet it was used to make game props.
A Golden Core Cui Hao could own this—his identity was worth investigating.
Additionally, she naturally wanted to understand the other two better too.
Lu Lingyi covered the dice cup, smiling in reply:
"Since Brother Cui suggests it, naturally that's fine."
The other two exchanged a glance and each took a set.
Seeing this, Cui Hao's expression was satisfied as he reached for his own dice cup.
The bait was completely set.
Having these dice cups, Cui Hao naturally understood he absolutely couldn't out-play the three Nascent Soul cultivators at finger guessing.
He chose finger guessing precisely because he wanted to lose the first few rounds and properly answer the difficult questions.
Now the threshold of questions had been raised so high by him.
No one would feel comfortable just drinking to avoid questions anymore.
Cui Hao's face broke into a smile, his gaze turning to the three.
It was time to let them understand what the meaning of genius was.
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