The Side Character Who Wins by Doing Nothing

Yi Ze clearly recognized Gu Jue. His eyes were now fixed on him, his expression growing darker by the second.

”Gu Jue, this has nothing to do with you! Mind your own damn business!”

Lu Sangjiu hadn’t expected to alert Gu Jue. After all, the private rooms were all protected by barriers, so no matter how big the commotion outside, it shouldn’t have disturbed anyone inside.

So unless someone was deliberately paying attention, or a Divinity Transformation Stage expert was present, no one should have noticed what was happening outside.

But since Gu Jue had already made his move, how could Lu Sangjiu possibly let go of such a powerful backer?

Before Gu Jue could speak, she immediately shouted, ”What do you mean it has nothing to do with Mr. Gu? You want to attack me, so of course it has to do with him! We’re the closest of friends! Do you think he’d just stand by and watch you bully me?”

As she spoke, she tilted her head to look at Gu Jue. ”Right, Mr. Gu?”

Gu Jue uncomfortably averted his gaze but still gave a soft ”mm-hmm,” affirming her claim.

’Closest of friends? That must be a step beyond a normal friendship, right?’

Seeing Gu Jue back her up like that, Lu Sangjiu shot a smug look at Yi Ze. ”You hear that?”

The sight of Lu Sangjiu’s gloating, triumphant expression made Yi Ze grind his teeth in rage.

Zhou Yun was also furious. ”Is hiding behind other people like a coward all you know how to do?”

Lu Sangjiu shot back righteously, ”Is Mr. Gu ’other people’? He doesn’t even mind stepping up for me, so what are you yapping about over there?”

”You!” Zhou Yun gripped her whip, desperate to lash it across Lu Sangjiu’s face.

Just then, however, a voice suddenly came from inside Gu Jue’s private room. ”Lu, since you are my disciple Gu Jue’s... closest friend, then our meeting must be fate. Why don’t you come in and join us?”

Lu Sangjiu: ”...”

Her triumphant expression instantly froze on her face.

’That voice... Crap, why is Sword Bu Gui here too?’

Although Lu Sangjiu was quite thick-skinned, she still found it incredibly awkward to have been showing off in front of his master.

Especially since Sword Bu Gui had deliberately emphasized the words ”closest friend,” she could feel her cheeks getting hot.

But his words had a significant effect. Yi Ze and Zhou Yun’s expressions changed; they had clearly figured out the speaker’s identity. With his master present and personally inviting Lu Sangjiu inside, they weren’t so blind as to challenge a Divinity Transformation Stage expert.

So, no matter how unwilling they were, they could only swallow their frustration. Yi Ze shot Lu Sangjiu a deep look and said in a low voice, ”I don’t believe Gu Jue can be by your side every second of every day. We’ll see about this!”

Yi Ze turned to go downstairs, but Lu Sangjiu suddenly shouted, ”Senior, don’t forget to stop them and make them pay for the damages!”

As if in perfect coordination with her, the moment the words left her mouth, the two who had just reached the first floor were stopped by the staff of the Moon Viewing Tower.

The Nascent Soul Cultivator from before appeared out of nowhere, holding out a hand to the pair. ”That will be a total of one thousand Mid-grade Spirit Stones. Thank you for your patronage.”

Zhou Yun: ”...”

’Why do I have to lose a fortune every time I run into Lu Sangjiu? There’s no justice in the world!’

But facing a Nascent Soul Cultivator, neither of them dared to default on the payment. They could only pay up dejectedly and leave on their own.

Lu Sangjiu was delighted by this. Beaming, she waved to the Nascent Soul Cultivator downstairs. ”Congratulations on the earnings, Senior!”

The Nascent Soul Cultivator was in a good mood. He looked up at Lu Sangjiu, a slight smile on his lips. ”Not bad, little girl. Your meal is on the house today.”

’Mm, she’s exceptionally good at stirring up trouble. Generated a lot of income for the tower today. She deserves one free meal!’

Lu Sangjiu was thrilled and immediately gave him a thumbs-up. ”You’re too generous, Senior!”

At that moment, the Phoenix Cry Sword suddenly hummed and flew back into Gu Jue’s hand.

The sound of the sword drew Lu Sangjiu’s attention back. She instinctively turned to look at Gu Jue and saw him sheathe the Phoenix Cry Sword. He looked at her and said, ”Come here.”

Lu Sangjiu’s earlier embarrassment instantly returned.

Thinking about Ye Zhiyao and Sword Bu Gui in the room, not to mention possibly Bai Heng or Qin Yu, she didn’t want to go over at all.

So, the girl who had been so full of life just a moment ago suddenly clutched her chest and began to cough.

”Oh dear... Mr. Gu, I’m so sorry, but it seems my old injury is acting up. I have to hurry back and recuperate. How about I pay my respects to Sword Master Bu Gui another day?”

Gu Jue frowned slightly, a worried look on his face. Just as he was about to ask what was wrong, Sword Bu Gui’s voice rang out from the room again.

”If you leave now, aren’t you afraid someone will be waiting to get revenge?”

”Come in and eat. Afterward, I will have Gu Jue escort you home.”

Lu Sangjiu: ”...”

Sword Bu Gui’s words hit a sore spot.

She secretly checked her Communication Talisman again. Her senior sister still hadn’t replied.

So, she wisely dropped her pained expression and flashed Gu Jue a brilliant smile. ”...I suddenly feel much better! I’ll take you up on your offer, then!”

Gu Jue: ”...”

’Didn’t she get better a little too quickly? Could it be... she wants me to escort her home, so she’s forcing herself to endure it?’

A faint blush appeared on his face, and he stood nervously at the door, waiting for her to walk toward him.

If Lu Sangjiu knew he was so good at jumping to conclusions, she would have given him an award for Best Overthinker.

Following Gu Jue into the private room, Lu Sangjiu discovered it was quite crowded...

Besides Sword Bu Gui and Ye Zhiyao, Bai Heng was also there, along with four other cultivators dressed in the robes of the Gold and Silver Gate.

Two of them sat in the seats of honor, likely Elder-level figures from the Gold and Silver Gate and probably Divinity Transformation Stage experts as well. The remaining two were juniors, perhaps their disciples, seated below them.

At this moment, everyone’s eyes were on Lu Sangjiu. She couldn’t help but recall her recent performance and was so embarrassed her scalp tingled.

’No way, no way... With so many powerful figures here, doesn’t that mean they saw everything I just did?’

As if she weren’t embarrassed enough, Sword Bu Gui chose this moment to speak up. ”My disciple rarely makes a ’closest friend.’ Everyone, don’t stare so hard you make her shy.”

With that, he tilted his chin at Gu Jue. ”Don’t just stand there. Go on, get her seated.”

Lu Sangjiu: ”...”

’She really wanted to thank him for that.’

Gu Jue’s face was also a little red from Sword Bu Gui’s teasing, but he still said to Lu Sangjiu in a low voice, ”Come and sit.”

Lu Sangjiu had come in with Gu Jue, so she naturally sat next to him. Her seat happened to be directly across from Ye Zhiyao.

Ye Zhiyao gave her a complicated look, but Lu Sangjiu pretended not to see, lowering her head and doing her best impression of a frightened quail.

Although she wasn’t clear on the exact situation, she could guess that because two major figures—Sword Bu Gui and Bai Heng—had arrived, the elders of the Gold and Silver Gate were hosting a banquet to welcome them.

Thinking of it that way, she no longer felt that Sword Bu Gui was deliberately giving her a hard time. After all, it wouldn’t be proper for Gu Jue to leave an occasion like this early. He’d have to wait for the meal to end before he could escort her, wouldn’t he?

Perhaps because everyone had been sitting for a long time, the conversation had already died down.

Lu Sangjiu was already trying her best to be invisible, but one of the elders from the Gold and Silver Gate still wouldn’t let her off the hook.

”HAHAHAHA, it’s great to be young! To fly into a rage for the sake of a beauty—that’s the fiery spirit of youth! It truly makes one envious!”

Sword Bu Gui glanced nonchalantly in Lu Sangjiu’s direction. ”Elder Yin, are you envious of my young disciple’s fiery spirit, or are you envious that he has a beauty to get worked up over?”