Yvette Ye's body continued to descend through the air.
After silently counting to ten, she pulled the parachute cord.
The parachute opened, and she drifted downward.
By the time she reached the ground, Jenna Jiang and Harvey Li had already landed in position.
Their parachutes had already been shed, and they stood not far away. A few others clustered nearby—clearly all familiar faces.
"You made it down? Where's that kid—why isn't he here yet?"
Harvey Li stepped forward, seeing Yvette land smoothly. His gaze instinctively shifted upward, searching for any sign of that kid.
Just now in the helicopter, that kid had completely suppressed him from start to finish.
And it wasn't even through brute force—it was pure presence. That left Harvey in an especially foul mood.
Worst of all, Jenna Jiang had witnessed the whole thing.
Harvey Li harbored a bit of a crush on Jenna Jiang.
Men can give up anything, except their pride—especially in front of the woman they like, pride becomes even more important.
As soon as Harvey left the helicopter and landed, seeing familiar faces around him, that fear he'd felt from Evan Lin's presence instantly faded more than half.
At this moment, Harvey reflected on everything that had just happened in the helicopter, and honestly, it was kind of ridiculous.
Back then, did he really start to believe what that kid was saying?
Just him—could he really storm the Ancient Martial Rowe clan, fight his way in and out, and even take down the Rowe Patriarch?
"He hasn't come down yet."
Yvette Ye frowned, shook her head at Harvey's question, then paused, as if remembering something. She continued, "He got a last-minute assignment. He might not come down later."
Yvette said it naturally, to cover for Evan Lin's absence.
"Not coming down?"
Clearly, these few all scoffed at Evan Lin's words, and looked down on that kind of big-talking attitude.
"Wasn't that kid supposed to be so impressive? He claimed he made the Rowe Patriarch bow down and obey, talked big on the helicopter, acting all tough—now that it's time to actually do something, what, he ran off?"
Harvey kept up his snide commentary.
He was still hoping Evan Lin would hurry up and come down, so he could seize the chance to reclaim some face.
Face—it never gets thrown away for nothing!
Besides, Harvey wasn't born into an Ancient Martial Clan. He got lucky as a kid and happened to apprentice under a master, but for his age to reach the Pointing-to-Mystery Realm makes him a genius among geniuses.
And with genius comes pride.
Especially since Harvey had always hoped to marry Jenna Jiang—or even marry into the Ancient Martial Jiang clan. That way, he'd have the Jiang clan as his backing.
So now, Harvey was even more desperate for Evan Lin to hurry up and come down. Otherwise, if his image as a genius was damaged in Jenna's eyes, that would be unforgivable!
"Made the Rowe Patriarch bow down and obey?"
A man beside Harvey and Jenna spoke up, curiosity in his voice. "No way—when did Moonshade ever produce a master like that?"
"The Rowe Patriarch from the Ancient Martial Rowe clan is at least a first-grade Pointing-to-Mystery expert. That's top-tier even within Moonshade."
There was real shock in his words.
Before he could finish being amazed, another person snorted, "That must be the kid who got fast-tracked into Moonshade after finishing a mission, right?"
"I heard he only beat some runaway junior from the Rowe clan. So what, he defeats one kid and thinks he conquered the whole Rowe clan? And even the Rowe Patriarch got stomped by him?"
The speaker was a woman, chewing on a blade of grass. She glanced at Yvette Ye, "Yvette, you really have it tough. They actually sent you to pick up this kind of weirdo."
This wave isn't a loss at all—in fact, he totally profited!
He really ought to thank that dumb mutt.
Anyone who gets into Moonshade is naturally outstanding in cultivation talent.
But everyone's personality is different.
Clearly, these few all scoffed at Evan Lin's words, and looked down on that kind of big-talking attitude.
"Hey, come on, we're all teammates now—could you say a little less?" Yvette Ye said, feeling a headache coming on.
She knew the personalities of these Moonshade members well.
They weren't really bad people, but they sure had sharp tongues, and their behavior was pretty unruly.
"Back on the helicopter, I was thinking about everyone's safety and the bigger picture, so I put up with all his talk."
Hearing the laughter around him, Harvey Li felt his confidence return. "But he hasn't shown a shred of remorse! That whole fake tough-guy act just disgusts me!"
"So I've been thinking, once he gets off the helicopter, maybe I could teach him a lesson—not just about how to act and speak, but to show him the world isn't conquered with words alone!"
"But now, looks like he doesn't even have the guts to show up. What a shame. Guess I'll have to wait until next time to really talk things out with him."
Harvey spoke with a slight smile.
Jenna Jiang nodded beside him. "Harvey does think about the bigger picture—not like that guy, who just acts like some reckless kid."
"He actually said he wanted to fight Harvey right there in the helicopter—at ten thousand meters up! If they'd really started something, none of us would have survived!"
At this, Jenna Jiang shuddered, then looked at Yvette Ye. "From that alone, I really think Harvey is so much better—more mature. Harvey should be the one joining Moonshade, not that guy."
"Don't you think so?"
Jenna looked at Yvette, and the others did too, waiting for her response.
Hearing Jenna speak up for him, Harvey gave himself a mental thumbs-up for everything he'd just said.
At first, he'd really been cowed, but now, Jenna saw him as someone who cared about the bigger picture.
This wave isn't a loss at all—in fact, he totally profited!
He really ought to thank that dumb mutt.
Harvey squinted up at the thick white mist overhead, a cold sneer in his heart.