"Qingming Pavilion?" Duan Xianxing flipped through the battle roster, his brow furrowed so deeply it could crush a mosquito. "What kind of sect is this? I've never even heard of it!"
Li Nanzhu also looked puzzled.
Just as she was about to speak, a wave of discussion broke out behind her.
"What's the deal with this Qingming Pavilion? They actually managed to cultivate a Nascent Soul cultivator?" a Wuji Sect disciple asked in a hushed tone.
"Who knows," his companion sneered. "They probably used some crooked path. Those small sects from the Southern Wilderness are best at those unorthodox tricks."
Not far away, several Beast Taming Sect disciples were also whispering among themselves.
"I heard that Mo Lin is only a hundred and eighty years old?" a female cultivator with a high ponytail asked with a frown. "If he truly has such talent, why would he stay in such a small sect?"
"Most likely his spiritual roots are flawed," the male cultivator beside her said with a curl of his lip. "The great sects probably didn't want him."
As Li Nanzhu listened to these discussions, her suspicions deepened.
There had been no mention of this sect in the original story, let alone a Nascent Soul disciple participating in the competition. Logically, a cultivator who could break through to the Nascent Soul stage before the age of two hundred should have been scouted and fought over by the major sects long ago.
"I found it." Feng Qingping looked up from a jade slip. "Qingming Pavilion is located on the border of the Southern Wilderness. The entire sect has no more than thirty people. This cultivator named Mo Lin is said to be the direct disciple of the pavilion master."
Mu Wenyan said thoughtfully, "The Southern Wilderness..."
"Could they have used some secret method?" Duan Xianxing lowered his voice. "I've heard that there are some wicked techniques in the Southern Wilderness. Maybe one of their elders is disguised as a disciple..."
"The assembly has a bone-age verification process," Li Nanzhu shook her head. "There's no way to fake that."
She secretly observed Mo Lin.
The man wore grey robes, and his face was so ordinary it was almost forgettable. Only his eyes were as deep as a pool; looking at them for too long gave one the illusion of being sucked in.
"Interesting," Mu Wenyan suddenly said. "His spiritual energy... is very unique."
As they spoke, several Hehuan Sect disciples passed by, led by Qinghe.
"That cultivator from Qingming Pavilion..." Qinghe's voice drifted over. "I feel like something is wrong with him."
"Is Senior Sister Qinghe overthinking it?" the young disciple beside her laughed. "It's not unheard of for a small sect to produce a genius."
Qinghe shook her head. "I watched his match yesterday. His opponent's spiritual energy dissipated for no reason... as if it was being sucked away by something."
Li Nanzhu's heart skipped a beat.
Qinghe was clearly passing on information to them at Rong Yuying's behest.
But... that description sounded so familiar...
Before she could think further, the drawing of lots began. The elders of each sect kept their eyes glued to the cylinder.
When the results were announced, a wave of relief washed over the spectator stands—the four direct disciples had all managed to avoid each other.
"It seems those sects cooperated to tamper with the draw," Feng Qingping hummed softly. "Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence?"
On the way back to their residence, Li Nanzhu thoughtfully rubbed the communication jade slip in her sleeve.
"What's on your mind, Little Junior Sister?" Duan Xianxing leaned in. "Still thinking about that Mo Lin?"
"I'm thinking..." Li Nanzhu weighed her words. "The tacit understanding between these major sects is truly rare."
Feng Qingping sneered. "It's nothing more than an exchange of interests. The Sword Heart Sect doesn't want Qi Yunze to face Eldest Senior Brother too early, and even if the Beast Taming Sect and Tianyan Sect are confident in their own disciples, they don't want to run into those two prematurely."
Mu Wenyan let out a soft laugh at this. "It certainly saves me some trouble."
As night deepened, Li Nanzhu sat alone by the window, watching the moonlight cast mottled shadows on the window lattice. Suisui lay on her lap, its soul fire flickering uneasily.
"Tomorrow..." she whispered to herself. "We'll see for ourselves."
On the day of the top eight matches, the entire arena was packed to capacity.
Mu Wenyan was the first to take the stage, the Bichen sword at his waist glinting with a cold, sharp light.
His opponent was a cultivator from the Mysterious Ice Valley, a cold-looking middle-aged man with frost in his brows. His features bore a slight resemblance to Leng Ruxiang, whom they had studied before.
"It seems this Mysterious Ice Valley's strength is quite significant," Duan Xianxing commented.
Meanwhile, the two people on stage had already exchanged salutations.
As the signal for the match to begin sounded, Leng Qianfeng struck first. A bone-chilling cold instantly enveloped the arena. As he formed hand seals, ice crystals transformed into a flurry of ice spikes, whistling through the air toward Mu Wenyan.
Mu Wenyan showed no fear. With a light turn of his sword, a green light rippled outward.
Wherever the sword qi passed, the ice spikes shattered into wisps of white mist. But his sword momentum did not stop, and his figure suddenly lunged forward.
With a light tap of his sword tip, green light coiled around the blade. What seemed like a feather-light thrust struck the ice shield, but it produced a deafening explosion. The surface of the ice shield was instantly covered in spiderweb-like cracks, and Leng Qianfeng groaned, retreating three steps.
Although Li Nanzhu could not see the specific moves clearly, she could feel a strange rhythm contained within the sword. The sword qi seemed gentle, yet it held a hidden devouring power that quietly neutralized even the profound ice chill.
"Such strong sword qi!" Duan Xianxing recorded excitedly. "Eldest Senior Brother's sword intent has improved again!"
On the arena, Leng Qianfeng's expression was grave. Not daring to be careless, he formed another hand seal and re-engaged Mu Wenyan.
After three hours of fierce fighting, Leng Qianfeng suddenly changed his tactics.
He bit his fingertip and let a drop of essence blood fall onto the ice shield. The shield instantly expanded, transforming into nine crystalline ice mirrors that surrounded Mu Wenyan.
Jiang Yifan spoke with some surprise, "Is that... the sect-suppressing ultimate technique of the Mysterious Ice Valley?"
"The winner is about to be decided." Zhu Yinxi was also staring intently at the two on stage.
The nine ice mirrors simultaneously reflected a piercing cold light, each beam carrying terrifying power. Mu Wenyan's figure flickered in and out of sight within the mirror array, and frost began to gather on his white robes.
"Eldest Senior Brother..." Duan Xianxing clenched his fists nervously.
Just as everyone was worried, Mu Wenyan suddenly closed his eyes. He slowly drew a perfect circle with his long sword. Where the blade passed, a green halo rippled like water. When the sword tip returned to the starting point, the entire mirror array trembled violently.
"Break."
With a light shout, the nine ice mirrors exploded simultaneously. Leng Qianfeng was struck as if by lightning, spitting out a mouthful of blood. Mu Wenyan's sword momentum did not slacken, the green light pointing like a rainbow straight at the opponent's throat—
"I concede!" Leng Qianfeng retreated in panic, his voice hoarse.
"Five Elements Dao Sect, Mu Wenyan wins!"
Next was Qi Yunze's match.
He stepped onto the arena in white robes. Even before his ancient long sword was unsheathed, it caused the spiritual energy to vibrate. His opponent was Chi Yanzi of the Flame Sect, a master of controlling earth fire.
The moment the match began, Chi Yanzi struck first. The arena was instantly transformed into a volcanic hell as hot magma gushed out.
But the moment Qi Yunze's sword left its scabbard, a pure white light erupted from the blade, suppressing the flames around Chi Yanzi until they grew dim!
Light and fire collided in mid-air, bursting with blinding radiance. After two hours of intense battle, Chi Yanzi finally could not hold on and dejectedly conceded.
"Sword Heart Sect, Qi Yunze wins!"
After two fierce battles, the day had grown late. The referee announced that the remaining matches would take place the following day.
"That Mo Lin..." Duan Xianxing muttered on the way back to the residence. "He's facing Qin Lie tomorrow."
Li Nanzhu was deep in thought.
In the original story, Qin Lie was the most outstanding disciple of his generation in the Beast Taming Sect, capable of controlling three demonic beasts at once. If even he could not defeat Mo Lin...
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