Li Nanzhu pulled Suisui away from the evil-energy warning disk. The little skeleton wriggled restlessly in her arms, its bone claws still trying to reach for the glowing disk.
She grabbed Suisui's ink-black claws, but her gaze was fixed intently on the warning disk.
Even though Suisui had been moved away, the red light on the disk remained piercing, and every rune was flashing frantically.
Li Nanzhu's brow furrowed. Suisui possessed only pure life energy; it could never be the source of evil qi.
As if remembering something, Li Nanzhu's heart skipped a beat. She quickly set Suisui down and rushed to the window in a few strides. She reached under the window lattice and retrieved a memory stone.
Injecting spiritual energy, the images of the past two hours flashed by—the courtyard outside was empty, with only the night wind occasionally brushing through the treetops. The view from the roof provided a complete look at the residence, and not a single soul was in sight.
"Strange..." Li Nanzhu's frown deepened as she reviewed the records from the previous few days.
Just in case, she checked the memory stones hidden at the head of the bed and behind the door, but still found nothing.
Suisui circled around her feet, its soul fire flickering twice in confusion.
She crouched down and lightly tapped the warning disk. "Could it be broken?"
Li Nanzhu stared at the warning disk, her brow locked. Could that terrifying pressure from Immortal Venerable Ling Xiao during the day have been because of this? If so, this magic tool was far too useless.
She turned it over and checked it several times but could find no anomaly. Her fingertips tapped the surface of the disk, making a dull thud.
Suisui lay beside her, its soul fire brightening and dimming with her movements.
"Forget it." Li Nanzhu sighed and rubbed Suisui's head. "I'll find that fellow Liu Qingyang to take a look tomorrow."
Hearing this, the little skeleton cheerfully gestured 'no problem' with its bone claws.
The next morning, Li Nanzhu originally intended to go directly to Liu Qingyang. However, remembering how the Water Moon Sect disciples avoided them like the plague, she ultimately chose to send him a message asking about the warning disk instead.
After waiting for a long time without a reply, she understood that the guy must be immersed in the jade slip Jiang Yifan had given him.
Since it wasn't an urgent matter anyway, she put away her communication jade slip and decided to wait until the end of the competition.
At dawn on the third day, the competition grounds were already shrouded in morning mist.
When Li Nanzhu and the others arrived, they discovered many unfamiliar faces in the spectator seats.
Elders from various sects sat behind the judges' bench, with several direct disciples standing behind each of them, their eyes burning as they stared at the refining stages in the arena.
"Isn't this a bit much?" Duan Xianxing clicked his tongue. "It's just a refining competition, right?"
"It is a centennial competition, after all," Zhu Yinxi spoke calmly. "Those who made it to the final round are the top refinery masters of the younger generation. If they don't come to make an impression now, it'll be too late to form connections once these masters become famous."
Feng Qingping nodded thoughtfully. "No wonder even that reclusive great elder of the Shenmu Sect came." She gestured for everyone to look at a white-haired elderly woman on the judges' bench. "I heard she hasn't left her sect in thirty years."
"But speaking of which..." Duan Xianxing suddenly lowered his voice. "Weren't there thirty spots for the second round? Why are there only nine people left? I thought there were extra matches?"
"Extra matches don't guarantee success," Jiang Yifan shook his head slightly. "There are simply too many unexpected situations during refining, not to mention the interference materials. It's a pity; some of them had a good chance of advancing."
"That's rough..." Duan Xianxing scratched his head. "At least Fourth Senior Brother refined his quickly."
Li Nanzhu's gaze landed on the Water Moon Sect's direction.
Aside from Jiang Yifan, the other eight finalists were all Water Moon Sect disciples—five of them were direct disciples, and the remaining three appeared to be exceptionally gifted inner sect disciples.
"The Water Moon Sect is certainly showing off this time," Feng Qingping said softly. "Eight advancing spots—they truly are the number one refining sect."
"The final round of the competition is about to begin!" Elder Chang Yan's voice rang through the venue, interrupting their conversation.
As Elder Chang Yan's voice faded, the nine participants had each taken their positions.
"The rules for this round are as follows—"
The crowd immediately fell silent, their focus converging on the nine contestants in the center of the field.
"Go, Fourth Senior Brother!" Duan Xianxing shouted at the top of his lungs, causing several nearby disciples from other sects to look over.
Jiang Yifan rubbed his brow helplessly. "Be steady."
Li Nanzhu noticed Lu Tingyun's gaze linger on Jiang Yifan for a moment, a flash of complexity in his eyes before he quickly regained his composure.
"The rules for this round are as follows—"
"First, the time limit is four hours, from the start of the hour of Chen to the end of the hour of Shen." The elder performed a hand seal, and timing hourglasses lit up simultaneously at the four corners of the martial arts arena. "Those who exceed the time will be directly eliminated."
"Second, you must refine a magic tool of mid-grade or higher." Elder Chang Yan's gaze swept across the nine participants. "It must reach at least the tier 4 low-grade standard, or it will not be scored."
He raised his hand and released a beam of spiritual light, and phantoms of three magic tools appeared in the center of the arena. "Choose one from the three categories: attack, defense, or support. It must also possess a certain level of innovation."
Liu Qingyang suddenly asked, "Elder, how will innovation be judged?"
Elder Chang Yan stroked his beard and smiled. "Good question." He pointed toward the judges' bench. "The seven judges come from..." He paused strangely for a moment before continuing, "the Eight Sects. They are esteemed elders with vast experience and knowledge. Whether it is innovative or not is for them to decide."
The others didn't react much, but a light flashed through the eyes of Li Nanzhu and her companions.
It wasn't the seven great sects.
It was the Eight Sects.
This was the first time the term Eight Sects had been mentioned again on a formal competition field.
Their previous efforts had not been in vain.
"Third, the testing process." Elder Chang Yan's voice grew louder. "First, a golden core puppet will verify the functions. Then, it will undergo three strikes from a Foundation Establishment Great Perfection level to test durability. Finally, the seven judges will collectively evaluate the innovation."
"If there is any objection to the final results, a challenge may be issued." He turned to the participants. "However, you must use the magic tool refined in this round for the battle, and the spiritual energy used during the battle must not exceed the Foundation Establishment stage."
A disciple from the Water Moon Sect asked loudly, "Could you elaborate on the challenge rules?"
"Of course." Elder Chang Yan nodded. "Only the top three in the final ranking can be challenged. The battle is limited to the time of one incense stick. The one whose magic tool is destroyed loses, and the one who exceeds the spiritual energy limit loses. If no winner is decided, the judges will make the ruling."
His tone suddenly turned sharp. "One final reminder to everyone: those whose furnaces explode are out immediately! Those who waste more than thirty percent of the materials are eliminated! Those who interfere with others will be severely punished!"
Just as he finished speaking, a clear chime of a bell rang from the sidelines.
"The competition begins!"
The resonance of the bell had not yet faded when the arena fell into a brief silence.
The nine participants stood at their respective refining tables, facing a dazzling array of rare materials. Not a single one of them moved immediately.
Li Nanzhu noticed that even the usually flighty Liu Qingyang had become uncharacteristically calm. His fingertips hovered over various materials, hesitating to pick any up.
"With so many materials, it's actually harder to choose," Duan Xianxing whispered.
Just as everyone was hesitating, Jiang Yifan suddenly moved.
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