"We won! We actually won! Hahaha!"
Duan Xianxing was the first to leap up, dancing with excitement as he grabbed Liu Qingyang and pounded him on the back. "Liu Qingyang! Did you see that?! We crushed a Nascent Soul! We took down the Wuji Sect!"
"Cough, cough! I saw, I saw! Easy! You’re choking me!"
Liu Qingyang’s eyes rolled back from the squeeze, but his face was filled with pure ecstasy as he hugged back just as hard. "That was so damn thrilling! Li Nanzhu, you’re a badass! Senior Sister Feng, you’re a badass too!"
The two bounced around for a moment before suddenly realizing what they were doing. They shoved each other away like they’d been electrocuted, looks of mutual disgust on their faces.
"Get away from me! Who wants to hug you?" Duan Xianxing brushed off his clothes with an air of disdain.
"Bah! I’m the one disgusted by your smell of sweat!" Liu Qingyang rolled his eyes, though the grin on his face refused to fade.
The euphoria of survival and the immense sense of accomplishment washed over everyone.
"Tally the spoils first," Zhu Yinxi commanded. Though he couldn't hide his own excitement, he remained calm.
He walked quickly to Feng Qingping’s side and asked with concern, "Fifth Junior Sister, how are you?"
Feng Qingping was as pale as paper and her aura was weak. Leaning against Feng Weilan, she didn't even have the strength to speak; she simply shook her head slightly to indicate she was fine.
To set up and maintain an array capable of suppressing a Nascent Soul, she had nearly exhausted all of her divine sense and spiritual energy.
Feng Weilan carefully fed her several precious pills and stood guard silently, his eyes full of worry.
"You worked hard, Fifth Senior Sister!" Li Nanzhu ran over. Seeing Feng Qingping’s weakened state, the girl’s face was filled with heartache and lingering fear. "It’s my fault for insisting on that debate; I almost got you hurt..."
"No... you did... great..." Feng Qingping managed a faint smile, her voice as thin as silk. "Without you... we... would have..."
"Don't talk about that now, let Junior Sister Feng rest!" Rong Yuying directed the Hehuan Sect disciples to quickly clean up the battlefield, confiscating the points jade pendants and scattered flags left by the Wuji Sect disciples. A triumphant joy lit up her face. "The harvest this time is massive! The Wuji Sect is a fat prize!"
Everyone moved quickly, and upon tallying the results, the rewards were indeed staggering!
As a powerhouse team, the Wuji Sect already had a wealth of points. Combined with the points deducted from their eliminated disciples, the total points for the Five Elements Dao Sect and the Hehuan Sect surged!
Of course, they didn't forget to share a portion with Liu Qingyang.
Outside the secret realm.
The moment Ji Yanzhi was teleported out and the Wuji Sect disciples vanished into white light one after another, the rankings on the massive points light screen beside the high platform shifted violently.
The Wuji Sect’s ranking collapsed like an avalanche, plummeting from a stable fifth place to eighth in an instant!
Furthermore, with their chief disciple Ji Yanzhi eliminated and their core fighting strength nearly wiped out, the remaining scattered disciples were powerless to change their fate. The Wuji Sect’s ranking was destined to keep falling, possibly even to the bottom!
"This... how is this possible?!" An uproar broke out on the high platform. Elders and disciples from various sects stared at the changes on the screen, dumbfounded.
"The Wuji Sect... has been almost entirely annihilated?"
"My god! The Five Elements Dao Sect and the Hehuan Sect joined forces and actually took out the Wuji Sect?"
"Ji Yanzhi is a Nascent Soul! How could..."
Everyone's gaze instantly focused on Ji Yanzhi, who had just been teleported out. His face was livid as he stood in silence, followed by the dejected, mournful disciples of the Wuji Sect.
Gong Yang, the Sect Leader of the Wuji Sect—a middle-aged cultivator usually known for his dignity—felt the muscles in his face twitch violently. Veins bulged on the back of his hand as it rested on the armrest of his chair. He stared at the screen and then at Ji Yanzhi, his eyes full of disappointment.
Feeling his master’s gaze, Ji Yanzhi’s face burned with a shame so deep he wanted to disappear into the ground.
He gritted his teeth and kept his head down, not daring to meet Gong Yang’s eyes. He walked quickly toward the eliminated disciple area, his back a picture of loneliness and resentment.
He was at the Nascent Soul stage!
He was the chief disciple the sect had pinned its highest hopes on!
To be calculated and eliminated by a group of Golden Core and Foundation Establishment cultivators in the secret realm was an absolute humiliation!
Mu Zeting, who had been eliminated early on, stood there with his mouth agape, staring blankly at his eldest senior brother, unable to believe his eyes.
Even Eldest Senior Brother... lost?
Many disciples from various sects had already gathered in the elimination zone. Seeing a Nascent Soul genius like Ji Yanzhi being eliminated caused a momentary stunned silence before an even louder wave of discussion erupted. Their gazes were complex, filled with sympathy, surprise, and above all, an unspeakable shock.
Feeling the various eyes on him, Ji Yanzhi wished he could find a hole to crawl into.
However, the attention of those on the high platform was soon drawn to something else.
That was the extraordinary "Buddhist debate" between Li Nanzhu and Huixin, as well as Feng Qingping’s god-like suppression array!
"That little girl from the Five Elements Dao Sect... her silver tongue is too much! She actually won a debate against Huixin of the Mingguang Sect?"
"And that array master! With a Golden Core cultivation, she set up an array that could briefly suppress a Nascent Soul! What kind of mastery over arrays is that?"
"The Five Elements Dao Sect... has produced quite a few remarkable figures this time!"
The sounds of amazement and discussion rose and fell in waves.
At this moment, the most conspicuous person was the one sitting to the side, who had been resting with his eyes closed as if indifferent to everything—the Sect Leader of the Mingguang Sect, Master Hui Ming.
The moment Ji Yanzhi was eliminated and the rankings shifted, Master Hui Ming slowly opened his eyes.
In those eyes that were usually still as an ancient well, a strange light flickered for the first time. His gaze pierced through the light screen, landing on Li Nanzhu, who was currently laughing with her companions, her eyes shining bright.
He wasn't looking at the Five Elements Dao Sect’s skyrocketing rank, nor the exquisite array; he was looking at Li Nanzhu herself, and the shocking debate she had just held.
Sitting in the seat of honor, Bu Qingwei stroked his long beard, the profound smile on his face deepening as his eyes flashed with unconcealed admiration and a hint of mischief.
"Amitabha. Master Hui Ming, the debate between your sect's martial nephew Huixin and the young friend Li of the Five Elements Dao Sect was truly brilliant and thought-provoking."
He paused intentionally, successfully drawing everyone’s attention before continuing at a leisurely pace, his tone sounding as if he were seeking guidance.
"Especially that last question from Martial Niece Li... Tsk tsk. Using the analogy of an evil monk killing for treasure to describe the competition for a secret realm, questioning the standard of distinction between them... It points straight to the core of Buddhist logic and concerns the very foundation of cultivation."
Bu Qingwei turned his gaze to Hui Ming with a genial smile. "This old man is dim-witted and has been reflecting on it ever since, unable to let it go. I wonder... if it had been you yourself debating with little friend Li just now, Master, how... would you have answered?"
This question was extremely tricky!
It was the equivalent of taking the difficult problem Huixin couldn't answer and throwing it directly at the Sect Leader of the Mingguang Sect!
In an instant, all eyes were on Master Hui Ming. Even Gong Yang, despite his dark expression, temporarily suppressed his anger to look over.
Even Ling Xiao and the others showed looks of interest.
This Sect Leader of the Mingguang Sect had a Buddhist cultivation that was unfathomably deep. How would he handle a problem that even his most talented disciple couldn't withstand?
Would he be fly into a rage? Would he avoid the question? Or... could he truly provide a convincing answer?
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