We'll Have to Rely on Junior Brother Lu

"Om, ma, ni, pad, me, hum!"

"Boundless Temple's Heaven Stage cultivation method, the Six-Syllable Great Bright Mantra!"

The elders present focused their attention on Master Mingzhi of Boundless Temple. Golden light blazed from every part of him, Buddha's radiance shining for ten thousand zhang. Driven by Buddha's power, his prayer beads transformed into the six sacred syllables and suppressed Ask Immortal Pavilion's Chief Grand Disciple.

Zeng Yeqiu, Ask Immortal Pavilion's Chief Grand Disciple, was defeated.

"Boundless Temple truly deserves its place as the second-ranked sect. With Master Mingzhi's comprehension, it won't be long before he enters the Void Refinement Realm, will it?"

"Ask Immortal Pavilion is in danger."

With its first Eldest Disciple defeated, Ask Immortal Pavilion had to win the next two matches to come back.

"The second match is between Master Mingxin of Boundless Temple and Xiao Menger of Ask Immortal Pavilion. This Xiao Menger has extraordinary aptitude. Until now, Ask Immortal Pavilion has been grooming her to become its next pavilion master."

Zhao Wuyan knew the secrets of the various sects and talked on and on.

"Female benefactor, please enlighten me."

"Master Mingxin, please enlighten me."

Xiao Menger wore a pale blue dress and held a three-foot sword. As she circulated the Supreme Forgetting Emotions Art, a cold, solitary presence spread around her. She was like a fairy in the heavens, beyond anyone's reach.

"You've cultivated the Supreme Forgetting Emotions Art to the sixth layer..."

Master Mingxin's expression changed slightly.

The Supreme Forgetting Emotions Art was a forbidden ultimate art of Ask Immortal Pavilion. Once cultivated to the sixth layer, it underwent a qualitative transformation compared with the fifth layer.

Even Zeng Yeqiu, Ask Immortal Pavilion's Chief Grand Disciple, had only cultivated the Supreme Forgetting Emotions Art to the fifth layer.

After the time it took to drink a cup of tea, Master Mingxin's prayer beads fell from his hand, pattering against the ground, while Xiao Menger sheathed her sword.

Ask Immortal Pavilion won the second match.

With one victory and one defeat each, Boundless Temple and Ask Immortal Pavilion were tied for the moment.

All eyes turned to the third match: Master Mingrang, an elder of Boundless Temple, against Xia Ningxue of Ask Immortal Pavilion.

"Master Mingrang is a Boundless Temple elder at the Dao Palace Realm, Third Layer, while Xia Ningxue is a disciple the Pavilion Master of Ask Immortal Pavilion recently took in. Her cultivation is still shallow. No matter how you look at it, Master Mingrang will win."

"Boundless Temple's foundations are profound, after all. It's the second-largest sect, surpassed only by our Shushan."

"Junior Brother Lu, what do you think?"

The Shushan elders discussed the match among themselves, and Zhao Wuyan looked at Lu Changsheng.

Of all the Shushan elders, only Lu Changsheng had spent some time with Xia Ningxue.

"I wager Xia Ningxue will win."

Lu Changsheng calmly gave his opinion.

Five years ago, Xia Ningxue had already been at the Dao Palace Realm, First Layer. After five years, given her astonishing cultivation speed, her cultivation must have made tremendous progress.

"Junior Brother Lu, you can't judge by her face. The match depends on both sides' cultivation and cultivation methods. You should judge based on the facts."

"Exactly. Junior Brother Lu, you can't bet on Fairy Xia winning just because she's as beautiful as a heavenly immortal. We cultivators don't do that."

"I still favor Master Mingrang. He's the foremost of Boundless Temple's elders from the past three hundred years."

Most of the Shushan elders disagreed, thinking Lu Changsheng was being too casual.

Lu Changsheng did not answer, because the Apprentice-Teaching Simulator was sounding nonstop.

[Ding, the system is searching for suitable apprentice candidates for you... six found, seven, eight...]

Quite a few elders present had monstrous natural talent, and the Apprentice-Teaching Simulator found a large number of suitable disciples.

But Lu Changsheng was helpless too.

The apprentice candidates the system had found included Li Changye, Xia Ningxue, Xiao Menger, Master Mingzhi, Zhuge Changming, and other personal disciples of the various sect leaders. How could Lu Changsheng force them to acknowledge him as their master?

"Master Mingrang, please enlighten me."

Xia Ningxue had bright eyes, pearly teeth, a face like fine jade, and brows like distant mountains. As she landed on the Martial Platform, she immediately drew everyone's gaze.

If Lu Changsheng, whose soul had transmigrated, was excluded, Xia Ningxue was the elder who had cultivated for the fewest years among those present.

"Since the sect rankings are at stake, please forgive this poor monk for not holding back."

Master Mingrang knew the third match would determine the rankings of Boundless Temple and Ask Immortal Pavilion, so he attacked with all his strength.

"One Thought, Ice Seal!"

Xia Ningxue circulated her Qi. The surrounding temperature plummeted, frost rapidly spreading in every direction. The entire Martial Platform was sealed in ice in an instant, and a piercing chill pressed in.

"Immovable Wisdom King Seal!"

Master Mingrang was greatly alarmed and hurriedly formed Law Seals. A translucent golden statue of the Immovable Mingwang enveloped him, stopping the ice from spreading.

"One Sword, Frost Chill!"

Dozens of streams of icy Sword Qi, each a zhang long, slashed toward him, and the air froze solid!

"Fourth Layer of the Dao Palace Realm!"

"How is that possible, when she's cultivated for so few years?!"

"This woman is a proud daughter of heaven!"

The moment Xia Ningxue swung her sword, her true cultivation was revealed, shocking the whole world!

Master Mingrang, who had cultivated for more than two hundred years, actually had a lower cultivation than the personal disciple Ask Immortal Pavilion had only recently taken in!

The icy Sword Qi struck the golden statue of the Immovable Mingwang. Cracks appeared all over the statue, and frost covered it.

"Flying Flowers Chasing the Moon!"

Her sword left her hand. A flash of cold light, swift beyond measure, pierced a golden crack and passed through the statue of the Immovable Mingwang, leaving a sword cut in Master Mingrang's kasaya before flying back into Xia Ningxue's hand.

"Hiss..."

The many elders present drew sharp breaths.

Had Xia Ningxue not held back, the flying sword would have pierced Master Mingrang's chest rather than his kasaya.

"This poor monk has lost."

Master Mingrang felt a wave of lingering fear, then shook his head repeatedly.

It was not that he had failed to cultivate diligently, but that his opponent's aptitude was simply too monstrous.

"Boundless Temple, ranked second, actually lost..."

"At this Six Paths Assembly, could Ask Immortal Pavilion surpass Shushan and become the foremost of the Six Great Orthodox Sects?"

Ask Immortal Pavilion won two of the three matches and defeated Boundless Temple, becoming Shushan's greatest opponent.

"Now this is bad. Eldest Senior Brother can surely defeat Ask Immortal Pavilion's chief disciple, but Second Senior Brother might not be able to defeat Xiao Menger. Then it will come down to the third match."

"With Xia Ningxue of Ask Immortal Pavilion so extraordinarily gifted, our Junior Brother Lu will most likely lose."

"Under the best-of-three rules, Ask Immortal Pavilion will still win."

"This is the Pavilion Master of Ask Immortal Pavilion's open strategy. Under these rules, Ask Immortal Pavilion has every advantage."

The expressions of the many Shushan elders changed.

After a quick assessment, Zhao Wuyan concluded that Ask Immortal Pavilion would defeat Shushan in the same way.

Although Ask Immortal Pavilion's chief disciple was not as strong as Shushan's chief disciple, Li Changye, Ask Immortal Pavilion only needed two victories.

"Eldest Senior Brother, I only have a twenty percent chance against Xiao Menger. After all, she's the successor groomed by the Pavilion Master of Ask Immortal Pavilion. If she hadn't mastered the sixth layer of the Supreme Forgetting Emotions Art, I would still have a seventy percent chance."

Second Senior Brother Song Wuchuan smiled bitterly.

"Do your best. We still have Junior Brother Lu to fall back on."

Li Changye patted Song Wuchuan on the shoulder, his tone easy.

Could it be that they would have to rely on Lu Changsheng?

The Shushan elders all turned as one to look at Lu Changsheng, who sat with his eyes closed, resting.

In the eyes of many Shushan elders, Lu Changsheng had already given up on himself, hadn't he?

"Poor Junior Brother Lu. Now he's going to take the blame."

Zhao Wuyan could not help feeling sorry for Lu Changsheng. At his first appearance before the Six Great Orthodox Sects, he had encountered Xia Ningxue, a proud daughter of heaven whose star was on the rise.