Drawing Lots

The competition was held in the large square in front of the main hall of the Cultivation Pavilion. The surrounding open spaces, trees, and rooftops were packed with people. Sect Leader Feng Xiangtian and a group of elders stood on the top floor of the Cultivation Pavilion, glancing around with surprise at the sheer number of disciples watching. Similar competitions had occurred before, but none had ever reached such a scale, completely drawing crowds to the surrounding area.

Little did they know, aside from the Cultivation Pavilion, almost all the disciples from other branches who had nothing else to do had come. Those who had things to do had finished up their tasks beforehand, all for the sake of witnessing Yue Qianchou the Alchemy Pavilion's prowess. It wasn't that Yue Qianchou had any significant influence over them; it was simply that Yue Qianchou actions were exactly what the other branch disciples wanted to do but dared not—it was their dream. Deep down, they hoped that Yue Qianchou could break the Cultivation Pavilion's undefeated myth on Fu Xian Island and give them, the disciples who were inferior to him, some vindication. That was all; there was no other intention.

Many disciples from various lineages who had not yet reached the Foundation Establishment Realm lamented their inability to freely come out and watch the competition.

Around the plaza, disciples from various branches stood in groups, almost all belonging to their respective pavilions. The Alchemy Pavilion had become the focus of the entire event, overshadowing the numerous members of the Cultivation Pavilion even before their appearance. Countless people were pointing and whispering in their direction, while the Cultivation Pavilion seemed to have become mere supporting characters, which greatly displeased the disciples of the Cultivation Pavilion.

The Alchemy Pavilion came out in full force this time. Apart from a few guards and those who had not yet reached the Foundation Establishment Realm, the rest of them came to support Yue Qianchou. Even Guan Wei Wu stood on the platform of the Cultivation Pavilion.

Several elders emerged from the main hall of the Cultivation Pavilion, led by Dongfang Changao. Behind them, several disciples carried out several large boxes, which were lined up in front of the Cultivation Pavilion. Each elder approached one of the boxes. Dongfang Changao's voice resonated throughout the plaza. "A total of 987 disciples are participating in this Core Formation stage competition. To ensure fairness, we have decided to hold a lottery. These four boxes contain two sets of wooden slips numbered from one to four hundred and ninety-three. Anyone who draws the same number will be their opponent. Since there is only one participant, there is also one blank slip in these four boxes. The disciple who draws the blank slip will unconditionally advance to the second round of the lottery. Now, all participating disciples, come forward to draw your slips."

Yang Qian turned around and looked at Yue Qianchou smile, "Nine hundred and eighty-seventh place. To get into the final top ten through a series of draws, you need to win at least seven consecutive matches. You'd better be prepared."

Yue Qianchou smiled indifferently and walked towards the lottery box in the direction of the main hall. His appearance immediately attracted the attention of tens of thousands of disciples around him, and almost everyone turned their heads towards the Alchemy Pavilion. Feng Xiangtian and others, who were standing on the Cultivation Pavilion, saw the changes around them even more clearly. Their fair faces on both sides instantly turned into dark backs of their heads, which was quite a sight.

Many elders burst into laughter, Elder Mo from the Artifact Refining Pavilion said sarcastically, "Old Guan, your disciple is quite interesting!"

Guan Wei Wu turned his head and stared at him, saying fiercely, "What? You're not Qi Ingestion? If you're so capable, why don't you produce a disciple like this in your Artifact Refining Pavilion?"

Elder Mo chuckled and said, "I know my own limitations. Since I know it will be embarrassing to do it, I'd better not."

"You two can't even tell when to stop bickering. Don't you see there are tens of thousands of disciples below?" Sect Leader Feng Xiangtian stared down at the crowd and snorted coldly without turning his head. The two elders in charge immediately stared at each other and fell silent.

In truth, Yue Qianchou wanted to keep a low profile, but all the other contestants came from the Cultivation Pavilion, while he was the only one who walked out from the Alchemy Pavilion crowd. It was impossible not to attract attention! Yue Qianchou looked around and saw bright eyes staring at him everywhere. He felt like a rare animal in a zoo.

"Damn it! Look! I'm not taking any money." Yue Qianchou muttered to himself, nonchalantly strolling over. There were nearly a thousand people waiting to draw lots anyway, no rush. And you know what? His unhurried demeanor actually impressed many people.

With so many people, those who had drawn lots stood on both sides of the line. Once everyone had drawn enough, Yue Qianchou found a less crowded area near the boxes and joined the queue, slowly moving closer to them. When it was his turn, he noticed that the elder holding the box was protecting it with his Divine Sense, clearly to prevent anyone from injecting their Divine Sense into the box to cheat.

Yue Qianchou had no intention of cheating. To him, it didn't matter who he fought against. He reached into the box and found it was almost empty. He touched a finger and grabbed it without looking at it. He stood obediently to the side, but found that the disciples participating in the competition were all staring at him, as if they were demons looking at Tang Sanzang's flesh.

Before long, the lot-drawing was finished. Dongfang Changao glanced at everyone and said in a deep voice, "Disciples who drew white lots, hand them over and wait for the next round of lot-drawing competition." Everyone looked at the lots in their hands and then at the people around them. Yue Qianchou didn't recognize anyone around him and stood there obediently without looking to the side. He didn't believe that he was so lucky as to draw a white lot from nearly a thousand people.

After a long while, none of the participating disciples stepped forward. Everyone looked at each other, completely bewildered. Upstairs, Feng Xiangtian's face instantly darkened. He glared at Dongfang Changao downstairs and shouted, "Chang'ao, what's going on?"

Dongfang Changao bowed to the person upstairs, then turned around and said sternly, "Take another look at the slips in your hands, and make sure you understand them clearly."

Yue Qianchou suddenly felt a sense of unease. Could his luck really be that good? He'd just casually drawn a blank slip of paper? He examined both sides of the slip in his palm, and immediately a bead of sweat broke out on his forehead. The thin piece of wood was smooth on both sides; it would be difficult to find even a flaw, let alone any writing on it. Drawing a blank slip was usually a good thing, but holding it in his hand was incredibly uncomfortable—it felt like it was going to kill him! This joke had really gone too far.

"Have you all looked at the lot in your hands? Disciples who drew a white lot, please step forward." Dongfang Changao was extremely annoyed. Such a small matter had actually caused the sect leader to scold him in front of everyone.

"Elder Dongfang, does a slip of paper without any words mean it's a blank slip?" A hand was raised in the crowd, and someone asked timidly.

Dongfang Changao snapped irritably, "Exactly."

Yue Qianchou quickly emerged from the crowd, grabbed a blank slip of paper, and ran to Dongfang Changao. He presented it with both hands, saying with trepidation, "This disciple truly did not know that a blank slip of paper meant a blank slip of paper. Please punish me, Elder!"

"Buzz..." Everyone nearly fainted, and the surrounding area instantly erupted in laughter. Dongfang Changao's face was so dark it could wring water out of it. Upstairs, Feng Xiangtian, upon seeing that this disciple was actually Yue Qianchou, opened his mouth but couldn't utter a word. Guan Wei Wu and Fei Denan stood there dumbfounded. Elder Mo of the Artifact Refining Pavilion bumped his head against the railing, laughing so hard he couldn't straighten up. After a while, he finally gasped for breath and said, "Old Guan, your disciple is too much of a troublemaker! When has Dongfang Changao ever been played like this before! Showing off like this can be deadly, hahaha..."

.