A Genius Steps into the Light

At last, the days before the preliminary trials arrived. Nearly all the inner disciples who had been out completing missions had returned.

This made the sect livelier than usual, with discussions echoing everywhere.

"Look, that's Senior Brother Huan Shaoyue, ranked ninth. I heard that after being influenced by Senior Brother Feng Chao, who's ranked eleventh, he also took on a level-five mission alone. He finally returned today."

On the sect's main road walked a tall youth of seventeen or eighteen, his clothes slightly torn.

The disciples hurriedly cupped their hands in greeting. "Greetings, Senior Brother Huan."

Huan Shaoyue merely nodded to them before walking straight away.

"Senior Brother Huan's oppressive presence is getting stronger and stronger. Just now, he glanced at me, and it felt as though a great mountain were bearing down on me."

"I felt it too. He wasn't deliberately targeting us—it should be because of the cultivation art he practices."

"I heard Senior Brother Huan cultivates the Five Cauldrons Profound Art, an art that tempers both the inner and outer self. He's probably reached the Five Cauldrons stage by now and can withstand the weight of five cauldrons. His physical strength alone is likely ten thousand jin."

"Hiss, ten thousand jin of immense strength! The real grand competition should be quite a spectacle."

"Eh, that's Senior Sister He Jianjun, ranked second."

At that moment, another figure appeared: a woman carrying an ancient zither on her back, elegant beyond the mundane world, her bearing calm and unhurried.

The instant she appeared, she drew countless gazes.

Everyone knew that the inner sect's second senior sister was famously beautiful.

Unfortunately, before they could look for long, she vanished—appearing as abruptly as she had disappeared.

Leaving behind only lingering impressions.

Yet before long, everyone's attention was drawn away by another person.

And so, in the blink of an eye, it was the registration period on the day before the preliminary trials.

All the inner disciples had gathered in a vast plaza, waiting to register and confirm their eligibility for the preliminaries.

On this day, those favored children of heaven who were rarely seen ordinarily appeared one after another, naturally sparking another wave of discussion.

The hottest topics and the most watched figures were, of course, the inner sect disciples ranked in the top ten.

Naturally, those who had become extremely famous lately received the same attention.

"That's Quan Fengqing, ranked thirty-seventh. I heard that during his last mission, he killed Iron Invincible of the Gale Saber, a renowned figure of the older generation who possessed Late True Qi Realm Peak cultivation."

"That's You Wenxiao, ranked one hundred and forty-second. Last time, he reached that rank while only in the Mid True Qi Realm. He broke through to the late stage some time ago, so he'll probably make it into the top hundred this time."

Some people were well-informed and could rattle off the details of outstanding figures as easily as counting treasures.

Since the elders had not yet arrived, everyone gathered around them, both to enjoy the gossip and to gather information.

After all, know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated in a hundred battles.

"I heard that Zhu Ningyun, that genius who suddenly rose to fame last time, has already broken through to the Mid True Qi Realm. She'll also be taking part in the grand competition this time."

"Hiss, how long has it even been since she entered the True Qi Realm? She's already at the middle stage now. Comparing people really can infuriate a person to death."

"Exactly. She hasn't even turned fourteen yet. She'll probably reach the Gangqi Realm by fifteen."

"I don't think so. The True Qi Realm alone is a threshold that can stop countless people dead in their tracks, let alone the Gangqi Realm. It can block at least ninety percent of Martial Artists. No matter how talented one is, being stuck there for a year or half a year is perfectly normal."

"I think it's not impossible. After all, she's now the apple of the elders' eyes and lacks no resources of any kind."

"That makes sense. Sigh, geniuses really are enviable."

Everyone sighed with deep emotion.

"Don't you know that discussing people behind their backs is terribly ill-mannered?"

Suddenly, a piercing voice rang out. Everyone hurriedly looked over and saw a youth in yellow robes, his gaze sharp. Though he looked only fifteen or sixteen, he carried considerable authority.

Upon seeing who it was, those who had wanted to retort kept their mouths shut.

Because this newcomer was no ordinary person.

His name was Li Biehe. During the previous grand competition, while merely in the Mid True Qi Realm, he had defeated many disciples in the Late True Qi Realm and forced his way into the top hundred, reaching the lofty rank of sixtieth.

Compared with the previously mentioned You Wenxiao, this person was clearly stronger—and more talented.

Moreover, he had another identity: he was Elder Li's son from the inner sect.

"Hmph. Remember this: not just anyone is fit to be discussed."

Li Biehe's eyes were cold as he swept his gaze over the crowd.

No one dared argue back, but not everyone was afraid. One person gave a cold laugh and said:

"Li Biehe, you're fawning over her so eagerly here, but she can't even see you. Besides, we weren't speaking ill of her. We were simply having a normal discussion."

The speaker was a youth dressed in green, with Late True Qi Realm cultivation. His arms were folded across his chest, and he clearly looked displeased with the other man.

"That's right, we were just having a normal discussion."

With someone taking the lead, the others quickly chimed in.

His thoughts exposed, a flash of anger passed through Li Biehe's eyes. He said coldly, "I was wondering who it was. So it's the defeated opponent from last time."

"What? Do you want to test your skills first, right here and now?"

"Fine, come then. Just in time for me to see how much your strength has improved." The green-clad youth lowered his arms, showing no fear of the other.

"You'll see."

Their gazes met, and they were just about to make a move when someone suddenly shouted that the elders had arrived and registration was officially beginning.

At that cry, the crowd no longer cared to watch the show and surged forward one after another.

"Hmph. When the official competition begins, I'll let you see just how formidable I am."

Under the circumstances, it was clearly unsuitable to continue fighting. Li Biehe tossed out those words and headed forward.

"I'll be waiting."

The green-clad youth snorted coldly as well.

And so, a clash was temporarily brought to a halt.

Seeing that registration had officially begun while Lu Ming was still nowhere to be seen, Cui Bai was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan.

"What do we do? Don't tell me he went out on a mission and hasn't made it back yet?"

"If he misses registration, he won't be able to take part in the preliminaries."

Yet just as he kept looking around, someone suddenly patted him on the shoulder. "You keep looking left and right. Who are you waiting for?"

Cui Bai jumped in fright and hurriedly turned around. When he saw that it was Lu Ming, he could not help but let out a sigh of relief.

"Who else would I be waiting for but you?"

Looking annoyed, he said, "I swear, your lightness skill is becoming more and more unfathomable. You got right behind my back, and I didn't notice a thing."

Lu Ming smiled, directly ignoring the latter half of that remark. "Then I'll have to trouble you to worry about me. Cuiyun Tower later."

"That's more like it."

"Oh, right. You came late, so you didn't see the battle of dragons and tigers that happened here just now. I only realized today that there are actually so many genius experts in the inner sect."

"Quick, tell me about it." Lu Ming was intrigued.

Registration required people to queue according to their current rankings, though the lines were split into ten teams.

The first nine teams had one hundred people each, while everyone remaining lined up in the final team.

Lu Ming was currently ranked nine hundred and sixty-ninth. When he had first entered the inner sect, he had been ranked one thousand and first.

Besides disciples ahead of him being expelled from the inner sect, the reason his ranking had risen was that some had already died or gone missing.

In less than a year, thirty-two people had left. The elimination rate was indeed high.

Of course, where there was elimination, there would naturally be replenishment.

Sure enough, aside from those who had entered at the same time as him, there were twenty-three newly promoted inner sect disciples standing behind him.

"Hey, Lu Ming, look! Why is there someone at the very end of our team who's at the Mid True Qi Realm?" Cui Bai suddenly said as the line advanced in an orderly fashion.

"Maybe he cultivates quickly."

As Lu Ming spoke, he turned to look behind him—and immediately froze where he stood.