Minor Fame

The guardian puppet for the seventh stage was at the Late True Qi Realm.

This level of strength was nothing to those ranked within the top two hundred, as most of them were already at the Late True Qi Realm.

A few geniuses at the Mid True Qi Realm could also handle it with ease.

Only those whose strength was a notch below would find it somewhat difficult.

There were only three stone passageways here, so the over four hundred participants were divided into three groups.

The first to challenge were naturally the disciples in the Inner Sect's top ten. They defeated the puppets with apparent ease, not revealing much of their true strength.

Therefore, anyone hoping to uncover their hidden capabilities beforehand would be disappointed.

The teams advanced quickly. Over fifty people had already entered the three stone passageways, and so far, no one had been eliminated.

That is, until a disciple at the Late True Qi Realm, for reasons unknown, reacted half a beat too slow and was nearly struck by the puppet.

If an elder hadn't intervened in time, he would likely have lost his life on the spot.

"That's Yuan Heng, ranked ninety-eighth. He's been at the Late True Qi Realm for so long, how could he not even defeat a puppet this time?"

"I heard he was injured on his last mission. Is he not recovered yet?"

"What's wrong with you?"

The elder in charge was frustrated, wishing he could do more.

Yuan Heng lowered his head, his face flushed red. "Reporting to the elder, it was my carelessness."

"Sigh, you may return first."

The elder, aware that he had unspoken difficulties, didn't press further.

As Yuan Heng quickly departed, this brief interruption came to an end, and the trials continued.

Soon, they reached those ranked beyond two hundred, and more people were eliminated. Several more at the Late True Qi Realm fell.

There were even more at the Mid True Qi Realm. As for the few who had entered at the Early True Qi Realm, they ultimately couldn't proceed further.

However, the elders still gave them high praise.

When it was Chu Yunxiao's turn, his talent seemed equally astonishing. Combining fist and sword, he also broke through.

Lu Ming, naturally, had no issues, not even using a fraction of his strength.

After all, puppets were still puppets; they lacked the flexibility of humans and could easily have their weaknesses exploited.

Lu Ming happened to possess high perception and high speed.

"Amazing. This person is only at the Mid True Qi Realm, yet he defeated a Late True Qi Realm puppet so easily."

Perhaps because the people before him had struggled somewhat, seeing Lu Ming pass so effortlessly made their eyes light up.

Soon, the seventh stage concluded, with a total of three hundred and sixteen participants remaining.

There were no further stages, and the extra sixteen people were easy to select.

This was because their performance during the trials was recorded, such as the time taken to defeat the puppets.

Based on these criteria, the final sixteen were eliminated.

Thus, the three hundred chosen for the arena battle a month later were finalized.

There were a total of two hundred and seven at the Late True Qi Realm and ninety-three at the Mid True Qi Realm.

Lu Ming, Zhu Ningyun, and Chu Yunxiao were all among them.

As for the rest, they would be divided into several tiers based on their performance and engage in small-scale competitions over the next month to determine their specific rankings within the Inner Sect.

In short, this was a time for a major reshuffling of rankings.

Therefore, the next few days would not be quiet despite the preliminary rounds ending; on the contrary, they would be even more lively.

Walking out of the plaza, the sky was already approaching dusk. Unconsciously, a day had passed.

After parting ways with Zhu Ningyun and Chu Yunxiao, Lu Ming headed towards his own courtyard, only to be stopped midway.

"Something wrong?"

Seeing Li Biehe, Lu Ming wasn't too surprised.

Li Biehe narrowed his eyes and said, "Honestly, I'm surprised you made it into the top three hundred. However, I'm even more looking forward to meeting you in the arena battle."

"I don't have much anticipation," Lu Ming replied, shaking his head.

To be honest, it wasn't arrogance, but with his current strength, he was confident that only a few people at the very top of the Inner Sect could be his true opponents.

The person before him was not yet sufficient.

"Are you scared?" Li Biehe misinterpreted.

"We'll see then," Lu Ming said, too lazy to bother with him any further, and left directly.

"Very well. You'll know then that a Late True Qi Realm genius and a Late True Qi Realm puppet are not the same."

Li Biehe finally understood Lu Ming's meaning and felt he was being somewhat arrogant and overconfident.

He thought Lu Ming was only confident because he had defeated a Late True Qi Realm puppet.

In the following days, the Inner Sect, amidst much excitement, finally finalized the rankings for those beyond the top three hundred.

Compared to the original ranking list, this one was a complete overhaul.

Some individuals, despite having high cultivation realms, were pushed to the back.

Others, with lower cultivation realms, surged forward, gaining many ranks.

Those who stood out would naturally receive rewards, while those who fell too far behind would be expelled from the Inner Sect.

For example, Cui Bai had climbed to seventh hundred and sixty-fourth place, earning him a bottle of healing pills and one hundred contribution points.

Then there was Yuan Heng, originally ranked ninety-eighth, who was pushed beyond the three hundred mark due to failing the final trial.

Coupled with other unknown reasons, he was expelled from the Inner Sect.

In short, there were those who rejoiced and those who worried.

However, their attention was soon captured by another list.

That's right, although the top three hundred had not yet been ranked, their names had been released and were displayed next to the original ranking jade tablet.

As everyone compared the lists, those who were originally ranked high were fine, but those with lower original rankings stood out remarkably.

"Chu Yunxiao was originally ranked sixth hundred and seventh, and now he's entered the top three hundred."

"And look at Zhou Ji, originally ranked fifth hundred and sixty-third, he's also in the top three hundred now."

"That's nothing compared to this Lu Ming. His original ranking was even lower, only ninth hundred and sixty-ninth, and he's in the top three hundred too."

"What? Let me see."

"Damn, it's true. This ranking suggests he only joined the Inner Sect not long ago. Where did this powerhouse come from?"

"Who knows? I've never heard of him before."

To most people, Lu Ming was a complete dark horse, and a dazzling one at that, completely overshadowing the brilliance of other rising stars.

Take Zhu Ningyun, for instance. While she was also noteworthy, she had established her fame earlier, and most Inner Sect disciples knew of her existence.

Therefore, the level of shock she brought was nowhere comparable to Lu Ming's.

"What do you think his final ranking will be?"

"The notice says he's in the Mid True Qi Realm, and there are already two hundred and seven people in the Late True Qi Realm on the list. I don't think he'll make it into the top two hundred."

"Mid Realm? What's the problem? Aren't there many Mid True Qi Realm cultivators in the top one hundred?" someone immediately retorted.

The first person smiled confidently, "That's true, but look at his previous ranking. He clearly only joined the Inner Sect not long ago. In this short time, how advanced could his high-level or above human-tier martial arts be?"

"His foundation clearly can't compare to others. Even if he can fight above his level, how much can he do it by?"

"That makes sense."

Everyone nodded in agreement and then shifted the topic to the candidates for the top ten in the Inner Sect.

Compared to guessing Lu Ming's ranking, speculating about the top ten candidates was more engaging.

"These people will definitely be greatly surprised then."

Cui Bai, who had come to check his own ranking, overheard the crowd's discussion about Lu Ming and couldn't help but shake his head.

While he didn't know the full extent of Lu Ming's martial arts, he understood a fair bit.

It was definitely not low.

Not to mention anything else, he had already completed many missions within his first year in the Inner Sect.

If it were someone else, they wouldn't even be out of their protection period yet.

Therefore, he believed these people would be utterly astonished then. Not just the top two hundred, but entering the top fifty was possible.

Without lingering, he left directly.