Li Junmo

Behind Chen Xuan, a few others occupied the second tier.

They stared at Chen Xuan ahead of them, their faces etched with expressions of disbelief.

Where did this guy pop out from?

The group exchanged glances, signaling that none of them recognized Chen Xuan.

It was one thing for a dark horse to suddenly emerge, but this dark horse was climbing the stairs significantly faster than them—was he really just a Mortal Body disciple in the Qi Gathering realm?

Chen Xuan walked on, lost in his own rhythm.

The gap between him and those behind him grew ever wider.

On the plaza.

The three elders watched the scene, one of them exclaiming, "This disciple is no simple matter."

"I have no impression of him at all. With this kind of performance, even a Qi Gathering disciple with a Spirit Body wouldn't be faster than him."

Another elder was equally astonished.

While these two elders did not recognize Chen Xuan, Elder Zhang certainly did.

After all, the Floating Cloud Trial had only just concluded, and Chen Xuan had left a deep impression on him.

Of course, it was precisely because he knew Chen Xuan that Elder Zhang was even more surprised now.

Had Danxiao Peak really struck gold?

A hint of regret welled up in Elder Zhang.

Had he known it would come to this, he would have contested it with Senior Brother Xie back then.

He should have at least put up a fight.

On the White Jade Staircase, Chen Xuan soon reached the plaza.

The moment he stepped onto the plaza, the pressure that had been weighing down on his entire body vanished instantly.

At the same time, a token flew toward him.

Chen Xuan reached out and caught it.

The token was engraved with the number one.

After receiving the token, Chen Xuan moved to the side and sat cross-legged to rest.

As time passed, others slowly climbed onto the plaza.

Once they arrived, their gazes were all locked onto Chen Xuan.

They were still curious about where Chen Xuan had emerged from.

Among these people was a disciple from Danxiao Peak.

The others looked at him, signaling for him to go ask, as Chen Xuan was, after all, a disciple of his peak.

He was also quite curious and walked directly toward Chen Xuan.

Seeing Chen Xuan sitting on the ground, he sat down right beside him.

"This... Senior Brother, I am Li Junmo. May I ask your name?"

Li Junmo did not know when Chen Xuan had joined the sect.

However, among cultivators, it was always the strong who were respected.

Even among fellow disciples, this remained true.

Judging by Chen Xuan's performance in the first round of the Outer Sect Grand Competition, he was likely stronger than them.

"Senior Brother Li, I am Junior Brother Chen Xuan."

Chen Xuan had inquired about the popular contenders and knew of this Senior Brother.

This Senior Brother Li was quite famous.

Mostly because his luck was rather poor.

When he first joined the sect, the elder who tested his constitution had remarked that his talent was extremely high, only a sliver away from a Spirit Body.

Had his talent been just a bit better, he might have possessed a Spirit Body.

After joining, he participated in the Floating Cloud Trial and placed fourth.

A year and a half after joining, he participated in the Outer Sect Grand Competition and placed fourth again.

He had been unwilling to accept this, suppressing his cultivation and refusing to breakthrough, waiting for the next Outer Sect Grand Competition—which was this one.

This Senior Brother Li had been stuck at the peak of the Qi Gathering realm for three and a half years.

During this time, he had tried to find spiritual items himself, but all his efforts had come to nothing.

Now, he could only pin his hopes on this year's Outer Sect Grand Competition.

"May I ask when Senior Brother Chen joined the sect?" Li Junmo asked again.

"This year," Chen Xuan replied.

Upon hearing this, Li Junmo froze in place, an expression of utter disbelief etched across his face.

Which year?

"You... you joined this year?" Li Junmo asked, still struggling to believe it.

Chen Xuan nodded.

Li Junmo fell silent. It had taken him a full year to reach the perfection of the Qi Gathering stage; if Chen Xuan had joined this year, it meant he had reached the same level in a mere six months. Furthermore, judging by Chen Xuan's performance in the first round, he was no ordinary Qi Gathering expert. His mastery of Daoist techniques was undoubtedly profound. Was he even human? Even a disciple with a Spirit Body wouldn't be this exaggerated. Could he be a King Body disciple here to bully the weak?

In the distance, the others watched Li Junmo's reaction, confused. "What's with that look on Brother Li's face?" "No idea. Let's wait; we'll know once he comes over." "Does none of you really know the disciple standing next to him?" "Never seen him..." As they chatted, Li Junmo quickly bid Chen Xuan farewell and stood up to walk toward them. Such incredible news could not be kept to himself alone.

Once Li Junmo arrived, the others immediately began to question him. Li Junmo sighed and said, "I've clarified it. He is a new disciple who joined this year, which is why none of us recognize him." As soon as these words left Li Junmo's lips, the air went deathly still. "Brother Li, that's not funny," someone said, unable to believe it. "Why would I lie to you? Look at his age; he is indeed younger than us. If he were an old disciple, it would be impossible for him to remain obscure for several years," Li Junmo replied, shaking his head.

The air fell silent once more. Suddenly, someone posed a question from the depths of their soul: "Six months since joining, perfection of Qi Gathering, and Daoist techniques at the Minor Achievement or perhaps even Major Achievement stage—is this really a Mortal Body?"

Soon, the first round of the Outer Sect Grand Competition concluded. One hundred people had ascended to the plaza and secured their tokens. After the hundredth person stepped onto the plaza, the grand formation of the white jade steps shut down. Elder Zhang looked at those still on the steps and said, "The first round is over. Those who did not obtain a token are eliminated." Those on the white jade steps who were still far from the plaza were unbothered, as most had only come to test their luck. However, the closer the disciples were to the plaza, the more disappointed they felt. After all, they had been agonizingly close to the top one hundred.

Chen Xuan had already stood up and moved to a position toward the center of the plaza. Elder Zhang announced once more, "We shall now begin the second round of the Outer Sect Grand Competition. You each hold a token. Starting from number one hundred, you may choose not to challenge, in which case your rank is fixed at one hundredth. You may also choose to challenge number ninety-nine; if you succeed, you advance to ninety-nine and may then choose whether to continue challenging number ninety-eight. Once you choose not to challenge, your rank is finalized. This process continues until it reaches the first-ranked disciple. Now, the second round begins."

As Elder Zhang finished speaking, he waved his hand, and a massive circular platform rose in the center of the plaza.

This circular platform served as the arena for the challenge.

The challenge stage was not particularly elevated, standing only about a meter high, though its surface area was quite substantial.

"Those knocked off the challenge stage are defeated; one may also choose to concede."

"Number one hundred, do you wish to challenge number ninety-nine?"

A core disciple in the Dao Foundation Realm stepped onto the stage and looked toward the disciple holding the number one hundred token to ask.

He was the referee for the second round.

Amidst the crowd, the disciple holding number one hundred heard the referee's words and leaped directly onto the challenge stage: "Of course I challenge!"

It was already unlikely for him to obtain a better reward.

After all, if he wanted a better reward, he would need to fight his way up from one hundredth place all the way to sixtieth.