Eve of the Minor Tournament

The morning sun shone brightly, golden light carpeting the training ground of the inner sect courtyard.

Shen Yuan held the Inner Sect Tournament schedule notice Wang Dong had brought him, his gaze carefully sweeping over the names and matchup rules on the paper.

The Inner Sect Tournament used a knockout arena format. The many inner sect disciples would face off in pairs; the losers would be eliminated, the winners advanced, round after round of selection continuing until the final top ten were decided.

The early draw results had already been released. Most of the inner sect disciples in Shen Yuan's bracket were at the Meridian Opening Realm, so he would not encounter the top experts of the Profound Communion Realm for the time being. Xiao Wuji had been assigned to the other half of the bracket. If the two wished to fight, they would both have to win every match along the way before meeting in the final.

"So, if I want to face Xiao Wuji, I have to defeat every opponent blocking my path." Shen Yuan lightly rubbed the paper with his fingertips.

"Exactly." Wang Dong stood at the side, his expression grave. "But even if you don't meet Xiao Wuji early, there are quite a few capable fighters in your half of the bracket. Several are Late Meridian Opening Realm or peak-level inner sect disciples. Every one of them cultivates superior inner sect martial arts. You absolutely cannot underestimate them."

Shen Yuan nodded slightly. He understood that well. Inner sect disciples had resources far surpassing those of the outer sect, and opponents at the same realm were generally stronger than the contestants he had encountered during the Outer Sect Assessment.

"There's one more thing." Wang Dong lowered his voice, his brows tightly furrowed. "I heard that during this period, Xiao Wuji hasn't merely been cultivating diligently himself. He has also secretly bribed some of the disciples stationed at the tournament arenas. The elder judges may not be easy to buy off, but on the arena, the power to interpret the rules lies in people's hands. Judging whether someone has left the ring or determining victory and defeat—someone could tamper with either in secret."

Shen Yuan's gaze turned colder.

There would be open arena matches on the surface, yet underhanded schemes still lurked in the shadows. Xiao Wuji had suffered at the hands of the Azure Cloud Sword Formation. This time, in the Minor Tournament, he would certainly exhaust every possible method to make Shen Yuan fall on the arena.

"The elder judges hold high positions and great authority, so they are difficult to bribe. But the attendants and record-keeping disciples beneath them can indeed tamper with things." Shen Yuan pondered for a moment. "Then we must accomplish one thing—every victory must be won cleanly and plainly. We must crush our opponents for all to see, leaving no room for dispute over the outcome. Even if someone wants to alter the judgment, they will have nowhere to lay their hands."

As long as he beat his opponents until they completely lost the ability to fight, with everyone in the arena seeing it clearly, then even if someone wanted to pull a trick, there would be no room for manipulation.

"Easy to say, hard to do." Wang Dong sighed. "The tournament arenas are crowded and full of prying eyes, but that doesn't stop all kinds of tricky little moves. Someone could 'accidentally' injure you, step on your foot, or secretly use hidden weapons and incense that causes confusion. I'll do my best to blend into the spectators and watch the activity around you. The moment I spot anything wrong, I'll immediately find a way to alert the elder judges."

"Much obliged." Shen Yuan nodded.

The next thirteen days would be the final window for preparation.

Only 1 Martial Dao Point remained, no longer enough for any large-scale deductions. Shen Yuan stopped spending his final point and shifted his focus to honing every ability he had already acquired.

During the day, he gripped an iron sword and repeatedly practiced in the training ground: the first seven forms of the Revised Azure Cloud Thirteen Swords, the True Subduing Tiger Fist, and that trump-card Fist-Sword Alternating Execution combination, which consumed enormous amounts of qi. Again and again, he familiarized himself with the proper measure of true qi output, controlling its expenditure to avoid exhausting his true qi too early in actual combat.

At night, he entered the Martial Arts Simulation Space and used the opponent samples he had already accumulated to simulate the various potential opponents in his half of the tournament bracket, tempering his ability to adapt in battle again and again.

At the same time, he continued meditating to stabilize his newly broken-through Meridian Opening Realm Middle Stage cultivation, thoroughly settling the surging true qi within him so that his realm would not become unstable.

During this time, all sorts of people continued coming to his door.

Members of the Longwind Society paid him another visit, still hoping Shen Yuan would join them. They promised that if he joined, the Longwind Society could use its connections to help him avoid secret attacks during the Minor Tournament. Shen Yuan still declined tactfully, insisting on joining no faction.

When Gu Changfeng learned that he had been rejected again, the knot in his heart grew deeper. Gu Changfeng was likewise a top expert of the Profound Communion Realm and one of the hottest favorites to win this Minor Tournament. That meant that aside from Xiao Wuji, another senior brother of unfathomable strength stood across Shen Yuan's path.

The days flew by swiftly.

Thirteen days passed in the blink of an eye.

The night before the Minor Tournament began.

Inside the quiet room, an oil lamp flickered.

Shen Yuan sat cross-legged atop a meditation cushion. He no longer carried out high-intensity deductions or training, merely circulating the Inner Breath Formula slowly to nurture his body and mind, conserving his strength and sharpening his spirit.

Within his sea of consciousness, the Martial Arts Heavenly Stele floated silently.

He took stock of all his trump cards:

[Cultivation: Meridian Opening Realm Middle Stage; old root-bone injuries more than half healed]

[Fist Art: True Subduing Tiger Fist deduced to perfection]

[Sword Art: First seven forms of the fully revised Azure Cloud Thirteen Swords]

[Killer Move: Fist-Sword Alternating Execution combination]

[Martial Dao Points Remaining: 1]

[Physical Body: Fundamental deficiency basically replenished]

Shen Yuan was equally clear about the enemy's trump cards.

Xiao Wuji: Profound Communion Realm, Mountain-Splitting Palm, Profound Qi Protection, a vicious mind, and no aversion to underhanded tricks beyond the arena.

Gu Changfeng: Profound Communion Realm, leader of the Longwind Society, strength impossible to gauge, harboring a grudge because his recruitment offer had been rejected.

And there were also the many Late Meridian Opening Realm and peak Meridian Opening Realm inner sect opponents.

Crisis lurked at every step, but he had already made every preparation.

Shen Yuan slowly closed his eyes. In his mind, he reviewed the simulated battle memories of every potential opponent in his half of the bracket, as well as the countless simulated life-and-death battles against Xiao Wuji in the final.

From crossing into this world, to the desperate straits of being a menial disciple, to falling from the cliff and obtaining the Heavenly Stele, to taking first place in the Outer Sect Assessment, to surviving the out-of-control Azure Cloud Sword Formation, he had walked all the way to today's Inner Sect Tournament.

Tomorrow, the Inner Sect Tournament would officially begin.

He would step onto the highest-standard arena of the inner sect and contend against a host of heaven's favored. If he could make it all the way to the final, he would have to face Xiao Wuji of the Profound Communion Realm head-on.

Outside the window, the night was deep, and a bright moon hung high above the inner sect's clustered peaks.

Tomorrow, on the arena, the sword had left its sheath, and the fist was clenched.