Chen Qiu looked toward the pillar of light descending from midair and the applause from the elders of various sects seated around him. A flicker of surprise passed through his eyes as he remained seated.
He had not expected there to be an introduction segment, much less that he would be the first contestant introduced.
Still, he rose to his feet, a gentle smile surfacing on his face as he looked around and gave a slight nod, then sat down again.
An elder from a sect not far away looked at Chen Qiu with emotion. "As expected of the peerless spell cultivator prodigy of this generation. If an ordinary young cultivator had made such a splash, formed a Grade-Five Heavenly Dao Golden Core, and become a Heavenly Dao Saint, their tail would have shot straight into the heavens."
"But they would surely be a little proud, wouldn't they?"
"After all, those truly are astonishing achievements, unprecedented before and unmatched after."
"But look at Chen Qiu. There is not the slightest hint of self-satisfaction on his face, as though Heavenly Dao Golden Cores were nothing more than ordinary things. With that kind of temperament, he will surely walk very far on the path of cultivation. What do you think, Sect Master?"
The elder turned to look at the middle-aged woman beside him, his sect master. Though she was no longer a young girl, she possessed a special charm that young girls did not.
"Mhm."
The middle-aged woman gazed at Chen Qiu's gentle smile with slightly unfocused eyes and murmured, "Don't you think... Chen Qiu has a rather special aura about him?"
"Like... like freshly baked pastries."
"He smells delicious. Makes you want to take a bite?"
After a long silence, the sect elder turned once more toward Chen Qiu, who had