Ten Thousand Daos Born Can't Win!
On the towering stone tablet, the Mara Gate was prominently listed at the top, and the number following it was enough to make them stand out from the other sects, upholding Mara Gate status for many years.
Beneath the stone tablet, a dense Rogue Cultivator and ordinary people, like ants, squeezed their way in, hoping to obtain firsthand information from the tablet.
The Gu cultivator watched the chaotic scene from afar, the murmurs of the onlookers filling his ears:
"I don't know what's so interesting about this sect competition. Back when the Mara Gate formed an alliance with the other smaller sects, the top spot was already in Mara Gate hands!"
The Rogue Cultivator, who was speaking, waved a fan but did not participate in the grand event.
"You can't say that. Who knows, maybe another sect will come from behind and surpass us this time!" The person who replied had a sarcastic look on their face.
Another person at their table suddenly said, "It's said that Ten Thousand Daos Born a lot of effort this time. There was also news the other day that Ten Thousand Daos Born's new chief seems to have won first place in the individual Golden Core Realm competition!"
Upon hearing this sentence, the Gu cultivator could no longer contain his smugness and couldn't help but raise his eyebrows.
The first Rogue Cultivator to speak scoffed, "It's just an individual competition. Given the limited number of participants, Ten Thousand Daos Born is no match for the Mara Gate. Instead of pinning our hopes on Ten Thousand Daos Born, we'd be better off betting on the Azure Feather Sect to win!"
His expression was laced with sarcasm, and he even boasted, "Just you wait and see, those fools who bet on Ten Thousand Daos Born will definitely regret it in the end!"
The Gu cultivator choked on a mouthful of spiritual tea, unable to swallow or spit it out.
The two accompanying him immediately flattered, "Fellow Daoist is right. It seems that Ten Thousand Daos Born will once again miss out on first place!"
As they talked, the stone tablet outside changed again.
Following the words "Mara Gate," another wave of points appeared. The gleaming display of 300,000 points seemed to be providing factual evidence to support the Rogue Cultivator's point of view.
Those inside the teahouse couldn't help but cast admiring glances at the Rogue Cultivator who was speaking. Before the Rogue Cultivator could even reveal a smug smile under everyone's gaze, the gasps of surprise outside interrupted his upward curve of lips.
"Look at that! How could Ten Thousand Daos Born's points have increased so quickly?!"
Reminded by the voice, they hurriedly looked in the direction of the stone tablet.
Ten Thousand Daos Born, who had been pitifully hanging in fifth place and suppressed by the Beast Taming Sect, suddenly jumped to second place, leaving the Azure Feather Sect group far behind!
As soon as the leaderboard on the stone tablet stabilized, they eagerly turned their attention to the area displaying scores.
Wan Daosheng, 299,000 points!
A line of large characters caught their eye, startling the Rogue Cultivator monks in the teahouse so much that they dropped their fans to the ground.
"This, this, this, 299,000 points? How did Ten Thousand Daos Born do that?!" He was just one low-level Demon Beast away from reaching the top of the rankings!
The two companions looked even worse than him. After all, the Rogue Cultivator the fan hadn't gone to gamble, while they had invested most of their fortune hoping to make a profit.
Because they listened to the words of the Rogue Cultivator, they all bet on Mara Gate. If the other side loses, they're finished!
The two exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with unspoken worry and bitterness.
Fortunately, they were also somewhat lucky. Ten Thousand Daos Born's points quickly surpassed the 300,000 mark, but Mara Gate jumped to 350,000!
The independent Rogue Cultivator all breathed a sigh of relief, and the tense atmosphere in the teahouse instantly eased.
The fan was shaken by its owner again, Rogue Cultivator's expression was once again relaxed and at ease. "I told you, the Mara Gate could never lose, everyone can rest assured. Ten Thousand Daos Born's second place is probably just luck; they'll fall behind soon!"
His companions showered him with praise, seemingly regarding the fan-wielder's words as gospel.
The Gu cultivator curled his lip, his disdainful expression hidden beneath the wide hood.
"Bullshit!" A woman's voice rang out in the teahouse, immediately silencing the irritating flattery.
The female cultivator in pink slammed her hand on the table and glared angrily at the people holding the fans. "You live in Qing Zhou and are under the protection of Ten Thousand Daos Born, yet you dare to use such vicious words to mock him. Aren't you afraid of incurring karmic retribution for your actions?!"
The nun was dressed very beautifully, but when she cursed, her words were extremely venomous, quite unlike her appearance.
The few Rogue Cultivator considered themselves respectable figures, with some reputation in Qing Zhou. Now, being suddenly insulted, they felt humiliated and had lost face.
The male cultivator holding the fan immediately lost his composure, slamming his hand on the table like the female cultivator and angrily saying, "How can you speak so rudely? Ten Thousand Daos Born's own strength is insufficient to win the top spot in the competition. I'm merely stating the truth!"
"Exactly! If you think we're wrong, then let Ten Thousand Daos Born take first place back!" his companion chimed in.
The female cultivator was furious. "No wonder you can't even get into a sect! You're all nearing the end of your lives and you're still only at the Golden Core Realm. Selfish and self-serving people like you are not worthy of entering a sect at all!"
The female cultivator's words sounded incredibly harsh to the three of them.
The male cultivator with the fan immediately wanted to take action and teach this arrogant young girl a lesson.
Unfortunately, before the three could make a move, a powerful pressure enveloped them, instantly causing their legs to buckle and nearly causing them to kneel down on the spot.
Following the direction from which the oppressive aura emanated, the three then noticed a man whose appearance they couldn't discern sitting beside the pink-skirted female cultivator.
The man wearing the veil gently put down his teacup. He had single-handedly controlled three Golden Core Realm, yet he still exuded a sense of ease.
The three of them immediately realized that they had run into a tough opponent.
"My junior sister is ignorant of the rules and has offended the three of you. As her senior brother, I apologize on her behalf." His tone was flat and emotionless. He said sorry, but his aura remained unchanged, pressing the three of them firmly to the ground.
Swallowing his bitterness, the male cultivator with the fan was the first to smile apologetically, "Senior, you're too kind. We were also at fault. This was just a small quarrel with your junior sister, nothing serious."
This sudden turn of events drew the attention of everyone in the teahouse, even the Gu cultivator couldn't help but glance at it a few times.
The man with the fan took the lead, and the other two quickly followed suit, afraid that being a step too slow would only provoke the other party to anger even more.
The oppressive aura slowly dissipated, and the three hurriedly bowed to the pair of senior and junior disciples before attempting to leave the teahouse.
But things weren't that simple. The unidentified man called out to the three again, "Why are you three walking so fast? There aren't any man-eating monsters in this teahouse. Since you three are so convinced that Mara Gate will win and Ten Thousand Daos Born will lose, why not stay and wait for the result?"
The three faces, with their backs to their fellow disciples, revealed a deep bitterness.
There are still nine days left until the end of the competition! Their intention is clearly to make them stay in the teahouse for another nine days!
But lacking the strength, there was nothing they could do. Even though they were unwilling to stay, the three of them obediently returned to their seats and once again gave the pair of senior and junior disciples a smile.
Seeing the three Rogue Cultivator's obedient demeanor, the woman in the pink dress was quite satisfied.
She turned around, lowered her voice, and asked the person beside her, "Senior brother seems very confident this time."
The sentence was abrupt and incoherent, but the man still understood it.
"Yes!" he said with a smile. "Master sent a message earlier saying that the new junior brothers and sisters are very intelligent and diligent, especially the top student of this year, who is a rare and exceptional swordsman."
"I'm sure they won't disappoint me."
The man said with such certainty.
At that moment, Sang Ying, far away in the White Water-Clover Island Small World, also sneezed inexplicably, startling the few low-level Demon Beast in front of her.