The atmosphere at the scene was wonderful.
The elders watched their disciples shine on the martial arts stage, their smiles deepening the wrinkles on their faces.
“Is that your disciple from the Ten Thousand Sword Sect on the stage? That sword technique is nothing short of miraculous. It is truly worthy of a sect that has pushed the way of the sword to its absolute limit!”
“Haha, you are too kind. I think your disciples from the Heaven Evolution Sect are also quite brilliant; they are truly versatile geniuses.”
“The disciples of your Western Pole Buddhist Sect carry a dignified air in every move. That has certainly opened this old man’s eyes!”
“Hehehehehehe…”
After the elders from the various sects spent some time flattering one another, the elder from the Ten Thousand Sword Sect took the opportunity to suggest to the Sect Leader of the Yaochi Holy Land, “Sect Leader, look, the younger generation needs these opportunities to spar. Why not call your own disciples over to join them on the stage for a friendly match, so they can progress together on the path to immortality?”
Seeing their elder working so hard, the disciples of the Ten Thousand Sword Sect gave him a collective thumbs up.
The Sect Leader of the Yaochi Holy Land pondered for a moment before nodding.
“That is acceptable.”
Opportunities to spar with disciples from other sects were rare.
In the long journey of immortality, learning is endless.
Seeing this, the Ten Thousand Sword Sect elder breathed a sigh of relief and quietly turned to nod at his disciples.
He had gone to such great lengths; if they still failed to woo the female disciples of the Yaochi Holy Land, he would punish every single one of those useless disciples when they returned.
The Yaochi Holy Land really was something, guarding their disciples as if they were thieves.
In previous years, they had always hidden their female disciples away, refusing to let them come out.
In fact, the initial suggestion to come to the stage for a spar had been shouted by the Ten Thousand Sword Sect elder while disguised as a disciple of the Heaven Evolution Sect.
Sigh, for the happiness of the brats in his own sect, this old body of his was truly worn out from worrying!
The funny thing was that four old matrons were surrounding the heroine, Su Xiyao, guarding her from the disciples of other sects like they were thieves, scolding away anyone who dared to approach.
Even the Buddhist Son had been chased off when he tried to show his face.
….
“Senior Brother’s ‘Luo Han Leg’ is well-deserved of its reputation. This Junior Brother admits defeat.”
“Junior Brother, you are too modest!”
The two clasped their fists to salute each other before stepping off the stage.
Just as the disciples in the audience were itching to get on stage and leave a good impression on the Yaochi Holy Land’s female disciples, a figure in a cloth robe leaped onto the platform.
The disciples below suppressed their intentions.
“The Sword Head? Besides the other three prodigies, who else is qualified to go up there and compete?”
The disciples felt a bit regretful, not expecting one of the toughest opponents to appear so soon.
They had wanted to show their faces and flex their muscles in front of the female disciples.
Now, aside from the other three monsters, anyone else going up to fight the strongest disciple of the Ten Thousand Sword Sect would just be asking for humiliation.
“I wish to challenge the Daozi of the Heaven Evolution Sect.”
The youth on the stage sat cross-legged, wiping his sword, speaking in an extremely calm tone that caused an uproar among the disciples below.
“The Sword Head is calling out the Daozi by name. Could it be that these two had some prior grievances?”
“Logically speaking, that shouldn’t be the case. They rarely have opportunities to cross paths. I have no idea how they developed such bad blood.”
The Daozi, who had been chatting with an elder, found countless eyes fixed on him the moment he was named on stage.
Daozi: …
At this moment, the disciples of the Yaochi Holy Land also emerged.
They were settled by their Sect Leader on the opposite side of the venue, looking across at the disciples of the other three major sects.
The disciples of the Yaochi Holy Land looked around curiously, casting their gaze toward the person on the martial arts stage.
Some of the younger ones had never left the Yaochi Holy Land.
They had never even seen a man before; the elders in their sect always described men as evil creatures with three heads and six arms.
They were said to eat people and drink blood.
But for disciples who had never seen a man, there was a sense of “a newborn calf not fearing the tiger.”
“Senior Sister, is that a man over there? Why does he look just like us, with two arms and two legs?”
A younger female disciple watched curiously and asked in confusion.
This did not match the description of men provided by the elders in the slightest.
The Senior Sister being asked was not as naive as the younger one.
She laughed and said, “There are many types of men; some have three heads and six arms.”
The older disciples knew exactly how men differed from women and how they were the same.
However, the sect strictly forbade talking about “men,” so the girl known as the Senior Sister could only try to brush it off.
At this moment, a voice echoed on the stage once more: “I wish to challenge the Daozi of the Heaven Evolution Sect.”
Called out twice in a row, the Daozi rubbed his nose and had no choice but to respond.
He was just about to step onto the stage when he suddenly spotted Ye Feng holding Zhu Lan in a corner.
“Sword Head, I know you only care about the path of immortality and wish to reach the summit of the world as soon as possible. However, I was injured during the recent sect competition and have not yet recovered. Even if you win, it would be an unfair victory. Why not spar with the person who injured me instead?”
As soon as these words were spoken, the entire audience of disciples erupted in an uproar, and even the elders were astonished.
Everyone knew the Daozi’s reputation; who could possibly be the person capable of injuring him?
Ye Feng saw the Daozi glance in his direction and felt a bad omen in his heart.
Sure enough, the Daozi pointed at him with a smile.
“See there? That is the person who injured me during the sect competition.”
The crowd followed the Daozi’s finger and discovered a man in a corner holding a woman.
“Huh, why didn’t I notice earlier that the Heaven Evolution Sect has such a beautiful female cultivator?”
A disciple of the Ten Thousand Sword Sect saw Zhu Lan’s face and couldn’t help but gasp in amazement.
“It was our oversight. This lady’s beauty is perhaps only a step behind the Holy Maiden, but she is still a beauty rarely seen in this world!”
The Ten Thousand Sword Sect disciple sighed with emotion.
Feeling the direct gaze of the crowd, Zhu Lan felt her scalp tingle and buried her face in Ye Feng’s chest.
Yet, this scene only made the disciples of the Ten Thousand Sword Sect stomp their feet in frustration, crying out in heartache.
Such a beautiful woman was already taken.
Previously, Ye Feng had hidden Zhu Lan’s presence because he knew she was prone to shyness, so she had not been noticed by many.
But now, the Daozi’s shout had drawn everyone’s attention.
Ye Feng narrowed his eyes, casting an unfriendly look at the Daozi.
The meaning was obvious.
The Daozi transmitted his voice helplessly: ‘Make that annoying kid from the Ten Thousand Sword Sect exert some effort, and there will be a rich reward afterward.’
Ye Feng sent a return transmission: ‘What is the reward?’
Even with everyone’s eyes on him, Ye Feng kept his arm around Zhu Lan, sipping his tea with nonchalance.
He was in no hurry.
At this moment, it should be the Daozi who was feeling the pressure.
Sure enough, the Daozi replied immediately: ‘The top reward from the previous sect competition—that chain. I have a hunch you will need it.’
Ye Feng: ‘Not enough.’
Daozi: ‘Adding a bottle of Ancestral Dragon Blood.’
Ye Feng: ‘You have that too? I happened to obtain a bottle some time ago, so I don’t lack it.’
Daozi: ‘Adding the Dragon-Subduing and Tiger-Felling Fist.’
Ye Feng: ‘Deal.’
The Daozi chuckled.
Ye Feng truly was someone who never acted without the promise of profit.
However, he felt it was quite comfortable to deal with such people; they were usually quite reliable.
Ye Feng slowly stood up, released Zhu Lan, and spoke a few soft words to her.
Zhu Lan nodded and sat quietly back in her seat.
Ye Feng leaped onto the stage and drew his Heaven-grade treasured sword.
“Ye Feng of the Heaven Evolution Sect, please enlighten me.”
The Sword Head looked confused.
“You were able to injure the Daozi?”
Ye Feng smiled.
“You will know after a try.”