Pei Ruyi walked slowly out of the Supreme Sword Hall on Heavenly Sword Peak.
Countless Outer and Inner Disciples around her offered congratulations. They looked at her with eyes full of either envy, jealousy, or simple admiration.
The Void Comprehension Stage elders only accepted Direct Disciples once every decade, or even longer. Each competition for that position was incredibly fierce.
Now that such a wonderful opportunity had suddenly fallen upon Pei Ruyi, it naturally attracted all sorts of gazes.
And Pei Ruyi, like a sharp, shining sword, met those gazes with an awe-inspiring flash of Sword Qi, sweeping away all prying eyes.
As she walked, an unexpected figure blocked her path.
“Junior Sister Pei, congratulations.”
The person who had spoken was a young man with dashing sword-like brows and bright, starry eyes. His aura was completely restrained, like an ordinary Mortal, yet he gave off a profoundly unfathomable feeling.
This was the hallmark of a cultivator at the Peak of the Nascent Soul Stage about to break through to Spirit Transformation. One’s aura merged with Heaven and Earth, assimilating with all creation, only a single step away from Spirit Transformation.
The more restrained the aura now, the more earth-shattering the breakthrough to Spirit Transformation would be.
“Second Senior Brother.”
Pei Ruyi cupped her hands in a respectful salute.
The person before her was Lian Tianliu, the Direct Disciple of Heavenly Sword Peak’s Second Elder.
He had joined the sect one session before her and was now a Peak Nascent Soul Stage cultivator, already touching the threshold of the Spirit Transformation Stage.
Lian Tianliu looked at Pei Ruyi with a beaming smile and asked, “I heard that Junior Sister Pei fought Chu He from Myriad Arts Peak to a draw?”
Pei Ruyi nodded. After a moment’s hesitation, she spoke again.
“Indeed.”
“However… Senior Brother Chu He did not use the ‘Fifth Law’.”
Upon hearing this, Lian Tianliu immediately adopted a look of sudden enlightenment. The smile on his face imperceptibly faded a few degrees.
“I see.”
Myriad Arts Peak, overseen by the Grand Elder, was the oldest and most completely inherited peak in the Profound Firmament Upper Sect.
As a Law Realm Dao Venerable, the Grand Elder’s understanding of the myriad Daos of Law had reached the pinnacle of perfection and returned to simplicity.
Thus, he had simplified his comprehension of “Law” into what he called the “First Law” through the “Ninth Law” for the disciples of Myriad Arts Peak to study.
The “First Law” corresponded to the Qi Condensation Stage, the “Second Law” to the Foundation Establishment Stage…
Logically, the “Fifth Law” corresponded to an Earth-Rank method at the Spirit Transformation Stage. But there were always some heaven-defying geniuses who could comprehend and learn it before reaching that level.
As the Peak Lord’s Direct Disciple, although only at the Nascent Soul Stage, Chu He was already capable of using the Fifth Law.
“I’ve disappointed you, Senior Brother.”
Pei Ruyi naturally understood Lian Tianliu’s implication. This Second Senior Brother wanted to use her to gauge Chu He’s current strength.
As the Second Elder’s Direct Disciple and one of the strongest individuals under the Spirit Transformation Stage in the Profound Firmament Upper Sect, he naturally desired to claim the title of Grand Tournament Champion.
And Chu He, the Direct Disciple of Myriad Arts Peak, was one of Lian Tianliu’s strongest competitors.
“For Junior Sister Pei, merely at the Early Nascent Soul Stage, to fight Chu He, who possesses the Fourth Law, to a draw is already a remarkable achievement.”
Lian Tianliu let out an insincere chuckle. He wasn’t actually surprised that Pei Ruyi had failed to force out Chu He’s Fifth Law.
If he had to go all-out just to fight an Inner Disciple, even if he won, the story would sound ugly spreading around.
If it were him, he probably would’ve done the same. There was no benefit to winning, and losing would mean the word spread that he was bullying a junior.
“By the way, I heard you lost to that Junior Sister Ye from Azure Sky Peak yesterday?” Lian Tianliu abruptly shifted the topic.
Pei Ruyi’s brow twitched, but she still nodded.
“Yes.”
Upon hearing this confirmation, Lian Tianliu sighed and said in a slightly disappointed tone, “Now that was not well done, Junior Sister Pei. That Ye Luqing is merely an Array Cultivator, and her cultivation has dropped to the Golden Core Stage. There’s no reason you should have lost.”
“Now that you are a True Disciple of our Heavenly Sword Peak, you must be more mindful in the future. Avoid doing things that could damage our peak’s prestige.”
Although both the Peak Lord’s Direct Disciple and an Elder’s Direct Disciple were called “Direct Disciples,” the disciples themselves preferred to call the Elder’s Direct Disciples “True Disciples” to distinguish the difference in status from the true Direct Disciple.
“Second Senior Brother’s reprimand is noted.” Pei Ruyi bowed her head slightly.
With the Eldest Senior Brother in seclusion, attempting to break through to the Spirit Transformation Stage, and the Senior Sister, Xiao Qingxuan, already a Half-Step Spirit Transformation, the man before her, the Second Senior Brother, was the de facto leader of all Heavenly Sword Peak disciples.
Even though Pei Ruyi had just been accepted as a True Disciple by the Fifth Elder, she was still inevitably subject to Lian Tianliu’s authority.
“No need for words. I expect you to properly restore our Heavenly Sword Peak’s reputation at the Sect Grand Tournament.”
“Of course, that’s only natural.” Pei Ruyi’s eyes flashed with a barely perceptible sharpness. “I will return yesterday’s humiliation in full at the Grand Tournament.”
“Good!” Lian Tianliu nodded with satisfaction. “Then I wish you, Junior Sister, the best of results in the tournament.”
Pei Ruyi gave a slight nod. Without further pleasantries, she headed down the mountain.
Although she had just made a bold declaration, she was also a person who kept her promises.
According to their bet, she had to go be a human stool for Ye Luqing.
Watching Pei Ruyi’s departing figure, the smile on Lian Tianliu’s face gradually faded into indifference.
“Early Nascent Soul Stage… Not too strong, not too weak among the Direct Disciples of the other peaks. She’ll be enough to force out some of their trump cards…”
“Junior Sister Pei, please go as far as you can and help your Senior Brother deplete the competition.”
“The championship of the Singles Match will be mine, Lian Tianliu!”
…
…
Listening to the System prompt ringing in her head, Ye Luqing was momentarily speechless.
Seriously? You really want me to do this?
The System’s reward was quite generous. Not only 1000 points, but also a discount on Earth-Tier Techniques. When rounded up, that was roughly equivalent to a Middle Earth-Tier Technique.
However, if she chose the mission issued by the System, she probably wouldn’t be able to obtain the Grand Tournament’s official rewards.
If she teamed up with a support-oriented Nascent Soul cultivator, she was confident they could place in the top four of the Duo Tournament and get that Earth-Rank Dharma Treasure. But that was still slightly inferior to the System’s current reward.
But… if she could win the Duo Tournament championship and claim the extra Earth-Tier Technique, it would be far better than the System’s offer.
The problem was, even if she teamed up with someone other than Little Ying, could she guarantee victory?
As Ye Luqing remained silent, Ying Qianqian’s expression beside her grew downcast.
She bit her lip slightly and mustered her courage to speak.
“I-I won’t drag Senior Sister Ye down.”
Teaming up with Ye Luqing for the Duo Tournament had always been her dream. Ever since she watched the Grand Tournament three years ago, she had been filled with admiration for Senior Sister Ye’s reliable figure.
She too wanted to become someone who could support others from behind. Now, the Grand Tournament could both allow Senior Sister Ye to be seen by everyone and fulfill her wish of supporting her Senior Sister from the shadows.
For this goal, she was willing to give everything.
“Little Ying…”
Ye Luqing stared blankly at Ying Qianqian. Even she could feel an astonishing fighting spirit emanating from this petite, pink-haired furball of a girl.
【Detected massive Obsession. Issuing additional mission】
【Team up with Ying Qianqian and win the Duo Tournament championship. Reward: “Formation Dao Grandmaster” Title】
【Formation Dao Grandmaster: You have deployed countless arrays, making your Array deployment speed far surpass other Array Cultivators. Furthermore, when learning new arrays, you can draw parallels from your vast experience. Upon learning an array, its proficiency is immediately at Major Achievement】
Ye Luqing raised an eyebrow slightly.
Well, I’ll be! Formation Dao Grandmaster, huh?
Her array deployment speed was already very fast. But titles were a precious, independent multiplier—she could be even faster.
Being able to execute a newly learned array at Major Achievement proficiency would cut down the mastery time for each array, giving her more time to learn new ones.
The more arrays she learned, the stronger she would become.
With this added incentive, she was genuinely tempted.
This title was undoubtedly an incredibly rare treasure. If it were put on the market, it would be even more valuable than some Heaven-Rank items.
Even if the probability of winning was low, it was worth the gamble.
She took a deep breath and looked at Bai Yuhan with firm determination.
“Shizun, I also want to participate in the Duo Tournament with Little Ying.”
Bai Yuhan’s heart stirred. She looked at Ye Luqing and said, “Little Qing, are you sure?”
Setting aside Ying Qianqian for a moment, Ye Luqing herself was the Duo Tournament champion for three consecutive years.
As long as she was willing, countless Inner Disciples, True Disciples, and even Direct Disciples within the sect would have scrambled over each other to team up with her.
“Yes, I’m sure.”
“I don’t just want to participate with Little Ying. I want to win the championship at the Grand Tournament!”
Ye Luqing’s fighting spirit soared. They were talking about two Earth-Rank items and a new title from the System as a reward. She absolutely had to go for it!
