Chapter 177: Grand Competition Results
"Have you heard? This time, the sect leader won''t preside over the inner-door grandpetition. Instead, it will be overseen by Elder Gu He," someone said.
"Elder Gu He?"
Upon hearing this name, the disciples of Yun Sect nearby immediately showed a look of reverence on their faces.
In Yun Sect, the status of Dan King Gu He was almost on par with Yunyun, the sect leader.
Therefore, when they learned that Elder Gu He would preside over this grand event, some inner-door disciples not only felt no disappointment but were also inspired.
The disciples of Yun Sect knew that the sect leader had no intention of epting new disciples anymore.
Even if they performed well in the inner-doorpetition, they couldn''t be the sect leader''s disciples.
But Elder Gu He was different.
During this period, every time Gu He went out, he brought back a disciple.
This earned him the reputation of being a "good mentor" that gradually spread throughout Yun Sect.
This also gave many proud disciples of Yun Sect the confidence that they could also be his disciples.
Moreover, Elder Gu He was a sixth-grade alchemist.
If one could catch the eye of Elder Gu He, it would be like ascending to the heavens.
"I also heard that Elder Gu He not only presides over this inner-door grandpetition but also allows his disciples to participate."
"What? Are you saying that Senior Liu Ling and Junior Sister Xiao Yi Xian, they are also participating in this inner-door grandpetition?"
"Aren''t they alchemists? Why would they think of participating in the inner-doorpetition?"
"I''m not sure about that... but, when ites to alchemy, I''m definitely no match for Senior Liu Ling, but in martial arts, Senior Liu Ling may not necessarily defeat me."
Before the rankingpetition even started, the inner-door disciples on the square were already buzzing with discussions around several arenas.
The subjects of these discussions were none other than the renowned figures among the inner-door disciples.
As the host of this grandpetition, Elder Gu He''s disciples also became the subject of discussion among some disciples.
However, it was clear that none of them considered them on the same level as those renowned figures, let aloneparable to Nn Yanran, who was known as the number one genius in Yun Sect.
In the spection about the oue between Liu Ling, Junior Sister Xiao Yi Xian, and Nn Yanran, most inner-door disciples seemed to lean towards Nn Yanran and others.
"Look, Senior Yun, Senior Lin, Senior Zhang... these elite inner-door disciples have already arrived."
Suddenly, there was amotion among the inner-door disciples on the square.
Sure enough, the elite inner-door disciples participating in the rankingpetition had already walked towards the square.
Apanying them were several elders and stewards led by Yun Sect''s Grand Elder Yun Ling.
In the open space between the tform and the arena, there were no ordinary disciples. The elite inner-door disciples went directly into this vacant area.
Each elite inner-door disciple had a number attached, ranging from 1 to 1016 based on their cultivation level.
The elders and stewards who came with the elite disciples entered the square and walked to the stands on the east side of the eight arenas.
Grand Elder Yun Ling, apanied by two other elders, approached the front of the elite disciples. In this area, there were long tables with a long box on each table.
"Has Elder Gu He not arrived yet?"
Yun Ling swept his gaze and, with some doubt, asked the second elder beside him.
The second elder shook his head helplessly.
Seeing this, Yun Ling''s brows slightly furrowed, and his expression turned somewhat unpleasant.
In his heart, he had long been dissatisfied with Yunyun''s decision to let Elder Gu He oversee the inner-door grandpetition.
ording to reason, even if the sect leader couldn''t preside over thepetition, he, as the Grand Elder, should have been the one to do it.
When did it be Elder Gu He''s turn?
Of course, even if Yun Ling was dissatisfied, he dared not say much.
After all, Elder Gu He was a sixth-grade alchemist, and Yun Ling didn''t want to offend him over such a trivial matter.
"Elder Gu He has arrived!"
Just then, amotion arose in the crowd. When Grand Elder Yun Ling looked over, he saw Gu He, dressed in white, floating over.
Behind him were three figures: Junior Sister Xiao Yi Xian, Nn Yanran, and Liu Ling.
"Grand Elder, This Gu He is a bitte. Please forgive me." Gu He took a step forward, came to Yun Ling, and apologized with a gentle attitude.
Even if Yun Ling was dissatisfied in his heart, he dared not show it in front of Gu He. A ttering smile appeared on his old face, "Elder Gu He, no need to apologize. The grandpetition hasn''t started yet; there''s no such thing as beingte."
Gu He nodded slightly and said, "Since everyone is here, let''s begin. The Grand Elder should be familiar with the process. I''ll trouble the Grand Elder to announce the rules."
Upon hearing this, the Grand Elder Yun Ling smiled and nodded.
After Nn Yanran and the others received their numbers, the Grand Elder then came to the side of a box and shouted loudly towards the square, "The rules of this inner-door grandpetition are the same as in previous years, and I believe everyone already knows them."
After saying that, the Grand Elder pointed to the box in front of him, "In this box, there are numbers for all participating disciples. Now, starting from number 1, we will draw the number of your opponent from this box for thepetition. The winner advances, the loser is eliminated. I hereby announce that the inner-door grandpetition is now underway."
As the voice of Grand Elder Yun Ling fell, the disciple numbered 1 walked out.
Gu He looked at the disciple numbered 1 who walked out of the crowd. He was a young man in white, around sixteen or seventeen years old.
Gu He had seen this young man before; he seemed to be the grandson of the Grand Elder, named Yun Luo, and was considered a promising talent in Yun Sect.
Unfortunately, he didn''t meet the standards for Gu He to ept as a disciple.
At this moment, Yun Luo walked to the front of the box and reached in to pull out a token, handing it to Grand Elder Yun Ling.
The Grand Elder took the token and announced loudly, "First round, first match, Yun Luo, number 1, against Huang Tao, number 799, on the first arena."
Among the elite disciples, a seventeen-year-old young man was suddenly shocked. His number was 799, and he was the one who would be facing Yun Luo, number 1.
Undoubtedly, Huang Tao''s luck was extremely bad. Being drawn against Yun Luo, number 1, meant he would likely lose in one move. In the first round, he would be eliminated and could onlypete for a ranking beyond 508.
Yun Luo and Huang Tao proceeded to the first arena. Immediately after, the second disciple, number 2, walked out, drew a number from the box, and handed it to the Grand Elder.
The Grand Elder announced, "First round, second match, Zhang Long, number 2, against Li Yuan, number 833, on the second arena."
"First round, third match, Lin Hao, number 3, against Zhao Pu, number 468, on the third arena."
"First round, fourth match, Lin Wuying, number 4, against Xie Dong, number 1003, on the fourth arena."
"First round, fifth match, Li Yichang, number 5, against Ding Yongsheng, number 941, on the fifth arena."
"First round, sixth match, Liang Zhong, number 6, against Lou Jiaxiang, number 988, on the sixth arena."
"First round, seventh match, Ma Tao, number 7, against Chen Wentao, number 563, on the seventh arena."
"First round, eighth match, Gu Xi, number 8, against Gao Li, number 497, on the eighth arena."
From number 1, 2, 3... to 8, one elite inner-door disciple after another drew a number from the box to determine their opponents. The drawn disciples all had one-star fighter cultivation. There were a total of 549 disciples at this level. After the first round, only 82 remained, all of them at the seventh level of cultivation.
These 82 would engage in battles within the same cultivation level, with 41 having the chance to win and advance to the next round.
The number of geniuses capable of super fights was scarce. The majority of disciples could onlypete within the same cultivation level to determine victory or defeat.
The ones drawn first would either face opponents with cultivation levels below three stars orpete against those with three or two-star cultivation levels. The likelihood of them advancing to the next round was almost zero.
So, the disciples who were drawn as one-star Dou Practitioners couldn''t help but feel disheartened, while those who hadn''t been drawn yet were secretly delighted but also anxious, fearing that the next draw could be their own.
...
Thepetition proceeded quickly. Without exception, the one-star Dou Practitioner disciples drawn earlier either conceded upon stepping onto the arena or were swiftly defeated by disciples with three-star Dou Practitioner cultivation or higher.
When it came to the three-star Dou Practitioner disciples'' draw, the previously drawn one-star Dou Practitioner disciples also met swift defeats. It wasn''t until the draw for the two-star Dou Practitioner disciples that, although the one-star Dou Practitioner disciples still faced defeat, they could at least put up some resistance against the two-star Dou Practitioner disciples, and the battles started to prolong, slowing down thepetition.
...
...
"First round, match 466, Ling Ling, number 466, against Gu Jiang, number 689, on the second arena."
After more than an hour, match 466 finally began.
Liu Ling and the others had received rtively low numbers since the Grand Elder had to distribute the remaining numbers to them. After waiting for so long, it was finally Liu Ling''s turn to draw.
He walked up to the box, pulled out a token with the number 955 on it, and handed it to the Grand Elder.
The Grand Elder loudly announced, "First round, match 467, Liu Ling, number 467, against Qu Xiang, number 955, on the third arena."
Upon hearing this, Liu Ling went directly to the third arena. His opponent, Qu Xiang, was already on the tform.
Around the third arena, many disciples were attracted to watch.
As a direct disciple of Elder Gu He, Liu Ling also piqued the interest of these inner-door disciples. They wanted to see what made this alchemy genius so special.
Step by step, Liu Ling ascended the arena.
On the opposite side, Qu Xiang felt a bit nervous and excited. Nervous because Liu Ling was well-known and a disciple of Alchemy King Gu He, causing him some apprehension. Excited because if he could win against Liu Ling, his reputation would undoubtedly soar, and catching the eye of Alchemy King Gu He would be a tremendous opportunity.
With these thoughts in mind, Qu Xiang became more excited. He bowed with his sword and said, "I am Qu Xiang. Senior Brother Liu Ling, please advise."
Upon hearing this, Liu Ling raised his hand and said, "Please."
Qu Xiang pretended to be modest and said, "Senior Brother Liu Ling, please make the first move."
Liu Ling smiled faintly and pretended to be arrogant, saying, "Junior Brother should make a move first. Otherwise, once I make a move, you won''t have a chance to do so."
Upon hearing this, Qu Xiang''s eyes twitched slightly. Feeling scorned by Liu Ling, a me ignited in his heart.
Since thepetition had begun, Qu Xiang no longer hesitated. He bent his legs slightly, suddenly pushed off, and his entire body, like a cheetah, sprinted forward.
A yellow-ranked superior technique, Leopard''s Step.
With a sh of light, Qu Xiang''s sword was drawn in an instant. The radiant sword light, like lightning, thrust forward directly towards Liu Ling''s chest.
"Good—!"
Qu Xiang''s move was like a cheetah''s assault, swift as lightning, and smooth as flowing water. It was harmonious, transforming from stillness to motion. Before one could react, the sword had already struck.
Qu Xiang''s sword was swift, and in the blink of an eye, it had reached Liu Ling''s chest.
The disciples below the arena stared intently, observing how Liu Ling would handle the situation. Among them were many elite disciples who had alreadypleted the first round of matches.
Watching this scene, Liu Ling remained calm, offering a faint smile. With a whirlwind beneath his feet, he swiftly moved aside.
High-level Profound-tier martial skill, Wind Treading!
This was a martial skill that Yun Yun had gifted to Gu He,ter bestowed upon Liu Ling by Gu He himself.
While evading with Wind Treading, Liu Ling activated the Purple Eagle me within his body. With a screech resembling that of an eagle, a purple me shot out from Liu Ling''s fingertips, directly heading towards Qu Xiang.
Yellow-ranked high-level martial skill, me Palm!
The me Palm was exceptionally fast, and Qu Xiang had no time to dodge. He was directly hit by the me Palm and rolled on the arena.
Liu Ling used only thirty percent of his strength in this attack; otherwise, with Qu Xiang''s level of strength, Liu Ling could have defeated him with just a palm.
After being hit by the me Palm, Qu Xiang suffered severe injuries and eximed, "I concede, Senior Brother Liu Ling. I concede."
Liu Ling smiled calmly and gracefully left the arena.
On the Elder''s tform, Gu He watched Liu Ling''s performance with a twitch at the corner of his mouth.
This little brat was quite good at pretending, wasn''t he?
The news of Liu Ling defeating his opponent with a single move quickly spread, earning him considerable fame.
Next, Xiao Yi Xian and Nn Yanran took their turns on the stage.
There was no suspense. Following Liu Ling''s example, both Nn Yanran and Xiao Yi Xian swiftly defeated their opponents with a single move.
With their current strength, the inner disciples were no match for them.
As the inner-doorpetition progressed, time quickly passed, and in the blink of an eye, three days had gone by.
At this moment, the inner-doorpetition had reached the third round.
In the end, only eight elite disciples remained, including Senior Sister Nn and the others.
The final results were obvious. Once again, the top three spots were dominated by Liu Ling and the other two.
Xiao Yi Xian, with a cultivation level of a four-star Dou Grandmaster, secured a position among the top participants.
Liu Ling, with a cultivation level of a nine-star Dou Master, took the second position.
Senior Sister Nn, with a cultivation level of a Six-star Dou Master, imed the third position.
This oue was difficult for both the inner disciples and the elders to ept.
Two alchemists took the top two spots?
Senior Sister Nn only ranked third?
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