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墨書 Inktalez
The grand competition officially began the next day.
Overnight, a towering platform appeared beneath Skyward Peak, measuring twenty zhang in width and height. The entire structure was made of large timber, entwined with vibrant vines and white flowers, leaving everyone puzzled about how Heavenly Grain managed to accomplish this overnight.
On the platform sat a row of wide Grandmaster Chairs, with the Sect Master in the center, flanked by the eight major sect leaders, the two Masters of the Grain from Heavenly Grain, the leader of the Five Elements Sect, and the palace master of Qixia Palace. Behind them were dozens of chairs occupied by elder brothers and elders from various sects.
These individuals were all prominent figures and elites of the current Immortal Sect.
The previous day's display by Heavenly Grain had opened the eyes of many smaller sects and loose cultivators. They expected an even grander spectacle today, but to their surprise, Qing Yizi merely stood up to deliver a brief opening statement before announcing the start of the competition, with the first event being the Treasure Competition.
The rules were straightforward: Heavenly Grain spanned a hundred miles, and participants had to use their flying treasures to reach the end—where people from Heavenly Grain awaited—and retrieve a Mushroom Grass. They had to return within the time it takes for a stick of incense to burn.
With a command given, all participating disciples activated their flying treasures. Among the Nine Major Sects, only Kunlun had no disciples participating; each sect had at least thirty to fifty participants. The Nine Li Sect had only eighteen disciples competing, making them one of the smallest groups. Adding in those from smaller sects who joined for fun, there were no fewer than a thousand participants in this first event.
In an instant, the area below the platform was filled with flashing sword lights and bustling crowds.
Li Hong also summoned Lingyi and leaped into the air. Around him, Chu Huai, Chuxuan, Chu Xi, Chuxiong, and others jumped onto their Flying Swords as well.
On the platform, Xuan Xuzi personally lit a thick incense stick. As soon as the first wisp of blue smoke rose, his gentle voice echoed throughout Heavenly Grain: "The timer starts now!"
The sound of whooshing filled the air as everyone shot forward like arrows released from bows, soaring over a hundred zhang in an instant. Only then did Li Hong lightly tap his toes to urge Lingyi upward.
It wasn't that he didn't want to go fast; it was just that at the start, the crowd was too congested. Bumping into others was inevitable; colliding with someone from his own side would be even worse. Moreover, having heard that the rules for this first event were quite simple, he knew that simplicity often concealed tricks. This meant that participants could push others off their Flying Swords or even knock them down; if someone failed to retrieve a Mushroom Grass, they would lose. Thinking this way himself likely meant many others would too, so he chose to avoid confrontation. With his speed on his sword, he wouldn't need much time to cover a hundred miles within an incense stick's duration.
Seeing that even the slowest participants were already more than ten miles away from him, Li Hong finally began to accelerate Lingyi. However, he still wasn't going at full speed. After flying about sixty or seventy miles out, he started encountering those who were returning.
Li Hong frowned, realizing he had overlooked something. With a thought, Awareness quickly surged from the Yongquan point into Lingyi, causing Lingyi to shine brilliantly as it suddenly accelerated and sped towards the finish line.
Four figures of Iridescence rushed towards him; the Emei Four Swords had finally appeared, each holding a piece of Mushroom Grass, rapidly closing in on Li Hong.
Li Hong furrowed his brow again; what he had just overlooked was indeed them. If they reached the Mushroom Grass first, they would undoubtedly create all sorts of obstacles. As expected, they were coming.
The Emei Four Swords exchanged glances and formed a line, quickly squeezing towards Li Hong. He knew he couldn't confront them head-on. With a swift turn of thought, Lingyi darted sideways, tracing a large arc and leaving the Emei Four Swords far behind.
With a whoosh, several more figures approached from the opposite side, some of their faces vaguely familiar. The large swords with hilts at their feet clearly indicated they were from Emei. They had evidently conspired with the Emei Four Swords; while the latter confronted Li Hong directly, these few were flanking him from the side.
This left Li Hong's path completely blocked. He could clearly see the gloating expressions on the faces of those approaching from the front; one fellow even had his nose hair sticking out prominently.
Li Hong inwardly cursed; Tian Ji's Horse Racing—these guys were meant to be sacrificed.
As they were about to collide, Li Hong sneered coldly and suddenly flew backward, upside down towards the sky, with Lingyi seemingly glued to his feet. The few individuals screamed as they sped past beneath him, stunned by Li Hong's unexpected maneuver and stopping to look back in confusion.
Li Hong quickly righted himself and dashed towards the finish line.
That backward maneuver was not something just anyone could pull off. Li Hong smiled proudly.
At the finish line, several large tables were lined up, each adorned with a basket filled with Mushroom Grass. The Mushroom Grass was nearly depleted at this point. Without stopping, he propelled himself directly towards the table and swiftly grabbed some Mushroom Grass from the basket just as the Pharmacist crouched down in surprise, then immediately shot back in the opposite direction.
A disgruntled shout rang out behind him: "Hey brother, could you at least give us a heads-up before pulling off such a risky move!"
Li Hong did not look back at all. He clasped his hands behind him on Lingyi and instantly soared away, his figure remarkably graceful.
The Pharmacists exclaimed in admiration, "Indeed, they are from the Nine Li Sect. Just look at how masterfully they wield the Flying Sword; our Heavenly Grain's swordsmanship is nowhere near this level!"
The small incident with the Emei Four Swords did not significantly affect Li Hong. On his way back, he simply avoided any suspected Emei individuals to prevent confrontation. Soon, he spotted the high platform beneath the distant Peak.
As long as he flew to the platform and submitted the Mushroom Grass while recording his name, he would pass the first stage of the competition.
As he approached the platform, a familiar figure caught Li Hong's attention. It was Chuxiong, flying low with his fiery red Flowing Fire sword, moving hesitantly and looking around. Li Hong found it puzzling why he was acting this way.
Li Hong quickly flew over.
Chuxiong was both anxious and angry. Upon seeing Li Hong, he shouted, "Brother, you arrived just in time! I don't know which idiot bumped into me; I lost my grip on the Mushroom Grass and it fell! Brother, please help me find it!"
Li Hong's heart sank. He did not immediately help Chuxiong look for the Mushroom Grass but instead looked up at the platform.
The thick mushroom was reduced to a short stub.
Below was a patch of grass about half a person's height, making it difficult to find the green Mushroom Grass that had fallen into it. Li Hong pondered; perhaps it was better if they couldn't find it. If Chuxiong were eliminated, he wouldn't have to enter the dangerous Ancient Celestial Field. Just as he thought about expressing this idea delicately, he noticed four figures below the platform gleefully watching them. Zhu Xue was laughing so hard that her flowers seemed to tremble, and a piece of green something in her snow-white palm stood out conspicuously.
The Emei Four Swords! It turned out they were behind this again; one scheme failed, and now they were causing trouble for Chuxiong. This was no longer just about Chuxiong's safety but a significant issue for the Nine Li Sect's reputation. Li Hong frowned and shouted, "You go left, I'll go right; we must find it!"
"Okay!" The honest Chuxiong nodded vigorously and immediately flew toward the left side of the grassland on his sword.
Li Hongfei moved to the right, first flying close to the ground for a while, then quietly took something out from his embrace and quickly soared in front of Chuxiong, pulling his arm and deliberately laughing loudly, "Seventh Junior Brother, look! I found it!"
Chuxiong was overjoyed and, without taking a closer look, grabbed the Mushroom Grass and swiftly headed down the high platform with Li Hong.
As soon as they remembered the names, Xuan Xuzi's voice echoed throughout the valley: "Time's up!"
The faces of the Emei Four Swords suddenly turned very strange. Zhu Xue bit her lip in indignation and suddenly pointed at Li Hong, shouting, "He cheated!"
The scene fell silent as everyone looked at Zhu Xue and Li Hong. The prominent figures of the Immortal Sect on the high platform stepped forward to look down.
Li Hong stood with his hands behind his back on Lingyi, five feet off the ground, looking calm. He smiled and asked, "Zhu Xue, the Fairy, why do you say that? What makes you think I cheated?"
"You clearly took an extra Mushroom Grass to give to your junior brother; that's cheating!" Zhu Xue shouted defiantly.
"Oh? With so many eyes watching, everyone saw me find the Mushroom Grass that my junior brother dropped. Why is it only you who insists that I took an extra Mushroom Grass? Could it be that you deliberately caused my junior brother to fall? Or did you hide my junior brother's Mushroom Grass? Perhaps it's even in your hand?" Li Hong responded with a smile.
Zhu Xue was instantly speechless; her left hand shrank back into her sleeve, and the short green object disappeared.
Seeing the situation turn unfavorable, Azure Sky quickly chimed in: "You say you didn't take an extra one; are you brave enough to come with me to the finish line and confront the Pharmaceutical Apprentices?"
"Sure!" Li Hong replied cheerfully. Suddenly he spoke sternly: "If it's proven that I didn't take an extra one, all four of you must apologize to me! Do you think our Nine Li Sect people are easy to bully? You four squeezed me out earlier and later played tricks on my Seventh Junior Brother! Justice is in people's hearts; all the masters on the high platform are watching!" With that, he swiftly flew in front of Zhu Xue and said sternly, "Let's go! Confront them at the finish line!"
The arena fell silent; everyone was stunned by Li Hong's fierce demeanor.
Spirit Stone had long been standing at the edge of the platform, stroking his beard with confidence. He observed the faces of the Emei Four Swords changing from pale to flushed, while Emei Sect Leader Yiyang looked so gloomy he seemed about to drip water. With a roll of his eyes, he lazily stepped forward and spoke, “Old Six, do not be rude. Heh heh, we are all of the same sect; let’s just have a bit of fun and call it a day. Shouldn’t you apologize to your four senior brothers and sisters?”
Li Hong stood proudly, unmoving, and after a moment disdainfully replied, “I will apologize!” He clasped his hands and immediately turned to fly away. Chuxiong followed him.
The scene fell silent; those from the smaller sects were left speechless, thinking to themselves how impressive the disciple of the Nine Li Sect was!
“This child!” Spirit Stone scratched his head but deliberately chose not to elaborate further, looking towards Yiyang.
Yiyang had no choice but to speak up: “You four come here! How dare you shout in front of the sect leader and all the elders? Let me show you how I will punish you!” As he spoke, he cupped his hands in apology towards Xuan Xuzi, yet still couldn’t bring himself to apologize to Ling Xuzi.
Ling Xuzi smiled lightly, neither speaking nor showing any anger.
Xuan Xuzi watched this scene with a smile and then said, “The children are fine; it’s nothing serious. Now let’s announce the rules for the second competition.”
However, Li Hong did not hear the rules for the second competition; he had already flown back to the Reception Hall. There was no need for him to listen; someone would inform him later. But Chuxiong, still puzzled, couldn’t help but whisper, “Big Brother, did you take that Mushroom Grass or did you find it?”
Li Hong smiled slightly but did not answer; the answer was obvious.
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