Chapter 1628: Crisis

Could she truly be content with her disciple marrying him?

But this truly wasn't like Yan Xuehen's character. Shouldn't she have coldly told this man to get lost? Not killing him would already be an act of mercy, so how could she allow him to pester her disciple?

What he found even harder to comprehend was Yan Xuehen's gaze. When she looked at Zu An, there seemed to be something special in her eyes, something he had never seen before. He couldn't quite grasp its meaning, but it made him feel a little uneasy.

However, he quickly chuckled to himself. What was he thinking? He was almost jealous of a young junior.

Soon, the disciples' assessments from various sects were complete. Some were joyful, others sorrowful. There were well-known chief disciples like Wu Xiaofan, and also dark horses who emerged suddenly, such as Pei Mianman. Everyone was speculating who would win the championship and who would secure second place in their group—first place was generally assumed to belong to the nine chief disciples, a position others didn't even dare to dream of.

During the drawing of lots for group assignments, the elders from each sect delivered their final motivational speeches before the grand competition.

Guan Chouhai said to Zhi Yin, "It's indeed a bit surprising that Wu Xiaofan and Wan Guiyi have broken through to Grandmaster level. However, don't be intimidated. Realm doesn't represent ultimate combat power; it's also related to combat skills, practical adaptability, mindset, and so on. You're just a step away from Grandmaster yourself, so there's no qualitative gap between you and them. As long as you respond properly, you might very well win."

"Thank you for your guidance, Master!" Zhi Yin nodded, a fierce fighting spirit rekindling in his eyes.

After all, he was Li Hentian's most outstanding disciple. Although he had fallen for Chu Chuyan at first sight, his life wasn't solely about love. Stimulated by Wu Xiaofan and Wan Guiyi's breakthroughs, his pride was reawakened. Hadn't he diligently cultivated for so many years precisely to make a spectacular impression at this grand competition?

Soon, the drawing of lots was completed, and the Peak Master of Guanxin Peak announced the official start of the grand competition. The matches for the nine groups would proceed simultaneously, as Zhengyang Sect had already designated nine areas to serve as arenas.

Fortunately, the Golden Summit was spacious enough to accommodate them.

Each arena was jointly protected by various restrictions set by Zhengyang Sect's peak masters and elder-level figures, to prevent damage from the lingering energy of the competing disciples' battles.

Disciples from each sect ascended the stages in the order determined by the draw.

At this moment, Xie Daoyun returned to Zu An's side and shook her head slightly at him. She had just investigated the surroundings and found no traces of a killing array. Fearing her cultivation might be insufficient, she had even secretly tried the method her teacher taught her, but still got no reaction.

Zu An smiled and said to her, "That's a good thing! Now you can properly enjoy your break and watch the elite matches of the Nine Daoist Sects. You might even gain some insights by analogy."

Xie Daoyun hummed in agreement and stood meekly by his side. Although the National Academy had excellent faculty and abundant resources, she indeed lacked practical combat experience. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been in such a predicament when she traveled alone from the capital and was cornered by Shuanglong Mountain.

Soon the matches began. Xie Daoyun had initially expected dazzling and spectacular fights, but to her surprise, victory or defeat was often decided within just a few rounds.

Seeing her disappointed expression, Zu An explained with a smile, "Contests between masters are often decided in an instant. It's truly rare to see evenly matched battles."

"I see," Xie Daoyun mused, her heart tensing. As she observed more closely, she gradually discerned more details: the initial probing between competitors, and the swift, decisive strikes once an opportunity arose. She felt like she was learning things she hadn't understood before.

Zu An's gaze, however, was mainly fixed on Pei Mianman; he paid little attention to the outcomes of others' matches.

Finally, Pei Mianman appeared, and gasps of awe once again echoed around.

Clearly, this woman's visual impact was immense. Crucially, beyond her striking physique, she also possessed a vibrant and perfect face, along with a bright and captivating smile, making it hard for anyone not to feel drawn to her.

"Qingxu Manor, Yuan Kun, please... please enlighten me." A young disciple bowed to her, his voice noticeably trembling.

Naturally, it wasn't out of fear, but rather extreme excitement.

After all, competing on the same stage with such a goddess-like figure would inevitably involve physical contact. What if they developed mutual admiration during the match, became friends afterward, and perhaps even advanced their relationship further...

"Pei Mianman of Biluo Palace. I hope Senior Brother will go easy on me," Pei Mianman said with a sweet smile. Seeing her smile, Yuan Kun on the opposite side immediately felt a little dizzy.

"Miss Pei is truly beautiful, and her smile is exquisite," even Xie Daoyun, also a woman, couldn't help but exclaim.

Zu An chuckled wryly. "Big Manman" was always like this, smiling sweetly at everyone. But if anyone truly believed she was interested in them, they'd likely suffer a great loss.

As expected, when Yuan Kun heard her ask him to go easy, although he kept admonishing himself to remain calm, his heart was already pounding so hard he felt like his soul would leap out.

Although her cultivation realm was high, his wasn't low either. And such a delicate junior sister, he presumed, probably wasn't very skilled in combat.

He mused, he would let her have three moves first to show his gallantry, then prolong their exchange to extend their time together, and finally find an opportunity to defeat her, making her admire his strength...

But as soon as this thought arose, he suddenly felt a wave of black flames assaulting him.

He paled in shock, hastily raising his sword to block. But who knew the black flames were incredibly powerful, instantly incinerating the sword in his hand to ashes.

He was greatly alarmed, frantically trying to circulate various cultivation techniques and combat skills to disperse the black flames. Alas, no matter how hard he tried, the black flames clung to him like a gangrene. In desperation, he had to tear off his sleeve and somersault completely off the arena; only then did the black flames retract.

Pei Mianman sweetly bowed her hands, "Senior Brother, you yielded the victory."

Yuan Kun's expression was awkward, as if he wanted to cry but couldn't.

Just moments ago, he had found her smile dazzlingly bright, but now he felt a chill down his spine.

He still had so many trump cards he hadn't used, yet he was knocked off the stage without even touching her clothes.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, he was too embarrassed to say anything and slinked away after a perfunctory bow.

Many spectators nearby erupted in murmurs. No one had ever expected this delicate beauty to be so incredibly powerful, with visibly explosive combat abilities. From then on, no one dared to judge a book by its cover.

"Miss Pei is amazing!" Xie Daoyun exclaimed, her mouth agape in surprise.

Zu An was also somewhat surprised. "Big Manman's" cultivation had improved significantly recently. It seemed Biluo Palace truly lived up to its reputation as an established, prominent family among the Daoist sects, possessing profound foundations.

Qiu Honglei also sighed, "I heard about her remarkable talent back in Brightmoon City. Seeing her now, she seems no weaker than me."

"Indeed, she's not weaker than you; she's even hidden some of her strength," Yun Jianyue said, a headache beginning to form. "Why are all the women around that boy such prodigies?"

Qiu Honglei said with a hint of pride, "My Azu is just that capable."

Yun Jianyue was speechless.

*My foolish disciple, is this really something to be happy about?*

On the other side, Yan Xuehen's eyes narrowed. She, too, naturally noticed the abnormality and felt some concern. Qiu Honglei of the Demonic Sect was already a formidable opponent, and now this Pei Mianman was also incredibly powerful.

Wang Wuxie's eyes also flashed with a hint of surprise, but his expression quickly turned amused. After all, this female disciple wasn't in the same group as Wu Xiaofan, so there would likely be a good show to watch later.

The subsequent matches were unremarkable, though there were a few minor dark horses. Despite having lower cultivation realms, they managed to defeat opponents of a higher rank. However, the difference was usually just one rank; challenging across too many ranks was almost impossible.

When it was time for the seeded contestants from various sects to compete, their opponents generally looked disheartened, and most chose to concede automatically.

Normally, some strong cultivators might have mustered the courage to fight a great battle, for even if they lost, the experience of clashing with these individuals would be invaluable.

However, in this grand competition, besides the group winners directly advancing, the top eight second-place finishers from the groups would undergo a brutal elimination round.

They not only needed to win as many matches as possible within their own group to secure a spot in the elimination round, but also had to prepare for that round. With so many matches to be completed within just a few days, expending too much energy against a chief disciple could put them at a disadvantage in subsequent matches.

However, not everyone lacked nerve. For instance, Peng Wuyan's opponent—perhaps because Kongming Island had always been ranked at the bottom among the Nine Daoist Sects, and Peng Wuyan herself wasn't particularly famous—her opponent decided to go all-in. They thought that if they could defeat this relatively weaker chief disciple, they would secure first place in their group and avoid the brutal second round of eliminations.

Unfortunately, reality was harsh. He was quickly knocked off the stage by Peng Wuyan and sustained a significant injury, clearly unable to fight for a while, thus withdrawing directly from the race for the remaining spots.

*That ugly woman truly acts mercilessly!*

The surrounding disciples looked at the woman on stage with eyes filled with awe and dread.

Zu An, however, could understand why she struck so heavily. It was clearly to kill a chicken to scare the monkeys. Otherwise, if others saw her as an easy target and came to challenge her one by one, even if she could defeat them, she would still expend a lot of energy. This would put her at a disadvantage when facing other chief disciples later. It was better to solve the problem once and for all.

As for the seriously injured disciple, he deserved it. If he was going to gamble, he should have been prepared to either 'win luxury and leisure' or 'lose and work himself to the bone'.

However, the injured disciple's sect didn't see it that way. An elder from Mount Luofu stepped forward to challenge, "This Miss Peng's strike was so heavy, it clearly violates the previous competition rules. By rights, her qualification should be revoked!"

Yun Jianyue, who had been reveling in watching her beloved disciple thoroughly defeat the Daoist elite contestants, instantly flew into a rage upon hearing this. "Nonsense! He was simply inferior in skill; what does that have to do with my disciple!"

Rebuked in such a manner, Elder Xu, the leader from Mount Luofu, could no longer sit still. "Just now, Sect Master Wang explicitly stated that matches should stop at the point of injury, yet your disciple, who clearly could have won easily, struck so heavily that she crippled our disciple, preventing him from participating in any further matches. This is naturally a violation and should be punished."

Qiu Honglei on the stage felt a pang of panic. After all, she hailed from the Demonic Sect, and her instinct was to 'kill one to warn a hundred'. She never expected the Daoist sects to have so many rules. If a real commotion broke out and her identity was exposed, it would be truly dangerous.