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Chapter 240 Three-in-One Challenge

In fact, some things cannot be fully understood just by looking at them, because matters related to cultivating immortality are inherently mysterious and profound.

For example, the sword-wielding techniques of the Chen Clan Immortals—what kind of Dao principles they incorporate—are beyond the comprehension of anyone outside the Chen Clan Immortals, let alone Ji You's swordplay.

After the duel at the Cangwu Dojo ended, no one except the Lou family patriarch left.

Because they all had questions, specifically why Ji You could use the Ten-Segment Slash.

It should be noted that such secret techniques, like the swordsmanship of Spirit Sword Mountain, have always been kept secret.

"It's not the Ten-Stage Slash."

"no……?"

"No."

Among the spectators were many highly skilled individuals who were able to detect the aura of the spells.

Because magic itself originates from the laws of Heaven, it needs to align with the laws of Heaven in order to be used.

In their observation, when the private cultivator from the Heavenly Academy swung his sword, he did not have that unique magical aura around him.

But Ji You's swordsmanship was indeed getting stronger with each strike, a fact that everyone could clearly see.

If it wasn't the Ten-Stage Slash, then the only explanation is obvious.

Ji You never used his full strength at the beginning, but instead imitated the Ten-Segment Slash, constantly increasing the power.

The Ten-Stage Slash can theoretically borrow the power of heaven and split the heavens with the blade, but the strength that the wielder can wield is limited.

In other words, the force that Chen Ruiyang borrowed for his final strike was something even he himself could not control; not only that, but it also directly backfired on him.

It's like a bucket that can't be filled with water; it's only a matter of time before it bursts.

Therefore, there is no quick sword to break the deadlock; there is only the continuous application of sword strikes.

After figuring this out, everyone, like the head of the Lou family, suddenly understood why Lou Wanpeng chose to withdraw from the competition in the final round of the group stage, and fell silent once again.

Ji You sheathed his sword and left the high platform.

He had no lineage of magical arts, but he had always been very interested in them.

To him, magic was like chemistry and physics in his previous life, hiding the truths that revealed the essence of the world, and he always hoped to see it more clearly.

Sometimes I look too fast and don't see things clearly, so I want to look at them again and again...

After leaving the stage, Ji You and Wen Siyuan met up backstage. After waiting for a while, they still hadn't seen Cao Jingsong and his group return. They figured that they must have been scared off by the arrogant guy and didn't dare to get up first, so they decided to leave first.

At this moment, Cao Jingsong sat upright in front of the young master of Lingjian Mountain, moved but dared not move, his chest pounding with excitement.

Pei Ruyi and Wen Zhengxin secretly glanced at Yan Shuyi's profile, their eyes filled with even greater confusion.
Their positions were to Yan Shuyi's right and slightly behind. Although they weren't looking directly at her, they could still see her expressions.

From the moment they went upstairs, although the young appraiser of Lingjian Mountain appeared approachable, his attitude remained aloof and icy, just as they had seen him at Rusheng Garden that day.

But while watching the competition, they noticed that the little judge's expression suddenly became lively, and her eyes sparkled, as if she had suddenly become a different person.

Especially when the junior brother defeated Chen Ruiyang with his last sword strike, from their perspective, the little appraiser's expression was almost identical to Cao Jingsong's—both were filled with pride.

The young appraiser of Lingjian Mountain seems to admire his junior brother quite a bit.

That's right. Back when the Heavenly Academy went to Spirit Sword Mountain to seek the Dao, many elders of Spirit Sword Mountain wanted to take him as their personal disciple, saying that he was a born swordsman...

However, this kind of appreciation seems a bit too intense.

At the same time, the people from Cangwu Dojo began to leave in silence, and they were still not recovered from the battle even when they reached the vicinity of the island in the middle of the lake.

But the memory of that final sword strike remains deeply etched in my mind, impossible to erase.

At this moment, He Lingxiu, Wang Gaocen, and Xiao Hanyan were sitting together in Rusheng Garden.

Xiao Hanyan won yesterday, but because she secretly used a magical artifact, her victory was not clean. Therefore, she did not go out today and was in a low mood, which made the two of them feel sorry for her and comfort her.

The sacred land of the ancients is a place that every cultivator wants to enter. Even those who are about to break through to the next realm have appeared there. So what's wrong with using magical artifacts? Those people are just sour grapes.

In fact, this was Xiao Hanyan's opinion.

By the third round, the two sides were basically evenly matched, and there was no situation where one side could crush the other with absolute strength. The outcome often depended on the details.

As for her reputation, she'll win it back in the next match.

Meanwhile, people passed by Rusheng Garden one after another, whispering among themselves.

At first, the three of them didn't pay much attention to the gossip, but as more and more people passed by, they couldn't help but start to care.

Because Ji You's name was mentioned many times in those discussions, echoing in one sentence after another.

Those who reach a higher realm of understanding are indifferent to worldly affairs and detached from worldly matters. Therefore, although Ji You rose to fame because of some worldly affairs, he did not attract much special attention from important figures.

In other words, although Ji You has stirred up a lot of trouble in the past two years, he has actually become more transparent at a world-renowned event like the Heavenly Dao Society.

This can be seen from the night of the Gathering of Immortals Banquet. Many people did not know him, and even if they did, they could not match his appearance to his. As a result, he could only wander around aimlessly at the banquet.

The only time he gained some fame was when Lou Wanpeng withdrew from the competition.

Withdrawing from the competition is almost unheard of in the history of the Heavenly Dao Society, so it naturally caused a lot of discussion. The fact that the next contestant for the Lou family member was Junior Brother Ji also drew attention to him.

But the discussion at this moment made the three of them suddenly realize that Ji You seemed to have already become famous in Xianxian Garden.

Before long, a group of disciples from Lingjian Mountain returned to Rusheng Garden. When they reached the blue stone with the inscription "Rising Sun" at the fork in the road, they couldn't help but turn their heads to look at Ji You's house.

The three exchanged glances, somewhat puzzled.

Just then, Qin Rong, dressed in the Heavenly Academy's immortal robes, returned with the head disciple of the Heavenly Academy, also dressed in the same robes. They walked with the wind in their step, heads held high, which made the three of them frown slightly.

Yesterday, the Heavenly Academy was caught in the eye of the storm, so much so that everyone tacitly took off their immortal robes.

Even He Lingxiu and Wang Gaocen, who were comforting Xiao Hanyan, wore ordinary clothes and put their immortal robes into their storage gourds.

The head of the academy had changed into ordinary clothes when he left to watch the battle today, but he returned looking radiant with glory once again...

Chai Ze returned with the rest of the people in charge of affairs.

He won his third round yesterday, and since he had nothing else to do, he went out to watch a few games today.

He then approached the tea table where the three were sitting, turned an upside-down cup around, and looked up at them: "Have you ever seen the Chen Clan's Ten-Stage Slash?"

He Lingxiu frowned slightly: "I saw you at the previous Immortal Tour Gathering."

"how do you feel?"

"It is no wonder that it can be called the strongest offensive technique on par with the swordsmanship of Lingjian Mountain. Such sword techniques can only be avoided and attacked skillfully. If it is to be fought head-on, I am afraid no one can defeat it."

"Ji You clashed head-on with Chen Ruiyang, who wields the Ten-Section Slash, today, and used eight swords to cripple him."

"?"

"Many people were wondering why Lou Wanpeng withdrew from the competition at the last minute, not even willing to give it a try. Now everyone knows the answer."

He Lingxiu stood there stunned for a long time, her red lips slightly parted, looking somewhat dazed.

While they were drinking tea, Ji You had already returned. They asked Ji You how the battle went, and then they heard the word "won" from Ji You.

He Lingxiu had also heard of Chen Ruiyang and knew that this member of the Chen family was extremely powerful. She thought that Ji You must have exhausted a lot of energy and told him to rest well.

But what they didn't expect was that Ji You would win in this way.

The officials from the pro-immortal faction of the Great Xia Dynasty were also somewhat absent-minded, and remained silent after returning.

Before the Heavenly Dao Assembly, they had always thought that although Ji You was strong, he was still not good enough among all the cultivators in the Nine Provinces because he came from the countryside.

For example, phrases like "personally taught by an elder," "personally taught by the temple master," or "son of so-and-so" sound prestigious.

This is a matter of hierarchy. In the rigid mindset of Qingyun Tianxia, ​​two people with vastly different statuses would never be put together to compete at the same time.

But they never expected that even at the Heavenly Dao Assembly, where immortal sects gathered, noble families congregated, and geniuses were everywhere, Ji You would still become famous far and wide.

The Prince Chong's expression was very complicated, while Zhao Yunyue, who was sitting next to him, remained even more silent.

Liu Junchi lost today and was carried away due to serious injuries, failing to advance to the third round. Although the two are not at the same level, the difference is still huge.

Before Ji You could even rest after returning to her house, she was greeted by visitors.

The visitor was Gongshu Chou, the famous masked storyteller from Lingjian Mountain.

Ji You was sitting at the tea table, looking at Gongshu Chou, who was excited, with a somewhat speechless expression.

Gongshu Chou was also a participant in the Heavenly Dao Society. Today, he was defeated by a disciple of the Mountain and Sea Pavilion, but he did not seem upset. Instead, he asked Gongshu Chou to talk about how he defeated Chen Ruiyang today. Gongshu Chou was holding a pen and paper in his hand, and his creative desire was overflowing.

According to him, he had stayed up all night a few days ago to finish writing "Forcing the Elders to Bow Down: My Fate Is in My Own Hands, Not in Heaven's," but he just couldn't stop.

Ji Youxin said, "You deserve to lose! What kind of good person stays up all night writing a book!"

But Gongshu Chou is now completely trapped in his own theory: it's too tiring to be strong myself; it's enough that the opponents who fought me to the death are strong!
Ji You urged him to be more responsible and not to bring shame to Lingjian Mountain, acting as if Lingjian Mountain belonged to him, which left Gongshu Chou completely bewildered.

Then, Wen Siyuan's arrival interrupted their eye contact.

The Director of the Celestial Bureau had just delivered the invitation, which was the list of candidates for the third round of the Heavenly Dao Assembly. He studied the invitation for a while after receiving it, and then sent it over.

"The third round is crucial to the Heavenly Dao Tournament. The format is three to one, meaning that ten out of these thirty people will emerge victorious. I'm sure Junior Brother Ji understands why it's crucial."

Upon hearing this, Ji You looked at Wen Siyuan: "Ten cultivators from each realm can enter the Holy Land of the Sages, and these ten are the ones selected in this third round?"

Wen Siyuan nodded: "That's right. In other words, if you can win the third round, you will have the qualification to enter the Holy Land of the Sages. Junior brother, you are just one step away. Winning the next round will make your trip worthwhile."

"But there are still thirty people in the Tongxuan Realm left. Since the third round is to select ten, the competition format should be changed?"

Wen Siyuan raised his eyes: "Three to one, a ring match."

After the second round of competition, there were thirty people remaining in the Tongxuan Realm. Ten people needed to be selected from among them, and a tournament was the best format.

Therefore, there will be ten arenas in the third round, with ten people defending each arena.

The remaining twenty people are responsible for challenging the champion. If they succeed in challenging the champion, they will be able to replace the champion. This competition system is the same as the preliminary selection of the Heavenly Academy.

According to the usual practice of the Heavenly Dao Society, the champions of the ten arenas are selected by the supervisors, because they have been watching the matches for so long that they naturally have an understanding of the strength of the contestants.

At this point, the list they received contained ten names circled in red.

Ba Yang, Li Yunlang, Wei Bo, Yan Hao, Murong Yu, Zhuang Zixin... but not Ji You.

No one knows what the criteria are for the selection of the champion. Among them are strong and weak, disciples of immortal sects and disciples of aristocratic families. It seems that there is no pattern.

Ji You raised her eyes and looked at Wen Siyuan: "Choose whatever you like?"

Wen Siyuan nodded: "That's right, you can choose any arena you like."

"Wouldn't it be much better to choose the weaker one?"

"Of course, but it's hard to guarantee that no one will secretly hide their strength. That's what happened in the previous Heavenly Dao Gathering. Most people would hold back until the third round. However, some people did pick the weak. You could say they were lucky, but luck is sometimes a part of strength."

After speaking, Wen Siyuan pointed to two people on the list.

The first person was Wei Bo, who had previously watched the battle, and the other was Zheng Lei, from the Zheng family, a family with a thousand-year history.

Although Wei Bo is quite strong, he is not good at offensive tactics, making him the easiest target for Ji You. In addition, Zheng Lei is the weakest of the ten champions in terms of overall strength.

The selection process for the tournament is based on the principle of choosing the weakest among the strongest.

Wen Siyuan pointed to the two names and said, "I suggest you choose these two, junior brother. Of course, Zheng Lei is the best and has the greatest chance of success. I know that junior brother Ji may be clear-headed and may not appreciate this scheme, but then again, it's always good to be able to relax a bit, after all, there is still the finals to come."

Ji You looked at the list without nodding or shaking her head, but instead looked up at him: "How do I challenge the champion? Do I fill out a form?"

During the preliminary rounds of the Heavenly Dao Assembly, challengers need to go to the Management Office to fill out a registration form, which is why he asked this question.

Wen Siyuan nodded: "Junior brother, you just need to write down that person's name, and I will send it to Taiping Garden. After verification, it will be announced and the war can begin. However, I suggest you hurry up, Junior Brother Ji, because as you just said, there should be many candidates who are relatively weak."

Ji You stood up from the tea table and said, "Forget it, I'll go by myself. You've been busy with the competition and gathering information on my opponents these past few days, so you must be tired. Just rest for now. Besides, I have a friend in the Imperial Academy who can pull some strings."

"There's such a thing? That's wonderful..."

"I'm leaving." Gongshu Chou then looked up: "Hey, don't forget about the book."

Ji You turned to look at him: "We'll talk about it when we get back."

Stepping out of the house, Ji You headed towards the outside of Rusheng Garden, where he happened to run into Steward Qin, who had come looking for him.

The major immortal sects and families attach great importance to disciples who can reach the third round, so it is not surprising that they would make a special trip.

Manager Qin had just watched his duel with Chen Ruiyang, and his eyes still held a complicated expression. His purpose in coming was similar to Wen Siyuan's; he also felt that Wei Bo and Zheng Lei were the most suitable match and wanted him to sign the agreement as soon as possible.

Ji You nodded, then left the garden and walked along the road to Taiping Garden.

The Directorate of Immortals is located in the east courtyard of Taiping Garden. It has a special hall that is responsible for handling the affairs of the Heavenly Dao Society. Lou Wanpeng came here when he withdrew from the competition.

Ji You stepped into the hall, explained his purpose, and was presented with two memorials.

One copy is given to the reigning champion, and the other is a receipt he leaves behind, which he needs to use to choose the target to challenge.

In principle, each arena can only be attacked twice. However, before Ji You arrived, someone else had already come here, so the official who received him added that Zheng Lei could no longer make a choice.

What a pitiful fellow...

Ji You muttered something to himself, and then listened to the officials from the Imperial Observatory analyze it for him for a long time.

They said we could watch the first round first, and maybe the person who defeated Zheng Lei wasn't strong either. After the first round, there might be a relatively weak person who could go on stage, and they even said they could secretly save a spot for him.

Although the Sixianjian (司仙监) has the words "Sixianjian" (司仙) in its name, most of the officials serving there come from impoverished backgrounds and have a natural aversion to cultivators, but they feel an inexplicable closeness to Ji You.

This is the difference in perception between immortals and mortals.

However, after thanking him, Ji You still followed his own idea and filled in the champion he had chosen.

Upon seeing the name written by Ji You, the official from the Imperial Observatory paused for a moment, then raised his head and solemnly cupped his hands in greeting.

Has Kuang Cheng returned?

"He hasn't returned yet, but he should have gone to watch the young master's duel. The young master didn't see him?"

"I saw him, but he didn't come back with me. Oh well, I don't have anything important to talk to him about, I'll talk to him next time."

Ji You left one of the challenge letters behind, then turned and left Taiping Garden, returning to Rusheng Garden.

As soon as he entered the house, he found that it was full.

Among them were Wen Siyuan, who had been waiting for his return, Gongshu Chou, who was waiting for him to come back to tell stories, Cao Jingsong and three others, as well as Kuang Cheng and Wei Rui.

Apart from Wen Siyuan, Gongshu Chou, Kuang Cheng, and Wei Rui, the remaining four people all looked excited, with expressions that said, "You probably don't know, but I met the young appraiser of Lingjian Mountain today and even watched the duel with her."

Ban Yangshu, in particular, looked at Ji You with some regret, feeling it was a real pity that her junior brother hadn't seen him.

Kuang Cheng sat nearby, watching their expressions, thinking to himself, "You weren't like this upstairs just now. In front of Fairy Yan, you didn't even dare to breathe loudly."

In particular, Instructor Cao remained motionless, as if he were being tortured in shackles.

What Wei Rui was thinking was, "Is this enough?"

We only watched one of Young Master Ji's duels together. You'll all be dumbfounded when Little Fairy Sister is born.

Wen Siyuan naturally had no idea why they were so agitated, and Cao Jingsong certainly couldn't tell him either. After all, Wen Siyuan was an outsider, and if he were to reveal what happened today, he might be seen as a traitor.

At this moment, the biggest traitor sat down at the table and was met with a questioning gaze from Wen Siyuan: "Junior brother, have you submitted the list of challengers?"

"Yes, I've submitted it."

"It's not too late yet..."

In Wen Siyuan's view, the cultivators gathered here were not stupid; they must be able to see that Zheng Lei was the easiest to challenge among the ten arenas and should be the most popular candidate.

Perhaps by the time Ji You arrived, the spots would already be gone, but unexpectedly, her wish actually came true.

Wen Siyuan reached out and took the receipt from Ji You's hand, thinking to himself that Junior Brother Ji's luck was almost catching up with his talent.

However, as the receipt in his hand was opened, Wen Siyuan's eyes widened in surprise. He then raised his hand to rub his eyes, thinking he had misread it.

However, cultivators generally do not suffer from eye diseases or hallucinations, so even if he rubs his eyelids until they bleed, he cannot change the writing on them.

Cao Jingsong and the others noticed his unusual behavior and couldn't help but take the receipt from his hand. They opened it and glanced at it. After seeing the name "Yan Hao," they couldn't help but exchange glances, and then raised their eyebrows to look at Ji You.

That's a bit inappropriate; Lingjian Mountain is actually quite nice.

Cao Jingsong stared intently at the two words on the reply slip, thinking to himself, "I was originally thinking about finding a job after leaving Tianshu Academy, but now I'm doomed."

Wen Siyuan looked up at Ji You with a puzzled expression: "Junior Brother, what is the reason for your choice?"

"Let's teach Lingjian Mountain a lesson."

"I didn't expect that my junior brother was the one who valued the prestige of our Heavenly Academy the most. However, Yan Hao seems to be holding back in every battle, which isn't very safe..."

Upon hearing this, Cao Jingsong's beard curled crooked. He thought to himself, "Does he still care about Zong Wei? He's thought about going back to being a bandit countless times."

However, it is precisely because people know that the wicked disciple is cunning and treacherous that this choice is even more perplexing.

Gongshu Chou then took the invitation and glanced at it, his expression becoming more serious: "This Yan Hao is no simple character. There are some things I can't tell you, but I advise you to go to Taiping Garden and withdraw this challenge invitation."

Wen Siyuan frowned even more after hearing this, and after thinking for a long time, he finally spoke: "The third round of the 30-to-10 competition is still too risky. If Junior Brother Ji wants to teach them a lesson, he should defeat them after this round..."

Ji You shook her head: "Many people don't actually care about the process, they only care about the result."

"?"

The third round of the challenge matches is less time-sensitive than the previous group matches because the opponents are chosen by the participants themselves. Basically, the match starts whenever someone challenges the champion.

At this time, people from the Imperial Observatory came from Taiping Garden and began posting challenge notices on the bulletin board of the island in the middle of the lake.

The notices for Zheng Lei's event have already been posted and are attracting a crowd of onlookers, with people clicking their tongues and sighing softly.

That's how the Heavenly Dao Society works; if you're not strong enough, you'll inevitably be treated as a pushover. Zheng Lei is the obvious pushover in the third round.

Next to Zheng Lei's challenge notice, Wei Bo's challenge notice was also posted.

Perhaps it was because he was not good at warfare that many people saw it as an opportunity, a point that was similar to what Wen Siyuan thought.

However, after the officials of the Imperial Observatory finished posting Zheng Lei's copy, they still had one left, which attracted everyone's attention even before it was posted.

In their view, the other people were all formidable fighters, and they should be more cautious, especially Yan Hao from Spirit Sword Mountain, whose true strength had yet to be determined by anyone.

The next moment, when the challenge notice was posted on the bulletin board, everyone present couldn't help but stare in disbelief.

Because of this match-up chart, the champion is Yan Hao.

Those present were somewhat taken aback by this scene, and then their eyes moved down to see the challenger's name.

[Tian Shu Academy, Ji You]

Many people in the Eight Immortal Gardens were still discussing the battle between Ji You and Chen Ruiyang. Even some elders of the Immortal Sects who had previously paid little attention to him had become much more concerned about his name.

A boy from the countryside, who privately cultivated to perfection before reaching adulthood, entered the Heavenly Academy, broke through the inner courtyard gate, and stepped into the Heavenly Dao Assembly step by step. This is even more astonishing than the Heavenly Dao Assembly having a contestant who withdraws.

In particular, he confronted a member of the Chen family who had mastered the Ten-Stage Slash technique head-on and crippled him.

Just as they were discussing this, news that Ji You was going to challenge Yan Hao began to spread like wildfire, causing an uproar.

"He chose Yan Hao?"

"Yes, the notice has been posted."

"He actually picked the one that everyone was least confident about. Is he carried away by his winning streak today or what?"

"Those who have made it this far are all strong. Choosing Yan Hao is better than choosing those few who broke through at the last minute, right?"

"Ha, I don't think so..."

The news quickly reached Rusheng Garden, causing the once quiet courtyard to become noisy once again.

The three stewards of the academy, who had just been overjoyed by Ji You's victory, frowned instantly upon hearing this news.

The most intense reaction came from the disciples of Lingjian Mountain in the West Courtyard, who all looked eastward and discussed the matter.

Ding Yao and Zhuo Wanqiu also heard the news, and their expressions were somewhat astonished. They stood on the second floor and stared at each other for a long time.

They naturally knew that Ji You had chosen Yan Hao to challenge the arena in order to help suppress the reputation of Tianjian Peak.

Tianjian Peak has a profound foundation, so even though its own appraiser has mastered the Spirit Appraiser, many disciples with excellent aptitude still choose Tianjian Peak every year.

The number of disciples is related to the distribution of spiritual herbs and taxes, as well as the stability of the foundation. Therefore, the Master has always hoped to weaken the power of Heavenly Sword Peak, but the young master chose the wrong time.

This is a crucial period for advancing from 30 to 10, and the risks are at their highest.

If the son-in-law were wise, he should have gone through the third round first, secured a spot in the top ten, and then considered this matter.

This isn't a question of which is stronger or weaker; rather, this is the most appropriate choice.

Just then, Ding Yao suddenly looked into the courtyard: "Gongshu Chou seems to have gone to the young master's place again and is walking back. I'll go and call him up."

When Gongshu Chou was summoned, he immediately raised his hands to prove his innocence: "Reporting to the judge, I have not leaked any secrets..."

"If there was no leak, what did you talk about?"

"We talked about the duel. I disgraced the sect and lost the duel. Ji You was a little angry, as if he thought I had brought shame to Lingjian Mountain, as if Lingjian Mountain was his own."

Ding Yao was slightly taken aback, then turned her head to look behind her and saw her appraiser's eyelashes trembling slightly.

Zhuo Wanqiu then spoke up: "Do you know why Ji You chose my junior brother Yan Hao from Lingjian Mountain?"

"He did say a few words, but I didn't quite understand them."

"What did you say?"

He said that many people don't actually care about the process, they only care about the result, so it would be more meaningful for him not to even make it into the top ten.

Upon hearing this, Yan Shuyi gently raised her eyes and moved her feet slightly.

The news of the Heavenly Dao Society will surely be relayed back to Kyushu, to Lingjian Mountain, and to the ears of the disciples there.

For the disciples in the mountains, they really didn't care about the process, only the result. So Yan Hao losing in the first ten battles was far less embarrassing than Yan Hao not even making it into the top ten.

This is the Heavenly Dao Assembly; it will completely shake the glory of Heavenly Sword Peak among its disciples.

Yan Shuyi sat upright in the chair, her eyelashes tinged with gold by the candlelight.

Actually, she didn't necessarily want Ji You to defeat him; in the end, she just had a very strong personal desire for him to win.

For her, it wouldn't matter if Ji You didn't defeat Yan Hao; it wouldn't affect the overall situation. But she never expected him to take this matter so seriously.

Yan Shuyi looked up at Gongshu Chou: "Did you tell him that Yan Hao is breaking through to a higher realm and his strength is no longer within the Tongxuan realm?"

Gongshu Chou immediately shook his head: "Reporting to the judge, I did not mention a word about this matter..."

"Then he's doomed."

"What the appraiser says is absolutely right..."

"You and Ji You are very close. Do you know if he has any backup plans or other secret techniques? You can tell Yan Hao so that he can be more careful during the battle."

Gongshu Chou shook his head: "I know nothing about this either."

Yan Shuyi looked at him calmly and said, "Go and find out, then come back and report to me."

“Master, the spirit sword mountain’s sword heart is upright and does not take shortcuts. Moreover, I cannot do the thing of betraying a friend.”

Seeing that the appraiser seemed to want to promote him to deputy sect leader, Ding Yao immediately said, "Never mind, Senior Brother Gongshu has had a long day, go back and rest first."

Gongshu Chou was unaware that his words had opened up a path to great success for him. He bowed deeply and then turned to leave.

However, he had a slight doubt in his heart, thinking that the appraiser's voice just now... was it because he had caught a cold?

(End of this chapter)