I gain ten years' worth of cultivation every day, and even geniuses will only see my doorstep!

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

When the stone gate opened again, the other nine people rushed out as if they were fleeing.

Only Qin Yuan walked out slowly, his expression calm.

On the open ground outside Tianchi Lake, the elders of each peak had been waiting for a long time.

Upon seeing their disciples emerge, the elders rushed forward, ready to inquire about their gains.

But when they saw the grief-stricken expressions on their disciples' faces, they were stunned.

"What happened?" the Third Peak Elder asked his disciple, frowning. "How was the harvest?"

The disciple cried out, "Elder... the essence of Heavenly Pool... was drained dry by Qin Yuan alone..."

"What?!"

Exclamations of surprise rose and fell.

The elders from all the peaks had heard what had happened, and their gazes toward Qin Yuan became extremely complicated.

Shock, jealousy, disbelief... and a hint of fear.

To drain the Heavenly Pool in three days and break through to the Nine-Turn Golden Core stage... this was beyond their comprehension.

Elder Xu laughed heartily, patting Qin Yuan on the shoulder: "Good! Good! Good! Our Fifth Peak is finally about to produce a true disciple!"

His words were loud and clear, and the other elders looked even more unpleasant.

Back at the Fifth Peak, Elder Xu summoned Qin Yuan to the meditation room and took out a thick booklet.

"This is a list of the thirty true disciples within the sect," Elder Xu said. "Although their cultivation levels are not listed, from what I understand, the top ten true disciples are at least in the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm. The first and second place disciples have even touched the threshold of the Nascent Soul realm. Most of the others are at the peak of the early Golden Core stage."

Qin Yuan opened the booklet.

There are thirty names, each followed by the mountain to which it belongs and a brief description.

His gaze fell on the section for the seventh peak.

[27th Place: Zhao Wuji, a true disciple of the Seventh Peak, at the peak of the early Golden Core stage, fond of pleasure, and skilled in fire-based magic.]

"That's him." Qin Yuan closed the booklet.

Elder Xu nodded: "Zhao Wuji is a talented man, but he is impetuous and pleasure-seeking. He is recognized as the weakest among the thirty true disciples. You have just broken through to the Golden Core stage, so it is appropriate to choose him as your practice partner."

"However," he paused, "the challenge to become a true disciple must be held publicly on the 'Discussion Platform,' where many disciples and elders will watch. If you win, you will become the new true disciple, while Zhao Wuji will be demoted to a personal disciple. This concerns the reputation of the Seventh Peak, and they might try to sabotage it."

"It's alright," Qin Yuan said calmly.

He got up and walked outside.

"Shall we go now?"

"Let's go now."

On the main peak, in a luxurious cave dwelling.

Zhao Wuji reclined on the jade couch, with a beautiful female cultivator on each side massaging his shoulders and legs. Two maids knelt before the couch, one carrying a fruit platter and the other a wine pot.

The cave was decorated in an extremely luxurious manner, with the floor covered with the fur of demonic beasts, the walls inlaid with glowing crystals, and a faint fragrance permeating the air.

"Senior Brother Zhao, I heard that Qin Yuan has broken through to the Golden Core stage," a female cultivator said softly. "Will he come to challenge you?"

Zhao Wuji scoffed, taking the grapes offered by the maid: "A mere brat who just broke through dares to challenge me? I spent five years cultivating at the early Golden Core stage, my spiritual power is abundant, and my spells are masterful. What does he have to fight me with?"

"But..." another female cultivator hesitated, "I heard that he absorbed all the essence in the Heavenly Pool and condensed the Nine-Turn Golden Elixir..."

"Nine-Turn Golden Elixir?" Zhao Wuji sat up, a hint of jealousy flashing in his eyes, but it quickly turned into disdain. "So what? No matter how high the quality of the Golden Elixir is, it still needs time to transform into combat power. When I first broke through to the Golden Elixir stage, wasn't I also full of vigor? And what happened? I was taught a lesson by a veteran disciple and lost my way."

He lay back down, lazily saying, "Don't worry, as long as that kid isn't stupid, he won't come looking for me. Even if he does... humph, I'll show him what the true strength of a veteran disciple is all about."

No sooner had the words been spoken than a report came from outside the cave:

"Senior Brother Zhao! Qin Yuan from the Fifth Peak has issued a challenge to your mastery on the Dao Discussion Platform!"

Zhao Wuji was taken aback, then laughed angrily, "Fine! Fine! There really are people who aren't afraid of death!"

He pushed aside the female cultivator beside him, stood up, and straightened his robes: "Let's go! To the debate platform! Today I'll teach that brat what respect for hierarchy really means!"

The Debate Platform is located halfway up the main peak of the sect. It is a blue stone platform with a diameter of about 100 feet. The surface of the platform is engraved with intricate array patterns, and there are spectator seats around it. At this moment, hundreds of disciples have gathered.

The challenge of the true disciple is a major event in the Xuan Yuan Sect.

The challenger is Qin Yuan, who has been in the spotlight recently.

"I heard that Senior Brother Qin absorbed all the essence in Tianchi and condensed a Nine-Turn Golden Elixir!"

"A Nine-Turn Golden Elixir! Our Xuan Yuan Sect hasn't produced one in a hundred years, has it?"

"But he's only just broken through, while Senior Brother Zhao Wuji is a veteran disciple..."

That's why it's worth watching!

Amidst the discussions, Qin Yuan slowly walked onto the platform for exchanging ideas.

He wore a simple gray robe, but the aura of a Golden Core cultivator emanating from him made all the disciples watching the battle shudder.

A moment later, Zhao Wuji also arrived.

He was dressed in a brocade robe, with a jade belt around his waist, and followed by seven or eight followers, making quite a grand entrance. After stepping onto the stage, he glanced sideways at Qin Yuan and sneered, "Junior Brother Qin, you dare to challenge me right after breaking through to the Golden Core stage? Your courage is commendable."

Qin Yuan didn't respond, but instead looked at the elder in charge of the challenge.

The elder nodded and announced loudly, "A true disciple's challenge is a matter of life and death; it continues until one side concedes defeat or loses the ability to fight. Now, let's begin!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhao Wuji made the first move!

He formed hand seals, and his fire elemental power surged wildly around him, transforming into three fire snakes that roared as they lunged at Qin Yuan! Wherever the fire snakes passed, the air distorted and the temperature soared—it was none other than the Yellow-Rank High-Grade Technique, "Three Snakes Burning the Heavens"!

"Senior Brother Zhao used a deadly move right from the start!" a disciple exclaimed.

"This needs to be resolved quickly!"

Faced with the three ferocious fire snakes, Qin Yuan didn't even move a step.

He simply raised his right hand, extended his index finger, and gently tapped the air.

"Disperse."

As the word was uttered, the three fire snakes suddenly froze in mid-air, and then... shattered inch by inch! They turned into countless sparks and vanished without a trace.

Zhao Wuji's pupils suddenly contracted.

How is that possible?!

Although his "Three Serpents Burning Heaven Technique" was only a high-grade Yellow Rank technique, when activated by his peak early Golden Core spiritual power, its power was enough to threaten a mid-Golden Core cultivator! How could Qin Yun break it with a casual tap?!

"I don't believe it!" he roared, his hands forming a seal once more. This time, the fire elemental power transformed into a three-zhang-tall giant fire lion, roaring to the sky as it pounced on Qin Yuan!

The low-grade Xuan-level spell, "Burning Sky Lion's Fury"!

This is Zhao Wuji's trump card, which he used to defeat three challengers!

The giant flaming lion was incredibly powerful, turning the entire arena crimson. The spectators retreated hastily, fearing they might be caught in the aftershocks.

Qin Yuan finally made a move.

He took a step forward.

Just one step.

Then, clench your right fist and punch straight out.

There was no radiance, no extraordinary phenomena, just a simple punch.

But the moment this punch was unleashed, the entire formation of the Dao Discussion Platform trembled violently! Wherever the fist's wind passed, space seemed to be torn open, emitting a piercing shriek!

The fiery lion collided with the fist.

"boom--!!!"

A deafening explosion!

The giant fiery lion couldn't even hold on for a moment before being blasted apart by this punch! The violent force of the punch continued unabated, slamming into Zhao Wuji's chest!

"puff--!!!"

Zhao Wuji coughed up blood, his chest caved in, and he flew backward like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily onto the protective array at the edge of the Dao Discussion Platform before sliding to the ground, his fate unknown.

One punch.

From start to finish, Zhao Wuji only made two moves, while Qin Yuan only threw one punch.

The entire room fell silent.

All the disciples watching the battle stared blankly at the gray-robed figure on the stage, forgetting to breathe.

The elder in charge of law enforcement was stunned for a long time before he announced with difficulty: "The challenge is over... Qin Yuansheng."

He looked at the stone tablet on the platform that recorded the rankings of the true disciples—the name "Zhao Wuji," ranked twenty-seventh, slowly dimmed and disappeared. Then, a new name appeared:

[Rank 27: Qin Yuan, True Disciple of the Fifth Peak, Early Stage of Golden Core.]

At this moment, the entire Xuan Yuan Sect, and everyone who was paying attention to this challenge, felt a tremendous surge of emotion.

The ranking of true disciples, unchanged for thirty years, was shattered today by a single punch from a boy who had been a disciple for less than half a month.