Sixty years of blacksmithing, a single hammer blow forging a celestial being.

On the second day,

The sun shines brightly in the sect square.

The huge square was now packed with people, and the noise was deafening.

At this moment, almost all the sect's miscellaneous disciples and a few outer disciples have gathered here.

Because the sect suddenly issued a major policy, which required all handymen disciples over the age of sixty to prove their abilities by competing in the arena.

Those who are eliminated will be expelled from the sect, while only the winners can remain in the sect.

If you don't participate, it's considered a voluntary withdrawal, and you have to pack your bags and leave.

Many of the handyman disciples who were over sixty years old chose to abstain from this policy.

However, many of the menial disciples still yearned for the path to immortality, or perhaps they felt that although being a menial disciple involved dirty and tiring work within the sect was acceptable...

However, there are some things that cannot be obtained in the mortal world, so even if there is no hope of cultivating immortality, they still want to continue to live a miserable life in the sect.

Most of the participating disciples were in the Body Tempering stage, while a few managers or long-time servants were in the early Qi Refining stage.

The arena is randomly assigned, and only one round is played. The winner can stay in the sect.

There's an element of luck involved.

If you are a disciple at the fifth level of Body Tempering, but are assigned to the third level, it is still possible to stay in the sect.

Or, if you are a disciple at the ninth level of Body Tempering, which is already considered strong, but you are assigned to a Qi Refining stage disciple, then there is no hope at all.

Even if you fail, you'll still be kicked out of the sect!

On the high platform, Manager Wang, with bandages wrapped around his hands, was sitting on a stool, eating an apple with an air of nonchalance.

"Manager, do you think Li Ping'an can defeat his opponent?"

Manager Wang frowned and said...

"That old guy is really lucky, he actually got assigned to Zeng Xing from the Herbalist's Hall. Although he's at the eighth level of Body Tempering, I heard he was injured recently, so it's really hard to say what will happen now."

He remembered the last time in the abandoned hall, he was about to kill Li Ping'an, but the old man suddenly became agile and nimble, with amazing martial arts skills, and there was also a faint fluctuation of spiritual energy on his body.

He even pulled out a golden talisman, which he then used to trick himself, causing him to suffer a hidden loss.

Now, observing Li Ping'an's aura more closely, he no longer resembled a frail old man. The level of body refinement he possessed was not just the third level, but at least higher.

He was worried that if Zeng Xing lost this time, their subsequent plans would be impossible to implement.

"Manager, I don't think I can beat Zeng Xing! After all, Zeng Xing is at the 8th level of Body Tempering, and even if he's injured, he's still far superior to that old man."

The younger brother poured a cup of tea for Steward Wang and then spoke in response to him.

Manager Wang, however, seemed preoccupied and nodded absentmindedly.

Zeng Xing cannot afford to lose; their plans cannot be ruined!

Zeng Xing's injury was minor and didn't cause any serious damage.

Even if Li Ping'an concealed his strength, how much strength could an old man who spends all day in the abandoned hall accumulate without any resources?

Furthermore, Senior Brother Zhang also gave Zeng Xing a Qi and Blood Pill, which gave Zeng Xing confidence.

Thinking of this, his mood improved slightly.

Before the arena match, Manager Wang found Zeng Xing and told him that he must kill Li Ping'an on the arena. If he couldn't win, he could swallow a Qi and Blood Pill at the most critical moment, which would double his strength and make him crush his opponent no matter what.

Zeng Xing patted his chest and guaranteed that even without the Qi and Blood Pill, he could easily crush Li Ping'an.

Manager Wang also kindly reminded Zeng Xing:

I'm afraid that old bastard Li Ping'an is hiding his true strength. I must be careful on the stage. If my momentum is not right, I must take the Qi and Blood Pill. Although it will have a backlash on my body, there will be a way to control it.

at the same time,

Two female disciples dressed in inner sect attire stood behind the crowd, silently watching the competition on the arena and observing Li Ping'an.

One was about eighteen or nineteen years old, and the other was about twenty-seven or twenty-eight.

She was young and had a pure and charming appearance. Her big eyes blinked curiously as she looked around, as if she was interested in everything.

The other is graceful and elegant, exuding the charm of a mature woman.

It was Qingyue and Hongling; they had also come to watch Li Ping'an's match.

"Senior Sister, do you think my little brother can win this arena fight?"

Qingyue blinked her big eyes, her face full of worry.

"I don't know what the sect is up to, what kind of policy is this? Isn't this driving away all the older disciples? Why do they have to do this?"

Hongling remained calm, her beautiful eyes fixed on the noisy crowd below, her tone resolute.

"Don't worry, Li Ping'an is very shrewd; he will definitely win."

Ever since her encounter with Li Ping'an in the alchemy room, Hong Ling knew that the old man's cultivation was far more advanced than it appeared!

It's at least 90% of body tempering, and possibly even higher!

Therefore, she was not worried at all about Li Ping'an being eliminated in this arena competition.

The square was noisy for a long time, with crowds moving about, various discussions, and loud noises.

Just then, a figure swept across the horizon and landed directly on the high platform in the center of the square.

He was an elderly man with white hair and beard, wearing a blue Taoist robe, and with a solemn face.

"quiet!"

Instantly, a powerful spiritual energy burst forth from his body, clearly reaching the ears of every disciple, even causing them to feel dizzy.

This person is incredibly strong!

Everyone was taken aback.

This elder has clearly reached the Golden Core realm, which explains his immense spiritual pressure.

It seems the sect takes this arena quite seriously, having even sent a Golden Core realm elder to oversee it.

For a moment, everyone began to whisper among themselves.

The elder then announced loudly from the high platform,

"This arena competition is also in response to the sect's policy of reducing the sect's aging population and selecting truly capable disciples to continue serving in the sect. As for those who are indeed old and frail and unable to continue serving in the sect, they will be properly resettled."

"Now, the arena battle officially begins!"

With the elder's announcement, the participating disciples, who had already formed their own formations, all stood at attention.

As the steward holding the list read out the names, they came up to the stage to compete.

Actually, the competition itself wasn't very interesting. They were all disciples in the Body Tempering stage who didn't even know any spells and could only fight with their physical bodies. They managed to unleash a little bit of spiritual energy, but it wasn't very exciting.

Some of them didn't even know how to fight, and when they went up there, their stances looked like two old men fighting, making them a laughing stock.

Many outer disciples below the stage shook their heads. This was indeed a menial disciple, and could only ever be a menial disciple.

The matches in the ring were very quick, and sometimes the winner was decided in just one or two moves.

As one team after another finished, it was soon Li Ping'an's turn.

"Li Ping'an, Zeng Xing, come up on stage to compete!"