I saved the entire sect by playing idly by letting things fall apart.

"..." How arrogant.

Her speech provoked the others, and several chilling gazes fell on her. Ye Qinghan's lips twitched, and he nodded slightly to her, "See you in the individual competition."

"I look forward to seeing what you can do."

After Ye Qiao finished speaking, he didn't even look at the reactions of his disciples. He walked briskly downstairs, intending to take a few people to dinner. However, the elder of the Sword Inquiry Sect came to his senses and called them back.

After several days of struggling in the secret realm, the disciples were now like wilted cabbages, swaying and staggering, showing none of the demeanor expected of disciples.

Staring at the group of his disciples huddled together, seemingly indifferent, the elder frowned deeply, and then began a long and rambling lecture.

"Stand still, what will it look like if those cultivators outside see you all standing like this?"

The group from the Sword Inquiry Sect stood the straightest, each one like a young poplar tree. Ye Qiao pouted and hid behind the Sword Inquiry Sect. She went to the back hoping to use them as cover, but unexpectedly, there was a bunch of fellow cultivators in the back row.

The Sword Inquiry Sect has the best order, thanks entirely to its strict rules and the elders' tireless admonitions.

They've obviously gotten used to it.

The elders knew the children didn't want to hear it, but he was prepared to explain things to them beforehand: "Your future is not a competition, not a game of fighting and playing."

"If you encounter demonic cultivators or evil cultivators, they will not show you any mercy just because you are direct disciples, nor will any elders send anyone to protect you."

"The title of 'personal disciple' is not meant to make you superior, nor is it meant to make you look down on other cultivators."

"Having recognized the vastness of the universe, one still cherishes the green of grass and trees. I hope you can all understand this principle."

"Elder," Ye Qiao, standing at the back, shifted slightly and asked, "What about our previous disciples?"

A grand competition that happens only once every century can't be limited to accepting personal disciples only once in a century.

The elder was about to see which disciple dared to ask such a question when he caught sight of the genius of the Changming Sect. He paused and then explained, "He was martyred."

Countless geniuses have fallen in the cultivation world over the past century. These children lack a sense of crisis; who can predict their future? They will have to walk their own path.

"Next, let's talk about the individual competition." The listless disciples in front immediately stood up straight. The individual competition was related to their personal reputation. Each disciple was already well-known to the cultivators before participating in the competition. The team competition was fine; losing only meant that they were not good enough.

Individual competitions can be a matter of pride!

"The individual competition will be ranked based on points. There are not only direct disciples participating, but also three rounds in total. The first round is mostly for independent cultivators, so whoever is eliminated in the first round should go back to their sect to reflect on their actions."

"The ranking list hasn't been released yet. The top ten are all independent cultivators and disciples from other sects. You can check it out when it's released."

"It is divided into four paths: the path of talismans, the path of alchemy, the path of swordsmanship, and the path of weaponry."

"Note this." He glanced at Ye Qiao and Yun Que, "Duo Xiu's personal disciples cannot participate at the same time."

"You can only choose one. Understand?"

Ye Qiao: "Oh."

Yun Que lowered her eyes and said, "Yes."

"Sword cultivators who make it into the top ten can go to the Sword Cave to choose their swords. The rewards for the top ten from other sects haven't been released yet." He said solemnly, "But you won't be left out. One last reminder: try your best to get into the top ten. The final rewards are more useful than your training down the mountain."

The Five Sects have a lot of good stuff, so it's best if the top ten are all direct disciples of the Five Sects. Otherwise, they'll have to share it with other sects, which will hurt them.

After understanding the general competition format, they each went back to their respective residences. Upon returning to their courtyards, they immediately checked the situation on the cultivation world forum.

Unsurprisingly, Changming Sect's first place became a hot topic of discussion among the group.

"How could someone with one of the few celestial spiritual roots in the cultivation world have hidden away for five days during a tribulation of lightning?"

"Perhaps Sect Master Qin did this intentionally. Look, Changming Sect has already taken first place."

"Those from other sects must not vomit to death."

"Yunhen must be the most upset. The Yueqing Sect must be having a tough time. I really don't understand. If they don't want a genius like Ye Qiao, what else do they want?"

"That Ye Qiao is pretty outrageous, collapsing two secret realms in a row. Looking forward to the next one?"

"Hahahaha. Ye Langlang, a disciple who strikes fear into the hearts of those in the secret realm."

"Has no one mentioned what's going on with Yun Que? He's a dual cultivator, a genius indeed."

"Yun Que has a top-grade spiritual root and is in the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm, so we can definitely look forward to her performance in the individual competition."

Upon hearing the mention of Yun Que, Ming Xuan frowned, absentmindedly drawing circles with a wolf-hair brush in his hand. "She should also be studying the Way of Talismans, right?"

Xue Yu nodded: "Her swordsmanship is clearly lacking. It must be the way of talismans."

Like Ye Qiao, she was a beginner, but Ye Qiao learned things quickly, which Yun Que clearly couldn't do. She could only move towards the path of talismans.

"How good is her talisman-drawing skill?" Mingxuan clicked his tongue softly.

Ye Qiao: "I don't know, but when I was at the bottom of the cliff with Song Hansheng, his assessment was—trash."

Although Song Hansheng's words are harsh, they are probably not artistically crafted.

"Never mind," Xue Yu said. "Let's be careful though."

"Be careful in the first round too. It would be embarrassing to be eliminated in the first round if there are any capable fighters among the rogue cultivators."

Ye Qiao wholeheartedly agreed with this statement.

The group was so engrossed in discussing the individual competition that they didn't even notice when Qin Fanfan arrived.

"Xiao Qiao." Qin Fanfan cleared her throat, stood at the door, and called out to her, "What kind of cultivation do you practice?"

The paths taken by cultivators in the cultivation world are all different, and their methods of attaining enlightenment are also varied and bizarre. He needs to understand this so that he can provide Ye Qiao with the corresponding training and adjustments later.

Ye Qiao was slightly taken aback by the question, looked over, and said with some hesitation, "I can't describe it."

She could only vaguely grasp a little bit of the feeling.

"Perhaps it's somewhat similar to the Path of Passion?" Ye Qiao said, glancing at Xue Yu.

Xue Yu: "Hmm?"

Is it similar to his Dao?

"But not entirely similar," Ye Qiao added.

This is a very novel description, similar to "the Way of the Passionate"? What could it be then?

"The Path of Passion, which is to have feelings for all things." Qin Fanfan murmured. What is similar to the Path of Passion? He stroked his beard and fell into deep thought again. Ye Qiao really didn't understand the various messy paths in the cultivation world, so she couldn't describe it.

Qin Fanfan could only rack her brains trying to figure out what was related to the "path of passion".

The courtyard was silent when suddenly the door was kicked open.

"Ahhh! The results are out! Let's go, Ye Qiao!" Mu Chongxi rushed in anxiously, yelling, "Let's go see who's on the top 100 sword cultivator list!"

He went out early in the morning to check the rankings, just to see the results as soon as possible.

Seeing this, Mingxuan hurriedly grabbed Ye Qiao: "No, she'll go with me to Fu Xiu's place." Just like going to the toilet, everyone wants to bring someone along to watch together.

"Our alchemy cultivation has also opened up," Xue Yu reminded him. "Why don't you come with me?"

Zhou Xingyun silently took a step back, trying to get away from their group, but ended up being dragged along with them.

"Let's go, let's go," Ye Qiao said. "Let's go check the results together."

Watching this group of people hurrying by, Qin Fanfan thought, "..."

Nobody cares about him being the sect leader, right?

-

They weren't the only ones who came to join the fun, but since they all came, other disciples could send outer disciples to check, instead of forcibly squeezing in like Mu Chongxi did.

He was worth two or even several rogue cultivators, and he stood at the very front with Ye Qiao and Zhou Xingyun.

The leaderboard is in points format.

"The first place is held by a rogue cultivator. However, once the individual competition begins and we join in, the first place may change hands very quickly."

"Once the Sword Inquiry Sect releases the rewards, many rogue cultivators who want to obtain the spirit sword will definitely sign up."

The Sword Inquiry Sect is definitely not willing to give the spirit sword to a rogue cultivator for contracting. Even if they did, it would be to a direct disciple. What would a rogue cultivator be? So they don't allow five direct disciples to contract the spirit sword. Instead, they wait until the individual competition starts and then their own sect will take five spots.

"As expected, the top five spots have been reserved by the five direct disciples of the Sword Inquiry Sect. We will have to compete for the remaining five spots."

"Of course, the most important thing is..." Mu Chongxi said, "showing off."

The individual competition is a chance to show off your skills. You don't have to be in the top ten, but you must make a splash.

After looking at each ranking list, Ye Qiao pondered for a moment and resolutely chose the path of swordsmanship, no matter how much Xue Yu tried to persuade her to join the alchemy competition.

"If you choose kendo, you'll have to compete with Ye Qinghan, Qin Huai, and the others for rankings. It'll be tough."

He patted her on the shoulder, like a member of a pyramid scheme, and said, "Come to Danxiu's place. There are fewer people and less pressure."

"These are our sword cultivators," Mu Chongxi rebuked without hesitation. "Can any of you alchemists be good people? We'd be exhausted to death if we competed with you."

Ye Qiao wholeheartedly agreed. She had realized this when she took the cultural exams. Dan Xiu was a group of good students, and she could imagine how messy it would be if she competed with them.

Sword cultivators are generally uneducated, which suits her perfectly.

Xue Yu shrugged and said with a smile, "Don't be prejudiced against any profession."

"Alright, alright, stop talking." Duan Yu listened for a while and seeing that none of them were taking it seriously, he simply kicked them all out. "The eight major families are here. Fill out the list. Send it over when the time comes, don't dawdle."

"Is the individual competition organized by the Eight Great Families?" Mingxuan turned his head and asked.

"That's right." Elder Duan Yu nodded. Since someone was willing to pay for the event, the Five Sects naturally wouldn't rush to be taken advantage of.

"Ugh." Mingxuan frowned, looking disgusted. "I'm going to see those annoying people again."

After filling out the registration form, the sword cultivator needs to fill in whether they have a natal sword, their spiritual root talent, their cultivation level, and most importantly, the name of their natal sword.

Zhou Xingyun and Mu Chongxi filled out the form very quickly.

Ye Qiao choked on her words.

What is the name of your destined sword?

Several elders waited for a long time, and seeing that she didn't move, they glanced at her name and thought, "Oh, a genius."

They spoke kindly, "What's wrong? Is there something you don't understand?"

Mu Chongxi leaned over to take a look, and seeing that Ye Qiao was hesitant to start writing, he took the initiative and spoke enthusiastically: "Her sword is called 'Snake Stealing'!"

"Just write 'Master of the Bamboo Shoot Sword' on it."

"?" The elders exchanged glances for a moment. "Are you sure?"

What kind of weird name is that?

Ye Qiao shuddered.

She'd only chosen the name on a whim; if she actually used it, Ye Qiao could already imagine the other cultivators gossiping about her after the individual competition, their voices rising and falling in acclaim: "Oh, Ye Qiao is the legendary, famous Sword Master of the Bamboo Shoot Sword, isn't she?"

"No, no, no!" Ye Qiao shuddered. "It's called 'Never See You'!"

"Remember, don't fill it in wrong."

*

The following part of the story is the individual competition~ where he begins to dominate.