Chapter 114
The spiritual energy that had been scattered all over Cloud Mountain slowly subsided.
The light floating above Jaundae also faded, and only the lingering aftermath of the opening ceremony hosted personally by the Sect Master remained in the Plaza for a long time.
[So this is a Nascent Soul Great Cultivator…]
Baek-Cheong quietly gazed at the Sect Master’s Peak, trying to calm the trembling in her small chest.
The most important thing right now was the Martial Arts Competition, so there was no time to be lost in sentiment.
Stepping into the Cloud Sea Secret Realm was inevitably the same as grasping a fortuitous encounter in her hands.
“Huh…?”
Suddenly, she felt a small vibration from the participation token she had tucked away inside her robe.
“Eldest Brother, my participation token is trembling…”
“It seems your turn is approaching. It is calling the Participants.”
Eldest Brother’s small smile shifted into a much more serious expression.
“Cheong-A, please keep this in mind. You must absolutely not get hurt. Even though Our Sect’s Formation Masters will use Formations to ward off any fatal strikes, there is always a “what if”.”
“I will do my absolute best so that I don’t get hurt.”
Baek Gyu stroked his younger sister’s hair with his usual gentle touch.
“This Older Brother will be watching over you.”
“Yes!”
Receiving her Eldest Brother’s encouragement, Baek-Cheong stood up from her Seat.
As she slipped through the Spectator Stands and went down the stairs, there was a large entrance to one side.
Beyond the entrance lay a separately prepared Open Ground, and Stone Platforms smaller than the one in Jaundae were situated here and there.
[There really are over a thousand people?]
Without realizing it, she slowly looked around the Open Ground with her mouth slightly agape.
Qi Condensation Cultivators and Foundation Establishment Cultivators were gathered in separate spaces, and every space was packed with a dense crowd.
Including the Foundation Establishment Cultivators, it was roughly close to one thousand three hundred people.
[These are all Prodigies?]
An Outer Sect Disciple approached Baek-Cheong, who was standing awkwardly at the edge of the Open Ground.
“Could you show me your participation token for a moment?”
When she held out the jade token, the Outer Sect Disciple confirmed the phrase “Qi Condensation Group A” and guided her inside.
Next to the Stone Platform they arrived at, about a hundred Qi Condensation Cultivators were gathered together.
There were those wearing the robes of the Biun Sect, those draped in robes embroidered with the crests of External Guest Factions, and those who looked like Rogue Cultivators but stood confidently without being intimidated by their surroundings.
Soon, an Outer Sect Elder of the Biun Sect stepped forward on the Stone Platform.
“It seems all the Junior Disciples of Qi Condensation Group A have gathered. I will now inform you of the preliminary round format for Our Sect’s New Spring Exchange Gathering Martial Arts Competition.”
The Outer Sect Elder continued speaking in a calm voice.
“In this preliminary round, ten people will step onto the Stone Platform at a time, and the one who holds their ground until the end will advance to the next round. There are over a hundred of you in Qi Condensation Group A alone, and only ten among you will advance. Even with the protection of Formations, injuries are inevitable, so please do not take this lightly and do your best.”
While the Cultivators nodded their heads, the Outer Sect Elder tapped the jade token in his hand with his finger.
“This Official will designate the first turn. Your participation tokens will directly indicate your turn.”
As soon as the Outer Sect Elder finished speaking, the jade tokens of the hundred or so people emitted a faint light.
Here and there, people whose dark jade tokens gradually shone brightly could be seen, and those holding the glowing tokens calmly moved toward the Stone Platform.
[Surely it’s not my turn…]
Baek-Cheong stared blankly at the jade token in her hand as it emitted a bright light.
“Huh?”
Suddenly, she ended up having to fight in the very first preliminary match.
She had planned to gauge how to approach the matches after observing the skills of the other Cultivators, but her plan was ruined.
A sense of reluctance settled in her heart, but she didn’t mind it too much.
[It’s something I have to do anyway.]
Thinking nothing of it, Baek-Cheong stepped onto the Stone Platform.
The other nine Qi Condensation Cultivators also took their places on the Stone Platform one after another.
It was clear they were individuals who had honed themselves in the Biun Sect, as well as those among the External Guests whose talents backed them up.
The Outer Sect Elder tapped his jade token once more.
“Take a moment to prepare yourselves. As soon as you are ready, This Official will send the signal.”
As soon as she heard those words, Baek-Cheong pulled out her Storage Platform first.
The Storage Platform contained all sorts of items she had packed away.
Rummaging through the Storage Platform with her Divine Sense, she took out her items and placed them on the Stone Platform.
The first things to reveal themselves were five Five Elements Golems.
Following that, bundles of 1st-Grade Talismans engraved with various talismanic scripts made their appearance.
Next, she pulled out the scabbard containing the Ilseong Sword from inside the Storage Platform and gripped it in her hand just like that.
Even if she didn’t swing it directly, she filled it with spiritual energy so she could use Draw Sword at any moment.
Finally, she took out a jade bottle and confirmed that the Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pills were inside.
In preparation for running out of spiritual energy, she even uncorked the jade bottle in advance.
[This should be enough.]
Meanwhile, the expressions of the Cultivators who had been leisurely watching from outside the Stone Platform subtly changed.
“What is this…?”
“Aren’t those golems…?”
“Bundles of talismans, and even an extraordinary sword…”
These were far from the items a Qi Condensation Cultivator could possess, and seeing 1st-Grade Talismans laid out in bundles was not a common sight either.
On top of that, even while sheathed, the extraordinary Sword Qi exuded a prominent presence.
“Could that Dao Friend be the Scion of the Yeonha Baek Clan?”
“The Favored One of Yak-seon and the Inheritor Disciple of the Pacheon Sword Saint…?”
A small commotion arose among the Cultivators.
The situation was similar for the nine people who had stepped onto the Stone Platform alongside Baek-Cheong.
They were all individuals who had participated in the Martial Arts Competition with firm resolve to test their skills, but faced with the items the Young Dao Friend had brought out, they couldn’t help but instinctively feel a sense of crisis.
If they fought the Young Dao Friend one-on-one like this, there was a high chance they would be eliminated before they could even show off their skills.
The nine Cultivators quietly exchanged glances among themselves.
Not a single word was spoken, but they all reached the same conclusion.
[We have to eliminate that Young Dao Friend first.]
The Cultivators' gazes naturally converged on Baek-Cheong, who was situated on one side.
[Huh?]
Baek-Cheong noticed the considerable number of gazes gathering on her.
Glancing out of the corner of her eye, she saw that their gazes were far from ordinary curiosity.
[Look at this?]
While she was making full preparations to unconditionally advance to the main tournament, it seemed the Cultivators in her group had formed a tacit agreement.
[These guys.]
Without realizing it, a small smile crept onto her lips.
If they were going to coordinate and attack her together, she just had to eliminate them all at once.
“Qi Condensation Group A, begin the preliminary round!”
As the Outer Sect Elder’s voice rang out from outside the Stone Platform, the participation token tied to her waist emitted light, sending the signal.
As soon as the signal dropped, the nine Cultivators simultaneously formed Hand Seals toward Baek-Cheong.
However, Baek-Cheong completed her Hand Seal faster than anyone else.
At the same time, spiritual energy poured out of her Dantian all at once.
“Ice Dragon Shatter.”
A short Incantation flowed from Baek-Cheong’s lips.
The surrounding air cooled sharply, and mist bloomed around Baek-Cheong.
Soon after, living dragons made of ice revealed themselves from the mist.
The Ice Dragons took shape one by one, until roughly seven of them were simultaneously circling around Baek-Cheong.
“Ice Dragon Shatter…?”
“It looks like at least a 1st-Grade High-Tier Technique/Spell, but how can there be seven at once…”
“How can a Qi Condensation Stage use such a technique…”
Leaving behind the astonishment of the Cultivators outside, the seven Ice Dragons moved in unison.
One Ice Dragon took charge of one Cultivator each and scattered forward, and for the remaining two Cultivators who lacked an Ice Dragon, the five Five Elements Golems and various 1st-Grade Talismans poured in all at once.
CRACK - One Ice Dragon surged toward a Cultivator located nearby.
The Cultivator hastily unleashed a Technique/Spell and wrapped himself in a Protective Aura, but the Ice Dragon smashed through the Protective Aura and blew the Cultivator off the Stone Platform.
The remaining six Ice Dragons also simultaneously surged toward the six scattered Cultivators.
All six Cultivators tried to barely block it by drawing upon the Protective Dharma Tools they held in their hands or unleashing Technique/Spells they had prepared in advance, but in the face of the Ice Dragons' power, they couldn’t hold out properly and were sent flying.
Meanwhile, the five Five Elements Golems struck the other two Cultivators from all directions.
Following that, the scattered talismans manifested simultaneously, and various attacks stormed in all at once.
The two Cultivators also urgently drew up their Protective Auras, but they couldn’t last even a moment against the Combined Attack of the golems and talismans, tumbling across the Stone Platform.
The nine people on the Stone Platform were subdued without even being able to launch a proper attack.
[If it weren’t for the Five Elements Shield, I could have ended it with just Ice Dragon Shatter.]
Thinking of the worst-case scenario, Baek-Cheong had even deployed the Five Elements Shield.
Because of that, she only had seven Ice Dragons, so she had no choice but to use the golems and talismans as well.
[Still, safety first.]
It was a somewhat anticlimactic result, but she felt relieved confirming that, just as she thought, no one at the Qi Condensation Stage had the ability to match her.
At the same time, she felt a little disappointed because she didn’t even get the chance to use her Flying Sword or the Combined Technique of unleashing multiple mastered Basic Techniques.
Still, now that she knew the level of the Qi Condensation Cultivators, she planned to control her strength from now on.
“This makes no sense…”
“There were two at Qi Condensation Grand Perfection among the fallen, yet they lost so helplessly?”
“As expected of the Inheritor Disciple taken in by the Pacheon Sword Saint, her Talent is by no means ordinary.”
“More importantly, she only took out her sword and never even swung it once…!”
“She eliminated all of them without even using her sword…?”
The spectating Cultivators could not hide their surprise and astonishment at the shocking sight.
The Outer Sect Elder also couldn’t open his mouth for a long time, merely staring at the Stone Platform.
Such a sight was something he had never even seen since entering the Sect.
Soon, the Outer Sect Elder let out a groan and barely managed to gather his wits.
Tapping the jade token in his hand lightly, he raised his hand toward the Stone Platform.
“…The Victor, Baek-Cheong of the Yeonha Baek Clan.”