The once-a-century Immortal Sect Grand Tournament of the Xuantian Continent had finally arrived as scheduled.
Before the first light of dawn, Spiritual Power was already shimmering across the Nine Heavens Cloud Platform. Cultivators from various sects converged from all directions, riding flying swords, spirit beasts, or magical treasures. According to custom, the major sects were required to enter in sequential formation. The roster of participating disciples had been finalized a full month prior, with no last-minute changes permitted.
As the Hour of Chen arrived—around eight in the morning—three deep chimes rang out. The resonant sound waves rippled across the clouds, proclaiming the official commencement of the grand tournament. High above the platform, the elder in charge swept his sleeve, and thousands of jade tallies flew into the air. Pouring down like a river of stars, they landed in the hands of the sect leaders. These were today's draw results, determining each disciple's opponent, order of appearance, and the upcoming daily matchups.
For this grand tournament, over ten thousand had registered, yet fewer than a thousand would ultimately step onto the arena stage.
All participants had to first pass through two tests:
First, checking bone age: to prevent ancient monsters from disguising themselves as youths to bully the younger generation.
Second, verifying cultivation: to ensure their realm was genuine, eliminating any insidious methods of suppressing cultivation while playing the pig to eat the tiger.
Only those who passed could receive a "Xuantian Jade Token." This token required a drop of blood for recognition. Beyond verifying identity, it secretly harbored three heavy restrictions:
1. Preventing imposters: If the bearer was not the rightful owner, the jade token would instantly shatter.
2. Checking for divine soul possession: If there was anything unusual about the divine soul, the token would emit black mist as a warning.
3. Protecting life: When a disciple suffered a fatal attack, the token could trigger a transmission array to forcefully eject them from the arena.
Such strictness stemmed from a disaster a thousand years ago involving a **"Demonic Cultivator sneaked in."** Back then, a righteous disciple had been knocked unconscious and replaced by a Demonic Cultivator. After sneaking into the tournament, the imposter secretly set up a Formation and nearly bathed the arena in blood. Since then, the Immortal Alliance had established ironclad rules, never daring to leave the slightest loophole.
The grand tournament would last for **two months**, divided into eight major categories: **somatics, swordsmanship, formations, artifact crafting, talisman making, alchemy, acoustics, and team battles.** Each category lasted seven days and was split into three stages:
- Screening: A melee of a thousand contestants, leaving one hundred.
- Advancement: A round-robin among the hundred, selecting the top ten.
- Grand Finale: Ten contenders fighting for the crown to determine the supreme victor.
The winner would not only win resources and reputation for their sect, but also gain the opportunity to cultivate within the "Xuantian Secret Realm," or even be taken in as a personal disciple by a reclusive master.
At this moment, the morning sun completely leaped out of the cloud sea, casting golden light upon the shoulders of countless young cultivators. Gripping their jade tokens, they burned with fighting spirit in their eyes.
The struggle along the immortal path begins here.
Yan Luoluo weighed the warm jade token in her hand, the corners of her lips curving into a cunning arc.
She was all set!
She had legitimately passed both tests. Neither the "Peeking Heaven Mirror" that checked bone age nor the "Suppressing Spirit Monument" that verified cultivation could unearth the slightest flaw. After all, who made her have a Master who was the **"number one person in the immortal cultivation world"**? The restrictions personally set by Ye Wuchen were things the elders of the Immortal Alliance might not see through even if they came.
Yet, she couldn't really be considered as cheating—nowadays, she truly was just **a little rookie at the Foundation Establishment stage**, barely reaching the threshold of participation. If it were anyone else, such cultivation would likely rob them of even the courage to register. But she was Yan Luoluo, the "little junior uncle" held in the palms of everyone's hands in the Lingxiao Sect.
Mention Yan Luoluo, and who in the entire Xuantian Continent did not know?
Ye Wuchen had taken on a disciple with four spiritual roots!
Back then, this news had flipped the entire immortal cultivation world upside down. After all, which of the disciples under the "Xuanxiao Immortal Venerable" Ye Wuchen was not brilliantly talented? Single spiritual roots were the standard, and dual spiritual roots were considered the bottom tier. When would it ever be the turn of a "good-for-nothing" with mottled spiritual roots?
People from other sects had made no shortage of sarcastic remarks, both openly and covertly:
"I suppose the Immortal Venerable was bewitched by her beauty?"
"Are you out of your mind? What kind of beauty could a newborn baby possibly have? Pitch him out of here!"
"A four-spiritual-root person is fit to be the Immortal Venerable's disciple? I'd wager she'll even struggle with Foundation Establishment!"
Yet these people only dared to gossip behind her back. If anyone ever dared to utter a word of slander right to the face of a Lingxiao Sect disciple—
"Hah, want to try?" A Lingxiao Sect sword cultivator sneered, crossing his arms. "Do you believe we could drown you with a single mouthful of spit each?"
Outsiders only knew of Yan Luoluo's "trash spiritual roots," but they had no idea how high her popularity was within the Lingxiao Sect.
In terms of effort—she practiced somatics before dawn every single day and studied talismans late into the night, pushing herself harder than ninety percent of cultivators.
In terms of talent—though her spiritual roots were somewhat inferior, her comprehension of talismans and formations left even the elders marveling.
In terms of popularity—the little junior uncle possessed a mouth as sweet as honey; from the sweeping errand boys to the sect leader himself, there was no one she couldn't charm.
"Our little junior uncle earned the admiration of the entire sect through sheer ability!" a disciple proclaimed proudly.
At this moment, Yan Luoluo rubbed the jade token, gazing at the cultivators taking their places on the arena stages one after another, a trace of excitement flashing in her eyes.
This time, she would show everyone what a counterattack by "trash spiritual roots" looked like!
Yan Luoluo toyed with the jade token in her hand, her gaze inadvertently sweeping past that distant figure as cold as frost—Chu Qingyao, the daughter of destiny in the original text, who was currently surrounded and fawned upon like stars encircling the moon.
The corners of her lips curved slightly, yet a trace of coldness flashed in her depths.
Inside the body of this "brilliantly talented" heroine, there was still a wisp of the Demon Lord's divine soul hidden away.
According to the progression of the original text, after this Immortal Sect Grand Tournament, the newly appointed Demon Lord would be captivated by Chu Qingyao's "grace," willingly lowering himself to become a servant beneath her skirt. Even more terrifying, this naive and simple-minded Demon Lord would let himself be manipulated by her—
Fighting against the entire immortal cultivation world for her, including the demon race itself... and even helping the Demon Lord's divine soul within Chu Qingyao seize another person's body. Tch, a total simp.
"Tch, what a tragedy..." Yan Luoluo shook her head inwardly.
That senior brother who suffered possession was originally a figure bright as the wind and clear as the moon, the future backbone of the righteous path. Yet simply because he was too upright, no one noticed that he had been replaced by the Demon Lord's divine soul. In the end, a scoundrel cloaked in the skin of the righteous path turned the entire immortal cultivation world upside down...
Yan Luoluo gently stroked the patterns on the jade token.
Since she had arrived, this plot must never follow the original text!
1. Keep a close eye on Chu Qingyao: Never allow the Demon Lord's divine soul to find an opening.
2. Approach "that senior brother": Plant defenses before the tragedy occurs.
3. Improve her strength: Leave herself plenty of backup plans using talisman arts.
"Little Junior Uncle! The draw results are out!" A disciple in the distance waved excitedly.
Yan Luoluo put away her thoughts and put on her signature smile: "Coming~"
As she turned, she cast one final glance in the direction of Chu Qingyao.
On the surface, this grand tournament was a contest among geniuses, but beneath the surface... it was a game of life and death.
Yan Luoluo stared at the match information that had materialized on her jade token—somatics match, three quarters past the noon hour tomorrow.
"We've got plenty of time~" Her eyes curved, and she smiled like a cat that had stolen some fish.
Compared to cramming her somatics practice at the last minute, she had more important matters at hand—
Yan Luoluo returned to her room, hauled out a massive pile of artifact-crafting materials from her storage pouch, and tapped her chin with a fingertip as she calculated:
Product Positioning:
- Utilizing Profound Ice Jade + Blazing Fire Crystal, symbolizing the destined match of "ice and fire merging as one."
What Yan Luoluo was going to make were **couple storage rings**, something unprecedented in the Xuantian Continent!
1. Dual Spaces: The internal spaces of the men's and women's rings were connected, allowing Dao companions to transmit items to each other at any time.
2. Sensory Formation: Capable of sensing the other person's location within a thousand miles.
3. Defensive Barrier: Automatically triggers to protect the master upon encountering danger.
4. The most ingenious part: Hidden runes engraved with "one life, one generation, a single pair."
After all, in the Xuantian Continent—
1. Fated Dao Companions: A cultivator could only bind with one partner in their lifetime.
2. Market Demand: Dao companions always lacked a token of their affection.
3. Monopoly Advantage: There were simply no magical treasures of this kind on the market currently!
Advertising Slogan:
"Proving the Dao in Xuantian, only this one person—love him/her, give him/her the best!" (Comes with a jade slip featuring Ye Wuchen's cold, crisp voice effect.)
"Let's price it at 999 spirit stones!" Yan Luoluo brushed down her proposal plan. "For the auspicious sign of 'lasting forever'~"
She had even thought out her sales strategy:
1. Hunger Marketing: The first batch would forge only 99 pairs, advertised under the banner of "returning to oneness through nine-nines."
2. Celebrity Effect: Gift a few pairs to well-known Dao companion couples first (such as a certain pair of elder spouses who constantly showered people in affection).
3. Limited Edition: Launch an "Immortal Venerable Style" (which was actually just carving the ring band to faintly resemble Ye Wuchen's sword patterns).
Just as she was drawing the design drafts, a cool voice suddenly drifted in from outside the window:
"Luoluo, how is it that this master had no idea my sword patterns had become a promotional gimmick?"
Yan Luoluo's hand jerked, and her cinnabar brush drew a long red streak across the blueprint.
Oh crap, caught red-handed by the principal himself!
Flustered, Yan Luoluo hastily swept the half-finished drawings under the table and looked up right into Ye Wuchen's mildly amused gaze.
Guiltily, she touched the brocade box hidden in her sleeve, where her "secret weapon," secretly crafted over ten years of seclusion, lay quietly:
1. Material: Nine Heavens Profound Crystal—the last piece in the Three Realms, its surface silvery-white like moonlight, with red and blue Spiritual Power intertwining within, like a cascading river of stars.
2. Inscriptions:
- The inner side of the men's ring was engraved with the character "Chen," its brushstrokes as sharp as sword intent.
- The inner side of the women's ring concealed the character "Luoluo," and the tail stroke even covertly featured a tiny plum blossom petal.
3. Functions:
- When the two rings touched, a defensive barrier with the illusion of twin lotus flowers would appear.
- Capable of sensing each other's heartbeat within ten thousand miles.
"Master~" Yan Luoluo instantly switched to a ten-out-of-ten sweet smile, offering the brocade box with both hands. "Take a look at this!"
Ye Wuchen raised an eyebrow and took it. The moment he opened the lid—
Swish!
Two white rabbits magically materialized from Spiritual Power suddenly bounced out of the box, waving a banner that read "Congratulations on Master's seclusion coming to an end" right in front of his eyes.
"......"
"Isn't it a surprise?" Yan Luoluo blinked her eyes. "My disciple prepared it especially for you! Originally I meant to give it to you before you prepared to ascend, but I'm giving it to you early now."
Ye Wuchen tapped a fingertip, and the illusions dissipated, finally revealing the pair of glowing rings at the bottom of the box. The air suddenly fell silent.
"Explain."
"Well... you see..." The tips of Yan Luoluo's ears turned red, her toes practically curling hard enough to punch through a three-room suite. "This is... it's..."
"A defensive magical artifact!" Inspiration struck her suddenly. "Look, these red and blue lights represent the harmony of yin and yang; wearing them on your hand automatically forms a protective shield!"
Ye Wuchen leisurely picked up the men's ring, his thumb tracing over the character "Chen": "And the inscription was also a necessity for defense?"
"That's... an anti-counterfeiting label!"
"The twin lotus illusion?"
"A tactical smoke bomb!"
"Sensing heartbeats?"
"A vital signs monitor!"
Ye Wuchen suddenly slipped the ring onto his ring finger, the size fitting with absolute precision. Yan Luoluo caught her breath, watching helplessly as he picked up the women's ring and pulled her hand over—
"Mas-mas-master! I-I-I haven't finished speaking yet..."
"Isn't it a vital signs monitor?" The corners of Ye Wuchen's lips curved as he pushed the ring over her slender fingertip. "Now, this master can check whether you've been slacking off at any time."
Clink...
The moment both rings were slipped on, red and blue lights soared into the sky, transforming into a massive twin lotus flower amidst the rosy clouds, wrapping the entire room within.