Longevity starts from having a daughter in old age

Xu Mu and his companions were gathered in the plaza outside the main hall idly chatting when a light curtain was projected onto the center of the plaza. The curtain was densely filled with names.

They were paired two by two, indicating the order and lineup of the competition.

“In half an hour, the first round of the grand competition will begin! Please all disciples, get ready!”

A booming voice came out from the main hall.

The lively plaza quieted instantly. Everyone raised their heads and stared at the light curtain, checking who they were up against and what place they were.

“Junior Brother, don’t forget what I told you!”

Seeing that the competition was about to start, the worried Shang YaoYao reminded Xu Mu again.

“Relax!” Xu Mu smiled.

The thing Shang YaoYao had reminded him of was to hold back and hide his real strength in the first two rounds.

The reason for doing this was simple. The gambling house hadn’t yet gathered complete information for the first two rounds, and the odds were quite low. If one demonstrated too much power, the odds would raise very slowly, rendering her unable to profit from placing bets.

“Of course, abandon this if you meet a strong opponent!” Shang YaoYao said.

After all, the priority was to ensure advancement in the competition. If he tried to underperform but lost, it would be a case of attempting to gain an advantage only to end up worse off.

“I understand, thank you for your concern, Miss!”

Xu Mu’s mouth lifted in a small smile.

“Who cares about you! I just don’t want my investments to go to waste!”

Shang YaoYao crossed her arms and spoke disdainfully.

Xu Mu didn’t argue, instead choosing to turn to Luo Qingchen and Li Heng.

“Senior Brother, Senior Sister, who are your opponents? Are you confident?”

“I haven’t heard of him, he should be a newcomer, likely not a problem!” Said Luo Qingchen.

“Same here!”

Li Heng laughed, looking quite relaxed.

Of those who participated in the sect competition, half were newcomers. Although the talents of the two were only mediocre, they had practiced long enough. Unless they were terribly unlucky, they should not be eliminated in the first round.

“That’s great!”

Having been together for so long, they had developed feelings for each other. Of course, Xu Mu did not want them to be eliminated in the first round.

Half an hour passed quickly. Ten fluffy white clouds slowly rose in the once empty plaza, forming ten arenas each five hundred steps in radius.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

From the crowd, figures shot out, landing on the cloud arenas.

At the same time, ten elders at the Golden Core Stage turned into escape light and flew out of the grand hall, each standing above one of the arenas.

With ten Golden Core Elders watching over, accidents were very unlikely, and the disciples could fight all out.

“Begin!”

As the competition bell rang out, the first round officially began. Layer upon layer of light walls rose, encapsulating both the disciples and the elders on the arenas.

Rumble!

Various lights from magic skills and magic artifacts instantly illuminated the arenas.

At the same time, the battle scenes on the arenas were transmitted in various ways to the ground of Tianhe City.

The Tianhe Sect did this to show its strength and heritage. As these were only battles between Qi Cultivation Stage disciples, they didn’t have to worry about exposing any sect secrets.

However, during the preliminary stage, most of the people paying attention to the competition were of minor influence. It’s only in the final round that powerhouses from all around would gather, pushing the competition to its climax.

“Dragon Slaying Sword Jue!”

“Perfection Wind Blade Skill!”

“Proficiency Thunder Light Skill!”

“Body Refinement Realm!”

“Bloodline Secret Skill!”

Despite these being battles between Qi Cultivation Stage disciples, they were nevertheless exciting, with a variety of rare spells and secret skills constantly showcased, keeping everything thrilling.

“No wonder they are disciples of a major sect, their strength is at least twice as high as the ordinary loose cultivators!”

Xu Mu sighed internally.

There were many people in the arenas, and Xu Mu wondered if they had the same idea as him – to hide their real strength intentionally.

Because of this, the competition became even more interesting.

The competition progressed swiftly. It was less than half an hour before it was their turn.

The first one up was Luo Qingchen. Relying on her tier three Frost Sword Jue which had reached proficiency level, she effortlessly defeated her opponent.

Next up was Xu Mu. After going through a few rounds with his opponent, he passed as well quite easily.

Last was Li Heng.

His opponent was a slim young man with an ordinary face who had a constant smile.

The moment Xu Mu saw the youth, he frowned its worry. He had a bad feeling.

He wanted to warn his senior, but the defensive light wall of the battlefield had already risen. Xu Mu could only hope that he was wrong, as his current body’s cultivation level was limited.

“Dust Sword Peak’s Qian ZhengYang greets Senior Brother!”

The youth saluted Li Heng, maintaining a very polite demeanor.

“Lonely Sword Peak’s Li Heng!”

Li Heng saluted back the same way.

“Senior Brother Li Heng, please show mercy in the upcoming fight!”

“Junior Brother, you’re too modest!”

After exchanging a few words, their match officially began.

Li Heng was the first to make a move, sending out a green flying sword that transformed into a flood dragon, tearing towards Qian ZhengYang.

Forgot to mention, Xu Mu’s Great Azure Dragon Sword Jue was taught by Li Heng, but it has now surpassed the original in both essence and skill.

Within the Tianhe Sect, practicing the Sword Jue is the mainstream, and sixty percent of the disciples are sword cultivators.

Xu Mu practices entirely relying on the system, no matter what he cultivates, it’s all the same. Since both Li Heng and Luo Qingchen practiced swords, he followed suit, this indirectly reduced the suspicion about his abilities by the sect.

Qian ZhengYang did not send out a flying sword or use any other magic artifacts to defend, instead, he used a high tier divine movement skill to swiftly dodge the attack.

Li Heng controlled his flying sword relentlessly for the onslaught, Qian ZhengYang was extremely agile, leading to a stalemate within a short time.

“Wind Snake Skill!”

Just as the battle was getting intense, Qian ZhengYang suddenly formed a hand seal, conjuring a Wind Snake that briefly controlled Li Heng’s flying sword. He seized the opportunity, suddenly bursting forth at a lightning fast speed, charging towards Li Heng.

“This Qian ZhengYang specializes in Wind skills, it’d be trouble if he gets close!” exclaimed Shang YaoYao with a furrowed brow.

“Brother Li will win!” Luo Qingchen exhibited a rare smile, confidently stating.

Xu Mu remained silent, simply watching the arena above.

Just as Qian ZhengYang was about to close in on Li Heng, preparing to use a powerful skill, the ground suddenly sprouted vines, rapidly entangling Qian ZhengYang.

“Disciple Qian, not only can you perform magic, I can too!”

A confident smile spread across Li Heng’s face.

He had been planning since the beginning, setting up the trap secretly. As long as Qian ZhengYang dared approach, it would instantly be triggered.

Under Li Heng’s command, the flying sword quickly returned to target Qian ZhengYang.

“Disciple Qian, surrender now! Don’t blame me if you get hurt!”

In the arena, even though an elder of the Golden Pill stage was supervising, he generally wouldn’t intervene unless there were fatal injuries.

If the protection was too good, the match would lose its meaning as a test.

“Brother Li is formidable indeed, I originally thought I could secure an easy victory!”

Facing the flying sword that was about to hit him, Qian ZhengYang’s expression didn’t reveal any tension or disappointment. He simply smiled faintly.

In the next moment, Qian ZhengYang rapidly inflated – his entire body swelled several sizes in an instant, transforming from a skinny stick to a muscular hunk. The extremely strong vines were easily snapped in-between, and he then turned around avoiding the incoming flying sword.

Bang!

The flying sword was instantly hurled away, it emitted a woeful cry and then it collided with the protective light curtain, before falling on the ground helplessly with faint vibrations, unable to take flight.

Puff!

The spiritual imprint on the sword body was dispersed, and Li Heng couldn’t help but spit out a mouthful of fresh blood, his face instantly paled.

Only at this point did everyone realized that Qian ZhengYang was actually both a practitioner of magic and body refinement. Furthermore, his body refinement skills clearly surpassed his magical ones, having reached the Qi Cultivation Late Stage.

Boom!

Qian ZhengYang didn’t give him time to gather himself. With one step, he charged towards Li Heng, emitting a strong blood-red light. His fist tore through the air and heavily fell upon him.

“Be careful, Disciple!”

Luo Qingchen couldn’t help but exclaim.

Li Heng’s reaction was quick, he immediately used a tier two body protection skill.

Crack!

Despite the body protection skill being executed in advance, it was too weak and only managed to hold off for a moment before being shattered by Qian ZhengYang’s punch. The fist forcefully landed on Li Heng.

Li Heng, like a rag doll, spewed out a mouthful of blood and was knocked backward, crashing loudly against the light curtain before falling heavily on the ground.

“Cough, cough!”

With blood spilling out of his mouth, Li Heng still managed to stagger back to his feet.

“Disciple, you’re putting me in a tough spot by being this stubborn!” Seeing Li Heng refusing to admit defeat, Qian ZhengYang appeared somewhat troubled.

“I haven’t lost yet!”

Li Heng’s gaze was firm. With a hand seal, he attempted to summon the flying sword back.

He had trained hard for several years for this competition. How could he easily admit defeat?

Down by the stage, Luo Qingchen clenched her fists, saying nothing.

She shared the same circumstances as Li Heng. She knew the significance of this competition to them. If they lost, it would be tragic.

“Li Heng is just too stubborn! He lost. What’s the point of insisting on fighting?” Shang YaoYao scoffed coldly, though it was not clear at whom her anger was directed.

Xu Mu likewise remained silent, quietly watching the competition. He didn’t expect Li Heng to be so unlucky, being pitted against a dark horse in the first round.

Looking at Qian ZhengYang’s age, he was even younger than him. He had probably joined the Tianhe Sect in the past few years. Most likely, he, like Xu Mu, had kept a low profile and had been cultivating diligently, preparing to surprise everyone in the sect’s competition.

Perhaps because he had managed to keep under the radar, he ended up facing Li Heng in the first round. Your opponent in a competition was not randomly assigned, they had to consider the combat capabilities.

So Li Heng could only blame his bad luck.

Qian ZhengYang naturally wouldn’t let Li Heng regain control of his flying sword. Squeezing the Finger Jue, he formed a Wind Dragon which again knocked Li Heng flying. When Li Heng landed, he had already fainted.

“It’s not my fault. He brought it upon himself!”

Seeing Xu Mu and the others rush up to the stage to treat Li Heng, Qian ZhengYang helplessly shrugged his shoulders.

“We don’t blame you!”

Xu Mu smiled, saying: “You have good skills. I hope we get a chance to cross hands one day!”

“Ah?”

Taken aback, Qian ZhengYang couldn’t help but laugh.

This kid was obviously much younger than Li Heng, who wasn’t even a match for him. He didn’t understand where Xu Mu got his confidence from.

He had heard of Lonely Sword Peak’s reputation. It was impossible for there to be a young prodigy.

He didn’t believe that Li Heng would be his match, but he still courteously replied.

“I hope so too!”

He then gracefully descended from the stage, basking in the cheers and adulation of the disciples from Dust Sword Peak.