“To survive in the world of cultivation, one cannot lack strength; but even more so, one cannot lack judgment.”

‘Dance of Death’ was apparently effective against multiple opponents, only that the targets must be positioned close to one another.

And that was what exactly happened.

The result—every opponent on the stage was knocked out.

“What!?”

More than the outcome, the ‘cause’ was even more unbelievable. That was because it was an attack completely devoid of spiritual Qi energy. In short, it was evidently a weapon skill made from pure physical force.

And what made it more mind-blowing was the fact that the skill was imbued with Intent.

‘Intent!?’

“Impossible!”

The Elders stood from their seats.

From what they knew, only those who follow the path of Sword Dao were able to develop Sword Intent.

But the outer disciple before their very eyes was clearly using a different weapon.

“Impossible? My perception could never go wrong. I'm pretty sure there was Intent back there. I can only imagine the potential of this disciple. Too bad, he seems to have started cultivating a bit late. But even then, his Intent is already enough for the sect to groom him like the rest of our geniuses.”

From there, discussions in the platform began to echo in the air.

“This boy must have profoundly comprehended his weapon skill very deeply to achieve such heights at just the Qi Condensation stage.”

“Once the Heavenly Sword Sect found about him, they will sure lure him to join their sect.”

There were some hints of worry in the elder's tone.

“Fellow Daoist Li, wasn't he the brat you brought from the Trial by Fire?”

Of course, Elder Li had long reported Qai’s origins but they never thought that he was deeply hiding his abilities.

“Hahaha, indeed. Back then, our investigations revealed that he was taken by Old Bu as his servant. And that scumbag made this boy as his milking cow by making him hunt hundreds of beast cores regularly. Well, it must be an exaggeration if I told you that Old Bu worked this boy to death. And perhaps he must have gained enlightenment to form his own Intent by continuous hunting. However, this disciple Qai must have already cultivated his body at an unfathomable level before even Old Bu found him. In fact, you may not believe me but this boy survived Ao Tian's surprise attack.”

“What!?”

“Why haven't you told us this before?”

“It's all in the report I made, it's just that nobody paid attention to it. If you, Fellow Daoists, are worried that he might be taken by another sect, then why don't any of you take him in as a personal disciple? From what I know, this disciple has a decent attitude.”

Of course, it was not easy to pick a personal disciple.

There were rules in the sect.

And an elder can only choose a maximum of two personal disciples—and that number can only be extended once a disciple becomes an elder himself.

In addition, there was a custom to pick a personal disciple from among the young generation of the big clans within the region. It was the sect's way to control those clans to some extent.

Thus, nobody easily responded to Elder Li's suggestion.

And since Qai was still far from Foundation Establishment stage, they cannot offer him to become an inner or core disciple.

It was then that the Sect Master cleared his throat and gave a good suggestion.

“This boy sure has potential. But let's just wait for the result of the competition first. Perhaps the rewards would be enough to rope him in and be loyal to the sect. And if he doesn't achieve any of the top 3 ranks, let's just secretly reward him with something else. An additional Foundation Establishment Pill perhaps.”

Meanwhile, in the spectators' stands, Ji Wuheng's face was already red from laughter.

“Hahaha, you two! Don't renege on your bet. How about it? Do you want another go? I'm gonna place a bet that my brother Qai will make it to the top 3!”

The two disciples were already starting to get furious about their loss.

But when they heard Ji Wuheng's blatant prediction, they couldn't but grab the chance to get even.

“Top 3!? What a bold statement. I admit he has some ability but I doubt he is on that level."

“Yeah. He just got lucky!"

“Then why don't you dare to place a bet? Scared of losing face again? Hahaha."

Seeing how Ji Wuheng turned his voice even louder, the two were infuriated as many disciples near them were keenly waiting if they would really make a bet.

“Fine, I'll bet 300 Spirit Stones.”

“What about you?”

“Alright, I'll add another 200 Spirit Stones. I even doubt that brat would get past the next round. The most he can get is the tenth place, hmph."

Apparently, Qai was one of the first participants to finish the elimination.

As soon as the official declared him as the winner of stage number 3, he went to the stands were Ji Wuheng was.

He had been hearing the commotion Ji Wuheng created and he suddenly got an idea. So he got close to the latter and whispered his thoughts.

“Brother Wuheng, can you organize some more bets. I am betting on myself. I do plan to enter in the top 3 ranks.”

As he said that, he discreetly handed over a bag containing 500 Spirit Stones.

“Hahaha, don't worry brother. Now that you told me your goal, leave the rest to me. When it comes to betting, I, Ji Wuheng is someone you can trust. And since your abilities are at stake here, I’ll be sure to split with you the earnings in half.”

Qai was elated and didn't refuse the offer.

Ji Wuheng was initially just a stranger to Qai. In fact, Qai was not pretty sure about the former’s attitude towards him. However, there was always that gut feeling that Ji Wuheng was worth befriending.

After giving his thoughts, Qai left and went to an area reserved for the winners of the round. And as he left, Ji Wuheng started to shout an invitation for more disciples to place a bet.

This time it was an even more daring gamble as Ji Wuheng placed some odds on the side.

A wager that Qai would win in the next round would earn the bettor triple the Spirit Stones placed but a bet that Qai would lose would multiply the bettor’s Spirit Stones fivefold.

Ji Wuheng did this in order to entice more disciples to place their bets.

Soon, plenty of outer disciples rushed to bet on Qai losing the round.

Ao Tian even called one of his minions to place a large sum on his behalf and planned to tell whoever Qai’s next opponent was, to put Qai in his place.

The bets overflowed and soon the name of Qai as the ‘dark horse’ of the ranking competition spread among the disciples like wildfire.

After a time it took to finish a meal, the winners of all ten stages were determined. Unfortunately, neither of the Mo brother and sister pair made it past the elimination.

Once again, Elder Meng took the center of the arena and began to make an announcement.

“Attention our top 10 outer disciples! For the next round, the rules will be a one-on-one fight. But just the same, you cannot kill your opponent. After all, you are all ranked disciples. Your true stage will come next year so it wouldn't do our sect any good if any of you dies.”

It was a very reasonable statement and all those in the stands who heard the sect elder nodded in agreement.

“For this round, we’ll do simultaneous duels. The winner in stage 1 shall take on the winner in stage 10. Then stage 2 winner will battle it out with the winner form stage 9, and so on.”

The rules were understandable.

The top seeded disciples were given a slight edge by pairing them up with the weakest in the top 10.

Qai then headed to stage number 3. He stole the seeded spot so he virtually became the top 3 outer disciple and his opponent was the seeded disciple from stage 8—a female disciple named Mo Yue.

“Let the matches begin!”