Spirit Ruin, Sword Coffin, Blind Swordsman

A hunchbacked cultivator with a mouthful of yellow teeth crossed his arms, eyes gleaming as he laughed. “This is something! You have to admire the Daxia Sword Sect’s spirit. They knew their disciples might die, but they came anyway.”

Beside him, a white-browed old man murmured, “Well said. But have you noticed the look in their eyes? They know exactly what they’re up against today, yet there’s not a trace of resignation in their gaze. With determination like that, who knows where their sect might stand a hundred years from now?”

Both were Golden Core Realm cultivators. Naturally, their perception ran deeper than most.

Soon, the other sects’ disciples arrived. Countless eyes turned toward the Daxia Sword Sect. After all, among all the sects, it was the Daxia Sword Sect and the Six Suns Scholar Academy that had suffered the heaviest casualties in the first round.

And yet, only the Daxia Sword Sect had returned. The Six Suns Scholar Academy had withdrawn from Heavenly Tiger Pass the night before.

Hovering midair, Ge Qing announced, “Based on yesterday’s rankings, the bottom fifty sects have been eliminated.”

All eyes turned to the stone stele in surprise. At the very bottom was the Daxia Sword Sect, ranked fiftieth.

They had been the first to finish their matches and were ranked ninety-second at the time, as the other sects had yet to complete their battles.

Qin Xian was completely surprised by their ranking.

“Since the heavens have decided this, let’s go with the flow!”The elders from the various sects moved to their spectator platforms, then Ge Qing said, “Let’s begin the draw for the second round!”

Buzz!

A ray of spirit light shot out of his hand, and the stone stele shone with blinding light. After a moment, the second round’s pairings appeared.

Boom! Crack, crack!

The ground beneath Gao Qiwen’s feet shattered. Vital force surged wildly through his body as he gripped his walking stick tightly, his knuckles white with strain. He glared at the name on the stone stele with seething hatred through his disheveled hair.

Li Guanqi followed his gaze and saw the pairing on the stone stele through his heart’s eye.

Daxia Sword Sect vs. Profound Heavenly Sect

“Profound Heavenly Sect,” Li Guanqi murmured under his breath. He didn’t know much about them, but he noticed the name made Tu Kui and Li Nanting glance at Gao Qiwen in unison. Even Qin Xian clenched his fists tightly under his sleeves.

Li Guanqi sent a voice transmission to Li Nanting. “Master, is there some history between Gao Qiwen and the Profound Heavenly Sect?”

Li Nanting glanced at the crippled man and sighed. He transmitted back, “His leg was crippled in the Tournament of a Hundred Sects during a fight against the Profound Heavenly Sect… Old Gao may look young, but he’s nearly four hundred. In fact, he joined the sect before I did.”

Li Guanqi was taken aback. Gao Qiwen’s youthful face had fooled him.

“He took a Youth Preservation Pill when he was young. Naturally, you can’t tell his age.”

Li Guanqi gave a silent nod. That explained why Gao Qiwen sometimes spoke like an old man.

“In short… Old Gao’s grudge against the Profound Heavenly Sect runs deep.”

Li Nanting left it at that.

The tournament was taking place on the main peak of Heavenly Tiger Mountain, with battles following the order of the rankings. The Daxia Sword Sect would have to wait for its turn.

The martial stages floated in the air and then started to merge into even larger stages.

While the stages were merging, a middle-aged man with a small jaw and large cheeks, his face reminiscent of a monkey, sauntered toward the Daxia Sword Sect. His sky-blue robes billowed slightly as he moved, and he radiated a terrifying aura.

His eyes showed a teasing glint as he stood before Qin Xian, his gaze settling on Gao Qiwen behind him. He chuckled and said, “Well, if it isn’t the great prodigy, Gao Qiwen! Why are you still crippled? Hasn’t the Daxia Sword Sect given you some medicine yet?”

His eyes flicked pointedly to Gao Qiwen’s bad leg, his lips curling amusedly. “Or was my kick back then just too much for you? After all this time, you still can’t stand straight! Hahahaha!”

His arrogant laughter drew many eyes. Several veteran cultivators, some who’d seen multiple Hundred Sects Tournaments, immediately recognized him.

“That’s the Profound Heavenly Sect’s Third Elder, Chen Qing. He’s at the early Nascent Soul Realm.”

“Chen Qing? Then that cripple must be Gao Qiwen from the Daxia Sword Sect.”

“Tsk, tsk… Now you’d never guess that he was once such a prodigy.”

“Time flies. In the blink of an eye, three hundred years have passed.”

Gao Qiwen pursed his lips, trembling as he clenched his fists tightly. He glared at Chen Qing coldly through his hair.

Chen Qing chuckled nonchalantly. “Trash will always be trash. Three hundred years, and you’re still the same.”

Slap!

A sharp crack rang out. Chen Qing’s left cheek began to swell visibly. Qin Xian stood before him, voice cold.

“Get lost.”

Chen Qing’s chest heaved as he finally registered the slap. He cast Gao Qiwen a venomous look, sneering. “Hmmph! Alright! Looks like fate has thrown us back together after three hundred years—we’ll see how this ends!”

Qin Xian raised his hand slightly. Chen Qing flinched, defensively raising his own hand, only to realize that Qin Xian was merely scratching his nose. Chen Qing straightened himself awkwardly, muttered some threats, and then left.

After Chen Qing left, Gao Qiwen silently gazed at Li Guanqi for a long moment.

Li Guanqi, unsure what to say, kept silent as well.

“The sects participating in the first round, get ready. You may begin!”

One of the stages attracted Li Guanqi’s attention. He looked up at the screen and saw a youth in white robes embroidered with red. Without a word, the youth lifted his sword, slashed once, and turned to leave.

Thud!

His opponent clutched his throat and collapsed on the spot.

The youth had no emotion on his face. Ice-cold eyes stared out from beneath his fiery red eyebrows. “What trash is this? When will I get to fight Zhao Beichen? I can’t wait anymore!”