Chapter 127: Heaven’s Chosen Gathered

Chu Huaixu and Han Shuangjiang easily passed the preliminary screening and walked home together.

Dead Fox suddenly thought of something and said, “Actually, we don’t need to hurry back. I want to go somewhere first.”

“Where to?” Big Ice Block asked curiously.

“The Outer Sect Casino!” Chu Huaixu answered.

As mentioned before, the Dao Gate’s Outer Sect area formed a self-contained place, practically like a small town.

There were restaurants, teahouses, various shops, and naturally… a casino.

According to sect rules, private gambling dens were prohibited.

The official casino was the only exception.

Whether in Mirror Country or Moon Country, casinos were considered legitimate businesses, just like pleasure establishments, both belonging to places allowed to operate openly.

Still, no matter what, Dao Gate was ultimately a righteous sect.

Thus, the official casino wasn’t open all the time. Moreover, disciples had a betting limit.

Simply put, it was a place to liven things up during festive days, letting disciples amuse themselves with small wagers.

“Right now, with the Eastern Continent Grand Competition about to begin, the Outer Sect Casino is definitely open.”

“I already checked earlier. The betting limit for Outer Sect disciples is 200 Sect Contribution Points, not very high,” Chu Huaixu told Han Shuangjiang.

“We have to hurry!” he urged.

“Why? Hasn’t the competition not even started yet?” she asked in puzzlement.

“You’re silly! If we go now, before our strength is revealed, the odds will definitely be higher!”

Han Shuangjiang, this Little Housekeeper, carried a bit of a miserly streak. Hearing that, her eyes immediately lit up.

Don’t look down on a mere 200 Sect Contribution Points. If the odds were favorable, it could still earn quite a lot!

The two money-grubbers, utterly excited, rushed to the casino to check the betting odds.

The result… their names couldn’t be found at all!

Among the seeded players available for bets, there were twenty in total, all famous First Realm disciples of the Dao Gate’s Outer Sect. Each one was a powerhouse at the Ninth Heaven of the First Realm!

Chu Huaixu and Han Shuangjiang weren’t among them, so their trip had been for nothing.

Clearly, quite a few people did consider them strong, but not strong enough to rank among Dao Gate’s top twenty.

And as the host sect, Dao Gate would never inflate others’ prestige while diminishing its own.

Therefore, bets were only allowed on Dao Gate disciples, with final rankings being internal comparisons, only to determine who was number one among Dao Gate disciples.

The two exchanged looks, both feeling awkward.

Since Chu Huaixu was the one who suggested coming, he even felt a bit embarrassed, looking like a complete fool!

Dead Fox gritted his teeth, forcefully memorizing those twenty names.

Ruan Qiu, Ding Bolin, Ji Sikong, Chang Le…

“You’d better not run into me. Otherwise, I’ll beat you one by one!” he thought viciously.

For now, the only option was to make a splash during the Eastern Continent Grand Competition, then return to the casino.

And so, the two came full of excitement, but left in disappointment.

Those twenty Outer Sect disciples never imagined that they had, in such a bizarre way, been added to Chu Huaixu’s “Must-Kill List.”

Several days later, the Eastern Continent Grand Competition entered its countdown.

Outer Sect disciples could now take sect missions to receive disciples from other sects, arrange accommodations for them, and more.

This turned the once peaceful Outer Sect bustling and lively, with occasional small disturbances and incidents.

From time to time, everyone would even see great cultivators flying through the air, heading toward Dao Gate’s Inner Sect.

These were high-ranking figures from other great sects, arriving as delegation leaders, now visiting old friends in the Inner Sect.

Each appearance of a great figure stirred heated discussions in the Outer Sect.

Even more shocking was that, from the other three great sects, the ones who came were all Elder-level characters.

The leader of the Sword Sect delegation was none other than Situ Cheng—one of the Four Great Divine Swords!

His cultivation was at the Eighth Realm, and he was taught by the same master as the Sword Sovereign of the Sword Sect.

The title of Sword Sovereign within the Sword Sect was akin to the position of the Master of the Gentleman Temple in the Dao Gate.

In other words, the Sword Sovereign was not necessarily the sect master, but rather the strongest in the Sword Dao.

He was also currently ranked first among the Four Great Divine Swords.

Meanwhile, the sect master of the Sword Sect wasn’t even on the Eastern Continent’s Four Great Divine Swords list.

This made it clear: Situ Cheng was the second strongest within the Sword Sect!

Many people now realized that this Eastern Continent Grand Competition could only be described as unprecedented in scale!

Originally, many thought joining the competition was just a chance to show their face before the Dao Gate’s upper echelon.

Now, however, so many top powerhouses of the Eastern Continent had come.

With so many cultivation titans gathered, when they sat in the spectator stands, the entire event’s prestige would rise several levels.

Yet, precisely because of this, some people began to feel uneasy.

“This is only a First Realm competition, so why is it taken so seriously?”

“The level of ceremony is even a bit abnormal!”

Normally, since the Eastern Continent Grand Competition was jointly organized by the Four Great Sects, it would make sense for the other three sects to send some mid-level figures.

But for a being like Situ Cheng to personally come—it inevitably stirred wild speculation.

From the Sword Sect, Spring and Autumn Mountain, and Luotian Valley, the ones who came were all great cultivators of the Eighth Realm!

Still, for the participants, this was a completely different matter.

It meant that if they could secure a good ranking, their name would instantly resound throughout the Eastern Continent!

Chu Huaixu, however, was nearly certain in his heart: “This Eastern and Western Continents’ Grand Competition definitely has hidden reasons.”

“Things won’t be so simple.”

“I even feel that the Four Great Sects held such a grand event to select the strongest First Realm in the Xuanhuang Realm because they must have some ulterior motive!”

“Unfortunately, in 《Borrowed Sword》, it was Little Xu who took the championship, but the follow-up hidden storyline wasn’t revealed.” He felt a trace of regret.

On the day before the Eastern Continent Grand Competition preliminaries, everyone began drawing lots.

Because the number of applicants was indeed quite large, even after the preliminary screening there were still many people left. As a result, the first round of preliminaries had to be spread across five days.

Since it was the preliminaries, it was naturally impossible to hold them one by one. Instead, there would be a full twenty large arenas running simultaneously.

The duels of the First Realm weren’t overly earth-shaking, so large arenas were sufficient.

If it were great cultivators who could fly through the skies and burrow through the earth, displaying countless techniques, then the dueling grounds could not be so limited.

Chu Huaixu’s first-round match was scheduled for the first day. Han Shuangjiang’s was on the second day, both fairly early.

The next day, the two went together to the dueling grounds.

Chu Huaixu wasn’t nervous at all, while Big Ice Block was simply there to watch the excitement.

The opponent drawn against Chu Huaixu was a young man named Lang Yue.

This person wasn’t from Dao Gate, but from a sect called the Falling Sunset Sect.

That sect could not even be considered a prestigious great sect, only a middling one.

During the duels, each arena would be overseen by two Inner Sect disciples of the Fourth Realm.

After all, blades and swords had no eyes, and accidents were prone to happen.

Having experts on hand was to ensure that no lives would be lost.

In this kind of competition, injuries were inevitable, but everything needed to remain within limits.

As for the cultivation titans of the Four Great Sects, they certainly would not come to watch the preliminaries.

Their appearances as spectators would only come in later rounds.

Chu Huaixu’s thoughts were simple.

"I must still hold back, but I cannot hide too much either."

He needed to display a bit of strength, enough to get his name onto the casino’s lists early, so that he could immediately go place bets.

The arena he was assigned was number eighteen.

On the way there, he and Han Shuangjiang noticed that quite a few Inner Sect disciples had come today as well.

There was no helping it—Dao Gate disciples loved a lively scene.

It was said that back in the day, the Dao Ancestor had been the same: wherever there was excitement, he would squeeze in.

Often, when great cultivators fought, he would stand watching nearby, and end up bringing calamity upon himself.

The result was always the same: the two great cultivators would be suppressed together by this Daoist of the Gentleman Temple.

After his identity was verified, Chu Huaixu ascended the arena.

His opponent, Lang Yue, looked somewhat prematurely mature, with a full beard across his face.

He held a broadsword, carrying the air of a wandering swordsman of the jianghu.

Seeing that Chu Huaixu held no spiritual artifact or magical treasure in hand, he was a little puzzled.

But Lang Yue quickly realized—the tall, handsome young man before him was wearing a Mid-grade Spiritual Artifact as his outer robe!

"This person’s life-bound artifact is actually a robe？" He was somewhat surprised.

Before they began, Lang Yue laughed heartily.

"This junior brother looks young, so forgive me for addressing you as such."

"But don’t you dare hold back!"

"I come from the Falling Sunset Sect, not a great sect of high repute. This time I came to the Eastern Continent Grand Competition just to see the gap between myself and the disciples of great sects. If you, junior brother, can defeat me utterly, that will only strengthen my Dao heart!"

Hearing his words, Chu Huaixu was a little taken aback.

"To make such an unreasonable request?"

What could he do?

He could only oblige him.

The two Inner Sect senior brothers overseeing the arena asked aloud: "Are you ready? If so, you may begin."

Chu Huaixu and Lang Yue exchanged a glance, nodded, and cupped their fists to each other.

"Junior brother, be careful!" Lang Yue drew his Tang-style spirit blade, letting out a long howl.

His style was clearly one of open and direct ferocity, his blade-force strong and unyielding, much like the man himself.

The blade too was only a Mid-grade Spiritual Artifact.

Lang Yue was obviously not someone who paid much attention to details.

Otherwise, by now he should have noticed that ever since Chu Huaixu stepped onto the stage, more and more Outer Sect disciples had gathered around to watch.

That alone showed this person had at least some reputation within Dao Gate.

Many people were curious, for up until now, very few had seen Chu Huaixu make a move.

Han Shuangjiang, however, needed only to look at the blade momentum to know that this opponent was not even a match for Dead Fox in one exchange.

Lang Yue had already closed in with his blade raised, but Chu Huaixu stood motionless.

As the blade aura swept toward him, he simply sidestepped. The hem of his Black-Gold Robe fluttered in the air, perfectly avoiding the blade aura.

Immediately after, he casually thrust out a palm.

Lang Yue instantly felt a tremendous force crash into him!

Shock struck his heart before the pain could even arrive.

"How could a First Realm cultivator’s body possibly possess such terrifying strength！"

"Unless he is…"

Lang Yue cried out in pain as his body was blasted backward.

Chu Huaixu slowly withdrew his hand. The technique he had just used was the 《Jiligulu Bagua Palm》, something he had not employed for a long time.

Well, he had already forgotten its full formal name.

The first form: Eight Wastelands Wandering Dragon!

In the blink of an eye, victory was decided.

From below the stage, the sharp-eyed spectators immediately began exclaiming in astonishment, one after another.

"A body cultivator! And using mere Mortal Martial Arts!"

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