Compared to her, my own daughter is three Divine Fires short!

Such a gap cannot be easily bridged by mere talent alone.

The expression on Luo Yan from Refining Heaven Sect was heavy. Six Divine Fires had crowned Situ Gu as the greatest artifact refiner in the world, propelling Refining Heaven Sect into prominence. What does absorbing ten Divine Fires signify?

Previously, there hadn't been any news about this disciple from Daming Pavilion causing a stir in the Divine Fire Domain or getting involved in Shi Chun's affairs, yet he quietly acquired ten Divine Fires.

What does this mean? It means that Daming Pavilion has already devised its own Secret Technique to locate Divine Fires.

Daming Pavilion merely sent Luo Shengsheng to undergo inspection, while all other disciples forfeited participation in the competition, naturally avoiding inspection altogether.

Could Daming Pavilion really have found ten Divine Fires of differing attributes in the Divine Fire Domain? This seems unlikely.

However, with the others withdrawing from the contest, the outsiders are left completely in the dark about how many Divine Fires Daming Pavilion obtained this time, or how many disciples absorbed those fires.

Gu Yanduo originally presumed that the number of people on Shudao Mountain who absorbed Divine Fires was the highest, but now he was not so confident.

A sect within the Artifact Refining World wielding such manpower stirred a sense of crisis in the top-ranked sects.

Daming Pavilion handled the matter very discreetly; even with their own Secret Technique for locating Divine Fires, they still emptied their reserves to buy information on Shi Chun's Secret Techniques.

At the moment, they had dispatched two elders to personally protect Luo Shengsheng, clearly intending to prevent any schemes against him before the competition commenced.

"Heh, ten? I say, Gu Yanduo, your sect couldn't have absorbed more than seven Divine Fires—what kind of brain fever had you drawing the line at ten?" Sect Master Su Qiao of Extreme Fire Sect couldn't resist a sneering remark.

Gu Yanduo found himself momentarily lost for words.

Disciples from various sects, freshly inspected and stepping away from the steps of the grand hall, occasionally glanced back at the bald-headed Luo Shengsheng, their eyes brimming with admiration and envy.

Ten Divine Fires—every young disciple understood what this represented. A new prodigy destined to dominate the Artifact Refining World with overwhelming prowess.

Even Gu Lianni couldn't help but find Luo Shengsheng undeniably charismatic in this moment.

Soon, everyone caught a whiff of alcohol and instinctively turned to look. There, sauntering down the steps with a careless demeanor, was Li Hongjiu, pulling out his wine gourd for another hearty swig, indifferent and self-absorbed, entirely unconcerned with how many Divine Fires Luo Shengsheng had absorbed.

The young crowd couldn't help but admire him too—after all, being able to fight was a talent, and in certain ways, combat skills held more prestige than refining artifacts. After all, the Cultivation World was vast, and the Artifact Refining World represented merely one path of many.

Li Hongjiu seemed oblivious to the reactions swirling around him, unaware that the elite sect leaders from the grand hall had slowly emerged and gathered behind. He took a few hearty swigs, smacked his lips in satisfaction, and relished the freedom, after having to stand stiffly in the hall as though being punished for hours.

Seeing his prized disciple becoming the center of attention, and under the eyes of the entire crowd—not even retaining a shred of dignity befitting the Direct Disciple of the Yanbao Sect Leader—Qu Wuming finally couldn't hold back his anger. His disciple had attained so few Divine Fires he barely ranked amongst the top three, and his performance in the Divine Fire Domain was disgraceful, indifferent to absorbing fires and lazy in seeking them out. And thus, with a thunderous roar that echoed like a bolt of lightning, he erupted, "Li Hongjiu!"

The voice of doom. Li Hongjiu shivered on the spot, his wine gourd slipping from his hand in fright.

Yet his instincts were swift—he couldn't afford to lose the wine. With a reflexive motion, his foot twisted mid-air and hooked the gourd, catching it deftly. Realizing the awkwardness of his stance, he froze, standing stiffly in place. Slowly, he turned his head towards the towering steps—and sure enough, there was that familiar glowering face. He forced a smile, but it looked even sorrier than tears.

In this grand occasion of the Artifact Refining World, was this how his disciple was conducting himself? The more Qu Wuming looked, the more disheartening it became. Gazing at his ill-behaved disciple from above, his anger surged uncontrollably, and he pointed brazenly, unleashing a tirade, "Drink, go ahead and drink! Keep drinking like this and tell me whom you're living up to! At this rate, you'll drink yourself to death!"

While cursing, he stepped down, passing by Li Hongjiu, and with a swift kick—bang!—sent the hooked wine gourd flying. With a flick of his sleeve, he stormed off without even another glance, clearly fuming.

This very disciple had once assured him—had sworn—he'd take the championship, claiming no one could steal first place from his grasp.

Back then, Qu Wuming had felt quite pleased, knowing his disciple's remarkable talent for artifact refining. But now, seeing the inspection results, his heart sank bitterly. The gap wasn't merely one or two Divine Fires—no, the disparity reached up to seven fires. Anyone who understood such things could see—this was a difference as vast as heaven and earth. What talent could ever bridge such a chasm? None!

With his disciple's aptitude, how he'd longed for him to take over as Sect Leader someday—for he could only entrust the position to a worthy heir. But with a disciple who behaved so disgracefully, how could he undertake such a responsibility?

All the combat skills in the world were worthless without discipline and integrity.

"Alas!" Passing elders shook their heads and pointed fingers at Li Hongjiu as though chastising him. All seemed to share the sentiment: disappointment in his lack of ambition.

The disciples from various sects stepping down the stairs, along with those still standing above, all paused and watched the scene unfold.

Li Hongjiu wore a dazed expression after being scolded, his gaze drifting to locate his wine gourd. Only then did he snap out of his stupor, slumping his head and walking defeatedly towards it. A bit dejected, he couldn't help but wonder why his words were always met with disbelief.

Approaching the wine gourd, he noticed it had fallen at the feet of Luo Shengsheng and his two elder guardians. Upon closer inspection, he realized it had landed directly in front of them. Luo Shengsheng was someone he regarded with unforgettable respect—after all, the man had proven he possessed ten Divine Fires.

The trio stood still, their gazes fixed upon him. Yet their demeanor remained polite; they hadn't stepped across his wine gourd.

Li Hongjiu stretched out an arm and flexed his fingers, summoning the wine gourd into his grip. Holding it, he brushed off the dirt before examining it. Then, glancing between his gourd and Luo Shengsheng's bald head, he couldn't help but feel annoyed—the shiny head seemed to have a better shape than his gourd. The more he stared, the more irked he became. Finally, he snorted, "With such pretentious airs, even ten Divine Fires are worthless."

Still agitated, he now found himself face-to-face with the person he blamed for his public humiliation.

While Luo Shengsheng carried an air of aloofness, he did somewhat respect the man's abilities. However, being openly ridiculed in front of the Daming Pavilion left his pride unwilling to yield. Without betraying his calm, he replied, "Mr. Li, words are meaningless. Let our skills do the talking."

He was confident about securing the championship,

"Ha!" Li Hongjiu exclaimed in bewilderment, rolling up his sleeves without hesitation. "As you wish! Let's duel one-on-one—I'll have you beaten so thoroughly, you'll be begging on your knees!"

Luo Shengsheng found himself speechless. Surely Li Hongjiu didn't misunderstand what he meant by proving skill—this crude challenge to hand-to-hand combat was hardly what he'd implied. Luo Shengsheng knew he couldn't compete in brute force with such a drunken fighter.

From the steps above, the Daming Pavilion's frail, half-drowsy Pavilion Master Xiao finally opened his eyes, speaking up, "Li Hongjiu, this is the Artifact Refining World's grand convention. Do not cause trouble; otherwise, no one will be able to protect you."

Li Hongjiu immediately turned towards him, grinning broadly. Raising his voice for all to hear, he declared boldly, "Pavilion Master Xiao, ten Divine Fires are nothing! Even if he absorbed thirty-six Divine Fires, he wouldn't take the championship—because here stands Li Hongjiu of Yanbao Sect!" He hoisted his wine gourd and waved it with dramatic flair.

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