CHAPTER 53: SELECTING PEAK

"..."

"What are you looking at?"

Elder Hua couldn’t help but ask Zhiran as he finally couldn’t take his constant gaze at his hand. Or rather, at the pill bottle in his hand.

The one given by Elder Yuxuan for taking Su Ruyue to the inner sect, of course.

"Haha... Elder, you know my relationship with Ruyue, right? How about sharing some pills with me? I’ll put in a good word for you when I meet that Elder, I promise."

Mo Zhiran suddenly laughed slyly and asked while eyeing the pill bottle with naked greed.

Something a Peak Elder of Elixir Flame Peak gave as a reward must be a good thing, right?

At minimum, it had to be Foundation Establishment Pills. Zhiran was sure.

If he could get one just by asking, of course, he wouldn’t mind.

"In your dreams. Why don’t you just directly ask Elder Yuxuan then? Why ask me?"

Unfortunately, Elder Hua just rolled his eyes at him and immediately stuffed the pill inside his storage ring. He had no intention of giving anything to this ruthless guy anymore.

"Elder Hua, you’re here. Are these the winners of this time’s Outer Sect Trial?"

Just as Su Ruyue and Elder Yuxuan left, and Elder Hua quickly hid his pill bottle from Zhiran’s greedy eyes, a tall young man suddenly arrived in front of them, adorned in an impressive cultivation robe embroidered with azure patterns.

"Hmm... it seems this batch of disciples has at least a few with real potential."

The young man smiled while looking at Mo Tianyu, Liang Feng, and Mo Zhiran slightly. As for the others, he didn’t even give a glance.

"Du Kang, so they sent you here? Are you here trying to take the top three disciples to your peak?"

Elder Hua seemed to know the guy in front as he also smiled and asked. Maybe because of the pill given by Elder Yuxuan, his mood was far better than before.

"Yes, Elder. If I’m not mistaken, these three should be the top contenders this time, right? Have they decided which peak to join?"

Du Kang asked while signaling at the three guys who had the highest cultivation in front.

As someone at the early stage of the Foundation Establishment Realm, he naturally knew who the strongest among this group of disciples were.

"Which one of you is Wu Zhen who has condensed Earth Qi? How about you join my Iron Core Peak?"

Du Kang suddenly spoke before Elder Hua could reply.

As a disciple from Iron Core Peak, his sole purpose in coming here was to snatch a disciple with an earth spiritual affinity.

He’d heard rumors that among the outer sect disciples, there was one with an exceptional Earth affinity who had already reached the peak of the Qi Condensation Realm.

Naturally, he wanted to secure that person before anyone from the other peaks arrived.

That was why, as soon as he came, he immediately focused on the three disciples with the highest realms among the ten, assuming Wu Zhen was one of them.

"..."

However, the moment he asked about Wu Zhen, the atmosphere around him suddenly turned weird.

After all, Wu Zhen wasn’t among the top three disciples this time. Heck, that guy didn’t even have a peak Qi Condensation Realm anymore.

For a moment, everyone couldn’t help but look at Mo Zhiran and Wu Zhen from the corners of their eyes.

They could see that while Mo Zhiran was still nonchalant about the situation, Wu Zhen was clenching his fists, already red-eyed.

’Damn Mo Zhiran, just you wait.’

Wu Zhen had never felt so humiliated before. If he wasn’t crippled and his strength was still at its peak, this would have been his glorious moment.

But now... he couldn’t even dare raise his hand and tell the guy that he was the Wu Zhen he was looking for.

"What? Are you looking down on Iron Core Peak? Why isn’t this Wu Zhen even stepping forward?"

Seeing the awkward looks on the disciples’ faces and the bitter smile on Elder Hua’s lips, Du Kang raised his eyebrows.

He realized that coming here in such a hurry might be a waste.

"Who is Wu Zhen? Come forward."

Du Kang was annoyed and once again asked in a cold voice.

"S-sir... I am Wu Zhen, the one you are looking for."

Seeing that Du Kang’s face was getting darker, Wu Zhen finally couldn’t hide and raised his hand from the corner of the crowd.

"Seventh level of Qi Condensation? So weak? Are you the same Wu Zhen who was rumored to have condensed Earth Qi?"

Sure enough, when Du Kang turned his head and saw the burly guy, he was dumbfounded. After all, the guy he heard rumors about wasn’t this weak.

For a moment, he felt he was being mocked.

"Haha... Du Kang, you’re still as thickheaded as ever. Didn’t you even inquire about the situation before coming here?"

Just as Wu Zhen didn’t know how to reply and Elder Hua was about to explain, a loud laugh echoed from afar.

"Swoosh!"

Followed by laughter, three figures suddenly appeared before Zhiran’s eyes.

The one who laughed was a tall, sharp-looking man with a massive sword strapped to his back. Alongside him were two others: a short, amiable man and a strikingly beautiful girl.

It seemed they came here from other peaks just like Du Kang, as Zhiran could feel their gazes on the three of them as soon as they appeared.

"Tsk... tsk... Du Kang, you have terrible luck. Didn’t you hear that the person you wanted to recruit was directly crippled by his opponent in the match?"

The man with the sword on his back tsked and shook his head, not caring about Wu Zhen’s dark face.

"Crippled? Ruan Feng, are you telling the truth?"

Sure enough, Du Kang really didn’t know what happened in the Outer Sect Match, or rather, he never cared.

So, he was quite surprised and looked at Wu Zhen in confusion, as although he looked weak, he wasn’t crippled.

"Haha...it was Elder Hua’s mercy that he is even here. Anyway, if you want to know more, just ask him later. For now..."

"...you are Mo Zhiran, right? The one who can use Sword Intent in the Qi Condensation Realm?"

Ruan Feng had no intention of entertaining Du Kang as he came here today with a mission.

A mission to recruit a disciple who could use Sword Intent at the Qi Condensation Realm.

Such a genius... of course, he wouldn’t let anyone have it.

"Yeah!"

Mo Zhiran nodded lightly when Ruan Feng asked. He could feel that this guy was in a similar realm as Du Kang, but had a sharpness that was exclusive to those who wield swords.

"Haha... good, good. Mo Zhiran, what a good name. I can feel the spirit of a swordsman as soon as I look at you."

Ruan Feng laughed loudly, appearing extremely happy. Then, without letting anyone meddle in between, he immediately introduced himself,

"Mo Zhiran, I am Ruan Feng from the Sword Spirit Peak. I am here on the order of the Peak Master to invite you to join our peak."

"What do you think? I promise, as long as you join our peak, Peak Master Jianhong will personally choose a Sword Spirit for you to nurture as your Nascent Weapon."

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A/N: Support with 2 More Golden Tickets for an additional bonus Chapter today.