CHAPTER 144: CHAPTER 12: THE TOURNAMENT BEGINS (PART 2)

Sub-immortal Realm’s north, Yunlan Sacred Land.

Yunlan Sacred Land is atop Yunlan Mountain, with its gate at the mountain’s base. The Main Hall of Yunlan Sacred Land is halfway up the mountain, and the higher one lives, the higher their status in Yunlan Sacred Land.

Yunlan Mountain is vast and scenically beautiful, enriched with Spiritual Energy due to a giant Spirit Vein beneath it, making it one of the four great Spiritual Lands of the Sub-immortal Realm.

Jun Wu is the Saint Heir of Yunlan Sacred Land, second only to the Saint Master and those Supreme Elders in status, living in a courtyard higher than the halfway point, where the Spiritual Energy is much denser than below.

He just emerged from the Trial Land of Yunlan Sacred Land, his cultivation improved, soon to break through to the ninth tier.

After chatting with Gu Qingqing, he sat in his room for a while, then got up and left.

Once outside, the gentleness in his eyes vanished, replaced by an innate nobility and aloofness. As those around paid their respects, he merely waved, striding out of his courtyard, then flew towards a higher place with a light step.

Jun Yutian’s living place is even higher than Jun Wu’s. Just then, Jun Yutian was dealing with Holy Land affairs in his study and was surprised to hear Jun Wu’s voice, quickly inviting him in.

"Ah Wu, you just came out of the Trial Land and aren’t resting, what are you running around for?" Jun Yutian, always attentive to Jun Wu, knowing the hardships within the Trial Land, couldn’t help but rebuke.

"Father, I want to go to Lingxi Sacred Land." Jun Wu got straight to the point without beating around the bush.

"Why do you suddenly want to go to Lingxi Sacred Land?" Jun Yutian frowned, puzzled, but quickly recalled who was in Lingxi Sacred Land, "Has that little girl come to the Sub-immortal Realm?"

Though many years had passed, Jun Yutian still had a deep impression of Gu Qingqing.

Not only because she was Wen Guiyun’s Closed-door Disciple and extremely talented, but primarily because she managed to captivate his usually indifferent son, even giving away the Magic Artifact meant for a future wife!

However, the children were too young, and since she was always on Xuantian Continent, it received little attention.

But he remembered, five years ago, his son went to Xuantian Continent to find her, stating he would wait for her to ascend to the Sub-immortal Realm. Now, with his son proactively proposing to go to Lingxi Sacred Land, it must be for the little girl!

"Yes, Geng Geng has awakened and ascended to the Sub-immortal Realm." Mentioning Gu Qingqing, Jun Wu’s hard expression softened instantly, and thinking of her recent reaction, a slight smile touched his lips.

Seeing his son’s demeanor, what more was there for Jun Yutian to not understand?

"Ah Wu, are you truly decided that it’s this little girl?" Jun Yutian, with a serious look, asked earnestly.

"Of course, Father, I thought you should have known long ago, there will be no one else but her!" Jun Wu’s expression was more serious than ever, akin to a promise.

Jun Yutian gazed straight at Jun Wu for quite a while, seeing no hesitation or change in his intent, he suddenly laughed.

"Good, Ah Wu has grown up. Go on to Lingxi Sacred Land. Father’s waiting for you to bring back the little girl, your mother will certainly be happy for you to marry soon!" Jun Yutian patted Jun Wu’s shoulder, laughing heartily.

Jun Wu nodded, "I understand, I’ll take my leave first!"

"Go on, go on." Jun Yutian waved his hand, prompting Jun Wu to go quickly.

After leaving Jun Yutian’s place, Jun Wu had his attendants pack up, preparing to depart for Lingxi Sacred Land early the next morning.

...

After Rong Ye left, Gu Qingqing was dazed for a while, unable to figure out her feelings, then set it aside and began her studies.

Meanwhile, Rong Ye and Mu Chen called Si Lin, Yue Zhao, and Nan Hua together to discuss the matter.

"Did Geng Geng really say her heart was racing?" Nan Hua asked in surprise.

"Yes, she thought she was ill, unaware of her feelings for Jun Wu!" Rong Ye nodded, still looking troubled.

"This..." Nan Hua hesitated, glancing at Si Lin and Yue Zhao, seeing their expressions were equally concerned, "Geng Geng has grown; these things are inevitable, you shouldn’t interfere too much, lest she gets upset."

Being a romantic himself, having navigated many affairs without getting entangled, Nan Hua was open-minded about such matters. He even once suggested introducing Gu Qingqing to many men, letting her have admirers, but was stopped by Si Lin.

Upon hearing this, Si Lin threw a sharp look at Nan Hua, who raised his hands in surrender.

"Geng Geng isn’t aware of her feelings for Jun Wu yet, don’t burst this bubble for her; let things develop freely. Whether or not Jun Wu can win her over depends on him." Yue Zhao advised, casting a glance around.

Emotionally, he too wasn’t keen on Gu Qingqing being with Jun Wu, but reason told him it was wrong to intervene; at least they had watched Jun Wu grow up and knew his character!

Ultimately, this was Gu Qingqing’s matter, not theirs. Excessive interference might not be good, and letting nature take its course was for the best.

"But Geng Geng is still young..." Rong Ye was unwilling to accept it and was about to proceed when Si Lin interrupted.

"Listen to Yue Zhao, you’re not allowed to interfere!" Si Lin interrupted Rong Ye, stating firmly.

The others did not dare to oppose Si Lin and agreed one by one.

Gu Qingqing was unaware that her senior brothers had thought so much about her emotional issues; she was now fully focused on the tournament, only thinking about it during the quiet of the night.

...

Two days passed in a flash, and Huazhou City became extremely lively because of the martial arts tournament, attracting people from surrounding towns to watch.

Yun Ran’s match was on the first day, and Gu Qingqing, along with Si Lin and others from the Yun Family, went to cheer for Yun Ran.

On the stage, she finally saw her opponent, a strong young man. The man was also quite surprised upon seeing Yun Ran, given the stark difference in their physiques.

Before the match, many spectators, including Yun Ran’s opponent, thought for sure that Yun Ran’s opponent would win, but after the match started, they changed their minds.

Yun Ran’s moves were crisp and smooth, and her mastery of spells was proficient. Her opponent couldn’t get near her and was forced to accept her attacks without any chance to counterattack, as his cultivation was also not as high as Yun Ran’s. In less than two moments, he was knocked off the stage and eliminated.

After that, Gu Qingqing and the others watched a few more matches before returning to their accommodation.

On the second day, Yun Jing and Zhao Cheng both had matches, and Gu Qingqing went to watch with Yun Ran.

Yun Jing appeared to have a gentle and tolerant personality, and a good temper, but during a fight, he was completely different, emphasizing speed, precision, and ruthlessness. His opponent didn’t last long before being eliminated!

Zhao Cheng’s situation was similar; his opponent was relatively weak and couldn’t showcase his true level!

On the third day, Gu Qingqing’s match was also in the morning.

She arrived late, and her opponent was already standing on the stage.

Her opponent was also a man, several years older than her, at the eighth cultivation level, and his cultivation techniques seemed quite good. Facing Gu Qingqing, he appeared confident.

Unfortunately, he didn’t know the saying, "Never judge a book by its cover!"

Gu Qingqing looked fragile, but in reality, she had nothing to do with fragility; she was absolutely exceptional in fights!

As the referee announced the start, Gu Qingqing immediately controlled the Mixed Immortal Silk in her hand to strike at her opponent.

The opponent underestimated Gu Qingqing and only put in half his strength to block with his sword. As a result, he didn’t block Gu Qingqing’s Mixed Immortal Silk and had his treasure sword snatched away by her.

"Hiss!"

Hearing the jeers from below the stage, the man’s face turned red, and he reached out to grab his sword back.

Unfortunately, he still didn’t take Gu Qingqing’s strength seriously. Gu Qingqing flicked her hand, threw the sword back to him, and while he was catching it, the Mixed Immortal Silk tied him up tightly. Then Gu Qingqing went up, kicked him off the stage, and eliminated him.

Gu Qingqing waved her hand, and the Mixed Immortal Silk released the struggling man, returning to her hand.

"Thank you for letting me win!" Gu Qingqing cupped her fists toward the man and stepped down the stage amid cheers from the audience.

Zhou Qi, Zhao Cheng, and Yun Jing all came to watch Gu Qingqing’s match and were somewhat unsatisfied because her opponent was too weak, making it hard to see the true extent of Gu Qingqing’s abilities!

In the following two days, Gu Qingqing rested at home and didn’t watch any other matches.

After five days, the elimination rounds ended, with half of the participants eliminated, leaving behind a hundred and sixty people.

The second round setup was similar to the elimination round, except the opponents changed from one to three people, with groups of four; each two people would have one match, and whoever won the most would advance to the next round.

Gu Qingqing drew her lot and was scheduled on the first day in the morning.

Early in the morning, Gu Qingqing and the others left the house.

After arriving at the place, the others went to the spectator area, while Gu Qingqing went to find her opponents.

In her group, besides Gu Qingqing being the only woman, the others were all men: Zhao Xi, Li Ying, and Sun Peng. Zhao Xi was from the Zhao Family, and among them, Sun Peng had the lowest cultivation at the seventh level, while Zhao Xi and Li Ying were at the peak of the seventh level.

The people from the Zhao Family had already been instructed by Zhao Cheng that if they encountered Gu Qingqing in the competition, they must use their full strength to assess her abilities. Zhao Xi’s eyes lit up when he saw Gu Qingqing.

The first match was Gu Qingqing against Sun Peng, and the result was no surprise: Sun Peng couldn’t hold on even for a moment and was sent off the stage.

The second match was Gu Qingqing against Zhao Xi.