As the Shu Mountain summit progressed deeper, more and more guests from various immortal sects arrived to witness the event. In the relatively long competition schedule, the later matches were naturally more exciting, with the real powerhouses clashing, undoubtedly drawing increasing attention.

Even the proud Penglai Upper Sect did not want to miss this opportunity to gauge the strength of their competitors.

In addition to the representatives from the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths who were initially invited, many cultivators came on their own initiative later on, most of whom were from smaller sects outside the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, taking advantage of this open event by the Shu Mountain Sect to come and observe and learn.

Thus, it was common to see a grown cultivator leading a few young disciples with traces of childishness, wandering on Shu Mountain, looking at everything with eyes full of wonder.

Guests who had visited before could clearly feel that the service on Shu Mountain had improved a lot this time, with the addition of snacks and drinks for sale, making the experience of watching the matches even better. There were also special products for sale, so they could bring back some gifts for family and friends.

On this day, two heavyweights arrived at Shu Mountain.

“Master Sun, Master Huang, your esteemed presence graces us. Please forgive me for not welcoming you from afar,” the Elder of Sword Transmission personally came out to greet them, with white hair and beard, a robust figure, blue-gold eyes, and hands as black as meteoric iron, looking like a divine being.

“Ah, to be welcomed by the Elder of Mountain Protection is already an honor for us, where would we dare to speak of neglect,” the old man on the opposite side said with a smile and a bow.

To the left was a man dressed as a scholar in white robes and a jade belt, with neatly arranged hair that was a mix of gray and white, and a slightly plump figure. He appeared relaxed and leisurely, with a comfortable smile.

This man’s surname was Sun, a renowned elder of the Confucian school.

To the right was a man in a simple yellow robe with an open collar, his face glowing red, black hair flowing, and his eyes bright and piercing as he walked, full of vitality.

This man’s surname was Huang, an elder of the Tian Shu Pavilion.

If it were just a Great Scholar and an elder, there would be no need for the Elder of Mountain Protection to personally greet them. In these days, there were no lack of important figures from the Nine Heavens and Ten Earths, all received by the Foreign Affairs Hall, treated without distinction.

But the influence of these two was extraordinary.

The elder surnamed Sun was a Great Scholar of the current age, who had been listed in the Hall of Gentlemen in his early years, taught at the Ascending Dragon Academy, repeatedly refused official titles from the court, yet often pointed out the ills of the times with his shocking writings.

He was the epitome of “I won’t ascend, I’ll just talk.”

Nowadays, his students were everywhere, and he had long retired from the Ascending Dragon Academy, spending his days traveling the four seas.

The elder surnamed Huang was the former head of the Wind Catching Hall of the Tian Shu Pavilion, with outstanding achievements. The Seven Stars Report had always been influential in the cultivation world, but it was during his decades of leadership that it spread throughout the Nine Provinces. Now, there was no one in the mundane world who did not know of the Seven Stars Report, and his contributions were immense.

The current head of the Wind Catching Hall, Zhou Yijian, was his direct disciple. Although he was still an elder of the Tian Shu Pavilion, he did not participate much in the affairs of the immortal sects, preferring to roam and enjoy the scenery.

Master Sun and Master Huang had long been close friends, traveling the world together in recent years, known as the “Wandering Scholars of the South and North.” Occasionally, they would write an article that would attract countless attentions.

With such renowned figures in the cultivation world arriving at Shu Mountain, they naturally could not be neglected. And since the Elder of Sword Transmission was well acquainted with them, he personally came forward to welcome them.

“Truly, time flies. It has been thirty years since I last attended the Shu Mountain summit, and now it seems that Shu Mountain is even more prosperous,” Master Sun said with a smile.

“I’ve always said that the Shu Mountain summit is extraordinarily lively, different from other immortal sect gatherings. You should visit more often, but you always decline,” Master Huang shook his head.

“Don’t slander me,” Master Sun immediately retorted, “Twenty years ago, I was the one who suggested coming here, but you insisted on following the tour of the Nan Yin Pavilion disciples.”

“Weren’t you the one who was eager to find a scroll of ancient texts ten years ago?” Master Huang glared back.

“Alright, alright, it’s good that you both have come this time. Today happens to be the main competition of the summit, and you can just enjoy and critique the performance of Shu Mountain’s new generation of disciples,” the Elder of Sword Transmission chuckled, seemingly accustomed to their way of interacting. He simply waved his iron hand to mediate between them.

“The young disciples of Shu Mountain are indeed excellent,” Master Sun was much more polite to the Elder of Sword Transmission, smiling, “We’ve also heard quite a bit about the names of Jiang Yuebai and Xu Ziyang from this generation.”

“Jiang will surely win!” Master Huang exclaimed, raising his fist upon hearing the name Jiang Yuebai.

Master Sun discreetly rolled his eyes and subtly stepped away, embarrassed to be associated with him.

As they spoke, the three had already taken their seats on the viewing platform, looking at the arena in front of them. The Elder of Sword Transmission laughed and said, “Apart from Jiang Yuebai and Xu Ziyang, there are actually some quite promising new talents among the disciples. Like Mu Yueting and Chu Liang who just took the stage, they have both recently started to stand out. Why don’t you two guess who will win this match?”

Master Sun stroked his beard, observed carefully for a moment, and then pondered, “If we’re just looking at the aura that’s being revealed, and neither side is hiding anything… this young lady is in the mid to late stage of the Golden Elixir realm, with astonishing talent at such a young age, and her sword qi is sharp. This young man has just entered the early stage of the Golden Elixir realm, but this aura… is it a top-grade Golden Elixir? Hiss, this is indeed rare to see, no wonder you say he has great potential. With this top-grade Golden Elixir, he will definitely be able to support a piece of the sky for Shu Mountain in the future. It’s just that he is after all a small realm weaker, whether the top-grade Golden Elixir can bridge the gap in cultivation between them, it’s really hard to say.”

“I bet on Mu Yueting to win.”

Master Huang held a small booklet in his hand, casually flipping through it, and said without hesitation.

“How can you be so sure?” Master Sun asked.”Hehe, these are the notes from the disciples of Tian Shu Pavilion from a few days ago.” Master Huang waved the small booklet in his hand, “Mu Yueting has fought two battles to date, demonstrating quite comprehensive strength, especially her sword techniques which are quite exquisite. As for Chu Liang, one victory was due to the variety of magical instruments catching his opponent off guard, and the other relied on cunning schemes and surprise attacks, it can be said that he has not shown any real hard power.”

Upon hearing this, Elder Sun was deep in thought.

Master Huang continued, “And the most important point is that Mu Yueting’s master is Yan Daoren, while Chu Liang’s master is Di Nvfeng.”

“Then I also think the girl will win,” Elder Sun said without hesitation.

…

Chu Liang has indeed been quite busy these past two days, as he had signed up for many events and had to participate in one almost every day. There were also additional undercover tasks. If there were any conflicts in timing, he could certainly discuss it with the sect, but yesterday was just a spirit pet fighting match, and he wasn’t the main participant, so it didn’t matter if Liu Xiaoyu took his place.

But the young girl came back looking dejected. Upon asking, he found out that she had seen a burly man there, very tall, a nice person, crying very loudly… The man had cried for a long time after seeing his spirit pet bullied by a Golden-Furred Behemoth, and Liu Xiaoyu had comforted him for a good while before returning.

Normally, a spirit pet from the various peaks of Shu Mountain reaching the fourth realm is already quite impressive, and if it’s the fifth realm, it’s definitely a strong contender for the championship. He probably didn’t expect to encounter a ferocious beast of the sixth realm entering the competition.

Although the Golden-Furred Behemoth had just entered the sixth realm and had not yet consolidated its realm, and had not mastered all its innate abilities… it still had no trouble bullying a fourth realm spirit pet.

Fortunately, there was no urgent matter with the undercover work, so he could still make it back in time for today’s main competition.

Today’s opponent was another tough one.

By the time of the round of sixteen, the Golden Elixir realm contestants far outnumbered those in the Divine Intent realm, and it was basically hard to encounter any weak ones. But no matter what, Mu Yueting was one of the stronger ones among them.

It could be said that if it weren’t for Jiang Yuebai and Xu Ziyang, she would be the first tier contender for the position of chief disciple.

The opponents for each match were determined by drawing lots the day before, and Chu Liang felt that his luck with the draws had been average, considering whether to let Liu Xiaoyu draw for him next time.

She was dressed in a neat white sword outfit, with a high collar covering her neck. She had a cool bob cut, fair skin, single eyelids, and a tall and slender figure, carrying a four-foot thin sword on her back.

Standing there, she slightly revealed her aura, which was the majestic presence of a mid-stage Golden Elixir realm.

On Bi Luo Peak, although Jiang Yuebai was strong, she relied more on her Fairy Spirit Body, with all kinds of divine abilities at her fingertips. Mu Yueting, more in the style of her master, was a pure female sword cultivator. She was two years older than Jiang Yuebai, and before Jiang Yuebai became well-known, Mu Yueting had always been considered the true successor of Yan Daoren.

Chu Liang released the aura of an early-stage Golden Elixir realm, appearing slightly inferior, but the presence of a top-quality Golden Elixir could make up for the gap between them to a certain extent.

To outsiders, this might seem like a fairly even battle, with Chu Liang slightly weaker, but still capable of putting up a fight.

But Jiang Yuebai didn’t see it that way.

She stood below the stage, her gaze falling on Chu Liang, with a hint of contemplation. It had been a while since she had assessed his cultivation, and with his terrifying speed of progression, she wondered what advancements he had made.

Would his progress stall during this time?

Emotionally, she should feel closer to her senior sister. But somehow, she vaguely felt that she didn’t really want Chu Liang to lose.

This strange thought was unclear and indistinct, and at the same time, there seemed to be a voice in her heart saying… Chu Liang would definitely not lose.