Watching the beauty's figure disappear into the Rainbow Bridge, Li Ling's lips curled up slightly. He thought to himself that he might actually have some luck. This chance encounter really made him feel like his wishes had come true.
...
The next day, in the square.
At this moment, dozens of disciples were already walking and chatting, while in the center of the square, eight high platforms had been erected, forming a Bagua (Eight Trigrams) pattern.
Beneath the high platform in the middle of the square, a large red sheet of paper, several meters tall, was posted, listing everyone's draw number and the opponent they would be facing.
At the top of the list is none other than Zhang Xiaofan!
His name was written alone in the first row, all alone and empty. The second row below it was Li Ling, with the names of Longshou Peak Li Ling and his opponent 'Peng Chang' written above it!
That's nothing, but if we look ahead, if we win this match, the next match will be between Li Ling of Dragon Head Peak and Qi Hao of Dragon Head Peak!
Upon seeing this list, the people around started discussing it amongst themselves!
"Hehe, I didn't expect that internal strife would break out in the very second round of the Dragon Head Peak competition!"
"Yes, I heard that Li Ling was bestowed the Dragon-Slaying Sword by Senior Uncle Cangsong! He must be quite powerful. If he is defeated by Qi Hao's sword, wouldn't our chances increase greatly? No, no, no, maybe he can't even get past Senior Brother Peng!"
"Yes, it's a pity for this young genius. I once heard my master say that he was a cultivation prodigy. It's just a pity that he ran into Qi Hao, the runner-up of the previous year, so early on. I'm afraid he won't get a good ranking!"
The crowd was buzzing with discussion, but no one was optimistic about Li Ling's chances. Li Ling, however, smiled. Regardless of whether the result of the draw was truly a matter of fate or something else, it was undeniably to his liking!
"I never expected to run into my junior brother in the second match!"
Just then, a gentle voice suddenly came from behind Li Ling, followed by several footsteps that stopped not far behind him.
Li Ling turned around and saw that the person who had spoken was Qi Hao. He was standing there with a slight smile on his lips, looking very gentle and refined.
Behind Qi Hao, however, several disciples of Dragon Head Peak did not have his acting skills. Each of them looked at Li Ling with malice. They were all Qi Hao's staunch followers, and they had suffered a lot of losses in the past few years when Qi Hao instructed them to trip up Li Ling.
Li Ling smiled slightly. After all, he couldn't afford to lose face for Cangsong in front of the other six disciples, so he smiled politely and said, "I hope Senior Brother Qi will go easy on me!"
"When brothers spar, it's only fair that we stop when we've made our point!" Qi Hao said with a smile.
“That’s right. When we, fellow disciples, compete together, wouldn’t that be a legendary tale for Dragon Head Peak?” Li Ling replied with a smile.
"That's...that's..."
The two appeared very close, like brothers, but beneath the surface, a tension seemed to be lurking beneath the surface! This performance profoundly showcased the actor's skill, displaying the artistry of a film emperor. (The remaining text appears to be unrelated and likely refers to a separate scene: "Wishing Star of All Realms and Worlds")
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Chapter 341: First Battle a Success
On the surface, Li Ling and Qi Hao appeared to be friendly and respectful, but in reality, they were plotting against each other. Most of the other disciples were also looking for their opponents and secretly estimating their chances of winning.
Zhang Xiaofan, who had a bye, seemed quite relaxed. As soon as he arrived on the field, he started looking for acquaintances. When he saw Li Ling, he waved and greeted him, "Ah Ling, over here!"
Li Ling had no intention of continuing to feign politeness with Qi Hao. He gave a light apology and went to Zhang Xiaofan's side, sighing:
"My senior brother is really something. He's only a little over a hundred years old, but he's already learned how to be two-faced. He'll probably be quite something when he inherits Dragon Head Peak. It seems that if I stay on Dragon Head Peak after he becomes the head, I probably won't feel comfortable!"
"Huh? I saw you two chatting happily just now. I didn't want to disturb you, but Senior Brother insisted that I say hello to you." Zhang Xiaofan scratched his head in confusion.
Song Daren, standing nearby, was a shrewd man. He thought to himself, "Junior Brother, you're really naive. How did you get the idea that they were having a pleasant conversation? I saw them talking like they were about to clash!"
When Li Ling learned that it was Song Daren's idea, he thanked Song Daren beside him and said, "Thank you so much, Senior Brother Song, for getting me out of this predicament. Otherwise, I don't know when I would have been able to get rid of Senior Brother Qi's entanglement."
"Junior Brother Li, you're too kind!" Song Daren said politely for a moment, then asked with puzzlement, "Junior Brother, this Senior Brother Qi has always had an excellent reputation within the sect. I was defeated by him during the Seven Sects Martial Arts Tournament sixty years ago, but I also found him to be a very sincere person. Why are you acting like this towards you, Junior Brother..."
At this point, Song Daren stopped talking.
Li Ling smiled and explained, "Hehe, Senior Brother Song, you're thinking too simply. If there were no conflict of interest, Senior Brother Qi would naturally treat others with kindness. Unfortunately, because I am valued by Master, he sees me as a threat to his position as the next head of Dragon Head Peak."
"He's concerned about his master, so he's friendly to me on the surface, but he probably wishes I would just disappear. Especially since we're about to become rivals, he's probably holding back and wants to teach me a lesson!"
Song Daren suddenly realized, and then warned, "Junior brother, you must be very careful. Senior Brother Qi was the runner-up in the Seven Peaks Martial Arts Tournament sixty years ago. Now, after sixty years of accumulation, no one knows what level his cultivation has reached. Junior brother, even though you are exceptionally talented, you still need to act according to your abilities!"
Li Ling smiled calmly and said, "Haha, I know what I'm doing. Thank you, Senior Brother Song!"
"Alright, since you seem to know what's going on, I won't say anything more. You and your junior brother can chat, I have something to attend to, so I'll be leaving now!"
After saying that, Song Daren hurriedly ran to the other side, where several beautiful figures were walking towards him. The one in the lead was none other than Senior Sister Wenmin from Xiaozhu Peak!
As the number of people increased, gradually, just like yesterday, the sea of clouds was once again filled with disciples of the Qingyun Sect.
However, this time the crowd did not gather in groups of three or five as they had the day before. Instead, they surrounded the eight platforms, each waiting for the competition they wanted to see. In any case, who would compete against whom and on which platform had already been written on red paper.
One of the largest platforms had the most people, almost half of all the disciples, and most of them were young male disciples. That was Lu Xueqi's competition venue from Xiaozhu Peak!
Lu Xueqi is hailed as the most outstanding beauty of Xiaozhu Peak in five hundred years. Naturally, her fame has long been spread throughout the Qingyun Sect, and countless people want to witness the style of this peerless beauty fighting against her enemies!
Li Ling had originally planned to join in and watch, as there were eight platforms and sixty-three people competing, which would be divided into four rounds. However, Lu Xueqi was competing in the same round as Li Ling, which completely ruined his plan to watch the girls' martial arts competition!
Soon, the competition began, and Li Ling stepped onto the stage.
"Junior brother, I've heard so much about you!" On the arena, the other person greeted Li Ling.
Li Ling smiled and cupped his hands in response, saying, "Please enlighten me, Senior Brother Peng!"
"I dare not presume to offer guidance. The Dragon-Slaying Sword is the supreme divine weapon of my Qingyun Sect, and I have long wished to see its power!" Peng Chang said confidently with a smile. "The Wu Hook Sword in my hand is forged from thousand-year-old fire copper, and it radiates intense heat. Junior Brother, please be careful!"
"Thank you for your guidance, senior brother!"
"Junior brother, please!"