"If it were before, this opportunity would have belonged only to the Four Great Sects. But this time, due to our closer relationship with three of them, they've made an exception for us to participate. So, you could say this opportunity is one you've earned," Wu Fan said to Mo Qi, his voice slow.
"What are my chances?" Mo Qi felt uncertain.
"Don't ask me. Ask yourself," Wu Fan replied. His words only made Mo Qi more apprehensive.
Wu Fan continued, "It's an undeniable fact that the overall skill level of disciples from the Four Great Sects is high. I believe you've lived in the Divine Pill Sect for a while and have a deeper understanding than I do."
Mo Qi, however, was thinking, *I only have a deep understanding of their female cultivators.*
"Moreover, many of their Peak Masters and Chief Disciples will also participate in this competition. There will definitely be difficulties, but there should, perhaps, be a chance," Wu Fan said with a firm tone, delivering the most uncertain words.
Seeing his lack of confidence, Mo Qi felt like he was suffocating. "Then, how many spots does the Northern Territory allocate to the Nine Gods Cultivation Realm?"
"Twelve."
"Twelve is quite a lot!" Mo Qi jumped up, feeling the opportunity was significant.
"But the Four Great Sects are only giving us two spots to compete."
Wu Fan's words immediately felt like a bucket of cold water drenching him from head to toe. Li Xuemei was destined to take one spot, meaning he would have to fight for the remaining one.
"I heard that those who qualify for the trial need to complete a mission before being allowed to enter the Northern Territory?" Mo Qi continued to ask.
"You can also look at it from another perspective," Wu Fan said, feigning profound mystery. "Without these missions, would the Northern Territory Cultivation Realm give the Nine Gods Cultivation Realm an opportunity for trials?"
Mo Qi looked at Wu Fan, somewhat understanding but not entirely.
Wu Fan shook his head and continued, "These missions mostly involve tasks related to the Nine Gods Cultivation Realm, the Annan Cultivation Realm, or even the Primordial Sea Cultivation Realm. Some are even tasks assigned by the Sky Dome Realm. The Northern Territory is unwilling to get involved, so they devised this method, letting the Nine Gods Realm execute the tasks on their behalf."
This time, Mo Qi understood. "So, in the end, we're just the pawns?"
Wu Fan remained noncommittal. "In any case, it's a trial to go to the Northern Territory. You can consider this mission as a test." Then, he added mysteriously, "Think of every moment as facing an enemy, and every thought as crossing a bridge."
Mo Qi suddenly felt that this was a huge trap.
The Lingxiao Sect adopted a free registration system for the competition. However, fearing too many participants would waste everyone's time, and that those with low cultivation would only be sparring partners, they set a threshold: only cultivators at Foundation Establishment or above could register.
As a result, forty people registered. Bai Cheng, Leng Xiao, Zhao Zhou, Wang Shaozhong, Chen Zui, and Pi Shi all signed up. Fortunately, Li Xuemei did not register, which was cause for widespread celebration!
The competition took place on the plaza of Shaoxia Peak. It was divided into Group A and Group B. Within each group, participants fought in duels, with the winners then dueling each other to determine the top five. Subsequently, the winners from both groups would duel to determine five victors, from whom two would be selected to participate in the inter-sect competition.
Group A's matches were held in the morning, and Group B's in the afternoon.
There were five arenas, with five matches proceeding simultaneously in each group. Wu Fan, the Sect Master, and the Four Elders served as referees.
Mo Qi was assigned to Group A. He scanned the list and recognized Bai Cheng and Chen Zui; he didn't know the others. Sect Master Wu Fan personally serving as a referee demonstrated the sect's emphasis on this competition. After the draw, Mo Qi's first opponent was Xia Mingsheng, an unfamiliar name. While waiting for the match to begin, Mo Qi inquired with Chen Zui and learned that this person was a disciple from Shaoyang Peak. Due to his frequent participation in sect missions outside, he appeared very unfamiliar. It was also rumored that this person was nearly forty years old and one of the earliest disciples of the Lingxiao Sect. His extensive combat experience was a given, and in recent years, he had encountered some fortuitous encounters, reportedly reaching the late stage of Foundation Establishment.
Unexpectedly, Mo Qi was facing a tough opponent in the first round. He inwardly lamented his misfortune.
The referee was Elder Wang. Casually, Elder Wang cast several meaningful glances at Mo Qi. Mo Qi interpreted them as looks of pity and felt even more distressed.
When both of them stood on the temporarily erected arena, the surrounding Lingxiao Sect disciples were overwhelmingly supporting Xia Mingsheng. "Senior Brother Xia has rich combat experience and higher cultivation; it's a sure win for him."
"He has no skill whatsoever, yet he claims to be the Vice Sect Master. Senior Brother Xia must teach him a lesson and curb his arrogance."
"He's only good at alchemy; his magical power and cultivation are completely inadequate."
"Defeat him and shame him out of his position as Vice Sect Master."
"Take this opportunity to teach him a good lesson, so he won't dare to be so conceited."
The female cultivators from the Maiden Peak were particularly vocal. "Kill him and give Xiao Cong'er justice."
Xia Mingsheng, already quite arrogant, heard these cheers and looked at Mo Qi with even greater disdain. "I heard you are skilled in alchemy, but what we are competing in now is not alchemy. It's your misfortune to encounter me, but you can choose to concede to avoid physical pain."
Mo Qi forced a smile. "Have you learned only the art of talking outside all these years? What we are competing in now is not the art of talking, but a true test of skill. Let's settle this with our hands."
Xia Mingsheng's anger flared. Gritting his teeth, he said, "Fine, then let's settle this with our hands."
With that, he formed a hand seal with his right hand and slapped his storage bag with his left. Five small green flags shot out, not towards Mo Qi's face, but towards the five directions around Mo Qi – east, west, south, north, and overhead – encircling him and spinning continuously.
Observing their trajectory, Mo Qi knew that if Xia Mingsheng were allowed to fully deploy his techniques, he would be in a very passive position, perhaps with no chance to retaliate.
Making a swift decision, he flicked his finger upwards. A stream of arrow energy shot out, and with a hiss, the green flag overhead gracefully descended, exploding in mid-air.
Xia Mingsheng's expression shifted slightly. He didn't know what technique Mo Qi had used to make it vanish in an instant, which made him somewhat fearful. However, he knew that as long as the other four flags remained, his formation was not broken, and he could still surround and kill Mo Qi. Thus, he kept his hand seals unchanged and continued to cast his spell.
As each green flag spun, mist emerged, forming a light screen. From this light screen, streams of green mist arrows were unleashed, striking towards Mo Qi.
Mo Qi patted his body, and his protective divine light immediately enveloped him. Simultaneously, he formed hand seals, and the surrounding cold air surged. Snowflakes descended from nowhere, as if suddenly entering a world of ice and snow. The snowflakes, light and airy, spun gracefully in the air. Upon contact with the green mist, they emitted a sizzling sound, and the green mist was gradually dissolved.
However, the green mist was dense, and there were gaps in the snowflakes. The wisps of green mist flowed through these gaps. Although they had lost much of their spiritual power by the time they hit the protective divine light, the needle-like, piercing green mist still penetrated Mo Qi's body. This move, the Ice and Snow World, was clearly not refined enough.
Mo Qi endured the sharp pain, unleashed his spiritual sense, and quickly pinpointed the true locations of the green flags within the light screen. He shook his right hand, and the Eagle Soul Claw extended, five sharp claw shadows bursting forth and striking towards the light screen. Amidst the booming explosions, three green flags were hit and shattered into pieces, falling to the ground. Another green flag was behind him. Mo Qi changed his hand seals, and the Ice and Snow World vanished. He flicked his finger, and an invisible arrow of energy shot out, striking the last green flag, which then fell with a resounding crack.
Concurrently, the three claw shadows Mo Qi had previously unleashed dissipated with the fall of the three green flags. However, two claw shadows remained and swiftly struck towards Xia Mingsheng.
Xia Mingsheng's magical artifact was destroyed. He had no choice but to summon his flying sword, hastily conjuring two sword shadows. As soon as the sword shadows formed, they were shattered by the impact, and Xia Mingsheng's body was also sent flying out of the arena. Mo Qi emerged victorious!
A wave of boos erupted from the crowd below!
"What is this? Senior Brother Xia Mingsheng must have gone easy on him; how could he lose to him?"
"Alas, thinking about it carefully, it's understandable. After all, he's the Vice Sect Master. If he doesn't yield to the Vice Sect Master, his future days might be difficult."
"Why aren't the referees doing anything? What are the referees for?"
"Hush, the referees are all in cahoots with them. Don't you understand such things?"
Xia Mingsheng took a while to get up, his eyes bewildered, still unable to believe he had lost.
He could never have imagined that a disciple who had joined the sect only a few years ago could defeat him, who had been a disciple for over twenty years.
But that was the reality! The crowd immediately swarmed around him, a cacophony of accusations, questions, and inquiries.
"Senior Brother Xia, did you really go easy on Vice Sect Master Mo?"
Xia Mingsheng's face flushed slightly. "I admit I didn't exert my full strength."
"See, I told you he went easy!"
A moment later, the other four matches concluded, and the next five matches immediately commenced. Mo Qi made a circuit and saw that one of the arenas was Bai Cheng's match. Since establishing her Foundation, Bai Cheng's cultivation had grown extremely rapidly, especially given her Asura Foundation. She was still in the early stage of Foundation Establishment but showed signs of transitioning to the middle stage. However, her luck was poor; she encountered a disciple who had joined over twenty years ago, reportedly in the second year after the Lingxiao Sect's founding. During the fight, she was clearly at a disadvantage. After stubbornly holding on for a period, Bai Cheng was finally defeated.
Mo Qi's opponent in the second round was none other than Chen Zui!
Chen Zui stood with his arms crossed seriously, his body angled. "Vice Sect Master Mo, although you have been kind to me, and I know your cultivation is higher than mine, I will go all out in this match. If I go easy on you, it would be disrespectful to cultivation. If you don't give your all, it would be an insult to me. Therefore, let us fight with all our might."
Mo Qi nodded. "Yes, all our might. Let's fight with all our might."
As the referee shouted "Begin," Mo Qi immediately formed a hand seal, and a layer of mist appeared around his body. Chen Zui's body suddenly flew backward, tumbling out of the arena. He then struggled to get up, shouting, "Vice Sect Master Mo is truly divine and mighty! I lost. How could I have lost?"
Mo Qi looked at him with exasperation. *Isn't your performance a bit too exaggerated? There's no need for this.*
As expected, boos erupted from the surroundings. "See, I told you there was cheating. It's confirmed."
"This is too obvious a case of going easy."
"I think we shouldn't call him Mo Qi anymore, but Mo Shameless."
"Hush, keep your voices down. If Mo Shameless gets angry later, you'll be begging for your lives."
And so, Mo Qi became one of the individuals who broke through from Group A.