The next morning, Wan Yunting, Gu Luotang, Qi Miaomiao, Duan Yingying, Yang Jingyi, Li Zihang, Xu Lingwei, Qi Wu, Lin Dachun, Zhao Xuewu, Wang Zhuyu, Tang Doudou, and Huang Shaoqing, along with other disciples, woke up early and had breakfast in the courtyard.
At eight o'clock, Zhou Ruoxi, dressed in a white ancient-style long dress with her hair styled in a bun, holding a long sword in her left hand, entered with Mistress Yun Bai. She said, "Master Wan, Madam Yang, we should go and gather at the plaza."
"Alright, let's go."
Wan Yunting and Yang Jingyi stood up, asked Qi Wu and Li Zihang to bring their belongings, and led Gu Luotang, Qi Miaomiao, and Duan Yingying out. They joined Zhou Ruoxi, Mistress Yun Bai, and over twenty other disciples from the Emei Sect, heading towards the grand plaza at the South Heavenly Gate of the Huashan Sect.
"Sect Leader Zhong, Elder Zuo Qi, good morning..."
On the way, they encountered the Wudang Sect members. Wan Yunting, Zhou Ruoxi, Yang Jingyi, and Mistress Yun Bai all bowed and greeted Zhong Yulong and Elder Zuo Qi.
Zhong Yulong and Elder Zuo Qi returned the greetings with smiles. Zi Qing, walking behind Xian Yun and Xu Yuxin, wore a gray robe, her slightly messy hair tied back with a twig. Her natural beauty was striking, and her pair of innocent phoenix eyes stared blankly at Wan Yunting for a moment before she gave a slight nod as a greeting.
Lan Xin, walking beside her, held a wooden sword, which was Zi Qing's practice sword. She also waved at Wan Yunting and his group.
They then met the group from Longhu Mountain. Everyone exchanged greetings, and immediately Zhang Xian'er, dressed in a simple robe, ran over with her Qingping Sword, joining Wan Yunting's group.
Zhang Xuanliang and Lin Yiping, along with the three Celestial Masters Zhao Yixia, saw this and said nothing. It was clear that their Uncle-Master Xian'er seemed to listen to Master Wan's words.
"Sect Leader Zhong, Celestial Master Zhang..."
Then they encountered Yan Changjian from the Divine Sword Sect. He was with his disciple Jian Feng and the young girl sword attendant. He always held a broadsword, with He Yunxia and Meng Yan and other disciples following beside him.
"Sect Leader Yan, good morning..."
Zhong Yulong and Zhang Xuanliang, walking together, returned the greeting to Yan Changjian.
"Do you mind if we travel together?"
Yan Changjian, still arrogant, ignored Wan Yunting, Zhou Ruoxi, Yang Jingyi, Mistress Yun Bai, and the others.
Zhong Yulong and Zhang Xuanliang smiled and nodded, naturally not minding.
Thus, Yan Changjian led the disciples of the Divine Sword Sect to join the procession of these sects. Jian Feng, dressed in a gray robe and holding a long sword, cast a sharp, challenging glance at Wan Yunting, a contemptuous smile curling his lips, full of provocation.
He Yunxia and the other disciples also cast provocative glances at the disciples from the Wudang Sect, Longhu Mountain, Emei Sect, and Wuliang Daoist Temple. Their arrogant demeanor annoyed Duan Yingying, who turned to Wan Yunting and said, "When the competition starts, if you encounter these people, you must help me get even."
Wan Yunting looked at her vexed expression and smiled, nodding.
The disciples of the Wudang Sect, Longhu Mountain, Emei Sect, and others also disliked the provocative and arrogant attitude of the Divine Sword Sect's disciples. They secretly vowed that when the Huashan Sword Debate competition began, they would fight the disciples of the Divine Sword Sect to the death.
At the grand plaza of the South Heavenly Gate of the Huashan Sect, people from various sects gradually gathered, holding their respective sect banners. Each sect wore different attire. Even if the colors were the same, the sect symbols were different, making them easily distinguishable.
As Wan Yunting, Zhou Ruoxi, Zhong Yulong, Zhang Xuanliang, and Yan Changjian of the Divine Sword Sect led their disciples to the plaza, the prime positions were naturally reserved for the top sects like the Wudang Sect, Longhu Mountain, and Shaolin Sect, arranged in order.
The Wuliang Daoist Temple was only a third-rate sect. However, due to Wan Yunting's special status, the Huashan Sect naturally arranged for the Wuliang Daoist Temple to stand in the same position as the top sects. This irked people from smaller sects, but they dared not voice their opinions, only discussing it in private.
Before long, the six major sects and dozens of other sects of various sizes had all gathered in the South Heavenly Gate plaza. The scene was spectacular, with each sect forming a formation. The colorful sect attire and banners were like a scene of grand sect assemblies in an ancient martial arts film.
Moreover, there were many cameras around. These were from the local television station, as it was natural for the local TV station to broadcast such a grand martial arts gathering hosted by the Huashan Sect.
In addition to the local television station, various online platforms were also broadcasting live. The Douyin live stream had started its warm-up at eight o'clock, attracting over a million netizens. As the sect formations gathered in the plaza, the camera also focused on Wan Yunting among the sect leaders gathered on the steps of a large hall. This immediately attracted millions more netizens to the live stream, with some fans frantically tagging Wan Yunting below.
"Everyone, please be quiet..."
Standing on the steps in front of the hall entrance, Shi Yizhen, the Sect Leader of the Huashan Sect, dressed in a magnificent long robe, held a microphone and asked the hundreds of people and disciples present to quiet down. He then gave an opening speech that lasted about ten minutes.
He then handed the microphone to Zhong Yulong beside him: "Next, the President of our Martial Arts Association, Zhong Yulong, Sect Leader Zhong of the Wudang Sect, will say a few words. Welcome..."
Applause erupted from the disciples of various sects in the plaza. Wan Yunting and Zhou Ruoxi, standing with other sect leaders, also applauded. Zhong Yulong took the microphone and said with a smile, "The Triennial Martial Arts Gathering is once again hosted by the Huashan Sect. Everyone should be here for the Huashan Sword Debate, right?"
The disciples of various sects in the plaza immediately cheered, expressing their excitement. Zhong Yulong gestured with his left hand for everyone to calm down and continued with a smile, "The Martial Arts Gathering is a grand event for our sects every three years. The competition is also a test of the progress of our disciples over the past three years. Therefore, everyone should work hard and strive for glory for your sects and win the first place in the Huashan Sword Debate!"
"First place, first place..."
The disciples present cheered excitedly again, full of passion. Netizens watching the live stream commented that this definitely wasn't like filming a movie.
"Alright, enough preamble. The Martial Arts Gathering officially begins this year."
Zhong Yulong, seeing that it was getting late and not wanting to waste everyone's time, officially announced the start of the Martial Arts Gathering.
The microphone was handed to Shi Yizhen, who shouted, "Everyone, head towards the entrance on the right. That is our Huashan Sect's Northern Peak, which is the competition arena for the Huashan Sword Debate. Let's all gather at the Northern Peak, where the competition system for participating disciples from various sects will be arranged..."
Disciples of the Huashan Sect were responsible for leading the people from various sects towards the Northern Peak of Huashan. Wan Yunting and Zhou Ruoxi, each leading the members of the Wuliang Daoist Temple and Emei Sect, followed the others, proceeding in an orderly fashion towards the Northern Peak of Huashan.
The Northern Peak of Huashan was surrounded by sheer cliffs, crowned with clouds of auspicious signs, and connected to the earth's veins below. It stood majestically and uniquely. The Northern Peak was a crucial pass for ascending the other four peaks, though it was not as high as the others.
However, the terrain was extremely treacherous, with sheer cliffs on three sides and only a single ridge leading to the south, making it a strategically advantageous position that was easy to defend and difficult to attack.
At this moment, led by the disciples of the Huashan Sect, the formations of various sects formed a long dragon heading towards the summit of the Northern Peak. Meanwhile, on the Eastern Peak, tourists who had purchased tickets in advance to watch the Huashan Sword Debate had already gathered, watching from afar the three temporary arenas set up on the Northern Peak of Huashan.
Wan Yunting, with Gu Luotang and Qi Miaomiao following behind, along with Duan Yingying and Yang Jingyi, and then Xu Lingwei, Qi Wu, Li Zihang, and Lin Dachun and other disciples, followed the Emei Sect disciples towards the Northern Peak.
"Brother Yunting, didn't you arrange for Sister Lu and Sister Zheng to come and watch? Have they arrived?" Gu Luotang asked.
"Yes, Sister Lu just sent me a message saying she has already reached the mountain!" Wan Yunting said, holding his phone and smiling at the women beside him.
"That's good."
Gu Luotang felt relieved upon hearing that Lu Xiaodie and Zheng Rong were already on the mountain.
As the disciples of the Huashan Sect led the crowds from various sects to the Northern Peak of Huashan, they saw a large stone standing beside them, engraved with four large characters: Huashan Sword Debate!
The summit was a plaza with three temporary arenas set up for the disciples of various sects participating in the Huashan Sword Debate to compete. The referees were naturally composed of elders from various sects to ensure fairness and impartiality.
The various sects gathered again in the plaza. Simultaneously, below the three arenas, there were several long rows of wooden chairs for the sect leaders and elders of various sects to sit and watch the competitions. Disciples could only stand or sit directly on the ground to watch, as there were no such strict rules.
Next to the three arenas, cameras were set up for live broadcasting. The Douyin live stream had already attracted eight million viewers.
"Brother Yunting, look, Sister Lu and Sister Zheng are over there!"
Gu Luotang and Qi Miaomiao spotted Lu Xiaodie and Zheng Rong in a corner of the plaza. They were also observing the numerous disciples from various sects ascending the mountain and finally saw Wan Yunting and Gu Luotang's group. Lu Xiaodie and Zheng Rong waved excitedly.
"Brother Yunting, is it okay to let Sister Lu and Sister Zheng come over?" Gu Luotang asked.
Wan Yunting nodded and smiled, "It's fine, there are so many people here, no one will notice."
"Okay, then I'll go get Sister Lu and Sister Zheng," Gu Luotang said happily, taking Qi Miaomiao with her.
Yang Jingyi raised an eyebrow and said, "Yunting, you can't let others discover they are learning the skills of the Xiaoyao Sect!"
Wan Yunting looked at his worried master's wife and nodded with a smile, "Don't worry, they aren't participating in the competition, so others won't know."
Yang Jingyi nodded. Duan Yingying then asked, "Didn't the Huashan Sect prohibit outsiders from entering? How did you get them up here?"
Wan Yunting smiled and said, "Isn't it simple? I asked Elder Ge of the Huashan Sect to help."
The Huashan Sect did give Wan Yunting face. Elder Ge Shulin readily agreed to his request, allowing Lu Xiaodie and Zheng Rong to come up to the Northern Peak to watch the Huashan Sword Debate competition.