Immortal Reincarnation Tribulation

Chapter 59 Competing with the top 5

After leaving the general store, Du Fan originally intended to go to the alchemy office to buy some Qi Refining Pills for his breakthrough to the first level of the Qi Refining stage. However, after looking at the sky, he hesitated for a moment and instead walked towards the outer gate square.

Knowing that Ye Feng would no longer be interested in the outer sect competition, he decided to go by himself. Du Fan was still very interested in watching the battle.

He was overwhelmed by the numerous matches yesterday and was still eager for more even after they ended. If he hadn't insisted, Ye Feng would have left long ago instead of wasting time there. Ye Feng was very busy.

When Du Fan stepped into the outer sect square, thousands of outer sect disciples had already gathered there. At the edge of the arena, Wan Baoshan and the other four finalists stood. There was still a quarter of an hour before the competition began.

Du Fan glanced at the stands subconsciously and saw two people sitting there, who were none other than the two Golden Core elders from the Kongsang Sect from yesterday. Behind them stood seven or eight Foundation Establishment deacons, but the Zishan Sect members were not there. This surprised him greatly and left him somewhat puzzled.

"Brother Xu, do you think the great battle with the Burial Ghost Sect will really break out? Our two sects have been fighting openly and covertly for over a hundred years, but we have never truly broken ties." The bald, burly man sitting on the stands suddenly moved his lips and transmitted his voice, his eyes flashing.

"That's most likely the case. The fact that they can even outmaneuver me shows that they've been planning this for quite some time. Considering the situation in the Land of the Divergent, it's probably true."

The thought of his sect's mysterious token being stolen by his pet filled Xu Changchun with rage; no one could easily forgive such a thing.

"Haha, Brother Xu, there's no need for that. Our sect leader didn't blame you too much. The other party was acting on a premeditated plan, and none of us could have avoided it." The bald, burly man laughed heartily. Although his words were meant to comfort, there was a hint of sarcasm in them.

"Hmph!" Xu Muchun snorted heavily, his face turning ashen, and he stopped speaking.

"Hey, isn't that kid Du Fan?" Seeing Xu Muchun's humiliation, the bald, burly man seemed unusually pleased. Just as he was about to say something more, his gaze inadvertently swept over Du Fan, who had just stepped into the square.

"That's right, I didn't expect you to recognize him too. This kid is quite famous now. But I really should thank him. If it weren't for him, I would probably have made a name for myself in the history of Kongsang Sect!" Looking at Du Fan, Xu Muchun's gaze was complicated, and he even made a few self-deprecating remarks.

"Actually, I had heard of him long before the Land of Scattered Lands." This time, the bald, burly man didn't take the opportunity to tease the other party, but instead looked at Du Fan with considerable interest.

"Oh? Could it be that this kid really has some extraordinary talent?" Xu Muchun was greatly surprised upon hearing this and couldn't help but ask.

"This kid is in charge of managing the Spirit Garden under Junior Nephew Shen Hong. He has just taken over and has managed the Spirit Garden very well. That's not a big deal. But this kid is incredibly audacious. He dared to transplant the spiritual herbs in the herb garden without permission and also scattered a large amount of demonic beast excrement."

The key point is that the medicinal herbs he manipulated grew at a rate about twenty times faster than before, and he even created a private experimental field from which he profited handsomely.

"His current net worth is probably no less than that of the core disciples." The bald, burly man spoke leisurely, his words revealing no concealment of his admiration for Du Fan.

"Is that so! How did you find out?" Xu Muchun was startled upon hearing this and couldn't help but feel a little suspicious. After all, the orderly growth of spiritual herbs was a consensus in the cultivation world for thousands of years.

It would be understandable to say that some special means could be used to increase its speed by several percent, but to increase it by twenty times is simply too shocking. However, Xu Muchun knew the Golden Light Elder beside him and knew that the other party would not speak carelessly.

"This kid is really quite bold, daring to take the sect's spiritual herbs to the Seven Star Merchant Alliance to exchange for spirit stones. The deacon of the Enforcement Hall discovered this on that occasion and wanted to arrest Du Fan."

However, my senior brother and I happened to be in the Enforcement Hall that day. After hearing about it, we felt something was amiss, so we temporarily suppressed the matter and secretly went to the Spirit Garden to investigate.

The extraordinary qualities of the medicinal herbs planted in the herb garden were immediately apparent to my senior brother and me, the sect leader. We took a few plants back and conducted experiments on them ourselves, which is how we learned about them.

This matter is of utmost importance and must not be spread, otherwise it will cause quite a stir in Qingzhou, and even the entire Kyushu Continent. If such a thing really happens, it will be of no benefit to my Kongsang Sect.

Although Kongsang Sect dominates a region in the northern part of Qingzhou, it is far inferior to those truly great sects.

Therefore, the sect leader didn't mention it to anyone else on purpose. It wasn't that he intentionally kept it from you elders, so you must keep it a secret!" Jin Guang said slowly, and then solemnly reminded him at the end.

"Du Fan's aptitude for cultivation is extremely poor, but I never expected him to have such attainments in the Dao of Plants and Trees. Rest assured, I naturally know the implications. If we want him to serve the Kongsang Sect completely, the only way is to keep the news under wraps."

Xu Muchun's heart was filled with turbulent emotions. The influence of spiritual herbs on a sect was self-evident, and such talents must be protected, even at great cost.

"Therefore, Du Fan is also a key person to be protected this time." Jin Guang was relieved to see that Xu Muchun was taking this matter seriously.

"That's natural. The reason we're holding the outer sect competition and having the two of us here is to select disciples with greater potential and protect them so they don't become cannon fodder in this great battle. Even if it means sacrificing some ordinary high-level inner sect disciples, we must preserve the outstanding talents."

"The inner sect has already started, hasn't it?" Xu Muchun's expression was solemn. He finally looked away from Du Fan and glanced at the outer sect disciples in the square, as if he had already made a decision.

"Yes, it has already begun. Senior Sister Cuiqi is in charge of this matter. Compared to the outer disciples, we know the inner disciples better, so she has it much easier than us," Jin Guang nodded and said.

"That's right, so we must be even more vigilant and not make a mistake. This is a matter of great importance, concerning the foundation of our sect!" Xu Muchun's expression turned serious, and a glint flashed in his eyes.

Jin Guang remained silent and looked toward the arena in the square.

……

"Silence! Today we will be ranking the top five outer disciples. According to the draw, Wan Baoshan will receive a bye in the first round." Just as Chenshi arrived, the Foundation Establishment deacon who hosted the competition yesterday walked onto the arena and announced loudly.

"Senior Brother Wan is really lucky to have received a bye. He can now directly enter the top three rankings."

"Yes, the rewards for third and fifth place are quite different."

"Most importantly, everyone will be fighting several rounds today. The fewer rounds you participate in, the more magical power you will gain. I'm rooting for Senior Brother Wan this time!"

"These five people today are all at the fourth level of the Qi Refining stage. We are sure to have a great eye-opening experience!"

Various discussions immediately arose in the square. Du Fan gave Wan Baoshan, who was beaming with joy, a strange look.

"Could this Senior Brother Wan have done something underhanded?" Du Fan thought to himself.

"Alright, first match, Yang Lin versus Kong Qing, both of you, come on stage." As soon as he finished speaking, the Foundation Establishment deacon stepped down from the arena. A short while later, a man and a woman stood on the arena. They were the tall Yang Lin and the aloof Kong Qing.

"Senior Sister Kong, please!"

"Junior Brother Yang, watch out!"

Without any hesitation, Kong Qing first formed hand seals, then with a flick of his wrist, four water blades, each half a foot in size, shot out. The speed of his attack was as if it were instantaneous, clean and swift, drawing gasps of surprise from the audience.

"Water attribute cultivation technique?" Du Fan's spirits lifted immediately upon seeing it. He himself possessed a water attribute spiritual root, but after several battles yesterday, not a single disciple had used water attribute spells, which had left him somewhat disappointed. Now, upon seeing it for the first time, he couldn't help but feel excited.

Upon seeing this, Yang Lin was taken aback, clearly not expecting the woman to act so quickly. Before he could even complete the incantation with his left hand, four water blades whistled through the air and hurtled towards him.

Gritting his teeth, he continued to form hand seals with his left hand, while his right hand flipped, and a golden talisman suddenly appeared in his palm. Without hesitation, he tossed it out.

The talisman instantly transformed into a golden umbrella amidst a swirling golden light. After a tremor, the umbrella opened instantly, protecting Yang Lin, and spun rapidly, creating a buzzing sound as it violently rubbed against the air.

The next moment, the four water blades that shot out collided with the golden umbrella formed by the talisman.

After four loud "bangs," the four water blades were deflected, while the golden umbrella only flashed a few times before remaining perfectly intact and continuing to float there.

Upon seeing this, Kong Qing raised an eyebrow and, without saying a word, formed hand seals again. However, this time the hand seals were different. A moment later, he suddenly flicked his left hand forward, and two more water blades shot out.

But the woman didn't even glance at him. She withdrew her left hand and made another hand seal. Soon after, two more water blades shot towards the opposite side. At the same time, her right hand completed the hand seal. A blue light appeared in front of her and rolled upwards, transforming into a blue longsword half a zhang long. It spun in the air and pointed the tip at Yang Lin. After a clear sound, the blue longsword swept away towards the opposite side with a blur.

"Senior Sister Kong can actually control two spells simultaneously! That's incredible!"

"I can't believe my eyes, Senior Sister Kong is unleashing a water blade with her left hand and activating the Water Shadow Sword with her right... This..."

Upon seeing this scene, the disciples below the stage all gasped, their eyes filled with shock and disbelief.

"This woman is quite remarkable!" Elder Jin Guang's eyes flashed, and he suddenly spoke.

Xu Muchun didn't speak, but his eyes already showed appreciation.

Du Fan's eyes gleamed, his expression filled with longing for water-attribute magic.