85: Chapter 85 A Bunch of Hidden Dragons and Phoenixes! Little Fairy Doctor's Divine Prophecy

"Actually, it's not too late for you to withdraw now; you'll just end up in twentieth place."

The corner of Gu Han's mouth twitched subtly as he gave the advice with a cold expression, though it was mostly a joke.

To his surprise, Shi Lei's eyes lit up, and he cupped his hands in a respectful salute to Gu Han. "Senior Brother Gu is indeed clever. I hadn't even thought of such a simple thing."

After saying this, he shouted to the referee, "Deacon, this disciple's Dou Qi is exhausted. I forfeit all remaining matches and will take my leave now."

Once the expressionless Outer Sect Deacon nodded, he immediately channeled his Dou Qi into his feet and left quickly, as if afraid that staying any longer would result in heavy losses.

"You call that exhausted Dou Qi?" Many in the audience fell into a state of speechlessness once again.

Gu Han thought to himself: How did the Cloud Mist Sect end up with such a pair of 'Crouching Dragons and Fledgling Phoenixes'? Unbelievable.

"Lord Deacon, I shall step down first." Gu Han tapped his feet lightly, his figure flashing through the air before landing beside Xiao Yi Xian once more.

"Young Master, do you think the upcoming matches will be like the one just now?" Xiao Yi Xian's eyes were bright as she looked at Gu Han with a faint smile.

"Hard to say." Gu Han thought that having one pair of 'Crouching Dragons and Fledgling Phoenixes' in the Cloud Mist Sect was enough; surely there couldn't be a whole bunch of them?

Guidance didn't necessarily have to happen on the arena stage; they could also come to consult him privately.

Of course, he wouldn't teach just anyone; it depended on the person's comprehension, character, and whether they were generous.

Additionally, this was a way for him to develop the Xuanwu Shell, hoping to see if he could unlock more opportunities through it.

"The preliminaries have ended."

The three rounds of preliminaries didn't make Gu Han wait long, and the top ten of the new Outer Sect Disciples were quickly determined.

Arena One: Yun Lange; Arena Two: Han Qing'er; Arena Three: Xia Chunqiu; Arena Four: Yun Duo; Arena Five: Yun Han; Arena Six: Hu Yue; Arena Seven: Liu Hao; Arena Eight: Gu Chi; Arena Nine: Nalan Yanran; Arena Ten: Gu Han.

The first six were the top six Inner Sect Disciples from before the Outer Sect Grand Competition, while the three from the seventh, eighth, and ninth arenas were new top ten Outer Sect Disciples, just like Gu Han.

"Next, we will begin the Outer Sect Disciple finals, which will also be a challenge phase."

"Everyone has one chance to issue a challenge to a disciple ranked higher than themselves. If you win, you inherit that position and can continue to issue challenges."

"If you lose, you can no longer make adjustments. If no one challenges you, that will be your final ranking for this competition."

"First, we will conduct the ranking matches for the eleventh to twentieth placed disciples."

The ten Outer Sect Deacons withdrew, and Inner Sect Deacons with strength at the Dou Spirit level took the stage to oversee the matches on the sole main arena.

On a high platform in front of the main arena, ten chairs made of jade were placed for the top ten disciples to sit on.

Achieving success without showing it off is like wearing silk in the dark; it is only human nature to want to manifest one's glory before others, which could stimulate the young disciples' hearts to strive for progress.

Gu Han didn't sit up there. After all, he'd have to change seats before his butt even got warm, so it was better to stand aside with Xiao Yi Xian and enjoy the mountain breeze.

"Lord Deacon." Yun Ke, ranked eleventh among the Outer Sect Disciples, suddenly bowed and asked, "Is this disciple eligible to challenge the top ten disciples?"

Yun Ke believed he was stronger than several of the other top ten disciples; if he hadn't happened to be grouped with Yun Lange, he would have certainly made the top ten.

"After the final rankings are set, the eleventh to thirteenth place holders are eligible to challenge the bottom five of the top ten. Only if they succeed can they continue to challenge those further ahead," the Deacon replied.

"Thank you for the explanation, Deacon." Yun Ke looked at the eight people ranked behind him and spoke coolly, "If you want to challenge, do it quickly. If you don't, then withdraw immediately like Shi Lei."

"This disciple wishes to challenge Senior Brother Ye, ranked thirteenth," the nineteenth-ranked disciple spoke up.

This match began quickly. The nineteenth-ranked disciple fought very hard but ultimately suffered a narrow defeat to the thirteenth-ranked.

After leaving the stage, under the astonished gazes of countless people, this disciple walked up to Gu Han, cupped his hands, and asked, "Senior Brother Gu, I originally wanted to challenge you after defeating the thirteenth—no, I mean, I wanted to ask for your guidance. Unfortunately, I failed. Looking at my moves just now, is there anything I can improve?"

Gu Han: "..."

At this moment, he finally realized that crushing Zhou Yuan with absolute strength while providing visible pointers for improvement had been a bit too much of a show.

"You could do it like this." However, Gu Han felt no regret and instead gave some pointers.

"I am Cai Kun. I thank Senior Brother for your guidance." Cai Kun showed a look of pleasant surprise. "I have practiced this Mysterious Level Low Grade Dou Technique for two and a half years, but I could only reach proficiency and never mastery. It turns out the problem was in the coordination between my hands and footwork."

"Senior Brother, if you have any tasks for me in the future, please do not hesitate to ask."

Gu Han: "..."

"Just work hard to improve your strength and repay the Sect," Gu Han said with a slight smile.

"I will certainly do so. I'll take my leave for now." Cai Kun left with a happy expression.

Anyone who didn't know better would have thought he was the winner of the ranking match just now.

Cai Kun's action seemed to trigger a certain signal or switch.

Starting from the seventeenth-ranked disciple, everyone challenged the thirteenth rank.

The seventeenth rank lost, immediately went to consult Gu Han, and then left with a joyful face.

The sixteenth rank lost, immediately went to consult Gu Han, and although their expression didn't change, they walked away very quickly.

The fifteenth rank still wanted to challenge the thirteenth, but the latter was faster this time, saying he wanted to challenge the twelfth rank.

After a fierce battle, the thirteenth-ranked disciple narrowly won.

The original twelfth rank then began to be challenged by the fifteenth and fourteenth ranks.

The fifteenth rank's challenge succeeded, while the fourteenth rank failed, eventually falling to fifteenth place, while the original twelfth rank became the fourteenth.

Not a single loser was dejected; they all did the same thing: consult Gu Han.

The ridiculous part was that Gu Han could pinpoint the problem for every disciple with piercing accuracy and provide guidance.

The atmosphere at the scene became very peculiar!

"This reminds me of Brother Gu Han's days at the Xiao Family," Xiao Yan remarked with a sigh. "The juniors of my clan all said Brother Gu taught better than the Dou Master Elders. I wish he would visit again."

"Nephew Gu Han is no ordinary genius." Nalan Su stroked his beard, his gaze frequently sweeping over Nalan Yanran not far away.

The surrounding high platforms were also filled with various discussions, all centered on Gu Han without exception.

This made the first-ranked Yun Lange feel like he was sitting on pins and needles, as if pricked by thorns, feeling that all his glory had been stolen.

"A mere attention-seeker. If you have the guts, challenge me directly. I'll make sure you're welded into eleventh place," Yun Lange said, looking at Gu Han with slight hostility.

"This disciple challenges the first rank."

Gu Han stepped onto the high platform and made his choice.

By this time, the eleventh, twelfth, and thirteenth ranks had been decided. The latter two both stated they wouldn't challenge the top ten, while only Yun Ke directly challenged the fifth rank and succeeded.

As a result, Gu Han was actually pushed down to eleventh place, becoming the first person among the 'top ten' who needed to issue a challenge.

Boom!

Was the most anticipated match of this Outer Sect Disciple Grand Competition finally here?

"I accept your challenge."

Yun Lange slapped the armrest of his chair and soared into the air, landing on the arena.

He cupped his hands in greeting and spoke with a naturally refined smile, "Junior Brother Gu, you are indeed outstanding. You must have cultivated a secret technique that allows you to discover an opponent's weaknesses."

"If you had challenged Junior Sister Han in second place first, you probably could have won, and you would be second."

"In a few more years, even I would not be your match."

"But by challenging me directly now, you will stop at eleventh place."

As he finished speaking, the Dou Qi inside Yun Lange surged. Pale green Dou Qi gradually erupted from his body, forming a thin layer of green Dou Qi Gauze Armor on his skin as he spoke with confident, soaring tones.

"A few days ago, I already broke through to Dou Master."

Dou Master!?

The expressions of the entire audience changed: Now this is going to be a good show.