34: Only children make choices

"Mingyue, what are you thinking about?"

Nangong Zhuo asked softly.

Nangong Mingyue withdrew her gaze and shook her head, "Nothing."

Nangong Zhuo merely smiled and said nothing.

"Look! The True Disciples are here!"

Someone shouted, and the crowd's gaze simultaneously turned towards the area exclusive to the core figures of Hongtian Holy Land.

A brilliant Sword Light, carrying the force of a thunderclap, streaked across the sky, arriving in an instant and landing in the chief position.

The light dispersed, revealing a young man in a dark blue uniform, with a resolute face and eyes as sharp as an eagle's.

His figure was as tall as a pine, and simply by standing there, an incomparably sharp Sword Intent naturally emanated from him.

"It's Senior Brother Xiao Tiandu! The head of the five True Disciples!"

"Such a powerful aura! Senior Brother Xiao's swordsmanship has probably reached the Transcendent stage!"

Some Disciples erupted in enthusiastic cheers, their eyes filled with reverence.

Xiao Tiandu was oblivious to the surrounding clamor. His gaze, like electricity, immediately fell upon the lazy figure in the Saint's seat.

Jiang Chen felt his gaze, lifted his eyelids, met his eyes for a moment, and then unenthusiastically looked away.

Xiao Tiandu's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly, then smoothed out, and he closed his eyes to rest.

Immediately after, a piece of ice crystal snowflake condensed in the air without warning, drifting down. A woman in a pure white martial uniform, with her long hair tied high, a graceful figure, but a face as cold as ice, stepped through the Void Realm, walking step by step.

With each step she took, an ice lotus bloomed beneath her feet, and the surrounding temperature plummeted.

"Senior Sister Song Ningxue! Her Formation attainments are said to be able to trap and kill even Early Stage Eighth Realm Mahayana cultivators!"

"Hiss, truly an ice beauty, only to be admired from afar."

Song Ningxue looked straight ahead, sitting down in the seat beside Xiao Tiandu, without a single superfluous movement throughout the entire process.

Subsequently, a green shadow and a pink shadow appeared almost simultaneously.

The owner of the green shadow was a beautiful and serene woman, none other than Qing Linghe.

She nodded slightly to a few familiar Elders and then found a corner seat.

The pink shadow was a man in flashy clothes, with a handsome, somewhat effeminate face, Wen Yan.

As soon as he landed, his peach blossom eyes darted around, scanning the beautiful female Disciples and handsome male Disciples in the venue.

"Tsk tsk, among this year's new Disciples, there are indeed a few good prospects."

Wen Yan fanned himself and chuckled softly to Qing Linghe beside him, "Junior Sister, look, that little girl in the pink dress over there, she's so fresh and lively, and that boy over there with sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes, his bone structure isn't bad either."

Qing Linghe didn't even lift an eyelid, "If Senior Brother continues to spout nonsense, be careful you don't get sent to face the wall."

Wen Yan pouted, then reluctantly withdrew his gaze.

The five True Disciples, with the exception of Xu Ying, were all present.

Just then, nine distant and majestic chimes rang out from the depths of Hongtian Hall, reverberating across the land.

A vast and profound pressure descended from the sky.

Everyone felt their hearts sink, and they instinctively held their breath.

Above Hongtian Hall, the space subtly twisted, and a middle-aged figure in a golden Dragon-patterned robe, wearing a purple-gold crown, with a majestic face, appeared out of thin air.

It was none other than the current Holy Lord of Hongtian Holy Land, Jiang Shengtian.

His gaze swept across the entire venue, his eyes seemingly able to penetrate people's hearts.

"The Holy Land Grand Competition, held once every hundred years, the rules remain the same."

Jiang Shengtian's voice was not loud, yet it clearly reached everyone's ears, "Outer Gate, Inner Gate, True Disciple—three rounds of competition. The top ten Disciples who emerge victorious will qualify as True Disciples. Among the True Disciples, they can also challenge each other to determine their rankings."

He paused, his gaze falling on Jiang Chen, "Saint Jiang Chen does not need to participate. After all challenges are concluded, the top five ranked individuals may challenge for the Saint's position."

At these words, the entire venue erupted in an uproar.

These rules were vastly different from previous years! In previous years, although the Saint held a revered position, he still had to compete with other True Disciples to demonstrate fairness.

But this time, the Holy Lord directly placed Jiang Chen in the final position.

A ripple finally appeared on Xiao Tiandu's face. He suddenly opened his eyes, looked at Jiang Shengtian, but ultimately said nothing, though the Sword Intent around him became even more solid.

Jiang Chen, however, was indifferent to this, even happy to be idle.

He yawned, leaned back in his chair in a more comfortable position, feeling a bit bored.

This Grand Competition, with its layers of challenges, wouldn't end anytime soon. Wouldn't he have to sit here idly?

His bored gaze randomly swept across the venue, and soon, it fixed on the direction of the Nangong Family.

That light blue figure standing by the window, as clear and cold as the moon, peerlessly independent, was still so dazzling even amidst thousands of people.

As if by telepathy, Nangong Mingyue also happened to look in his direction.

Their eyes met.

Jiang Chen's lips curved uncontrollably, and he silently mouthed to her: "Miss me?"

Nangong Mingyue's clear, cold eyes instantly rippled slightly; she understood.

This guy was still as improper as before!

A faint blush flew across her cheeks. Then, she pursed her lips, feeling a little annoyed and somewhat inexplicably flustered, and was the first to look away, pretending to look elsewhere.

Only her slightly taut profile revealed her inner turmoil.

Jiang Chen chuckled, finding it amusing, but then suddenly felt a faint gaze from his side.

He turned his head and saw Song Ningxue quietly looking at him.

Their brief interaction with Nangong Mingyue just now had been seen by her, every detail.

Song Ningxue's face showed no expression, but Jiang Chen could feel that the originally gentle and soft aura around her seemed to have cooled by a few degrees.

Her hands, placed on her lap, had quietly clenched at some point.

A strange, bitter emotion silently spread from the bottom of her heart.

She knew who that woman was.

The favored daughter of the Nangong Family, a famous peerless Fairy in the Eastern Domain, Jiang Chen's fiancée by pre-arranged marriage.

They were a match made in heaven.

What about herself? What was she?

A passerby pulled from the mire by him, indebted to his kindness?

Song Ningxue's heart was a little troubled.

She lowered her head, looking at the floating tea leaves in her cup, and for the first time, felt that the tea was somewhat bitter.

Her emotional changes, of course, also fell into Jiang Chen's eyes.

Jiang Chen secretly chuckled.

"Tsk tsk, host, a love triangle."

The System, never one to miss a good show, popped out.

"One legitimate fiancée, one Daughter of Destiny tied to you by a red string. It won't be easy for you to balance this, you know."

Jiang Chen took a sip of tea, his expression unchanged.

"Only children make choices; I want them all."

"The Grand Competition, begin!"

With Jiang Shengtian's command, the Formation on the ten arenas shone brightly, announcing the official opening of this grand event in the Eastern Domain.