84: Three months! The Tianshan Grand Competition begins!

Time flows like water, and in the blink of an eye, three months had passed.

On June 15th, in the year 6375 of the martial god calendar, it was the day for the Tianshan Pavilion of the Heavenly Mountain Sect to hold its second-quarter Tianshan Grand Competition.

On this day, the sky had just brightened in the early morning.

On a massive plaza spanning nearly ten miles within the Tianshan Pavilion, martial arts teachers and hundreds of Disciples were gathering one after another.

The teachers stood in groups of twos and threes, while the Disciples formed several groups centered around a few individuals whose Auras were clearly a cut above the rest, looking extraordinary at a single glance.

“Hey! Senior Brother Chen, have you heard?”

Beside a tall, handsome young man with a majestic Aura like a dragon, surrounded by a crowd of boys and girls, a thin youth spoke with a somewhat flattering smile:

“In this Tianshan Grand Competition, it’s said that Chu Xiong, the number one Disciple from last year's batch, and Lin Yi, the peerless newcomer Prodigy who just entered the pavilion and charged into the first five hundred meters of the willpower stone pillar, have scheduled a battle, and Lin Yi has accepted.”

“The two of them have agreed to a total of two bets: one to compare strength, and one to compare willpower.”

“Senior Brother Chen, as the undisputed leader of our rogue faction within the Tianshan Pavilion, what do you think of this?”

“Oh? Such a thing is happening?”

Hearing this, the tall young man’s eyebrows twitched slightly, and a hint of interest appeared on his face.

“I went out for some training a while ago and only returned yesterday, so I really didn't know about this.”

“However, throughout the history of the Tianshan Pavilion, every peerless Prodigy who could break into the top five hundred meters right after entering has been extremely remarkable.”

“Since Lin Yi has achieved this step, he shouldn't be a fool. Since he dares to accept Chu Xiong's challenge, he must have some level of confidence.”

“But then again, Chu Xiong’s talent is equally extraordinary, and he hails from a Innate Golden Core Family of the Wanxiang Tower; his strength is not to be trifled with.”

“So in my view, in this battle, Chu Xiong should have about a sixty percent chance of winning, and Lin Yi about forty percent!”

...“Heh, does the result of this battle even need to be asked?”

A young man with a proud and lonely expression, currently surrounded by a crowd, sneered:

“Chu Xiong is a peerless Genius of my Wanxiang Tower. His talent is no worse than mine was back then. He even almost entered the 'Wanxiang Courtyard,' the strongest Genius training ground of our Wanxiang Tower. How could his talent be anything but extraordinary?”

“Now he has undergone another year of cultivation, and his strength has reached a new level. Even if this Lin Yi has some talent, he has only just entered the Tianshan Pavilion and is a year younger than Chu Xiong. What right or ability does he have to compare with Chu Xiong?”

“It's a hundred to zero! Chu Xiong will definitely win!”

...“Sigh! It's probably about fifty-fifty!”

On the plaza, a woman with exquisite features but dressed in men's clothing, with her hair tied up high in a bun, looking full of heroic spirit, shook her head slightly and sighed:

“Junior Brother Lin Yi is indeed the most remarkable Genius in our Heavenly Mountain Sect in the last hundred years besides Senior Brother Jiang; he could even be ranked throughout the entire history of the Heavenly Mountain Sect.”

“But his background is too poor after all, and his cultivation time is too short. In my opinion, even if he has some trump cards, the outcome between him and Chu Xiong will likely be fifty-fifty.”

...The peerless geniuses of the Tianshan Pavilion commented one by one; each was a true figure of influence in the Tianshan Pavilion, a super Prodigy!

And the views of these super prodigies were basically consistent: every one of them favored Chu Xiong.

Even that heroic woman from the Heavenly Mountain Sect only gave a fifty-fifty evaluation; in truth, her heart still favored Chu Xiong more.

“Hehe, Senior Brother Wang, did you hear the comments of these Prodigy Disciples?”

Beside Wang Yu, a tall and thin teacher chuckled:

“Every one of them is incredibly optimistic about Chu Xiong. As the teacher who guided Lin Yi in, you should be the most familiar with him, and you should know his strength best. What do you think of this battle?”

“Uh, this...”

Hearing this, Wang Yu was also momentarily at a loss for words, his mind racing.

First was Lin Yi's Martial Arts Techniques Realm and Force Exertion Realm.

On this point, Wang Yu was actually not very clear.

Because he was not a teacher proficient in saber techniques, he could not provide guidance on the Xiantian-grade saber technique Lin Yi was currently practicing.

Moreover, with the detailed explanation of the Star River Myriad Forms Saber manual, written by a Xiantian expert with immense effort, Lin Yi didn't need guidance from others. He could progress rapidly on his own with the help of the manual and the myriad laws stone wall.

So, regarding Lin Yi's situation in these areas, Wang Yu truly didn't know.

As for his cultivation, he had seen Lin Yi once half a month ago. At that time, Lin Yi's cultivation was at the Fifth-Rank Peak, and only half a month had passed since then.

If nothing unexpected happened, his cultivation should still be at the Fifth-Rank Peak.

After all, although there was no major Bottleneck from the Fifth-Rank to the Fourth-Rank, breaking through was truly not that easy.

Even the Senior in the history of the Heavenly Mountain Sect who broke through the fastest took nearly five months to go from the Fifth-Rank Early Stage to the Fourth-Rank Early Stage.

And what about Lin Yi?

Even counting his cultivation time at the Dongshan Martial Academy, it had only been a bit over four months since he broke through to the Fifth-Rank.

With just this much time, how could he possibly break through?

As for willpower, a month ago, Lin Yi had fallen into a deep coma right after reaching 430 meters on the willpower stone pillar.

Although there should have been some progress over this month, it was impossible to enter the top 400 meters, or even the top 410 meters.

So, calculating it this way, Lin Yi's chances against Chu Xiong could really be summarized in two words: slim hope!

“Ahem!”

Thinking of this, Wang Yu gave a light cough and then said:

“Junior Brother Zhang, I’m actually not too clear about Lin Yi's strength. After all, to prepare for the match with Chu Xiong these past few months, he has basically been cultivating hard and has rarely come to see me, so it’s useless to ask me.”

“If you want to know the answer, then just watch the match later!”

“In any case, the format of the Tianshan Grand Competition is based on mutual challenges. Each Disciple has five chances to challenge and unlimited chances to be challenged.”

“As long as one has confidence and is willing to use a challenge opportunity, it’s even possible to challenge the top-ranked Genius from the last time!”

“Once the Grand Competition starts, I estimate that Lin Yi and Chu Xiong will both be in the first batch to challenge. We can just watch then.”

“Alright! In that case, let’s wait a bit longer!”

Hearing this, the tall and thin teacher chuckled, a strong look of interest appearing in his eyes.

And time silently slipped away as everyone waited.

Finally, just as the Hour of Chen passed.

Suddenly—

“The Sect Master and the three Pavilion Masters have arrived!”

A loud shout suddenly rang out across the plaza.

Following that, a handsome man wearing loose white robes with a head full of white hair flowing simply over his shoulders walked over slowly with a faint smile on his face.

Behind him followed an elegant middle-aged man in purple, a young man in black, and a gentle-looking handsome man in white. Each had an ordinary Aura, yet they seemed to merge with heaven and earth, incomparably harmonious and natural!

“What! The Sect Master has arrived! And the three Pavilion Masters, they've all arrived too!”

“This... this is just a minor Tianshan Grand Competition, how is this possible!”

Seeing this scene, everyone on the plaza—whether they were teachers, Prodigy Disciples, or Lin Yi, who was currently closing his eyes to regulate his breathing in preparation for the match—all felt their bodies tremble. They stared at the four men walking over, their eyes wide with endless shock.