The cultivators of the younger generation immediately flew towards the big ball, and each of them immediately took out a number plate from it.
Ling Yun's women who wanted to participate also moved to pick their numbers, for they couldn't wait to know their first opponent, but he still didn't move to take his.
Not only he, but even Chen Zong and the other young masters and misses still didn't move, and they chose to wait for those people first.
After some time, they all finished taking their numbers, and a screen made of Qi appeared at the side of the big ball, and each participant's name appeared on it according to their number.
Ling Yun's women heaved a sigh of relief, for they did not meet each other, and they were fortunate enough not to have to meet members of those sects and clans in the first round.
Ling Yun chuckled at their reactions and moved to take his number. "99, huh? So who will be my first opponent?"
Soon, a name appeared on the 100th number, and Ling Yun turned to that person with a faint smile. "Feng Haoran, huh? I didn't expect to meet him in the first round."
Ling Yun then returned to his women's side, and he said to his best friend. "Hey, Zhang Bing! Your opponent isn't that strong, so you must defeat him, or Qiu'er will punish you severely."
"Hahaha." Zhang Bing laughed awkwardly at that, especially since his Master glared fiercely at him. "Brother Yun, I will try my best."
"Good." Ling Yun then asked his cousin. "Have you ever fought that guy before?"
"No." Yi Shi shook his head at him. "That man is one of the core disciples of the Desert Plain Sect, and he didn't join in the past competition, so I don't know about his strength yet."
Long Ma then said to him. "Jiang Chen is slightly stronger than Chen Zong and has many strange techniques. However, I won't be telling you about his techniques, and you can figure out his weaknesses yourself later."
"I understand, Senior." Yi Shi didn't intend to ask about Jiang Chen's weakness either.
"Jiang surname?" Ling Yun turned to Jiang Yuan. "Is he a member of your clan, Senior Jiang?"
"Yes." Jiang Yuan nodded to him. "Jiang Chen is indeed a member of my clan, but he is the adopted son of the current patriarch of my clan. However, I don't know about his origin, and I have tried to investigate it, but it was futile."
Ling Yun raised his eyebrows upon hearing that, and he asked Long Ma. "Do you know anything about Jiang Chen's origin?"
"Yes." Long Ma explained it to him. "Actually, Jiang Chen was an orphan, and he was raised by a beast before he was found by the Patriarch of the Jiang clan, and the beast taught him a lot about the Earth Element."
"Oh?" Ling Yun and the others were surprised to hear that. "What kind of beast raised him?"
Long Ma pointed to the distance. "That beast."
"Hmm?" They looked in the direction Long Ma pointed at, but no one could see the beast except for Ling Yun. "Earth Devouring Sable, huh? Moreover, that beast has an invisibility ability."
Jiang Yuan and the other ancestors looked at Ling Yun in wonder, for they could feel the beast's presence but couldn't see it.
Yi Shi sighed and said. "No matter what, I will definitely defeat Jiang Chen."
"That's good." Ling Yun nodded to him as his eyes kept on the beast. 'Should I capture it and force it to make a contract with one of my women?'
However, Ling Yun immediately shook his head and ignored the beast, for he felt it was not unique enough to be a contracted beast of his women.
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On the other hand, Feng Qingmeng sighed in her heart upon seeing that, especially after noticing Ling Yun's glance at her disciple. 'Sigh, it seems Haoran really was unlucky to meet him in the first round; I don't know what he will do to him after this. Even Ancestor Bing'er and I feel suppressed by his aura, let alone him.'
Feng Haoran clenched his fists tightly and cursed in his heart. 'Fuck! Why do I have to meet that bastard so soon?'
"Are you sure you want to face Ling Yun?" Feng Qingmeng asked her disciple.
Feng Haoran turned to her and raised his eyebrows. "Why do you ask that, Master? Since I already took my number, I can't possibly back down from facing him, right? Moreover, I still don't believe he has no weakness, and I will prove that he is not invincible in the match."
"All right. You can face Ling Yun, but you don't need to force yourself." Although she said those things to Feng Haoran, Feng Qingmeng inwardly muttered. 'I know you are confident in your abilities, but you can never beat him.'
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"Tch!" Chen Zong gritted his teeth after he didn't manage to face Ling Yun in the first match, for he was already itching to fight with him.
On the other hand, Chen Rong also let out a disappointed sigh, for she didn't get the chance to fight Yuan Meng or Mu Lingxue, and she still had to wait for the second round of draws.
Liu Ruyue then asked her children. "What do you two think of your opponents?"
"Even though I don't know that guy, I will have no trouble beating him." Chen Zong answered confidently. "Only Ling Yun, Yi Shi, and Liu Zhe are worthy of being my opponents."
Chen Rong shook her head at her mother. "I don't know anything about that woman named Luo Yan, especially since she is a disciple of the Hundred Flower Sect, so I have to act very carefully when I face her later."
"Yes." Liu Ruyue nodded in agreement. "The women of that sect are very cunning and use strange abilities. Although Luo Yan's cultivation base is still below yours, you must be careful against her, lest you end up like Situ Luan."
"I know." Chen Rong replied with an approving nod and continued observing the seemingly indifferent Luo Yan.
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"Are you sure you can beat that Chen Rong?" Yun Zhu asked her disciple.
"Master, I've been training hard these past two months and mastered the charm technique you taught me, so I'm sure I can trounce her." Luo Yan casually answered her Master's question, but her eyes kept on Ling Yun. 'Tch! That bastard! If I meet him in the next round, I will make him submit under my charm technique.'
"I hope so." Yun Zhu then said to her other disciple. "Su Xin, you must be careful of Nalan Qing; she is one of the core disciples of the Lotus Sect."
Su Xin nodded and asked Yun Zhu. 'Do you think that Nalan Qing will be affected by my charm technique, Master?'
"Hmm?" Yun Zhu did not directly answer her question, and she observed Nalan Qing first. However, she was taken aback when she saw her expression filled with hatred, and her eyes kept glancing elsewhere.
Yun Zhu immediately raised her eyebrows after she followed the direction of Nalan Qing's glance, and she wondered in her heart. 'What happened between her and Ling Yun? Why does she hate him so much?'
Yun Zhu then answered Su Xin. "Apparently, you won't be able to use your charm technique on Nalan Qing, for both her heart and mind are filled with hatred, so you should think of other ways to defeat her."
'Yes, Master.' Su Xin also felt Nalan Qing would not be affected by her charm technique, so she asked Yun Zhu beforehand.
Lu Wan'er didn't like Luo Yan's attitude, but she nodded in satisfaction at Su Xin's attitude and then asked Situ Luan. "What about you? Are you sure you can beat Yu Mei?"
"No." Situ Luan shook her head. "The current Yu Mei is stronger than me, and her cultivation has also been broken through two minor stages, so I'm not sure I can beat her. However, I might be able to do something to her using the technique you taught me before. If the technique affects her, we can bring her back to our sect."
"That's good." Lu Wan'er nodded with satisfaction at her answer.
Unfortunately, they didn't realize that Ling Xi was above them, and she immediately read their memories. "Oh? I didn't expect them to have such a technique! If Situ Luan used that technique on Yu Mei, I'm sure she would fall under the technique's effects, and she wouldn't be able to escape them. However, I didn't expect that this girl named Su Xin was Su Yuan's daughter, and she joined the Hundred Flower Sect only because she wanted to become strong to take revenge against her mother, who had made her mute."
Ling Xi smiled faintly as she found other things from Lu Wan'er and Yun Zhu's memories; she then hijacked their storage rings and stole their escape devices. "Hehe! This way, you two won't be able to escape anymore, but I won't let them capture you, for you guys will be of great use to my husband."
After that, Ling Xi touched the back of Situ Luan's head and instilled something into her. "You will definitely be free from the influence of those potions, but I'm not doing it for free."
After that, Ling Xi returned to Ling Yun's side, and she told him everything.
- To Be Continued -
