Chapter Ninety-Three: The Grand Tournament of the Three Sects

After a long talk with Han Meng, he learned that Lin Hu and the others had spent these past few days in seclusion, striving to break through their bottlenecks, and only then did he finally feel at ease.

He had been somewhat worried that they might run into some danger inside the secret realm, but it seemed he had been fretting over nothing.

Liu Feng and Senior Brother Wine-Fool were also resting in quiet meditation, conserving their strength and preparing for the final grand contest three days hence.

In the courtyard of the western wing, Lin Cheng met Xu Xin'er and Xiao Cui.

After exchanging a few words and catching up, he handed each of them two hundred thousand spirit stones, startling the two girls so much that they covered their mouths in stunned silence. They could not help but wonder whether Lin Cheng had gone and robbed some Grand White Tower.

With nothing else to do, he wandered through the pavilions and temples veiled in immortal mist within the Purple Sun Sect, among its strange peaks and rugged stones, admiring the magnificent scenery of the self-proclaimed foremost of the three sects, and he praised it again and again.

The place where the Purple Sun Sect stood was truly a wondrous and blessed land. Along the way, the spiritual energy within the sect was already far more abundant than that of the Azure Sun Sect, and before long he even sensed several abyssal, unfathomable auras deep within, which made his heart pound wildly.

At the summit of a solitary peak, a yellow-robed youth stood quietly, gazing at Lin Cheng as he walked along the mountain path below. Strange light flickered in his eyes as he murmured to himself.

It was him!

Not only had Huangpu Kong failed to kill him, he had lost his own life instead. It seemed that Senior Brother Simao's death was certainly also connected to this man.

The yellow-robed youth withdrew his gaze and drifted away.

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At the summit of the rear mountain behind the main Purple Sun Peak, the Real Person of Hidden Edge was playing a game of chess with an elderly man in a scarlet robe and brocade gown.

Slowly placing a white stone onto the board, the Real Person of Hidden Edge said, "Can this matter be let pass?"

The old man in the brocade robe picked up a black stone and toyed with it between two fingers, as if in thought. "What does Brother Hidden Edge think?"

The Real Person of Hidden Edge raised his eyes slightly and looked at him. "Brother Purple Sun, do you take me for a fool? You sent men to assassinate my disciple, Lin Cheng, did you not?"

The Real Person of Purple Sun said, "Simao is dead. Has your Azure Sun Sect ever given us an explanation?"

The Real Person of Hidden Edge replied, "Should I not be the one asking your Purple Sun Sect for an explanation? Simao colluded with bandits below the mountain and brought calamity to the common people. He also hunted down a disciple of my sect, intending to wipe him out. Such a scourge, and your Purple Sun Sect not only failed to restrain him, but even indulged him... Do you truly think my Azure Sun Sect is so easy to bully?"

The Real Person of Purple Sun said, "I only know that my boy is dead. I imagine you know very well how much his grandfather adored him. If you do not give us an explanation, then when the Supreme Elder comes out of seclusion, it will be the moment the two sects go to war!"

"Your sect's disciple tried to harm others and reaped the consequences. Their lack of skill is not their fault, but yours old fools' failure to teach them properly. If you want war, then so be it!" The Real Person of Hidden Edge dropped another white stone and slowly stood up. A fierce sword intent tore through the air and shot away.

"You have lost!"

After the figure of the Real Person of Hidden Edge vanished from the mountaintop, the Real Person of Purple Sun lowered his head to the chessboard, his narrowed eyes glinting.

Not long after the Real Person of Hidden Edge departed, the yellow-robed youth appeared in the hall.

"Master, I have already given your instructions to Brother Wuwang's side..."

After a moment's thought, the yellow-robed youth spoke again. "There is something else. Earlier, this disciple saw that Lin Cheng in the sect."

"Lin Cheng? How did he suddenly appear? Was he not trapped in the secret realm?" At the mention of that name, killing intent flashed in the eyes of the Real Person of Purple Sun.

"I do not know. According to the disciples guarding the mountain gate, he only arrived at the sect at noon today," the yellow-robed youth replied respectfully.

The Real Person of Purple Sun stroked his beard, his thoughts unreadable.

"Go down for now. Keep a close watch on his movements at all times."

"Master, should we find an opportunity to..." The yellow-robed youth made a slashing motion with his hand.

"You need not concern yourself with this matter. Just keep your eye on him. Everything will wait until the Supreme Elder emerges from seclusion..." The Real Person of Purple Sun slowly shook his head.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

On this day, the sky was clear and blue, and the wind was gentle and the sun bright.

On the main peak of the Purple Sun Sect, a square inlaid with white jade held five martial platforms.

Four slightly smaller platforms stood at the four corners, surrounding the massive one in the center.

As the glow of a formation rose, a blue barrier enveloped the five platforms, reinforcing the space within.

All around the square, one figure after another gradually entered the grounds, and before long the place was a sea of people.

At the honorable seats above, ten large chairs carved from white jade stood in a row.

After three tolls of the bell, streaks of rainbow light descended before the jade chairs.

"Brother Ximen, your sect truly keeps its treasures well hidden. With disciples of such talent, and yet you remained so obscure before now, keeping us all in the dark for so long..."

"It has been decades since I last saw a dual-attribute spiritual root..."

"Brother Azure Sun, do not tease me. Who in the world does not know that your sect has produced two disciples with extraordinary spiritual roots..."

"If we are to be honest, we are the ones most envious of you, Brother Azure Sun..."

"You two can stop praising each other here. Think of my Dongfang family. We have flourished in the Kingdom of Zhao for dozens of generations, and yet not a single prodigy has emerged..."

"Dongfang the brute, do you have no shame? Setting aside your Dongfang Hao, whose cultivation at the third level of the Core Formation realm is enough to look down on the younger generation, there is also his younger brother Dongfang Yu, known as one of the two heroes of Azure Sun..."

"With such a pair of shining sons of heaven in your household, and you still stand here acting as though you lack enough? Are you deliberately trying to make the rest of us livid?"

Beside Dongfang Han, Zhao Kuo, wearing a golden dragon robe, let out a booming laugh.

"Brother Zhao Kuo speaks truly. This old Dongfang fellow is just here to make himself felt..." the head of the Changsun family chimed in.

As the others laughed and talked, none of them seemed to notice that among them, only Huangpu Zun wore a dark expression. At the thought of how the only one his clan could boast of, Huangpu Kong, had died miserably outside, his bones not even cold yet, he wished he could hack the murderer to pieces.

The six of them each took a jade chair and sat down, quietly watching the crowd below.

A burst of commotion rose from the square. At the eastern side, a path gradually opened through the mass of people.

At the front were Liu Feng, Dongfang Yu, and Wine-Fool, standing side by side. Behind them came Han Meng, Xu Xin'er, and Xiao Cui with graceful steps. Further back were Lin Cheng, Lin Fatty, Pang Bo, and the others. As they walked, they traded crude jokes, and whenever they passed a fair-skinned, pretty female disciple, they would not forget to whistle and wink at her.

Niu Shisan shook the few wisps of hair over his forehead and said, "Not gonna lie, this Purple Sun Sect really does have a lot of pretty girls!"

Pang Bo said, "You trashy womanizers only know how to stare at girls..."

Seeing Pang Bo's expression of disdain, as though unwilling to be lumped together with them, Lin Fatty draped an arm over his shoulder and pointed ahead-right with a sly grin. "Quit pretending to be pure in front of us... What do you think of that girl up ahead? Nice and full in the hips, big and plump, and her figure matches yours too..."

"Most important of all..." He slowly moved his gaze upward and said, "How about it? Pretty unusual, isn't she?"

As he urged him on, Lin Fatty's pair of beady little eyes never once lost their glow as they stared at those rounded curves.

Pang Bo secretly swallowed, his fair face flushing red with embarrassment.

Niu Shisan hurried over as well, hooking an arm over Pang Bo's other shoulder and winking at him. "Young Pang, ever heard of gathering snow into a peak and coaxing fragrance into dew?"

Seeing the three of them behaving this way, Lin Cheng could not help glancing over as well. He shook his head and recited with a playful air, "A pair of bright moons cling to the chest; like purple palace grapes, round and green as jade."

"Marvelous," he said.

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