Chapter 624 - Disbelief

The rules had been introduced countless times, and everyone knew them well before coming. The Ten Grand Ceremony officially began after the rewards were announced to avoid further delays.

The second-tier sects and prominent clans had long been gathered, eagerly waiting for the Ten Grand Ceremony to begin.

"Enter the Spiritual Array Tower!" After a loud roar, thousands of people entered the Spiritual Array Tower, and the timer began to tick once everyone was in.

The tower appeared modest from the outside, but the inside was a vast space. The disciples spread out into various pathways, each guarded by identical spiritual arrays to test their skills.

The sect masters of the ten major sects had checked all the arrays to prevent cheating.

Although the Heavenly Origin Sect had won some forces to their side, they didn't dare to cheat on the Ten Grand Ceremony. As for those forces they had won over, they were weak, which was why they had become their vassals.

They naturally hoped to lower the Heavenly Origin Sect's ranking to the same level. When all the disciples entered the pathways, the Spiritual Array Tower's outer surface lit up, displaying a crystal image of the world within.

This allowed those outside to observe the performance of everyone inside, ensuring fairness to everyone. If any cheating was involved, the experts outside could detect it at a glance.

"Look, Bai Yuan has broken through the first spiritual array!" someone exclaimed in awe after the Spiritual Array Tower was opened.

"As expected as the son of the Heavenly Origin Sect's sect master. He's truly formidable!" murmured an onlooker. Many of those present were from second-tier sects and lacked the deep foundation possessed by the ten major sects.

Several newer sects, however, had risen in prominence over the past centuries and were already showing signs of surpassing sects that had been established for tens of thousands of years.

"The Indigo Cloud Gate's Deng Xia cannot be underestimated either. He's not any slower than Bai Yuan," another exclamation echoed.

The surrounding spectators were also captivated by the performance of each sect's top disciple.

"Look at the Misty Sect's holy maiden! She has begun to break the third spiritual array!" The Misty Sect's ranking was low throughout the years, and they had been wandering around the seventh and eighth rankings. It was challenging for them to obtain a better result.

"I’ve heard she's from the mundane world, but her talent is phenomenal!" Everyone began to discuss with each other.

"Sect master, do you think Wuxie will surprise us?" Elder He asked after all the disciples entered the tower, leaving Mu Tianli and three elders from the sect behind.

It was publicly known to everyone that Mu Tianli held great hopes for Liu Wuxie, and they would have to depend on Liu Wuxie to see if they could obtain a good ranking this year.

Elder He knew the strength of the other disciples well, but he was uncertain if the sect could maintain its current ranking.

"We'll just have to wait and see," Mu Tianli replied with a mysterious smile. He could doubt anyone, but he had unwavering faith in his daughter's judgment.

As time ticked, fifteen minutes had passed in the blink of an eye, and Bai Yuan was already reaching the end. The Divine Sun Palace's spiritual arrays couldn't hold him down.

"Quick, look at the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion! Their performance isn't promising this year. They're already lagging far behind on the first level," someone commented. Not only did people focus on the individual prodigies, but they also closely followed the overall rankings of the ten major sects.

"It's no surprise, given the strength of the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion's disciples this year. Their strongest contender is only at the pinnacle of the Astral River Realm, while I’ve heard other sects have experts in the Nascent Transformation Realm under fifty," said a Grand Banner Gate elder with disdain.

The Grand Banner Gate had grown rapidly as the vassal of the Azure Crimson Gate. In addition to their rapid development, they had the highest hopes of becoming one of the ten major sects among the other second-tier sects, and their tone reflected their confidence.

The Ten Grand Ceremony had strict rules: All the contestants had to be under the age of fifty.

"The Heavenly Treasure Pavilion might not even make it into the top five this year. It's hard to believe that they were once the strongest," remarked another with disdain.

A thousand years ago, the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion was the strongest sect in the Southern Province and created countless legends. But in the last millennium, they had fallen drastically in rankings. They were no longer among the top three and had even slipped to the middle ranking.

"Isn't that Liu Wuxie? I heard he’s been making waves recently, but why is he wandering around near the passage?" someone exclaimed, drawing attention to him.

"He probably doesn't know anything about spiritual arrays. He's already far behind compared to the others," echoed those from the Grand Banner Gate.

They weren't alone; the Hou Clan was also present, and they paid attention to Liu Wuxie's performance.

"Grand Elder, this is the boy that killed my nephew, Hou Chi?"

The Hou Clan was a second-tier clan, and they couldn't even be considered a prominent clan because they didn't have any powerhouse in the True Profound Realm. Their strongest was only in the Nascent Transformation Realm.

It was naturally impossible for the Hou Clan to enter Heavenly Mountain, and they had gotten in because they had invested in a powerful warship to bring them in.

"His days are numbered, and the Heavenly Origin Sect won't let him go," the Hou Clan's Grand Elder said, his face twisted with fury. He could not do anything despite knowing that Liu Wuxie had come; the Hou Clan didn't have the guts to go against the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion.

If they killed Liu Wuxie in front of Mu Tianli, the consequences weren't something they could withstand. Even when they had secretly sent assassins after Liu Wuxie, they had been meticulous, leaving no trace behind to avoid provoking the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion.

Just as everyone had written him off, Liu Wuxie finally moved. Standing still on the pathway, he activated Ghost Eye, allowing him to scan the spiritual arrays on this level.

Others could only take one step at a time, stopping frequently whenever they ran into a more complicated spiritual array.

A smile rose on Mu Tianli's lips when Liu Wuxie took his first step. If he couldn't lead the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion to greater heights, he would have to relinquish his position as the sect master in three years.

Bai Yuan had almost reached the end of the passage in an hour.

"Look! What's happening? Why is Liu Wuxie's speed suddenly so fast?" gasped the crowd as Liu Wuxie, who had been standing still moments before, now moved through the passage with remarkable speed.

The pathway had ten spiritual arrays, each so meticulously designed that even Bai Yuan had to take an hour to reach his current spot.

Countless gazes were attracted to Liu Wuxie, all with disbelief on their faces. The spiritual arrays posed no obstacles for Liu Wuxie.

"Sect Master Deng Lei, did the Divine Sun Palace cheat by giving away the secrets of their spiritual arrays?" someone asked as more people began questioning the Divine Sun Palace's sect master.

"Absurd accusation! The ten major sects have inspected the spiritual arrays, and it's too late even if we wanted to leak them!" Deng Lei snapped. He was also surprised that the spiritual arrays couldn't obstruct Liu Wuxie.

Even the Heavenly Origin Sect didn't question the Divine Sun Palace, and who were the second-tier sects to ask him? Bai Jin had inspected the spiritual arrays.

A smile rose on Bai Yuan's lips as he looked at the time because he was only left with a few obstacles for the last spiritual array.

"He's out! He finished first and entered the second level!" The spectators outside were dumbfounded. They found it hard to believe that someone at the first level of the Astral River Realm had claimed the top spot.

Many people found it unbelievable, especially the Heavenly Origin Sect, the Demonic Heart Palace, and the Indigo Cloud Gate. After all, their rankings among the ten major sects were higher than the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion.

While Liu Wuxie took only five breaths to ascend to the second level, Bai Yuan successfully completed the first level moments later. Both contestants were in the first tier and had earned ten points. However, Liu Wuxie's shorter time gave him the edge in ranking.

If the two contestants obtained the same score, the one who finished first would be declared the winner.

When Bai Yuan advanced to the second level, he froze as he looked ahead.

"You came first?!" Bai Yuan asked, his tone terrifyingly grim with murderous intent. The rules forbade fighting between contestants but didn't prevent them from releasing their murderous intent.

"Is there a problem?" Liu Wuxie asked, unfazed by the murderous intent.

"I hope your luck holds out!" Bai Yuan snarled before he entered the pathway on the second level. Though they had both earned ten points, the fact that Liu Wuxie completed the first level five breaths faster was an insult he couldn't tolerate. A prodigy in the Nascent Transformation Realm, Bai Yuan couldn't accept losing to someone at the first level of the Astral River Realm.

"We'll see!" Liu Wuxie replied. He didn't care about the ranking but was concerned about who could obtain the Ascension Pill.

Not long after Bai Yuan advanced to the second level, more disciples began to emerge from the pathway.

"This is weird. The third person to emerge is also a disciple of the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, but I've never heard of her before!" someone whispered, intrigued by the Ten Grand Ceremony this year. After all, the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion's performance had surprised many people.

"The Heavenly Treasure Pavilion might've declined, but they cannot be underestimated. After all, they have the longest legacy spanning over ten thousand years," some neutral sects gave their opinion.

Sects such as the Heavenly Origin Sect, the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, and the Transcending Plume Gate had legacies stretching back over millennia. Even in decline, the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion's formidable foundation was undeniable—a starved camel still stood larger than a horse.

"This is weird. The fourth to emerge from the first level turns out to be someone from the Misty Sect!" more people began to exclaim at the surprising results that differed greatly from their predictions.

Soon after, two figures emerged from the pathway, and they looked at each other with mutual astonishment.

What a beauty!

Xu Lingxue remarked inwardly.

What a stunning woman!

Murong Yi also commented inwardly.

No one had anticipated that the two women would emerge in third place.

"You must be Lady Xu?!" Murong Yi asked as she approached Xu Lingxue with a warm greeting.

"And you are?" Xu Lingxue replied, puzzled as she didn't recognize Murong Yi.

"My name is Murong Yi, a disciple of the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion. I've heard a lot about you from Junior Brother Liu," Murong Yi said, introducing herself.

"So, it's Senior Sister Murong!" The two women quickly became acquainted; perhaps they were drawn by each other's beauty.

"No wonder Junior Brother Liu is willing to do so much for you. You're more stunning than I'd imagined," Murong Yi said.

"Likewise, you also have a beautiful voice aside from your beauty," Xu Lingxue returned the praises. She was naturally happy to be praised for her beauty, and this was common for any woman, no matter how stunning they might be.