Just then, the situation on the arena changed abruptly.
Lin Maoshan unleashed a sharp sword light, but it was instantly neutralized by his opponent's Nascent Soul power.
Instead, his opponent seized the opportunity and struck his chest with a palm.
Although Lin Maoshan dodged in time, he was still grazed by the palm wind, causing him to fly backward and fall heavily on the edge of the arena.
Fang Shixin's expression turned ugly; he was about to say something.
Li Mu, however, merely smiled faintly and said, "Combat is the best teacher.
Let him comprehend it himself."
On the arena, Lin Maoshan struggled to his feet.
He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.
Just as he was about to use the Five Elements Escape Technique to dodge, the Nascent Soul Disciple gave him no chance to resist, blasting him off the arena with a Dragon Flame Art.
"Chen Yang, wins; Lin Maoshan, loses!"
Following the announcement by the presiding judge, a brief silence fell around the arena, and everyone's gaze focused on the young figure who had just been blasted off the stage.
"Golden Core against Nascent Soul, it's still too difficult after all!"
"Lin Maoshan, I know who he is now; he's one of the Sect Master's Disciples."
"So it's him.
Cultivating all Five Elements, no wonder a mere Golden Core Realm Cultivator can contend with Senior Brother Chen."
...
The discussions around the arena rose and fell.
Some lamented the gap between Golden Core and Nascent Soul, while others praised Lin Maoshan's strength.
Meanwhile, Lin Maoshan himself struggled to sit up, replaying the recent battle in his mind, and looked at Chen Yang on the arena with regret in his eyes.
His defeat in this battle had little to do with the difference in his cultivation Realm; it was more due to insufficient strategic planning against the enemy and a lack of combat experience.
Lin Maoshan turned his head to look at his master, who was seated in the main seat of the venue, and their eyes met by chance, causing a hint of shame to appear on his face.
Li Mu smiled slightly and transmitted a message, "Step down!
You've done your best in this battle; just Cultivate well from now on."
Li Mu's voice transmission flowed into Lin Maoshan's heart like a clear spring, calming his previously dejected mood slightly.
He took a deep breath, stood up, bowed respectfully to Li Mu, and then quietly walked to the side of the arena to watch the other Disciples' matches.
On all eighteen arenas, two Nascent Soul Disciples were competing.
Soon, Lin Maoshan saw several familiar figures: Zhao Tianchen, Ji Hao, and Su Hongxiu, who had all become Li Mu's Disciples at the same time as him.
A hundred years had passed, and they had all successfully advanced to the Nascent Soul Realm.
Zhao Tianchen possessed a Metal Heavenly Spiritual Root, Su Hongxiu a Fire Heavenly Spiritual Root, and Ji Hao an Earth Heavenly Spiritual Root.
Relying on their respective Spiritual Root talents, they had progressed rapidly on the Cultivation path, entering the Nascent Soul Realm earlier than him, and had already reached the Nascent Soul Middle Stage, not far from the next Realm.
The Nascent Soul Disciple fighting Zhao Tianchen was a Nascent Soul Late Stage Cultivator.
He specialized in Wood-elemental spell arts.
At the beginning of the battle, he unleashed a large-scale spell art—Greenwood Entanglement.
On the arena, countless verdant vines surged from the ground, like living creatures, thousands upon thousands, enveloping and entangling Zhao Tianchen.
However, Zhao Tianchen's expression remained unchanged.
He calmly responded, holding a golden longsword that was incredibly sharp.
Countless green wood Spiritual Vines instantly fell like rain.
Zhao Tianchen was like a born Sword Cultivator, with a clear Sword Heart and sharp Sword Intent.
Any change in his opponent's moves seemed to be nothing before him.
His figure was like the wind, moving freely through the tangle of vines.
Golden sword lights drew graceful arcs in the air, and each flash of sword light was accompanied by a crisp cutting sound.
The Nascent Soul Disciple, who specialized in Wood-elemental spell arts, his expression changed dramatically.
He had repeatedly cast various spell arts without success.
Clearly, he hadn't expected Zhao Tianchen's swordsmanship to be so sharp.
The Nascent Soul Disciple hurriedly released a defensive Magic Treasure, activated his Wood Seal Magic Treasure, mobilized the Spiritual Power within his body, and condensed a Green Yuan Magic Cage, attempting to trap Zhao Tianchen.
However, Zhao Tianchen had already seen through his intention.
With a movement of his body, he sharply swung the golden longsword in his hand, and a dazzling sword light shot directly towards the Nascent Soul Disciple.
The Nascent Soul Disciple was greatly alarmed and quickly used the Wood Escape Technique to dodge.
But Zhao Tianchen's swordsmanship was truly too sharp; the sword aura followed him like a shadow, closely pursuing him.
Finally, with a scream, the Nascent Soul Disciple was struck by the sword light and fell onto the arena.
Zhao Tianchen sheathed his sword and stood, looking calmly at his opponent on the ground.
He cupped his hands faintly, "Junior Brother, you yielded."
"Senior Brother Zhao is formidable, I am thoroughly convinced of my defeat!" The opponent gave a wry smile, got up, and cupped his hands.
"This battle, Zhao Tianchen, wins; Qingmingzi, loses!" The referee Elder, a Great Master, loudly announced.
"Amazing! Senior Brother Qing actually lost.
This Senior Brother Zhao will definitely make it into the top three."
"This Senior Brother Zhao is so unfamiliar! Did he just join the Sect?"
"Senior Sister Ning, you wouldn't know, but this Senior Brother Zhao is also from the Sect Master's lineage and has not been active within the Sect."
"That's right! Several Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters from the Sect Master's lineage are so powerful.
It is said that they all achieved the Nascent Soul Realm within a hundred years.
Oh, and except for Junior Brother Lin, who Cultivates all Five Elements, he was a bit slower, but he is also at the Golden Core Middle Stage."
"That powerful? All achieved Nascent Soul in a hundred years?!"
"Is that still fake? Senior Sister Su from Arena 3, Senior Brother Ji from Arena 6, and Senior Brother Xiao, who is waiting to go on stage at Arena 11, they are all from the Sect Master's lineage!"
"Indeed! When they became Disciples, they were only at the Qi Refinement Stage.
Now they have all reached the Nascent Soul Realm, truly enviable for us."
...
The Disciples watching the battle below the arena discussed animatedly, marveling at Zhao Tianchen's strength and the sharpness of his swordsmanship.
Some Disciples who usually had no interaction with Zhao Tianchen looked at him with new respect.
At the same time, the conversation gradually shifted to the Seven Profound Sect - Sect Master's lineage.
Several Disciples from the Sect Master's lineage had performed exceptionally well in this Disciple Grand Competition.
The number of True Disciple positions was already scarce, and it was likely that a large portion of them would be occupied by them.
"Sect Master, you truly know how to teach Disciples.
In just a hundred years, you've helped Lin Maoshan, who Cultivates all Five Elements, advance to the Golden Core Late Stage, and Zhao Tianchen, Su Hongxiu, Liu Yuqian, and others have also advanced to the Nascent Soul Realm.
Each of them is exceptionally outstanding.
In another hundred years, Zhao Tianchen should be able to advance another Realm, and achieving Soul Transformation won't take too long either." Fang Shixin gently stroked his long beard, looking at Li Mu and praising him sincerely.
Li Mu nodded slightly, giving no clear response.
After all, this was not his achievement, but rather the result of several Soul Transformation Clones' teachings.
However, Li Mu also realized that the several Soul Transformation Clones had passed down several of his own abilities, such as the Spirit Devouring Body Nourishing Art, Star Cloud Contemplation Method, and Profound Heaven Sword Formation.
Some signs could be seen from the way Zhao Tianchen, Ji Hao, and the others engaged their opponents.
It was just that their cultivation was only at the Nascent Soul Realm, so the power of these high-level Cultivation Techniques had not yet been fully displayed, and their mastery was not yet complete.
Seeing this, Li Mu frowned, somewhat displeased about the leakage of this Cultivation Technique.
However, the Soul Transformation Clones were a part of his true self; the knowledge they learned came from his own knowledge.
If they didn't teach these, they truly wouldn't be able to instruct these Disciples.
Forget it!
It's too late to blame now.
These Cultivation Techniques are high-level and difficult to Cultivate, so if they've been passed on, they've been passed on.
Let's see how far they can go!
Numerous thoughts flashed through Li Mu's mind as he continued to pay attention to this Disciple Grand Competition, watching the pleasant surprises his Disciples successively presented him on the arena.
Time flew by, and three days passed in a blink of an eye.
The Seven Profound Sect Disciple Grand Competition gradually reached its climax, entering the final battles for the top twelve.
The prelude to the finals finally began, with six Disciples representing the Sect Master's lineage—Zhao Tianchen, Su Hongxiu, Liu Yuqian, Ji Hao, Xiao Qingyun, and Zhong Yuling—all entering the final round.
Their opponents were all the strongest existences from the seven main peaks.
Zhao Tianchen held a sharp golden longsword, its tip trembling slightly, radiating an imposing Sword Intent.
His Cultivation of the Star Cloud Contemplation Method had already shown considerable results; his Sword Qi carried a unique rhythm that commanded respect, suppressing his opponent into a state of helpless defense.
He gained the upper hand from the very start of the battle.
Ji Hao, dressed in black, had already reached a certain level in his Cultivation of the Spirit Devouring Body Nourishing Art.
Combined with a heavy black sword and skilled Earth-elemental escape techniques, he moved rapidly on the arena.
Streaks of Sword Qi crisscrossed, augmented by gravity, causing his opponent to struggle to parry.
Victory was only a matter of time.
Zhong Yuling, dressed in white, primarily Cultivated illusion techniques, supplemented by ice-elemental spell arts.
On the arena, she was like an elegant dancer; every step was accompanied by the glint of ice crystals and the shifting of illusions.
Her opponent gradually lost their way under her illusions, bewildered and disoriented.
Zhong Yuling seized the opportunity to unleash ice-elemental spell arts, freezing her opponent within solid ice, easily winning the match.
Zhong Yuling, who was taught by Xue'er, displayed her formidable strength and talent, ingeniously combining illusion arts and ice-elemental spell arts to create a dazzling combat style.
Su Hongxiu, in a red dress, specialized in fire manipulation.
Her fire-elemental spell arts were as passionate and fiery as a Fire Phoenix.
On the arena, she was like a goddess controlling flames, her red dress fluttering in the wind, as streaks of fire Dragons emerged, driven by the Nine Dragons Immortal Slaughtering Formation, trapping her opponent within the formation and securing a decisive victory.
"Boom!" With a loud crash, fire Dragons and Sword Qi intertwined, erupting in dazzling light.
Under this attack, the opponent was engulfed by flames and utterly defeated.
...
Time flew by, and Li Mu's six Disciples performed exceptionally well on the arena.
Relying on their respective talents and mastered skills, they successively defeated their opponents and won their matches.
"Xiao Qingyun versus Zhao Tianchen!"
"Zhong Yuling versus Ji Hao!"
"Liu Yuqian versus Su Hongxiu!"
As the winners of the top six finals were determined, Fang Shixin, presiding over the competition, announced loudly.
"Master, I am no match for Senior Brother Zhao, I concede!" Xiao Qingyun glanced at Zhao Tianchen and reluctantly signaled to Li Mu.
"Master, I am no match for Senior Sister Zhong, I also concede!" Ji Hao slung his heavy black sword onto his back and resignedly requested permission from Li Mu.
"Master, uh, my Cultivation Technique is countered by Senior Sister Su, I also concede!" Liu Yuqian embarrassedly requested permission from Li Mu.
She had hoped to continue advancing but hadn't expected to encounter Su Hongxiu.
"Sect Master, this!" Fang Shixin was dumbfounded, not expecting such a situation, and looked to Li Mu for his decision.
"You six don't need to compete.
Zhao Tianchen is first, Su Hongxiu is second, Zhong Yuling is third, Ji Hao is fourth, Xiao Qingyun is fifth, and Liu Yuqian is sixth!
Any objections?" Li Mu looked at the six and arranged.
"Master, brilliant!"
The six responded in unison.
They clearly understood that the ranking their master gave them was both fair and reasonable, entirely based on the strength of their abilities.
Their master was truly worthy of the title, seeing through their true capabilities at a glance.
"Elder Fang, that's enough for the Grand Competition.
As for the other two spots, let them be decided later." Li Mu looked at Fang Shixin and instructed.
As soon as he finished speaking, Li Mu's mind stirred, and he retrieved a massive quantity of Spiritual Artifacts and Spiritual Items from the nine storage spiritual pearl: nearly a hundred four- and five-tier Spiritual Swords of various colors, several hundred four- and five-tier Battle Puppets, dozens of stacks of four- and five-tier Spiritual Talismans, hundreds of bottles of Spirit Pills, and so on.
Spiritual light shimmered, a dazzling array of colors, immediately drawing the attention of all the Disciples.
After advancing to the Void Refining Realm, four- and five-tier Spiritual Talismans, Spirit Pills, and Spiritual Artifacts were no longer of much use to Li Mu.
Taking advantage of this Disciple Grand Competition, Li Mu planned to distribute them as rewards to the Disciples.
"Elder Fang, these Spiritual Artifacts and Spiritual Items are extra rewards I've prepared for the Disciples of our Sect this time.
You can arrange them!" Li Mu smiled as he looked at Fang Shixin, gesturing.
"Thank you, Sect Master!" Fang Shixin took the Spiritual Artifacts and Spiritual Items that Li Mu handed him, a look of pleasant surprise on his face.
He put them into his storage ring and respectfully said, "I will distribute these rewards reasonably according to the Disciples' performance and needs."
"Why are you all standing there dumbfounded!
Don't you thank the Sect Master!"
After speaking, Fang Shixin turned to the Disciples of the Sect and gestured.
Upon hearing this, all the Sect Disciples' spirits were invigorated.
They simultaneously bowed to Li Mu and shouted, "Thank you, Sect Master, for your generous gifts!"
The faces of the Seven Profound Sect's Nascent Soul Disciples were filled with excitement and gratitude.
Although these Spiritual Artifacts and Spiritual Items were no longer of great use to Li Mu, for them, they were undoubtedly extremely valuable Cultivation resources.
Their enthusiasm was high, and they were immensely grateful for Li Mu's generosity.
Li Mu smiled and nodded, his gaze sweeping over all the Disciples one by one, finally resting on Zhao Tianchen and the other six.
He said, "As the outstanding performers of this Grand Competition, and even more so, the hope for the future of our Sect, I hope you will cherish this opportunity, Cultivate diligently, and bring glory to our Sect."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Tianchen and the others all stepped forward, bowed deeply to Li Mu, and said, "Disciples will certainly live up to the Sect Master's expectations, Cultivate diligently, and bring glory to the Sect!"
Li Mu nodded with satisfaction, his gaze drifting to Lin Maoshan, who was looking dejected in a corner.
He instructed the few, "Maoshan has been diligently Cultivating due to his Cultivation Technique, with less practical experience.
You all should guide him more in your spare time from Cultivation."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Tianchen and the others turned to look at Lin Maoshan in the corner.
They knew that Lin Maoshan Cultivated all Five Elements, and due to his special Cultivation Technique, he rarely went out for practical experience, which also made him slightly lacking in combat experience.
"Disciples obey!" Zhao Tianchen and the others responded in unison.
Lin Maoshan, who had originally looked dejected, had a flash of surprise and gratitude in his eyes after hearing Li Mu's words.
Li Mu smiled and nodded, then turned to Fang Shixin, signaling, "Elder Fang, the Sect's miscellaneous affairs are entrusted to you.
Next, I have something to attend to and need to leave for a period of time."
"Sect Master, please rest assured, I will handle everything properly." Fang Shixin respectfully replied.
Li Mu nodded, then his figure flickered and he disappeared from his original spot.