Techniques and Dao

Chapter 15 The Battle of Candlelight (1)

Since signing up for the Heavenly Eye Trial, Hua Sheng has been diligently cultivating his immortal arts whenever he has a spare moment. However, Tai Shang Xiao Jun's words reminded him not to contact Wei Yu again.

If Wei Yu knew, she would probably mind. After all, she wasn't an object, so she wasn't part of the winning bet.

But that's how boys are; sometimes they do things that seem childish yet are actually quite serious. At least Hanamori is serious. If he wins, at least he'll have removed the obstacle of Tenkichi from his path. And if he's going to tackle something, he should tackle the toughest nut to crack—the head of the disciple council.

Time passed day by day, but the Heavenly Eye Trial seemed to have never begun. The entire Daoist Academy remained as usual, and all the registration points that had been set up within the academy were removed starting the next day, as if the incident had never happened.

In the past few days, Hua Sheng couldn't help but ask Tai Shang Xiao Jun several times. Tai Shang Xiao Jun also told him to continue to wait for notification, saying that it was his first time participating and he was not very clear about it.

Hua Sheng even considered asking Master Yu Ran, but she held back.

After a day of cultivation, Hua Sheng dragged his weary body to bed, clutching the "Ruyi Book" and diligently memorizing the immortal techniques within. He had already mastered most of the immortal arts in the "Ruyi Book." The Heavenly Eye Trial might also be an opportunity to test himself. Wei Yu's face began to appear before his eyes again; he hadn't seen her for several days, and he wondered if he should send her a message.

"How about I invite Wei Yu to come with me to the cafeteria tomorrow at noon?" Hua Sheng thought to himself. The image of Wei Yu's simple, moonlit dance on Xuanwu Mountain flashed before his eyes. That dreamlike dance, and Wei Yu's light and graceful figure, made Hua Sheng's heart race again.

"Even if I defeat Tianjizi, would someone as perfect as Weiyu really be willing to be with me?" Hua Sheng pondered this difficult question, and before he knew it, his eyelids grew heavier and heavier. He then drifted off to sleep, clutching the "Ruyi Book".

Soon he began to dream, and in his hazy state, he saw himself standing on the deck of a cruise ship. The rumble of thunder echoed through the air, and torrential rain lashed the ship, splashing water everywhere. Hua Sheng saw that he was covered in blood, and just a few steps away lay a little girl, about seven or eight years old, wearing a black dress. The little girl's clothes were already soaked through, as were Hua Sheng's own.

Hua Sheng was confused about where she was when she realized that about five meters away, there was a hunched old woman standing in front of her. Strangely, only she and the little girl in the black dress beside her were soaked by the rain. The old woman stood in the downpour, but not a single drop of rain fell on her.

When Hua Sheng saw the old woman's face, his heart suddenly clenched. The old woman's expression was menacing. Suddenly, she extended her withered, shriveled hand, and Hua Sheng felt as if his body were a puppet, completely immobilized. He struggled, but to no avail. Then, Hua Sheng felt excruciating pain throughout his body. He tried to scream, but no sound came out.

"Crack!" There was a sound.

Hua Sheng suddenly felt a burning sensation on his face, then he waved his arms and shouted.

"Hey! Wake up!" It was Taishang Xiaojun's voice.

Hua Sheng then realized it was all a dream. He rubbed his eyes, and before him was Tai Shang Xiao Jun's face. He quickly said, "I'm sorry, it feels like I had a nightmare..."

Hua Sheng suddenly stopped himself from speaking. He clearly remembered lying in bed. But beneath him was cold, muddy ground. Just as he almost thought he had fallen off the bed, he saw Tai Shang Xiao Jun's back—

Instead of the expected roof beams, I could clearly see the starry sky.

I found myself outdoors.

"What happened? Why am I sleepwalking?" Hua Sheng asked.

“It’s not sleepwalking. But you must wake up immediately!” Taishang Xiaojun shook Huasheng’s shoulder again.

Hua Sheng then came to her senses and quickly asked, "What happened? How did I end up outside? We should go back inside quickly."

"Can not go back."

"What?" Hua Sheng was instantly wide awake. "Why can't we go back?"

"We feel like we're on a mountain, but this mountain is much higher than Xuanwu Divine Mountain. We must no longer be in the Academy of Arts and Sciences."

Hua Sheng was not only startled, but also suddenly felt a chill run down her spine. She immediately jumped up: "Huh? Not at the Magic Academy?"

"Not only is it not within the Academy of Arts and Sciences, but there isn't a mountain this high within a hundred miles of the Academy. We've been teleported to a very far place," said Tai Shang Xiao Jun. "Then it must have begun!"

"What begins?"

"The Heavenly Eye Trial!"

Hua Sheng's heart tightened, and when she turned to look, she realized that there was a large crowd of people standing not far away.

Because it was nighttime and they were in the mountains, Hua Sheng could only hear the mountain wind rustling through the surrounding trees. Then came the noisy commotion of the crowd. It seemed that most of the people around them had just realized that they were outside the Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Hua Sheng looked around and quickly asked Tai Shang Xiao Jun, "Why were we teleported here?"

"I don't know yet. But every time the Tianmu Trial is held, the applicants are teleported to a competition venue. It seems that this year it will be Guangji Mountain."

Hua Sheng quickly slapped his face to cheer himself up.

Suddenly, a ball of flame appeared in the pitch-black sky. Then, a booming voice rang out, making Hua Sheng's eardrums ring.

"Disciples of the Daoist Academy! Welcome to Mount Guangji!"

A celestial master with a bushy beard appeared in the center of the flames.

Hua Sheng asked, "Where is Guangji Mountain?"

Taishang Xiaojun said, "Guangji Mountain is located in Yeguangji Prefecture of Shengping Ning, in the north. The Shudao Academy is located in Lingwei Yang Prefecture in the east, and the two places are thousands of miles apart."

Although he couldn't see how many people were around, Hua Sheng heard the crowd starting to stir. He asked, "Who is this person who looks just like Zhang Fei?"

"Shh~~ It's the Fire and Thunder Immortal Master!" Tai Shang Xiao Jun instructed him to lower his voice and said, "It seems that he will be the supervisor for the first trial."

The Fire and Thunder Immortal Master rode a cloud in mid-air and proclaimed in a booming voice, "This is the first round of the Heavenly Eye Trial, named: The Candlelight Battle." Before his words had even finished, countless candles suddenly lit up. In an instant, the flickering candlelight illuminated the entire Heavenly Mountain like a galaxy, finally revealing its towering height. The flames stretched endlessly across the mountain, reaching straight into the sky.

Hanamori noticed the candlelight nearby and realized that each candle had a glass dome around its edge. The dome had several small holes to allow heat to escape from the flame. It seemed to be just an ordinary candle.

At that moment, several lines of large characters, seemingly engulfed in flames, appeared in the air.

"Candlelight Battle"
Trial participants: 3,746.

Number of candles: 3,746.

game rules:

1. The participant must extinguish the candle flame with their fingers. Extinguishing one candle flame results in victory, and the participant automatically leaves the arena to proceed to the next round.
II. Players may freely use spells in the game. However, offensive spells should be used only when the target is injured and should not harm other trial participants.
Third, anyone who leaves Guangji Mountain without extinguishing their candle during the competition will be automatically eliminated.

After reading the rules, Hua Sheng said, "I didn't expect so many disciples to participate. But this is too easy. The second rule is practically useless. Why bother with offensive spells? The number of candles and the number of trial participants are exactly the same. If everyone lines up and each person extinguishes one candle, everyone will advance, right?"

“It’s not that simple!” Taishang Xiaojun interrupted him.

"how?"

Tai Shang Xiao Jun said, "I didn't expect this year's elimination rounds to be so brutal right from the start!"

"Huh? One person extinguishes one candle, the number of people is just right, why do we need to eliminate people?" Hua Sheng asked, puzzled.

Tai Shang Xiao Jun asked, "Why is this game called the Candlelight Battle?"

"Is this supposed to be a battle between disciples? But since there's enough candlelight, why is everyone still competing?"

"The number of candles is just right, not too many, not too few. But have you considered that if you extinguish even one more candle, you'll eliminate one more person in the first round?"

Hua Sheng then realized what was happening. But then she asked, "Wait a minute, didn't the rules say that you automatically leave after extinguishing one candle? How could one person extinguish more than two?"

"The rules state that the candle flame must be extinguished with your fingers for it to be effective. That is to say, as long as other methods are used, no matter how many candles are extinguished, the trial participant will not leave!"

Upon hearing this, Hua Sheng felt a chill rise from his back.

Taishang Xiaojun continued, "That is to say, if someone manages to snatch one candle and simultaneously blows out the other three thousand seven hundred and forty-five..."

"Then this person has eliminated all the trial participants this year." Hua Sheng gasped after saying this.

"Yes. There's no need for a second round; this year's Tianmu Trial is over."

"Good heavens!" Hua Sheng exclaimed. "But look, these candles all have glass covers. How could they all be blown out at the same time?"

Just then, a mountain breeze blew by, causing Hua Sheng to stumble back a few steps. In an instant, Hua Sheng understood everything.

As soon as someone breaks the outer glass cover, the seemingly endless candlelight will vanish in an instant!
Before Hua Sheng could even ponder this further, the rules formed by the fire character in mid-air had vanished without a trace, leaving only the number of trial participants and the number of candle flames.

Suddenly, a figure burst forth from the crowd and flew straight up the mountain. Hua Sheng then realized that someone was trying to get there first. He immediately prepared to ride his cloud and follow: "Hurry, hurry, as the law dictates..."

But Tai Shang Xiao Jun immediately grabbed his Taoist robe sleeve: "Don't rush!"

"how?"

"The trial hasn't even started yet!"

"There's someone over there..."

"That's jumping the gun."

"Can they even jump the gun?" Hua Sheng was immediately puzzled. But the first figure to dart out stopped in mid-air, unable to move. Then, with a shout, it was thrown out like a pebble. In the blink of an eye, the figure became as small as an ant.

Hua Sheng exclaimed in surprise, "Good heavens! Is this what it means to leave Mount Guangji?"

A flash of fire appeared in the air, and the Fire and Thunder Immortal Master appeared above everyone's heads. At the same time, his voice, like a booming bell, rang out: "The trial has not yet begun. Those who are impatient will be breaking the rules. I hope all disciples will be mindful of their actions and not be greedy for merit or rash. If anyone violates the above three rules after the trial begins, I will send him to keep this person company!"

The thousands of disciples remained silent. After looking around and seeing nothing amiss, the Fire and Thunder Immortal Master rode a cloud to the side.

Then a large fire character appeared in mid-air.

"Three".

Next comes “two”.

Then comes "One".

After the countdown fire character disappeared, the words "Opening" appeared in mid-air.

(End of this chapter)