I want to tread the heavens

The outer sect competition officially began amidst great anticipation.

The Heavenly Sword Sect's martial arts arena was divided into sixteen arenas, each with its own independent protective formation to ensure the matches wouldn't affect the spectators. The stands were packed; not only were all the outer sect disciples present, but many inner sect disciples and stewards had also come to watch. After all, the triennial outer sect competition was the best opportunity to discover promising talents.

Ling Xiao's first match was scheduled on the Class C arena. His opponent was a disciple in the early Foundation Establishment stage from Luoxia Peak, who wielded a pair of short swords.

Before the match even started, Fa Cai was already busy in the stands.

It drew a simple table on the ground with its paws, with Ling Xiao's name written on it, and several options listed next to it: win within three moves, win within five moves, win within ten moves, win within twenty moves or more, and lose in a surprise.

"The betting is open! The betting is open!" Fa Cai shouted in the minds of the surrounding disciples. "Place your bets! Spirit stones, pills, and herbs are all welcome. Bet on how many moves Ling Xiao will make to win. The odds are fair and honest."

Several outer disciples were attracted by its shouts and curiously gathered around. A talking spirit wolf was rare enough, but what was even rarer was that this wolf was actually running a betting pool.

I bet I'd win within five moves, and one of my disciples pulled out two low-grade spirit stones.

I placed a bet on ten moves, and another disciple also placed a bet.

Fa Cai meticulously recorded every bet with its paws, its wolf face etched with the shrewdness of a profiteer. It even proactively analyzed the battle for its hesitant disciple: "Look, Ling Xiao is at the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, while his opponent is only at the early Foundation Establishment stage. It's a crushing defeat. Besides, Ling Xiao defeated Zhao Hu, who was at the early Foundation Establishment stage, in the last minor competition. Now that his cultivation is even higher, defeating an early Foundation Establishment opponent is a piece of cake! Victory within three moves, a sure win."

A deacon passed by the audience and saw Fa Cai at the betting booth. His face darkened, and he walked over and pointed at Fa Cai, saying, "You, stop."

Fa Cai blinked his innocent wolf eyes. "Sir, I was just playing a game with some fellow disciples. I didn't break any rules, did I?"

The deacon's lips twitched. "The Heavenly Sword Sect forbids gambling."

Gambling? You look so righteous about getting rich, what gambling? We're predicting the outcome of a match, it falls under the category of academic discussion.

The butler stared at it for three seconds, then shook his head helplessly, leaving behind a "Don't go too far" before turning and leaving.

Fa Cai turned to his disciples and grinned, revealing a mouthful of wolf teeth. "Keep going, keep going. Anyone else want to place a bet?"

On the arena, Ling Xiao had already taken his position.

His opponent was a young man in his early twenties, wielding a short sword in each hand, the blades gleaming coldly in the sunlight. The young man's cultivation was at the peak of the early Foundation Establishment stage, which was quite good for an outer disciple, but his expression clearly showed some tension. The reputation of the Azure Cloud Twin Stars had recently spread too far among the outer disciples, and Ling Xiao's feat of defeating Zhao Hu, who was of a higher level, had been embellished and circulated several times. In the eyes of ordinary disciples, Ling Xiao had been deified into some kind of monster capable of challenging opponents of higher levels.

The contest begins. "Senior Brother Ling Xiao, please give me your guidance," the young man said, taking a deep breath and crossing his twin swords in a balanced offensive and defensive stance.

Ling Xiao nodded, and without further ado, took action.

He didn't use the Star Thunder Finger Sword, nor the power of Starfall; he simply circulated his spiritual energy, using his mid-Foundation Establishment cultivation to suppress his opponent and combine it with the Swimming Fish Step. In a flash, he was in front of the youth. The youth hurriedly swung his sword to block, but Ling Xiao's speed was twice as fast as he expected. Before the short sword was even halfway through its swing, Ling Xiao's finger had already touched his wrist.

Clang.

A short knife slipped from his hand and fell to the ground.

The young man was terrified and hurriedly retreated, but Ling Xiao's fish-like steps followed him closely, always maintaining an arm's length distance. His second finger struck the young man's other wrist, and another short knife flew out.

The third finger rested half an inch in front of his brow, the spiritual energy gathered at the fingertip contained but not released.

"Thank you for the courtesy," Ling Xiao said, withdrawing his fingers and bowing with clasped hands.

Three tricks.

A gasp erupted from the audience. To defeat an opponent in the early stages of Foundation Establishment in just three moves, without using any fancy techniques and relying solely on speed and finger skills—this effortless demeanor made everyone realize that Ling Xiao's strength far exceeded his cultivation level.

Fa Cai grinned from ear to ear in the audience, having won all his bets on a win within three moves. He then hypocritically comforted the disciples who had bet wrong, saying, "It's alright, it's alright, there's another chance next time. Ling Xiao's next opponent is a mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator, which is more difficult and has higher odds. Everyone is welcome to continue betting."

An Ling's performance was more decisive than Ling Xiao's.

His opponent was a sword cultivator in the early stages of Foundation Establishment, who went all out from the start, his sword flashing like a bolt of lightning as he slashed towards An Ling. An Ling stood still, and only drew his sword when the blade was only three inches from his nose.

One sword.

Only one sword.

The sword flashed and disappeared in an instant. The opponent's knife was knocked away, and he was sent flying backward, crashing into the protective array before sliding to the ground. An Ling sheathed his sword, turned around, and walked off the stage, his face expressionless throughout.

The audience was silent for two seconds, then erupted in even louder gasps.

The two Qingyun Stars are on a completely different level from the other outer disciples.

Over the next few days, Ling Xiao and An Ling fought their way through the challenges. Ling Xiao kept each battle under ten moves, revealing too few of his trump cards while still demonstrating impressive strength. He had only used the modified version of the Star Thunder Finger Sword once, against a mid-Foundation Establishment cultivator whose formation was too troublesome. Ling Xiao's Star Thunder Finger Sword pierced through the core of the formation, directly destroying its eye.

That single finger gesture caused the expressions of several deacons watching from below the stage to change.

"The power of starlight and lightning," a deacon whispered to his colleague beside him. "This Ling Xiao is no ordinary person."

An Ling's performance was equally dazzling. His Flowing Light Shadow Splitting Sword Technique had become much more powerful after breaking through to the mid-Foundation Establishment stage. His sword speed was so fast that most opponents were defeated before they could even see his sword shadows. One mid-Foundation Establishment opponent said with a wry smile after the match, "I only saw a flash of light, and then I lost."

On the sixth day, Ling Xiao and An Ling both made it into the top 64.

This achievement has exceeded most people's expectations. After all, the two have only been disciples for a short time, with An Ling having been a little longer and Ling Xiao having been a disciple for less than a year. To be able to reach the top 64 in the triennial outer sect competition is already a testament to their exceptional talent.

But Ling Xiao was not satisfied. The top 64 was just the beginning; his goal was the top 20, or even the top 10.

After the Round of 64 ended, Ling Xiao found a corner in the rest area to sit down and recuperate. Six consecutive days of high-intensity competition, although he won each match easily, had still taken a toll on his physical and spiritual energy.

Fa Cai walked over with a bag of spirit stones in his mouth, and proudly threw the bag in front of Ling Xiao, saying, "I'll give you 30% of the harvest from the past few days."

Ling Xiao opened the bag and glanced inside. There were at least fifty low-grade spirit stones, a few spirit herbs, and two Qi Gathering Pills. "You think I made that much?"

Making money through information asymmetry is perfectly justified; they don't know your true capabilities, but I do. Therefore, I meticulously calculate the odds for every game to guarantee a profit.

"That's cheating," Ling Xiao said.

I call this making rational use of resources, not getting rich, to refute that.

Just as Ling Xiao was about to continue teaching it, he suddenly heard two stewards talking in hushed tones in the adjacent rest area. The soundproofing array in the rest area was supposed to block out sound, but after Ling Xiao broke through to the mid-Foundation Establishment stage, his five senses had greatly improved, rendering the soundproofing array useless to him.

"Have you investigated Ling Xiao's background?" a steward asked.

The investigation revealed another deacon whose voice was even deeper, making further investigation difficult. His entry record was simple: he came from the old local area, had no sect or faction, and was brought back from outside by Elder Tie. But further investigation yielded little information.

Someone inside is investigating him.

Who?

I don't know exactly who it is, but it's someone of considerable importance. It's said that people have already been sent to the old territory to investigate his background.

Ling Xiao's heart sank.

Old Land. That's where he grew up, and also where his father, Ling Zhan, last appeared. An elder from the inner sect is investigating his background and has already sent people to Old Land. What does this mean?

Few people knew about his father Ling Zhan's past at the Heavenly Sword Sect. Elder Tie was one of them, but Elder Tie wouldn't harm him. The man in the bamboo hat who delivered the message was another, but he was clearly not an enemy. Besides him, who else knew about his father?

Or rather, who else cares about his father's affairs?

Ling Xiao suddenly realized a possibility. Why did his father, Ling Zhan, leave the Heavenly Sword Sect back then? Elder Tie only said that Ling Zhan was his junior brother, but he didn't say why Ling Zhan left. Was he expelled from the sect? Or did he leave on his own? If he was expelled, then who expelled him?

Elders of the inner sect.

Fa Cai noticed his unusual behavior and asked telepathically, "Boss, what's wrong?"

Ling Xiao told it about the conversation he had just overheard.

The wolf-like face, usually so shrewish, suddenly turned serious. Someone's investigating your past? Could it be related to your father?

"It's very likely," Ling Xiao said. "Something must have happened to my father at the Heavenly Sword Sect back then, and it's still not over."

What should we do then?

Ling Xiao was silent for a moment, then smiled, a smile tinged with coldness.

Let them investigate. He said, "I, Ling Xiao, have done nothing wrong and have nothing to fear from anyone's investigation. Besides, the more they find out, the more I'll know what really happened to my father back then."

He stood up and dusted himself off.

Tomorrow is the Round of 32, and the opponents will get stronger and stronger. No matter what those elders in the inner sect are up to, let's focus on doing well in this big competition first.

Fa Cai nodded, then reverted to its usual smug expression and asked, "Who's your opponent for tomorrow's match?"

Ling Xiao glanced at the match schedule on the bulletin board.

In the round of 32, his opponent was a Foundation Establishment mid-stage disciple named Wang Tong, who wielded a long spear and was said to be the number one spearman among the outer sect disciples.

Ling Xiao said that the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment should not be a big problem.

How should the odds be set? The fortune teller immediately perked up.

Ling Xiao rolled his eyes at it, thinking, "You'll be caught by the steward and locked up sooner or later."

I don't care about making money. Solitary confinement is fine. As long as I can earn spirit stones, I'm willing to be locked up for three days and three nights.

Ling Xiao ignored it and turned to look at the other side of the rest area. An Ling was sitting in the corner, eyes closed, meditating, his long sword resting on his lap, his sword intent restrained. His opponent in the top 32 was a veteran disciple in the late Foundation Establishment stage, not weak, but in An Ling's current state, he should be able to handle him.

As night deepened, the lights in the martial arts arena gradually went out. Ling Xiao and An Ling walked back to Qingyun Peak side by side, with Fa Cai following behind, carrying its bag full of spirit stones in its mouth.

"Tomorrow is the round of 32," An Ling suddenly said.

"Yes," Ling Xiao said, "the real battle starts tomorrow."

An Ling glanced at him and asked, "Are you alright?"

Ling Xiao grinned. "What problem do I have? But you, your opponent is a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, don't mess it up."

An Ling did not answer, but his fingers gently brushed across the scabbard, and a low, resonant sound came from within.

Ling Xiao knew that An Ling was serious.

He looked up at the night sky, where the seven bright stars still shone. He touched the black jade pendant in his pocket, and the warmth of the pendant seemed to respond to his touch.

Three months later, in the ancient city of Meteorite.

But before that, he needs to make a name for himself in the outer sect competition.

Let everyone remember the name Ling Xiao of Qingyun Peak.