Mortal: Starting by joining the Falling Cloud Sect

"What the hell is going on? How do the disciples of Luoyun Sect and Gujian Sect know the location of this cave?!" The disciples of Baiqiao Academy felt like their heads were about to explode, countless doubts surged in their minds, and they wanted to curse out loud.

Originally, I thought this trip was to enjoy the treasures of the cave all to myself, but now it has turned into a chaotic situation where three parties are scrambling to grab them.

If it were just that one person from the Luoyun Sect, they would have the advantage in numbers. They could simply drive him away and take all the treasure for themselves.

Now that three more members of the Ancient Sword Sect have arrived, the numerical advantage has been lost. If a real fight breaks out, the outcome is still uncertain.

As soon as the three Ancient Sword Sect cultivators entered the hall, their eyes immediately locked onto the remains of the ancient cultivator and the jade slip.

"Do you know anything about that disciple of the Falling Cloud Sect?" a disciple of the Ancient Sword Sect wearing a purple-gold crown secretly transmitted his voice.

"I have no recollection of them at all. Perhaps they are disciples who joined the Luoyun Sect in recent years and are not well-known," one of the Ancient Sword Sect disciples replied after thinking for a moment.

"They're newcomers, only at the thirteenth level of Qi Refining! Don't rush to attack. Let's test them first and see if they have the confidence to compete with us, especially that one from the Falling Cloud Sect."

After the three of them discussed their plan, they also flew to the jade platform.

In this way, Zhou Qing, the four from Baiqiaoyuan, and the three from Gujianmen formed a triangle.

Zhou Qing was located in the center of the Jade Platform, closest to the ancient cultivator's corpse, while the disciples of the Hundred Crafts Academy and the Ancient Sword Sect were located at the two corners of the Jade Platform.

They wanted to use their divine sense to explore the inside of the corpse, but they were blocked by the black brocade robe. They could only observe the ancient cultivator's remains with their eyes, so they did not realize that the inside of the brocade robe was already empty.

At this moment, by observing the long sword artifact in the hands of the Ancient Sword Sect disciple with the golden crown and comparing it with the information given to him by Elder Xin in his mind, Zhou Qing confirmed the identity of this Ancient Sword Sect disciple.

His name is Sun Ke, and his cultivation level is at the peak of the Qi Refining stage. The magic weapon he uses most often recently is the longsword "Azure Spirit Sword" in his hand, which is a top-grade magic weapon of excellent quality.

"My name is Sun Ke. May I ask how these two fellow Daoists are addressed?" Sun Ke clasped his hands in a fist salute and asked politely.

"Zhou Qing." Zhou Qing did not hide anything and frankly gave his name and returned the greeting.

Zhou Qing was overjoyed at the sudden arrival of these three disciples from the Ancient Sword Sect.

If it were just a contest between him and Baiqiaoyuan, Baiqiaoyuan would have the advantage in numbers, making it difficult for him to handle. Once they seized the jade slip and examined it, they would immediately realize that the treasure had been switched and taken away by Zhou Qing.

Now that there's a third party involved, perhaps we can use them to shift the blame elsewhere. Zhou Qing immediately started thinking of a plan.

"Fu Xiuqi." Although the leader of the Hundred Crafts Academy also gave his name, his tone clearly carried a hint of displeasure.

Their plan, which was originally a sure thing, was disrupted by the people from the Ancient Sword Sect, which displeased them to begin with. Then, they were mocked right away, which made them even more resentful.

What's most infuriating is that they can't refute it, because that's exactly what they think.

"Now that the disciples of our three sects have discovered this cave, it is only natural that we should have a fair fight."

Sun Ke spoke slowly, but was interrupted by Fu Xiuqi halfway through his sentence: "I wonder what kind of fair competition Fellow Daoist Sun is referring to? Is it one faction against another? If that's the case, then Fellow Daoist Zhou is the only one from the Luoyun Sect. Wouldn't that also give the Ancient Sword Sect a bad reputation for bullying the weak with the many?"

Upon hearing this, Sun Ke pondered for a moment. Fu Xiuqi's words were quite ingenious, killing two birds with one stone. On the surface, he was speaking up for the Luoyun Sect to win over Zhou Qing, while secretly rejecting this method of one faction against another.

However, Sun Ke thought even deeper. He keenly sensed that Fu Xiuqi of the Hundred Crafts Courtyard seemed unwilling to join forces with the Ancient Sword Sect to fight amongst themselves.

Sun Ke thought to himself: They clearly outnumber us, yet they dare not form factions, and even secretly try to win over the Luo Yun Sect. So lacking in confidence, Fu Xiuqi, you've ultimately revealed the true nature of your Hundred Crafts Academy.

Having seen through this, Sun Ke felt much more confident and believed he had a greater chance of successfully seizing the treasure.

Zhou Qing, being quick-witted, naturally deduced the above situation.

He was also unwilling to be part of a faction. After all, he was alone and weak. If a group battle broke out, he might be the first to be targeted, and then he wouldn't be able to escape.

Therefore, he decisively spoke up: "Fellow Daoist Fu, your words are wise and righteous, I admire them. The three sects of Yunmeng are of one mind and should always prioritize harmony. If both of you have the noble sentiment of not wanting to bully the weak with the many, then I would like to propose a method. Each of the three sects shall select the strongest person to compete on this jade platform. The winner shall have all the treasures in their cave dwelling belong to their sect, and the loser shall leave."

Upon hearing this, both Sun Ke and Fu Xiuqi fell into deep thought, secretly calculating the pros and cons.

After a moment, Sun Ke was the first to agree. He came from the Ancient Sword Sect and believed himself to be exceptionally talented and skilled in swordsmanship. He had even won the championship in the Ancient Sword Sect's competition at the Yunmeng Tournament, so he was not afraid of any opponent.

Immediately afterward, Fu Xiuqi agreed after thinking about it for a while.

After setting the competition rules, Sun Ke and Fu Xiuqi instructed the other disciples of their sect to retreat below the jade platform.

During this time, Fu Xiuqi secretly handed a storage bag to a disciple of the Hundred Crafts Academy and secretly transmitted a few words. Because the action was extremely discreet, neither Sun Ke nor Zhou Qing noticed it.

The three stood on the jade platform and took out their magical artifacts. Sun Ke drew his Azure Spirit Sword, Fu Xiuqi took out a bowl-shaped magical artifact called the Purple Light Bowl, and Zhou Qing only summoned the Crimson Flame Wheel.

In this three-on-one battle, Zhou Qing can only accept two outcomes.

One option is to be the first to lose, so that he can use that opportunity to escape, leaving behind the fake jade slip and brocade robe, and let Sun Ke and Fu Xiuqi fight each other to the death.

The second is to become the ultimate victor and obtain all the treasures.

The most unacceptable scenario is losing second, as that would leave neither enough time to escape nor a reasonable justification to occupy the remains of the ancient cultivator.

After the three were ready, Zhou Qing launched the first attack, regardless of whether he achieved anything or not, just to draw aggro first.

He then activated the Crimson Flame Wheel, which spun rapidly and spewed out flames, hurtling towards Fu Xiuqi like a fiery meteor.

Fu Xiuqi was also a seasoned expert, and his reaction was swift. He immediately activated the Purple Light Bowl to defend himself.

The purple bowl spun rapidly in the air, its size growing larger in an instant, before colliding violently with the crimson flame wheel, producing a loud explosion on the jade platform.

The Crimson Flame Wheel was only a high-grade magic weapon. It trembled slightly when it was hit by the Purple Light Bowl, and it seemed that it would collapse at the slightest touch. Fortunately, Zhou Qing made timely adjustments to prevent the Crimson Flame Wheel and the Purple Light Bowl from colliding head-on again, and he managed to stabilize the battle situation.

Meanwhile, Sun Ke also made a move, but his target was not Zhou Qing, who looked rather disheveled, but Fu Xiuqi, who was gaining the upper hand.

Sun Ke's strength was indeed formidable, and his Azure Spirit Sword was even more powerful. Sun Ke activated the Azure Spirit Sword to attack Fu Xiuqi, and after several exchanges, he firmly suppressed Fu Xiuqi.

"The sword cultivator's strength is truly in a class of its own," Zhou Qing couldn't help but admire in his heart after seeing it.

However, he could not stand by and watch Fu Xiuqi be defeated, so he immediately turned his attention to Sun Ke by activating the Crimson Flame Wheel.

Facing Fu Xiuqi and Zhou Qing, Sun Ke showed no fear. With agile movements, he leaped several times to increase the distance between himself and the Crimson Flame Wheel. He then pointed his sword at the Crimson Flame Wheel, and the Azure Spirit Sword suddenly slashed out a blue arc, striking the Crimson Flame Wheel.

This azure arc was incredibly powerful; the Crimson Flame Wheel couldn't withstand it at all and fell directly onto the jade platform.

Having repelled the Crimson Flame Wheel, Sun Ke charged at Fu Xiuqi once more, this time with an even fiercer attack, like a surging tsunami, wave after wave higher than the last.

Zhou Qing knew things were going badly. If he didn't use his real skills soon, Fu Xiuqi would be defeated by Sun Ke in no time. So he immediately drew his Qingfeng sword and was about to rejoin the battle.

But at that moment, something unexpected happened beneath the jade platform!