Infiltrating the righteous path? Just another place to be a sycophant.

How could he summon heavenly lightning without anyone noticing?! Instantaneous lightning magic? Isn't that something only the Divine Thunder Sect can do?

Or is this the unparalleled secret technique learned by the true disciple of Sect Master Li Podao?

Li Podao is truly a place where hidden talents abound; he is indeed worthy of being a candidate for sect leader!

Everyone wanted to rush forward, but when they saw the rolling thunder in the sky, the lightning flashing constantly in the dark clouds, and the occasional thunder, they all chickened out.

"I had no intention of killing anyone. If any of you take a step forward..."

"Don't blame me for being heartless!"

Boom!

A deafening clap of thunder rang out at just the right moment, causing everyone's ears to ring and buzz.

Upon hearing this thunderous revelation, no one dared to move forward. Instead, they all took a few steps back, as if afraid of truly provoking Lu An.

This thunder god is really helping me!

That thunderclap was brilliant!

He almost peed his pants in fright.

"Senior Brother Lu, I had no intention of offending you. I was just fighting with this person and had no intention of harming you!"

Seeing that things were going badly, one of them quickly took two steps back, feigning weakness.

Not to mention that he couldn't ascertain Senior Brother Lu's true strength, it would be unwise to provoke another expert after just fighting with this kid.

Are you suggesting we team up against Senior Brother Lu? Let's hope we don't end up getting stabbed in the back after we've already won the fight!

Reason told him that they should retreat first!

"An Zixi! You're spouting nonsense! How could I possibly have designs on Senior Brother Lu?!" Bai Yuan roared. "I've admired Senior Brother Lu for a long time and have always respected him. How could I do such a despicable thing?"

Well, so you're just acting, aren't you?

If I hadn't just overheard your nonsense, I might have actually believed you.

If it weren't for that thunderclap, you guys would have really been planning to go in, right?

And you who say you admire me, are you kidding me?

"But what you just said..."

*Smack! Smack!*

"I must have lost my mind! I'll apologize to Senior Brother Lu right now!" Bai Yuan slapped himself twice, the sound of which was quite loud.

This guy is really adaptable...

thump!

"Senior Brother Lu! I absolutely did not mean that! I was just out of my mind!"

This guy named An Zixi was even more formidable; he immediately knelt down, afraid of upsetting Lu An and having a bolt of lightning strike him down.

thump!

"An Gou, you're spouting nonsense! Senior Brother Lu, don't believe it! Don't believe it!"

Snapped!Snapped!Snapped!

Seeing An Zixi kneel down, Bai Yuan also knelt down and slapped her twice more.

Lu An was stunned. How did the plot develop like this? Something's not right.

Get up, stop kneeling, it's not that bad, it's not that bad.

Her face is getting smaller, like a little apple.

Lu An was about to speak up to persuade them, but the two of them turned around at the same time and shouted to their companions behind them, "What are you standing there for? Kneel down together! If Senior Brother Lu gets angry, we'll all be in deep trouble!"

Snapped!Snapped!Snapped!

Loud slapping sounds rang out all at once. Lu An had never seen such a spectacular and unbelievable scene before. So many people were kneeling in front of him and slapping him in the face.

"Hahaha, An Zixi, your slap wasn't as loud as mine!"

"Bai Yuan, don't think that just because you used fake force to make the slap sound loud, it's effective! This slap of mine is the real deal!"

"Hmph! Everyone, push harder! Let Senior Brother Lu see our sincerity!"

"Nonsense! Our sincerity is the most genuine!"

Before Lu An could say anything, the two sides started comparing themselves to each other, and the sound of slapping became louder and more frequent.

Lu An wanted to persuade them, but seeing how engrossed they were, even comparing themselves to each other, he couldn't bear to interrupt.

"Fine, leave your tokens and I'll let you go."

As if to prove his sincerity, Lu An weakened the lightning spell in the sky, and the dark clouds that were flashing with lightning gradually dissipated.

"Leave the token? This..."

"Senior Brother Lu, could you... give us a chance?"

Both sides hesitated. If they left the token now, wouldn't that just eliminate them?

Being eliminated so early, they are supposed to be elite inner disciples, isn't that shameful?

If that's the case, then they'll have to fight tooth and nail...

So the two sides adopted a fighting stance, and the magical artifacts and flying swords that had been motionless before suddenly surrounded them, as if they were about to strike with all their might at any moment.

However, Lu An did not speak, but just looked at them with cold eyes and upright posture.

Like a solitary peak that has stood for millennia.

Oh no, what stupid thing did I say? I even asked them to give me their tokens?

These guys are obviously not to be trifled with. If they fight to the death, wouldn't that be a death sentence?

If these magical treasures and flying swords come crashing down on him, he'll probably be torn to pieces in no time.

A gust of cold wind blew by, and Lu An was also covered in cold sweat, as if he could already see himself being instantly reduced to ashes.

Let's just forget about their tokens. Say a few kind words, and then we can all just go our separate ways.

"Fine, if you don't want to, you can leave now," Lu An said slowly, taking a deep breath.

Everyone was stunned for a moment upon hearing this.

What are you saying? Does this mean you don't want the token anymore?

No, this is a sect competition. We can't just trust anyone. After all, if we lose, losing the token is a minor issue; we might lose our lives.

Some people wanted to leave, while others hesitated, unsure whether Lu An's words were true or false.

Lu An simply watched them, but he was incredibly nervous inside.

Didn't I already say I'd let you go? Why aren't you leaving?

Damn it, you guys aren't really going to fight to the death, are you?

Lu An's heart was racing, pounding like a rattle drum being struck repeatedly.

"Thank you for letting me go, Senior Brother Lu!"

Finally, one of them could no longer contain himself. He immediately put away his floating sword, bowed, and turned to leave.

The others, however, watched him intently, not daring to make a move.

Only after his figure completely disappeared halfway up the mountain, into the dense forest, did the others begin to stir.

"Senior Brother Lu... I'll take my leave too..."

"Thank you for letting me go, Senior Brother Lu..."

Just as the two were about to flee, a dazzling light flashed by, followed by a deafening thunderclap that struck the dense forest.

It was a bolt of lightning flashing with blue light, which struck straight down.

That direction seemed to be the place where their companion had just disappeared.

Lu An was stunned. What was this? A bolt from the blue? And it was striking in that direction? What the hell? Could it have actually hit him?

Not only Lu An, but everyone else was also stunned. What was going on with this sudden bolt of lightning?

A cluster of firelight gradually lit up, and soon Lu An and the others saw thick smoke rising from that direction.

This... it was directly set ablaze by the fire? Good heavens, this is incredible.

If a person is struck by the lightning, can they survive?

Perhaps, after all, he is a demon cultivator in the Nascent Soul stage.

pat!

Before Lu An could react, a token was thrown in front of him, and the person who had just finished speaking and was about to leave immediately knelt down: "Senior Brother Lu! This is my token! Please spare my life!"

Snap! Snap! Snap!

"Senior Brother Lu, this is also my token! Please don't strike me with lightning!"

"Senior Brother Lu! I was so naive! I didn't understand the deeper meaning of your words!"

The next moment, everyone took out their tokens and threw them in front of Lu An.

So, those who were just about to fight Lu An to the death, or who were about to slip away and make a quick getaway, had already thrown out their tokens.

Naturally, those who lost their tokens were identified by the Heavenly Demon Sect's talismans. A flash of white light appeared, and their figures gradually became illusory before finally disappearing.

Along with them, they also left behind the other tokens they had previously acquired.

Chapter Thirteen: Thanks to Nature for Its Gifts

The judges' seat for the Heavenly Demon Sect's Grand Competition.

As flashes of white light appeared, figures emerged one after another.

Inside were people standing, and also corpses lying down, cold and lifeless. Among them was an inner disciple of the Heavenly Demon Sect who had just thrown out his token in front of Lu An in an attempt to protect himself.

Some elders looked very upset when they saw their disciples come out, and wanted to give them a scolding.

However, when he saw that the other disciples had already turned into corpses, he held back.

Well, at least my disciple is still alive. Everyone knows that even inner disciples are not easy to train.

Although the rules of the sect competition state that life and death are determined by fate, no one wants their disciple to die like that, after all, those are all spirit stones and pills.

Many elders tell their disciples this: if you can't win, just throw away your token; it's not shameful.

However, some people only manage to steal the token after being killed in the process, or the other side might intentionally kill them to steal the token, so there's nothing that can be done about it.

Some disciples emerged without their hands or feet, reportedly because some had risked damage to their souls by self-destructing.

That's a really big move. By detonating your soul like that, you might not have the chance to cultivate immortality or demonic power in future reincarnations. You might have to reincarnate ten or more times before you can get a chance to become an immortal or a demon.

"Are you saying that Lu An demanded you hand over your tokens, and those who didn't were struck dead by heavenly lightning?"

"Yes, it struck directly in the direction Junior Brother Lin left. The heavenly lightning struck suddenly, without any warning." A disciple who survived Lu An's attack said to his master, "Master, Senior Brother Lu is truly too strong! Instantaneous lightning technique, that's at least at the Nascent Soul stage or the Void Refinement stage!"

"However, if it's the Nascent Soul stage or the Void Refinement stage, it's impossible for them to be teleported to the same secret realm as you."

The disciple's master was extremely puzzled. Wasn't Lu An listed as having the strength of the seventh level of the Nascent Soul stage? How could he be at the Divine Transformation or Void Refinement stage?

The secret realm requires matching with those of the same cultivation level; otherwise, it would be as easy as a Nascent Soul cultivator or a Void Refiner killing a Nascent Soul cultivator.

That's strange, really strange.

…………

Lu An stared at the tokens scattered on the ground in front of him, lost in thought.

So, you've got them all?

Something feels off, but then again, nothing seems wrong.

No, what's wrong with these people? And what's wrong with God? Why did He have to strike down a bolt of lightning?

In any case, he got the first batch of tokens in this competition, although it was a bit inexplicable.

So Lu An picked up the token and put it into his storage ring.

In any case, this is a gift from God.