Chapter 39: Iron Sword Elder

  The three-day period passed in the blink of an eye, and the grand competition of the sect arrived amidst a mix of tension, excitement, and anticipation from the crowd.

  When the morning sun broke through the shackles of the clouds and cast its rays on this land, the unnamed mountain peak where the outer disciples of Qingyuan Sect were located also burst into a commotion in an instant. A frenzied atmosphere enveloped the entire scene.

  The grand comparison was held on a vacant lot west of the mountain peak. When Ling Lin arrived at this place, it had already become quite lively, with people surging forward as far as the eye could see.

  Although Qingyuan Sect has declined, it is still a top-notch force in this area. This time's outer door disciple competition has attracted many distinguished guests to observe. On the one hand, they want to build relationships, and on the other hand, they also want to take the opportunity to see the abilities of the younger generation of Qingyuan Sect. After all, for such a sect, excellent new blood is extremely important.

  If these younger generations are all mediocre, then this sect will decline sooner or later.

  It was the first time Lin had seen such a scene, and his heart still had a hint of tension. After all, this time, he also had to take action and show his face.

  Looking around at the crowd of people, Ling Lin discovered that there were many more older people, even those who seemed somewhat elderly, and most of these people's auras were around the peak of martial arts!

  "These are the so-called old men in the outer gate, I suppose." Ling Lin said to himself. He had long heard that there were many people of this age who had not broken through their innate talent in the outer gate, "It's not easy for young disciples to stand out." Ling Lin looked around and scanned with his divine sense, finding that most of the peak masters of martial arts were old men, while the younger generation was scarce.

  Is this the sect's test for young disciples?

  On a vacant lot on the west side.

  A few people walked and chatted, led by a young man of eighteen or nineteen years old, wearing black clothes, carrying a war knife on his back, with a cold face, and emitting a faint aura of killing.

  The people around them seemed to be deliberately avoiding these few people, leaving a large empty space wherever they went.

  "Lu Hao, you're the most deserving of first place in this competition. Those old, useless things can't compare to you." The young man speaking seemed to hold the black-clad youth in high esteem, flattering him. His words also revealed a huge contradiction among the outer sect disciples of Qing Yuan Sect - a sharp conflict between the young and old disciples!

  "Chu Xiao, I heard that your arm was broken by someone recently." The young man in black ignored the boy's words and turned to face the young man fanning himself beside him.

  When Chu Xiao heard Lu Hao's words, her hand holding the fan suddenly froze. After a moment, she recovered normally, but she didn't have the mood to continue fanning herself anymore. With a gloomy expression, Chu Xiao thought of that day when the three of them were almost thrown out without any resistance, and her heart trembled as she opened her mouth to say: "That guy is very strong!"

  "You're not afraid of him, are you?" A blue figure beside the young man in black, with a hint of mockery, seemed to be smiling at Chu Xiao.

  "Hmph!"

  Upon hearing this, a hint of anger flashed in Chu Xiao's eyes, but it didn't erupt. He knew that this guy was just like this. Although arrogant, he also had the capital to be arrogant, and here, except for the black-clothed youth, he estimated that he was the strongest. With a cold hum, Chu Xiao turned his head away, no longer speaking.

  "Alright Li Chen, don't underestimate Chu Xiao either. I'd like to see just how strong that little guy is." The black-clad youth's eyes flashed with a fiery passion, as if he had spotted his prey.

  "It's not necessary for big brother to take action, let me handle it and that's it. If we hadn't been away the past few days, this little brat wouldn't have made it till today." As he spoke, Li Chen glanced at Chu Xiao, who had handled the matter a few days ago, but unexpectedly ended up being thrown out instead.

  "Brother Bu is getting angry, if we don't take care of this kid, we'll all be in trouble." As soon as Brother Bu spoke, the arrogance in Li Chen's eyes dissipated a lot, and even the black-clothed youth looked somewhat serious. Nodding his head, Lu Hao said: "This kid is not weak, he may even enter the top ten, as long as we fight our way up, we'll definitely meet him eventually, and then we can take care of him easily."

  "That's for sure. With Lu Hao coming out, this kid is definitely dead." Another round of flattering voices sounded from the side.

  Everything that happened on this side was unnoticed by Lin, and even if he had noticed it, he wouldn't have paid attention to it. At this time, his eyes were all focused on the high VIP seat.

  There were some whispers coming from the VIP seats.

  "Cloud Elder, how did your esteemed sect manage to include those elderly disciples in the grand competition? Moreover, it seems that those older disciples have an advantage in this kind of competition." A middle-aged man in brocade clothing, with a slightly plump build and a warm smile on his face, looked like a wealthy merchant from the mortal world. At this moment, he leaned his head slightly to one side, speaking to the purple-robed elder beside him.

  The old man in purple is the elder of Qingyuan Sect who presides over this grand competition. It's worth noting that due to the decline of Qingyuan Sect, the elders within the sect are generally advanced in age and usually keep a low profile, often staying in seclusion for cultivation. The fact that they sent an elder to host this grand competition shows how much importance Qingyuan Sect attaches to it.

  However, this rule that anyone can participate regardless of age makes many people somewhat suspicious. Isn't this a bit chaotic?

  Although Jin Yi Zhong Nian looked like a merchant, Yun Chang Lao didn't dare to underestimate him. Those who underestimated this guy usually ended up with no good outcome. A lone cultivator who could cultivate to the perfect Purple Mansion Realm and establish such a huge foundation, would you say he's a simple guy?

  Yun Lao chuckled slightly: "This can also be considered a test for those little guys. If they can't even pass this level, then it's not worth mentioning. Moreover, even if an old disciple seizes the opportunity to advance to the Xiantian realm, it may not necessarily be a bad thing."

  "Even if they can't break through the Innate Realm, this kind of person basically has no potential at all. Even if they rely on elixirs to break through in the future, they will only be stuck in the Innate Realm for their entire life." The middle-aged man in brocade clothes couldn't understand the way, and he, who was usually astute, really couldn't think clearly about the benefits of this.

  "Do you still remember Iron Sword Elder?" Cloud Elder said in a low and solemn tone, his expression full of reverence.

  The four words "Tie Jian Lao" seemed to be filled with magic, and the middle-aged man in brocade clothes suddenly shook his body, then solemnly said: "So that's how it is."

  Tie Jian Lao Zong, a transcendent figure in Qing Yuan Sect!

  About a thousand years ago, the Qingyuan Sect faced an unprecedented crisis. At that time, four sects with similar strength to the Qingyuan Sect joined forces to attack it. Just as they were about to be destroyed and annihilated, something unexpected happened.

  A green robe, an iron sword, appearing out of thin air!

  It was a night of blood flowing like rivers, with iron swords hanging in the air, and with an almost sweeping momentum, all four major sects were beheaded by the sword.

  Within a day, the news shook the entire cultivation world, and even some of the major sects were shocked to hear it. Afterwards, envoys from all sides and piles of congratulatory gifts poured in continuously. During that period, it seemed like the most glorious days for Qingyuan Sect after its decline.

  Even Qing Yuan Zong felt very surprised, previously no one knew that there was such a powerful person in the sect. It wasn't until Tie Jian Long Lao unintentionally revealed it that everyone understood the whole situation.

  Iron Sword Elder was originally just an outer sect disciple who hadn't even broken through to the Pre-Heavenly Boundary, with a short remaining lifespan and could only silently await death. However, after unintentionally obtaining a Dan medicine that could break through the Pre-Heavenly Boundary, his entire life underwent a huge transformation overnight. Pre-Heavenly, Purple Mansion, Cave Void... As time passed, his cultivation grew higher and higher, and surprisingly, he cultivated even faster in the later stages! However, all of this wasn't known to the world until the four major sects joined forces to attack Qingyuan Sect, when he suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

  After that, the outer door disciples' grand competition in Qing Yuan Sect underwent a change. Some old disciples' figures gradually appeared in the competition. Although this approach increased the difficulty for young disciples to stand out, wasn't it what the sect always hoped for - to see another Iron Sword Elder emerge?

  However, in the subsequent grand comparisons, although many old disciples entered the top ten each time and broke through to Xiantian with the help of rewarded elixirs, these people basically stopped making progress after breaking through to Xiantian. Historically, only a handful of people have broken through to Zifu realm, let alone someone like Tie Jian Long Lao who is a world-renowned genius.

  "I hope that this time, a great hero like Tie Jian Lao will appear again." Yun Lao's gaze wandered among the crowd below, with a hint of expectation, murmuring to himself.