The arena was in an uproar, with all the disciples buzzing with intense discussion. It took a while before things gradually settled down. The looks directed at Lin Xuan were now completely different. Gone were the previous sneers and mockery, replaced instead by admiration, reverence, and envy. Lin Xuan had once again proven his talent through his own strength, and he deserved such treatment. They no longer dared to treat Lin Xuan as a new disciple. After all, Lin Xuan's performance far surpassed even the senior disciples—it was too monstrous. The few senior disciples who had mocked Lin Xuan the most were now hanging their heads in shame, not daring to meet Lin Xuan's gaze. They had never imagined that what they thought impossible, Lin Xuan had achieved, and right before everyone's eyes. It left them both utterly stunned and deeply ashamed. They shouldn't have looked down on someone just because of their status as a new disciple.
Nearby, Chen Yuze, Zhou Lei, and Guan Yuanshuang were also staring at Lin Xuan, their hearts shaken. They had originally thought Lin Xuan was merely a new disciple. Even if his talent was strong, his short training time meant he likely couldn't threaten them. So, after the competition began, they hadn't paid much attention to him. But now, they realized their earlier judgment was wrong—and terribly so. Lin Xuan's talent far exceeded their imagination. The so-called "number one genius of the outer sect" was hardly enough to describe him. If what they were seeing was real, then Lin Xuan, who had only been in the sect for a month, could truly threaten their rankings. And thinking that just a month ago, during the entrance test, Lin Xuan was only at the initial Opening Aperture stage, and now he was at least at the Qi Gathering stage, with strength surpassing the peak of Qi Gathering—such progress terrified them. Even Chen Yuze couldn't help but show a hint of seriousness on his face. If what Steward Sun Wen said was true—that Lin Xun had fought his way straight through the Puppet Tower, even destroying the final guardian, the big iron puppet, and cleared it in under a minute—then Lin Xuan's strength might be such that even he couldn't match it. However, despite all the evidence, since he hadn't witnessed it himself, he still couldn't fully believe it. Moreover, he had broken through to the Qi Transformation stage, his strength several times greater than before. More importantly, he had a trump card: the embryonic form of Sword Intent. Though just a prototype, it was still an intent. Intent was the most basic manifestation of the laws of heaven and earth. Once unleashed, it was like borrowing the power of the world, boosting his strength by a huge margin. Even some inner sect disciples at the initial Qi Transformation stage might not be his match. With all this combined, he believed that no matter how talented Lin Xuan was, he couldn't be his opponent. The first place in this competition would still be his. Still, the thought that he would need to use all his trump cards just to defeat Lin Xuan, who had only been in the sect for a month, made him inwardly shocked by Lin Xuan's talent. He figured he could only stay ahead of Lin Xuan in this competition. Soon, Lin Xuan would enter the inner sect, surpass him, and even leave him far behind.
On the other side, the Grand Elder's gaze also fell on Lin Xuan, carrying a hint of surprise. As a high-ranking member of the sect, he had seen countless geniuses, but those with talent like Lin Xuan's were extremely rare. In this generation of the sect, only the top true disciple Liu Qianyu and Xu Anlan could compare. Perhaps even Xu Anlan might be slightly inferior to Lin Xuan. He hadn't expected that having Liu Qianyu and Xu Anlan as top geniuses was already impressive, and now there was Lin Xuan too. This was truly an unexpected delight. "Lin Xuan, well done." The Grand Elder smiled, praising Lin Xuan a few times before sweeping his gaze across the crowd and announcing loudly, "Since the puppets in the Puppet Tower have all been destroyed, the remaining groups won't need to hold elimination rounds. For the seventh group, the qualifiers are Lin Xuan and Li Cheng. For the eighth, ninth, and tenth groups, the qualifiers are the disciples from last year's top twenty. Of course, this might be a bit unfair, so I'll give you a chance for free challenges later. Alright, the first round of eliminations ends here. Next is the second round, also eliminations, to decide the top ten. Let's go, back to the training ground." The Grand Elder made the final call, waving his hand for the stewards to lead the disciples back to the training ground.
Lin Xuan smiled, looking at the attribute panel where energy points were rapidly increasing, feeling even more satisfied. "Another eighty thousand energy points," Lin Xuan nodded slightly. Taking advantage of being within ten meters of the Grand Elder and true disciple Xu Anlan, he had accumulated some energy points. With a thought, "Ding, consume 30,000 energy points, copy successful, obtained [Fierce Wind Sword Art (Sixth-Grade Upper, Great Completion)]." "Ding, consume 30,000 energy points, copy successful, obtained [Gale Phantom Step (Sixth-Grade Upper, Great Completion)]." "..." In a breath, the eighty thousand energy points he had just gained were all used up, replaced by several high-grade treasures. Lin Xuan nodded again. Then, he followed the crowd toward the training ground. Amid the crowd, with the mixed auras, Lin Xuan used all the copied treasures, further enhancing his strength. Unfortunately, there were still many treasures on the Grand Elder and Xu Anlan that he hadn't managed to copy. In the upcoming competition, he would need to show more strength to earn more energy points, Lin Xuan thought to himself.
Under the guidance of several stewards, the outer sect disciples quickly left the Puppet Tower. Meanwhile, the Grand Elder and Xu Anlan remained standing by the pile of puppet debris. Xu Anlan stared at the debris, lost in thought. "How about it? Could you do that when you were in the outer sect?" the Grand Elder asked. "No," Xu Anlan snapped back to reality, shaking his head, a hint of shock in his eyes. "I didn't expect this batch of new disciples to produce such an extraordinary genius. Making it onto the top of our Cangyuan Nation's potential rankings shouldn't be a problem in the future." "Yeah, I didn't expect it either," the Grand Elder sighed. "So, it wasn't a waste to come this time, was it?" "Mm," Xu Anlan nodded. "Let's go. Maybe there's more surprises in store." With that, the two left the Puppet Tower area.
Soon, the Grand Elder, Xu Anlan, and the outer sect disciples all returned to the training ground. The Grand Elder and Xu Anlan went to a high platform nearby, while the disciples stood around the training ground, surrounding the three central arenas. On the platform, the Grand Elder announced, "The first round of eliminations is over. The top twenty have been decided. However, due to the destruction of the Puppet Tower, the eighth, ninth, and tenth groups couldn't hold their first-round matches. To ensure fairness, you may freely challenge anyone in the top twenty. Win, and you take their place. Lose, and that's it. Remember, each of you can only challenge once. Likewise, each person in the top twenty can only accept one challenge. You have half an hour. After that, the top twenty list will be finalized. Begin!" As the words fell, the square buzzed with noise. Several stewards came forward, following the Grand Elder's orders, to separate Chen Yuze, Zhou Lei, Lin Xuan, and the other top twenty below the platform. The rest of the disciples were on the other side of the square. The two groups were split. Among the twenty standing below the platform, some looked calm and confident in their strength, like Lin Xuan, Chen Yuze, and Zhou Lei, the veteran top outer sect experts. Others, who had risen in recent months, looked tense and anxious, scanning the disciples opposite, afraid of being challenged and falling out of the top twenty. This gap was immediately apparent. On the other side, the disciples didn't immediately choose to challenge. After all, making it into the top twenty meant being at least a top outer sect expert, not easy to beat. But with only half an hour on the clock, time ticked by. Soon, someone couldn't hold back and stepped forward. "Disciple Wu Chen wishes to challenge Zhao Qun!" "Approved," a steward stepped out, nodded, and went up to the arena to referee. Quickly, the two disciples mounted the arena and began a fierce battle. It ended shortly, with the challenger winning and entering the top twenty. This inspired the other outer sect disciples. Many immediately issued challenges, dueling on the three arenas. But unfortunately, those in the top twenty were all skilled—it wasn't easy to succeed. One by one, the challengers all lost without exception. Aside from the first, only one other succeeded out of over a dozen disciples. The crowd felt like cold water had been poured on them, losing their earlier excitement. But time was running out, so they still stepped up one by one to challenge. "Disciple Wang Kui wishes to challenge Lin Xuan!" A burly disciple stepped forward and announced loudly. At these words, everyone in the arena perked up, whether among the top twenty, the other side, or on the high platform. Lin Xuan had performed exceptionally in the first round at the Puppet Tower, seemingly far surpassing even the top three outer sect experts, including Chen Yuze, who had already broken through to Qi Transformation. But it was all based on evidence, not firsthand observation. Despite the solid proof, a sliver of doubt lingered in everyone's minds, preventing full belief. Now, someone was finally challenging Lin Xuan. Anyone daring to challenge must be a top outer sect expert at the peak of Qi Gathering. While they might not see Lin Xuan's full strength, they could at least get a glimpse. Everyone was eager. Among the top twenty, Lin Xuan looked surprised. He hadn't expected someone to challenge him. But it was perfect—he could use it to earn a batch of energy points. Not bad. He stepped forward.