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As dawn broke, the four competition venues around Vast Academy were packed with people.
A large number of spectators had come to watch the matches, with some arriving before dawn to secure good viewing spots.
Originally, the matches at the four venues were supposed to be held simultaneously. However, Steward Xu had informed Feng Siyue yesterday that, considering her special circumstances, the Cultivator Alliance had deliberately staggered the competition times. Her preliminary matches would be held first, and the others would start after she finished.
Because of this rule, everyone was somewhat dissatisfied with Feng Siyue.
If it weren’t for her, the matches at the four venues could have been held together, saving time and allowing for quicker elimination of other participants.
However, only certain members of the Cultivator Alliance and Vast Academy knew that the change in competition times was merely to appear reasonable. Regardless of what they did to Feng Siyue later, it wouldn’t attract criticism.
Moreover, no one believed that Feng Siyue had much ability. She was too young, and it was certain that she would be eliminated quickly in the preliminary rounds at any venue, wasting very little time.
The first match of the day was at the south venue, where dozens of sects had drawn lots. This venue was filled with disciples from pill sects, the most famous of which was the current Five Poisons Sect, known as the top pill sect in the Northern Abyss.
The disciple of the Pill King was an elder in the Five Poisons Sect and had trained many excellent young alchemists.
“Alright, everyone, quiet down! Today’s preliminary round is an elimination match, and each person can only use their sect’s techniques!”
This statement was essentially directed at Feng Siyue. She was the only one from four sects, meaning she had to use the methods of the Tianqi Pill Sect and could not use techniques like the swordsmanship of the Tianmen Sword Sect.
The crowd thought that the Tianqi Pill Sect was most famous for its pills, and no one had heard of any powerful techniques they possessed.
Moreover, a person could only learn one primary technique, and she must have learned the technique of the Tianmen Sword Sect. How would she compete? Would she throw pills at people?
But the Five Poisons Sect was different. They had a powerful internal cultivation technique, and their disciples were not only excellent alchemists but also had considerable cultivation levels.
“Tsk, it looks like this Han Yue will be eliminated soon. What’s the next match?” someone in the arena asked sarcastically.
“It seems to be the west venue, where she will face the Seven Treasures Pavilion, a major refiner sect! The match after that is against Vast Academy!”
“Haha! The Seven Treasures Pavilion also has many formidable disciples. She’s in trouble!”
“Come on, let’s place bets. Let’s bet on when this match will end! When will Han Yue be kicked out?”
“Sure, sure, I’ll bet half a cup of tea!”
“Young Master Jiang, that’s too disrespectful to Han Yue. At least start the bet with a cup of tea!”
“Alright, the bets are a cup of tea, half an incense stick, and a full incense stick. Let the betting begin!”
“A cup of tea, 500 spirit stones!”
“Same here…”
Little Tangguo walked over very calmly and then said softly, “5,000 high-grade spirit stones, one incense stick. I bet my mother will win!”
The people present were stunned. 5,000 high-grade spirit stones?
Heavens, this child was too reckless. After the initial shock, their faces lit up with smiles. They were going to make a fortune today!
Sure enough, Han Yue was a fool, and her child was too!
The person collecting the spirit stones smiled with his eyes narrowed and said, “Young Master, even though that’s your mother, you shouldn’t be so wasteful!”
Little Mifan rubbed her chin, then lifted her small, delicate face and said, “Brother, why bet on a full incense stick? I think our mother only needs half an incense stick!”
“Alright, I’ll listen to my sister. Let’s change it to half an incense stick!”
The crowd was initially stunned, then burst into laughter. “Just like their mother, they have problems with their heads!”
The scene was lively, and even Feng Wanqing had someone place bets here. She was in desperate need of spirit stones, so she wouldn’t miss any opportunity to earn them.
Little Tangguo came forward, looked at the betting list, and saw that he was the only one betting on his mother to win. He sighed softly in his heart, thinking he would make a big profit today!
Meanwhile, Feng Siyue was unaffected by the Cultivator Alliance’s change in the competition time.
She yawned, wanting to finish quickly, as the sun was too bright and uncomfortable for her eyes.
She listened half-heartedly to the rules being explained above, finding the constant talking annoying.
“Alright, those are the rules. The competition starts now!”
As the words fell, all the participating disciples entered the arena.
The preliminary round was a free-for-all, requiring teams to be formed freely, with each team not exceeding eight people.
Feng Siyue stood there, but no one was willing to team up with her. Everyone wanted to form teams with strong members, and since she hadn’t shown her strength, no one knew her cultivation level.
Each sect could have no more than five participants, all within the Martial King realm and below the Martial Emperor realm. Some smaller sects couldn’t even gather enough participants, and some could only send a single representative.
The other sects had already formed their teams, leaving five scattered individuals from smaller sects. Feng Siyue waved at them.
“Come over here, I’ll protect you.”
As soon as Feng Siyue said this, the entire arena fell silent for a moment.
Then, laughter erupted from the crowd.
“Haha! This is hilarious! She actually said she would protect the others! Does she think she’s Feng Wanqing?”
“This is ridiculous! She’s being too arrogant!”
“Don’t worry, the more high-profile she is, the quicker she’ll be taken down. Let’s just wait and see her get eliminated first!”
The other participating disciples also heard Feng Siyue’s bold statement. They exchanged glances and sneered.
Especially the disciples from the Five Poisons Sect, who had already decided to eliminate her first. They wanted to show this disciple from the once-great Tianqi Pill Sect just how powerful they were.
“What are you standing around for? Don’t you want to form a team?”
Feng Siyue seemed not to hear the mocking laughter around her as she spoke to the five scattered individuals in the arena.
The five had no choice. Without a team, they had no chance of winning. Together with Feng Siyue, they at least stood a better chance than fighting alone. Plus, it would be unchivalrous to leave her, a woman, to fight alone.
These five were from smaller sects, and their sect robes looked shabby compared to the luxurious attire of the Five Poisons Sect.
One of the five, a round-faced disciple with a Tianwang Pavilion token hanging from his waist, came over to Feng Siyue and whispered,
“You should talk less, don’t attract unnecessary attention. Let’s work hard and try to make it to the next round!”
The preliminary round’s rules were simple: it was a team battle. Eliminating half of the participants would allow the remaining teams to advance.
The round-faced disciple thought that by keeping a low profile and not being targeted, they might just scrape through to the second round.
Feng Siyue smiled and said, “Too bad, it’s too late. I’ve already attracted attention. How about this: you five form a team, and I’ll form my own?”