Stable

The news about the selection of disciples for the Immortal Sect Conference spread, but it was unclear who had leaked the information.

After a few days, both outer and inner disciples were aware of the matter.

Several outer disciples sat under a tree, chatting.

"Senior Brother Xiao Ran, Senior Brother Wang Haodong, Senior Brother Peng Yu, and Senior Brother Zhao Zixuan are competing for the qualifications to participate in the Immortal Sect Conference. Why are the two disciples of Seventh Elder also allowed to participate?"

"I heard from an inner disciple that Seventh Elder seems to have proposed this."

"Fifth Elder even said that if Zhao Zixuan loses to Ning Lang's disciple, he will voluntarily go to the Bitter Cultivation Cliff for cultivation."

"Is that true? Is it such a big gamble?"

"Where does Seventh Elder get the confidence? Even if he breaks through, how long has it been since Jiang Chen became his disciple?"

"Don't forget, Jiang Chen broke through a few months ago."

"But didn't they say... Ning Lang gave Jiang Chen some elixir to improve his cultivation?"

"Who knows if it's true or not."

...

Ten days later,

Mei Qinghe personally announced that a qualification challenge for the Immortal Sect Conference would be held in three days, and all disciples of the Haohui Sect could go to watch.

Once this news spread, the Haohui Sect was once again in turmoil.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

Early in the morning.

Before the sky was bright.

Next to the training ground in the, thousands of disciples from the Haohui Sect had gathered.

"Who do you think will win?"

"It's undoubtedly Senior Brother Xiao Ran."

"No doubt about Xiao Ran, but there's still one spot, right?"

"It's hard to say. Senior Brother Wang Haodong, Senior Brother Peng Yu, Senior Brother Zhao Zixuan, the three of them are evenly matched. It depends on their performance in the next few days."

"How could you forget Jiang Chen?"

"How long has Jiang Chen been a disciple? He's probably not on the same level as several other senior brothers."

"Since the Seventh Elder has the confidence to let him participate, he should have something up his sleeve."

"Didn't they say the Seventh Elder's second disciple is also participating?"

"I heard that she's a female disciple. Senior Brother Zhang, who delivered things to the Miao Peak, said she looks like a fairy."

"Nonsense. I don't believe it. He hasn't seen a woman in several years, right?"

"Ha ha ha."

"Stop talking, the elders are coming."

Someone in the crowd shouted, and everyone fell silent. In the distance, Gao Qianshou and Qian Dahai, accompanied by their respective direct disciples, walked slowly. The crowd automatically parted, creating a wide path.

Thousands of people bowed together and said, "Greetings to the Fourth Elder and the Sixth Elder."

Gao Qianshou and Qian Dahai remained silent. The two walked side by side to the front and sat down.

After a while, Zhao Jian, Yu Zhen, Li Hongri, and Qiu Yunze, with their respective direct disciples, also walked over.

The crowd stirred again.

"Look at Senior Brother Xiao Ran; he seems very confident."

"Of course, Senior Brother Xiao Ran has always been the most formidable."

"They've all arrived; why hasn't the Seventh Elder shown up?"

"The sect master hasn't come either."

"Obviously, the sect master will be the last to arrive."

"Look, people are coming."

"How is that possible!"

When the disciples in the back row saw Ning Lang and Sect Master Mei Qinghe walking together, the expressions on their faces froze.

The sect master!

How could he be with the Seventh Elder?

And they're even chatting and laughing; what's going on?

"There are quite a lot of people here," Ning Lang said with a smile.

Mei Qinghe replied with satisfaction, "This is just a portion of the disciples within the sect. If all those who couldn't make it or those practicing at the foot of the mountain came, it would be too crowded here."

Ning Lang smiled and said nothing.

As the voices suddenly stopped, the six elders also turned to look behind.

Seeing Ning Lang and the sect master walking together, the expressions on the faces of the six elders became intriguing.

Zhao Jian clenched his fist again within his sleeve.

Among the six elders, only Zhao Jian harbored the strongest resentment towards Ning Lang. As for the Grand Elder, he couldn't say he hated him, but he was displeased with Ning Lang's rise to power without merit.

"Greetings, Seventh Elder."

"Greetings, Sect Master."

Everyone bowed and saluted, respectful and deferential, without a hint of negligence.

When everyone raised their heads again, Jiang Chen, Gan Tang, and Jiang Keran also followed.

At the moment they appeared, whispers arose in the crowd.

"Why did Jiang Chen suddenly grow so tall? Chen Cheng, wasn't he the same height as you when he left? Why is he a head taller now?"

Chen Cheng, in the crowd, looked at Jiang Chen and felt a mix of emotions.

Such a big change in just half a year?

"Is that woman the Seventh Elder's second disciple? She's so beautiful."

"Gulp.. so beautiful~"

"Who is that person? I haven't seen him in the Haohui Sect."

"Don't know, but he's walking with Jiang Chen. Maybe he's a new disciple the Seventh Elder has taken in."

"Doesn't the Seventh Elder now have three disciples?"

Ignoring the discussions, Ning Lang, leading his three disciples, took a seat at the front.

Xiao Ran looked at Gan Tang with passionate eyes, his face full of spring.

Qiu Yunze noticed and rebuked in a cold voice, "Focus on preparing for the match!"

Xiao Ran quickly shifted his gaze and respectfully said, "Yes."

In the center of the training ground, Mei Qinghe stood with one hand on his hip, the other hand clenched into a fist, lightly coughing a couple of times. The entire venue fell silent instantly, and even the sound of the wind in the valley could be heard clearly.

Almost everyone looked at him with admiration and longing in their eyes.

But Ning Lang didn't envy him.

He knew being a sect master was like being a boss in the mortal world—seemingly glamorous but burdened with numerous troubles. The success of the Haohui Sect was largely due to Mei Qinghe. If he were absent and no high-level cultivators from the sect were present, the sect would likely fall from the top tier to a second-rate power.

A sect's qualitative leap because of one person was not a good thing.

Mei Qinghe had considered this issue himself, but since that day when he heard Ning Lang's words on the cloud, he stopped worrying about it.

"Today's sparring is only to select two disciples to represent our Haohui Sect in the Immortal Sect Conference."

"They are outstanding among the younger generation of our Haohui Sect. You should take them as your role models and strive to cultivate."

"Well, I won't say more. The six of you, come forward."

With the command given, Xiao Ran, Wang Haodong, Peng Yu, and Zhao Zixuan stood up and walked over.

Ning Lang turned and whispered to Jiang Chen and Gan Tang, "You two go as well."

"Yes."

"Only win, no losing," Ning Lang added, looking particularly at Gan Tang. "Especially you. If you lose today, don't even think about finding me at night."

Upon hearing this, Gan Tang pouted and said, "I won't lose."

With that said, the two of them also walked over.

"There are no rules for today's sparring. Each of you chooses your opponent. Whoever wins can advance to the next round. If anyone defeats Xiao Ran, they won't have to participate in the next round and will directly represent the Haohui Sect in the Immortal Sect Conference."

As soon as the announcement was made, Zhao Zixuan immediately looked at Zhao Jian. Seeing his master nod, he said, "Reporting to Sect Master, this disciple would like to spar with Junior Brother Jiang Chen."

Mei Qinghe asked, "Jiang Chen, what do you think?"

Since it was a challenge, both sides had to agree.

Jiang Chen scratched his head, revealing a simple and honest smile. "Senior Brother Zhao, I'm sorry, but Master asked me to spar with Senior Brother Xiao Ran."

"What! Jiang Chen wants to challenge Senior Brother Xiao Ran!"

"Is he crazy?"

"What is Jiang Chen thinking?"

"Damn, half a year ago, he was just an outer disciple. Why does he think he can challenge Senior Brother Xiao Ran?"

"What is the Seventh Elder thinking?"

People subconsciously looked towards Ning Lang. Seeing Ning Lang stand up and smile, he said, "Xiao Ran, according to the rules, if you lose, you won't be able to participate in the next round. In other words, the candidate for the second Immortal Sect Conference will be selected from Wang Haodong, Peng Yu, Zhao Zixuan, and my disciple Gan Tang."

"I can't defeat you right now... but your disciple..."

Xiaoran clenched his fists suddenly, looked at Ning Lang, and said in a deep voice, "I accept this challenge!"

Ning Lang's mouth curled up, silently saying to himself, "Steady."

...