Zhu Xian: The way of heaven collapses, and I only have one sword!

Chapter 29 Pre-match draw!

At this moment, a sharp whistle echoed from the sky above the square. Hundreds of Qingyun disciples in the square looked up and saw a red light flying towards them. It stopped above the square. The disciples standing there announced loudly to the disciples of each sect standing in the square: "Brothers, the Sect Master and the chief monks have ordered that all brothers participating in the 'Seven Sects Martial Arts Competition' should come to Yuqing Hall to speak."

As soon as he finished speaking, there was a commotion among the hundreds of Qingyun disciples in the square, and then some of them came out one after another and walked towards the front of the square.

At the end of the square is the "Rainbow Bridge", one of the Six Scenic Spots of Qingyun Mountain. This is also where Chen Qiye, Zhang Xiaofan and Lin Jingyu walked when they were rescued to Qingyun Mountain five years ago. Now that they are revisiting the old place, they can't help but feel a sense of emotion.

"Brother Qiye, why don't you fly up on your sword?" Zhang Xiaofan suddenly said.

"Don't you know? We disciples are not allowed to fly in the air with swords near the main hall of Tongtian Peak. Firstly, it is to show respect to the eldest sect and we have to walk up to the sacred place of Yuqing Temple; secondly, when our Qingyun Sect was first established, the founder Qingyun set up a very powerful ban on the top of Tongtian Peak to protect this place. It is called the "Zhuxian Sword Formation". Anyone who flies over Tongtian Peak without permission will be killed by the "Zhuxian Sword Formation." Chen Qiye said helplessly to me.

Zhang Xiaofan was surprised and said, "No wonder there are so many fellow masters, but not a single one can wield a sword. By the way, how powerful is that 'Zhu Xian Sword Formation'?"

"It should be very powerful." Chen Qiye thought for a while and said, although his Zhuxian Sword Formation is different from Qingyun Sect's Zhuxian Sword Formation, the only thing that remains unchanged is that they are both very powerful.

Zhang Xiaofan followed Chen Qiye's gaze towards the majestic mountain and exclaimed, "How impressive!"

The two of them talked as they walked, going up all the way, and after crossing the Rainbow Bridge, they arrived at the Bishuitan Lake where the "Water Qilin", the guardian beast of Qingyun Sect, lived. Unlike when they first came five years ago, this ancient beast, revered as "Spirit Lord" by the disciples of Qingyun Sect, was not hiding in the lake at this time, but had long been lying on the open space beside the lake to bask in the sun.

The Qingyun disciples walked down the Rainbow Bridge, saluted the giant creature one by one, then stepped onto the steps beside the pond and walked towards the main hall of the Yuqing Temple that was high above.

Soon, dozens of people in front walked past. Zhang Xiaofan and Chen Qiye also walked down the rainbow bridge and came to the edge of the clear water pond. They bowed respectfully to the water qilin and followed the crowd. They slowly walked into the majestic and spacious Yuqing Palace.

The head of Tongtian Peak, Taoist Master Daoxuan, and the other six sect leaders had already been waiting for the right time.

After arriving at the hall, Chen Qiye's gaze searched the crowd and finally fell on Lu Xueqi. She was dressed in a white dress as white as snow, and her cold temperament was particularly eye-catching in the crowd, like a plum blossom blooming in the snow, admiring its own beauty.

Their eyes met, and Lu Xueqi's eyes flashed with a subtle surprise, then quickly returned to her usual calmness. Chen Qiye nodded slightly in greeting, but his heart was filled with ripples.

Taoist Master Daoxuan said to the dozens of young Qingyun Sect disciples standing in the main hall, "Everyone is here, good, good."

All the disciples bowed and saluted, saying, "Greetings to the Master."

Taoist Master Daoxuan smiled faintly, walked back to his seat, and glanced at Taoist Cangsong. Taoist Cangsong then stepped forward and spoke loudly, "Everyone, you are all the best of the younger generation of Qingyun Sect. My Qingyun lineage has been established for thousands of years and is truly the orthodox Taoist and the leader of the righteous path. However, the ancients said: "Diligence makes perfect, while idleness makes waste." Another saying: "When sailing against the current, if you don't advance, you retreat." To warn future generations and to help young disciples, our ancestors have passed down the grand event of the 'Seven Lineages Martial Competition'. This event has now been held for a full fifty years."

"Ah!" exclaimed the Qingyun Sect disciples. Taoist Cangsong observed their reactions with satisfaction, adding, "Today, under the leadership of our Sect Master, Senior Brother Daoxuan, our Qingyun Sect has flourished far beyond its predecessors, and countless outstanding individuals have emerged among the younger generation. Therefore, after consultation with the various sect leaders, Senior Brother Daoxuan has decided to increase the number of participants for this year's Grand Examination to sixty-four, to avoid any disappointment. With double the number of participants, there have been some changes to the drawing of lots. Please take a look."

As he spoke, he pointed to the open space on the right side of the hall. Everyone looked and saw a square rosewood box placed there. It had a small hole on it that was just big enough for an arm to fit through.

"In the mahogany box, there are sixty-three wax pellets, each wrapped with a note with numbers from one to sixty-three written on it. After the lot drawing, the competition will be based on the numbers: one pair equals sixty-four, two pairs equals sixty-three, three pairs equals sixty-two, and so on. In the second round, the winners of each pair will face off according to the previous method, and so on, until the final showdown. Do you understand?"

The Qingyun Sect disciples standing in the hall were silent for a moment, and suddenly someone shouted, "Uncle Cangsong, there are clearly sixty-four of us, so why are there only sixty-three wax pills?"

Taoist Cangsong coughed dryly and said, "The rules of this competition were that each of the seven branches of Qingyun Sect would send nine people, with the Changmen Sect sending one more. However, one branch only sent eight disciples, so there was one less person, so there are only sixty-three people. But this is not a difficult task. Among the sixty-three wax pills, any disciple who draws number one will be extremely lucky. Since there is no opponent number sixty-four, he will have a bye in the first round."

Taoist Master Daoxuan stood up, looked around, nodded, and said, "Since that's the case, let's go draw lots."

In the hall, everyone's eyes fell on the mahogany box. Xiao Yicai was not there, and Chen Qiye, who was the second direct disciple of Taoist Xuan, was naturally the leader of the entire Tongtian Peak. Chen Qiye led the nine disciples of Tongtian Peak and walked forward.

Seeing Chen Qiye who was ranked first, all the disciples of the seven sects looked over at the same time. Although some of them had never seen Chen Qiye, they knew that the master had accepted a disciple. When they wanted to sense Chen Qiye's cultivation level, they were suddenly shocked. They only felt that a towering mountain was lying in front of them. The unfathomable spiritual power fluctuations made it impossible for them to detect Chen Qiye's cultivation level.

Chen Qiye, his expression calm, walked steadily to the rosewood box. He reached out his hand and slowly reached into the hole. His fingers gently fiddled with the wax pellets. After a moment, he picked up one and retreated back to Tongtian Peak. The nine disciples behind him also took out a wax pellet one by one and followed him out.

Taoist Master Daoxuan looked at this disciple, a figure of such pride for him, his eyes filled with satisfaction and anticipation. After Chen Qiye returned to his seat, the other disciples from each lineage followed suit and drew lots. For a moment, the atmosphere in the hall was tense and oppressive. Everyone's heartbeat quickened, their breathing quickened, and they could almost hear each other's nervous heartbeats.

At this moment, in the main hall, all the disciples were checking the wax balls. The elders and the chief monks of each branch who were sitting at the top couldn't help but get nervous. They stared at the disciples of their own branch, hoping that the disciples would draw a good lot. If some lucky disciple drew a note with the number "one" written on it, that would naturally be the best.

However, the disciples talked for a long time, but no one said that they had drawn the number one note. Taoist Cangsong frowned, coughed twice, and said loudly: "Who drew the number one lot?"

Chen Qiye looked at the note in his hand, the word "one" clearly written on it. He was slightly startled, his heart slightly turbulent, but he quickly regained his composure. Looking up, he met Daoxuan Zhenren's smiling gaze. Daoxuan Zhenren nodded slightly, his eyes full of praise and expectation for him.

"I drew number one." Chen Qiye's voice was clear and spread steadily in the quiet hall.

Everyone's eyes instantly focused on him, some envied, some in awe, and many even flashed a hint of dissatisfaction. After all, a first-round bye meant more time to recuperate in the upcoming matches and familiarize themselves with the atmosphere and opponents.

(End of this chapter)