Reborn as the Strongest Immortal Cultivator in Modern Times

Ye Yu emerged from the alley and headed straight for the square.

In the square, Zhang Xiangyu was already chatting with the Shen sisters. When they saw Ye Yu walking over, they went up to her and asked, "Ye Yu, where did you go just now?"

Ye Yu smiled and said, "I was a little bored here, so I wandered around. The scenery here is quite nice."

Then she asked, "Where are Uncle Shen and the others? Have they reported for duty yet?"

"It should be about right. I came here with my grandfather and the others just now, and the Ding family invited them to go directly to the martial arts arena."

As soon as Zhang Xiangyu finished speaking, Shen Congxing and Shen Xing quickly walked over.

Shen Congxing said, "Come with me. I'll show you around the venue first. We'll probably draw lots first today, but I don't know how many people will participate."

Ye Yu and the others nodded and followed him toward the martial arts arena.

They climbed the steps and walked to the stands in the arena.

Looking down from above, the arena is a wide, circular plaza. The surrounding walls are made of sturdy stone and are about 50 meters high.

The audience seats were already quite full, and Shen Congxing led the group to their reserved seats.

He watched as people came in one after another. If he recognized someone, he would introduce the person's martial arts moves or internal strength level to Ye Yu and the others, so that Ye Yu and Shen Yunling, who were participating in the competition, would know what to expect.

After waiting for about an hour, the stands in the square were full, including the ten chairs on the platform.

Ye Yu saw that the eldest son of the Wu family had also been sitting there before. She guessed that those sitting there were probably from the two major sects, the three major families, and the Chinese government.

Sure enough, Zhang Xiangyu nudged her and pointed to an elderly man with a full head of white hair and a dignified face on the stage, saying, "That is my grandfather."

He then pointed to a boy of about sixteen or seventeen standing behind the old man: "That's my younger brother, Zhang Xiangzhou."

"Why aren't you standing behind your grandfather?" Ye Yu asked.

Zhang Xiangyu curled his lip: "I'm not as showy as him. What am I standing there for? To be a bodyguard?"

Ye Yu pointed to the only woman sitting in the chair: "Who is she?"

"She is the sect leader of another sect, Fenghua Sect, and the man sitting next to her is her husband."

Ye Yu raised an eyebrow, surprised that the sect leader of another sect that was on par with the Tiger Tail Sect was actually a woman.

Shen Congxing, who was standing nearby, overheard their conversation and added, "The Fenghua Sect mainly focuses on feng shui and is proficient in feng shui layout. Those who cultivate within the sect mainly aim to control the power of feng shui and change their surrounding environment."

"Is that old man the head of the Zhao family, one of the three major families?"

The old man Ye Yu asked about showed no signs of old age. His weathered face had a rare ruddy complexion, and his eyes were bright and piercing. He was talking to the person next to him, and his laughter was loud and clear, which was quite impressive.

"Yes, he is Zhao Shanyuan, the head of the Zhao family. The Zhao family is renowned for its swordsmanship. Their sword techniques are ruthless, fast, and unpredictable. It is because of this tradition that the Zhao family has secured its position as the top of the three major families, and its strength should not be underestimated."

Shen Xing chimed in, "However, it's not surprising that a family like that could produce a prodigy like Zhao Yuxuan."

She looked at the man in the black robe with a cold expression and said, "Is that skinny guy the leader of the Tiger Tail Sect?"

"Yes, the Tiger Tail Sect is famous for its cold martial arts. The sect leader, Shan Shuhai, has extremely cold internal energy due to the cultivation techniques he uses. If you are hit by his palm, your blood vessels and meridians will feel frozen."

Ye Yu nodded secretly.

As for the other two families, Ding and Wu, she didn't ask them any further, as she already knew about them.

When the head of the Ding family, Old Master Ding, saw that almost everyone had arrived, he stood up, walked to the front, and cleared his throat.

"A warm welcome to everyone for this leadership transition competition. As is customary, the competition will be conducted by drawing lots, with each pair competing against each other to determine the top three. Each of the top three will have one spot to become a disciple of my Ding family, along with generous prizes. In addition, the first-place winner will have the opportunity to choose a treasure from my family's treasury. I hope everyone will showcase their talents."

He channeled his inner energy into his throat, and his words spread to every corner, making them clearly audible.

With a slight raise of his right hand, a servant standing to the side immediately carried out a box and walked towards the center of the square.

He continued, "Please have all participants draw lots in the square one by one."

Upon hearing this, the participants all stood up and walked down to the square.

A few show-offs stood on the railing of the audience seats and jumped off.

However, their agility was indeed extraordinary; they were unharmed after jumping down.

Ye Yu and Shen Yunling slowly walked off the stage and came to the ballot box.

She reached in, grabbed a slip of paper at random, opened it, and saw that it said '37'. Shen Yunling, on the other hand, drew '25'.

Grandpa Ding continued on stage: "Today we'll be using a free-for-all format. Please stick your number tags on your backs. If your number tag comes off, you're out. You can form your own teams. Only 40 people can remain on stage at the end."

"Alright, you have ten minutes now. In ten minutes, the gong will be struck and the competition will begin."

Upon hearing about the competition format, Shen Yunling nervously grabbed Ye Yu's arm: "Sister Ye Yu, what should we do? This is my first time participating in this kind of competition, and I don't know anyone here. How are we going to form a team?"

Ye Yu looked around at some familiar people who had already started to form teams on their own, some of which had more than a dozen people. She narrowed her eyes and said, "It's okay, let's wait a little longer. There will definitely be some people who are alone in a while. Then we can team up with them."

Sure enough, with three minutes left, there were only five or six people scattered around the square.

One of the girls, who had a bow and arrows on her back and her hair in a bun, shouted, "Those of you who don't have a team, why don't we all get together? It's better than being alone."

The remaining people nodded in agreement, including Ye Yu and the other two, and walked directly towards her.

Since she was the one who suggested forming a team, she started discussing strategies: "When the melee starts, everyone will definitely target the weak and the fewest people first. We're not the fewest, but we're not the most either. I think it's better to hide on the sidelines and observe for a while, conserving our strength. When someone starts attacking us, we can all work together to resist."

Everyone thought her idea was good, and Ye Yu nodded in agreement.

After agreeing on their strategy, everyone quietly moved to a corner and waited for the gong to sound, signaling the start of the competition.