Chapter 2260 - 2263: Under-the-Table Manipulation

At this moment, Shenyue, under the gaze of the crowd, instantly became the focal point.

Not only him, but the three people beside him with him also became the subjects of the disciples' discussions.

"Wow, the four young masters of the Xuanyuan Immortal Sect are finally all here."

"Yes, I heard that the Seventh Young Master only returned from the Lower Plane half a year ago..."

"Indeed, it is said that the Seventh Young Master suffered a severe blow back then, almost destroying him physically and mentally. It was hard for him to face it at first, but fortunately, he went to the Lower Plane to heal over these years and is now back."

"What a pity; now that he's back, among the four young masters, hehe, he probably no longer has any competitiveness. Any of the other three would require looking up to."

"Look, the Eldest Young Master is full of spirit. He should be the Sect Leader's most valued son, right?"

"Hehe, you're quite uninformed. I heard that among the four young masters, the Fourth Young Master is actually the most formidable and is most favored by the Sect Leader."

"Senior Brother, you make a good point. Look, among the four young masters, except for the Seventh Young Master who walks at the edge, the other three walk slightly ahead of him. The Eldest Young Master and the Fourth Young Master are side by side, even a bit ahead of the Ninth Young Master."

"Hehe, you guys are amazing… You can deduce so much just from the way they walk?"

Beside Qin Tian, quite a few Outer Disciples whispered among themselves.

Qin Tian listened quietly, feeling both shocked and amused.

The shock was that it seemed Shenyue was indeed a significant figure within the Xuanyuan Immortal Sect—not surprisingly the Sect Leader's Seventh Young Master, explaining his unparalleled charisma.

The amusement was that in this world, there was no shortage of gossip. It seemed that the internal strife within the Xuanyuan Immortal Sect was rooted in these four young masters.

Correction, it should be because of these three young masters. Currently, Shenyue appeared entirely incomparable to the other three young masters.

Moreover, Shenyue originally intended to arrange for him to become a disciple of an Elder, but unexpectedly, Wang Tianqing stepped in and snatched him away.

Could it be that someone discerned Shenyue's intentions and then sent Wang Tianqing to disrupt his plans?

If that's the case, whose faction does Wang Tianqing belong to?

Now it seems, the Eldest Young Master and the Fourth Young Master are likely the most powerful, and their Elder should be the likes of Mo Ziyang who wield real power.

Wang Tianqing was also said to have suffered severe injuries many years ago, falling from being a once highly esteemed Elder of the Xuanyuan Immortal Sect to an honorary chief Elder without any real power.

Could it be that Wang Tianqing is a man of the Ninth Prince? Did the Ninth Prince see through Shenyue's intentions?

Qin Tian's thoughts ran wild, but speaking of which, regardless, Wang Tianqing, as a master, was still very qualified and diligent for him.

After coming to the Immortal Domain, Qin Tian's rapid improvement in strength owed much to Wang Tianqing.

"...Let the annual Spring Martial Arts Competition begin!"

While Qin Tian was lost in thought in the audience, the Sect Leader had already begun his speech in the Martial Arts Arena. The speech was short, and by the time Qin Tian snapped back, it was already over.

"Alright, I trust all the Elders and disciples are aware of the importance of the Spring Martial Arts Competition, so I won't say much more. The Spring Martial Arts Competition will be fully overseen by me, Zhang Xiaolin, the Law Enforcement Elder of the Xuanyuan Immortal Sect."

After the Sect Leader spoke lightly, an Elder who looked incredibly imposing, exuding an aura of killing intent, stepped out and spoke.

"All the referee Elders take your places, retrieve the registration tokens from the disciples, and get ready for the draw."

Zhang Xiaolin announced loudly as eight referee Elders stepped out, each carrying a box for drawing lots.

However, before the draw began, the Sect Leader had already left with the four young masters and several other senior-level Elders of the Immortal Sect.

In the midst of the crowd's amazement, Qin Tian was also astonished. He didn't expect the Xuanyuan Immortal Sect to be so strictly hierarchical. These high-ranking figures, at such an important occasion, merely made an appearance and then directly left? So arrogant!

However, in his surprise, Qin Tian noticed a wave of True Qi towards him. Turning to look, he saw Shenyue looking back at him from behind the Sect Leader, giving him a slight smile and nod of encouragement.

Qin Tian nodded back, wondering to himself what Shenyue's real intentions were.

Back in the Spiritual Domain, he had asked Qin Tian to promise to come to the Xuanyuan Immortal Sect. What exactly did he want? Does he want Qin Tian to be his ally and help him rise again in the Xuanyuan Immortal Sect?

Qin Tian found it laughable. If that were true, Shenyue was probably overthinking it. Given the current situation, it seemed impossible for Shenyue to shake the influence of the other young masters.

"Inner Sect Disciple Qin Tian... your opponent is Outer Disciple Wang Lin..."

When the drawing referee Elder called Qin Tian's name, he snapped back to reality from his thoughts.

Then, he saw the surrounding Inner Sect disciples and the Outer Disciple standing on the platform, one by one, turning their gaze towards him.

At this point, Qin Tian was already somewhat of a celebrity within the Xuanyuan Immortal Sect.

Seeing everyone looking at him, he didn't have time to speak before someone beside him reminded him.

"Qin Tian, Wang Lin is the top-ranked expert among the Outer Disciples, you're going to be in trouble this time."

"Hehe, this Wang Lin, I heard he wanted to become an Inner Sect Disciple and was always looking to challenge Inner Sect Disciples to rise up. He wanted to challenge you before, but because the Spring Martial Arts Competition was approaching, the Immortal Sect banned challenges, so he gave up. Unexpectedly, he's your opponent in the first round."

"Though you defeated the fifth-ranked expert among the Outer Disciples before, now, to draw Wang Lin, this tough challenge, right in the first round, hehe, you're probably doomed."

"At best, I'd say it's a fifty-fifty chance. Brother, you're an Inner Sect Disciple; don't embarrass us by losing in the first round."

The surrounding Inner Sect disciples said to Qin Tian with amused expressions.

In fact, although the draw seemed fair, there was still behind-the-scenes manipulation.

In the first round, to avoid self-destruction amongst the Inner Sect Disciples, it was common for the referees to match Inner Sect Disciples with Outer Disciples as opponents.

Qin Tian didn't expect to draw the "grand prize" and get the strongest Outer Disciple Wang Lin right in the first round.

He knew very well that Mo Ziyang probably arranged this to target Wang Tianqing, assigning the strongest Outer Disciple Wang Lin to strike at him?

Looking towards the Elder seat ahead, sure enough, Mo Ziyang and several other Elders were showing smug expressions.

Sitting next to Mo Ziyang, Wang Tianqing's expression was visibly unpleasant.

He glanced at Qin Tian over here with a somewhat helpless look.

But Qin Tian smiled back at him, as if saying: "Master, rest assured, the first round is not a problem."