In the competition roster, aside from Sixth Senior Brother Baili Wenyue, there wasn’t a single member of the Baili family.
For such an important tournament, the Baili family had actually chosen not to send any of their own disciples?
Even if it was understandable that the main family wasn’t participating—
Surely the various sects across the states had Baili family members among their disciples. So why hadn’t those disciples signed up for the Spirit Combat Tournament either?
Could it be that there was something wrong with the tournament itself?
Perhaps the Baili family had received advance information and deliberately kept their own people out…
But the ones pulling the strings behind the tournament were the Baili family—so what could possibly go wrong?
Maybe the real problem lay in what came after the tournament—the Youxuan Mysterious Realm!
Seventh Senior Brother had mentioned at the Lingyun Sect that their master had been searching for the Youxuan Mysterious Realm for a long time. Moreover, because of matters related to that realm, their master had been schemed against by Luo Wuji and had been stuck, unable to break through to the Integration stage.
And in the original story, the Luo family and the Baili family were practically in cahoots.
Just then—
A chill crept into Feng Qingran’s heart.
She looked up and saw a figure in black standing in midair from afar.
The man radiated an ominous, terrifying aura.
Feng Qingran recognized him at once—it was Yun Hai.
Yun Hai’s icy voice rang out, “Welcome, everyone, to the Spirit Combat Tournament. For this year’s competition, the number of victorious contestants has been increased to two hundred and fifty.”
“Additionally, as you may have noticed, the venue has been significantly expanded. This year, we have set up separate areas for talisman masters and formation masters.”
“Any talisman master or formation master who places in the top ten will earn the opportunity to enter the mysterious realm.”
“For the other events, the rules remain unchanged—cultivators, swordsmen, and body refiners will compete together. Those who make it into the top one hundred and fifty will be granted access to the Youxuan Mysterious Realm.”
“Alchemists, artifact refiners, and beast tamers—this year, anyone who places in the top twenty will also be allowed entry.”
“In addition to all the above, there are twenty remaining spots. These twenty will be reserved for younger cultivators with special abilities.”
“For example, if someone is eliminated from the other competitions, they may still qualify for the Youxuan Mysterious Realm based on skills such as divination, telekinesis, and the like.”
“I hope every contestant here will give it their all. After all, each person can only participate in the Spirit Combat Tournament once in their lifetime.”
“If you fail to enter the realm this time, you will forever lose the chance to become a supreme powerhouse. As you should all know, anyone who enters the realm will advance by at least one stage after emerging three years later.”
After Yun Hai finished speaking, he observed the excited expressions spreading across the contestants’ faces in the stands.
Adding two hundred extra spots all at once—that was something they never would have dreamed of in previous years.
The contestants selected from each state had been chosen based on the usual number of winners, which totaled just over a hundred participants in all.
Yun Hai stood on his flying sword in midair, but his gaze lingered meaningfully on Mo Jinghong and the others.
The family head had changed the rules specifically for these people. He hoped they wouldn’t disappoint him.
After a brief pause, Yun Hai continued, “This year’s competition consists of five rounds. During the assessment period, all disciples are strictly forbidden from engaging in private fights. Anyone caught fighting or causing trouble will be disqualified immediately.”
“In the first round, states will compete against one another. The winning state may keep eighty percent of its disciples to continue in the tournament, while the losing state may only retain twenty percent.”
“For each match between two states, we will send a peak Virtual God stage cultivator to oversee the proceedings and ensure fairness.”
“Now, I invite the team leaders from each state to come to my side and draw lots.” As he spoke, Yun Hai flipped his wrist, and eight blank jade slips materialized before him.
Representatives from the eight states quickly flew up to stand before Yun Hai.
Two of them stood out as rather unusual.
One was a plain-looking middle-aged man who seemed honest and unassuming. He wobbled unsteadily on his flying sword, barely managing to keep his balance.
The other was an eerie, handsome man who stood suspended in midair without the aid of any flying apparatus whatsoever.
“Sir, could you please ease up on the Virtual God pressure a bit? I only have peak Nascent Soul cultivation…” the plain-looking man said, his face turning red after he finished speaking.
The others glanced at him with slight surprise. But when they noticed the emblem of ‘Muyun State’ on him, understanding dawned on their faces.
Muyun State had thin spiritual energy and extremely scarce resources. Reaching peak Nascent Soul was already considered quite talented there.
Compared to Muyun State, they were even more curious about the man from the Netherworld State—how was he able to stand in midair without any support?
“Oh? Are you all so curious about me?” The eerily handsome man’s blood-red lips curved into a faint smile, and his crimson pupils looked even more unsettling.
Everyone present shuddered involuntarily. This man didn’t seem human!
None of them had participated in previous Spirit Combat Tournaments, so naturally they had no idea what the Netherworld State was like…
The Spirit Combat Tournament had a rule—each person could only participate once in their lifetime. Moreover, after returning from the tournament, all memories of the competition period would be wiped from their minds.
Yun Hai cast a cold glare at the eerie man. “Wenren Jiuxiao, behave yourself. Don’t forget your agreement with the Baili family!”
“Of course I remember,” Wenren Jiuxiao replied, his voice dripping with magnetic charm that made everyone’s hearts skip a beat and their faces flush.
They exchanged glances with one another, and upon realizing that everyone else was in the same state, they all breathed a collective sigh of relief. So it wasn’t just them!
But why were they getting all flustered and blushing from a man?
“Wenren Jiuxiao, speak normally, or I’ll throw all of you out right now!” Yun Hai snapped coldly.
Instantly, the flustered and blushing individuals snapped back to their senses.
They were taken aback—had something just messed with their minds?
