Chapter 323: "Cheating? I Never Cheat."

Chapter 323: "Cheating? I Never Cheat."

"It's not your fault."

By this time, Fat Dragon had already left the small black house and stood on the arena, looking at the middle-aged man on the stage whose face was filled with unwillingness and confusion. After clearing his throat lightly, he explained, "We are half-brothers with different fathers and mothers, and we've been in tune with each other since childhood."

"Oh, I see."

The middle-aged man nodded with a difficult expression on his face. No wonder, no matter what gesture Fat Dragon made, Chen Qiu could guess it. It turned out they were half-brothers with different fathers and mothers. If that was the case, it could be explained.

There was nothing that could be done about this.

Who could blame them for being matched with this team? These two were born for this challenge, and there was nothing that could be done about it. It was just bad luck for them.

After taking a deep breath, he gradually regained his composure and prepared to head to the spectator seats to observe the performances of the other teams.

Although they had been eliminated in this round.

It wasn't that they had missed the Ascension Assembly entirely; they had only missed the remaining trials before the Masked Banquet. They had simply lost some potential opportunities to gain fortuitous encounters, but they still had a chance to compete for the truly great opportunities. Otherwise, if they had been eliminated at the very beginning, directly missing out on the Ascension Assembly, he would have truly suffered a mental breakdown.

Soon, a hoarse and emotionless voice sounded in everyone's ears.

"The Great Team has won the first round. Each member of the team will receive a random blue Essence Entry Slip."

"Chen Qiu, who performed exceptionally, will receive an additional random blue Essence Entry Slip."

"The first round has concluded. Eliminated teams will proceed to the spectator seats to watch the competition."

"Teams that successfully pass the trial will proceed to the second round, which will also be randomly matched."

Immediately after, the 'Bravely Forward' team had disappeared from their original location, and at this moment, Badan walked onto the arena and looked at Chen Qiu with a smile, "Senior, you're amazing! You've easily secured the first round, starting with a bang."

The reward for the first round was actually quite ordinary, just a blue Entry Slip.

After all, it was just an entertainment trial before the Masked Banquet, and the difficulty couldn't be too high. The main point was the good omen of starting with a victory.

As for the exceptional performer, Chen Qiu, there was nothing to say about that. This round was all thanks to the senior.

"Hmm."

Chen Qiu smiled lightly but didn't speak. He just looked at another team that had been teleported down from the arena, as the second round had begun, and it was still taking place here.

The captain of the 'Bravely Forward' team, who had been teleported to the spectator seats, immediately looked at the viewing screen of the Great Team. He didn't even bother to glance at the other teams.

After all, it was this Great Team that had eliminated them.

If he could see this Great Team being eliminated in the second round, his mood would improve significantly.

However, it was only at this moment that he suddenly realized something.

What did half-brothers with different fathers and mothers have to do with anything?

And even if the two of them were in tune with each other, why could Chen Qiu also understand the gestures of his own team members? Could it be that you are also in tune with your team members?

In his confusion, the content of the second round began.

Second Round.

The content was extremely simple.

As the surroundings of the arena gradually changed, the seats slowly disappeared, transforming into a huge greenstone square. On the square, there were two corridors made of dense, blazing flames.

Each corridor was a hundred zhang long.

The trial was simple.

Each team would send five representatives to race through the corridors made of blazing flames, and the team with the shortest total time would win.

"This is..."

Badan felt the temperature of the flames, and his expression changed slightly. A hint of horror flashed in his eyes, "This is... Triumphant True Fire? It's a very special kind of flame born from heaven and earth, almost impossible to tame. In the past, it was rare to even see one, but today, there are so many here."

"This flame ignores cultivation and burns regardless of whether you are at the peak of Celestial Immortal or at the Qi Condensation stage. It's the same for all."

"It ignores spiritual energy and any defensive means, and it won't cause any external injuries. It will only cause unbearable, extreme pain."

"Those who die in this fire usually die from the pain."

"Regardless of cultivation level, the pain felt is the same."

"Moreover, you can't use spiritual energy or Entry Slips in the corridor, which means that to pass through this corridor made of Triumphant True Fire, it doesn't matter what your cultivation is. It only depends on one thing: your endurance of pain."

"A hundred zhang isn't that long. It's not difficult to pass through this corridor; it's just going to be very painful."

"However..."

Badan suddenly smiled, "The Maan Clan is born as body cultivators. While there may be many things that the Maan Clan fears, pain is definitely not one of them. This round will be a breeze!"

Few body cultivators fear pain, not because they are born that way, but because all their offensive techniques involve charging through enemy spells. If one's endurance for pain is weak, they would have switched to a different cultivation path long ago.

"Is that so?"

Just then—

On the greenstone square, a group of people in black robes were slowly approaching them. The man leading them had a faint smile on his lips, "You Maan Clan don't fear pain, but does that mean we do?"

"You are..."

Badan looked at the group before him, his eyebrows slightly furrowed, "The Toad Sect?"

"Chief Ba, you have sharp eyes. We've heard of you for a long time, and this is our first meeting. Please take care of us in the future."

The man leading the Toad Sect was quite polite in his speech, but his words were filled with confidence.

Without saying more,

The man then personally walked into one of the corridors of flames. His clothes showed no signs of burning in the flames, and his expression remained calm, as if he wasn't feeling any pain.

Only by his slightly trembling body could one vaguely judge that this man was currently enduring unbearable pain.

After a hundred breaths, the man successfully passed through the fiery corridor.

Following him were four men in black robes, who also entered the corridor one after another. This time, their tolerance for pain was visibly lower, their faces contorted in agony. Despite this, they gritted their teeth and quickly rushed through the fiery trial.

In total, it took them five hundred and thirty-seven breaths to complete the trial.

After all five representatives of the Toad Sect team had passed, the man turned to Chief Ba with a smile, "When it comes to enduring pain, the Toad Sect has yet to meet its match."

Chief Ba's expression turned slightly sour, and he remained silent. Indeed, this was the strength of the Maan Clan, but it was even more so for the Toad Sect in this regard.

The Toad Sect was a sect of Gu cultivators, a highly niche path rarely seen among the nine major cultivation paths. It was often lumped together with the demonic and evil cultivation paths.

Information about Gu cultivators was scarce.

Choosing such a niche path meant that obtaining their Codex Entries was an extremely difficult task. However, it also meant that once in a while, a Peerless Talent would emerge from the sect.

The reason was simple.

In the entire Tide Immortal Plane, there was only one sect that cultivated Gu, the Toad Sect. If someone from the Tide Immortal Plane suddenly broke through during Qi Condensation and obtained a top-tier Codex Entry for Gu cultivation, the Toad Sect would undoubtedly nurture them to their fullest potential.

On the other hand, if a Peerless Talent emerged from another path, it would be considered normal and would not receive such focused cultivation resources.

The unique method of Gu cultivation required nurturing Gu worms within one's body. Advanced cultivators would have dozens of Gu worms constantly gnawing at their flesh, causing unimaginable pain.

Most importantly, this pain was constant, experienced every moment of every day.

For this reason, Gu cultivators were considered to have the lowest happiness index among cultivators.

Similarly, for Gu cultivators, pain was as common as daily meals, something they were accustomed to. Trying to outdo them in this aspect was essentially impossible.

Even though the odds seemed slim, Chief Ba didn't say much. He merely scoffed and rolled up his sleeves, preparing to take on the challenge himself.

"There's no need for that."

Just then, Chen Qiu raised his hand, stopping Chief Ba. With a wave of his hand, he spoke softly, "There's no need for such trouble. Let my men handle it."

A disciple of the Mock Heaven Sect stepped forward, expressionless. He strode into the fiery corridor, and as he entered, the words "Furnace Immortal" slowly appeared above his head. A golden light enveloped him, protecting him from the Triumphant Flame's scorching heat.

A cloud of mist also enveloped the disciple's head.

Furnace Immortal: Immune to the burning of Triumphant Flame.

When using special identity abilities, one's special identity will be exposed.

"Is this a special identity?" Chief Ba asked, slightly startled. Then, he grinned, "Well, well, well, with a Furnace Immortal, the total time will surely be greatly reduced."

"Hmph," the Toad Sect leader scoffed coldly. "There are only five Furnace Immortals among all the special identities, and you're lucky to have randomly received one."

He was a bit annoyed; there were forty-five special identities, and he hadn't randomly received a single one. What terrible luck!

Did he forget to check the calendar before leaving?

"But even with a Furnace Immortal, it's meaningless. The time saved by one Furnace Immortal is not enough to make up for the gap between us."

Soon, the Mock Heaven Sect disciple completed the trial in seventy-eight breaths.

Under the watchful eyes of Chief Ba and the Toad Sect leader, another Mock Heaven Sect disciple stepped forward. He bowed respectfully to Chen Qiu before entering the corridor, and he, too, was a Furnace Immortal.

"A second Furnace Immortal?" Chief Ba was taken aback, muttering, "Your subordinate is indeed lucky."

Then, a third Furnace Immortal!

And a fourth Furnace Immortal!

By this point, the outcome was sealed. The time taken by the four Furnace Immortals was already less than the total time taken by the five Toad Sect members.

"How is this possible!" The Toad Sect leader was in disbelief, his face contorting as he shouted, "There are only five Furnace Immortals in total! How can you have four of them?"

"How is this possible! There must be some trickery involved; who would believe otherwise!"

Standing beside them, Chen Qiu coughed lightly, paying no attention to the others. He walked along the fiery corridor, activating his Furnace Immortal special identity and stepping into the corridor made of Triumphant Flame.

Although they had already taken a significant lead in time, the trial wouldn't end until the fifth member of the team completed it.

Most importantly, it was clear that the Furnace Immortal special identity was only useful in this trial. If they didn't use it now, they would miss the opportunity, as these special identities would only last until the Masked Banquet, the main event of the first day.

And when Chen Qiu also displayed his Furnace Immortal identity...

The result was obvious.

Soon, a hoarse, emotionless voice reverberated in everyone's ears.

"The Great Team wins the second trial. All team members will receive a random purple Essence Entry Slip."

"Chen Qiu, for his outstanding performance, will receive an additional random purple Essence Entry Slip."

At this moment, the Toad Sect leader's face alternated between anger and calm as he stared intently at Chen Qiu. There were many things he wanted to say, but after his lips moved for a long time, he couldn't bring himself to speak. It was already too late to say anything.

He could only be certain of one thing.

Although he didn't know how Chen Qiu had cheated, he was sure that Chen Qiu had definitely cheated.

Otherwise, it was impossible for the special identity of "Furnace Immortal" to have all five members in Chen Qiu's team, as there were only five of them in total.

Just then, another voice echoed, signaling the end of the second round.

"The second round has concluded. Eliminated teams will proceed to the spectator seats to watch the competition."

"Teams that have successfully passed the second round will advance to the third round, which will also be randomly matched."

"Senior."

Standing in the Greenstone Square, Chief Ba looked at Chen Qiu with a dazed expression and murmured, "All the special identities you randomly drew were Furnace Immortals?"

Before the first round began.

He had been complaining about the 45 special identities, but to his surprise, their team hadn't drawn a single one. However, Senior had managed to draw five special identities, and coincidentally, all five were Furnace Immortals. What a coincidence!

Chen Qiu coughed lightly, not offering much explanation. He couldn't explain what had happened, let alone what was to come.

At this moment, Chief Ba still looked a bit dazed. Although he had hoped that Senior would excel in the second round, he couldn't help but feel that Senior's performance in the Flame Corridor was not the most impressive.

Senior's time wasn't the shortest.

The shortest time should have belonged to the fastest runner from the Mock Heaven Sect.

In this situation, shouldn't the outstanding performer be the disciple from the Mock Heaven Sect?

However, he shook his head and didn't think too much about it. Perhaps, even though Senior wasn't the fastest, he was the most composed, which made him the outstanding performer?

In a daze.

The third round began.

As the scenery on the Greenstone Square gradually changed, the third round officially commenced!

The captain of the "Bravely Forward" team, sitting in the spectator seats, stared expressionlessly at Chen Qiu's competition screen. Well, Chen Qiu's team had successfully passed the second round, which wasn't too difficult. All they needed to do was display the five Furnace Immortal special identities to advance.

That was good.

There were only five Furnace Immortals in total, and Chen Qiu's team had five of them.

If he had only suspected Chen Qiu of cheating in the first round, now he was almost a hundred percent certain that Chen Qiu had definitely cheated.

He noticed that the Toad Sect members had arrived at the spectator seats and were also looking at Chen Qiu's competition screen. It was clear that they shared the same sentiment as him, as being eliminated in their area of expertise through such means was unbearable for anyone.

Indeed, it was quite painful.

The third round.

The content was relatively simple. The two corridors made of blazing flames on the Greenstone Square gradually dissipated, and in their place, two fighting platforms appeared.

Two platforms made of black stones stood quietly on the empty Greenstone Square.

At this moment, another team had been teleported to the square.

The content of this round was—

Each team would send five representatives to face five puppets, and the team with the shortest total defeat time would be declared the winner.

It was worth mentioning.

These puppets had no offensive capabilities whatsoever, only possessing strong defensive abilities. They could only defend and not attack.

The cultivation level of the puppets was determined by the challengers who stepped onto the platforms.

"Oh?"

Chief Ba looked at the content of this round, and his eyes lit up immediately. "The advantage is mine!"

As a physical cultivator, he was skilled in attacks, and with the presence of Senior, whose strength far surpassed his own realm, this round would be a breeze!

However, when he saw the team approaching them, his expression turned grim. "The advantage seems to be gone."

Every member of this team wore a uniform robe, and on the robe was embroidered a "Swastika" symbol, which was the mark of the Ten Thousand Puppet Sect. This sect was one of the most powerful forces in the entire Tide Immortal Plane, with every member being a puppet cultivator.

Puppet cultivators, an even more niche sect than the Toad Sect.

From the smiles on their faces, it was evident that they were quite pleased, clearly full of confidence.

Indeed.

No one could understand how to deal with puppets better than puppet cultivators.

"Chief Ba."

The Patriarch of the Ten Thousand Puppet Sect clasped his hands towards Chief Ba and smiled, "Allow me to demonstrate!"

After saying this—

He took the lead and jumped onto the platform, facing the extremely defensive puppet. He unleashed all his skills, and in just seventeen breaths, he shattered the puppet.

Then.

The other four representatives of the Ten Thousand Puppet Sect also jumped onto their respective platforms and easily shattered the puppets, taking a total of one hundred and nine breaths.

The victory seemed certain.

Chief Ba took a deep breath and smiled at Chen Qiu, "No worries, Senior. These few rounds are just appetizers before the Masked Banquet. The rewards aren't that great, and they don't count as major opportunities. Even if we lose, it's no big deal."

"It's good to take a break after passing through the rounds. We can rest in the spectator seats and prepare for the major opportunity tonight."

In this round, their defeat was inevitable.

There was no way around it.

Indeed, it was bad luck. If they had faced any other team, they might have had a chance, but against the Ten Thousand Puppet Sect, there was no room for experimentation.

"No."

Chen Qiu shook his head lightly, "It's not too tiring. Sitting in the spectator seats is quite boring."

After saying this, he looked back at the crowd of Mock Heaven Sect disciples and waved his hand.

Immediately—

A disciple from the Mock Heaven Sect approached expressionlessly and jumped onto the platform. He took out a peach from his pocket and threw it at the puppet on the platform. Upon contact with the peach, the highly defensive puppet instantly turned to ashes.

Then, two large characters appeared above the Mock Heaven Sect disciple's head.

"Peach Immortal"! And behind him, a panel wrapped in clouds appeared.

"Peach Immortal: Possesses an additional Pan Tao, which can deal high damage to puppets. (Limited to 5 players.)"

"Special identity?"

Ba Dan stared at the scene before him, his eyes widening in disbelief. Suddenly, he realized something and turned to look at Chen Qiu, his voice trembling slightly, "Senior, surely you can't have five of these, right?"

"This thing, there's no rule of five, is there?"

"Hmm?" At that moment, the Sect Master of Wan'gui Men, standing beside them, frowned slightly but soon relaxed, "You are indeed very lucky. Not only did you randomly obtain a special identity, but it's also one that is useful for this stage."

"Our luck is not as good. We didn't get any special identities at all."

"But with just one Peach Immortal, it can't affect the overall situation unless you have four more."

Just then—

The second Peach Immortal appeared.

The third.

The fourth.

When the fifth Peach Immortal threw the Pan Tao in their hands, everyone fell silent, their faces expressionless as they witnessed the scene, speechless for a long moment.

A while later, the Sect Master of Wan'gui Men finally reacted, realizing that they... they seemed to have been eliminated?

Eliminated in their area of expertise? Eliminated by five Peach Immortals? How is that possible!

There were only five Peach Immortals in total, how could they have all five? This must be cheating, it's unbelievable if it's not!

And at that moment—

That familiar hoarse voice sounded again.

"The Great Team wins the third stage and each of their five representatives will receive 500,000 medium-grade Spirit Stones."

"The outstanding performer, Chen Qiu, will additionally receive 500,000 medium-grade Spirit Stones."

After the announcement, the group from Wan'gui Men was also teleported to the audience seats, losing their qualification to continue the challenge before the Masked Banquet.

"Senior."

Although they had won, Ba Dan was completely stunned at the moment. He turned to Chen Qiu and muttered, "Senior, we cheated so blatantly, won't the Heavenly Dao punish us?"

At this point, not only the opponents but even he himself could be a hundred percent certain that the senior had cheated.

He just didn't know what method was used.

After all, five Furnace Immortals and five Peach Immortals, either one of them alone was already quite outrageous, let alone having both appear together, that was even more absurd!

The organizer of this Ascension Assembly was none other than the Heavenly Dao itself. Was it really okay to cheat so openly under the watchful eyes of the Heavenly Dao?

"Cheat?"

Chen Qiu shook his head, "I never cheat."

The Heavenly Dao? The Heavenly Dao was still in deep slumber. If it were to awaken, whether he cheated or not wouldn't matter. In this Ascension Assembly, the highest authority was the treasure spirit of this Secret Realm, and that treasure spirit had already pledged allegiance to him. How could this be considered cheating?

When your master is challenging in your territory, how could you not open some backdoors for your master?

That would be too disrespectful.

It's all about social etiquette.

"Oh."

Ba Dan nodded silently, not saying anything. Especially when he noticed that the outstanding performer of the third stage was still the senior, he could only think of one thing: the senior was truly an open and honest person, not putting on any act.

He just didn't admit it verbally.

In the third stage, the senior didn't even participate, yet he was still the outstanding performer.

Who could he complain to about this?

It was clear that the senior had some powerful backing.

". . ."

The captain of the 'Dare to Advance' team, sitting in the audience seats, remained expressionless as he witnessed the five Peach Immortals. If he hadn't seen the five Furnace Immortals earlier, the sight of these five Peach Immortals might have shocked him.

But since he had already experienced one shock, he was now more accepting of the situation.

Understandable.

Perfectly understandable.

He then looked at the face of the Toad Sect's Sect Master, and as expected, he saw a hint of relief on his face.

The Toad Sect's Sect Master, who had been feeling rather gloomy, suddenly felt relieved upon seeing the five Peach Immortals appear. It was understandable, everything was understandable.

There were even more unfortunate people than him.

However, he suddenly thought of something and looked at the crowd in the audience seats with a slightly strange expression.

There were only 45 special identities in total, and apart from Chen Qiu's 'Great Team', he hadn't seen any other team with special identities. Chen Qiu's team alone had revealed ten special identities.

A thought suddenly popped into his mind, and he couldn't help but find it hard to believe.

It couldn't be...

It couldn't be that all 45 special identities were in Chen Qiu's team, could it?

As soon as this thought appeared in his mind, he shook his head and laughed self-mockingly. How was that possible? There were nearly ten thousand people here; how could all the special identities be given to Chen Qiu's team?

At the same time, in another corner—

Jiang Buying was standing on the Greenstone Square, feeling a bit puzzled as he prepared to challenge the fourth stage. He still didn't understand why the Identity Card he used had no effect.

The content of the Ascension Assembly was fixed, and he was well aware of that.

Those 45 special identities could give him an advantage in the nine entertainment stages before the Masked Banquet.

And the Identity Card was one of the rewards in the Ascension Assembly, allowing its holder to randomly obtain a special identity when entering the assembly. He had just used this Identity Card, but why...

Why didn't it work?

Just then—

Another team was teleported to his Greenstone Square, indicating that the fourth stage was about to begin. But when he saw the group before him, Jiang Buying froze for a moment, his voice rising involuntarily.

"Chen Qiu?!"

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end