Chapter 121 The Only Way to Overcome Fear

Chapter 121 The Only Way to Overcome Fear

The looks of many fellow disciples seemed a bit panicked...

But it wasn't a big deal as long as it wasn't out of curiosity, a desire to explore, or finding it thrilling.

Li Changshou had anticipated the reactions of his peers around him for a while now.

The only concern was whether this minor punishment of the other party would displease the elders of the sect and thus lead to blame and condemnation.

Li Changshou had carefully weighed this.

The other party had provoked him earlier, insulting all the predecessors of Xiaojiongfeng.

If no response was given, it might leave the impression that "this guy has a sinister mind," making others somewhat wary of him and affecting the image of his inferior immortal seedlings.

By making some countermeasures and administering punishment, without harming the other party, adding a touch of humor, it could make people feel that he was settling scores immediately, not scheming too deeply...

Li Changshou sat back on his cushion, his gaze scanning around. The disciples all turned their heads or lowered them, afraid to make eye contact.

He glanced at the junior disciple beside him who was laughing uncontrollably, silently praising the wonders of nature and the brilliance of living beings. Then, he closed his eyes to rest and "restore his mana," secretly casting a wind-listening spell to eavesdrop on conversations around.

Soon, a faint smile appeared on Li Changshou's face.

Most of the elders who reacted seemed to lean towards him.

Although there were favors involved with the Ambition Pill, everyone was reasonable. Most of them felt that the disciple from Xianlin Peak had spoken disrespectfully first.

Li Changshou had already carefully planned out his appearances later. Regardless of the outcome of the normal confrontations, not using Earth Escape, he could bring his image back to a "positive" and "ordinary" one...

The next disciple duel had already begun;

It was a coincidence that two disciples who had studied Earth Escape after Li Changshou and Ao Yi's sparring match encountered each other. Having seen Li Changshou's previous match, both were confident and had a slight smile on their lips.

The steward reminded them to start and the duel was declared open.

The two male disciples bowed to each other, their gazes locking, their energies intertwining, and almost simultaneously they flew backward;

Their hands quickly formed seals, their movements so similar it seemed like they were mirroring each other!

The seals formed simultaneously, and each of them threw out two treasures, flying swords, jade scepters, flying knives, small gourds...

Earth Escape!

Earth Escape!

With two soft thuds, as soon as the two figures landed, it seemed like a trap had appeared on the ground, forcibly slamming them inside, their figures disappearing!

The disciples around looked around, and the immortals on the clouds and jade platforms also stared intently.

The four treasures hung in the air, spinning in place...

The targets... had disappeared...

The two disciples underground were also somewhat puzzled.

Inspired by Xiaojiongfeng's Wolf Tooth Club, they hid themselves using Earth Escape and planned to use their treasures to attack their opponents, securing victory.

But...

How do you use Earth Escape against Earth Escape?

One of the female disciples from some peak couldn't help but burst into laughter, and laughter spread throughout.

The experts on the Jade Platform felt slightly embarrassed, but then heard a burst of laughter from Daoist Wuyou, who was the head of the sect.

"The disciples this time are quite interesting... Haha, cough, cough!"

Representatives from Golden Turtle Island, Daoist Cheng of the People's Teachings, and several other minor sects also smiled down below.

Originally, they thought this half-month would be quite dull, with the fights of these little disciples who hadn't become immortals yet, naturally not interesting.

But unexpectedly, this Xianlin Peak was quite interesting.

After a while, the two disciples figured out a way to deal with it, starting to search for each other underground, engaging in a silent struggle...

After a grand battle between an Earth Dragon and a Rock Tiger, one disciple was accidentally driven out of the ground, immediately injured lightly by two treasures waiting for a long time, missing a good opportunity.

In the later fights, some disciples also used Earth Escape;

As a result, Li Changshou's method of Earth Escape was somewhat concealed, making it less conspicuous, as if Earth Escape was the specialty immortal technique of the Xianlin Peak...

However, the average length of the fights was slightly extended;

After another hour, Qin Xuanya took the stage and decisively and elegantly defeated her opponent, the limelight of the chief disciple was unmatched for a while...

As the sun set, the first day of the fights came to an end, and the disciples had all completed one round of battles.

The first twelve rounds of the initial trials took the most time, but as they progressed, the big competition became faster and the fights more exciting.

Half an hour later, there would be heavenly elders teaching the disciples, and during this half hour, the disciples also made some summaries...

Li Changshou, who had been meditating all the while, suddenly heard a chanting voice from beside him;

Jiujiu was holding half a pot of wine, swaying:

"Husband, to the west of the Eastern Sea lies the Dongsheng Divine Continent, where there is a People's Teachings, called the Degree Immortal Gate. In the Degree Immortal Gate's Xiaojiongfeng, there is a disciple named Li Changshou, who has now reached the Dao-returning Realm, skilled in alchemy, proficient in array formations, has escape techniques, and loves to wield the stinging club!"

Ling'e smiled beside him, "Senior Brother, stop reciting, my Senior Brother will get angry."

"Little Changshou!"

"Hmm?" Li Changshou opened his eyes and smiled, taking out two bottles of Sugar Pill, which were snatched by Jiujiu.

Jiujiu smiled satisfactorily and said again, "Let me play with your treasure!"

"It's just a weapon," Li Changshou casually drew out the Wolf Tooth Club and handed it to his junior brother, "There are many outsiders now, Senior Brother, you must not tease people."

"Humph! Am I such an unreliable senior brother?"

Jiujiu rolled his eyes, shouldered the Wolf Tooth Club, slightly proud, then flew away on a cloud.

Not long after, there came a cry from afar, and when this duel weapon returned, its spikes were stained with immortal blood. When the eyes of the disciples met it, they all dared not look at it for too long.

"Indeed refreshing!"

Jiujiu returned the Wolf Tooth Club to Li Changshou, "Lend it to me again next time!"

Li Changshou's mouth twitched slightly, not daring to ask more, and put away the Wolf Tooth Club.

The elder who was to teach the scriptures and methods on the first day was Senior Brother Zhongyu;

This old Daoist flew into the air, spoke a few inexplicable scriptures, perhaps even he didn't understand them, then began to explain the "Teaching of Kindness" of the People's Teachings.

In any case, it was impossible to explain the contents of the "Book of Non-action."

That night, the disciples endured their yawns and listened to the teachings all night long.

As for the guests on the Jade Platform, they had already returned to the Degree Immortal Hall long ago, where there was a banquet waiting for them. They sat and discussed, laughed and chatted, quite joyful.

The next morning, the disciples were once again full of energy, and the second round of the initial trials was underway.

Jiujiu, who had been eating and drinking at the Degree Immortal Hall all night, also appeared behind Li Changshou and Ling'e on time.

Jiujiu said:

"Little Ling'e, keep up the good work, go up there later just like yesterday, don't be afraid, make them cry! Little Changshou... If you encounter a female disciple, you mustn't use that move from yesterday!"

"Senior Brother, rest assured," Li Changshou smiled, "I know my limits."

Perhaps it was because Jiujiu had opened his mouth, but today, on Li Changshou's 132nd appearance, he really did encounter a female disciple.

It seemed that there was no behind-the-scenes manipulation today, and the elders did not arrange for a "fight on equal terms";

This female disciple was only at the sixth level of the Returning to Void realm, slightly inferior to Li Changshou...

Seeing Li Changshou flying over the heads of the disciples and landing in the arena with her, the female disciple's complexion instantly paled.

Li Changshou continued with his previous plan.

He wouldn't use earth concealment or the wolf's tooth club in this match; forcing the opponent to surrender using his array symbols would suffice.

But what Li Changshou didn't expect was... as the two internal stewards stepped forward to check the jade slips in both their hands and then retreated to the sidelines, just as one of the stewards raised his hand to signal the start of the match, the female disciple took two steps back, her gaze full of vigilance as she looked at Li Changshou.

Li Changshou tried to maintain a calm smile as he released some symbols from his sleeves, still seventy-two in number... this familiar opening routine... "I surrender!"

Li Changshou's movements abruptly stopped; the female disciple's face showed bitterness and resentment, her teeth clenched, her eyes full of unwillingness, as if she had suffered a great humiliation.

With those three words spoken, the female disciple turned and flew away, her back displaying a resolute posture.

Li Changshou:...

What did he do?

For a moment, the gazes around Li Changshou were mostly helpless and condemning, with a hint of fear, as if he had truly bullied the female disciple just now.

Shaking his head, Li Changshou flew back to his seat somewhat dejectedly and sat down.

Today's match was truly inexplicable.

However, it wasn't just this match on the second day...

In the third round on the third day, Li Changshou appeared at noon and faced a top-ranked internal disciple, who was at the ninth level of the Returning to Void realm.

This person, when facing Li Changshou, had a strong sense of fear in his eyes, constantly calculating and deducing, seemingly trying to use his meager calculating skills to immediately find a strategy to deal with the combination of earth concealment and the wolf's tooth club.

This time, before the internal stewards could step forward, the disciple let out a long sigh...

"I can't decipher this set of techniques."

With these words, he made a gesture of respect to Li Changshou and turned to fly towards the crowd.

"Li Changshou of Xiao Qiong Peak wins!"

Li Changshou:... It's okay, there are still seven matches left, enough to redeem his reputation.

Even though, when he used the wind whispering spell this time, all he heard were words like: "That Xiao Qiong Peak guy is really ruthless, he has scared off two opponents."

"No retreat, no solution to his earth concealment and the wolf's tooth club... I heard that the wolf's tooth club is a fairy treasure specialized in breaking through protective immortal light."

"Ah, I didn't expect such an unexpected strong player this time. We underestimated this ruthless guy from Xiao Qiong Peak."

"What should we do if we encounter him tomorrow?"

"Just surrender, there are still so many matches left, it's impossible to be unlucky enough to encounter him twice."

So, on the fourth day...

The familiar face from yesterday appeared again in front of Li Changshou, only this time, it was in the afternoon instead of noon.

Before the internal stewards could step forward, Li Changshou immediately said, "This junior brother, why don't we fight face to face..."

"Why is it you again, senior brother..."

This person looked helpless, sighed deeply, and said, "Time, fate... in the end, I still can't decipher your techniques.

In this world, there are always some things that cannot be done, which is what Master told me.

As a person, why force yourself like this?

Cultivation seeks freedom above all else.

Senior brother...

I surrender." With that, the person's face turned gray, and he flew out of the arena with a resolute back.

The desolation in that back seemed to evoke a familiar string melody...

Li Changshou could only twitch his mouth a few times, looking at the fourth square on his jade slip lighting up, and flew back to his seat expressionlessly.

The voices heard by the wind whispering spell were all filled with emotion: "So ruthless, this junior brother has been driven crazy."

"It's also unfortunate for this junior brother, but for the third time..."

"Hey, don't say that, if things go too smoothly, it'll be troublesome!"

Li Changshou's mouth twitched slightly, and Ling'e beside him seemed to hesitate, but was soon pulled away by Jiujiu, instructing her on the techniques for tomorrow's match.

Ling'e had won three out of four battles, having lost to a senior sister ranked seventy-second, and her own cultivation level had not been completely exposed.

On the fifth day, Li Changshou's current "reputation dilemma" finally saw a turning point.

He was to face Liu Sizhe, the sixth-ranked internal disciple of the Du Lin Peak!

Finally, a "fair and equal" battle could be had!

Li Changshou, the "hidden guardian of the Degree Immortal Gate" during the great calamity, was also somewhat excited.

"Junior Brother Liu," Li Changshou shouted, "today, let's give it our all in a fair and square battle, shall we?"

Liu Sizhe forced a wry smile and said seriously, "Today, I will definitely learn from Senior Brother Li's techniques.

Sizhe will not retreat like others. Moreover, Sizhe has made some preparations."

Li Changshou breathed a sigh of relief, feeling a surge of emotions for a moment.

ook! What is an immortal seedling?

This is an immortal seedling!

Confident, calm, and with grace, able to showcase the spirit of the contemporary disciples of the Degree Immortal Gate, giving face to the sect!

As a fellow disciple of such an immortal seedling, Li Changshou couldn't help but feel a little... proud.

Then, as the two internal stewards carried out their routine duties and checked the jade slips in their hands...

Liu Sizhe took out several treasures.

As a disciple of the Du Lin Peak, Liu Sizhe naturally couldn't be without these. Especially, he had a fairy treasure-level armor.

After taking it out, he hesitated slightly, untied the armor, and tied it around his waist, covering his vulnerable areas.

After some thought, Liu Sizhe seemed to feel something was still amiss, and he took out a precious garment to reinforce it, not feeling assured until he had done so.

After doing all this, Liu Sizhe grasped a long sword and gave Li Changshou a slight smile.

"Senior Brother, please instruct me." Li Changshou:...