Volume 7, Chapter 394 – Hand Over Your Lot

“I never expected that old man wasn’t lying to me, a peerless beauty like this actually appeared in such a godforsaken place!”

Lü Yi’s throat bobbed as he spoke. Six perfect scores, such a woman would be classified as a “world-toppling beauty” on the Sinking Fish Grand Ranking, above the tiers of “nation-toppling”, “city-toppling”, and “mortal-toppling”.

“Indeed. Since ancient times, all city-toppling beauties who scored six perfect marks on the Phoenix Selection Token were descendants of immortals. Her existence is nothing short of a miracle.”

Lü Er nodded in agreement.

“No background? That’s even better! For someone like me, obtaining her will be effortless! Unlike those other whores who act all high and mighty, untouchable from afar!”

Lü Yi smirked triumphantly. The “whores” he referred to were the other world-toppling beauties on the Sinking Fish Grand Ranking.

“Exactly! Just thinking about those women pisses me off! Once we get our hands on Cheng Hongling, we’ll tame her until she’s as obedient as a bitch. Let’s see if those other women still dare to strut around arrogantly in front of us!”

Lü Er gnashed his teeth, clearly having suffered no small amount of humiliation from those three women.

“As expected of my doppelgänger, an excellent idea!”

Lü Yi clapped his hands in delight.

“Then hurry up and carve her name onto the Immortal Stele. I can’t wait any longer!”

Lü Er urged impatiently.

“Don’t rush!”

Lü Yi pondered for a moment before continuing, “You know how it is. On the Immortal Stele, a wife is a wife, and a concubine is a concubine. One can have countless concubines, but only one wife. Once it’s carved, changing it is troublesome. Keep an eye on her for now. If Cheng Hongling’s talent proves exceptional, I might just make her my official wife!”

“But I’m afraid of delays. If the other great clans across the continents learn of such a peerless beauty, her looks alone will attract swarms of admirers. That won’t be good for us!”

Lü Er warned.

“Which is why you must give your all in the Evergreen Conference. You must suppress Cheng Hongling at all costs, don’t let her display even a hint of brilliance. That way, we can minimize the repercussions. By the time ‘the rice is cooked’, what can those immortal descendants do? It’ll be too late!”

Lü Yi’s instructions aligned perfectly with what Elder Zuo had predicted.

“Don’t worry, brother! Leave it to me. With me around, she won’t make it past Yongning Prefecture’s stage!”

Lü Er thumped his chest confidently.

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Meanwhile, the Honghua Sect had been busy gathering intel on their opponents. Only after most of the crowd had dispersed did they finally leave the Immortal Alliance’s branch hall, completely unaware that their opponents had already been swapped.

“I went back to double-check. Of the ten immortal seedlings from Yuanyuan Sect, only their top disciple has reached the late-stage Body Refinement Realm. The rest are all at the early stage, and some are even still in the late-stage Spirit Gathering Realm.”

Wang Zong briefed them on the specifics.

“Leave the late-stage Body Refinement opponent to me.”

Cheng Hongling stated calmly.

“Hah! Perfect! Against opponents of the same level, we fear no one!”

Ruan Lingyu’s excitement was palpable.

“Exactly! With the swords Junior Sister gave us, forged from pure Blue Scale Stone, how can they possibly compete?”

Yun Fei gazed at her sword with blazing eyes.

“This sword has been with me for so long, only ever used to slay wandering spirits. It’s about time it shines.”

Shen Yuan mirrored her action.

“Um… I’m afraid someone might steal mine. This is a gift from Junior Sister!”

Miao Xiang said timidly.

“Don’t worry, Senior Sister! With me here, no one can take anything from you. Use it freely, let them see just how powerful my gifts are!”

Qi Huang reassured her.

“Really? That’s great! I won’t let you down!”

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Miao Xiang bared her little tiger teeth in determination.

“By the way, Master, the Evergreen Conference’s rules state that ten matches will be held each day, following the order of the lot numbers. We drew number fifty, meaning we won’t compete until at least three days later. Do we still need to go to the Immortal Alliance branch hall in the meantime?”

The inexperienced Shen Yuan asked.

“Of course! As the saying goes, ‘Know yourself and know your enemy, and you shall never be defeated.’ Locking yourself away won’t do any good.”

Qin Quan interjected. After all, as the sect leader, such matters fell under his authority.

“Right. Remember, Lü Er drew number five, so he’ll compete tomorrow. We need to focus on him and figure out his main body’s strength.”

Cheng Hongling rarely agreed with Qin Quan in public, but this was an exception.

“Indeed. If a mere doppelgänger has reached the third layer of the Incarnation Realm, how strong must his main body be?”

Qin Quan’s expression darkened.

“He’s not the only one worth noting. There’s also Donglai Sect, Huxiao Sect, Jinliu Sect, and Longchang Sect. Either they’re formidable, or they’ve got a grudge against us!”

Xu Mei reminded them.

“Nah, they’re just small fry. Everyone should just eat, drink, and enjoy this as a trip to the prefectural capital. Leave the rest to me.”

Qi Huang waved her hand dismissively. If she didn’t speak up, people might think she wasn’t arrogant enough.

“Do you even know how strong Lü Er’s main body is? Spouting nonsense like this, are you afraid people won’t think you’re arrogant enough?”

Cheng Hongling saw right through her.

“Strong? So what? You know my acting skills. Even if those freaks from Central Province showed up in person, I could scare them to death.”

Qi Huang smirked slightly. She didn’t know Lü Er’s full capabilities, but that didn’t mean she feared him.

“Well said! No one in this world understands acting better than Junior Sister Qi Huang.”

Yun Fei’s eyes sparkled.

“Yeah, she had us fooled back then, running around like headless chickens.”

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Shen Yuan chimed in.

“Especially Eldest Senior Sister, tricked three times in a row, crying like she went bankrupt.”

Su Qingying added mercilessly.

“You little brat! Who cried like they went bankrupt? Want me to make you cry right now?”

Ruan Lingyu flushed with anger.

Qi Huang awkwardly turned away. Every time this was brought up, guilt gnawed at her.

Cheng Hongling paused, realizing she had forgotten Qi Huang’s true specialty. Whenever she couldn’t win a fight, she’d start acting, and with her Divine Realm-level divine sense, who would dare challenge her?

The others found this reasoning sound, and their furrowed brows gradually relaxed.

Meanwhile, Lin Ran had also returned to her lodgings and immediately reported the draw results to her master.

“I never imagined Yongning Prefecture’s Evergreen Conference would gather so many geniuses. The competition is fiercer than even the Western Radiance Dynasty’s national-level conference in previous years.”

Lin Ran’s master, the leader of Poyun Peak, Wen Da, sighed in amazement.

“Indeed. Whoever breaks through this time will be the Western Radiance Dynasty’s top immortal seedling for the next three years.”

Lin Ran’s eyes burned with determination before she added, “But for me, that’s irrelevant. All I care about is defeating Cheng Hongling and proving myself.”

“But disciple, have you considered this, what if you’re eliminated before even facing her? I’m not doubting you, but what if?”

Wen Da cautioned.

“Then what do you suggest?”

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Lin Ran frowned.

“The lots for the Evergreen Conference can be exchanged. Perhaps you could use this to your advantage, face her in the first round and defeat her. After that, just do your best.”

Wen Da proposed.

“No!”

Lin Ran rejected the idea without hesitation.

“Why not?”

Wen Da pressed.

“Because the Honghua Sect didn’t exchange theirs either. If I do this, it’ll seem like I lack confidence. I’d lose before even fighting. If she isn’t afraid of early elimination, why should I be?”

Lin Ran replied. Truthfully, she had already considered this method but discarded it immediately due to her pride.

“Very well. If you insist, I won’t push further. Do your best, show the world that Lin Ran is second to none!”

Wen Da encouraged.

That night, the prefectural capital was anything but peaceful. Many sects had drawn formidable opponents and were scheming ways to avoid them. Since no one was willing to exchange lots during the day, they resorted to force under the cover of darkness.

The Honghua Sect had drawn the weak Yuanyuan Sect, a fact known to many, so others began plotting.

Unfortunately for them, they didn’t know that Yuanyuan Sect’s lot had already been “quietly” exchanged with Huxiao Sect.

The reason Huxiao Sect opted for a discreet exchange was precisely to prevent the Honghua Sect from backing out upon learning the truth.

Thus, an absurd scene unfolded.

As the Honghua Sect was having dinner at the inn, a group of uniformed men barged in aggressively, surrounding them.

“Honghua Sect, right? Hand over your lot!”

The leader, an elderly man, demanded imperiously.