Today's contention was set to begin at noon.
However, the groves containing the various cultivation techniques opened at random.
In other words, upon heading to the back mountain, when one's coveted spell would become accessible was entirely unknown.
This meant a large crowd might well gather around a single grove, waiting for it to open so they could vie for the spell inside.
Of course, fights could easily break out beforehand as well.
Furthermore, even those with slightly weaker cultivation stood a certain chance of picking up a technique that would otherwise be out of reach.
The second contention tested the luck and judgment of each team.
None of this mattered much to Jiang Man, though; he had no intention of weighing the pros and cons.
What he wanted was the strongest spell.
Only that could make up for his deficit in experience and skill.
As for Li Yuan and the other's choice...
As a peerless prodigy, it was time to demand that they give him some face.
In the past, the face of a peerless prodigy hadn't amounted to much, but now it ought to carry weight.
Still, this contention involved all Three Pavilions; he wasn't sure whether the Qi-Linking eighth layer would be enough to stand out.
He wasn't particularly afraid of opponents in the same realm. After all, this wasn't a tournament match—he could simply wear them down to victory if nothing else.
Yet winning that way lacked glory, and it wouldn't be impressive enough.
"Old Yellow, I'm heading out," Jiang Man said, bidding farewell to the old yellow ox.
The ox merely raised a brow slightly and paid him no heed.
If it indulged him with words, he would only start bragging about his talent again.
Yet...
Watching Jiang Man's departing silhouette, the old yellow ox narrowed its eyes and sighed with emotion.
His progress was truly fast.
It was as though he had no upper limit.
It had never seen a peerless prodigy before, but if anyone were to bring one up,
the first person to come to mind would definitely be Jiang Man.
It had been a mere seven months since he awakened from his muddleheaded state.
From an ordinary mortal, he had leaped to become a genius of the Qi-Linking eighth layer.
And by the look of things, he had no intention whatsoever of slowing down.
Still...
Which month was the Magpie Bridge set to open this year?
It silently counted the days.
And realized it was truly coming up fast.
***
Jiang Man arrived at the back mountain.
He needed to rendezvous with Li Yuan and Yan Huimin, then head to the corresponding grove together.
Only in this way could they successfully obtain the spell.
By all logic, this was the finest spell available, and with Li Yuan's former disposition to strive for nothing less than first place,
they had a good chance of reaching a consensus.
Everything would be much easier after that.
As soon as he reached the back mountain, Jiang Man spotted Li Yuan and Yan Huimin.
The two of them were early, as always.
Jiang Man deliberately checked the time, expecting them to claim he was late again.
Unexpectedly, however, Li Yuan and Yan Huimin moved straight in and surrounded him,
one in front and one behind, poised to strike at any second.
Puzzled, Jiang Man asked, "Young Master Li, what are you doing?"
"Just call me Li Yuan. There are plenty of people surnamed Li in the Yunqian Division; I wouldn't want you getting confused," Li Yuan said.
With that, he looked at Jiang Man with a solemn expression. "You've already obtained the Qi-Linking Method you wanted, and now we must pull together with one mind.
"Today is a contest among the Three Pavilions. If we fall into internal strife, we've already lost.
"You are poor, so you definitely want to enter the sect—otherwise, you have no future.
"Yet because you are poor, you lack experience and knowledge, making it easy for you to be deceived.
"People outside our team certainly won't consider what's best for you.
"I, however, am different. You and I are grasshoppers tied to the same string. If I want things to go well for myself, I will bring you along so they go well for you, too.
"That is the rule of the Yunqian Division.
"So what you need to do now is trust me unconditionally.
"Trust my vision, and trust my choices.
"Only in this way will you have a chance of achieving better results.
"Do you understand?"
Jiang Man felt somewhat bewildered listening to this grand lecture.
In short, it boiled down to the fact that he was poor and weak, so he had to obey Li Yuan, and that would be the right course.
Pausing, Jiang Man asked curiously, "Young Master Li, have you been paying attention to my ranking lately?"
"Why would I pay attention to you? Do you pay attention to me?" Li Yuan countered.
That retort caught Jiang Man completely off guard.
Truth be told, he hadn't, primarily because he had neither the time nor the energy to spare.
So it was only reasonable that the other man hadn't spent any effort keeping tabs on him either.
He had brought that humiliation on himself.
Promptly, Jiang Man moved on to business. "What does Young Master Li intend to compete for this time?"
Without the slightest hesitation, Li Yuan answered, "The medium-grade Visualization Method."
Hearing this, Jiang Man was stunned. "The medium-grade Visualization Method? But that isn't the best one."
"The best?" Li Yuan sneered. "Don't tell me you think the best is the medium-grade Qi-Blood Method?"
"Isn't it the Nine Clouds Dragon Suppressing Seal?" Jiang Man asked in return.
Li Yuan froze for a moment, then said, "You do have some knowledge after all, but what does that have to do with you?"
"I want to compete for it. After all, if we're going to fight for something, we should go after the best," Jiang Man said earnestly.
Hearing this, Li Yuan chuckled. "What do you have to compete with? Do you know who's going to be fighting for the Nine Clouds Dragon Suppressing Seal?"
"Who could you even beat if you went there?" Yan Huimin chimed in with annoyance.
This guy was truly stirring up trouble.
Jiang Man looked at them and explained, "You've misunderstood."
"Don't tell me it's a misunderstanding," Li Yuan interrupted. "Just tell me what gives you the right to compete. Convince me first."
Jiang Man nodded. He extended his hand, and the power of the Six Harmonies Palm gathered.
In an instant, six palm strikes merged into one. "How about this?"
"Not enough." Li Yuan shook his head with disdain.
Jiang Man gave a slight nod. Then his palm rested lightly on Li Yuan's shoulder. In the next breath, spiritual qi belonging to the Qi-Linking eighth layer surged forth, and a terrifying weight pressed directly through the palm onto Li Yuan's shoulder.
In that instant, Li Yuan's robes billowed without a breeze.
Then his knees buckled slightly, and his feet sank completely into the dirt.
His former contempt vanished, replaced by sheer shock as he stared at the person before him.
This spiritual qi was unimaginably heavier than his own...
Looking at Li Yuan's stunned, awe-struck gaze, Jiang Man calmly asked, "Is it enough with this added?"
Li Yuan stared in silence at the youth before him, unable to speak.
Words could not describe the tempestuous waves churning within his heart.
Jiang Man drew back his hand and said, "Let's go. I'll make a name for both of you."
Snapping back to his senses, Li Yuan failed to settle into his role for a moment.
Only after Yan Huimin nudged him did Li Yuan finally realize what was happening.
The tables had turned.
Yan Huimin hadn't perceived what had just taken place clearly enough,
yet she could see that Li Yuan appeared to have been bested.
Could it be that Jiang Man was also at the Qi-Linking seventh layer?
"Young Master Li, are we still going to compete?" she asked.
Watching Jiang Man's back, Li Yuan spoke slowly: "How could we possibly compete?"
"Then what should we do?" Yan Huimin grew quite anxious.
The biggest problem was a team lacking a leader;
a team like that would fall apart.
Yet Li Yuan strode forward after him and said, "How could they possibly compete with us?"
Yan Huimin looked entirely bewildered,
yet she hurried to catch up all the same.
Even so, she couldn't understand what on earth was going on.
Was Jiang Man leading the team now?
Catching up, Li Yuan asked somewhat apprehensively, "I remember you were fourteenth in Qingyun Pavilion."
Jiang Man nodded. "That's right."
"Then now..."
"Right now, Qingyun Pavilion hasn't released any rankings. Three months have already passed—don't you know how long three months is?"
Li Yuan fell silent.
Jiang Man looked at the people all around searching for the various groves and asked, "Are our opponents strong?"
"There might be one around your level. You should be careful," Li Yuan warned.
Only one? Jiang Man breathed an internal sigh of relief.
A crowd of them would indeed be troublesome.
His spells were lacking, and his combat ability was mediocre.
For someone poor, fighting peers of the same realm was simply too exhausting.
That much had been obvious from his earlier fight with Fang Yong.
"My, isn't this Li Yuan? What are you here to compete for this time?" a woman's voice called out.
Hearing this, Jiang Man turned to look and saw her gazing at Li Yuan with a teasing smile.
The newcomer was none other than Fang Yuanyuan.
Chapter 61