Chapter 139: Autumn Tournament
"Chu River is back, and his Aura is very strong."
"I heard he was personally trained by Chu Xian, the direct Disciple of Xuan Yuan Immortal Mansion. The Chu Worldly Family's foundation is indeed not to be underestimated..."
"How strong is 'very strong'? Is he as strong as Ji You?"
"He feels about the same, but I don't know for sure—"
It was already common knowledge that Chu River would return from the Chu Worldly Family before autumn to participate in Tianshu Academy's Autumn Tournament.
However, the Aura he displayed upon his return was vastly different from when he left, being profound and deep, which greatly surprised everyone.
No one knew what he had experienced in the Chu Worldly Family, but the phrase "As expected of the Chu Worldly Family" began to be re-mentioned. Ji You, however, had not met Chu River and didn't know how strong his Aura was, but he didn't pay too much attention to it, continuing to refine his Physical Body in his room.
It was Ban Yangshu and the others who would bring some hearsay news daily, then sit in the courtyard chattering, and the crucial point was that they always came empty-handed and drank his tea, making Ji You feel as if he was facing a formidable enemy.
"My father is here too."
"Your father?"
Bai Rulong returned from outside at this moment, sat down, and took a sip of tea.
Bai Zhengze, the head of the Bai Worldly Family, lost his wife early and later remarried. He didn't show much concern for his eldest son, Bai Rulong, and it was said that he rarely even sent letters.
Moreover, Bai Rulong had neglected his cultivation time because he enjoyed watching female cultivators dance swords in the Trial Sword Forest, so he hadn't reached the Tong Xuan Realm and naturally couldn't enter the Inner Courtyard, thus not planning to participate in the Autumn Tournament.
Therefore, he was very puzzled by his father's visit to the courtyard.
And besides his father, Du Zhu's father, the current head of the Du Worldly Family, had also arrived.
His son had been relentlessly pursuing cultivation half a year ago, showing a tendency to surpass others, and had now reached the early Tong Xuan Realm.
However, in front of Chu River and Ji You, he basically had no chance of entering the Inner Courtyard.
Bai Rulong didn't know what they were so excited about, and coupled with the estrangement from his father, he came over to find some peace and quiet.
And in the courtyard next door to the next, also in Bishui Lake Garden, Lu Qingqiu and a few of her fellow cultivating sisters were also discussing this animatedly.
They had seen Chu River yesterday and indeed felt an incredibly powerful Aura from him, and they had also felt a similar Aura from Ji You.
"Who do you think, Ji You or Chu River, will be able to enter the Inner Courtyard?"
"I still think Ji You can."
"I, on the other hand, think Chu River returned with a lot of confidence."
Amidst the chatter, everyone looked at Lu Qingqiu, who had been silently holding her tea: "Qingqiu, what do you think?"
Lu Qingqiu returned to her senses and couldn't help but gently shake her head: "I don't know either—"
During his time at Tianshu Academy, Ji You indeed demonstrated sufficiently Heaven-Defying talent to everyone.
However, when the matter involved the Chu Worldly Family, it still made people feel as if he was facing an unknown behemoth.
Everyone's confidence in Ji You came from his talent, while their confidence in Chu River came from his Worldly Family.
In fact, Lu Qingqiu hoped Ji You would lose.
Because if Chu River lost, he would definitely return to their Chu Worldly Family after leaving the academy, but if Ji You lost, he had no Worldly Family to return to.
This was the Lu Worldly Family's opportunity.
Not to mention whether that inherited Physique was real or fake, Ji You's displayed strength alone was enough for the major Worldly Sect to treat him as an honored guest.
Lou Siyi couldn't help but interject at this moment: "Actually, none of us have seen them both make a move, right? We haven't seen Ji You's Sword Dao, nor have we seen the Chu Worldly Family's wondrous techniques. It's really hard to determine just by their Aura."
Sun Qiaozhi raised her eyes: "What's Ji You's reaction?"
"I saw him once at the Immortal Meal Workshop at noon, didn't feel like he was very nervous."
After Lou Siyi finished speaking, she looked at Lu Qingqiu: "Qingqiu will also participate in the Autumn Tournament, right?"
Lu Qingqiu smiled sweetly: "It's just an ordinary duel, stopping before any serious harm, not quite like theirs."
"It's a pity, you're clearly only one step away from Tong Xuan—"
"There's nothing to regret, everyone has their own talent limitations, no one is an exception."
Lu Qingqiu's Mystic Light was almost fully condensed, but she was still one step away from breaking through, unable to enter the Tong Xuan Realm.
She had focused all her attention on Ji You at the time, always thinking that breaking through was a very simple matter,
As natural as eating and drinking.
But it wasn't until she tried it herself that she realized how difficult it was, because the Integration Dao Realm and the Realm of All Methods are fundamentally different; one only requires refining oneself, while the other requires comprehending the Heavenly Dao, and brute force won't work.
Her Instructor often spoke to her about Epiphany, but even now, Lu Qingqiu still hadn't experienced an Epiphany.
And the one who felt the limitations of talent most deeply was Fang Ruoyao, who was sitting in the corner at this moment.
It took her a long time to successfully awaken her Spiritual Qi after entering the academy, but she still hadn't made any progress in the Micro Illumination Realm.
So when she recalled the previous year in Yuyang County, thinking that Ji You had already secretly reached Junior Third Realm Completion by then, she became even more silent.
And at that time, she had never imagined that Ji You would have a chance to enter the Inner Courtyard.
Amidst such discussions, the day of Tianshu Academy's Autumn Tournament quietly arrived.
It was already the day of the Beginning of Autumn, but the summer heat had not yet completely dissipated, and it was still a bit stuffy around noon.
There were arenas on the Baiyu Platform from morning till night, with endless sword chants and blade glints, all battles between Disciples who were about to leave the academy.
"Senior Brother Cao Wei won."
"Senior Sister Qiao Rong lost—"
News like this spread throughout the academy daily.
Unlike the three battles to enter the Inner Courtyard, these battles for Disciples leaving the academy were basically decided in a single match.
So most of those who came to watch the excitement were Outer Courtyard Disciples, with little attention from others.
Unless someone wanted to find a Dao Companion to take home before leaving the academy, that would be more eye-catching than the duels on the Baiyu Platform, making Bai Rulong's heart itch with anticipation.
At the same time, news of battles often came from the Inner Courtyard, but Outer Courtyard Disciples could not enter the Inner Courtyard, so they could not personally watch the battles.
Ban Yangshu did come to watch a few Outer Courtyard battles and couldn't help but click his tongue in wonder.
He had seen Ji You's sword strikes in almost every Realm and had once thought that other Outer Courtyard Disciples couldn't be too bad, but now he knew what a difference truly meant.
By the third day, at the hour of Yi (1-3 PM), the sun was high, a time when there was still summer heat but also an autumn breeze.
Bai Rulong and Qian Yunxiao arrived in front of the Baiyu Platform and saw Lu Qingqiu, holding a delicate long sword,
Walked onto the Baiyu Platform to face an Outer Courtyard Senior Sister.
This kind of battle was a Arena system, where the continuous winner was the Champion , and only when the arena master was defeated would there be a change.
On the Baiyu Platform, Miss Lu of Yunzhou's Spiritual Qi roared, and she swung her sword to meet an Outer Courtyard Senior Sister, her sword dance like the wind.
She had also spent a lot of time learning from Instructor Wang in the Trial Sword Forest, and her sword techniques were quite good.
That Senior Sister was similar to her in Realm, and after several exchanges of swords, there was a continuous clanging sound, and as Spiritual Qi roared, a gentle breeze danced, making it difficult to determine a winner for a time.
However, just as that Senior Sister infused her sword with Spiritual Qi, a buzzing sound suddenly came from the corner, and then another sharp sword whistled out, instantly intercepting the Senior Sister's attack.
The next second, Lu Qingqiu's sword light was like a wave, fiercely slashing with that controlled Flying Sword, which caused a burst of exclamations.
"It feels like Lu Qingqiu is deliberately learning Brother Ji's fighting style—"
Qian Yunxiao couldn't help but slightly open his mouth when he saw this scene.
Bai Rulong didn't speak, but then watched a few more sword moves, and suddenly, as if recognizing something, he blurted out: "That's right, isn't this the sword Brother Ji used to save us when we were attacked on the street that day?"
"It seems Brother Ji's sword that day indeed left an indelible impression in Miss Lu's heart."
Lou Siyi was not far away. Hearing their words, she thought to herself, it's not just Lu Qingqiu.
Since going to the Sword Forest, even she and Sun Qiaozhi had begged Instructor Wang to teach them this style of sword usage, precisely because that sword was truly unforgettable.
Then the sun moved westward, and by the beginning of the hour of Wei (1-3 PM), Lu Qingqiu was already drenched in sweat, and then she bowed and stepped down after facing a Tong Xuan Realm Senior Sister.
"How was my sword just now?"
Bai Rulong and Qian Yunxiao quickly applauded: "It looked extremely familiar."
Lu Qingqiu smiled faintly: "How is Young Master Ji doing now?"
"Still the same, meditating in his room every day, rarely going to the Wudao Field."
"Tomorrow, the Autumn Tournament for entering the Inner Courtyard will begin—"
Amidst the murmuring, Lu Qingqiu suddenly saw a figure standing outside the Baiyu Platform, it was Chu River.
He seemed to be also thinking about tomorrow's battle, and at this moment, he was coldly looking at the Baiyu Platform.
Lu Qingqiu stepped forward: "Young Master Chu, what brings you out for a stroll?"
"I was bored staying in my room, and just saw Young Miss Lu's swordplay, which bears some resemblance to Ji You's. Such tricks seem interesting, but are actually quite boring."
"Young Master Chu seems very confident?"
Chu River looked at him expressionlessly: "Do you really think my Chu Worldly Family is just a name without substance?"
Since returning from his home, he had felt as if he could hold up the sky, and whenever he thought of Ji You, his Battle Intent surged, and his killing intent was almost uncontrollable.
His elder brother and father had told him that in today's Immortal Realm, no one could defeat him unless they were in the Rongdao Realm.
Even if someone in the Rongdao Realm attacked him, it would be difficult to kill him.
He would enter the Inner Courtyard this time and soon become a direct Disciple of the Palace Master, and Ji You was just a small interlude in his life, although this interlude had been singing in his ears for too long.
Lu Qingqiu was looking at him at this moment, her brows slightly furrowed.
She couldn't discern Chu River's Realm and state, but she could feel that vast Aura.
The Lu Worldly Family was also a well-known Worldly Family, and although they couldn't compare to the Chu Worldly Family, they knew each other.
She knew that the Chu Worldly Family had many profound techniques, but she had never heard of someone being able to achieve such a heaven-swallowing Aura in two months.
(The accident report has come down, now I have to go to the parking lot to pick up the car, assess the damage, and send it for repair. The other party was indeed drinking, blood alcohol level 49. The insurance company and 4S shop call daily, plus the New Year is approaching, so I've been feeling irritable lately, which indeed affects my state. Please bear with me.)