“Boom!”
As soon as Xiao Yishu finished speaking, the lion-shaped sculpture suddenly vibrated violently, giving the impression that it was about to come alive.
This scene naturally startled many newly admitted Disciples, and even the ten selected individuals, including Jiang Yun, clearly did not know what was happening.
Compared to their shock and confusion, the old Disciples around them all looked as if they knew what was going on, but even so, their eyes were fixed on the sculpture without blinking.
“Buzz!”
After the vibration, a dazzling light suddenly shot out from the beast sculpture’s open maw, covering an area of nearly ten zhang in the square.
Faintly visible, there were several human figures within the light!
Jiang Yun’s heart stirred, and he thoughtfully said, “This should be the so-called teleportation Formation, which can transport people to a relatively distant place in a very short time. I just didn’t expect the Formation to be hidden inside the beast sculpture. I wonder if the remaining Three Venerables beast sculptures also contain hidden Formations.”
A moment later, the light spewing from the beast sculpture’s mouth gradually receded, and the vibrations gradually subsided until everything returned to normal, but in the square, besides Jiang Yun and the other ten, there were ten more people.
These ten people, male and female, varied in appearance, but without exception, each of them carried a hint of arrogance on their faces.
From the blue tokens they wore at their waists, it was not difficult to guess that they were Outer Sect Disciples from the Asking Dao Five Peaks, and they were the opponents Jiang Yun and the other ten would face in the upcoming minor competition.
The purpose of the re-assessment minor competition was mainly to let new Disciples experience what combat among Cultivators was like, and to gain some experience and knowledge. Therefore, in each minor competition, the opponents of the new Disciples were always old Disciples from the Five Peaks, mostly Outer Sect Disciples.
Because although it was called sparring, strictly speaking, it was essentially old Disciples guiding new Disciples.
After all, most new Disciples had not participated in actual combat, and their chances of winning were small, so Inner Sect Disciples generally would not have the leisure to participate in such a minor competition.
The appearance of the ten Outer Sect Disciples meant that the minor competition was about to begin, and their awe-inspiring entrance naturally sparked another wave of excitement and discussion among the onlookers.
Among the ten, Jiang Yun immediately spotted a yellow tiger about ten feet long and naturally recognized that the yellow-faced man glaring fiercely at him beside the tiger was Xu Chengshan.
However, Jiang Yun completely ignored Xu Chengshan’s gaze, merely glancing at him before shifting his attention to a female Disciple beside him.
This female Disciple also wore a blue Dragon-shaped token at her waist. Dressed in purple, she appeared to be in her early twenties. Although her looks were not stunning, she was above average. Unfortunately, a red birthmark at the corner of her right eye marred her overall beauty, adding a touch of shrewishness.
“Ten people, two from each of the Five Peaks. Then this woman should be the Senior Sister who framed Lu Xiaoyu!”
As Jiang Yun observed the woman, she seemed to notice his gaze. Just then, Xu Chengshan whispered something in her ear, and her face immediately showed a cold smile, and her gaze towards Jiang Yun became even more mocking.
At this moment, Xiao Yishu’s voice rang out again: “These ten are the Outer Sect Disciples from the Five Peaks, and they are your opponents today. You can choose any one of them to challenge, but choices cannot be repeated. If you don’t choose, then they will choose you! Regardless of victory or defeat in the minor competition, the Sect will give certain rewards!”
“I choose him!”
As soon as Xiao Yishu finished speaking, Xu Chengshan eagerly stepped forward and pointed at Jiang Yun!
Everyone was slightly stunned. They naturally didn’t understand why Xu Chengshan, an old Disciple, was so eager, but Jiang Yun knew perfectly well that the other party had come for revenge this time, worried that he wouldn’t choose him, or that he would be chosen by someone else, so he spoke first.
At this moment, Xu Chengshan’s mind was filled with the thought of defeating Jiang Yun, so he didn’t notice that everyone around him was looking at him with a strange, even slightly disdainful, gaze.
Because in everyone’s opinion, Xu Chengshan choosing Jiang Yun as his opponent was clearly picking the weakest target.
Although Jiang Yun had advanced three Realms in half a year, he was only at the Tongmai Realm third level. Xu Chengshan, as an old Outer Sect Disciple, was at least at the Tongmai Realm seventh level.
Furthermore, as a Hundred Beast Peak Disciple, Xu Chengshan also had a pet beast. It wasn’t just a Tongmai Realm seventh level versus a Tongmai Realm third level; it was two against one. This was clearly bullying Jiang Yun!
“Cough!” Xiao Yishu coughed, gave Xu Chengshan a deep look, then turned to Jiang Yun and said, “Junior Brother Jiang, as a new Disciple, you have one chance to refuse.”
When a new Disciple chooses an old Disciple as an opponent, the old Disciple cannot refuse, but conversely, the new Disciple can refuse. This is considered a form of protection given to new Disciples.
As Xiao Yishu’s words fell, Jiang Yun immediately replied without hesitation, “I refuse!”
No one was surprised by Jiang Yun’s answer, because no matter who it was, if they didn’t want to lose, they would definitely refuse to fight Xu Chengshan.
Although choosing other opponents would almost certainly result in a loss, it was still better than a two-on-one fight!
Xu Chengshan’s expression suddenly darkened, and he was about to speak, but Xiao Yishu had already nodded and said, “Alright, let’s start with you then. You choose your opponent first!”
Jiang Yun extended his hand and pointed to the purple-clothed woman with the birthmark next to Xu Chengshan, saying, “I choose her!”
After clearly seeing Jiang Yun’s chosen opponent, the entire arena suddenly fell into a strange silence. Even Xiao Yishu’s face showed a peculiar expression. Only Bao Yuanqiang, hidden in the crowd, had a cold, triumphant smile on his chubby face.
Xu Chengshan was eager to choose Jiang Yun as his opponent, but Jiang Yun wanted to choose another Hundred Beast Peak Disciple as his opponent.
Although the crowd still didn’t understand Jiang Yun’s objective, they could at least confirm one thing: there should be a grievance between Jiang Yun and Hundred Beast Peak.
It’s just that this Jiang Yun didn’t seem to know the identity of the purple-clothed woman he chose…
As for the purple-clothed woman, upon hearing Jiang Yun choose her as an opponent, she was also stunned, but then she smiled, the mockery in her eyes growing even stronger.
After Xiao Yishu withdrew his gaze from the purple-clothed woman, he looked at Jiang Yun again, frowning slightly and saying, “Are you sure you want to choose her as your opponent?”
Jiang Yun affirmed, “Yes!”
“Alright!” Xiao Yishu nodded, then suddenly cupped his hands and bowed to the purple-clothed woman, saying, “Junior Sister Fang, then your opponent will be Junior Brother Jiang Yun.”
“No problem!” The purple-clothed woman chuckled, “I will definitely give Junior Brother Jiang some good pointers!”
At this moment, Jiang Yun wished he could rush to the purple-clothed woman immediately and demand Lu Xiaoyu’s whereabouts. Therefore, his gaze was completely focused on her, so much so that he didn’t notice the strange expressions on the faces of the surrounding crowd, nor did he notice the polite attitude of Xiao Yishu, an Inner Sect Disciple, towards this Junior Sister Fang.
“Alright, the rest of you also quickly choose your opponents! We will begin the minor competition immediately!”
After the other nine new Disciples had each chosen their opponents, Xiao Yishu loudly announced, “The minor competition will proceed in the order of your standing. Remember, the purpose of the minor competition is primarily sparring, so stop when appropriate and do not strike with heavy force!”
He paused, then looked at Jiang Yun and the purple-clothed woman, saying, “You two will be the last to compete!”