The Profound Heaven Sect was located at the very center of the Eastern Wasteland. Its spiritual energy concentration was the highest in the entire region, giving it the foundation to be the supreme sacred land of the Eastern Wasteland.
The Profound Heaven Sect, which had always been peaceful, had become turbulent recently.
"Did you hear? Senior Brother Song Changge recently emerged from secluded cultivation, and he challenged Senior Brother Qin Ting to compete on the Sword Discussion Stage!"
"No way... Wasn't Senior Brother Song Changge defeated by Senior Brother Qin Ting half a year ago? Is he really trying again?"
"What do you know? I heard that Senior Brother Song Changge achieved a breakthrough to the Divine Spirit Realm during his retreat. After all, Senior Brother Qin Ting is younger and was still in the Divine Wheel Realm. That is a completely different level. Naturally, this is his best chance to avenge his past shame."
"I would not be so sure. The Divine Spirit Realm is not so easy to reach. After all, Senior Brother Song is only in his thirties. Still, both senior brothers are True Disciples, and their martial techniques and divine abilities are among the top in the world. No matter what, this competition will be a battle between dragons and tigers!"
"Indeed! We must go watch this time. Observing the moves of such grand masters will be of immense benefit to our own cultivation!"
"Exactly, exactly!"
Regardless of how the outside world discussed the matter, Qin Ting's heart remained as calm as still water.
Song Changge was certainly not simple. Endowed with excellent talent, he practiced the Heaven Grade technique, the Great Sun Reincarnation Scripture, giving him profound cultivation and powerful divine abilities. Even so, Qin Ting did not regard him as his greatest rival within the Profound Heaven Sect.
Nevertheless, Song Changge was a True Disciple after all, so Qin Ting would not take him lightly.
Three days flew by in an instant.
On this day, the Sword Discussion Stage was packed with people. Even several Inner Elders and Grand Elders had brought their disciples to watch.
First, it served as a practical lesson to open their disciples' eyes, as a clash between such supreme figures was rarely seen. Second, perhaps the Daoist insights and divine abilities displayed by these two geniuses might offer inspiration to the elders themselves. Of course, such thoughts were kept quiet from outsiders.
In addition to the elders, several True Disciples who usually remained elusive like hidden dragons were present. Except for Jiang Zhongbai, who never traveled around, all the other True Disciples had arrived.
After all, Song Changge was a veteran True Disciple with profound cultivation, while Qin Ting was a rising genius who had taken the sect by storm in recent years. Watching a duel between these peak geniuses held great value for them as well.
"Look, Senior Brother Feng and Senior Brother Luo are here!"
"Senior Sister Zhou and Senior Sister Li have arrived as well!"
"It seems that except for Senior Brother Jiang, every True Disciple has gathered!"
Exclamations echoed through the crowd. To see so many True Disciples gathered in one place was a sight that had not occurred in many years.
The presence of these True Disciples lent this private duel the atmosphere of a grand event.
"Senior Brother Luo, between Senior Brother Song and Junior Brother Qin, who do you think will emerge victorious?"
The speaker was a white-haired man with a faint smile in his eyes, though his gaze remained as unyielding as ancient ice. He was the True Disciple Feng Qianhan. The man addressed as Senior Brother Luo was clad in black and carried a sword on his back. His name was Luo Yuan.
He smiled faintly and replied, "Senior Brother Song and Junior Brother Qin are both outstanding figures of our generation. It is truly difficult to say. However, seeing how readily Junior Brother Qin accepted the challenge, he seems to be more than a little confident."
Feng Qianhan laughed softly. "I think Senior Brother Song has a better chance of winning. Senior Brother Luo, why don't we place a bet?"
"Oh?" Luo Yuan glanced at Feng Qianhan with a half-smile. "I wonder what Junior Brother Feng wishes to wager?"
Feng Qianhan fixed his eyes on Luo Yuan and said word for word, "If Senior Brother Song wins, how about Senior Brother Luo parts with the Seven-Colored Glazed Flower?"
The Seven-Colored Glazed Flower was a miraculous spiritual plant, extraordinarily precious. Luo Yuan had obtained it by chance during an expedition, though he did not know how Feng Qianhan had learned of it.
Luo Yuan narrowed his eyes. "And if Junior Brother Qin wins?"
Before he could finish, Feng Qianhan said in a clear voice, "If Junior Brother Qin wins, I will offer the Lesser Heavenly Transformation Sword Formation with both hands!"
The Lesser Heavenly Transformation Sword Formation! That was a rare treasure, and its allure to a swordsman like Luo Yuan was self-evident. Luo Yuan laughed aloud and said, "It is a deal!"
While everyone was discussing the match, the sun in the sky suddenly blazed with blinding brilliance, stinging the eyes of the crowd so fiercely they could barely keep them open, as if the polar daylight had descended.
Just as abruptly, the light dissipated. On the mountain of the Sword Discussion Stage, a figure had appeared out of nowhere.
The man appeared to be in his late twenties, wearing a shining robe of red gold that radiated dazzling light. It was none other than Song Changge, a True Disciple of the Profound Heaven Sect.
Song Changge practiced the Heaven Grade technique known as the Great Sun Reincarnation Scripture. This skill could resonate directly with the sun, which was why his arrival had triggered such an extraordinary anomaly between heaven and earth.
"It is Senior Brother Song Changge! What he practices is the Heaven Grade technique, the Great Sun Reincarnation Scripture! It actually resonated with heaven and earth. It seems Senior Brother Song's cultivation in this technique has reached a mystical level!"
"Senior Brother Song is truly a genius to reach such a level of cultivation in less than thirty years!"
"Now Junior Brother Qin might be in trouble!"
Hearing the exclamations from the distant crowd, Song Changge felt a surge of satisfaction. Ever since his defeat at Qin Ting's hands half a year ago, his reputation within the sect had plummeted. Before entering secluded cultivation this time, he had not only begged his master for a realm-breaking pill, but had even set aside his pride to ask that person for a powerful artifact.
Having successfully broken through to the Divine Spirit Realm, he had immediately issued a challenge to Qin Ting to avenge his past disgrace.
'Qin Ting! You may possess unmatched talent and the Purple Morning Divine Physique, but today I will trample you beneath my feet, humiliate you before the entire sect, and crush your Dao heart!'
As for the consequences of doing so, he cared nothing. His master was an influential Grand Elder in the sect, and that person had personally promised to block any retaliation from the Qin Family on his behalf.
'Only that person is truly qualified to become the Holy Son of the Profound Heaven Sect. Let me kick away this stumbling block for him!'
Suddenly, someone shouted, "Senior Brother Qin Ting is here!"
Everyone turned to look and saw a figure strolling through the air at the horizon. Wearing a purple robe and a gilded crown, he resembled an immortal descending to the mortal realm. It was Qin Ting.
When they first glanced at him, he was still far off at the edge of the sky. By the time they blinked, he was right before them. In the span of a single breath, he was already standing calmly upon the Sword Discussion Stage. Seeing this move, several disciples with low cultivation levels even developed splitting headaches and felt intensely uncomfortable.
Although Qin Ting's arrival was not as earth-shattering as Song Changge's, nor did it trigger grand world phenomena, his ability to shrink distance into an inch carried a subtle charm of the Dao.
The elders looked at one another with grave expressions, praising him inwardly: 'This youth is extraordinary!'
The eyes of the True Disciples narrowed with solemnity, a sense of vigilance rising in their hearts. Song Changge's earlier phenomenon of heaven and earth was merely ordinary in their eyes, but Qin Ting gave them a vague, intangible sense of pressure.
This Junior Brother Qin was becoming harder and harder to see through.