Once their goal was achieved, the Ao brothers stopped making things difficult for Pristine Way Sect and arranged for them to stay in the most luxurious inn in Sea Emperor City.
"Leon Huang, come with me," Elder Hu said.
After settling into the inn, Elder Hu called Leon Huang to his room.
"Greetings, Elder Hu. Greetings, Elder Wang," Leon Huang said, bowing to the two elders seated in the room.
"No need for formalities," Elder Hu replied.
Elder Hu waved his hand, his expression turning serious. "Earlier, you sent me a voice transmission saying you were confident you could win this contest. Were you serious?"
Leon Huang answered solemnly, "I wouldn't dare speak carelessly."
"Then tell me," Elder Hu pressed, "how do you plan to handle this contest?"
Elder Hu asked again, his expression even more grave. This match was far too important—if they lost, not only would they forfeit five Sanctum Admission Tokens, but Pristine Way Sect would lose all face and their reputation would plummet. He couldn't afford not to take it seriously.
Leon Huang pondered, then said, "If I'm not mistaken, Sea Emperor Sect will definitely send five ninth-layer Qi-Refining disciples. I plan for Senior Sister Harriet Gu and Senior Brother Yoon Zhengyang to each handle one opponent, and I'll take care of the remaining three myself."
"What? You're going to fight three at once? Are you crazy?" Elder Wang's face changed drastically, and he immediately scolded Leon Huang.
"I'm confident I can do it!" Leon Huang replied, full of self-assurance.
Seeing Leon Huang's confident look, Elder Wang grew even angrier. He shouted, "Confident? Confident my ass! Do you even realize that Sea Emperor Sect has at least three disciples who've already comprehended blade intent or sword intent at the Qi-Refining realm? They're sure to send all three this time. You just recently grasped sword intent yourself—how are you going to fight those three?"
Elder Hu let out a heavy sigh, starting to regret trusting Leon Huang. He thought to himself, 'He's just too young. A little success and he already thinks he's invincible—how disappointing.'
Facing Elder Wang's scolding, Leon Huang's expression didn't change. He stubbornly said, "As long as they haven't stepped into the Grandmaster realm, whether they've comprehended intent or not, I have confidence I can beat them!"
"Arrogant! Ridiculous! What are you going to use to defeat them?" Elder Wang said with a look of disgust, silently blaming Elder Hu for believing this kid's empty talk and agreeing to the match.
"The sword in my hand!" Leon Huang declared.
"Zhing!"
Suddenly, the steel longsword on Leon Huang's back flashed out of its sheath, turning into a streak of lightning as it thrust straight at Elder Wang.
Seeing Ian actually dare to attack him, Elder Wang was furious. "You little punk, how dare you—wait, what is this...?"
……
Three days from now, disciples of all ranks from the major Human sects will depart from Seacoast Province by ship, heading to Holy Spirit Island to join Sanctum Martial Academy.
So today, every sect that received a Sanctum Admission Token has brought their disciples to Sea Emperor City under the guidance of their elders. At this moment, Sea Emperor City is packed with more than ninety percent of the Human Race's outstanding youths.
Thanks to Sea Emperor Sect's deliberate publicity, news of the upcoming contest over five Sanctum Admission Tokens between Sea Emperor Sect and Pristine Way Sect quickly spread throughout the city. Nearly everyone from every sect knows about it.
Different sects have different reactions to the news.
Most people just watched from the sidelines; sects hostile to Pristine Way gloated, while those on friendly terms worried for them.
By evening, Sea Emperor Sect announced basic information about the five Inner Sect disciples who would compete the next day.
Just as everyone was looking worried, Ryan Li suddenly fixed his gaze on Leon Huang. "Junior Brother Huang, I heard you were the one who asked Elder Hu to accept this duel!"
"That's right," Leon Huang nodded.
Since Sea Emperor Sect didn't bother to hide anything, the details about these five were quickly uncovered.
"I'm confident I can win!" Leon Huang said with a slight frown. Ever since he'd become Darren Fang Easton's disciple, this second senior brother had never shown him a pleasant face.
Seeing Leon Huang still claim he could win, Ryan couldn't help but sneer, "Hard-mouthed and shameless!"
Because of his extraordinary talent, Sea Emperor Sect Master Ao Huang broke precedent to take him as his final direct disciple.
Barring accidents, he's certain to become a Great Grandmaster, and might even reach Martial Saint.
Next is Evan Ouyang, who's a year younger than Invincible Xiong and took second place in the tournament. He only comprehended sword intent less than three months ago. In the tournament, aside from losing to Invincible Xiong, he defeated third-place Hua Tian in just five moves.
Ordinary ninth-layer Qi-Refining cultivators can't even withstand a single move from him. Thanks to his outstanding performance, he's already been accepted as a disciple by one of Sea Emperor's Supreme Elders.
Hua Tian, age twenty-one, has understood sword intent for four months now. He placed third in this Inner Sect Grand Tournament and was also accepted by a Supreme Elder.
Derek Long, sixteen, placed fourth in the Inner Sect tournament. His cultivation has reached the peak of ninth-layer Qi-Refining, making him a standout among his peers. His swordsmanship is on the verge of reaching sword intent, and a Supreme Elder has predicted he'll definitely grasp true sword intent within three years.
The last is Lily Xuanyuan, eighteen, a true 'heaven's proud daughter.' She's the only daughter of Xuanyuan Clan's patriarch, the Xuanyuan Dragon Emperor, and has been showered with affection. She didn't care about cultivation and didn't practice any arts before age sixteen.
After turning sixteen, her father sent her to Sea Emperor Sect. In just two years, she reached eighth-layer Qi-Refining. She shone in the Inner Sect tournament, taking fifth place, and fought Derek Long to a standstill before voluntarily conceding.
Inside the East Sea Inn.
After hearing Skyler Sikong's introduction of Sea Emperor Sect's five Inner Sect disciples, everyone's expression turned grim.
On Pristine Way's side, there were only six Qi-Refining realm disciples: Harriet Gu and Yoon Zhengyang at ninth layer, Leon Huang at eighth layer, and Frank Feng, Jean Shan, and Lance Easton at fifth layer.
Harriet Gu and Yoon Zhengyang might stand a chance against Derek Long or Lily Xuanyuan.
But if they faced any of the top three, defeat was certain.
As for Leon Huang, although he'd grasped sword intent, the top three Sea Emperor disciples had also comprehended blade or sword intent. Whether he could beat Hua Tian was already uncertain, and nobody believed Leon Huang could defeat the second or first.
Calculated this way, Pristine Way basically had no chance of winning.
Just as everyone was looking worried, Ryan Li suddenly fixed his gaze on Leon Huang. "Junior Brother Huang, I heard you were the one who asked Elder Hu to accept this duel!"
"That's right," Leon Huang nodded.
Ryan's face darkened as he scolded, "How could you be so clueless? Don't you realize what kind of consequences losing would bring to Pristine Way Sect?"
"I'm confident I can win!" Leon Huang said with a slight frown. Ever since he'd become Darren Fang Easton's disciple, this second senior brother had never shown him a pleasant face.
Seeing Leon Huang still claim he could win, Ryan couldn't help but sneer, "Hard-mouthed and shameless!"