Chapter 121: The Only Way to Overcome Fear

The gazes from his many fellow disciples seemed somewhat panicked...

That wasn't a big issue, as long as they weren't driven by curiosity, probing interest, or finding it thrilling—then it wasn't a major problem.

Li Changshou had anticipated these reactions from his peers;

The only concern was whether this minor way of disciplining his opponent might displease the sect elders and lead to blame or punishment.

He had carefully weighed this decision.

The other disciple's earlier provocations had insulted the ancestors of Xiao Qiong Peak.

If he didn't respond, it might make people think he was scheming and insidious, leading them to be wary of him and damaging his image as an unremarkable immortal seedling.

By responding this way—punishing without causing harm, and adding a touch of jest—it would show that he settles grudges on the spot and isn't deeply calculating...

Li Changshou sat back down on his meditation cushion, his gaze sweeping around. The disciples quickly turned their heads or lowered their eyes, avoiding his stare.

He glanced at his little martial uncle, who was laughing so hard she could barely breathe, and inwardly marveled at the wonders of heaven and earth's creation and the splendor of living beings. Then, he closed his eyes to rest and "recover his magical power," while secretly casting the Wind Whisper Spell to eavesdrop on conversations around him.

Soon, Li Changshou smiled faintly to himself.

Most of the elders who had reacted were leaning in his favor.

Though the favor from the Xiongxin Dan played a role, these people were reasonable and mostly felt that the Xianlin Peak disciple had been rude first.

Li Changshou had meticulously planned it out: by appearing in a few more matches, fighting normally without using Earth Escape, regardless of win or loss, he could steer his image back to being "positive" and "ordinary"...

The next disciple duel had already begun;

It was quite a coincidence—two disciples who had studied Earth Escape after watching Li Changshou's spar with Ao Yi years ago were matched up. Having seen Li Changshou's earlier fight, both were full of confidence, with faint smiles at the corners of their mouths.

The sect attendant reminded them to stop at the point of contact, and the duel was declared underway.

The two male disciples bowed to each other, their gazes locking and their energies connecting, before they simultaneously flew backward;

Their hands quickly formed seals, their movements so similar it was like they were mirroring each other!

As the seals formed, each flung out two treasures: flying swords, jade scepters, flying daggers, small gourds...

Earth Escape!

Earth Escape!

With two soft thuds, as their figures hit the ground, it was as if traps had opened in the earth, and they plunged in, vanishing from sight!

The surrounding disciples looked around in confusion, while the immortals on the cloud platforms and jade terraces stared intently.

The four treasures hovered in midair, spinning in place...

Their targets... had disappeared...

The two disciples underground were also a bit stunned.

Inspired by the wolf-tooth club from Xiao Qiong Peak, they had planned to use Earth Escape to hide themselves and bombard their opponent with treasures, ensuring an unbeatable position.

But...

How do you fight Earth Escape with Earth Escape?

A female disciple from some peak suddenly burst out laughing, and soon laughter spread everywhere.

The experts of Du Xian Men on the jade terraces felt a slight awkwardness, but then a weak, booming laugh erupted—the sect leader Wuyou Daoist was already chuckling on the main seat.

"This batch of disciples is quite entertaining... Ha ha, cough cough!"

The visitors from Jin'ao Island, the Human Teachings lineage, and a few minor immortal sects also smiled as they looked down below.

They had thought this half-month would be dull, with non-immortal disciples dueling offering little to see.

But unexpectedly, Du Xian Men turned out to be rather interesting.

After a while, the two dueling disciples came up with a countermeasure and began searching for each other underground, engaging in a hidden contest...

After a "great" battle of dragons beneath the earth and tigers among the rocks, one disciple made a mistake and was forced out of the ground, immediately struck by the two long-waiting treasures, sustaining light injuries and losing the match.

In the following duels, a few more disciples used Earth Escape;

As a result, Li Changshou's Earth Escape technique gained some unintended cover, making it seem less conspicuous, as if it were just a standard immortal art of Du Xian Men...

The average duel length was slightly extended;

Another hour passed, and Youqin Xuanya took the stage, defeating her opponent swiftly and gracefully, her status as the chief senior disciple shining brightly for a moment...

As the sun set in the west, the first day's duels concluded, with all disciples having competed in one round.

The twelve rounds of preliminary trials took the most time, but the later stages would progress faster and the fights more exciting.

In half an hour, a Heavenly Immortal elder would give a lecture on scriptures and Dao principles. Seizing this time, the disciples reflected and summarized...

Li Changshou, who had been meditating, suddenly heard a recitation from nearby;

Jiu Jiu, holding half a jug of wine, swayed as she chanted:

"The west of the East Sea lies Dongsheng Shenzhou, and in Dongsheng Shenzhou is the Human Teachings lineage, known as Du Xian Men.

Within Du Xian Men, on Xiao Qiong Peak, there is a disciple named Li Changshou, now at the Return to Way realm, skilled in alchemy and arrays, proficient in escape techniques, and fond of the spiked club!"

Ling E laughed beside her: "Martial uncle, stop reciting. My senior brother is going to get angry."

"Little Changshou!"

"Hmm?" Li Changshou opened his eyes and smiled, pulling out two bottles of sugar beans pills, which Jiu Jiu snatched away.

Jiu Jiu laughed contentedly and said: "Let me play with that treasure of yours!"

"It's just a magical tool," Li Changshou said casually, drawing out the wolf-tooth club and handing it to his martial uncle. "With so many outsiders around, martial uncle, please don't go around causing trouble."

"Hmph! Am I that unreliable?" Jiu Jiu rolled her eyes, slung the wolf-tooth club over her shoulder, puffed out her chest proudly, and then flew off on a cloud.

Not long after, a scream echoed from afar—who it belonged to was unclear;

When the wolf-tooth club returned, its spikes were stained with immortal blood, and the disciples who caught sight of it dared not look further.

"Feels great!"

Jiu Jiu handed the wolf-tooth club back to Li Changshou. "Lend it to me again next time!"

Li Changshou's mouth twitched slightly, not daring to ask more, and put the club away.

The elder lecturing on scriptures and Dao principles that first evening was the deputy sect leader, Zhong Yu Shangren;

The old Daoist flew into the air and recited a few obscure passages that even he might not fully understand, then began explaining the Human Teachings' "Jiaoshan Jing."

Of course, he wouldn't discuss anything from the "Wuwei Jing."

That night, the disciples stifled their yawns and listened to the lecture.

The guests on the jade terraces had already returned to Du Xian Hall, where a banquet was held, allowing them to discuss the Dao leisurely and chat happily.

On the second day at dawn, the disciples were refreshed again as the second round of preliminaries began.

Jiu Jiu, who had sneaked off to Du Xian Hall for food and fun half the night, appeared on time behind Li Changshou and Ling E.

Jiu Jiu said:

"Little Ling E, keep pushing forward. When you go up later, be like yesterday—don't be afraid, make them cry!

As for you, Little Changshou...

If you face a female disciple, whatever you do, don't use that move from yesterday!"

"Don't worry, martial uncle," Li Changshou laughed. "I'll handle it appropriately."

It was unclear if Jiu Jiu's words had some uncanny effect, but on this day, in Li Changshou's 132nd match, his opponent was indeed a female disciple.

Today, there seemed to be no behind-the-scenes arrangements; the elders hadn't set up "evenly matched" fights.

This female disciple was only at the sixth tier of the Void Return realm, far below Li Changshou...

As Li Changshou flew on his cloud over the crowd of disciples and landed opposite her, the female disciple's face turned pale with shock.

Li Changshou stuck to his previous plan for this match: no Earth Escape, no wolf-tooth club—just use talisman arrays to force her to concede.

But to his surprise...

The two sect attendants stepped forward to check their jade slips, then retreated to the sidelines. As soon as one attendant raised his hand to signal the start, the female disciple stepped back two paces and stared at Li Changshou with full vigilance.

Li Changshou tried to smile warmly, and from his sleeves, he sent out some talismans—still the usual seventy-two...

This familiar opening routine...

"I concede!"

Li Changshou's movements halted abruptly;

The female disciple looked aggrieved and furious, gritting her teeth with eyes full of reluctance, as if she had suffered a great humiliation.

With those three words, she turned and flew away, her figure resolute.

Li Changshou: ...

What had he even done?

For a moment, the gazes around him were mostly ones of helplessness and reproach, with a hint of fear, as if he had truly bullied the female disciple.

Shaking his head, Li Changshou flew back to his seat on his cloud, sitting down with a slight sense of frustration.

This match today had been utterly baffling.

Yet, it wasn't just this one...

On the third day, in the third round, Li Changshou appeared at noon, facing an outstanding sect disciple ranked in the top hundred, who was at the ninth tier of the Void Return realm.

Before facing Li Changshou, this disciple's eyes were thick with wariness, constantly calculating on his fingers, as if trying to devise a strategy against Earth Escape and the wolf-tooth club with his meager divination skills.

This time, before the sect attendants could step forward, the disciple let out a long sigh...

"This technique of yours, I can't counter."

He bowed to Li Changshou and turned to fly back toward the crowd.

"Xiao Qiong Peak disciple, Li Changshou wins!"

Li Changshou: ...

No matter; there were still seven matches left, enough to restore his reputation.

Though when he used the Wind Whisper Spell now, he heard things like:

"Xiao Qiong Peak's ruthless one has already scared off two opponents."

"There's no way around it—his Earth Escape and wolf-tooth club are unbeatable... I hear that club is an immortal treasure that breaks protective immortal light."

"Ah, who knew there'd be such an unexpected powerhouse this time? We all underestimated this ruthless figure from Xiao Qiong Peak."

"What if we run into him tomorrow? What then?"

"Just concede. There are so many matches; it's unlikely to be that unlucky twice."

And so, on the fourth day...

The familiar face appeared before Li Changshou again, but the time had shifted from noon to afternoon.

Before the sect attendants could step forward, Li Changshou quickly said: "This junior brother, how about we face each other directly..."

"Why... why is it you again..."

The disciple looked helpless, tilting his head back with a long sigh. "It's fate, I suppose. In the end, I still can't crack your techniques.

There are always things in this world that can't be done—that's what my master taught me.

Why force oneself? The pursuit of cultivation is for freedom and ease.

Senior brother... I concede."

With that, he flew out of the arena, his figure desolate, as if a familiar melancholic tune were playing...

Li Changshou could only twitch his mouth a few times, watching the fourth mark light up on his jade slip, and flew back to his seat with a blank expression.

The words he heard through the Wind Whisper Spell were uniformly:

"What a ruthless guy—this junior brother is almost driven mad."

"It's just this junior brother's bad luck, though it's only the third time for him..."

"Hey, don't say that out loud—it might jinx us!"

Li Changshou's mouth twitched slightly, while Ling E beside him hesitated to speak but was quickly pulled aside by Jiu Jiu to discuss techniques for her upcoming match.

Ling E had four fights with three wins and one loss; she had previously lost to a senior sister ranked 72nd, so her own cultivation level remained unexposed.

On the fifth day, Li Changshou's "reputation crisis" finally saw a turnaround.

His opponent was Liu Sizhe, the current top immortal seedling of Dulin Peak, ranked sixth in the sect!

At last, a fair and evenly matched battle!

Li Changshou, this "hidden guardian of Du Xian Men" from the previous great calamity, felt a slight stir of excitement.

"Junior brother Liu," Li Changshou called out loudly, "today, let's give it our all in an open and honest fight. What do you say?"

Liu Sizhe forced a stiff smile and said seriously: "Today, I will properly experience senior brother Li's techniques. I won't back down like the others.

Besides, I have made some preparations."

Li Changshou felt a weight lift from his heart, suddenly overcome with emotion.

Look at that!

What is an immortal seedling?

This is what a true immortal seedling is!

Confident, composed, and graceful, perfectly embodying the spirit of contemporary Du Xian Men disciples and bringing honor to the sect!

As a fellow immortal seedling, Li Changshou couldn't help but feel a bit... proud.

Then, as the two sect attendants routinely checked their jade slips...

Liu Sizhe pulled out several treasures—being an immortal seedling of Dulin Peak, he naturally had plenty.

In particular, he had an immortal treasure-level armor. After taking it out and hesitating briefly, he undid it and tied it around his lower waist, protecting his vulnerable area.

Thinking it wasn't enough, Liu Sizhe took out another protective robe and carefully reinforced the spot.

Once done, he gripped a long sword and smiled slightly at Li Changshou.

"Senior brother, please teach me."