This also had a great deal to do with Mount Daqing Sect's decline. Currently, the population here was small, the sect rules were chaotic, and outer disciples only knew how to engage in chaotic battles. All these things demonstrated one point: Mount Daqing Sect was surely about to vanish from this world.
Pills were scarce; how could they be distributed? For instance, Condensing Spirit Pills in other sects were not restricted at all, being the amount of pills used by ordinary disciples. But here in Mount Daqing Sect, they had become treasures valuable enough to cause people to fight each other to the point of broken heads and bleeding faces.
As long as there was chaos, it was up to fate. Whether one was at Qi Condensation stage one or Qi Condensation stage five, chaos was chaos, death was death; there was no fairness here. Life and death were simply matters of fate. There was no talk of principles, and no one taught how to cultivate. With a single Qi Condensation Manual, whether one became a dragon or an insect depended on oneself: succeed and live, fail and die; be strong and live, be weak and die…!!!
Whoever could carve out a path to the end would become an inner disciple, considered a true member of Mount Daqing Sect, and would be noticed by the Sect Leader or Elder Ouyang.
Although Sect Leader He Luohua currently wished for the sect to prosper, he was pressured by the major sects of the State of Zhao. Therefore, he felt extremely weary and had long intended to leave. Grand Elder Ouyang, on the other hand, had a weak personality and usually only cared about his cultivation. With his lifespan not long now, he didn't put too much effort into the sect.
As for the inner disciples, Senior Sister Xu was in long-term secluded cultivation, her temperament cold, never asking about anything within the sect. Senior Brother Chen was also wholeheartedly devoted to the Dao, unwilling to participate in sect affairs. Therefore, only Shangguan Tu remained.
His cultivation was at Qi Condensation stage nine, and he was over ninety years old. He had knowledge of the sect, which led him to be counted among the Martial Uncles by the disciples. But this was only because Mount Daqing Sect had declined; if it were another sect, a Qi Condensation realm cultivator would absolutely not be called a Martial Uncle.
Meng Hao looked at Han Zong. In a flash, the other person's figure flew onto the stage. Han Zong's opponent was Zhou Kai. There was no life-and-death enmity between the two, so Zhou Kai quickly conceded, ending this battle.
In the last match of the first round, Meng Hao stood up and soared straight onto the martial stage. His opponent was a burly man with a cultivation of Qi Condensation stage five. His body was filled with killing intent; it seemed this person had also experienced quite a bit of slaughter.
The man merely glanced at Meng Hao, then let out a low growl. His entire body seemed to swell as he stomped his foot and charged straight towards Meng Hao. He raised his right hand, and a battle-axe appeared in his grip. A brilliant light flickered on it; clearly, it was no ordinary item.
Meng Hao's expression was grim; he said nothing. He simply patted his storage bag, and immediately, a flying sword shot out, speeding forward with extreme swiftness. But when it was about half a *zhang* from the burly man, a soft light suddenly emanated from his opponent's body, directly blocking the flying sword.
"Today, you will surely die!"
The burly man grinned, baring his teeth. Before he went on stage, Martial Uncle Shangguan had given him a magic treasure, so even if Meng Hao's cultivation was slightly higher than his, he had nothing to fear.
"Explode…"
Meng Hao's expression remained unperturbed. He uttered a sound, and the flying sword exploded, forcing the big man back a few steps. However, the protective glow covering his entire body was still intact, preventing him from suffering any injuries.
As he laughed loudly, preparing to charge, Meng Hao's figure was even faster. In an instant, he closed the distance. He slapped his storage bag with his right hand, and two flying swords shot out, immediately exploding. After that explosion, the protective glow twisted violently, and the big man's expression flickered. But before he could react, four more flying swords shot straight at him, exploding again. The protective glow was instantly ripped apart, and the energy slammed into the big man's chest, making him cry out miserably and spit out a mouthful of blood.
Before his body could even fall, another flying sword shot forth from Meng Hao, trailing small sparks as it pierced straight through the big man's throat. A jet of blood spurted out, and the big man collapsed to the ground, his body twitching a few times before he finally breathed his last and died.
Since joining the Reliance Sect, Meng Hao had rarely killed, but now, his actions were utterly ruthless. After the kill, he jumped off the arena, his gaze coldly fixed on Han Zong.
"Next, I'll kill you."
Having said that, Meng Hao sat down, crossed his legs, and closed his eyes.
Han Zong's eyes narrowed slightly, and his killing intent intensified.
The surrounding cultivators only now snapped out of their daze. Gasps of shock erupted as they were all shaken by such a bloody spectacle.
"Meng Hao wins. Second round begins: Wang Tengfei, Xu Ge."
Grand Elder Ouyang spoke impassively, as if he hadn't witnessed the bloody spectacle moments before.
This Xu Ge was the one who wanted to kill the little fatty. Now, he stepped onto the stage without hesitation and immediately conceded defeat, bowing respectfully to Wang Tengfei, then turned and hastily exited the arena.
By now, everyone must have realized that whether it was Han Zong or those cultivators at the fourth or fifth layers of Qi Condensation, their true goal was not to be promoted to the inner sect, but to kill Meng Hao.
"Second match: Meng Hao, Han Zong."
Grand Elder Ouyang gazed at Meng Hao for a long moment, then his voice resounded. All eyes settled on Meng Hao and Han Zong.
Meng Hao's expression remained as grim as ever as he stepped onto the stage. Han Zong also stepped up simultaneously. The two had no words for each other and immediately attacked.
Booming sounds erupted. Before Meng Hao, three flying swords hovered. Han Zong was enveloped in a protective glow, and before him was a banner, radiating five-colored light, which in an instant, shot straight towards Meng Hao.
Meng Hao said nothing. Just as the banner struck in a flash, he didn't retreat but advanced instead. He swung his left hand up, and a Fire Snake more than five *zhang* long condensed, letting out a roar and shooting straight forward. The flames transformed, making it seem no longer a mere snake, but a python. As it passed, the temperature of the surrounding space rose continuously.
Just then, Meng Hao slapped his storage bag with his right hand, and six flying swords instantly appeared, shooting straight out.
Han Zong let out a cold laugh, his killing intent surged fiercely. He took a step forward, pressed his left hand onto the ground, and let out a low growl. Then the entire arena trembled, and before him, a stone golem about one *zhang* tall appeared. The stone golem roared and lunged forward, colliding with the Fire Snake, followed by a loud explosion.
As the two sides clashed, sudden gusts of wind erupted around the banner, shooting straight towards the flying swords blocking Meng Hao. In a flash, a sharp glint appeared in Han Zong's eyes.
"Five-Pointed Art!"
The moment Han Zong shouted, the multi-colored banner trembled in response, streams of light shooting out in all directions. Two wisps of mist spewed forth, gradually transforming into two weeping ghosts that mournfully wailed as they charged straight towards Meng Hao. However, the second ghost-soul was rather dim, also because Han Zong's cultivation could only unleash it to this extent.
The moment these two ghost-souls charged out, they caused the surrounding cultivators to cry out in continuous alarm.
"This is Senior Uncle Shangguan's ultimate Five-Pointed Art! I heard that in the sect, it's the strongest magic art below Foundation Establishment. Senior Brother Han actually managed to unleash it!"
"Han Zong actually managed to unleash it! That's right, it must be because of that banner! Could it be a magic treasure refined by Senior Uncle Shangguan?"
The two ghost-souls shrieked with sharp, ear-piercing cries, charging forward with unstoppable momentum. The moment Meng Hao's six flying swords touched them, they were shattered by the two ghost-souls.