Inverse Sword Mad God
Chapter 438 - 438 437 Ten Core Disciples

438: Chapter 437: Ten Core Disciples 438: Chapter 437: Ten Core Disciples Before long, the entire Big Banner Sect knew that Lord Iron Hand had brought back a young man, and that this young man was also participating in the selection competition for the coveted spots.

“Did you know?

I saw that kid the other day, and his cultivation was only at the middle stage of Spirit Merging Realm.”

“Middle-stage cultivation?

And he has the nerve to compete in the selection battle for spots?”

“Who knows, could he have some connection to Lord Iron Hand, perhaps a backdoor entry?” someone wondered.

“Impossible.

Lord Iron Hand is the epitome of fairness and impartiality, and even if there were any backdoor dealings, they would be useless.

Even if you pass the selection battle by such means, if your strength doesn’t hold up at the Azure Dragon Society, you will still be laughed at.”

Everyone shook their heads, unable to understand why Lord Iron Hand would recommend a youth at the middle stage of Spirit Merging Realm to participate.

“Have you heard the news from Desolate Flame City?

That kid named Lin Xuan, although he only has the cultivation of the middle-stage Spirit Merging Realm, defeated Chou Sihai and Duan Wuqing.”

“He defeated Chou Sihai and Duan Wuqing!” the crowd exclaimed in surprise.

These two were well-known to them; although not top-tier prodigies, they were nonetheless regarded as masters of their own right.

A martial artist with middle-stage Spirit Merging Realm cultivation defeating these two clearly indicated his extraordinary talent.

“It seems this kid might have the strength of someone at the peak of Spirit Merging Realm.”

“I also heard that this kid has mastered two types of Mental Realms, namely the Wind Realm and Sword Intent.”

“What?

Two Mental Realms!” the crowd gasped in amazement—the news was explosive!

Mastering two Mental Realms was rarer than overcoming opponents of higher levels.

You see, with a powerful treasure, it might be possible to defeat someone of a higher level.

But mastering two Mental Realms is not something just anyone can achieve; even the average prodigy cannot accomplish this.

“I didn’t expect this ordinary-looking kid to be such an exceptional talent.”

“However, as formidable as he is, it’s still going to be tough for him to compete for a spot.

There are only five places in the selection, and there’s no shortage of devilish geniuses here.”

Indeed, within the Big Banner Sect, those ranked at the very top were prodigies capable of slaying Spirit Transformation Realm martial artists.

So even though Lin Xuan was a devilishly talented individual, the masses did not rate his chances highly.

“Considering his age of only seventeen or eighteen, Lord Iron Hand must be planning on grooming him well.”

“With his talent, he will definitely be able to participate in the next Azure Dragon Society, and with the mastery of two Mental Realms, he could very well break into the top 100!”

The people nodded, increasingly convinced this must be the case.

The Azure Dragon Society took place once every ten years.

In ten years’ time, Lin Xuan would only be twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, fully eligible to compete.

Everyone agreed that Lin Xuan was being considered as a seed player for the next generation.

When Lin Xuan heard these rumors, he simply smiled indifferently.

He did not attempt to justify himself, deciding to let the outcome of the selection reveal the truth.

However, during his stay at the Big Banner Sect, he was approached by an acquaintance.

“Brother Lin, it really is you!

I can’t believe we’re meeting again,” Yi Qianxing strode in.

“Brother Yi, it’s been a long time,” Lin Xuan greeted him with a smile.

“Brother Lin, are you really going to participate in the selection battle for the spots?” Yi Qianxing asked.

He couldn’t believe it when he first heard the news.

When they had first met, Lin Xuan’s strength was roughly on par with his own, but then he heard that Lin Xuan had defeated Chou Sihai and Duan Wuqing.

This came as a great shock to him.

After all, each advancement in the Spirit Merging Realm was incredibly difficult and also required the accumulation of time.

But it seemed Lin Xuan had shattered this perception, and what shocked him even more was that Lin Xuan intended to compete in the selection battle.

Knowing that the Big Banner Sect was a top-tier force with countless geniuses, and that the Ten Core Disciples were incredibly powerful, far surpassing the likes of Duan Wuqing.

Seeing Lin Xuan nod, Yi Qianxing sighed.

“Brother Yi, why don’t you tell me about the participants in the battle for the quota?”

“Alright,” Yi Qianxing slowly said, “There are a total of ten people participating in the Azure Dragon Society’s quota battle, which are the Big Banner Sect’s Ten Core Disciples.”

These people’s cultivations were all above the peak of the Spirit Fusion Realm, with two having reached the limit of the Fusion Spirit Realm.

Moreover, these individuals all possessed the strength to contend with Spirit Transformation Realm Martial Artists, with the top-ranked devils even capable of slaying Spirit Transformation Realm Martial Artists.

Lin Xuan briefly compared and found that the level of the Ten Core Disciples was not much different from what he had experienced before, and now that he had broken through to the Late-stage Spirit Fusion Realm, he thought that the difficulty of securing a quota should not be too great.

“However, Brother Lin, if you really want to participate, you must be careful of two people,” Yi Qianxing said.

“Oh, the two at the peak of Fusion Spirit Realm?”

“Not just them.

One is Ouyang Kun, the number one Core Disciple.

His cultivation is at the limit of Fusion Spirit Realm, but his strength allows him to easily slay Huahua Spirit Transformation Realm Martial Artists.”

“The other is Hua Fei, ranked seventh, who specializes in soul attacks, which are incredibly tricky.”

“Ouyang Kun, Hua Fei.” Lin Xuan silently memorized these two names, then asked for some more information about the others.

…

After seeing off Yi Qianxing, Lin Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.

Hearing this news, he realized those Core Disciples were undoubtedly genius fighters.

Luckily, his advancement to the Late-stage Spirit Fusion Realm meant he could handle these individuals.

Ten days swiftly passed by.

During this time, Lin Xuan thoroughly solidified his Late-stage Spirit Fusion Realm cultivation, and the Azure Dragon Society’s quota battle also began.

The Big Banner Sect became bustling on this day.

All the Disciples gathered together, and most of the elders were also present.

Lin Xuan followed Yi Qianxing to the plaza.

Looking at the dense crowd, a flicker of excitement surged in his heart; as long as he got the Azure Dragon Society’s quota, he could participate in the Azure Dragon Society.

Then, if he obtained the True Dragon Qi, he would be able to discern the location of the Great Dragon Sword.

“Brother Lin, those are the Ten Core Disciples,” Yi Qianxing said.

Lin Xuan looked over and saw ten figures standing proudly among the crowd, all wearing Iron Blood Battle Robes, their auras powerful.

“That there is Ouyang Kun,” Yi Qianxing said softly.

At the very front of the Core Disciples stood a man with an ordinary appearance but eyes gleaming like lightning, like a fierce beast lying in wait.

“Lord Ouyang Kun, our Big Brother, is thirty years old this year.

He has participated in the last Azure Dragon Society and can be said to have a wealth of experience.”

“Participated once before?” Lin Xuan was greatly surprised and observed Ouyang Kun carefully.

“Yes, Big Brother Ouyang Kun participated ten years ago, but he wasn’t very successful then due to his young age.”

The proud figure felt Lin Xuan’s gaze, turned his head in silence, and his eyes shone with divine radiance, piercing through the void.

When he saw Lin Xuan, he remained expressionless and quickly turned his head away.

Lin Xuan was inwardly startled by the man’s potent aura.

“And that girl with dimples, that’s Hua Fei.

She’s only eighteen this year but has reached the peak of Spirit Fusion Realm.”

“Plus, it’s said that her soul has reached the level of a Four-star Rune Master.”

“Four-star Rune Master?” Lin Xuan was taken aback.

These days, he had never stopped cultivating his soul power, so if strictly calculated, his soul had also reached a four-star level.

This time, before Lin Xuan could even look, the dimpled young girl had already looked his way.

“Hehe, are you that Lin Xuan?” the girl’s voice rang out in Lin Xuan’s mind, “You look pretty ordinary, huh!”