By the third day, hardly anyone was emerging from the Teleportation Array anymore.
Mo Tiange, like the other disciples, sat meditating on the mountain summit. While the Spiritual Qi here couldn't compare to the North Peak of Yunwu Mountain, it wasn't much worse than the South Peak. Most cultivators fought for every second of cultivation time—how could they waste it? Even the three sect masters and the Foundation Establishment Cultivators who had accompanied them were meditating diligently, not wasting a single moment.
During this time, Mo Tiange had stabilized her eighth-level cultivation. Moreover, her repeated Dharma Combat experiences had given her new insights into the use of Spiritual Qi, which she needed to carefully contemplate. Some things could only be truly understood through Dharma Combat; merely listening to lectures wasn't enough.
Time passed bit by bit. On the morning of the fourth day, the three sect masters and seniors in meditation opened their eyes one after another.
Sect Leader Li of the Zixia Sect said, "Time's up."
Sect Master Fang of the Yunwu Sect and Sect Master Jin of the Golden Blade Sect both nodded with grave expressions. Then, the three of them stood up, taking positions at three points around the Teleportation Array. Together, they channeled their Spiritual Qi and struck with combined force. An imposing pressure that the Qi Refining disciples could barely withstand spread out, and disciples from the three sects began appearing around the Teleportation Array in disarray. With another combined effort from the three sect masters, the Teleportation Array vanished from the mountaintop.
Mo Tiange took a look. Only about fifty or sixty people had appeared in total, most of them Zixia Sect disciples. The Golden Blade Sect had not a single one, while the Yunwu Sect, including Senior Brother Zhou and the other three, had only a dozen or so.
Seeing this, Sect Master Fang and Sect Master Jin both changed expressions, especially Sect Master Jin, whose face darkened as if ink could drip from it.
Mo Tiange also frowned. The strength of the Zixia Sect seemed to exceed expectations. This was merely a corner east of the Kunwu Mountain Range, without any major sects, only these three medium-sized sects standing in a tripartite balance, mutually restraining each other and presenting a united front against outsiders. If one side became excessively powerful, it was truly not a good thing; the balance would likely be broken.
Sect Leader Li of the Zixia Sect remained expressionless, smiling slightly as he said, "Fellow Daoists, we should tally the results now."
Sect Master Jin's face was still dark, while Sect Master Fang finally controlled his emotions and said, "As Brother Li says." With that, he walked over to the Yunwu Sect side and called out loudly, "Disciples, hand over all the opponent tokens you obtained! No tricks!"
After Sect Master Fang finished speaking, a Foundation Establishment Cultivator waiting nearby announced, "Those handing over tokens, come forward one by one. No pushing."
"Junior Brother Ye, let's go." Qin Xi, sitting beside her, turned and said.
Mo Tiange nodded, stood up, brushed off her sleeves, and followed the flow of people to line up at the side.
Not many had seized tokens. The Qi Refining disciples sitting on the ground, unmoving and looking disappointed, were those who had been eliminated in one go. Those lining up numbered only about a hundred.
It was soon Mo Tiange's turn. Taking the bag she handed over, the recording Foundation Establishment Cultivator's face flickered with surprise. After counting the number inside, he looked at her even more seriously and recorded, "Ye Xiaotian, a total of eighty-four tokens."
Mo Tiange bowed and stepped back.
"Qin Xi, a total of twenty-two tokens."
Hearing this, Mo Tiange paused for a moment, her feelings complex. Qin Xi had given her over twenty tokens. Not to mention the potential top-three reward, just the tokens themselves were worth two hundred Spirit Stones. If she weren't in such urgent need of Spirit Stones, she really wouldn't want to accept this favor—favors were the hardest debts to repay.
Returning to her original spot, Xu Jingzhi said with full of envy, "Junior Brother Ye, I really couldn't tell. Now you have hope of placing in the top three!" He had been greatly surprised upon hearing the record; he never expected there to be so many. That was a huge sum of money.
Qin Xi, who returned shortly after, said, "To be honest with Junior Brother Xu, the two of us pooled our tokens together to try for that reward. Splitting the reward is better than neither of us getting it."
Xu Jingzhi suddenly understood. "So that's how it is. Still, you two are quite impressive, managing to snatch over a hundred tokens."
Mo Tiange then added, "It was only because Senior Brother Liu was with us that we could fish in troubled waters. On our own, we might have been surrounded and eliminated early on."
Xu Jingzhi nodded. "That's true. Senior Brother Liu's techniques are really well-suited for Dharma Combat in Mist Valley."
Having successfully diverted Xu Jingzhi's attention, the two shared a smile. They were quite in sync in fooling people.
"By the way, where's Senior Brother Liu? He hit the jackpot this time. Holding out until the end gets him two bottles of Qi Gathering Pills, plus the rewards in hand... Sigh, selling those would also net a lot of Spirit Stones." Thinking of the luckiest Liu Yidao, Xu Jingzhi grew even more envious.
Liu Yidao's straightforward laughter came from behind them. "Three Junior Brothers, I owe my good fortune to you."
The three turned to see Liu Yidao walking over, looking tired but very happy. They all greeted, "Senior Brother Liu."
After exchanging greetings, Liu Yidao first thanked Mo Tiange and Qin Xi. "I haven't yet thanked you two Junior Brothers. If you hadn't risked mutual destruction to eliminate those few, we might not have held out."
Mo Tiange smiled. "Senior Brother Liu, what are you saying? It was just a a casual move move. I really couldn't hold out any longer at that point. If anything, I dragged Senior Brother Qin into it."
Qin Xi shook his head. "It was just coincidence. I only meant to lend a hand, but we ended up coming out together. Junior Brother Ye, don't mind it. Senior Brother Liu, don't take it to heart either."
As they discussed that Dharma Combat, Xu Jingzhi felt particularly jealous. "You three really have no consideration. Talk about it slowly when you get back. Discussing it in front of me like this, aren't you just provoking ing me?"
Hearing this, Liu Yidao laughed heartily and patted his shoulder. "Junior Brother Xu also deserves credit. Luckily, it was you and Junior Brother Jiang who encountered those five Golden Blade Sect disciples, or I would have been in trouble."
Xu Jingzhi rolled his eyes. "Senior Brother Liu, you you're provoking me even more!"
Liu Yidao laughed again, and Mo Tiange couldn't help but shake her head with a smile. Actually, she was lucky, wasn't she? Using the identity of Ye Xiaotian, she had made these friends. Regardless of what the future held, she should cherish today's camaraderie.
After the three sects finished recording, the three sect masters gathered again. Sect Master Jin of the Golden Blade Sect still looked displeased. Sect Leader Li of the Zixia Sect wore a smile. As for their own Sect Master Fang of the Yunwu Sect, he no longer wore a grim expression. Because the tally just now showed that although not many from the Yunwu Sect had held out until the end, the number of tokens obtained was extremely high, finally saving face.
What the three sect masters discussed, these disciples couldn't hear. But they dispersed after just a short while. At the sect master's call, each led their disciples away on flying treasures.
Several hours later, back at the Yunwu Sect's square, the sect master finally announced, "Disciples, our Yunwu Sect's performance in this Mist Valley competition was acceptable. However, you must not become complacent. You must know that we still lag far behind the Zixia Sect and must continue to strive. Very well, the Mist Valley competition has concluded. I will now announce the rewards for the final victors and the top three token holders."
Seeing the names reported by the Foundation Establishment disciples, Sect Master Fang frowned slightly but said nothing, announcing loudly, "Thirteen final victors. I now announce the names: Zhou Jin'an, Liu Yidao, Li Rongsheng, Murong Zi, Wang Qianyi, Shen Bing... The three with the most tokens are: Zhou Jin'an, ninety-two tokens; Ye Xiaotian, eighty-four tokens; Li Rongsheng, seventy-six tokens. I hope other disciples will take them as examples, cultivate diligently, and strengthen our Yunwu Sect. That's all. You've worked hard for three days; all return and rest. Token rewards will be distributed tomorrow. Disciples who obtained the final victor and top-three rewards, please go to the Administration Hall to collect them."
Hearing the confirmed result, Mo Tiange breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, she had accepted Qin Xi's tokens; otherwise, she wouldn't have gotten this reward. She immediately said a word to Qin Xi and Xu Jingzhi and went with Liu Yidao to the Administration Hall.
Liu Yidao patted her shoulder and laughed. "You and Junior Brother Qin were clever. Getting this reward isn't much worse than being a final victor."
Liu Yidao was a full head taller than her and very strong. Mo Tiange grimaced from his pat. "Senior Brother Liu, your Junior Brother is quite frail. Don't use so much force."
Seeing her expression, Liu Yidao quickly withdrew his hand, looking puzzled. "I say, Junior Brother Ye, you seem to be eighteen, right? How are you still so skinny? Your waist is as slender as a girl's."
Mo Tiange hurriedly said, "I just grew up small, there's nothing I can do! Maybe I'll grow taller later!" Her waist was slender? Then she'd wrap a few more layers when she got back...