Chapter Twenty-Four: The Young Sect Master Tournament

In the blink of an eye, the day of the Great Dao Sect’s Young Sect Master competition had arrived.

From early that morning, a steady stream of figures arrived from the foot of the mountain, bearing gifts to offer their congratulations to the Great Dao Sect. Lin Qingxuan, already occupying the position of the heir apparent, greeted the incoming guests with a radiant smile.

At the competition arena, the masters of the various peaks sat in their designated seats, showering Venerable Heavenly Sword with endless flattery and praise. Below the stage, one hundred thousand disciples of the Great Dao Sect stood as witnesses to the birth of their new Young Sect Master. Among them were many who had once competed against Lin Qingxuan for the title; having been defeated long ago, they now stood among the crowd, sighing in dejection.

Lin Qingxuan, already dressed in the robes of the Young Sect Master, stood upon the stage like its guardian. His dashing and elegant demeanor drew the admiration of countless female disciples in the sect. Backed by the four great families and several powerful sects who had pledged their support, he felt invincible.

"Once I kill that dog of Lin Jun’s today, the Myriad Laws Peak will finally be mine. It shall become the new peak of the Young Sect Master." Standing on the stage, Lin Qingxuan harbored these thoughts, his lips curving into a smirk. He cast a glance at the beauties offered by the various sects, his triumph unconcealed.

"Lin Jun arrives!"

At the sound of a shout, Lin Jun and his small group strolled in from behind the crowd. As they appeared, the disciples present scattered in a flurry, terrified of being associated with him. Lin Jun did not mind; he simply smiled, walked directly to his seat as the Master of Myriad Laws Peak, and sat down, with Ji Qingyou attending to his side.

"Hmph." Venerable Heavenly Sword let out a cold snort and looked away, his eyes filled with thinly veiled murderous intent.

On the stage, Lin Qingxuan’s booming voice rang out: "Uncle Master Lin Jun, a month ago you said you would use this dog you raised to defeat me."

"The time has come. Don't say that I, Lin Qingxuan, am bullying you and your disciple. Out of respect for the fact that your disciple is merely a dog, I won't have it said that I bullied a beast. Today, I shall fight with one arm tied behind my back—I'll give it a chance!"

With that, Lin Qingxuan smiled faintly. His righteous and magnanimous display immediately drew a wave of praise from the crowd.

"Well said! Such character is truly worthy of being our Young Sect Master!"

"I am fully convinced that Senior Brother Lin should be our Young Sect Master."

"With a Young Sect Master like this, the future of the Great Dao Sect is secure!"

"Senior Brother Lin, are you still in need of a woman? I would be honored to be your maid!"

"Excellent!" The head of the Zhang family, one of the four great families, stood up laughing and looked around. "Since this is such a grand occasion, why shouldn't the Zhang family add a prize? I offer one hundred thousand Red Gold Jade stones as a reward for the Young Sect Master!"

"Haha! How could the Zhou family be left out of such a grand event?" another interjected. "The Zhou family adds one million spirit stones to the reward! Congratulations in advance to Young Master Lin for securing the position!"

"The Wang family offers ten profound-grade artifacts!"

"The Pill Cauldron Sect offers ten furnaces of profound-grade Longevity Pills!"

"The Myriad Phenomena Pavilion offers the special treasure, the 'Map of a Thousand Miles of Mountains and Rivers'!"

As the heads of the various families stood up one by one to add their contributions, the prize pool for the Young Sect Master grew into a small mountain. The treasures within were enough to make even a Nascent Soul cultivator turn green with envy.

"Woof?" The little black dog looked back at Lin Jun, its expression inquisitive.

"Go on. All these things are yours. Bring back the title of Young Sect Master." Lin Jun smiled at it, his eyes full of encouragement.

Those nearby witnessed this scene and burst into mocking laughter. The head of the Zhang family sneered, "I say, Peak Master Lin, surely you don't actually have high hopes for this dog?"

"What a display of deep master-disciple affection," the head of the Wang family sighed theatrically. "It seems Peak Master Lin really does treat this dog as his true disciple."

The head of the Zhou family feigned nervousness. "You all had better be careful! I heard Peak Master Lin practiced the evil arts of the Seven Killings Sect and his cultivation is unfathomable. Watch out, or he might take your lives!"

"Is that so? I'm so scared!" the master of the Myriad Phenomena Pavilion teased.

"Hahaha!" The group erupted into laughter. Venerable Heavenly Sword and the other peak masters smiled as well. Regardless of how Lin Jun had temporarily acquired his strength, after today, he would be completely purged from the Myriad Laws Sect.

Receiving his master's affirmation, a flash of cunning crossed the little black dog's eyes. It walked toward the arena, feigning trembles, and even stopped to relieve itself along the way. Seeing this, the crowd burst into renewed mockery.

"Hahaha! Look at that! Lin Jun’s dog disciple is so scared it wet itself!"

"Just as useless as its master! I thought it might be different after being trained by Lin Jun’s dark arts."

"Tsk tsk, to think such a cur is allowed on the stage. Lin Jun’s failure to act with dignity makes it impossible for him to continue holding the position of Myriad Laws Peak Master!"

"Exactly! In my opinion, the Myriad Laws Peak should become the new peak for Senior Brother Lin!"

"They share the same surname anyway; it wouldn't be a big deal to swap them!"

Lin Qingxuan looked at the little dog, which had been scared into wetting itself before even stepping onto the stage, and felt a surge of disdain. He masked it well, however; after the previous battle, the position of Young Sect Master was already within his grasp, so he just needed to maintain his air of authority.

Watching the smug Lin Qingxuan on stage, Lin Jun smiled slightly. "Nephew Lin, are you certain you won't give it your all? I’ll warn you in advance: my disciple is quite formidable. I’d hate for you to get hurt."

"Hahaha..." Lin Qingxuan threw his head back and laughed, his eyes filled with unconcealed mockery. "Don't you worry, Uncle Master Lin. Without your misguided influence, I am many times stronger than I was before. If I can't even beat your dog disciple, I, Lin Qingxuan, shall commit suicide right here!"

"Of course, blades have no eyes. I suggest you prepare yourself, Uncle Master. If your dog dies, try not to cry. You can always find another one; I’m sure you won't be too heartbroken. Haha!"

Lin Qingxuan couldn't help but laugh again. The world slandered him as heartless and a traitor to his sect; today, he would make them realize that it was all Lin Jun’s fault!

*Whoosh!*

A flash of murderous intent flickered in his eyes, and black mist began to rise from his body. Yet, at that very moment, the little black dog, which had appeared so terrified just a moment ago, suddenly erupted with thunder. In an instant, a burst of lightning formed and tore directly through Lin Qingxuan before he could even react!