The sun hadn’t risen yet.

The Qingzhou Ancient City was already overcrowded.

In particular, the venue of the Sword Dao Meet was extremely crowded. If not for the fact that there were contestants who helped to clear the path, there would probably be no chance for them to practice and try.

The Qingzhou Sword Dao Meet was held in the arena of the Qingzhou Ancient City, which was rather spacious and housed hundreds of rings. There was no time limit for each round, but if the victory wasn’t decided within two hours, both fighters would be considered to have failed. However, there was no such restriction for the top eight.

The Sword Dao Meet was a test of swordplay and sword momentum. Hence, theoretically, any cultivator would be allowed to participate, regardless of whether they were Qi Refinement cultivators or Foundation Establishment cultivators. The only premise was that no cultivation beyond the Qi Refinement realm was allowed. Those found flouting that rule would be disqualified.

That was the reason Sikong Jiantian could register for the competition.

“Fang Xiaoming, Chen Sheng, Ring No. 26.”

“Xu Jingteng, Wang Bubai, Ring No. 17.”

“Ye Ping, Li Changye, Ring No. 78.”

As the announcements were made, the participating cultivators in the resting area of the Qingzhou Sword Dao Meet stood up and walked towards the rings.

At the resting area, Ye Ping was a little nervous, and it got worse when he heard his name again.

For him, it was his first time competing in swordsmanship.

He didn’t know how strong he was, but he felt that he was better than ordinary people. However, the problem was that the Qingzhou Sword Dao Meet was full of hidden experts, so who knew how strong his opponent would be?

Besides, he thought that Su Changyu who had imparted the Sword Dao to him was a peerless Sword Immortal. To put it bluntly, it would be an insult to Su Changyu if he was compared to an ordinary person.

Thinking of this, Ye Ping could not help but become more nervous.

He walked out of the main hall and headed towards Ring No. 78.

Soon, he saw a figure.

His opponent, Li Changye, was clad in an outfit that was extremely similar to Su Changyu’s, and he looked cold and suave.

However, the difference was that his looks and aura were inferior to Su Changyu’s. Besides, Su Changyu had an indifferent and solitude aura that was like that of a peerless expert.

However, that man’s coldness was due to his arrogance as he disregarded everything in the world.

Ye Ping stared at Li Changye.

Similarly, Li Changye also felt Ye Ping’s gaze.

At this moment, it was already dawn.

As a golden ray of sunlight was cast on his body, Li Changye slowly shifted his gaze onto Ye Ping who was standing near him.

“First level of Qi Refinement?”

When Li Changye saw through Ye Ping’s realm, a look of disappointment appeared in his eyes in an instant.

Yes, it was disappointment.

He initially thought that the first opponent in his life might not be overpowering, but he shouldn’t be too weak either.

However, he never expected it to be a cultivator who was only at the first level of the Qi Refinement realm.

He was just a weak Qi Refinement cultivator.

He was disappointed.

He was overwhelmed with disappointment.

At this moment, Li Changye could not help but retract his gaze and look into the distance with some vague arrogance.

It was the first battle of his life.

It was also the start of his road to invincibility.

Before this, he was full of expectations but was also slightly nervous.

He was looking forward to the beginning of his path to immortality.

He was nervous because he was unsure if he could bear the title of the world’s number one.

However, everything had now disappeared.

Li Changye somehow had a different epiphany, as if he was emptying himself.

However, Li Changye somehow felt melancholic.

All of a sudden, he felt that he would feel rather lonely if he became the best in the world.

The world is vast, and if he didn’t have a friend or an enemy, it was because he was too invincible.

At the thought of this, Li Changye got increasingly sorrowful.

However, he soon exhaled and smiled calmly.

Although he was destined to be lonely on that path, he had to take the pressure since he wanted to be the best.

Some people were born to be the brightest star, while others were born to be dull like dust.

‘I’m destined to be the brightest star in the world while Ye Ping is born to be a speck of dust.’

He then looked at the surrounding spectators, all of whom were beautiful women.

However, Li Changye did not feel any joy at all. On the contrary, he felt very normal. Not only was he a genius in the Sword Dao, but he was also a rare hunk in this world.

‘It’s only normal that I’ve attracted the attention of these female cultivators, but I’m destined to be the best Sword Immortal in the world. How can I be lustful and be attracted to the beauty of women?’

‘I’m sorry to disappoint you, but you’re lucky because you’re going to witness the first battle of the future top Sword Immortal of the world.’

‘This battle will be remarkable enough to be recorded in the history books, you are the witnesses of this glorious part of history. I’m so glad for you.’

Li Changye had a lot of thoughts in mind.

However, not far away, groups of female cultivators also started discussing.

“Sisters, is this Li Changye sick? Why does he keep looking at us while smiling like a fool?”

“Exactly, is he sick? Does he think he’s very good-looking?”

“He’s just a copycat and I feel so repulsed when I see him. Sisters, ignore him, he’s just a nobody.”

“Yeah, yeah, looking at this guy, I know he’s a nobody. If it’s not for the fact that he’s fighting against Junior Brother Ye Ping today, I wouldn’t want to look at him at all.”

The female cultivators were discussing softly.

At this moment, someone suddenly noticed Ye Ping appearing and started exclaiming loudly.

“Ah! Junior Brother Ye Ping is here. Sisters, Junior Brother Ye Ping is here.”

“What? Where is he? Where is he? Oh, I see him, I see him. Junior Brother Ye Ping, I like you so much!”

“Ahhh! It’s really Junior Brother Ye Ping! He’s so handsome!!!”

“Wow, Junior Brother Ye Ping is here. He seems to have gotten more suave than he was a few days ago.”

“Ah, look, Junior Brother Ye Ping has just taken a glance at me. I can’t stand it anymore, I’m about to faint.”

“Stop it, I’m wet.”

“???? Is that necessary? You can get wet from that too?”

“Ye Ping, Ye Ping!”

At this moment, the entire Sword Dao Meet was in an uproar, and the hundreds of voices sounded at the same time, attracting countless gazes.

Even the cultivators above the ring, who were waiting for the sword trials to begin, couldn’t help but look over.

Their appearance had long attracted a lot of attention, and in the beginning, they thought that this group of female cultivators were there to watch the trials.

However, they didn’t expect that all of them were actually there for Ye Ping.

In an instant, countless male cultivators looked dejected and envious.

They were envious of Ye Ping’s popularity but also dejected because they were already prepared to perform well. But to their surprise, the numerous female cultivators were all there for Ye Ping.

“Junior Sister, didn’t you say you would shout and cheer for me? How can you do this?”

Someone above the ring felt extremely bitter when he realized that his Junior Sister was cheering for Ye Ping too.

“Senior Brother, focus on the competition. Ah, ah, Ye Ping, Ye Ping, the best in Qingzhou.”

The latter casually responded before cheering for Ye Ping again.

Su Changyu and Ye Ping had indeed attracted the attention of a large number of female cultivators outside Qingzhou Ancient City a few days ago. There were even a large number of female cultivators who were divided into two camps.

One side supported Su Changyu while the other supported Ye Ping. There were tens of thousands of female cultivators who were all beautiful.

Not far away, Ye Ping didn’t expect himself to be that popular.

To be honest, even when he was famous for his literary talent, he had a lot of admirers, but they weren’t that crazy over him.

‘Indeed, immortal cultivators know what’s up.’

Amidst the screaming and swooning of the female cultivators, Ye Ping walked into Ring No. 78.

“I’m Ye Ping from the Qingyun Dao Sect. Greetings, Fellow Daoist.”

After stepping onto the platform, Ye Ping bowed at Li Changye out of courtesy, which made him look amicable and refined.

“Li Changye from the Nameless Sword Sect. Greetings, Fellow Daoist.”

Li Changye bowed simply.

Although he was arrogant, he had basic manners.

After the two of them bowed to each other simply, Li Changye looked at the group of women with some surprise. He didn’t expect that those female cultivators were actually there for Ye Ping.

However, he wasn’t dejected or angry. Instead, he was full of a sense of anticipation.

If he easily defeated Ye Ping later, what would happen to them?

It was indeed very interesting.

Thinking of this, Li Changye looked at Ye Ping again. The sword trial hadn’t started yet, and there were still 15 minutes to go. He was in a particularly good mood for the first battle.

Hence, he couldn’t help but speak, “You’re lucky to have met me.”

Li Changye said with a smile.

“Huh? Fellow Daoist, what do you mean?”

Ye Ping was a bit confused about what he meant.

‘Why am I lucky?’

What does that mean?

“You’ll know later.”

Li Changye did not explain and instead revealed a meaningful smile.

Ye Ping found it familiar.

‘Oh right, Li Changye’s mouth is a little crooked when he smiles, very much like Second Senior Brother.’

Soon, a voice suddenly sounded.

“The Sword Dao Meet has officially begun. The cultivators outside the venue, please stay quiet. Do not cause any loud noises and affect the conference.”

As the voice sounded, everyone watched the Sword Dao Meet which officially began.

Li Changye looked at Ye Ping with a meaningful glance.

His thoughts were simple.

‘Am I going to embark on the path to invincibility soon?’