Chapter 80 The Grace of a Prodigy (1/2)

Leng Shuangrong instantly returned to her throne after announcing the start of the Gathering of Practitioners. The First Elder of her sect, Tong Yixing, walked up again and explained the rules of competition, elimination, the competition system, timings, lodging arrangements as well as other matters to take note of to the practitioners.

After listening to the brief, Wang Bugui felt that the Gathering of Practitioners was very similar to the Olympics. The arrangements were comprehensive and adequate, and the only thing it lacked was variety. There was only one prize in everyone's mind, and it was to seize the title at the end of the competition. Either that, or be ranked top 16. Only the top 16 would be allocated resources for cultivation or be rewarded with magical artifacts.

The first contest was a huge battle royale between groups of 50 practitioners each. The last 16 who survived would progress to the next round of competition, where they would be allowed to pair up. There would be 10 battle zones, and those competitors that were struck out of their zone would be deemed to have lost. They could make use of various magical artifacts and forbidden items during the battle royale, but they could not kill and had to stop upon defeating their enemy. Otherwise, the life of the aggressor would also be forfeited.

The second competition would take place on the second day, and the 16 in their respective groups who survived would take part in tag team competitions. The winners would advance to the next stage, and similarly there was no restrictions on artifacts or forbidden items, and no killing was allowed.

The third contest was fixed on the third day, and the last eight practitioners would compete in teams of two again. They would carry on until the last two survivors emerged, and they could only use restricted items thrice only. Rule flouters would be eliminated.

The fourth competition would take place the day after that, and the last two survivors of their group would face off to determine the top 16 competitors. The final victor would receive a Essence Cleansing Pill that would help him or her cleanse his or her essence and body. Use of restricted items was limited to one time, and rule flouters would be eliminated.

After that, the fifth round of competition would begin. Every day, half of the remaining competitors would be eliminated until the final contest. They were forbidden to use restricted items, but they could use forbidden arts.

Likewise, they were forbidden from killing their opponents and could at most cause serious injuries on each other. Competitors who achieved different ranks would be rewarded separately. The top eight contestants would receive pills, while the top four would obtain different kinds of magical artifacts. The ultimate prize was not revealed.

The entire meet would last for eight days, and the various sects could reside in any of the eight smaller peaks, while recreational practitioners were allocated rooms on the holy peak which faced the main peak. Separate areas were allocated for each sect, and any sect that tried to snatch the territory of another sect would be eliminated. Practitioners belonging to sects could reside with the recreational practitioners, but they could not provoke them. They would also be held responsible for any incident directly resulting from such actions.

After Tong Yixing finished explaining the rules, he drew out a jade plate and spun it on his palm, causing it to float into the air. He then infused his divine aura into the object and quickly drew magical signs with his hands. Soon enough, the plate began to emanate bright divine lights of 10 colors.

The 10 rays of divine light shot out in eight directions, and they segregated 10 areas of different colors as they landed.

There were 50 practitioners in each zone, and they were the elite of the sects. They had undergone an internal selection process prior to the meet, and those that were eliminated had come just to witness the Gathering of Practitioners. After all, talent, fate and other factors determined how far one could go in cultivation, and geniuses were few and far between.

Most people were of mid-level talent or even mediocre practitioners. They had no way to compete with those slightly more talented than them without leveraging on hardworking, smarts and luck, what more the geniuses from the famous lineages.

The elders felt that it would be better for their own peers in their sects to teach them this cruel fact, rather than the prodigies of other sects. Allowing them to witness the competition at the sides would allow them to recognize the gulf between themselves and true prodigies, and perhaps even trigger some promising talents to make up their minds and be stimulated after taking in the various techniques of other sects.

Each meet was like this; the contestants were not destined to become famous people after taking part in them. Some practitioners who were among the audience would be greatly inspired and emerge; such happenings were common. It was a gathering filled with the unknown and chance encounters.

The audience standing outside of the battle zones were praying for their peers and ready to watch an intense battle. The contestants on the parade square were also ready to go.

A huge bell appeared above each battle zone, and everyone began to secretly channel their prana power or take out their magical artifacts as they prepared to strike. Every one's heart was different, but most of the contestants were feeling nervous and clenched their fists tightly.

The atmosphere reached a fever pitch, and it was so quiet that even a falling pin could be heard at this point in time. The deafening silence was as terrifying as the calm before a storm.

”Clang!”

A clear and loud sound of a bell rang out and reverberated throughout the parade square, and it sounded as if it had come to them from ancient historical times itself. It broke the deathly silence pervading the parade square, and the first contest, the battle royale, was thus kick started.

”Rumble! Rumble!”

”Charge!”

”Hyah!”

”Watch your back!”

...

The bell stopped ringing, and after a short respite, the battle began. The sounds of magical artifacts clashing kept ringing out and they mixed in with the growls and shrieks of the contestants. When the fighting began, the contestants belonging to the same sect grouped together, turning the battle royale into a clash of sects.

The recreational practitioners were the first targets of the sect members. There were not many of them, and they formed groups of three at most. As such, the sects tried to eliminate them first.