Three days after Lin Chen's humbling defeat of Xiao Chen, the entire Qingyun Sect erupted into a frenzy for the long-awaited Core Disciple Competition. For the inner sect's hundreds of Foundation Establishment disciples, this was their only chance to earn one of the 10 precious spots in the Myriad Beast Secret Realm—a once-in-a-hundred-years opportunity to claim the Ancient Dragon God Inheritance, and rise to fame across the entire Eastern Region.
The stands of the inner sect's main arena were packed to the brim with tens of thousands of disciples and elders, all buzzing with excitement. But on Chaos Peak, Lin Chen remained completely calm, sitting cross-legged in his core cultivation cave, his mind focused on stabilizing his newly perfected Peak Foundation Establishment cultivation.
As the first rays of dawn spilled over the mountain peaks, the familiar cold mechanical voice rang in his mind.
[Ding! Daily sign-in refresh completed! Do you want to sign in now?]
A faint smile tugged at the corner of Lin Chen's mouth. This sign-in would be critical preparation for both the competition and the dangerous secret realm ahead.
"Sign in."
[Ding! Sign-in successful! Congratulations to host for obtaining:
1. Cultivation Perfection: Perfect Peak Foundation Establishment (invincible below the Core Formation realm, capable of withstanding full-power attacks from early-stage Core Formation experts)!
2. High-Grade Heaven-Rank Skill: Team Amplification Divine Aura (boosts all teammates' attack power by 30% and defense by 50% within a 100-meter radius)!
3. Special Item: Golden Core Suppression Talisman x3 (temporarily suppresses an early-stage Core Formation cultivator's power by 50% for 30 seconds)!
4. Special Item: High-Grade Spirit Healing Pills x50 (instantly heals severe wounds and restores spiritual power for teammates)!
5. Spirit Stones: 400,000!]
Boom!
A warm, boundless surge of chaotic spiritual energy flooded Lin Chen's body, solidifying his Peak Foundation Establishment to absolute perfection. His golden core glowed with a blinding golden light, his Primordial Chaos Divine Body strengthening to a level where even a full-power strike from an early-stage Core Formation expert could not leave a scratch on him. At the same time, the profound knowledge of the Team Amplification Divine Aura flooded into his mind, a rare heaven-rank support skill that would make his entire secret realm team far stronger than the sum of its parts.
Lin Chen slowly opened his eyes, a sharp light flashing through them before fading away. He stood up, slung the Thunder Dragon Blade over his shoulder, and stepped out of the cave. Using his Thunder Dragon Steps, he arrived at the packed arena in the blink of an eye.
The moment he walked into the arena, the entire crowd fell silent. Every disciple and elder turned to look at him, their eyes filled with awe and reverence. The Sect Master, sitting on the highest platform, smiled and nodded at him, while the First Grand Elder's face turned cold and sour, his gaze avoiding Lin Chen's. His favorite disciple Xiao Chen was still in seclusion, recovering from the humiliation of his one-sided defeat, and his faction's influence had crumbled overnight.
The Grand Elder stood up, and the entire arena fell dead silent. His deep voice boomed across the stands, filled with the power of a Core Formation expert. "The Qingyun Sect Core Disciple Competition officially begins today! The rules are simple: all Foundation Establishment inner sect disciples will compete in a knockout tournament. The final 9 disciples standing, along with Lin Chen, will form our sect's team for the Myriad Beast Secret Realm! Lin Chen, as the pre-determined team captain, is exempt from the preliminary rounds, but may accept challenges from any competing disciple at any time!"
The crowd erupted into cheers. The tournament began immediately, with hundreds of disciples stepping into the arena to fight for their chance at the secret realm. Most matches were brutal, drawn-out battles, with disciples pushing themselves to their absolute limits to win. But a few standout talents quickly rose to the top.
First was Qin Lie, the former inner sect chief disciple. Thanks to Lin Chen's guidance on fixing the fatal flaws in his sword art, he had broken through to Perfect Peak Foundation Establishment, his strength growing exponentially. He defeated every opponent with ease, his Qingyun Divine Sword Art now flawless and unstoppable, earning thunderous cheers from the crowd with every victory.
Next was Su Qingyue, the sect's most talented young alchemist, a late-stage Foundation Establishment disciple with a peak-grade spirit root. She combined her alchemical expertise with precise spiritual control, using non-lethal poison pills and smoke barriers to disable her opponents without throwing a single punch, winning her matches with calm, calculated precision.
Then came Wang Yan, a quiet, unassuming array genius, and Li Feng, a stealth and tracking specialist with years of experience hunting demonic beasts in the sect's outer mountains. Both won their matches with ease, their unique skills making them invaluable additions to any secret realm team.
By the end of the first day, the preliminary rounds were over, and only 32 disciples remained for the final knockout stage. The entire sect was buzzing with talk of the standout talents, but all anyone could really talk about was whether any disciple would dare to challenge Lin Chen for the captain's position.
On the second day of the competition, as the final 16 disciples were about to be decided, the answer came. A tall, cold-faced young man in a black inner sect robe jumped into the center of the arena, pointing his sword straight at Lin Chen's seat on the high platform. This was Liu Feng, Xiao Chen's junior brother, one of the First Grand Elder's most trusted disciples, a Perfect Peak Foundation Establishment expert with decades of training.
"LIN CHEN!" Liu Feng roared, his voice echoing across the arena. "You're just a lucky new disciple who got by on a fancy spirit root! You have no experience leading a team, no right to be our captain! I challenge you to a duel right now! If I win, I take your spot as captain! If I lose, I withdraw from the competition entirely! Do you dare?!"
The entire arena fell dead silent. The crowd gasped, shocked that someone would dare to challenge Lin Chen after his one-sided defeat of Xiao Chen. The First Grand Elder sat back in his seat, a faint, cold smile on his face, not making a move to stop his disciple.
Lin Chen stood up slowly, and the entire crowd held its breath. He walked down from the platform and stepped into the arena, facing Liu Feng ten meters apart, his expression completely calm and indifferent.
"Fine. I accept your challenge. But I'll add one rule: if you lose, you will apologize to every disciple here for wasting their time, and admit that I am the rightful captain of this team." Lin Chen's voice was cold and steady, echoing across the silent arena.
Liu Feng's face twisted with rage. "Arrogant brat! You'll regret those words!"
The referee elder raised his hand. "Begin!"
The moment the words left his mouth, Liu Feng exploded into action. He drew his top-grade spirit sword, and a blinding white light wrapped around the blade. He activated the Qingyun Sovereign Sword Art, the peak heaven-rank technique only the First Grand Elder's disciples were permitted to learn, pouring every ounce of his spiritual power into a single, devastating strike. A 100-meter-long sword beam shot forward, slicing through the air, the force of the attack shaking the entire arena.
The crowd screamed in shock. This was Liu Feng's full power, an attack strong enough to injure even an early-stage Core Formation expert. No one thought Lin Chen could survive it without using his full strength.
But at that moment, Lin Chen activated his Chaos Insight Divine Eye. The world around him slowed to a crawl, and he saw every single flaw in Liu Feng's sword beam, every gap in his technique, every weakness in his spiritual power circulation.
He didn't draw his Thunder Dragon Blade. He didn't even move from his spot. Instead, he took a deep breath, and a faint golden glow wrapped around his body. He raised a single hand, and pressed his palm forward casually, meeting the devastating sword beam head-on.
Boom!
The sword beam slammed into Lin Chen's palm, and exploded into nothingness in an instant. The entire arena shook, dust flying everywhere, but Lin Chen stood completely unharmed, not a single hair on his head out of place.
Liu Feng stared at him in shock, his mouth hanging open, unable to believe what he had just seen. Before he could even react, Lin Chen's figure appeared in front of him in a flash of blue thunder. He flicked his wrist, and a gentle burst of spiritual power hit Liu Feng's chest.
Liu Feng let out a soft gasp, and his body went flying across the arena, slamming into the barrier at the edge with a sickening crash. He fell to the ground, his sword shattered, his spiritual power completely dispersed, unable to stand back up.
In less than two seconds, the duel was over. Lin Chen had defeated a Perfect Peak Foundation Establishment genius with a single casual flick of his wrist, without even drawing his weapon.
The entire arena was dead silent for a full ten seconds.
Then, the crowd erupted into a deafening cheer, so loud it shook the Qingyun Mountains. Tens of thousands of disciples chanted Lin Chen's name over and over, their eyes filled with absolute awe and reverence. Even the First Grand Elder's face turned pale with humiliation, and he looked away, unable to meet Lin Chen's gaze.
Lin Chen walked over to the fallen Liu Feng, and looked down at him calmly. "Your sword art is too rigid, too focused on raw power. You rush the fourth form of the technique, leaving your dantian completely unguarded. Fix that flaw, and you might one day break through to Core Formation."
Liu Feng stared up at him, his face twisted with shame, but his eyes filled with disbelief and gratitude. He had spent years struggling with that exact bottleneck, and no elder had ever been able to point out the flaw so clearly. He pushed himself to his knees, and bowed deeply to Lin Chen.
"I was wrong, Captain Lin Chen. You are the rightful leader of this team. I apologize for my arrogance."
The crowd cheered even louder. In that moment, every single disciple in the sect accepted Lin Chen as their unshakable captain.
By the end of the second day, the competition was over. The final 9 spots were filled by Qin Lie, Su Qingyue, Wang Yan, Li Feng, and five other powerful, talented disciples, each with unique skills that would be invaluable in the Myriad Beast Secret Realm.
The Sect Master stood up, and announced in a loud voice that echoed across the arena. "The Qingyun Sect's Myriad Beast Secret Realm team is officially formed! Lin Chen will serve as the team captain, with full authority over all decisions during the mission! All team members will obey his orders without question!"
The crowd erupted into thunderous applause. Lin Chen stepped onto the platform, and handed each of his 9 teammates a pouch filled with high-grade healing pills, defensive talismans, and personalized cultivation notes he had written for them, using his Chaos Insight Divine Eye to address each of their individual bottlenecks.
Every single teammate stared at the pouches in their hands, their eyes filled with shock and sincere gratitude. They had expected a strict, arrogant captain, but Lin Chen had given them more support and guidance than any elder in the sect ever had. In that moment, they swore to follow him to the ends of the earth.
But just as the ceremony was about to end, a disciple from the sect's gate guard flew into the arena, his face pale with urgency.
"Sect Master! Captain Lin Chen! Emergency news! A group of geniuses from the Heavenly Sword Sect, Pill Cauldron Sect, and Demonic Wind Valley have arrived at our mountain gate! They're shouting insults, demanding to challenge our secret realm team! They say they want to see if our so-called geniuses are just useless trash before the Myriad Beast Secret Realm opens!"
The entire arena fell dead silent. The crowd erupted into furious shouts. The Heavenly Sword Sect's team was led by Ye Chen, an 18-year-old early-stage Core Formation genius, the most famous young talent in the entire Eastern Region, and the favorite to claim the Ancient Dragon God Inheritance. They had come to the Qingyun Sect's home to provoke them, to crush their morale before the secret realm even opened.
The Sect Master and the elders' faces turned ice-cold with rage. But before they could speak, Lin Chen stepped forward, his voice calm and steady, filled with unshakable confidence.
"Since they've come all this way to our door, we shouldn't keep them waiting. I'll go meet them. I want to see exactly what the Eastern Region's so-called top geniuses are made of."
At that moment, the familiar cold mechanical voice rang in his mind.
[Ding! New side mission triggered!]
[Mission: Defeat the provoking geniuses from the hostile sects at the mountain gate.]
[Reward: 500,000 Spirit Stones, High-Grade Heaven-Rank Sword Skill: Primordial Chaos Dragon Sword Art, and Dragon Soul Blood Essence x1!]
A faint, cold smile tugged at the corner of Lin Chen's mouth. He gestured for his 9 teammates to follow him, and walked toward the mountain gate, his steps steady and unwavering.
He knew this was just the first clash before the Myriad Beast Secret Realm. The real danger, the real battles, were still ahead. But with the Supreme Sign-In System, and his loyal team at his side, nothing could stop him.
His journey from trash to Immortal Emperor was only just beginning.