The First Match of the Main Tournament
The rumors about Baek Cheong had already spread like wildfire across Ja-undae by the time the fourth preliminary round concluded. It was because she had swept through all four of her matches without once drawing her sword.
After the initial group preliminary, three more one-on-one rounds had followed, yet not a single opponent capable of standing in her way had appeared right up until the final preliminary. The cultivators who stepped onto the stone platform all fell one after another without managing to put up any real fight. Nearly a thousand talented individuals from the Qi Condensation division had competed, but only sixteen earned the right to set foot on the stone platform at Ja-undae.
The ten victors who had advanced through the final one-on-one preliminaries had already taken their spots, while the remaining six positions went to those who had shown exceptional talent despite their losses. When the outer sect elders gathered to select those final six, a brief discussion took place.
“This child may have lost, but it would be a waste of such fine potential to exclude them from the main tournament.”
“They had the misfortune of facing the Heavenly Bridge of the Yeonha Baek Family right from the first round. It was simply bad luck.”
Coincidentally, three of the six selected had been the ones who knelt before Baek Cheong. Kicking them out of the main tournament simply because they had lost to her—without her even swinging her sword—would have been ridiculous. They were all peers talented enough to aim for a spot in the main bracket. In fact, the fact that they had faced Baek Cheong and fallen was starting to be seen as a badge of honor that proved their own caliber.
Before long, the Foundation Establishment preliminaries also came to an end. Just like in the Qi Condensation division, sixteen were selected, completing the roster for the main tournament.
...
In the center of Ja-undae, on a stone platform built noticeably larger than usual, thirty-two people ascended one by one. Sixteen from the Qi Condensation division took their positions on one side, while sixteen from the Foundation Establishment division lined up opposite them.
Among the latter, many exuded an aura befitting Foundation Establishment cultivators. One tall, imposing wanderer caused the stones beneath his feet to tremble faintly just by stepping onto the platform. A Biun Sect disciple wearing their signature robes kept his eyes closed yet still emanated a heavy, oppressive presence that weighed down on everyone around him. The gap in realm was obvious compared to the Qi Condensation disciples. Anyone watching could feel the true weight of the main tournament.
Yet the attention of the cultivators packed into the spectator seats was focused somewhere entirely unexpected. Among the sixteen Qi Condensation disciples, their eyes kept drifting toward one particularly small, young little daoist.
It was because the events of the preliminaries had spread from mouth to mouth.
Finally, someone lowered their voice to a near whisper and added one more line.
Even the Foundation Establishment cultivators standing on the platform kept stealing glances at Baek Cheong with sidelong looks. Meanwhile, Baek Cheong herself stood perfectly still, politely adjusting her robes while receiving all those gazes.
Well, it doesn’t feel bad.
Outwardly she kept her eyes demurely lowered, but inwardly she didn’t exactly dislike the flood of attention pouring her way.
Meanwhile, in the family seating area of the spectator stands, Baek Gyu watched his younger sister with a heart that refused to settle. He had warned her so many times not to get hurt, yet she had gone and completely overwhelmed the very peers who had been aiming for the main tournament—without even drawing her sword.
While he had been away from the main house staying at the sect, the only news he had received about his sister came from a few lines in his parents’ letters or the occasional rumor. He had known that she was learning alchemy from Yakseon and had been taken in by the Pacheon Geomjon, but he had never imagined her talent would shine brightly enough to dominate a stage like this.
While this older brother was away, our Cheong has already come this far on her own...
Worry and pride tangled together, making it impossible for his heart to find peace. Still, seeing his sister standing perfectly fine on the platform without any serious injuries brought him a small sense of relief.
In contrast, Baek Muyeong beside him watched the platform with a relatively calm expression. He had predicted his niece would reach the main tournament long ago. Considering the single-strike pills, the multi-layered spells, and all the other talents she had displayed so far, this outcome felt almost inevitable.
The only thing that had worried him was whether his niece might seriously injure her peers during the Biun Sect’s event. If she crippled the child of an outside family or a Biun Sect disciple, it could damage the reputation of the Yeonha Baek Family.
Yet his niece had never drawn her sword despite having it at the ready, and none of those who fell had suffered serious injuries.
She’s even learned how to control her strength.
Baek Muyeong unconsciously let a faint smile touch his lips. The little niece who used to be so unpredictable when she first left the main house had now grown into someone who knew how to read the room and act accordingly. It filled him with immense pride.
She’s grown so much.
Moreover, reaching the main tournament without a single sword in hand on a stage like this would undoubtedly raise the name of the Yeonha Baek Family even higher in the near future.
Soon after, an outer sect elder stepped forward from one side of the platform.
“We shall now begin the long-awaited main tournament. The Qi Condensation division will compete first in sequence. Those whose names are called, please step forward to the center of the platform.”
The main tournament, like the previous one-on-one preliminaries, would be a series of direct confrontations between cultivators. When the outer sect elder lightly tapped the jade plaque in his hand, the participation plaques of the Qi Condensation disciples began glowing one after another, determining the match order.
And for some reason, the very first plaque to emit a bright light was once again in Baek Cheong’s hand.
Me again?
Baek Cheong looked down at her participation plaque with a slightly sour expression. She had been called first throughout the preliminaries, and now she had claimed the very first spot in the main tournament as well.
This damn plaque always calls me first.
Grumbling inwardly, she still walked toward the center of the platform. From the opposite side, a Qi Condensation cultivator slowly walked out to meet her.
It was Seo Jua, dressed in a dark brown robe adorned with numerous golden jade bracelets that jingled as she moved.
Uh... why her of all people...
Meanwhile, Seo Jua was swallowing despair as she stared at the young little daoist standing across from her. To think that her very first opponent in the main tournament would be Baek Cheong. Having watched from afar as Baek Cheong dominated the preliminaries, she knew better than anyone what kind of opponent she was facing.
She had prayed to reach the main tournament safely while skillfully avoiding Baek Cheong, yet here she was, matched against her right at the very first match.
...This lady couldn’t rely on luck forever, I suppose.
At the same time, she felt a strange sense of relief that what was bound to come had finally arrived. After all, it had been this lady who had first issued the challenge to compete for supremacy.
Seo Jua secretly tensed her trembling legs and lifted her head high. She straightened her robe collar, puffed out her chest with full confidence, and steadied her voice so it wouldn’t shake.
“Baek Cheong little daoist! It seems the time has finally come for this lady to show you what she is truly capable of!”
Her crisp, clear voice was filled with the self-assurance befitting a child of the Hosan Seo Family. On the surface, she looked completely unyielding and proud.
...Is that really just one year older?
Meanwhile, Baek Cheong quietly observed Seo Jua as the girl deliberately thrust out her chest for all to see. The ‘this lady’little daoist who kept referring to herself that way was only one year older than her. Yet for some inexplicable reason, what she was flaunting seemed far too developed to belong to someone merely a year ahead.
Did she stick her dantian in her chest or something?
At some point, both her height and body had stopped showing any signs of further growth. Every time she stood in front of the mirror, she looked exactly the same as last year and the year before, which had left her feeling rather glum. Still, she had tried to console herself by thinking that to an alchemist like Yakseon, such trivial physical development was hardly worth worrying about.
But now, right in front of her, a growth monster who was only one year older was proudly puffing out her chest for everyone to see.
Is she doing that on purpose?
The longer she stood there facing her, the more something inexplicable surged up from deep inside. Before she realized it, her hand had moved toward the inside of her sleeve and was now gripping the Ilseong Sword—its dark navy sheath edged with silver trim.
She had grabbed the sheath before she even knew what she was doing. The moment strength began to flow into the hand holding the sheath, Baek Cheong barely managed to regain her senses.
If she drew the Ilseong Sword now, the sword intent of the Meteor Wave would naturally manifest. No matter what defensive measures the growth monster had, her life would clearly be in danger.
No, I can’t...
No matter how monstrous her development was, she couldn’t just cut a person down.
I can’t kill her.
Baek Cheong gathered every last ounce of patience she could muster from within her small chest and slowly released her grip on the sheath. She tucked the Ilseong Sword back inside her sleeve and let out a long breath.
Throughout all of this, Seo Jua—completely unaware—continued to stand proudly with her chest thrust forward, facing Baek Cheong with a triumphant expression. When she saw Baek Cheong’s face suddenly harden, she flinched inwardly but also felt a surge of smug satisfaction.
Finally, this lady is no longer being underestimated!
In her own mind, she believed Baek Cheong had finally begun to take her seriously. She had no idea what Baek Cheong had actually been thinking when she grabbed and then released the sheath.
However, while she had put the sword away, Baek Cheong had never intended to go easy on her from the very beginning. The smile on Baek Cheong’s lips grew even deeper.