It was as though Chu Xinghan had vanished in an instant — not a trace remained, not a single clue to be found.
Master Shuiyue frowned. "None of you saw what happened?"
Moments ago, everyone had been watching Lian Canghai's match, and not a single person had paid attention to Chu Xinghan, whose life or death remained unknown. When Master Shuiyue asked, no one answered.
Long Juxue wore a dark expression. She scanned the surroundings for a brief moment, found nothing, and smiled faintly. "Master, why be angry? This man was surely afraid of death and slunk away. Even if he survived, after taking that palm of mine, he's nothing more than a cripple. My Azure Phoenix Freezing Qi froze every last meridian in his body. Even if he could hold out for a moment, he wouldn't last long."
Long Juxue was supremely confident in her own strength and harbored no worries whatsoever.
Even if, by some miracle, Chu Xinghan survived, she would not fear him in the slightest.
She was a born Innate Physique, the number-one genius of the sect, the one who carried all of the Purple Sun Sect's fortune and favor. Why would she worry about some cast-off disciple?
What had happened within Master Shuiyue's lineage had actually been witnessed by many people present, including several powerful figures within the Purple Sun Sect — some of whose status surpassed even that of Master Shuiyue.
But every single one of them chose to look away.
Because this matter involved Long Juxue. And right now, Long Juxue was the one who gathered the sect's collective fortune. Even those old monsters wouldn't dare hold her accountable lightly.
Otherwise, if a genius grew angry, the sect's losses would be catastrophic.
Venerable Zhuiyang had seen it all as well, though only the faintest hint of a smile touched the corner of his lips. In his heart, he felt not the slightest ripple of concern.
In truth, he had seen this sort of thing far too many times. He even found himself somewhat appreciative of Long Juxue's methods. Dominant, overbearing — that was precisely the foundation upon which the Purple Sun Sect stood!
Chu Xinghan's affair was like a small pebble tossed onto the surface of water. After stirring the tiniest ripple, it settled back into stillness.
No one would pay it much mind.
Chu Xinghan was nothing more than a minor disciple under Master Shuiyue — no distinguished status, no astonishing talent, and certainly no indispensable fortune.
One more made no difference; one fewer made no difference.
Aside from Zeng Shi, who felt a faint pang of sorrow in his heart, not a single person in the entire sect had troubled themselves over Chu Xinghan in the slightest.
And Zeng Shi's heavy thoughts were clearly not born of any deep bond with Chu Xinghan. It was simply the lament of a kindred spirit, the grief of one fox mourning another's death.
He could already see that Chu Xinghan's fate today would be his own tomorrow.
If before he had merely felt a sense of rejection toward Long Juxue, then at this moment he genuinely despised her overbearing dominance. Chu Xinghan had had no conflict of interest with her whatsoever, yet she hadn't hesitated to strike a killing blow. He, the former first disciple, had yielded his position but not before exchanging sharp words with her. With that woman's petty grudge-holding nature, would she let him off easily?
Zeng Shi was filled with despair.
Though he had already fought his way into the top sixteen in the earlier rounds, right now he couldn't find a single shred of happiness in his heart.
On the final day of the second round, the four great geniuses of the Heavenly Spirit District appeared once more, and each won without the slightest suspense.
And so, the list of the top sixteen was finalized.
Among them, the Purple Sun Sect had five, the Treasure Tree Sect had three, the Flowing Cloud Sect had three, the Myriad Spirits Sect had four, and one was a secular martial artist.
This roster largely matched the pre-tournament predictions.
The only jarring note was Jiang Chen, the secular martial artist, standing among the sixteen like a sore thumb — conspicuously out of place.
The Myriad Spirits Sect had originally been expected to secure only three spots, but no one had anticipated the emergence of Liu Wencai as an anomaly.
As for the Treasure Tree Sect, they had been virtually guaranteed four slots, but Liu Wencai's defeat of Tie Dazhi had introduced a small wrinkle into the top sixteen.
At this stage, of course, the decision rested with the four Venerables.
According to the rules established for the selection tournament, the top-sixteen geniuses who already belonged to a sect would in principle remain with their own sects.
With the exception of Jiang Chen, that secular monster.
In name, of course, the martial artists' own wishes were to be respected.
After all, this concerned their personal development and future prospects. If any sect disciple were especially unwilling to remain in their own sect, the sect couldn't force them to stay. They had to be allowed to leave.
That was the rule, but everyone understood perfectly well. Before departing, each sect leader had repeatedly drilled their geniuses, and it was essentially impossible for anyone to betray their sect and defect to another.
The next stage was the selection and distribution of the top sixteen geniuses.
They would go in order of ranking, from last to first.
Among the sixteen remaining, Liu Wencai's number was unambiguously the lowest. With a ranking of twenty-second, he had charged into the top sixteen — no small miracle.
After all, the one he had defeated, Tie Dazhi, had been ranked eleventh and was virtually guaranteed a spot among the top sixteen, only to be knocked out by this dark horse, Liu Wencai.