When it came to the ranking battles of the Young Master Ranking, a round-robin format was naturally out of the question.
At this level of genius, once a battle broke out, it could easily become a peak showdown lasting three days and three nights without a clear victor.
With a round-robin format, the ranking battles might drag on for a year or even longer without reaching a conclusion, and the ferocity of the fights would be absolutely extreme.
The previous Young Master Ranking had merely been a preliminary assessment — a ranking jointly compiled by the various lineages of the seven Great Emperors.
Though it held no practical significance, the ranking still carried some reference value.
Most people's positions on the list aligned quite closely with their actual standing. The trouble was, such a ranking had never been validated through real combat.
Thus, this final ranking tournament would determine the Young Master Ranking's ultimate positions. It would also give many dissatisfied geniuses a chance to challenge for a higher rank.
And it would let those ranked near the top prove themselves.
Outside Jiang Chen's seclusion chamber, the members of Taiyuan Pavilion had gathered in a loose ring around the perimeter, their expressions betraying varying degrees of tension. The Young Master Ranking battles were about to begin, yet Jiang Chen still hadn't emerged from seclusion. It had everyone a little worried.
Word had already gotten around that this Glazed King's Tower Tournament was of paramount importance. If Jiang Chen performed brilliantly in the Battle of the Martial Tower, there was a chance the Peacock Grand Emperor would name him as the Young Master of Peacock Sacred Mountain.
This rumor had started as mere gossip in small circles, but as the Battle of the Martial Tower progressed and Alchemist Zhen's fame continued to swell, the news spread further and further, gathering vivid detail along the way, until it became the hottest topic on every street and alley of Glazed King's City.
Within Taiyuan Pavilion, the news was met with a mixture of belief and doubt — Jiang Chen had never once breathed a word of it to any of them.
Aside from Huang'er, who had some vague awareness, none of the others had ever heard a thing.
And so, upon hearing this news, they were enormously excited. Whether or not it was true, even the bare possibility of such a rumor was enough to send them into wild elation.
The Young Master of Peacock Sacred Mountain — just the thought of it was enough to make their blood surge.
If this turned out to be real, the significance for Taiyuan Pavilion would be absolutely momentous. Taiyuan Pavilion was growing larger by the day, but nominally it remained merely an alchemical venture co-founded with the Wei family. Its underlying weight and influence still fell somewhat short.
But if Jiang Chen could become the Young Master of Peacock Sacred Mountain, Taiyuan Pavilion would undoubtedly rise with the tide to become the undisputed foremost power in Glazed King's City.
In that case, every member of Taiyuan Pavilion would benefit.
Taiyuan Pavilion's personnel — its core members were essentially Jiang Chen's close companions. This also included the ten slave attendants Jiang Chen had once chosen.
Those ten slave attendants had been rescued by Jiang Chen and compelled to pledge themselves to Taiyuan Pavilion's service for twenty or thirty years, becoming its Protectors.
But as Taiyuan Pavilion flourished — with Alchemist Zhen presiding over it, along with his three alchemy disciples, Alchemist Lu Feng, Alchemist Bu, and Lin Yanyu, each one a top-tier alchemist in his own right — the prosperity of Taiyuan Pavilion was plain for all to see.
As a result, the reluctance in their hearts had completely vanished, replaced by deep gratitude and pride.
As Taiyuan Pavilion's reputation soared ever higher, so did their own standing within it, giving them a vision of the future, a sense of hope, something to strive toward.
In the past, they had been single-mindedly focused on fulfilling their contract as quickly as possible and leaving Taiyuan Pavilion.
Now, with the way things were going, even if Taiyuan Pavilion brandished a knife and tried to drive them out, they would absolutely refuse to go.
Now, even they themselves had to admit that they had thoroughly bound their fates to the ship of Taiyuan Pavilion.
Therefore, the honor and disgrace of Taiyuan Pavilion, its future, its ups and downs — all of it had become thoroughly intertwined with their own destinies.
Beyond these ten slave protectors, Taiyuan Pavilion's main forces also included the disciples of Danqian Palace, who held high status within the organization. With Shen Sanhuo at their core, they formed Taiyuan Pavilion's main contingent.
These people, sheltered by Taiyuan Pavilion, could be considered its greatest beneficiaries.
Without Jiang Chen's rescue, they would already have fallen into slavery — driven and ordered about by others, scattered who-knows-where, mere walking corpses.
Compared to the other fellow disciples of Danqian Palace, they were unquestionably the most fortunate.
During the great calamity that befell the sect, the majority of their fellow disciples had perished, with a smaller number scattered to the four winds, their fates unknown. That they could live as peacefully as they did — and even thrive ever more — was nothing short of extraordinary luck.
And all of this had been bestowed upon them by Jiang Chen, by Taiyuan Pavilion.
The current Danqian Palace disciples — to say they were so content they never thought of home might be putting it a bit strong, but there was no question that they had come to regard Jiang Chen as their pillar of support, their psychological anchor, the great tree that sheltered them.
Naturally, they were deeply concerned about Jiang Chen's prospects.
If Senior Brother Jiang Chen could become the Young Master of Peacock Sacred Mountain, Taiyuan Pavilion's status would surely rise, and when the day came to rebuild Danqian Palace, it would be a simple matter.
Neither the Indestructible Sky Capital nor the Crimson Cauldron Central Region would be able to withstand the might of Peacock Sacred Mountain and stand in the way of Danqian Palace's reconstruction.
All of this hope rested on Jiang Chen alone.
With Jiang Chen as the core, their efforts within Taiyuan Pavilion took on meaning. Without Jiang Chen, no matter how much they improved, it would be all for nothing. With their current strength and potential, even the most rapid growth would be insufficient to challenge the Indestructible Sky Capital and the Crimson Cauldron Central Region.
But with Jiang Chen, anything was possible.