The rules of the competition were simple: admit defeat, forfeit, or fall off the stage.
Due to the fact that weapons would be used in the martial arts competition, it was inevitable that there would be injuries during the fight. However, killing was not allowed. Every ring would be strictly guarded by the deacons sent by the three great families.
If anyone killed during the competition, they would be captured and killed.
After all, the participants were the elites of the various clans, and no one wished for the next generation of the clan's pillars to die.
As the time came, the clan leaders and elders of the various clans brought their younger generation into the arena.
In a moment, the surrounding people began to discuss among themselves.
"Look, the Xue and Qin Clan's clan leaders are here."
"Four years ago, the Xue and Qin Clans both had people in the top fifteen."
"The Zhong Clan is here as well, and the one leading them is their elder from the previous generation."
Some of the smaller clans entered the arena and chose their seats.
These seats were determined by the rankings from four years ago, and no one could just randomly stand there.
Not long after, the arena was filled with people from the various great clans. It was truly a sea of people, and it was very lively.
"Look, it's the Lan Clan."
"It's Lan Jianren personally leading the team. He was one of the top ten experts in the last competition. Back then, he was just a low-level Mystic Cultivator, but his strength should have improved even more now."
"In recent years, the Lan Clan's strength has increased greatly, and this year, they may be even stronger."
"Look, it's Li … Tianhao, the top five experts in the last competition."
"Four years have passed, and this year, he's a popular candidate for first place."
"The Ling Clan's Ling Feng is here as well. There's going to be a good show."
"Isn't that right? That earth-shattering battle between Li Tianhao and Ling Feng is still unforgettable. I wonder who will be the one to die this time."
"Don't forget about the Luo Brothers, they're here as well."
After all the representatives of the clans had arrived, eight figures dashed towards the high platform from eight different directions.
In a moment, everyone was shocked.
Eight elders appeared on the stage, with the Ling Clan's Ling Cang, the Li Clan's Li Qianzhong, and the Luo Clan's Luo Xiangming in the middle.
The other five were the leaders of the smaller clans as well as the elders of the previous generation. Every single one of them had unfathomable strength and were at least Spirit Masters. Otherwise, they wouldn't have the right to sit together with the leaders of the three large clans.
The Lan family's patriarch, Lan Zhenfeng, sat next to Li Qianzhong. He cupped his hands and greeted, "Brother Li, this year's champion position belongs to your Li family."
Lan Zhenfeng flattered Li Qianzhong as if he was showing off to Ling Cang.
"Haha, brother Lan is too polite." Li Qianzhong replied modestly, but his eyes were filled with arrogance. It looked like he was determined to obtain the position of champion this time.
Li Qianzhong and Lan Zhenfeng were talking in public. This was a message that their Li family and Lan family had indeed formed an alliance.
At this moment, the Luo Clan's Patriarch, Luo Xiangming, looked at Ling Cang and smiled, "Brother Ling, when will you come to our Luo Clan to propose marriage?"
Luo Xiangming's words were really shocking!
When Li Qianzhong and Lan Zhenfeng heard this, they were so scared that they almost bit their tongues. The small and medium-sized family representatives were also shocked.
If the Ling family and the Luo family formed an alliance, what would this mean?
If two of the three great families formed an alliance, it would probably cause a huge earthquake in Meteorite City!
Even Ling Cang himself was shocked. He asked in confusion, "Brother Luo, what do you mean?"
"Brother Ling, don't you know that your family's Ling Xiao and my granddaughter Shuang 'er are in love?
My Shuang 'er said that she won't marry anyone other than that brat Ling Xiao. Could it be that brother Ling is looking down on my Luo family? "Luo Xiangming frowned.
"Brother Luo, your words are too serious. Xiao 'er has always been independent and has the guidance of the Grand Elder. I rarely interfere in his matters. I really don't know what's going on between him and your granddaughter." Ling Cang quickly replied. He was pleasantly surprised!
He really didn't expect that his grandson Ling Xiao had actually hooked up with the Luo family's granddaughter. As long as the Ling family and the Luo family had a marriage, all the internal problems would naturally be solved.
"Brother Ling, now that you know, you can state your position," Luo Xiangming said indifferently.
Li Qianzhong, who was standing to the side, was furious!
He had previously asked his grandson to propose to the Luo family, but the Luo family had rejected him. It turned out that the Luo family had taken a liking to the Ling family. Moreover, it was that stinky brat that he hated the most!
"Good, Luo Xiangming. Once we destroy the Ling family, your Luo family can forget about staying in Meteorite City!" Li Qianzhong exclaimed in his heart.
Ling Cang laughed heartily, "Since brother Luo has put it that way, if I, Ling Cang, refuse, then wouldn't that be too inconsiderate? Once the competition is over, I'll send someone to send the betrothal gifts."
"Shuang 'er is my most beloved granddaughter. Your gifts can't be light!" Luo Xiangming laughed.
"Naturally." Ling Cang stroked his beard with a smile.
At that moment, another two figures flew up from below.
"We shouldn't be late, right?" A clear voice came from one of the figures.
In an instant, the three clan heads and the other five people on the platform all stood up to greet the newcomers.
The newcomers were two old men. One was dressed in a light yellow robe and had a slightly plump body. He had a warm smile on his face, giving off an amiable and approachable feeling. He was the one who had spoken just now. The other was dressed in a gray robe. He had an indifferent expression on his face and was extremely tall and thin. Standing among the crowd, he gave off the feeling of a crane in a flock of chickens.
"Grandmaster Li, Grandmaster Yuan!" The three clan heads and the other five people called out in unison.
Of these two people, only Meteorite City's Grandmaster Li Yu and the mysterious second grade alchemist Yuan Ping of the Spirit Herb Hall could receive such a respectful welcome from the three clan heads.
After Li Yu and Yuan Ping returned the greeting, Li Yu directly walked up to Ling Cang and cupped his hands, saying, "I've long wanted to pay a visit to brother Ling. After the competition, I hope brother Ling won't mind coming to your residence to drink a cup of wine."
Li Yu's words were a bit loud, so everyone on the platform heard him clearly.
Everyone was even more shocked!
As the only Grandmaster Artificer in Meteorite City, Li Xu's status was on an equal footing with the Patriarchs of the three major families. Previously, the three major families had tried to recruit Li Xu, hoping that he could become their Elder.
Unfortunately, Li Yu didn't like to be restricted, so they all rejected them.
However, he still maintained a good relationship with the three clans and maintained a neutral position. No one had ever heard of him favoring any of the three clans. Now that he had expressed his goodwill to Ling Cang in front of everyone in the hall, how could the crowd not be shocked?
If Li Yu really had a good relationship with the Ling family, then the Ling family's prestige would soar in the future. Their position as the chief of the three clans would become unshakable, and even the Li and Lan families wouldn't dare to have any designs on them.
Although Li Yu was only one person, his rallying power was quite astonishing.
For a moment, everyone's thoughts were running wild. Some of the mid-sized and small clans' representatives were thinking of ways to build a relationship with the Ling family.
Ling Cang himself didn't understand what was going on. Luo Xiangming's attitude was understandable, but with Li Yu's temperament, he had never given face to anyone. Why did he suddenly change his attitude?
However, Ling Cang didn't think too much about it and immediately replied with a smile, "If Grandmaster Li can come to my residence as a guest, Ling Cang will naturally welcome you with open arms. Our Ling family may not have much, but we do have a lot of century-old wine."
"That's good. Right, Xiao 'er came to participate in the competition today, right? I'm waiting to see if he can make it into the top five," Li Yu asked.
"Because of Xiao 'er again?"
Ling Cang's heart trembled, and he immediately asked, "Grandmaster Li knows my good-for-nothing grandson?"
"Haha, speaking of which, I have to thank Xiao 'er. If he hadn't saved my son, I would have had to send him off. He is our family's benefactor, and I even made him recognize me as his foster grandfather. Brother Ling, you don't mind, do you?" Li Yu smiled.
"Grandmaster Li, you want Xiao 'er to recognize you as his foster grandfather?" Ling Cang was at a loss.
"What? Are you looking down on me, Li Yu?" Li Yu said solemnly.
"No … of course not, I couldn't ask for more!" Ling Cang hurriedly waved his hand in response, but his heart was in turmoil.
His grandson was really making him more and more surprised. The future of the Ling family would rise because of him.
With the arrival of all the family representatives, the competition was about to begin.
First, the patriarchs of the three major families would speak, and then the families would present their bets and rewards. These were all handed over to Li Yu and Yuan Ping for safekeeping. After the final rankings were determined, they would distribute the bets and rewards. They could be considered as the judges of this competition.
Everything was ready, and the competitors prepared to draw lots to determine the arena and opponents.
Ling Xiao followed the leaders of his family, Ling Feng, and the others to the nearest lottery box to draw lots.
At that moment, an indifferent voice came from the side, "Ling Feng, long time no see."
The one who spoke was a gloomy young man. Although he couldn't be said to be handsome, he gave off a calm and mature feeling. However, his eyes were like that of a venomous snake, making people feel very uncomfortable.
He was the leader of this generation of the Li family, Li Tianhao. Four years ago, he was already a low-level Mystic cultivator at the age of 21. Now that he was 25, he had probably broken through to the mid-level Mystic cultivator.
On the Ling family's side, a young man dressed in a golden martial outfit flipped his hair and looked at Li Tianhao, "Li Tianhao, I didn't expect you to also advance, but this is more fun. I hope you don't lose too quickly."
Li Tianhao smiled proudly, "Ling Feng, you're still so arrogant, but I wanted to return these words to you. Don't forget that four years ago, you were defeated by me, and this year … will not be an exception."
Ling Feng seemed to have been hit on his sore spot, and he clenched his fists tightly. Squinting his eyes, he said, "Just you wait, I will return the humiliation from four years ago double."
Four years ago, Li Tianhao and Ling Feng were both in the top five.
In order to fight for the fourth place, the two of them engaged in a fierce battle.
Because the two of them were evenly matched, the battle was very intense. Unfortunately, Ling Feng's metal attribute was restrained by Li Tianhao's fire attribute, and in the end, he lost to Li Tianhao by one move.
In these four years, Ling Feng had been thinking about revenge for his defeat.
"Don't worry, I will wait for you in the arena. I hope you don't lose too quickly," Li Tianhao said very proudly. Then, his gaze fell on Ling Xiao, and he said faintly, "You are Ling Xiao?
The rare genius of Meteorite City in a hundred years? "