Ling Yao fell silent for a while. Then she slowly said, "Perhaps, it's to look for talents."
"Talents?"
Lin Fei raised his eyebrows, not quite understanding.
"Yes, talents. Lin Fei, maybe you don't know the current situation of the royal family. All over Great Chang, there are natural disasters and man-made calamities, unrest everywhere, and the situation is unstable.
The royal family no longer has the ability to suppress the world. Now, the royal family is using the Royal Competition to attract some rogue cultivators, probably to win them over and have them serve the royal family.
After all, for a rogue cultivator to obtain a Foundation Establishment Pill, how difficult is that? But if they are favored by the royal family, it's a different story.
Of course, even if the royal family is short of talent, they only need top-notch geniuses. So the Royal Competition can basically show whether those rogue cultivators have potential worth cultivating."
Lin Fei understood.
This Royal Competition, to put it bluntly, was actually a smokescreen. The gimmick of entering the secret realm was just to attract some rogue Qi cultivators. These rogue Qi cultivators were not recognized by other immortal sects. But maybe some top-notch geniuses were worth cultivating.
If they could cultivate a Foundation Establishment expert, no matter the cost, it would be worth it.
"I see. So, in fact, we martial artists are just background. The real goal of the royal family is those rogue Qi cultivators."
Lin Fei completely understood. However, he didn't care. His goal was the Heavenly Meridian Pill.
"Lin Fei, martial artists are not entirely just background. If we manage to win the qualification to enter the secret realm and you don't want to enter the secret realm, you can exchange this quota for some resources."
"Really? It can exchange people?" Lin Fei was somewhat surprised.
"Of course, strictly speaking, you martial artists or Qi cultivators are not qualified to participate in the Royal Competition. After all, you are not royal family members and do not have royal blood. You are participating in the Royal Competition as a follower.
And this follower status can be changed by the royal family members at any time. At that time, if you don't want to enter the secret realm, you can 'exchange' your quota.
After all, there's no danger in the secret realm. I guess I don't need to tell you the usefulness of this quota. You can almost trade it for anything you want."
Lin Fei understood.
In fact, compared to the Heavenly Meridian Pill, this quota to enter the secret realm was the most important.
Once this quota was obtained, not to mention one Heavenly Meridian Pill, even ten Heavenly Meridian Pills could be exchanged for.
"Since that's the case, I'll take the top three spots in the Royal Competition!"
Lin Fei said indifferently. His tone was calm, but it revealed incredible confidence!
"Lin Fei, don't be careless! High-level Qi cultivators may not necessarily fear your saber intent. However, this time, there seem to be no Qi cultivators above the seventh level."
The royal family isn't stupid. Those orthodox Qi cultivators, send some low-level Qi cultivators to participate, just as a gesture. High-level Qi cultivators wanting to freeload on the royal family's resources, how is that possible?"
Lin Fei nodded. Qi cultivators above the seventh level were called high-level Qi cultivators. Such Qi cultivators, within the immortal sects, were also considered the core strength.
Basically, when the immortal sects need to deal with very important matters, it was handled by Qi cultivators above the seventh level.
Those high-level Qi cultivators stayed in the immortal sects to cultivate. The mortal environment didn't have many benefits for the cultivation of Qi cultivators.
The royal family's goal this time was to recruit rogue Qi cultivators, allowing those immortal sects' Qi cultivators to compete was already giving face to those sects.
As for high-level Qi cultivators, the royal family would definitely not allow it. The relationship between the royal family and the immortal sects was far from good.
The current unrest in various parts of Great Chang, in fact, had the shadow of those immortal sects behind it. These immortal sects have always wanted to secretly control the world's power. They were not on the same path as the royal family.
With this situation going on, the royal family and those immortal sects would eventually have a complete falling out.
"By the way, this time the Eleventh Prince seems to have recruited a sixth-level Qi cultivator. And from the information I gathered, the other party is from He Mountain Dao. We may not necessarily encounter them in the Royal Competition. But if we do, Lin Fei, you must be careful!"
Ling Yao reminded with a serious expression.
"He Mountain Dao has also sent someone?" Lin Fei nodded, indicating that he understood.
There had never been any reconciliation between him and He Mountain Dao.
Lin Fei was very clear about this. If he encountered a Qi cultivator from He Mountain Dao again, the other party would definitely not be polite.
"If we really meet, I'll just cut them down!" A thought flashed through Lin Fei's mind.
Lin Fei stayed at the South King Mansion.
As the Royal Competition approached, Chang City also gathered many extraordinary people. Most of them were invited by the royal descendants from various places, coming to participate in the Royal Competition.
This Royal Competition was not just the royal's lineage, nor was it just the royal descendants of Chang City. It was for all the royal descendants of Great Chang.
They could send outstanding members to participate in the competition. So, the number of people was quite large.
During the three days, Lin Fei continued to take Burst Qi Pills to enhance his cultivation progress in the Three Vitality Technique. At the same time, he gave some pointers to the experts Ling Yao had recruited.
Although the experts Ling Yao recruited knew Lin Fei was strong and they were very respectful on the surface, hearing is not as good as seeing.
After Lin Fei demonstrated a little bit of his fist intent, without even using his saber intent, these martial artists were sincerely convinced.
Receiving Lin Fei's guidance on some fist techniques and saber techniques, their martial arts abilities all improved to varying degrees.
Finally, three days later.
The day of the Royal Competition had finally arrived!
Lin Fei stood beside Ling Yao.
Ling Yao, accompanied by a group of guards, rode in a carriage, slowly heading towards the palace.
Although Lin Fei had been to Chang City once before, he had never been to the palace. He had only seen it from afar and hadn't noticed anything special.
But now, as Lin Fei arrived outside the palace with Ling Yao, Lin Fei looked up the entire palace seemed to be shrouded in an invisible glow. Moreover, this glow was familiar to Lin Fei.
"Formation!"
Lin Fei recalled. This formation had similarities to the one set up by Lin Miao.
Qi cultivators were best at setting up formations. Perhaps even Ling Yao hadn't noticed how terrifying this formation was. Once the formation was activated, it would be impossible for anyone to escape.
"No wonder they are the rulers of the world, the Great Chang Dynasty that has suppressed the world for 900 years!" Lin Fei murmured to himself.
Great Chang had enjoyed the world for 900 years. Its profound foundation was hard to imagine. Such a large-scale project was probably beyond the reach of even high-level Qi cultivators.
Foundation Establishment!
Only Foundation Establishment experts could set up such a large formation covering the entire palace. The royal family had Foundation Establishment experts. After seeing the formation on the upper level of the palace, Lin Fei was very certain.
"Oh, isn't this the South King Princess? Not long ago, the princess stirred up the court, suppressed He Mountain Dao, and gained a lot of attention.
This prince would like to advise the princess that when it comes to important matters of the court, one should be cautious and prudent in their words and actions.
Moreover, He Mountain Dao is part of the Great Chang Dao sect. To suppress the Dao sect for the sake of a mere martial arts sect and a mere martial artist is to lose the bigger picture.
Think about the priorities, and I hope the princess will reflect on this."
Suddenly, another carriage stopped outside the palace gate. From inside the carriage, a young man's voice could be heard.
"Hmm?"
Ling Yao turned her head. Seeing the carriage, she immediately understood.
"So it's the Eleventh Prince. Of course, we should think carefully about matters of the court. However, it seems that the Eleventh Prince has forgotten that our Great Chang was founded on martial arts. In the beginning, our founding emperor swept across all directions with his martial arts, invincible and unparalleled.
Finally, he unified the world, and that's how our Great Chang enjoyed 900 years of peace and prosperity! How did it become a mere martial artist in the prince's mouth? If the founding emperor knew about this, I wonder what he would think of the Eleventh Prince?"
Ling Yao's words were like a hidden dagger, directly confronting the prince. She didn't give the Eleventh Prince any face.
"Hmph, Uncle South King really needs to discipline his princess."
The Eleventh Prince's tone was clearly tinged with anger.
"There's no need for the Eleventh Prince to worry about that. I think the prince should go back and read more about the teachings of the founding emperor."
Ling Yao sneered. Although the other party was a prince, he was not on the same side as her. Ling Yao wasn't afraid of the Eleventh Prince.
Moreover, it was said that the Eleventh Prince was close to He Mountain Dao. Naturally, Ling Yao wouldn't be polite to the Eleventh Prince.
"Your Highness, the princess is indeed eloquent. I presume you must be Lin Fei from the Nine Profound Sect. An acquired martial artist who has comprehended Martial Dao True Intent is indeed extraordinary.
It was his fault that my junior brother was killed by you. However, during the upcoming competition, I would like to experience your Martial Dao True intent to see if it's as magical as the legends say."
Suddenly, a Daoist in robes next to the Eleventh Prince's carriage spoke slowly, and his gaze was fixed on Lin Fei.
"Whoosh."
Lin Fei had been resting with his eyes closed, at this moment, he opened them.
"A Qi cultivator from He Mountain Dao? If all the Qi cultivators of He Mountain Dao are as weak as your junior brother. I'm afraid I will be very disappointed."
After saying that, Lin Fei closed his eyes again, no longer speaking. He didn't want to engage in a war of words. Arguing with words was meaningless. If he couldn't stand it, he would cut it down with a saber.
The Daoist from He Mountain Dao stopped talking and stood quietly beside the carriage, waiting.
An hour passed, and many more carriages arrived one after another.
"Rumble."
Finally, the heavy palace gates slowly opened. The carriages of numerous royal family members entered the palace.
The royal family competition took place in a spacious open area. This open space was very large. It was suitable for displaying spells or martial arts.
The competition was presided over by three elders of the royal family. However, this elder was not a martial artist. They were Qi cultivators. And high-level Qi cultivators at that!
Three little-known royal family high-level Qi cultivators. This showed how profound the royal family's background was.
"The rules of the Royal Competition: no further attacks are allowed after the opponent admits defeat. Otherwise, I will personally step in and execute the offender on the spot! Alright, now go draw lots and start the competition."
The royal family elder didn't say much. He briefly introduced the rules and then proceeded to draw lots.
Ling Yao drew the number twenty-three. It was unclear who her opponent was. But it should be in the twenty-third round. It was one of the last few rounds. Not bad, at least she could watch the other matches beforehand.
The competition was between the royal family members and their followers. However, starting from the first match, as long as a royal family member went up, they would basically hide behind, letting their followers fight. Once their followers were defeated, they would immediately admit defeat.
This scene made the three royal family elders shake their heads.
"These years, the royal family's children have become increasingly unbearable. Even when they step onto the arena, they dare not fight themselves."
In memory of the royal family elders, the royal family competition in the past was not like this. Although there were followers, at that time, the royal family's children would generally also participate in the fights. There were even some outstanding royal family children who could defeat their opponents' followers. Unfortunately, such royal family members had been rarely seen in recent decades.
Lin Fei was also watching the competition. There were martial artists and Qi cultivators participating. However, the situation was not optimistic.
Martial artists were completely defeated!
In every confrontation between martial artists and Qi cultivators, martial artists were utterly defeated! Not a single martial artist defeated a Qi cultivator.
Lin Fei even saw a martial artist at the eleventh level of the acquired realm and he had even practiced a sword technique to the perfection realm.
His strength was so strong that it was difficult to find an opponent below the innate realm.
Presumably, he came to participate in the royal family competition to obtain the Heavenly Meridian Pill, break through the shackles, and reach the twelfth level of the acquired realm.
He encountered a genuine Qi cultivator at the fourth level of Qi Condensation.
What was the result?
The eleventh-level acquired martial artist displayed his perfect realm sword technique, but he couldn't do anything against the opponent's magical artifact.
The Qi cultivator just stood there, letting the eleventh-level acquired martial artist launch a fierce sword attack.
What was the result?
The Qi cultivator was unscathed! In the end, the Qi cultivator used a few spells to defeat the martial artist, and even seriously injured him.
This scene made the eyes of all martial artists dim. Acquired martial artists were practically crushed when facing Qi cultivators. There was even no glimmer of hope to defeat their opponents.
Many had practiced for decades, enduring heat and cold.
And the result?
They couldn't even break the magical artifacts of Qi cultivators. This feeling made all martial artists feel desperate.
Even Ling Yao, at this moment, also clenched the armrests of her chair. With a solemn face, she said nothing.
Obviously, this result made her feel very uncomfortable. After all, she was also a martial artist.
"Princess of South King versus Princess of Sang Yang!"
It was finally Ling Yao's turn.
"Princess of Sang Yang!"
Ling Yao's heart trembled. She immediately whispered to Lin Fei, "Lin Fei, be careful. The follower of Princess Sang Yang is also a Qi cultivator. And she is a genuine Qi cultivator from the Green Jade Gate. Although she is only at the fourth level of Qi Condensation, she possesses the magical artifact Yin Yang Nine Rings, which is strong in both offense and defense!"
Lin Fei looked up. He saw a female Daoist beside Princess Sang Yang. That must be the Qi cultivator from Green Jade Gate.
"How is the relationship between Princess Sang Yang and Senior Sister Ling?" Lin Fei suddenly asked.
"Princess Sang Yang and I have an okay relationship. Last time during the He Mountain Dao incident, Princess Sang Yang actually helped. Otherwise, how could I know so much information about her follower? It's because I am very close to Princess Sang Yang."
Ling Yao said with a bitter smile. Unexpectedly, she would encounter Princess Sang Yang in the first round. Her luck was really not good.
"I see."
"Since Princess Sang Yang has a good relationship with Seniot Sister Ling, I won't use heavy hands."
"Uh..."
Ling Yao didn't know what to say. She felt that Lin Fei was too confident, wasn't he? Even though Lin Fei had killed a Qi cultivator from He Mountain Dao. But that opponent was only at the third level of Qi Condensation.
Princess Sang Yang's follower was at the fourth level of Qi Condensation. And she even had a powerful magical artifact.
"Let's go, the sooner we settle this, the sooner we can move on to the next round," Lin Fei directly leaped and arrived at the martial arts stage.
At this moment, both parties were on the martial arts stage. Princess Sang Yang and Ling Yao both stood behind their respective followers. The real competitors were actually the followers.
The female Daoist slightly bowed her head and said, "Green Jade Gate, Yu Xiangzi!"
"Nine Profound Sect, Lin Fei."
Lin Fei also took a step forward and stood quietly. However, Lin Fei didn't unsheathe his saber. Instead, he clenched his palms into fists, preparing to use a fist technique.
"Hmm?"
Yu Xiangzi frowned and asked, "Why don't you use your saber?"
Yu Xiangzi obviously learned from Princess Sang Yang's mouth that Lin Fei had comprehended the saber intent. Saber techniques were Lin Fei's strongest methods.
"If I unsheathe my saber, you will die!"
Lin Fei looked deeply at Yu Xiangzi and spoke calmly.