It was a day of light drizzle. The fine rain fell upon the desert, vanishing without a trace almost instantly.

This day, the Eleventh Detachment was exceptionally lively. The reason was that the results of this Tri-Sector Competition were being posted at the Eleventh Detachment headquarters.

Naturally, the area in front of the Eleventh Detachment was bustling, with over sixteen hundred people crowding the normally spacious grounds so tightly that there was barely room to move. Due to the slight rain, Lu Yuan arrived before the Eleventh Detachment wearing a wide-brimmed bamboo hat.

"Oh, Ye Fang." It had been some time since he had last seen this fellow. Ye Fang’s eyes were sharp; he immediately spotted Lu Yuan: "Sixth Senior Brother...

" Ye Fang squeezed through the crowd. "Hey, what were the results of this Tri-Sector Competition?

Don't tell me you accidentally took first place again... " His voice was a bit too loud, carrying to a few nearby individuals, one of whom immediately sneered, "What kind of joke is that?

This year's first place will undoubtedly belong to Elder Wu of the South Sea Immortal Sect." Indeed, the highest buzz currently surrounded Elder Wu Chengdong of the South Sea Immortal Sect. Two hundred and fifty-one Five Immortal Tokens was the highest known record for tokens collected by anyone at this point.

Anyone else having a few dozen was considered quite good; the majority hadn't secured a single one. Lu Yuan had always disliked arguing; he would either ignore detractors or respond directly with his sword—a deeply ingrained habit.

Naturally, a mere comment wouldn't warrant drawing his blade, so he simply chose to disregard the argument, letting them say whatever they wished, as it was none of his concern. After all, the outcome of the competition wouldn't be decided by their chatter, but by tangible results.

The man, feeling quite pleased with himself, then launched into a lengthy praise of Elder Wu Chengdong’s prowess and how close his own relationship with the Elder of the South Sea Immortal Sect was. This individual, in temperament, seemed quite similar to Zhao Han—the type who toadied up to powerful figures to borrow prestige.

Different strokes for different folks. People in this world were all distinct.

As the man boasted about his connections with Elder Wu, many around him offered praise, and several others tried to cozy up to him as well. Elder Wu was currently displaying exceptional talent and was even tipped to become a renowned Sword Immortal of the Ninth Generation, possessing limitless prospects.

A moment later, Cao Qiu emerged. Cao Qiu ascended a high platform, surveying the crowd below: "The results of the Tri-Sector Competition have been tallied.

The First and Third Detachments performed admirably, but there was another Detachment that was inconspicuous before, yet showed remarkably strong performance later on." This statement immediately sparked countless murmurs among the crowd. Which Detachment performed so well?

Everyone had been dispatched separately, so no one knew the exact performance metrics of their own Detachment or which outstanding figures had emerged. Hearing that someone other than the First and Third Detachments had performed well caused an immediate flurry of discussion.

People wondered which Detachment it was, all eager to claim glory for their own side. The current Tri-Sector Competition included participants from the Five Great Immortal Sects, six or seven mid-sized cultivation factions, and various smaller immortal gates—a mixed assembly.

It was simplest, therefore, to categorize them by Detachment. Moreover, over the past nine months, the leaders of each Detachment had truly instilled a sense of honor among the trainees under their command.

While this sense of honor was far weaker than the belonging felt toward the main Sect, it still held some influence. Now, the results were about to be announced.

This was an exciting moment, but while the crowd below felt the excitement, Cao Qiu himself was somewhat astonished. The final results of the Tri-Sector Competition held an unexpected twist.

Although he knew Lu Yuan had swept through his path, he hadn't anticipated the sheer quantity of Five Immortal Tokens this individual held, potentially threatening to shatter previous records. Oh, wait.

Back when Yan Cangtian was young, he too had participated in the Tenth Hall assessment for the Five Immortal Alliance. That senior had achieved a sweep with a single sword strike, far more monstrous than Lu Yuan’s current performance.

Therefore, Lu Yuan’s current achievement was still within an acceptable range. Cao Qiu took a deep breath and withdrew a scroll from his sleeve: "This time, we have calculated and will announce the top fifty placings.

Those ranked in the top fifty, if they continue serving within the Five Immortal Alliance, may certainly continue their service. However, if they choose to return to the Central Plains of the Great Jin Kingdom, this achievement allows them entry into a mid-sized cultivation sect, offering a promising future...

" Entry at this level meant one wouldn't be a mere ordinary disciple; they might even be appointed as promising elders, although true core discipleship was generally fixed, requiring only exceptional circumstances for new appointments. "Fiftieth Place, Ninth Detachment, Wu Lai, seven Five Immortal Tokens." Seven tokens alone secured a spot in the top fifty.

This immediately caused widespread shock. Seven tokens wasn't a large number, but precisely because it was so low, it indicated that the Five Immortal Tokens were highly concentrated among the top ranks; otherwise, the fiftieth rank wouldn't be settled at only seven tokens.

The announced Wu Lai naturally beamed with joy. The difference in treatment between the fiftieth and fifty-first places was considerable.

Wu Lai was not a true core disciple, merely an ordinary elder, but this achievement would grant him an upgrade in status within his Sect. "Forty-ninth Place, Third Detachment, Zhuo Dong, eight Five Immortal Tokens." Now it was the true core disciple named Zhuo Dong who was delighted.

Gaining this position carried great honor. To secure forty-ninth place under these conditions was highly prestigious, something he could boast about when he returned to the Azure City Immortal Gate.

In fact, Zhuo Dong was already ranked quite high among the disciples of the Azure City Immortal Gate. "Forty-third Place, Third Detachment, Yun Yi." The Eldest Senior Brother's performance was decent.

Yun Yi, among the Tenth Generation true core disciples of the Mount Hua Immortal Sect, was ranked around tenth. Now, competing against the Five Great Immortal Sects and a host of figures from the mid-sized sects, as well as numerous elders, securing a top-fifty spot was attributed to a combination of skill and luck.

The many fellow disciples from the North Peak gathered around the Eldest Senior Brother to offer congratulations. Yun Ping shrugged: "Eldest Senior Brother, my luck was poor this time; I didn't make the top fifty.

It's a good thing you did, or the North Peak would have lost some face." The relationship between Yun Yi and Yun Ping had considerably eased. Among the ten great true core disciples, besides Yun Yi and Lu Yuan, no one else had entered the top fifty.

Yun Yi smiled, quite satisfied with the current outcome: "I did my best. Now we see how Sixth Junior Brother fares.

I wonder what score Sixth Junior Brother achieved? He certainly shouldn't be out of the top ten..." Among the participants this time were many cultivators at the Body Tempering stage, with some even reaching the fourth level of Body Tempering.

Lu Yuan’s strongest displayed power previously was only enough to defeat Song Nanshan, who was at the first level of Body Tempering. None of the true core disciples present believed Lu Yuan could take first place; getting into the top ten would be considered excellent, and the top five would be cause for great celebration.

Even when Ye Fang joked about Lu Yuan being first, it was just jest. With elders like Dong Qing existing at the fourth level of Body Tempering, it was impossible for a true core disciple to take first place.

After all, the disparity in cultivation time was too great. "Thirty-third Place, Tenth Detachment, Zhao Qiankun..." Finally, it was time for Zhao Qiankun of the Tenth Detachment.

After his defeat by Lu Yuan, Zhao Qiankun had frantically mobilized his subordinates in the Tenth Sector to search for Five Immortal Tokens, eventually scraping together thirty-third place—a result somewhat below his expectations. "Twenty-first Place, First Detachment, Song Nanshan..." These were fellow disciples of the Mount Hua Immortal Sect.

Song Nanshan's performance was quite standard this time: neither high nor low, landing exactly at twenty-first, matching his strength and status. This was also the best result achieved by anyone from the Mount Hua Immortal Sect so far.

They had now arrived at the announcement of the top ten. The top ten commanded far more attention than ranks eleven through fifty.

At this point, almost everyone held their breath. "Tenth Place, First Detachment, Zhao Man, thirty-one Five Immortal Coins." This was a young elder whose current allegiance was to the First Detachment.

"Ninth Place, Third Detachment, Heng Yuan, thirty-three Five Immortal Tokens..." This was another young elder, currently affiliated with the Third Detachment. The subsequent rankings were mostly divided between the First and Third Detachments, with very few others appearing.

The strongest among the various Detachments were indeed the First and Third. Although the Third Detachment had been defeated by the First, the Third quickly reorganized, swept up the remaining tokens in their zones, and discovered a secret passage in a mountain cavern to infiltrate subsequent zones to snatch more Five Immortal Tokens, allowing them to compete, albeit narrowly, with the First Detachment.

Still, the sheer number of tokens gathered by the First Detachment surpassed that of the Third. The other Detachments seemed considerably weaker in comparison.

As this contention continued, the announcement of the second place finally arrived. "Second Place, First Detachment, Wu Chendong, two hundred and ninety-eight Five Immortal Tokens." When two hundred and ninety-eight Five Immortal Tokens were announced, almost everyone gasped in shock.

Two hundred and ninety-eight—so many! That was over forty more than the previously rumored two hundred and fifty-one.

It was staggering. The extra forty-odd tokens were clearly the result of the three captured individuals distributing their spoils evenly among their seven teammates.

Wu Chendong was one of those seven, fortunate enough not to have been apprehended by High Master Yuan Ling. While others were astonished by his total of two hundred and ninety-eight tokens, Wu Chendong’s expression darkened.

Second place! He had started with two hundred and fifty-one and was certain of victory.

Later, he received news that because those three were captured, he gained forty-seven extra tokens, bringing his total to two hundred and ninety-eight, which made him supremely confident of securing second place in the Tri-Sector Competition. If his substantial collection of tokens only secured second place, then who was first?

How many tokens did the first-place winner possess? (Second update, there is one more later tonight.) (To be continued)

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