Chapter 45

Familiar pavilions, the last time Jiang Ren had brought Ling Dao here to join the Li Tian Sword Sect. This time, however, it was completely different. Deputy Sect Leader Zhuang Xin personally brought Ling Dao here to award him the champion's prize.

"Pay respects to the Deputy Sect Leader!"

The last time they came, the two elders were high and mighty, completely ignoring Jiang Ren and Ling Dao. But this time, with Deputy Sect Leader Zhuang Xin personally present, they showed extreme respect. The position and strength of the Deputy Sect Leader far surpassed theirs.

"Stand up. I am here to award the prize for the first place in the outer sect competition. Bring out the Qi Condensation Pill and the lower-grade sword technique!"

Zhuang Xin explained his purpose, and the two elders nodded. They then looked at the young man behind Zhuang Xin. This look made both elders widen their eyes in disbelief.

"Deputy Sect Leader, you can't be telling us that the first place in the outer sect competition is him?"

"You're talking nonsense. I bet this kid is just here to collect the prize for the champion, right, Deputy Sect Leader?"

The last time Ling Dao joined the Li Tian Sword Sect, it had only been two months. At that time, Ling Dao was only at the Bone Tempering stage. At fifteen years old, the two elders didn't take him seriously, considering his talent to be very mediocre.

"Hmm? Are you two old fools? If he wasn't the first place, why would I bring him here?"

Deputy Sect Leader Zhuang Xin was a bit puzzled. It seemed these two elders knew Ling Dao. However, he didn't ask further, as they were just shocked and didn't show any hostility towards Ling Dao.

"How can he be first?"

"Deputy Sect Leader, we're not doubting you, but he only joined the Li Tian Sword Sect two months ago, and at that time, he was only at the Bone Tempering stage. How could he become the first among the outer sect disciples?"

While they were talking, they also carefully observed Ling Dao. However, Ling Dao remained extremely calm throughout, showing no signs of what he was thinking.

"Is that so?"

Even Zhuang Xin gave Ling Dao a deep look. He had long noticed that Ling Dao was different from other outer sect disciples. Whether it was Xia Xin Yao or Teng Shaofeng, they were all at the peak of the Body Tempering stage, but Ling Dao was only at the Blood Condensation stage.

The Body Tempering stage is divided into three levels: Body Tempering, Bone Tempering, and Blood Condensation. After that, blood, bone, and flesh merge into one, which is the peak of the Body Tempering stage. However, Ling Dao was not at the peak of the Body Tempering stage because he had only recently broken through to the Blood Condensation stage. Even if he obtained the Qi Condensation Pill, he couldn't take it now; he had to wait until he reached the peak of the Body Tempering stage.

Originally, Zhuang Xin thought Ling Dao's talent was not great, but now he no longer believed that. In just two months, he had advanced from the Bone Tempering stage to the Blood Condensation stage and even became the first among the outer sect disciples. Could such a young man have poor talent?

"At the time, what were the results of his talent test?"

When Zhuang Xin asked this, the two elders' faces turned grim. They hadn't actually tested Ling Dao's talent at the time. They had directly judged him as having low talent because he was at the Bone Tempering stage at fifteen years old.

"This... Without hiding anything from the Deputy Sect Leader, we didn't test him at the time!"

The two elders didn't dare to lie and had to tell the truth. Even if they were punished by the Deputy Sect Leader, they would accept it. If they lied and were exposed by Ling Dao, they would face even greater punishment.

"What happened?"

The Deputy Sect Leader's face darkened, and the two elders felt immense pressure. Reluctantly, they recounted the entire situation. Zhuang Xin looked at them and knew they weren't lying.

"Ridiculous! How could you so easily judge someone's talent? Go, since you didn't test him last time, I will personally oversee the test of Ling Dao's talent this time!"

In fact, Zhuang Xin also wanted to know how Ling Dao's talent was. The two elders nodded and gestured for him to proceed. Testing talent was not a simple matter.

"Ling Dao, do you have any objections? If you don't want to be tested, I won't force you!"

No matter what, Ling Dao was the first among the outer sect disciples, with a promising future. Even Zhuang Xin didn't want Ling Dao to have any grievances against the Li Tian Sword Sect.

"Deputy Sect Leader, I also want to know my talent, so let's test it!"

Ling Dao smiled. He had never been tested for talent before, as he had countless sword qi in his body. After joining the Li Tian Sword Sect, these two elders hadn't tested him either. Even he was somewhat looking forward to the results.

"Ling Dao, right? We were wrong last time, please don't hold it against us."

"What you need to do now is simple, just place your hands on this sword!"

In front of Ling Dao, a giant sword appeared. Testing talent was indeed simple; he just needed to place his hands on the sword, and it would display different colors. Green indicated low talent, blue indicated average talent, red indicated high talent, and gold indicated supreme talent.

"Alright!"

Without a word, Ling Dao placed his hands on the sword. Immediately, the giant sword began to tremble lightly. The originally silver sword turned green, then blue, and finally red.

"High talent? Another high talent?"

"Good! Good! Excellent!"

Not only were the two elders surprised, but even Zhuang Xin hadn't expected that the Li Tian Sword Sect would have another high-talent disciple. Having Xia Xin Yao was already a blessing for the Li Tian Sword Sect, and now there was another Ling Dao.

"Look! The sword is changing color again!"

One of the elders exclaimed, and they saw golden threads slowly appearing on the red sword. In just a moment, the sword turned gold. The golden light should have been blinding, but Zhuang Xin and the other two elders didn't close their eyes; instead, they stared wide-eyed.

"Su... Su... Supreme talent?!"

Even Deputy Sect Leader Zhuang Xin stuttered, and the two elders were so shocked they couldn't speak. The Li Tian Sword Sect had never had a supreme talent before, and Ling Dao was the first in history!

"This news must be kept secret! Listen to me, you two, you absolutely cannot tell anyone! If I find out you've been talking, you will lose your lives!"

True to his position as Deputy Sect Leader, he was the first to regain his composure. He looked at the two elders coldly, his expression more serious than ever! If other sects learned about the supreme talent, it would be a disaster for the Li Tian Sword Sect!