This Is Not the Female Demon Lord I Remembered
Chapter 71: Grand Competition of Sects in the Immortal Dynasty

Chapter 71: Chapter 71: Grand Competition of Sects in the Immortal Dynasty

"I’d like to hear more about it."

Liang Yi revealed a trace of curiosity. In his past life during the internal test, players couldn’t access any information about this, so he wasn’t very familiar with the Grand Competition.

By the time of the open beta, the format of the Grand Competition had mysteriously changed completely.

Beside him, Su Youyi pouted, clearly knowing a lot about it as well. Why wouldn’t anyone ask her?

"Alas, if I must say, this is already my third time participating in the Sect Grand Competition," Liang Yuan reminisced with a profound look in his eyes, as if they contained countless untold stories. The only thing missing was the wisps of smoke.

"So, is Liang Brother well-prepared this time?"

"Of course! Although my ranking was just so-so last time, I’ve accumulated the experience. This time there will definitely be no problems!" Liang Yuan patted his chest, oozing confidence.

"Haha, this is my first time participating, but pre-congratulations to Liang Brother," Liang Yi complimented, giving face to the other.

"Senior Brother, we are about to enter the city!" Su Youyi tugged at Liang Yi’s sleeve as a reminder.

Although the two of them were chatting while walking, they didn’t delay their journey and had now passed through the city gate inspection. They reached the bustling streets amid the lively crowd.

"Little Yi, you two don’t have elders from your sect accompanying you?" Liang Yuan noticed that Liang Yi and his companion had an aura unlike ordinary sect disciples. Shouldn’t there be more than just two of them coming here?

"The elders from our sect had some urgent matters and have already gone into the city first, so they can’t be concerned with us at the moment," Liang Yi explained casually. However, his attention had shifted to the familiar surroundings.

After all, he spent most of the internal test time in the Immortal City, even knowing clearly which family-owned tavern watered down their apricot blossom wine.

"Are you hungry?" Liang Yi looked down at his junior sister. He hadn’t really thought about where to settle down yet.

"A little bit, I want to drink the Osmanthus Brew from Little Bamboo House." Su Youyi held her stomach, looking pitifully at her senior brother. The first time she tasted Osmanthus Brew was many years ago when her brother had brought it down from the mountain.

"If Liang Brother doesn’t mind, how about joining us and explaining the Grand Competition procedures along the way?" Liang Yi hadn’t forgotten the person beside him. His wallet was bulging anyway, and he didn’t mind an extra companion.

"Little Bamboo House, huh? I haven’t eaten there for a long time either, so I shall accept the invitation with gratitude," Liang Yuan smiled broadly. Everyone knew Little Bamboo House’s cuisine was excellent, but the price deterred many. This time, he’d be taking advantage.

The city streets were immensely wide, with a variety of architectural styles, but all shared a grand and majestic aura. Whether it was the smiles on the faces of the passersby or the overall ambiance of the city, everything showcased the prosperity of Xuanzhou Immortal Dynasty.

According to records, countless years ago when Xuanzhou Immortal Dynasty first unified, the Great Emperor summoned craftsmen from all over to construct the Immortal City. No questions asked about their origins or backgrounds, as long as you had skill, the dynasty would provide what you wanted.

Thus, the current buildings in Qingliang Immortal City are quite diverse with all types of architecture present. You could see temples in the style of Desert North Zen as well as courtyards reflecting the scenery of Jiangnan Water Towns, opulent exotic shops, and graceful Jiangdong pavilions.

Stall vendors’ cries reverberated down the clean, tidy stone streets. It was hard to distinguish whether the person buying candied haw was a wealthy young master or a contemplative cultivator. In this imperial city, there’s little distinction between commoners and cultivators.

Previously, the continent was dotted with innumerable dynasties, but none had the capability to unify the land until the emergence of Xuanzhou Immortal Dynasty, an achievement often accompanied by conquest and slaughter.

Although the Great Emperor tried to keep controls in place at the time, the cries of agony from the conquered lands still echoed in the sky. Any defiance was crushed, while those who didn’t resist could at least survive as vassal states.

Underneath the thriving era of the Immortal City lay countless skeletons.

It’s not that no dynasty considered seeking help from other Super Forces, but in the end, not a single one took action. This is the natural order of "long periods of division will be followed by long periods of unification; long periods of unification will be followed by division." No one can stop it.

In a sense, the Immortal Dynasty of Xuanzhou was simply going with the flow of heaven, having time, geographical advantage, and unity among the people.

Liang Yi chatted happily with Liang Yuan along the way, and he also came to know that Lion Fate Sect, where Liang Yuan belonged to, was in fact only a minor sect, barely making a living in a small town.

Despite looking a bit anxious, like a middle-aged uncle in his forties or fifties, Liang Yuan was actually just over thirty. Since his youth, after being taken in by his master, Liang Yuan was cultivated as the hope of the sect and was once again sent to participate in the grand competition.

However, with limited funds, he could only afford to come by himself.

Therefore, watching Liang Yi buy all sorts of things for his junior sister along the way, it would be false to say Liang Yuan did not feel envious.

"Being rich is really great!" Thinking about the dry food in his own package, and then looking at those exquisitely crafted snacks from the Immortal City in You Suyi’s hands, Liang Yuan couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.

"Liang Brother, we’re here!"

Liang Yi stopped and pointed at a green building not far away.

Liang Yuan looked up and saw it; Little Bamboo House always maintained its consistent style in every city.

From the outside, Little Bamboo House might appear only a few stories high, but inside, it is equipped with the Sumeru Array.

The conflict between population and land is not unique to the past life; thus many shops employ such arrays to gain more space within a small footprint.

"Senior Brother, the first floor is full," Su Youyi peeked and looked around. Due to the sect competition, the flow of people in the Immortal City far exceeded the usual, especially places like restaurants.

"Then let’s go upstairs and book a private room. Liang Brother has no objections, right?" Liang Yi also glanced around, noting that most of the people seated on the first floor were cultivators, but their realms seemed not too high.

"Of course, guest follows the host," said Liang Yuan.

Liang Yi then called the waiter and booked a private room on the second floor.

"I’ll have one of each, except for these two," said Liang Yi, holding the menu and simply circling two dishes, which were known to be the worst tasting by players from his previous life.

"Alright, my lord, please wait a moment, your dishes will be served shortly," said the shrewd waiter after taking the menu and then turning to leave.

"Liang Brother, how about we use this time to talk about the rules of the competition and such?"

Liang Yi took his junior sister’s teacup, poured her a cup of fruit tea, so she wouldn’t be too bored.

"Young Brother Yi wishes to hear it, so of course I am obligated to speak. Let me start with the most important, the conditions for participation," Liang Yuan too poured himself a cup of fruit tea, drank it all at once, and then cleared his throat to speak.

"As for the Immortal Dynasty’s sect competition, of course it is internal to our Immortal Dynasty. As long as you registered your sect with the Immortal Dynasty at the time of establishment, you can send disciples to participate, with no more than three contestants from each sect, and under forty years of age. The lowest realm acceptable is the Mystic Gate Realm, and the highest is the peak of the Heart Move Realm."

"The competitors range from level 21 to level 40?" Liang Yi mused after listening. No wonder players were not allowed to participate in this event. At the end of the three-month closed beta, the highest level player, a dedicated grinder, was only around level ten or so, not even meeting the minimum participation requirement.

Because players’ activities were limited to the surrounding areas of the Immortal City, most of their experience came from daily tasks and rewards from secondary professions. Even so, such rapid progression alarmed most of the competing sects within Qingliang Immortal City.

Many lucky ones were taken in as disciples by sects that completed the competition at the end of the internal test, learning cultivation techniques and Daoist skills.

But whether this was fortune or misfortune, Liang Yi found it hard to judge.