Chapter 78: Preliminaries-1!
Ashen stood in the left topmost corner of the ring, calmly without making a move, gazing at the other competitors.
All the disciples had formed groups of their own. Some disciples wore crimson red uniforms while some wore fiery red uniforms. Some were adorned in yellow while some were in blue. There were also green, brown, pink, purple, white, and black representing the different sects.
From the sect Leader's seats, they looked like dots of different colors with only Ashen standing alone.
The disciples were all looking at each other with wary, waiting for someone to make a move. They also wanted to recognize the cultivator who had the maximum chance of winning.
If they knew that then disciples from different sects could cooperate to eliminate the strongest contender first.
This was also the reason why the elder of the Phoenix Feather sect decided to support both Ashen and Vi Ling. There was no telling what would happen in this match.
If multiple sect's disciples recognized Vi Ling as a threat then they would cooperate to eliminate him first, reducing the chances of Phoenix Feather Sect winning this tournament.
The more participants a sect could have, the better.
The disciples from various sects also noticed that Ashen was standing alone and they found it peculiar.
For what reason was he alone?
If he didn't want to win this then he could at least help his Sect mate win the preliminaries, but he was just standing there confidently with a calm expression as if asking to get eliminated.
Most elders of different sects had already warned these disciples about Ashen and they knew that this guy was a genius, but they also knew that he had just started his cultivation more than a month ago, so he couldn't be that powerful.
Therefore, most people were going to target Vi Ling first. He was one of the two peak Nascent soul cultivators on this ring.
The other cultivator was from the Thunder Peak sect, the sixth-ranked sect, adorned in a blue sect uniform.
These two were the main target of all the other sect's disciples.
Recognizing this Vi Ling shouted towards the other peak nascent soul cultivator: "Hey Brother, You and I are the targets to get eliminated first. What do you say we team up and eliminate the others first before determining the winner among ourselves?"
The peak Nascent soul disciple nodded in agreement before getting close to Vi Ling's group.
Now, this match turned into a battle between Phoenix Feather and Thunder Peak sect's disciples Versus the disciples from the other eight sects.
They were heavily outnumbered but they had more strength so it was difficult to predict who was going to win.
The other eight sect's disciples also grouped up before standing in front of Vi Ling's group with their guard up.
Now, the ring was divided into two parts. The left being occupied by the eight sect's disciples and the right occupied by Vi Ling's team.
At this moment, one of the eight sect's disciples approached Ashen: "Brother, Have you been kicked out by your fellow sect disciples? If so, then why not join our team to eliminate them and exact your revenge?"
These people were unaware that it was Ashen himself who had sent those disciples away, however, they would never imagine that someone do something like that and hence assumed that he had been cast out.
Ashen also understood their misunderstanding and instead of clearing it, he planned to benefit from it.
He nodded as he acted to fume in anger: "You are right brother. It wasn't my fault but those bastards decided to support that Vi Ling and left me here alone. I should show them what happens when they cross me."
The disciple who had asked him to join, introduced himself: "I am Wu Ni from the Sword Shilla Sect, the third-ranked sect"
Ashen also gave out his name: "My name is Wang Ashen from the Phoenix Feather Sect"
Wu Ni nodded as he said: "Then let's go brother Ashen and take your revenge."
He escorted him before introducing him to the team.
Meanwhile, he sneered internally: "Ha, So easy to fool. Now he will fight his own sect mates for us, hahaha"
The other also didn't mind getting a free helping hand. They welcomed him with smiles.
The disciples who had left him were flabbergasted to see Ashen joining the enemy team. The female disciple who had left him shouted at him: "You traitor, so that's what you meant by becoming your enemy! You were going to join the enemy team to eliminate the biggest threat to you!"
The male disciple who was a bit intelligent, persuaded: "Young Master Ashen, What are you doing? You'll be punished if you betray the sect so openly. The sect will become a laughingstock! Please come to our side"
Since Ashen didn't want his cover to get blown off, he acted to get angry: "Who betrayed who? You were the one who betrayed me for that Vi Ling and left me alone to fend for myself. Now that I become a threat to you, you want me to help you? you can Forget it!"
"What? Wasn't it you---" However before the disciple could finish, Ashen cut him in between, turning to his new teammates: "Brothers, I can't wait to have my revenge, when will you begin your attack? We shouldn't give them time to get ready!"
Wu Ni came forward as he agreed: "Brother Ashen is right, The faster we attack, the less time they will have to coordinate with each other. They wouldn't be able to work as a team."
"Yes, attack!!" The leader of the eight sect's team shouted as they split into two teams, each made up of disciples of four different sects.
One team surrounded Vi Ling's team while the other surrounded the Thunder Peak sect's team. Ashen was on the first team to exact his fake revenge.
"Phoenix Origin Fist!" Vi Ling began the attack with his Phoenix Origin fist. This attack sent two of the enemy cultivators flying. Ashen stayed in the back.
"W-What is going on? Why is Ashen fighting from the enemy team?" Feng Xue was baffled out of her mind. This disciple of hers had betrayed his sect mates so brazenly.
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(A/N - Thanks for reading. ^..^)