Usually, in the Fighting Ground, only one platform was used each day, while the others were empty or being repaired from the damages caused by the duels.
The spectators' stands were usually occupied by only a few people on normal days.
They became crowded only under three conditions.
First, when two powerful disciples on the Ranking Board were dueling. Second, during the new disciples' competition every three months. And lastly, during the main sect competition every two years.
Today was one of these conditions: the new disciples' competition.
People came three hours earlier to get a good spot. Some wore the sect's uniform, while others wore ordinary clothes.
The disciples came to see their new peers, while ordinary people came to have fun watching the fights
"Hey, who do you think will win the competition?"
"What kind of question is this? Obviously, it's one of the half-disciples, as always."
"I heard there are four muscle cultivators among them."
"Not only that, I hear that the Third Elder's son is a mid-muscle cultivator."
"What?! He was a half-disciple, so he must be 15 years old now. A 15-year-old mid-muscle cultivator! That is insane!"
"Yeah, if another Darek doesn't appear, he surely will be the winner."
"I still remember when Darek beat all these half-disciples and broke their ego."
All the spectators were lively with cheers and expectations.
Suddenly, a commotion broke out at the entrance of the Fighting Ground.
A tall man with a muscular body walked into the place. His hair and eyes had the same red color. His face was sharp with a firm look on it.
He took a seat in the stands without talking to anyone.
"Is that Eland Orlain?! He is the third on the Ranking Board. What is he doing here?"
"Maybe he came to watch the Third Elder's son?"
"Eland is in the late stage of organ cultivation. These duels will look like children's play in his eyes."
"Wait! Look at the entrance!" someone shouted.
"Is that Darek?"
A handsome man was walking through the entrance in. He approached Eland and sat next to him.
Eland stared at him. "How did you manage to come; I thought you had a mission."
Darek smiled. "I got permission to delay it. I can't miss this important event."
"Tsk... I don't know why Desper asked you to train him as well," Eland scoffed.
"Desper prefers to use the sword, not a spear, you spear-obsessed man," Darek replied simply.
"Tsk... you are not even a sword user," Eland sneered.
"Still, I can use the sword better than anyone in the sect," Darek smirked.
"And I hate that you are right. I don't even know why you don't use it as your main weapon. Tsk... you and that weird personality of yours." Eland muttered while shaking his head.
Darek didn't respond and turned his gaze toward the three platforms.
Above each of the three platforms stood around 50 disciples with one Elder in front of them. All of them were male disciples.
Half of them were teenagers. They were the half-disciples who had turned 15 in the last three months. They seemed proud of their cultivation.
The other half were the new disciples who had just awakened their Origin recently. The youngest one among them was 16 years old, while the oldest was about 45 years old.
The Origin would manifest at any age; even if you were 70 years old, your body still would have a chance to awaken its Origin.
Above one of the platforms, Desper was observing all the disciples around him.
He learned the rules of the sect, so he knew that the females wouldn't participate in the competition.
"I feel jealous of the females, bro," one of the new disciples muttered. Desper could hear him.
"Yeah, their life is easier than ours," another said. "If they want to avoid missions and fighting monsters, they just have to marry and get pregnant."
Desper sighed as he heard them.
'That is right,' he approved. 'If a woman gets pregnant, during the second half of her pregnancy, the sect will allow her to stop taking any mission outside the sect, and it will be the same for the first six months after giving birth. After that, she is not allowed to get pregnant again for a year.'
'The sects set these rules not because they prefer women, but because if the parents are cultivators, their children have higher chances to awaken their Origin in the future.'
'And because of that, there are some other rules that encourage the cultivators to marry and give birth.'
'For example, if a man has more than one wife, his monthly allowance will be increased. Another rule supports marriage between cultivators, and another supports having more than three children.' Desper recalled some rules.
'Because of the pregnancy rule, women can stop taking missions for one year every other year. So, the sects decided to give the Purifying Pill to a male disciple who will take missions until his death.'
Desper sighed. 'I don't know if that is fair or not, but this is humanity's way to survive against the monster invasion.'
Desper stopped thinking and returned to reality.
Right now, he was confused. The competition was supposed to start half an hour ago, but the Elders hadn't started it.
He wasn't the only one feeling that way; the whole crowd was confused as well.
"Why haven't they started?" Darek was no different.
Eland was the only one who didn't seem confused. He smiled and said,
"The main guest hasn't arrived yet."
"The main guest?" Darek repeated, narrowing his eyes.
The crowd was bored and dejected.
"What are you waiting for?"
"Start the competition."
"Start."
"Start, start, start..."
They had no patience.
"SILENCE…" suddenly, one of the Elders shouted.
His voice was so loud that some ordinary spectators held their ears in pain
. Everything went silent.
The three elders turned and looked at the entrance, and everyone did the same.
At the entrance, an old man was walking toward the platforms, not the spectator stands.
He had brown eyes, white hair, and a long white beard. He was walking slowly with his hands behind his back. His face looked kind, but his eyes were fierce. Every step he took was light yet heavy, seeming to shake the ground beneath.
He was wearing a black robe with three orange claw marks stretching from his right shoulder to his left hip, as if left by a tiger.
Desper felt that he had seen this man before, but he couldn't remember where.
Everyone's mouths and eyes were wide open.
"Th- the sect leader?!" one of the crowd murmured in a low voice, but everyone could hear it in the complete silence.
"Am I dreaming right now?" one of the spectators said in disbelief.
"I think we are," another one replied.
"It is said that the sect leader only appears during the finals of the main sect competition. He had never appeared in any other events. What is he doing here?"
Everyone was completely stunned.
Desper narrowed his eyes 'So, that is the Sect Leader'
…
Eland had a big smile on his face.
Darek stared at him and said, "Let me guess. You are the one who invited him."
"I thought that I should take some precautions," Eland replied as he looked at a specific Elder on one of the platforms.
"But to bring the sect leader? Isn't this excessive?" Darek inquired.
"No, it is not. The Third Elder will supervise this competition. If his son loses, he might cause problems for Desper," Eland stated.
"Hmm, we can just kill the Third Elder if he tries something," Darek licked his lips as he said that.
Eland didn't respond. He had known Darek for a long time, so he was used to his weird thoughts.
"How did you convince the Sect Leader to come?" Darek asked.
"It wasn't easy," Eland replied. "I informed him about Desper's identity, the one from Happy Village. He stated that he already knew that Desper had become a disciple, but he still refused, worried it might attract the Great Elder's attention."
"So, I had to tell him about Desper's plan to win this competition." Eland explained.
"Hmm? Does Desper know about that?" Darek was surprised.
"No, but he will understand that I did it for his own good," Eland said, shaking his head.
"Tsk, tsk... This plan is so cowardly. What is the meaning of winning if it is not with your real power?" Darek scoffed in annoyance.
Eland shook his head and didn't respond.
…
"We greet the sect leader." The three elders said, cupping their hands in respect.
"There is no need for these formalities," the leader replied as he greeted them back.
"If it is not disrespectful, may I ask why the Leader has honored us with his presence today?" one of the elders spoke.
He was short, with brown eyes and blue hair. This Elder was the Third Elder, the father of the strongest half-disciple in this competition.
"Someone has told me that there is a troublemaker over here, so I have come to check it myself," the Leader sighed.
"A troublemaker?" the Third Elder was confused.
"Third Elder, you don't need to trouble yourself with it. Just carry on with the competition," the Leader shook his head and said.
After saying that, the leader let his gaze wander across the new disciples until it paused on one in particular. He looked at Desper for a moment longer than anyone else.