After handing Han Yu two bottles of Qi Gathering Pills and a jade slip, Senior Sister Li mentioned the recent arrival of the envoys from the Mystic One Sect and the Little Sky Net Sect.

Elder Lü hadn’t shared the specific details with her. He had merely stated that their Sect did not trust these two factions and would not accept their gifts, ordering them to be sent away.

This wasn’t surprising. The matters Senior Sister Li inquired about involved high-level Sect decisions.

That she received any answer at all meant Elder Lü was willing to indulge his disciple with a few words. If he had chosen to remain silent, that too would have been normal.

Senior Sister Li returned to her room to cultivate, and Han Yu did the same.

Han Yu already had more than a bottle of Qi Gathering Pills in his possession. Now, with the two additional bottles from Elder Lü—his newly acknowledged Master—his stockpile was substantial.

For the immediate future, he wouldn’t need to waste his replication cooldowns on Qi Gathering Pills.

He only needed to occasionally replicate the Mystic Heart Fruit when practicing spells, or essence blood when cultivating the Blood Refining Art. The remaining replication opportunities could be dedicated to the Foundation Establishment Talismans—specifically the Thunder Lightning Talisman and Geng Metal Talisman—as well as the Thousand-Year Sunkwood Heart.

Aside from the pills, Elder Lü had also gifted Han Yu a spell he had used during his own Qi Condensation days.

Han Yu picked up the jade slip and scanned it with his spiritual sense. Inside was a technique titled Leaf Obstructing the Eye.

Just by the name, it didn’t sound like something from the standard Technique Pavilion archives.

Examining the contents closely, he realized it was a vision-obscuring spell, somewhat similar to the Vision Confusing Technique, but with a key difference.

Unlike the Vision Confusing Technique, which generated phantom illusions to mislead, the Leaf Obstructing the Eye was designed to physically block the opponent’s line of sight.

If one’s mastery of it was poor, the victim would simply see darkness before their eyes. In that split second, they would realize they had been hit and react accordingly.

According to common sense, once a cultivator realized they were blinded, breaking this type of illusion wasn’t difficult. A burst of Spirit Breath, a counter-spell, or simply blasting a Magical Artifact forward would typically shatter the effect.

However, Han Yu possessed the Thousand Illusions Secret Art.

When combined with the Phantom Body Technique, Vision Confusing Technique, and the inherent concealment, transformation, and breath suppression of the Thousand Illusions Secret Art, the potential of this new spell changed completely.

Under his control, Leaf Obstructing the Eye might play a far more lethal role than intended.

“Caw…”

A soft cry interrupted his thoughts.

The big crow called out, reminding Han Yu, who had been completely absorbed in the spell.

Han Yu smiled and stroked its feathers, the sensation cool and hard like iron. “Go and call the little crow here.”

“In a few days, barring any accidents, having one or two more crows around me shouldn’t be a problem.”

The big crow let out a dissatisfied squawk.

Why do we need them tagging along? None of them are as useful as I am.

“Your current size is significant; you can even carry me in flight. But some intelligence-gathering tasks require a crow of ordinary size to avoid suspicion,” Han Yu explained calmly.

Big had its advantages, but small had its uses.

The big crow was mostly just acting spoiled, unwilling to share its Master’s time with the other birds. After voicing its complaint, it obediently spread its wings and flew off to fetch its smaller counterpart.

Han Yu questioned the little crow about what the flock had seen that day. After confirming there were no anomalies, he dismissed both birds.

He spent some time practicing the newly obtained Leaf Obstructing the Eye until he had grasped the basics.

Afterward, he practiced manipulating the puppet, Li Ya, ensuring his control wouldn’t be stiff when it mattered.

The next day passed in a flash.

On the third day, the morning of the Outer Disciple Grand Competition arrived.

Early in the morning, Zhong Yue brought Sun Kang and Liu Lan to the Spirit Field Department.

“Junior Brother Han, you’re participating in the disciple competition today, right?”

“Naturally,” Senior Sister Li said with a smile, stepping out to join Han Yu for the trip to the main peak.

She was quite protective of her new eighteenth junior brother.

Zhong Yue was brimming with excitement, hugging the Spirit Dog, Little Bai, so tightly that the mangy dog’s tongue lolled out in distress. “Junior Brother Han is proficient in spells. He will definitely achieve a high ranking!”

“We’re all going to cheer for you today!”

“Thank you, Senior Brother, Senior Sisters,” Han Yu said with a smile, raising his arm.

The big crow swooped down from the roof of the Steward’s office, landing heavily on Han Yu’s shoulder. Its tail feathers, black and glossy as obsidian, hung down behind him.

Han Yu stepped onto his flying sword, Senior Sister Li boarded her flying shuttle, and Zhong Yue’s group stood together on a large Plantain Leaf. Together, they soared toward the main peak.

“Senior Brother Sun, have you and Senior Sister Liu not exchanged your points for a flying Magical Artifact yet?”

Han Yu slowed his sword, matching the speed of their Plantain Leaf.

Sun Kang responded with a grin. “Actually, we did exchange for one. It’s also a Plantain Leaf.”

“Since neither of us has a Storage Bag, getting two Plantain Leaves would be wasteful. We decided to share one for now. It’s enough for emergencies, even if it’s inconvenient to carry around.”

“Once this year is over, we plan to pool our resources and finally get a Storage Bag.”

Han Yu had considered giving them his spare Plantain Leaf, as it was currently useless to him.

But hearing that they had already acquired one and were saving for a Storage Bag… giving them another leaf now would be superfluous.

As they chatted, the flying sword, shuttle, and Plantain Leaf pierced through the cyan light of the main peak’s protective array, arriving at the arena grounds.

Today was the Outer Disciple Grand Competition.

While the number of participants wasn’t massive, the crowd of spectators—Laborer Disciples, Outer Disciples, and even curious Inner Disciples—was substantial.

Deacons moved through the crowd maintaining order, while others had come specifically to observe the matches.

The moment Han Yu landed, he spotted Elder Lü and Elder Bai seated on the primary viewing platform directly facing the arena.

Han Yu and Senior Sister Li approached together, bowing respectfully to Elder Lü and greeting Elder Bai.

“Mm, good. Perform well!”

Elder Lü chuckled, nodding at Han Yu with visible satisfaction.

Elder Bai watched the interaction and let out a faint snort. “You went to such lengths to snatch him away early. I want to see if you can actually teach him well!”

Elder Lü’s smile only widened at the jab. “Rest assured, I will teach him perfectly!”

“Han Yu, did you hear that? Elder Bai has high hopes for you. You must perform well today and show your full strength!”

Han Yu bowed. “Yes, Master.”

Elder Bai couldn’t be bothered to argue with the man who had already secured the prize. He pointed to the side. “Lingyun is over there. Go speak with him.”

Han Yu followed his gesture and saw Bai Lingyun waving enthusiastically. “Han Yu! Han Yu, over here!”

Standing beside the young master were Li Xuan, Meng Bao, and Meng Bao’s Long-Toothed Tiger.

Han Yu walked over, and Bai Lingyun immediately started chatting as if he had found a playmate. “My great-grandfather said that since we’re both new to the Outer Sect, participating today is just to gain some experience!”

“Meng Bao and Li Xuan signed up too. Wang Teng wanted to, but the Artifact Pavilion is too busy, so he couldn’t get away.”

“The rewards for the top ten this time are actually quite substantial…”

Han Yu nodded along, listening quietly.

He waved to Senior Sister Li and Zhong Yue, signaling that he would stay here for a moment.

Zhong Yue pulled out a bag of fried melon seeds, sharing them with the group. She grinned and nodded back.

Senior Sister Li returned to her usual calm demeanor, cracking melon seeds and watching the stage.

Amidst Bai Lingyun’s chatter, the Grand Competition officially began. A total of one hundred and six disciples had registered.

To ensure fairness, the rules offered a choice regarding external aids—Magical Artifacts, Talismans, pills, and spirit beasts.

If you chose not to use external aids, your opponent was forbidden from using them as well. The match would be a pure contest of cultivation base and spell mastery.

If you wanted to use external aids but your opponent refused, you were also barred from using them. The default was always the lowest common denominator.

Only when both parties agreed could external power be unleashed.

Because of these detailed regulations striving for absolute fairness, the rankings of the Sect’s competitions were rarely disputed. Even a disciple with lower cultivation and no wealth had a fighting chance if their technique was superior.

The first round began, with battles erupting across ten arenas simultaneously.

Suddenly, Han Yu heard a familiar name called out.

“Outer Disciple Lu Yun from the Deacon’s Office!”