The Jade Sparrow Valley grew louder by the minute. Merchants shouted, spirit beasts roared in their cages, and disciples polished their weapons with trembling or eager hands. The atmosphere was thick with competition—anticipation pressed down from every direction like an invisible weight.
Heavenly Peak moved quietly through the storm of noise.
Lin Xuanji walked in front, not rushing, not tense, simply observing.
Grand Elder Ling Xueyin followed half a step behind him, cold and poised, her gaze making seasoned cultivators avert their eyes.
Stonewall blended among the disciples like a silent mountain.
Ruolan clung to his formation pouch.
Kai Yun cracked her knuckles impatiently.
Feng Xiao's hands flickered with tiny flames.
Tian Wen walked like steady water.
Mu Xiaofan tried very hard not to be frightened by everything.
When they reached the registration area, people finally noticed them.
"Who are they?"
"That elder… her presence is strange."
"Those disciples look young, but their foundations feel stable."
Xueyin ignored all of it.
Lin Xuanji ignored most of it.
Ruolan ignored nothing.
Once Heavenly Peak had finished registering and moved to their assigned rest platform, Lin Xuanji glanced over the valley, studying the formation lines, the arrangement of platforms, the distribution of sects.
He wasn't tense, but he wasn't careless either.
He felt something shifting in the valley.
Something subtle.
Something… waiting.
"Grand Elder," he murmured, "is it just me, or is this place noisier than necessary?"
"It is not the noise," Xueyin answered quietly. "It is the people."
That was… somehow accurate.
As the group settled, a faint ripple of movement entered Lin Xuanji's peripheral vision. He turned his head just slightly—not enough to draw attention, just enough to glance.
A young man in dark robes walked across the far edge of the gathering grounds. He didn't push people aside. He didn't release pressure. He didn't command attention.
He simply passed by.
A natural step.
A calm expression.
A steady aura, well within the bounds of Foundation Establishment Realm, 9th Layer.
Beside him, a quiet woman—Lanyue—walked with the same composed grace.
No crowd parted.
No one gasped.
No aura flared in response.
Only a faint flicker tugged at Lin Xuanji's instincts, like touching the surface of a pond and feeling something answer from beneath.
He blinked once.
Then the moment was gone.
Kai Yun followed his gaze and snorted. "What, that guy? Looks like he's trying too hard to look mysterious."
Feng Xiao elbowed her. "Not everyone who looks calm is pretending."
Mu Xiaofan whispered, "He feels… weird. But not in a bad way."
Stonewall didn't speak, but his eyes lingered on the young man for a brief moment—then shifted away with a faint, conflicted heaviness he couldn't name.
Xueyin didn't look at Cang Ming directly.
But Lin Xuanji noticed the way her eyelashes lowered, the quiet tension in her posture.
She knew something.
She always did.
Before he could ask, a loud thud shook the stone behind them.
"Ah—sorry! The floor's slippery!"
Tian Hong pushed himself upright, brushing dust from his clothes. The ground beneath him cracked.
Ruolan squeaked.
Mu Xiaofan hid behind Stonewall.
Kai Yun blinked. "…This idiot might actually break the valley."
Feng Xiao sighed. "Senior Sister, try being nice for once."
Tian Hong smiled awkwardly. "Uh… does anyone know where the tournament starts? I got lost three times."
Lin Xuanji gave him a nod. "That direction. And be careful with your steps."
"I'll try!"
He took one more step—crack.
Stonewall inhaled through his nose. "…Titan Body."
"Yes!" Tian Hong beamed. "How'd you guess?"
Before Lin Xuanji could reply, the drums thundered.
"Participants! Prepare for the opening ceremony!"
Sects shifted.
Banners rose.
Judges descended.
Heavenly Peak gathered as one, stepping forward into the rising storm of the tournament.
Far across the valley, the quiet young man in dark robes paused briefly—only for a breath—before turning away with Lanyue.
Lin Xuanji felt the faint echo again.
Then nothing.
The opening ceremony was about to begin.