Lan Yingying also wielded a sword, and once the match began, it quickly became apparent that she was not as experienced as Xi Meili when it came to wielding a weapon. Unlike Xi Meili, who had over ten thousand years to train both her body and skills with the weapon, Lan Yingying was only slightly older than Yuan in terms of his current life. Moreover, she was a Divine Serpent who fought with Sacred Fire and her own body, so she was almost a complete beginner when it came to weapons. Fortunately, she was able to get used to holding and swinging a sword during her time in the Bamboo Garden. She would also watch Yuan chop bamboo, as he was not just mindlessly striking at them but practicing sword techniques. "Her sword techniques are a little rough…" Xi Meili couldn’t help but mutter after seeing Lan Yingying fight with the sword. If it weren’t for her cultivation and the Golden Spirit Pill, Lan Yingying would’ve lost quite easily. Moreover, her opponent wasn’t too experienced in the sword either, which was the biggest reason that Lan Yingying was able to hold on for many minutes. "Looks like I need to teach her some basic sword techniques…" Yuan mumbled. Hearing this, Tan Songyun said, "If it’s just the basics, I can teach her." "Are you sure?" Yuan looked at her with a surprised face. "Why are you looking at me like that? While I may have debts to settle with you, she’s completely innocent, and we’re friends now," Tan Songyun sneered. "Alright. I’ll leave her in your hands," Yuan couldn’t argue with her and nodded. Discover more stories at freewebnovel After ten long minutes, Lan Yingying barely managed to defeat her opponent after the disciple made a mistake. When Lan Yingying returned to her seat, her face was slightly flushed red, almost as if she was embarrassed about her performance. "There’s no need to be embarrassed. You did very well for someone who’s never really trained with the sword," Yuan said. "No, that’s not why I am embarrassed…" she quickly shook her head before continuing to speak, "I thought I would be able to replicate your movements because I have been watching you fight for years, but when I finally tried it, my body wouldn’t listen to me." Lan Yingying thought she would be able to wield the sword just fine because she had witnessed Yuan use his sword for many years, so she didn’t put as much effort into training the sword. However, she quickly realized her mistake and felt ashamed for it. "I’ll put more effort into training the sword now…" she sighed. "I wouldn’t put too much thought into it if it were you. After all, once this trial is over, you will go back to your original fighting style," Xi Meili said. "While that may be true, we don’t know how long we’ll be in this trial. I don’t want to be a burden, and even if I might never pick up the sword again, I think it’s good to have some experience just in case I need to wield a weapon again in the future," she said. "Number 7,232 and number 8,000." Sometime later, Ji Ran was called to the stage. Yuan and the others were very confident in Ji Ran’s victory—unless he got extremely unlucky and was given an opponent that was far above his cultivation. "Sixth level Spirit Warrior…" Yuan muttered after seeing Ji Ran’s opponent. "Sixth level?! That’s four entire levels higher than him!" Xi Meili exclaimed. "I wouldn’t worry too much," Yuan said with a smile. Once the match began, Xi Meili quickly understood why Yuan had said such a thing. Despite being four levels below his opponent’s cultivation, Ji Ran was able to dominate his opponent with ease. "The Peerless Immortal Technique! He’s using the Peerless Immortal Technique!" "Not just that, but his understanding of the technique seems to have reached the second level! How can an Outer Court disciple who came from the Bamboo Garden have such talents?!" The audience exclaimed in shock after witnessing Ji Ran display such a technique. It was not just the disciples who were shocked. Even the sect elders watching were greatly surprised, and many of them began considering accepting Ji Ran as their disciple. "That man… He’s the Immortal Monastery’s fourth Sect Leader, huh?" The Sect Leader mumbled with a satisfied smile on his face. Sometime later, in just a few minutes, Ji Ran secured his victory while leaving his opponent completely speechless. Once the sect elder declared Ji Ran’s victory, something unexpected happened. For the first time since the beginning of the tournament, the Sect Leader clapped, showing his amusement and acknowledgment. This shocked everyone there, as it was almost impossible to receive the Sect Leader’s approval as an Outer Court disciple, much less a Bamboo Disciple. When the sect elders saw this, many of them made up their minds and decided to recruit Ji Ran once the tournament ended. "Thank you, Founder!" Ji Ran was incredibly excited to receive the Sect Leader’s approval despite his age and experience. After all, the Sect Leader was a hero and legendary figure in his eyes. Time continued to pass, and eventually, it was Tan Songyun’s turn to enter the stage. Her opponent was at the fifth level of Spirit Apprentice and also a fellow Bamboo Disciple, while Tan Songyun herself was at the ninth level of Spirit Apprentice. The result of the fight was apparent to everyone even before the fight began. A dozen exchanges later, Tan Songyun proved everyone right by defeating her opponent without even breaking a sweat. Then, right after Tan Songyun’s match, Yuan heard his number being called. "Number 8,171 and number 300!" "Good luck… not that you need it!" Xi Meili chuckled. "I’ll be back soon." Yuan jumped onto the stage, and his cultivation shocked many disciples, even sect elders. "He’s at the peak of Spirit Warrior?! But he’s a Bamboo Disciple!" The audience was also shocked when Ji Ran entered the stage while being at the second level of Spirit Warrior, but it was incomparable to Yuan, who was almost a step away from Spirit Master. The Sect Leader narrowed his eyes and frowned slightly after seeing Yuan’s face, almost as if he found it unpleasant for some reason. "He looks familiar…" he mumbled to himself, but he didn’t think too much about it.