C126-2 : Disasters And Food

It's not teleportation!" Luo Yi declared as Meatball dropped with the weight of several tons on the ground, sending out tremors all around.

"The Titanfall Archipelago is an area surrounded by spatial cracks, formed by a mysterious incident that happened a long, long time ago," Luo Yi began explaining in an warm, soft as if she was spinning fairy tales for her children. It was difficult to take her account of such supernatural events seriously.

"Everywhere around these mountains, spatial cracks are constantly forming and disappearing without any pattern. The gravity field outside this floating island is completely skewed, changing directions and intensity as swiftly as the pace of predatory beasts. Nobody can predict what sort of changes will take place the next second. The only fact we can be certain of is that the changes would not be fatal to us as long as we tread here carefully and apply the discoveries of our predecessors who explored this place.

This is also the place where the preliminary round of the tournament will take place soon. The elements I've mentioned just now shall play a vital role there. Obviously, there are many more details about this region that I'm not permitted to inform you of, mostly because they are crucial to your victory in the tournament. You'll have to discover those information yourselves !"

At this moment, another disciple from the genius gang raised his hand. Luo Yi nodded at him with a smile, permitting him to speak.

"Senior Yi, you said something about enlightenments being a common phenomenon here in the Titanfall Archipelago. I'm pretty sure everybody here is more interested in that sentence compared to the tournament's news."

A buzz rose among the disciples, supporting his statement. Luo Yi waved her hands emphatically, gesturing at them to quiet down.

"That is correct. Usually, this information comes up much later during the introductory phase of new sects that arrive here. But disciple Xuhan over there seems to have been at the edge of an enlightenment long before he had arrived here. So the speciality of the archipelago only acted as a catalyst to smoothen the process up. As for what the speciality it is. . . .that too is an information you'll have to discover yourselves. 'The Champion Of The Planet' tournament aims to be as realistic as possible without being boring and mundane. So nobody is going to guide you to gaining enlightenments, not even your masters. Your success and achievements in the tournament shall depend solely on you. The only help you'll receive from the elders of your sect are advice, safety in case of fatal accidents, and the regular teaching you were supposed to receive back in your sect anyway. None of those things will directly help you achieve anything if you don't put in effort yourself."

The disciples meekly nodded in agreement with her. Luo Yi returned to her original introductory speech.

"I can see that the Crimson Snow Sect has had a bountiful harvest of talented new blood in this generation. The amount of the lowest level elements in your island is quite small ! I'm not going to waste any more time on information you can ask me for later. As you have heard from fellow cultivator Tang, there are other sects waiting in line for the arrival of their councillors. This year, the number of sects qualifying for the preliminary round of the tournament has been unprecedentedly high. So we are on a shortage of councillors right now. The situation will be remedied soon enough. Until then, all of you can dedicate yourselves for the first task of the preliminary round round— the remodeling of your sect !"

"Remodeling?"

"What's wrong with the current layout ?"

"I thought only the third level elements were susceptible to control, right? If the elders aren't supposed to help us, only the elements controlled by the nine geniuses will be left. That's not a very large amount, is it ?"

"I doubt it can be called a remodelling the sect. More accurate a description would be building sand castles."

Hundreds of disciples broke out into discussions, their voices loud enough to reach Luo Yi. Han Xuhan threw a confused glance at his martial siblings and found out all three of them looked unnaturally excited. Even the stone faced Yuen Zhou seemed to be radiating boundless energy.

Meanwhile, Luo Yi did not look remotely surprised. Instead, a strange smirk made its way into her face. Standing behind her, the senior Tang from the Abyss Guild had the exact same reaction to their discussions.

"True, true," Luo Yi answered loudly to the questions directed at her, recapturing the attention of the audience.

"Only the third level element is malleable. And even if all of you become expert builders, you cannot make any substantial changes to your homes as easily as the geniuses of your sect who wields control over the third level element."

Interrupting her speech, Mu Ran shouted out in annoyance, his tone impatient.
"Oh I get it . Tournaments are obviously aimed to fish out the true dragons in this pond full of fish ! Since the beginning, we all knew that only the geniuses had an actual chance to qualify in the competition. The rest of the rabble are just here to act as peanut gallery !
So this is where the true elimination begins ! The-"

"No, not really."

"True genius- wait, what?" Mu Ran's blood boiling declaration came to a confused halt as Luo Yi's remark hit him.

"The third level element will surely help you with the remodelling. But to gain victory in this round, it will play but a minor role. The true key of winning this tournament lies in how many of you survive the oncoming disasters !" Luo Yi laughed, spreading her hands wide in a grandiose fashion.

Disasters....surely not....oh, no no no !

Alarm bells went off in Xuhan's mind, which had just been rejoicing upon hearing that only the nine geniuses might be competing for real while he could enjoy from the sidelines.

"Yes, that's right ! Disasters just like the flood you experienced the moment you arrived here in the Titanfall Archipelago. Flood, earthquake, thunderstorm, demon beast invasion, acid rain, food and resource, robbery, thievery, betrayal, battle royale, cultivation deviation, and so much more ! Ahahaha...how many of those are you going to face with that measly bit of third level element ?"
For the first time, Luo Yi's cheerful persona slipped a bit, revealing a somewhat maniacal terror hidden inside.

Stunned into silence, the disciples stared at her for a long time. Mu Ran looked heartbroken, his eyes winded in disbelief. Finally, Yuen Zhou was the one to speak once more.

"Uhm...what was that bit about food and resources among all those disasters? Surely, we can return to the sect for those whenever necessary, right ?"

"Yeah, about that...." Luo Yi's ear to ear grin did not indicate a positive answer to her question.