Ning didn't really watch any of the matches. He simply closed his eyes and listened to the sighs and cheers of the audience. He really wanted to see all the participant's powers for the first time with his own eyes.
The top 32 started and he only opened his eyes when his own name was called. His opponent was a man with a 9th Qi Condensation realm cultivation base. Meaning, he would have no problem winning against him.
The man tried to fight with his best of abilities, but they were of no concern to Ning. He easily destroyed each of his attacks, and in the end, defeated him as well.
The next one fighting after him turned out to be Hijaka. His opponent was someone that was in the 9th Qi Condensation realm. He decided to watch this one match that looked like it would get interesting.
However, thanks to Hijaka's immensely strong body, the match was not even a bother for him. In less than a minute, he managed to win against his opponent with no problem.
"Sigh, it really is boring. Maybe it will get better starting the next match," Ning thought.
"Did you see that Yelca, did you see?" Gion said excitedly.
"Yes, yes, I saw," Yelca said.
"I told you. Cultivating both body and Qi at the same time as possible. You said the disciple will turn out mediocre if they did that, but I never lost hope. You said Doctor Ning was an exception, right? Then how do you explain that disciple," Gion said.
"Sigh. I guess you are right. But we need some better techniques than the one we currently have," Yelca said.
"Do… Do you think we should ask him for the technique?" Gion asked.
"Stop talking nonsense and act like an actual sect leader. You want to ask a disciple for their cultivation method?" Yelca asked.
"Oh, you're right. I was so excited that I stopped thinking straight."
Ning listened to the two's bickering and smiled. 'Hey system, prepare a cultivation method that can cultivate both body and Qi at the same time. The total price must not exceed 500 Million,' he said.
<You can buy 'Body Breathing method' for 395,000,000>
'Make it a physical book,' he said.
He asked the system to create the book inside his robes and there it appeared. He slowly took it out and read it for a bit to see what it was about.
'Oh, so you absorb Qi through your body, hold it in for a bit, and send it out forcefully with your body. That way it cultivates your body while cultivating your Qi as well, huh?' Ning thought as he understood the concept of the book.
It was a very good book. Given that one didn't have to learn multiple methods at once and could make do with this single one, this was a very good technique.
Of course, his Earth-Shattering, Heaven Tempering art was much better since it tempered the mind as well as the other two, and the Divine Vortex Devouring technique was one of the best Qi cultivation techniques.
But they were also very expensive, unlike this one.
"Sect leaders, since I am leaving, take this as a parting gift. It's the cultivation method I use," he lied and handed them the book.
"Your method?" Gion and Yelca both got surprised and immediately jumped on the book and started reading it together. After a while, they looked at Ning with teary eyes and asked, "Do… Do we really get to keep it?" Yelca asked.
"Of course, it's a gift," Ning said.
"Thank you. Thank you very much. With this, our fragmented sects can once again become one," Gion said as tears fell through his eyes.
"Yes, the Purple Dragon-Tiger sect will return to former glory," Yelca said.
"You mean the Purple Tiger-Dragon sect," Gion corrected.
"No, the Purple Dragon-Tiger sect," Yelca recorrected. The two sect leaders started quarreling on what to call the joint sect.
Ning once again smiled and said nothing. He looked to his left and asked the disciple, "hey, hit me," he said.
"What?" he asked in confusion.
"You know, like yesterday? Hit me," Ning repeated.
"Oh," the disciple was a little confused but complied with the request and hit Ning on his biceps. However, Ning only got 40 Million energy.
"What's wrong? Hit me harder," he said.
The guy got a little embarrassed and hit Ning twice. In the two turns, his 160 Million energy cap was reached. The man took a deep breath and leaned back on his seat.
"What's wrong?" Ning asked.
"I don't know, Doctor. Your body feels a little weird when I hit you. I felt it yesterday as well. It's like I'm hitting a cushion or something. There is never an impact. That's probably because your body is very strong," the guy said and started taking deep breaths.
"Are you okay?" Ning asked.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. I… I just feel a little tired after hitting you. I wonder if I am sick or something?" he said.
Alex tried to think of some medical condition this guy might have been suffering from, but nothing came to mind. In the end, he resorted to asking the system.
'What's wrong with his body? Give me some information for 100 million energy,' he asked.
Information entered his mind and his eyes went a little wide in realization. Ning then sighed. 'I guess I will have to find a new source now,' he thought.
It turned out that Ning was basically stealing 160 Million energy the man had when he asked him to hit him. So, in turn, the man was feeling tired and lethargic due to the lack of energy in his body.
'He should be fine for now. I don't think his body had much energy without his cultivation base fully in use,' Ning thought.
Normal environmental energy was gone from his list of sources due to how much energy he required, and now another source was gone as well.
"Sh*t, I will have to find better ideas now."