Chu Chen was taken aback upon hearing this, not expecting the other party to say that. He could tell Long Yunxiao was genuinely happy.

"I just had good luck."

"You're really modest. If there's anything you don't understand in the Daoist School from now on, feel free to ask me. Let's add each other to our contacts first."

Chu Chen was a bit flustered by the other party's enthusiasm. He couldn't help but admire Long Yunxiao's broad-mindedness.

It should be noted that his own spotlight was overshadowed by Chu Chen today, yet the other party was not the slightest bit annoyed. Instead, he was very happy. It was clear he already regarded the Cyan Dragon Daoist School as his home and Chu Chen as family, which was truly admirable in terms of magnanimity.

At this moment, Su Lingyan, who ranked fourth, also came up to the arena. After chatting with Leng Ningshuang and Long Yunxiao for a bit, she hurried to Chu Chen's front.

"I'm feeling much better now that you got the championship."

Chu Chen was puzzled by this seemingly unrelated remark and inquired, "What does that mean?"

Su Lingyan laughed and said, "I'm a Double S-level prodigy, losing to you, an A-level genius, is really embarrassing, isn't it? But now that others aren't your match either, I naturally feel much better."

Chu Chen was rather speechless after hearing this. It seemed this sister was concerned about her reputation; as for striving to improve after losing the match, she had never thought about it.

Fifth in rank was Fu Tiancheng from the White Tiger Daoist School.

After getting on the arena, he chatted with Leng Ningshuang and others for a while but showed no interest in speaking with Chu Chen.

Ranked sixth and seventh were Hu Shengjie from the Qilin Daoist School and Shan Lei from the Black Tortoise Daoist School.

The eighth spot was occupied by Zhou Lixing, a Double S-level prodigy from the Black Tortoise Daoist School.

Ninth place was Zhang Yuyan.

The tenth position was taken by He Qiang from the White Tiger Daoist School.

These rankings, aside from the top seven, were based on their performance during the competition.

All contestants had no objections to this.

After all, the top ten all possessed the Domain Prototype; their strength was evident to all, and naturally, no one would be so blindly foolish as to raise objections.

Seeing that the top ten had gathered, Zhao Qianshan began to speak again, "I announce the award ceremony officially begins. Aside from the top ten rewards given on the spot, the rewards for the top hundred will be directly distributed to you by the Daoist School. Now, let's invite Hall Master Long to present the awards to the top ten."

As he finished speaking, Long Batian stepped onto the arena, followed by ten young girls, each carrying a tray.

Long Batian first approached Chu Chen, patting his shoulder and smiling, "You performed very well, congratulations on winning first place in the exchange competition."

Chu Chen quickly thanked him, "Thank you, Hall Master. I owe my achievements today to the cultivation from the Daoist School."

Long Batian, hearing this, was quite pleased. He took the tray from the girl's hand and handed it to Chu Chen, saying, "This is your reward. Besides one hundred million Alliance Coins, this token allows you to select three items from the treasure house of the Five Great Daoist Schools. If you have any questions, you can ask Elder Zhao."

After receiving the tray, Chu Chen naturally expressed his gratitude.

Quickly, the rewards were all distributed.

Seeing this, Zhao Qianshan promptly said, "Now, I declare the youth Daoist School Exchange Tournament to be successfully concluded."

Upon hearing this, the crowd applauded and then began to leave.

At this moment, Zhao Qianshan turned to the ten people on the arena and said, "Tomorrow, the treasure houses of the Five Great Daoist Schools will open. You can preview them using the wristbands distributed by the Daoist School to avoid being overwhelmed at the time."

Upon hearing this, everyone acknowledged his words.

After the award ceremony ended, everyone headed to the food street with cheerful faces.

This time, Celestial Star City really stood out, and Wang Lu and others naturally felt honored.

While Chu Chen and others were having a gathering, in an office on the top floor of the Wu Family Auction House.

An elder sat on a sofa, sipping tea before looking up to ask the middle-aged man seated opposite him, "Yingxiong, you did well this time. Not only did you earn money for our Wu Family, but you also gained us some reputation and maintained the relationship with the City Lord. This is killing three birds with one stone. You're becoming more mature in handling matters. I'm growing more confident in you."

Wu Yingxiong quickly replied with a smile, "It's all thanks to your guidance over the years."

This elder was none other than the Wu Family's Patriarch, Wu Zhenghao.

Wu Zhenghao, smiling upon hearing this, said, "You rascal, since when did you learn to flatter me? Do you know about Wen Jie's matter?"

"I'm not very clear, just heard a bit."

"Hmph, that useless thing. He not only stole business from his own family but also lost a lot of money. I've punished him to contemplate behind closed doors and forbade him from participating in any family business."

Wu Yingxiong quickly tried to comfort him, "Father, don't be too angry. Wen Jie is still young and ignorant."

Wu Zhenghao sighed upon hearing this and said, "He's already thirty and still doesn't know his place. It's all because your second mother spoiled him. Oh, right, why did you come rushing to see me this time?"

Wu Yingxiong quickly replied, "Father, I could earn so much money this time largely thanks to Chu Chen. Moreover, he defeated all the prodigies in the youth exchange competition here and won first place. I wanted to discuss with you whether we should become his investors."

Wu Zhenghao didn't answer immediately but took another sip of tea.

Seeing this, Wu Yingxiong didn't dare to urge him and sat waiting patiently.

After a moment, Wu Zhenghao put down his teacup and asked solemnly, "Yingxiong, do you know why our Wu Family has stood tall for so many years?"

Wu Yingxiong frowned slightly, contemplating before softly replying, "We rely on our brains and our ability to navigate alliances."

Wu Zhenghao waved his hand, "Wrong. Many have brains and skills, but most are short-lived. The real reason we've endured is that we never get involved in the power struggles of those major forces."

Wu Yingxiong asked in puzzlement, "Do you mean that Chu Chen is involved in the power struggle within the Cyan Dragon Daoist School?"

Wu Zhenghao shook his head, "It's not that he wants to be involved, but he has no choice. The internal conflicts of the Cyan Dragon Daoist School are no secret. Chu Chen's victory proves Long Batian's philosophy correct. He will use this opportunity to suppress Xu Guangyuan, who in turn will try to deal with Chu Chen. If we invest in him, we might get implicated."

Wu Yingxiong nodded thoughtfully, and after a moment of silence, he asked somewhat unwillingly, "Father, is there no way for Chu Chen to resolve this matter?"

Wu Zhenghao took another sip of tea before replying, "It's not difficult. If Long Batian can defeat Xu Guangyuan, Chu Chen will naturally be fine. However, it seems Long Batian is unwilling to do so."

"Why is that?" Wu Yingxiong quickly asked.

"This puzzled me for a long time. Not long ago, I noticed the Cyan Dragon Daoist School seemed to be developing better. Considering the events prior, I had some insights. He didn't rely solely on strength to become the Hall Master."

Wu Yingxiong heard this but couldn't make sense of it. He couldn't help but ask again, "Father, can't you be a bit more explicit?"

Wu Zhenghao didn't answer directly. After a moment of thought, he softly said, "I suspect Long Batian and Xu Guangyuan might be putting on a show."

"A show? Why?" Wu Yingxiong asked in shock.

Wu Zhenghao didn't immediately answer but instead asked, "Do you think our Wu Family is a united front?"

Wu Yingxiong shook his head immediately.

"Think about it. If our Wu Family is like this, imagine how many people would be up to no good within a vast force like the Cyan Dragon Daoist School."

Upon hearing this, Wu Yingxiong seemed to understand something and eagerly said, "You mean, they're putting on a show for those with ulterior motives, then using internal strife to root out their problems, using it as a way to solve them."

Wu Zhenghao nodded, "Correct. You have some insight."

Wu Yingxiong said, somewhat embarrassed, "I'm far behind you. In that case, Chu Chen would be in no danger."

Wu Zhenghao shook his head, "Don't you find Chu Chen's appearance suspicious?"

"You think there's a shadow of another force behind him?"

"This, I don't know. Even I find him suspicious. Long Batian and Xu Guangyuan will naturally test him. Until his identity is clarified, we should keep our distance. But even if we can't become investors, we should try to befriend him. If his identity checks out, his potential could be worth our investment. Increase the promised profit from one percent to two."

Wu Yingxiong immediately nodded, "Understood, I'll get right on it." After saying this, he hurriedly left.

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