In the grand and majestic hall, the sword-fighting tournament was in full swing.
The temporary arena spaces, created by the Emperor with supreme divine abilities, numbered one hundred and fifty, allowing three hundred cultivators to duel simultaneously. Compared to the millions of cultivators in the hall, this number was relatively small.
However, due to the disparity in cultivation levels, many cultivators would wisely choose to forfeit upon seeing their randomly matched opponents. After all, facing a vastly superior opponent would only result in a humiliating defeat, so it was better to withdraw.
The elite geniuses who dared to step onto the arena often finished their matches quickly, with many victories decided within a few rounds. Prolonged, evenly matched battles were rare.
Based on past experiences, this sword-fighting tournament would take only a few days to finalize the rankings on the Heavenly Talents List and distribute the rewards.
In the bright moon overhead, the names of numerous cultivators changed rapidly. Some names dimmed and disappeared, indicating those who had been defeated or used up their forfeits.
Meanwhile, some names grew brighter, with wisps of purple aura gathering from the void, enhancing these names.
The atmosphere grew tense and subtle, with almost all the major figures focusing on the arena spaces. Cheers, sighs, and angry curses echoed from various parts of the hall.
Injured and bleeding cultivators were occasionally teleported out, and the Dao Court immortals, waiting on the side, would promptly heal them. Everything was orderly.
Qing Muling also put away his casual demeanor, focusing on the duels in the arena. The new generation of cultivators who qualified to enter this hall were all considered elite geniuses outside, possessing commendable cultivation, divine abilities, and combat experience.
The Dragon Ritual Princess, however, paid little attention. Her only focus was the handsome young man before her. She sipped her celestial wine, glanced at Qing Muling, took a bite of spirit beast meat, and looked at Qing Muling again, feeling utterly content.
Senior Sister Xuebing Xuan had not yet taken her turn. Su Yunmo, Qi Shuyu, Yu Binghua, and other senior sisters had each participated in a round, winning easily due to their opponents' mediocre cultivation. They returned to the hall unscathed, continuing their feast and waiting for their next turn.
***
After three consecutive opponents forfeited, Luo Wanqing finally faced a formidable opponent: Tu Mubai, the young sect master of the Supreme Dao Lineage Yun Ting Sect. Currently an early-stage Elemental Immortal, he specialized in sword and spell cultivation and was among the top new-generation geniuses in the Great Void. He was the undisputed successor to the Yun Ting Sect's sect master position.
On the arena, Fourth Senior Sister Luo Wanqing, with her bright eyes and heroic demeanor, wore a magnificent red armor and wielded a massive wolf-tooth war hammer, taller than herself. She was enveloped in a faint flame aura, exuding a fierce and wild pressure.
Tu Mubai, in his colorful Daoist robe, held a gleaming green frost longsword, his eyes filled with battle intent. "Fairy Luo, I've long admired your reputation. Please, enlighten me!"
He knew of Luo Wanqing's infamous reputation from the ancient Wu Kingdom. She was known for her ruthless and unrestrained actions, having beaten countless geniuses. Though his cultivation was inferior, he intended to give his all, even in defeat, to uphold the Yun Ting Sect's name.
Luo Wanqing nodded slightly, saying little. She lightly swung her war hammer, causing countless intricate light symbols to flicker on the hammerhead. Her aura surged, and a colossal, muscular giant clad in beast-skin armor appeared behind her, holding a shield in one hand and a hammer in the other, its cold eyes fixed on Tu Mubai.
Tu Mubai's face changed drastically. The princess, who had awakened the ancient witch god's bloodline, was going all out from the start. He couldn't afford to hold back. In a flash, dozens of defensive spells enveloped him.
With a delicate shout, Fourth Senior Sister's war hammer drew a terrifying afterimage in the air, crashing down like a falling sky onto Tu Mubai's defensive field.
"Bang!"
Tu Mubai, like a ragdoll, couldn't withstand the full force of the hammer. He was sent flying, bloodied, over a hundred feet away, falling out of the arena, and was declared defeated.
"I…"
Tu Mubai, bleeding from the corners of his eyes, fainted before he could utter a word, and the Dao Court immortals rushed to heal him.
In a corner, a group of dignified and powerful cultivators watched the fiery beauty with grave expressions.
"This woman is quite troublesome!"
A burly red-robed cultivator tapped the table lightly. "Among the countless human cultivator factions, only a few can truly threaten our ancient clans, and she happens to be one of them."
A cold-eyed, black-clad youth playing with a bright yellow seal remarked, "During the era when the ancient witch gods roamed the world, even our clan had to avoid their edge. Since she has awakened her ancestor's bloodline, she is naturally qualified to be our true opponent!"
An exquisite girl in a purple fairy dress, with faint patterns on her forehead, said, "I don't understand. The ancient witch god's bloodline has become quite thin over time, with fewer and fewer descendants awakening it, and those who do have impure bloodlines. No matter how hard they try, this trend is irreversible. Yet, Luo Wanqing is a rare exception. What kind of heaven-defying fortune did she encounter?"
Silence fell around them.
The red-robed cultivator, a new-generation genius of the true dragon clan named Ao Rui, had extremely pure blood and an unimaginably strong body. Although he was only a mid-stage Elemental Immortal, he had defeated human True Immortals with his terrifying physical strength, proving his extraordinary talent.
The black-clad youth, Chiye Ling, hailed from the ancient Kylin clan. His grandfather was the current clan leader, making his status incredibly high. With high-stage Elemental Immortal cultivation and pure bloodline, he was recognized by the Dao Court as the strongest new-generation cultivator.
The exquisite girl, Ni Qingyue, came from the ancient Lihuang lineage. She had awakened her ancestral bloodline early, advancing rapidly in cultivation. Now a mid-stage Elemental Immortal, she had once slain a human True Immortal with her divine abilities, making her a highly regarded genius by the Dao Court.
Chiye Ling drained his wine cup and pondered, "Compared to us ancient clans, human cultivators are indeed weaker. Their physical bodies, divine souls, bloodlines, and divine abilities are all inferior. For a long time, they were suppressed by us until their clan produced Quasi Holy Emperors, and not just one or two."
Ni Qingyue nodded slightly. "Individually, few human cultivators can match us, but in terms of numbers, our combined clans are no match for even a fraction of the human population. That's why they are now the rulers of the world, and our glorious era has passed."
Humans, blessed by the fortune of creation, might be weak and short-lived, but they had immense growth potential and rapid reproduction, making them the dominant race in the Great Void.
Their vast numbers naturally produced countless elite cultivators, and over time, many peak experts emerged, challenging and eventually surpassing the ancient clans.
Ao Rui sighed, "Our clans are too few. The stronger the bloodline, the harder it is to leave descendants. Even if we often win the sword-fighting tournaments, the human Dao Court doesn't take it seriously because they have enough confidence not to fear us."
The ancient clans had only a handful of notable new-generation experts, while each generation of human geniuses numbered in the thousands, overwhelming the ancient clans with sheer numbers.
Previously, the ancient clans could rely on their Quasi Holy Emperor-level elders, but as the number of human Quasi Holy Emperors grew, this advantage disappeared.
Ni Qingyue's eyes were deep. "Human dominance is inevitable. Unless we solve our reproduction problem, we have no hope of reversing this trend."
Ao Rui smiled wryly, "That's for the old ones in our clans to worry about. We should focus on improving our strength. Hmm? Is it my turn?"
He put down his wine cup, grabbed his short-handled copper hammer, and disappeared, teleported to the arena.
Ao Rui's opponent, a genius from the Nine Spirit Proto Gate, was no match for him. After less than ten rounds, the dragon clan genius defeated him, forcing him to concede.
***
Meanwhile, the senior and junior sisters of Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace took turns in the arena, facing varying opponents but mostly winning. Especially the five girls led by Xuebing Xuan, who maintained a swift and unstoppable momentum.
Lin Shengqing had bad luck. After winning over ten matches, he was defeated by a prince from the Demon Path Ancestral Court, likely ranking outside the top thousand, leaving him cursing angrily, with the Bright Moon Sword Sect elders unable to calm him.
Yanling Ji, despite forfeiting once, had smooth matches afterward, always winning and possibly making it into the top five hundred on the Heavenly Talents List.
"Qing Junior Brother, their current strength is likely thanks to you, right?" Dragon Ritual Princess asked meaningfully. Due to Qing Muling, she paid more attention to the female cultivators of Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace. Seeing their outstanding performance, surpassing even the old Supreme Dao Lineages, she couldn't help but be curious.
The Dao Court's intelligence had previously indicated that the personal disciples of Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace's Sect Master Mu Yinghua, except for Xuebing Xuan, barely reached the monstrous genius level, with limited future achievements.
However, today, they had grown to mid-stage Elemental Immortals, with strong foundations and incredible destinies, overshadowing most monstrous geniuses.
What kind of heaven-defying fortune could have caused such a transformation?
"How would I know? You should ask the Sect Master," Qing Muling replied calmly, peeling a five-colored lotus seed. He would never admit to such things. Whether she believed it or not didn't matter, as she couldn't find evidence.
Dragon Ritual Princess smiled, studying him. "My intuition tells me your words should be taken in reverse. What do you think?"
"Whatever makes you happy." Qing Muling feigned ignorance, focusing on the celestial delicacies.
Aunt Su smiled gently, instructing the maids to serve more food and wine while silently noting everything Qing Muling ate.
Dragon Ritual Princess laughed generously, picking a milky white snow fruit, peeling it, and offering it to Qing Muling. "I noticed you particularly enjoy snow fruits. Fortunately, my mother's Hidden Cave Mystical Realm grows many, tended by experienced medicine immortals. They're larger and better than those at Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace. You can come anytime to enjoy them."
"Thank you, Senior Sister." Qing Muling accepted the fruit, biting into it. The sweet juice burst on his tongue, a pleasure beyond words.
***
Moments later, Qi Yalan's turn came again, facing none other than Yanling Ji, the chief disciple of the armillary sphere Star Palace.
"Unlucky…"
Yanling Ji cursed silently, using his second forfeit.
Whether he liked it or not, the women of Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace were now beyond his reach.
However, his luck was terrible today. Within moments, the new match results were out, and Yanling Ji nearly fainted.
His next opponent was Xuebing Xuan, the chief disciple of Cloud Dream Heavenly Palace.
The armillary sphere Star Palace elders exchanged glances. Yanling Ji had used up his forfeits and would be eliminated if he forfeited again.
Qing Muling, from afar, pondered. He didn't believe it was a coincidence, likely Qinghuan Emperor's doing to test the senior sisters' limits and teach the armillary sphere Star Palace a lesson.
After a brief hesitation, Yanling Ji decided to uphold his dignity as the chief disciple, drawing his sword and stepping into the arena.
"Fairy Xue, please enlighten me."
Seeing Xuebing Xuan gracefully land on the other side, Yanling Ji saluted her with his sword.
Xuebing Xuan nodded slightly, raising her sword. A giant alchemical cauldron appeared behind her, shrouded in nearly transparent flames, causing the surrounding temperature to soar.
Proofreader & Editor:Peter Pan