After all, the Sacred Land of Civilization appeared only once in a long while.

The total number of people reached twenty thousand.

Among them, the majority were Celestial Venerables or those ascending to that level, with a significant contingent of half-step Civilization Realm figures present. Apart from the fifty figures on the Heavenly Ranking, nearly everyone else had arrived.

This included imperial scions such as the Imperial Son of the Dharma Saint, the Imperial Son of the Dharma Emperor, the Imperial Son of the Desolate Plains, and the Imperial Son of the Martial King. There were also renowned figures like the Old Immortal of the South Pole, as well as ancient behemoths who had long been in seclusion for tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, or even longer years, possessing little contemporary fame. Of course, the most eye-catching presence was the Son of the Era, the Son of the Desolation.

This was unquestionably a super grand occasion for the 〖C〗entral Celestial Dynasty! A thrilling, monumental event!

And now, all twenty thousand people had just entered the Void Passage. All twenty thousand Void Passages led to the gates of the Sacred Land of Civilization, and the circumstances encountered in each passage were completely different. It was a race to see who could reach the gates of the Sacred Land of Civilization within the top fifteen thousand; the remaining five thousand would be automatically eliminated and barred from entry.

Lu Yuan also entered a Void Passage at this moment.

The moment Lu Yuan entered this Void Passage, he noticed a faint light within. Not far ahead, there was a spatial barrier. Lu Yuan pondered silently what might happen within this passage, then summoned a white sword gleam and began to fly.

He flew for a long time, yet discovered he hadn't encountered a single monster, nor faced the slightest difficulty.

What was going on?

Lu Yuan was slightly surprised. A Void Passage should inherently present challenges; how could he encounter absolutely no trouble now? This was truly bizarre. The more this was the case, the more cautious Lu Yuan became, though he did not reduce his speed. He had to make it into the top fifteen thousand at the gates of the Sacred Land of Civilization; he could not afford to be disqualified before that mark.

Lu Yuan sped along on his sword, suddenly seeing the light ahead intensify dramatically.

It seemed as though there was a grand hall in front of him.

Lu Yuan halted his sword light.

At that instant, a message flashed across his mind.

"Welcome to the Arena."

The Arena? What was this?

Lu Yuan stepped inside and found himself in an exceptionally vast hall, blazing with intense light. Seated within were five individuals, all of whom he recognized: the Sect Master of the Sole Sect, Emperor Yi; the Sect Master of the Shaoyang Sect, Emperor Chi; the Sect Master of the Youli Sect, You Wuqiu; the Sect Master of the Arrow Sect, Feng Xiaotian; and the Sect Master of the Nanhua Sect, True Man Nanhua.

As Lu Yuan walked in, he noticed the gazes of the other five fixed upon him.

True Man Nanhua of the Nanhua Sect offered a wry smile upon seeing Lu Yuan: "The last one to arrive is actually you."

Lu Yuan walked to True Man Nanhua's side: "What's happening?"

"What's happening? This is the Arena. Simply put, six Void Passages have intersected here," True Man Nanhua said, pointing to the path he took. Lu Yuan realized there were indeed six Void Passages. True Man Nanhua continued, "Ahead, there are only three Void Passages remaining. We’ve encountered the Arena, meaning six people arrived here, and it’s a three-on-three contest; only three can proceed forward."

Lu Yuan understood the rule now—it required a three-on-three confrontation here.

"How are the three teams divided?" Lu Yuan asked.

"Freely assigned. However, generally, Emperor Yi, Emperor Chi, and You Wuqiu are grouped together; you, me, and Feng Xiaotian form the other side," True Man Nanhua explained.

"Why?" Lu Yuan raised an eyebrow.

"Why? Haha!" Emperor Yi laughed. "It's quite simple. I am at the eighth heaven of the World Realm, Emperor Chi is at the eighth heaven of the World Realm, and You Wuqiu of the Youli Sect recently advanced to the eighth heaven of the World Realm—three at the eighth heaven of the World Realm. As for the three of you, Feng Xiaotian of the Arrow Sect is at the seventh heaven of the World Realm, True Man Nanhua of the Nanhua Sect is at the seventh heaven of the World Realm, and Lu Yuan, you were at the sixth heaven of the World Realm during the Sect Ranking War nearly three years ago. Being severely injured by the Son of the Desolation over two years ago, you likely spent that time wallowing like a stray dog, making breakthroughs difficult. At most, you might be at the seventh heaven of the World Realm."

"Now, with six people, only three can advance. Naturally, the three of us powerhouses will join forces to deal with the three of you weaker ones, ensuring our three proceed."

...

Emperor Yi, who valued being supreme above all else, was clad in a purple robe that exuded nobility. Emperor Chi, radiating domineering flames, seemed as if countless rolling high-temperature fires were churning around him. You Wuqiu, dark and unfathomable, wore black robes, resembling mystery and fog. The aura emanating from the three World Realm eighth-heaven experts was nothing short of earth-shattering.

In contrast, although True Man Nanhua possessed an ethereal immortal air, his imposing presence was insufficient. Sect Master Feng Xiaotian of the Arrow Sect was lean and sharp, like an arrow drawn taut, but archery techniques often hinder close combat, and this place seemed geared for it. Moreover, as a seventh-heaven World Realm expert, his magical power was weaker, resulting in an even less imposing aura. Lu Yuan appeared listless and somewhat unreliable.

From any angle one viewed it, the side comprising Emperor Yi, You Wuqiu, and Emperor Chi held an overwhelming advantage.

Emperor Yi looked toward Lu Yuan: "Lu Yuan, do you know? I've long disliked you. Among the Supreme Great Sects, I should be the strongest, so what are you, to have your fame spread across the Supreme Great Sects now? I am the Supreme Emperor of Uniqueness, and an ant like you dares to stand above me." His gaze upon Lu Yuan was deeply contemptuous.

Emperor Chi looked at Lu Yuan, flames dancing as he spoke: "The Sect Master of the Blood Gate was my friend, yet he died by your hand. I never had the chance to kill you, but now it seems the opportunity has arrived."

He held an unstable ball of flame in his hand, his killing intent toward Lu Yuan manifest without reservation.

You Wuqiu looked at Lu Yuan: "Lu Yuan, do you know how high the bounty placed on you is beneath the surface in the Ancient Civilization and the Bronze Civilization? With such a colossal reward just for killing you, you must die so that I can charge toward a higher realm."

All three glared at Lu Yuan, brimming with murderous intent. Whether for profit or hatred, their desire was to end Lu Yuan's life.

Emperor Yi raised his hand and unleashed his Unique Saber Technique. His technique was filled with the singular dominance of heaven and earth. It resembled the Horizontal Slash, but where the Horizontal Slash embodied unparalleled tyranny, Emperor Yi's technique preached the destruction of all else save the self. It was not as overwhelmingly tyrannical as the Horizontal Slash, but its viciousness surpassed it. The moment his saber was raised, a profound, visceral bloodlust immediately coiled around them. He was truly intent on killing Lu Yuan; this move was named 'Only I Survive, All Beings Perish!' Boundless death energy spread, the tip of the blade aimed directly at Lu Yuan's heart.

Emperor Chi flipped his hands together, merging them to conjure a crimson, primordial ancient divine dragon that coiled and lunged toward Lu Yuan. This was the 'Emperor Chi Fire Dragon Roar,' the ultimate ninth strike of Emperor Chi. The massive ancient dragon seemed to descend from another plane; upon appearing, it sought to annihilate all things. Time and space subtly chilled beneath the claws of the ancient dragon. Furthermore, within the flames at this moment, Emperor Chi subtly invoked the character 'Burn'—a fire-elemental character originating from the Fire Civilization. Normally, the Supreme Great Sects did not utilize characters, but to enhance his combat strength, Emperor Chi traded a special item with the Fire Civilization to acquire the secondary-level character 'Burn.' Coupled with his boundless Blazing Lotus Fire, the 'Burn' character made the flames burn fiercer, blaze hotter, with a magnificent and terrible splendor, threatening to incinerate everything in existence.

You Wuqiu's attack was starkly different from the other two. He summoned a gigantic magic treasure, which was a Ghost Ship. On the Ghost Ship resided a King of Ghosts, Generals of Ghosts, Emperors of Ghosts, and Sovereigns of Ghosts—various spectral beings. He then employed the 'Ghost God Control Art' to concentrate the magical power of these ghost-path entities. Instantly, boundless black mist ignited from the Ghost Ship. Wisps of terribly dense spectral energy surged into You Wuqiu, causing his magical power to surge, reaching a level approaching the ninth heaven of the World Realm. Though he had only recently reached the eighth heaven, relying on the might of the Ghost Ship treasure, his combat prowess was certainly not inferior to Emperor Yi or Emperor Chi.

The targets of Emperor Yi, Emperor Chi, and You Wuqiu were all Lu Yuan, not the others.

They desired Lu Yuan's death the most.

What formidable pressure!

The combined might of three eighth-heaven World Realm masters was truly extraordinary. At this juncture, True Man Nanhua and Feng Xiaotian both changed expression. They realized their opponents intended to eliminate Lu Yuan first; if Lu Yuan fell, it would leave only the two of them. Standing near the dying, they could feel the chill on their own lips; they dared not show the slightest carelessness. True Man Nanhua summoned the Nanhua Sutra inherited from antiquity, pushing his Nanhua Sutra Heart Method to its extreme and launching it toward the three eighth-heaven World Realm masters. Feng Xiaotian’s arrow was almost instantaneous, unleashing his ultimate skill, 'Arrow Dance Thirty-Three Heavens'—Heaven has thirty-three layers, and his arrow could pierce all thirty-three layers of heaven.

Whether True Man Nanhua or Feng Xiaotian, both were masters at the seventh heaven of the World Realm; their full-powered strikes were certainly not trivial.

But! The power of their attacks fell far short compared to the launches from the eighth-heaven World Realm trio of Emperor Yi, Emperor Chi, and You Wuqiu.

The momentum of these three remained unchanged, their surging tide instantly striking back True Man Nanhua and Feng Xiaotian, causing both to spit out a mouthful of blood.

At this point, True Man Nanhua and Feng Xiaotian could no longer interfere.

Simultaneously, Emperor Yi, Emperor Chi, and You Wuqiu all moved toward Lu Yuan. Lu Yuan's black hair was whipped violently by the towering waves of energy.

Lu Yuan lightly tapped his sword; he did not know when he had already drawn it from its sheath.

"My Nourisher, my Nourisher, it's been two years since I used you. It is time to draw the sword."

(The third update is delivered.)

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