The clamor of discussion and exchange in the entire venue fell silent; every spectator, every genius contestant, fixed their gaze upon the combat platform. A whistling sound descended from the heavens, and an elder with hair like silken snow, possessing a gentle and refined demeanor, clad in white robes, floated slowly down. He surveyed the crowd with a solemn expression.
“Advanced Temple Deacon level!” Ye Chen frowned slightly as he looked at the white-robed elder. “In the Temple, ordinary Temple Envoys are assigned to the Outer Sea’s Misty Island to manage affairs; each one is a King-grade powerhouse! One rank higher are the Temple Deacons, each at the fifth tier of the King grade! Above that are the Senior Temple Deacons, whose combat strength starts at the lowest point of the eighth tier of the King grade!”
“Transcending the tenth tier of the King grade means they are first-rate Divine-grade, equivalent to the Island Lords of the Six Divine Islands in the Inner Sea. Above the tenth tier of the Divine grade is the realm of transcending mortality and achieving sainthood, reaching the pinnacle—this is the Island Lord of Dragon Sovereign Island, who is also the Patriarch governing the entire Xuanyuan Clan.”
Ye Chen could feel the deep accumulation of thousands of years within this Temple. Every member was fierce and skilled in combat; even placed in the outside world, they would constitute an extremely formidable force, capable of forming a base city comparable to Huaxia’s Base City! After all, this place also possessed technological power!
At this moment, the white-haired elder concluded his address. A middle-aged man, holding a golden roster, suspended himself in mid-air and announced loudly: “Next, we commence the first selection battle. Huang Dongpo of Purple Moon Island versus Huang Zi of Orchid Island!”
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two figures shot toward the stage, displaying extraordinary bearing. They faced each other, their auras deep and long-lasting, indicating profound foundations. As the match began, they charged forward rapidly, one wielding a spear, the other a sword. They clashed, the sound of metal meeting metal sparking a shower of fire.
“One at the first tier, another at the eighth tier…” Ye Chen glanced over, nodding slightly in his mind. “The contestants from the Middle Sea’s islands are indeed stronger. For ordinary matches, as soon as they step out, both are already above the seventh tier. I fear there might even be those at the ninth or tenth tier later!”
After a brief observation, Ye Chen withdrew his gaze, too uninterested to watch further. He closed his eyes to rest, quietly absorbing the elemental matter drifting in the air. Simultaneously, he noted that the Origin Crystal Grass nestled in his wrist had grown slightly more overnight, capable of unleashing the strength of the fifth level!
A small portion of his internal Qi had been consumed by this little thing, but for him, losing this amount of Qi was negligible; he could replenish it in a few breaths.
Beside him, the straw-hat youth noticed Ye Chen’s demeanor, his eyes flickering. He scrutinized Ye Chen deeply for a moment, then turned his head back to the tedious fight on the martial stage. He yawned, pulled his straw hat down to cover his face, curled up, and promptly fell fast asleep…
In the distant VIP seating area,
Four or five figures were casually seated on stone chairs. Among them was a slender young woman whose skin was as fair and delicate as snow, almost translucent. Her cheeks were cool and aloof, making her exquisitely beautiful. She wore a light purple long gown, embroidered with a purple cloud pattern on the shoulder—she was an Inner Sea contestant from Purple Cloud Island. Behind her stood a girl who possessed a touch of heroism. If Ye Chen saw her, he would surely recognize this girl as the same willful lass who had demanded he move aside on the street previously.
“Is this the fighting in the Middle Sea?” the willful girl looked at the battle onstage with disdain. “So weak. This madam could take all these people down.”
The purple-gowned maiden said calmly, “Never underestimate anyone. With your temperament, you will inevitably cause more trouble in the future and provoke those you shouldn’t. Your parents died due to a vendetta; my father adopted you and taught you martial arts, not so you could run around causing trouble!”
Upon hearing this, the willful girl froze, her hands hanging at her sides trembling slightly. Then, she slowly lowered her head and murmured, “Yes, Miss.”
The purple-gowned maiden leaned back in her grand chair, looking down at the martial stage with icy arrogance. “Reports indicate that in the Middle Sea Restricted Zone this time, there are four particularly troublesome individuals—geniuses rarely seen in a century. They are young, yet they’ve reached King-grade combat strength in the environment of the Middle Sea. If they had grown up in the Inner Sea, their achievements might be even greater!”
The willful girl was surprised. “Not yet twenty years old, and they broke through to the King grade? And in the Middle Sea Restricted Zone?”
A cold, stunning arc appeared at the corner of the purple-gowned maiden’s lips. “All four of these individuals have received invitations to the Six Divine Islands of the Inner Sea. Except for one genius youth titled ‘Black Tower,’ the other three have refused. These individuals likely harbor aspirations for the Inner Sea battles as well, hoping to join the Temple directly as Envoys or Deacons!”
The willful girl was unconcerned. “With your strength, Miss, what does it matter if they are King-grade powerhouses? Wouldn’t you deal with them in one move?”
“Naturally,” the purple-gowned maiden replied placidly. “My goal is to be the foremost in the Inner Sea. However, several geniuses have risen this time, and they will all become my competitors!”
The willful girl stuck out her tongue and said no more.
On the martial stage, the battles alternated round after round. Each island had two or three contestants, but through special arrangements, contestants from the same island would not be matched against each other on the stage.
“Fifteenth match: Ye Chen of Moon Gazing Island versus Huang Jie of Luminous Light Island!” the middle-aged man announced loudly.
Ye Chen slowly opened his eyes. His bones shifted slightly as he performed a simple warm-up. Then, he rose to his feet, took one step, and his figure shot out like a startled swan, landing gracefully. His body stood rigid, like a javelin, completely steady.
This display of kinetic control caused many in the genius battle zone to narrow their eyes.
Whoosh!
Across the stage, a golden-robed youth flew up, flipping his palm to draw a battle saber. He exuded an aura of nobility and looked coldly at Ye Chen. “Seeing as you’re from the Outer Sea and promotion is not easy for you, I’ll let you have the first move. Go ahead!”
Ye Chen’s expression was placid. “Seeing as you are too weak, I won’t make a move. Just surrender yourself!”
The golden-robed youth, Huang Jie, choked for a moment, then erupted in rage. “You’re courting death!” The arm holding the battle saber trembled slightly. Following the sound of a gong, the match commenced. He charged fiercely toward Ye Chen.
“The blade hasn’t left its sheath, but the heart is already chaotic,” Ye Chen remained calm, watching Huang Jie charge aggressively. He lifted his hand, pinched lightly, and effortlessly clamped down on Huang Jie’s wrist. With a flick of his finger, the entire back of the saber vibrated violently, causing Huang Jie’s hand, which gripped the hilt, to twitch as if seized by a cramp. The skin between his thumb and forefinger cracked, and in shock, the saber flew from his grasp, tumbling away.
Ye Chen reached out and seized the hilt, his gaze instantly becoming intensely focused, as if the entire world had vanished. In his eyes, there was only the saber in his palm!
The cheering audience seemed to lose all sound at that instant.
A magnificent blade intent surged out from Ye Chen. Holding the saber with one hand, his black hair danced without wind, making him resemble an unparalleled Blade Sovereign. Huang Jie’s pupils constricted, and he was about to retreat when he heard Ye Chen’s icy voice right beside his ear: “This is how a blade should be used!”
SHIIIING!
An enchanting blade light sliced across the sky, seeming to cleave the entire void.
Huang Jie hadn't even seen Ye Chen move before he saw Ye Chen retract his hand. With a slight flick of his wrist, Ye Chen tossed the battle saber back, dropping it at Huang Jie’s feet. The tip of the blade was embedded in the stone slab, and the hilt continued to tremble incessantly.
Hoo!
A slight breeze blew past, chilling Huang Jie. He gasped in alarm, then looked down in horror. The upper half of his clothes had been shredded into pieces and fell away. Fortunately, his lower trousers were intact; otherwise, he would have been naked before tens of thousands of people.
“Get lost,” Ye Chen said with a plain expression, as if instructing a subordinate.
Huang Jie shot him a resentful glance but dared not linger. Gripping his battle saber, he moved swiftly, retreating rapidly from the martial stage, disappearing into the crowd.
Ye Chen moved in turn, landing in the genius rest area. Having secured his victory for the day, there was no point in staying. He turned around and, under the dumbfounded gazes of the crowd, walked away.
This battle had ended very quickly.
In the genius rest area, the straw-hat youth opened his eyes and watched Ye Chen’s retreating back with keen interest, murmuring, “Defeated Huang Jie in one move. It seems you indeed possess King-grade strength!”
In the distant VIP seating, the purple-gowned maiden’s gaze sharpened, and she frowned deeply, seemingly deep in thought. The willful girl behind her, upon seeing Ye Chen leave, couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, “Isn’t that the little shorty from the other day? How can he be so strong?”
As the matches concluded, Ye Chen’s name resonated throughout the Middle Sea. Huang Jie held some renown across the 30 islands of the Middle Sea, yet he was defeated so effortlessly by Ye Chen. Instantly, many Middle Sea genius contestants began to observe him covertly.
In the following days of the competition, Ye Chen did not act overly ostentatious. When he encountered experts above the ninth tier, he would engage them in a few rounds of combat before painstakingly defeating them.
In the blink of an eye, six days passed, and the selection tournament concluded.
Throughout these six days, after every fight, Ye Chen would leave the martial arena. This was because he discovered that the Origin Crystal Grass was growing at an astonishing speed. In just one week, it had reached the fourth level, equivalent to a first-tier expert!
Furthermore, upon reaching level 100, the Origin Crystal Grass had grown to the size of three zhang (about ten meters), resembling a birch tree. Its vines drifted, its leaves crystalline, and it was incredibly gluttonous, occasionally extending its vines automatically to absorb the elemental matter in the air. However, in most cases, it was consuming the Qi within Ye Chen’s body.
Therefore, Ye Chen’s rate of Qi absorption far surpassed that of others; otherwise, seeing this little thing devour so voraciously would surely break his heart with jealousy.
On this day, all the geniuses gathered. Following the announcement ceremony, the final stage was the Divine Platform point system.
Having the experience from last time, Ye Chen was much more proficient; his eliminations were relatively easy. Moreover, he vaguely sensed that among these Middle Sea genius contestants, only a few were truly powerful, displaying faint fluctuations of Qi—they were likely all King-grade powerhouses!
Thus, during the Divine Platform battles, he also unleashed combat strength equivalent to the first tier of the King grade. With this level of power, even if he didn't take first place, he wouldn't fall out of the top six.
As the matches ended, the results were announced.
“First Place: Huang Ling of East Sand Island! Score: 5283.”
“Second Place: Ye Chen of Moon Gazing Island! Score: 4302.”
“Third Place: Huang Feng of Wind God Island! Score: 3820.”
“Fourth Place: Huang Chen of Blood Moon Island! Score: 3593.”
Ye Chen successfully advanced, moving on to the Inner Sea combat series! That was where the truly top geniuses of the entire Xuanyuan Clan were gathered! (To be continuedH)