"Can this old man have a go as well?" Li Ba dragged Thunder Dragon Li, bringing the heir of the Three-Headed Golden Dragon bloodline to the scene by his ear.

Quickly, shadows surged over the courtyard walls and burst into the yard.

"Brother Qian Jin, this thing should be something good, right? My paternal aunt mentioned it—the one she entrusted to you. You can’t ignore me now." Isayel had completely lost the arrogant demeanor he displayed upon first meeting Qian Jin; he now wore the face of a child throwing a tantrum, clearly ready to throw himself onto the ground if Qian Jin refused.

"This thing... consumes too many magic crystals... I don't have that many magic crystals," Qian Jin replied, not lifting his head as he switched out the crystals for Duanfeng Bu'er.

Li Ba and Pan Hongji exchanged a knowing, wry smile; the kid was clearly making sure they heard that last remark.

"Dream God..."

"Little Li Zi..."

"Go gather fifty percent of our family's magic crystals now."

The two supreme powerhouses spoke simultaneously. Qian Jin gave a thumbs-up without looking up. Only a Star knew the sheer volume of magic crystals that represented half of these two great families' reserves. Many of his own ideas could now be realized. After all, although the Endless World was rich in materials, collecting them all alone was quite troublesome. These two families' resources were certainly there to be utilized.

Chains materialized continuously, wrapping around Duanfeng Bu'er in layer after layer.

Chekfurit watched with keen interest from the side, murmuring softly, "With just one finger now, I could knock him down."

"Try saying that once you're bound!" Duanfeng Bu'er shot back, thoroughly unconvinced. These chains truly weakened him too much; he could barely exert any strength.

"You, come here for a moment." Qian Jin called over a warrior from the Nine-Headed Serpent bloodline. "There are magic crystals here. When you see the crystals running low on energy, switch in a fresh one. Keep this fellow bound for ten hours, then swap out the guard." "Everyone gets the same ten hours," Qian Jin stated as he stood up. "Once bound by this, there are only two ways to break free. One is through growth in your own strength. If you manage to break it, I hardly need to tell you how much your power might increase, do you understand?" Pan Hongji’s serpentine eyes darted around repeatedly. If he hadn't seen the potential benefits in this application, even his status as Serpent Emperor wouldn't have allowed him to shamelessly compete with a young man for this opportunity.

Li Ba nodded enthusiastically; this item might genuinely help him achieve a breakthrough.

"Well, I have other things to attend to then. You all carry on," Qian Jin said, bidding farewell to the group. He turned and headed toward another courtyard. With a complete set of forging equipment, crafting Soul Weapons should become much simpler.

Time flowed rapidly. Everyone lined up, awaiting their turn for the sealing process.

The Newcomer King Tournament scheduled for the next day was postponed by several days. Qian Jin’s battle with Qian Zhanxuan, which possessed overwhelming destructive power, had caused too much damage to the main arena!

Even though the artisans of the Zhence Dynasty worked through the night, they could not remake every single ring. This naturally required some time. To ensure spectator safety, the Newcomer King Tournament had to be slightly delayed.

The participants who gained extra time for the delay all entered special training regimens.

A full period of time passed, and the Newcomer King Tournament finally resumed.

Qian Jin walked out of the courtyard, rubbing his slightly reddened eyes. In his hands, he carried several Soul Weapons. "Although these aren't Sacred Artifacts..."

Boom! A warrior from the Nine-Headed Serpent bloodline immediately grabbed a Soul Weapon suited for him and chose that moment for his Saint Ascension. Following him, four more warriors from different bloodlines achieved Ascension...

Duanfeng Bu'er lay limply on the rocking chair. "Fighting in the Newcomer King Tournament in this state... I'm truly miserable."

Pan Mengshen patted Duanfeng Bu'er's shoulder and whispered, "It's the same for everyone, the same."

Thunder Dragon Li nodded repeatedly in agreement beside him. Everyone in the first batch sealed felt the same way—this thing was effective, but undeniably uncomfortable. The chains constantly strove to tighten, forcing them to exert their maximum strength just to maintain their current state.

Previously, they dared not unleash their peak strength for fear of causing catastrophic damage to the surroundings. Now, maintaining that peak output for extended periods felt profoundly unnatural. The exhaustion seeped into their bones. Especially when asleep, they instinctively had to maintain their strongest power output, or they risked being completely crushed to death.

Among the crowd, only Pan Hongji and Li Ba were ecstatic. Despite the intense confinement, the possibility of improving their stagnant power levels after so many years was too enticing.

Only when something is truly lost does one realize what it means to cherish. Pan Hongji and Li Ba understood loss intimately, which is why they treasured this opportunity even more than all the younger participants.

Returning to the main venue for the Newcomer King Tournament, the audience today was even larger than last time. Many people, unable to buy seats, demanded standing room tickets just to gain entry to the main hall.

The magical broadcasts that previously only appeared during the finals were now undertaken by the Magic Guild starting from the second round of the preliminaries, projecting the match footage into the sky above the venue so a wider audience could watch.

Qian Jin was once again scheduled first for the ring. However, this time his opponent was not a warrior from the Elven King bloodline, but one from the Viper bloodline.

"Qian Jin..."

At the referee’s call, Qian Jin rose from his seat and walked to the center of the ring. Reaching into the Battle Sphere, he dragged out the Metal Throne and slammed it heavily onto the stage!

The sound of heavy metal colliding with the floor once again reverberated through everyone's hearts.

Qian Jin uttered no words. He simply sat quietly on the Metal Throne, like a Great Demon King awaiting challengers, watching for the Viper bloodline warrior to appear.

The Viper bloodline warrior slowly ascended the stage. His cautious demeanor betrayed none of the inherent glory or pride of a bloodline warrior, nor did it project the aura of a hero challenging a demon king. He moved more like a commoner under the Demon King's absolute authority, presenting the hard-earned rewards of his labor.

"Then... the fight begins!"

The instant the referee's voice left his lips, Qian Jin raised a hand and unleashed a palm strike. A massive palm print flew into the air, and his opponent, without surprise, was sent flying off the stage.

Another palm! And another!

Although this outcome was predicted by most, witnessing an ordinary man swat away a bloodline warrior with a single, annihilating strike nonetheless sent the countless spectators into a frenzy of excitement.

"My turn!"

Qian Jin hadn't even exited the ring when a warrior from the Three-Headed Golden Dragon bloodline leaped onto the stage. The aura of Saint Ascension flared within him, directly impacting the peak of the Virtual Saint realm.

Virtual Saint, Peak! Those who had seen the tournament days earlier were stunned. Wasn't this person unascended previously? How was he already...

Ascended! And potentially just one step away from the True Saint realm!

Powerful! The Three-Headed Golden Dragon family was likely to be the most distinguished among all bloodline warrior families in this Newcomer King Tournament. Already in the second round, one of their members was displaying Saint Ascension power again.

Duanfeng Bu'er turned to the Nine-Headed Serpent warrior beside him. "When you go up later, you absolutely have to be more spectacular than this kid! Otherwise, even if you win, I’m going to beat you up!"

Thunder Dragon Li could only offer a wry smile in response. Duanfeng Bu'er’s competitive spirit was growing increasingly intense. But this was normal; anyone entering the Newcomer King Tournament arena would experience a surge in their desire to compete.

Of course, Thunder Dragon Li lightly shook his head as he watched Qian Jin’s retreating figure heading toward the venue exit. This man’s drive was an exception; his true target was not the younger generation at all. His sights were fixed only on Qian Zhanxuan, or perhaps the entire Qian family. If no one could achieve ultimate awakening, it might be difficult to pique his interest.

True Saint! True Saint! Thunder Dragon Li clenched his fist again. He had to reach the True Saint realm, no matter what! At the very least, he needed to make Qian Jin take him seriously in the ring! He was a warrior of the glorious Three-Headed Golden Dragon bloodline!

"Qian Jin, over here..." Mie Fangyuan hovered in the air, pointing toward another direction in the Divine Capital. "Wuming, today's match is in Venue Number Four."

The spectators watching the projected images outside cried out in amazement as they saw Mie Fangyuan ascend. Ascension! Only an Ascended warrior could levitate.

Amidst the gasps of astonishment, Qian Jin took to the air and sped toward Venue Number Four, following Mie Fangyuan.

The intensity of the fighting in Venue Number Four was in no way inferior to the main arena, where two bloodline warriors were locked in fierce combat.

Wuming stood quietly in a corner, accepting the curious stares of many.

"Next match: Elven King bloodline warrior Qian Wuqing versus Blasting Bear bloodline warrior Hormon."

Qian Wuqing?

Qian Jin was slightly surprised. He actually entered the competition? While his strength was decent, he shouldn't have been qualified to make it to the finals, right?

Swish...

The crowd of participants suddenly parted, creating a pathway as if they feared contamination from the icy aura.

Qian Wuqing stood silent and expressionless, entirely abandoning the pride characteristic of an Elven King bloodline warrior. An aura that pushed people away emanated from him as