Ancient Fiend Dragon Emperor

Chapter 809: Chapter 808: The Last Thirteen!

Because of their bye in this round, the Phoenix Sect gained spare time to study the tactics of other powers.

Su Han’s primary focus remained on the Top Ten Super Sects.

It must be said that their heritage, after standing firm in the Dragon Martial Continent for so many years, is indeed impressive. Although many disciples of Super Sects such as the Sword Immortal Tomb were killed by the Phoenix Sect during the Ancient Battlefield, the sheer number of disciples in these Super Sects allows them to replenish their ranks with ease.

Moreover, the Super Sects possess numerous strategies. Since this is not yet the final battle, various powers have not revealed their ultimate trump cards. They continue to conceal their strength.

Among the Super Sects, Su Han’s primary interest naturally lies in the ever-legendary One Slash Palace.

Not only Su Han, but everyone’s attention is undoubtedly on the One Slash Palace.

In the betting houses, the odds for One Slash Palace are the lowest. Their odds of securing first place stand at one-to-one, essentially leaving no room for profit.

This means that in the minds of many, One Slash Palace is destined to seize first place in this tournament. After all, during the last Sect Tournament, One Slash Palace was the sect that earned the strongest pass.

Their strength is unquestionably formidable.

As legend has it, One Slash Palace never shows mercy or carelessness when making a move. From their leaders to their disciples, every strike is a single slash.

Under such a slash, like a ferocious Honghuang beast, any force opposing them would be utterly swept away.

Aside from One Slash Palace, Su Han also focuses on two other forces, both from the Thirteen Families: the Gu Family and the Xuanyuan Family.

Among the Thirteen Families, the legends surrounding these two are the most abundant.

Starting with the Gu Family—this family, much like One Slash Palace, rose to prominence out of nowhere, forcibly replacing another family and ascending to the ranks of the Thirteen Families.

From its appearance until now, the Gu Family has existed for no more than fifty thousand years. It is said that the first-generation ancestor of the Gu Family possessed unparalleled charm, his talent so extraordinary that he ascended like the Day Sun, sweeping aside all opponents and eventually becoming the strongest figure of his era in the Dragon Martial Continent. He even shattered the Void to leave the Dragon Martial Continent.

Remember that the Dragon Martial Continent has been mysteriously sealed off for millions of years, preventing anyone from leaving, yet the Gu Family’s first ancestor managed to achieve this.

The first ancestor of the Gu Family, while immensely powerful and possessing Heaven-Piercing means, had one flaw: he was overly licentious.

During his triumphant rampage across the Dragon Martial Continent, he seduced countless women and fathered numerous descendants, possibly unaware that on this continent, he had founded a family carrying his own bloodline.

The task of consolidating the Gu Family fell to the third-generation ancestor of the Gu Family.

This ancestor swore to unify all descendants of the Gu Family bloodline, thereby establishing the prestige of the first ancestor, and he indeed fulfilled this promise.

Today’s Gu Family is the greatest achievement of its third-generation ancestor.

As for the Xuanyuan Family, it is undeniably the most enigmatic family in the entire Dragon Martial Continent.

It is rumored that the Xuanyuan Family existed before any other power had emerged in the Dragon Martial Continent. Exactly how many years they have endured is known only to the Xuanyuan Family themselves.

However, the Xuanyuan Family remains detached from worldly affairs. Despite their profound heritage, they do not engage in competition or strive for supremacy. What belongs to them is theirs; what does not, they won’t fight to claim.

Many people believe that it is precisely this serene, immortal-like attitude that has led to the decline of the Xuanyuan Family, allowing the Top Ten Super Sects to surpass them and leaving their name relatively obscure even within the Thirteen Families.

Yet some others contend that although the Xuanyuan Family ostensibly appears to be one of the Thirteen Families, inferior to the Top Ten Super Sects, its heritage is fully comparable to any Super Sect—and perhaps even superior.

Unfortunately, due to the family’s low profile, the world has gradually forgotten their mysterious origins.

Between these two perspectives, Su Han leans toward the latter.

He has observed the Xuanyuan Family in action, their moves are always understated and without any earth-shattering displays, yet they consistently emerge victorious in the competitions.

They give Su Han a feeling of... Return to Simplicity.

Though the Xuanyuan Family ranks at the bottom among the Thirteen Families in terms of reputation, Su Han distinctly feels that their strength is absolutely the greatest within the Thirteen Families.

This is an intuition beyond evaluation.

Soon enough, some forces concluded their matches in this third round.

One Slash Palace finished first, overwhelmingly defeating the Ji Family through the random draw.

The Gu Family concluded second, their sharpness unmatched. When they descended from the arena, blood was spilled all over it; many members of the Han Family, their opponents, perished on the stage.

Third was the Xuanyuan Family.

Their rivals were the Song Family, led by Song Mingshu. Recognizing their disadvantage, Song decisively surrendered. The Xuanyuan Family refrained from pursuing, returned the courtesy with a respectful gesture, and ended this round of contention.

These three forces were precisely the ones Su Han was most concerned about!

”Just as expected.”

Su Han kept his gaze fixed on the Xuanyuan Family, thinking to himself, ”One Slash Palace and the Gu Family are predictable enough. But this Xuanyuan Family, their moves are exceedingly subtle, yet I can see from the expressions of the Song Family members that they felt enormous pressure. Song Mingshu surrendered swiftly, knowing they couldn’t prevail.”

”This Xuanyuan Family... is quite enigmatic.”

As the Eastern Ancestor once said, the randomness of drawing lots is indeed a remarkably fair process.

This round narrowed twenty-five contestants down to twelve, ensuring that the Super Sects could no longer avoid confronting each other. The Sect of Peace faced off against the Sword Immortal Tomb, the Holy Spirit Palace clashed with Giant Island, Demon Domain battled Jade Void Palace, and the Immortal Dao Court challenged the Sect of the Battle God.

The last pairing of Chang’an Mountain Gate saw them matched against the Ling Family, one of the Thirteen Families. Similarly, the Bright Moon Sect, a First-Class Sect, faced off against the Han Family, another of the Thirteen Families.

The battle between Dragon Martial Trading House and Cloud Sea Trading House was intriguing, as these two competing commercial giants of the Dragon Martial Continent engaged in direct confrontation.

Meanwhile, two of the Thirteen Families, the Zhou Family and the Chen Family, squared off against each other.

The same went for the Li Family and the Ye Family.

...

As time passed, the top twelve contestants—or more specifically, the top thirteen—were finally revealed.

First and foremost was the Phoenix Sect, who had a bye.

They were followed by One Slash Palace, the Gu Family, the Xuanyuan Family, Demon Domain, the Holy Spirit Palace, the Sect of Peace, Chang’an Mountain Gate, the Sect of the Battle God, the Han Family, Dragon Martial Trading House, the Chen Family, and the Ye Family.

These forces comprised the final thirteen contenders.

This doesn’t mean they are objectively stronger than the other forces; some powers were simply unlucky. Take Jade Void Palace and the Immortal Dao Court, for example—they would have easily defeated competitors like Chang’an Mountain Gate, a First-Class Sect, or families like the Han or Chen Families.

Unfortunately, they drew lots against Top Ten Super Sects like the Sect of Peace and Demon Domain, and could only suffer narrowly-fought defeats.