Overlord of the Wilderness

The one who spoke was none other than Fu Yuguang, the Great Hall Master of the Moon Country True Hall. He chuckled, ”Heh heh,” and said casually, ”The top three in this Thirteen Countries Newcomer King Competition should come from Yangx Guyuan, Helian Bi Bi, Ling Kongyun, and Chu Yuxiang. As for Zhaang Ye... in my opinion, he’ll be doing well just to make it into the top ten.”

Though he said this aloud, Fu Yuguang was sneering inwardly. ’That brat Zhaang Ye was set to be ambushed by Gu Yunsong and Cheng’er the moment he entered the Little World. He’s probably long dead by now. His ranking is completely irrelevant.’

Just then, Chu Fangyuan, the Great Hall Master of the Great Rong Country True Hall, chimed in. ”Heh heh heh, that’s right. Zhaang Ye may be powerful, but Yangx Guyuan, Helian Bi Bi, Ling Kongyun, and Chu Yuxiang have been famous for a long time, and each possesses their own Ultimate Techniques. Zhaang Ye’s chances against any of them are slim. He definitely won’t make it into the top three, and he might not even break into the top ten.”

Zhaang Ye had defeated Chu Yuxiang in the warm-up competition for the Six Eastern Countries. As Chu Yuxiang’s master, Chu Fangyuan was quite displeased about it. When he heard Fu Yuguang disparaging Zhaang Ye, he immediately chimed in to agree.

Helian Changtian, the Great Hall Master of the Great Marsh True Hall, nodded and added, ”Indeed, indeed. Zhaang Ye’s rise has been too meteoric, and many young experts refuse to acknowledge him. Once inside the Little World, he will face challenges and assassination attempts from countless young masters. He’ll be lucky to escape with his life, let alone make it into the top ten.”

Yangx Poshan, the Great Hall Master of the Great Peace True Hall, was a more cautious and conservative man. Hearing the discussion about Zhaang Ye, he slowly remarked, ”Zhaang Ye’s strength is considerable, but his personality is far too arrogant. During the warm-up for the Six Eastern Countries, he actually threatened to kill the Ninth Elder of the Moon Country True Hall. That kind of arrogance easily provokes others. He’s bound to suffer for it sooner or later. It will be very difficult for him to break into the top ten in this competition.”

The Hall Masters of the Moon Country, Great Rong Country, Great Marsh, and Great Peace True Halls all had a low opinion of Zhaang Ye’s chances, which greatly displeased the Hall Masters from the Wei Kingdom True Hall.

The Fourth Hall Master of the Wei Kingdom True Hall was about to retort when another Hall Master chuckled dryly and said, ”Yangx Guyuan’s strength is immense; Zhaang Ye would be hard-pressed to defeat him. Furthermore, from what I know, Helian Bi Bi, Ling Kongyun, and Chu Yuxiang all possess Meteor True Artifacts. Under these circumstances, it is indeed highly unlikely for Zhaang Ye to place in the top three.”

Hearing the words ”Meteor True Artifact,” the Fourth Hall Master of the Wei Kingdom True Hall furrowed his brow and sneered, ”No wonder you’re all so confident. So you’ve given Meteor True Artifacts to your disciples. The Thirteen Countries Newcomer King Competition is a contest of strength. Winning by relying on an artifact is a dishonorable victory.”

Helian Changtian chuckled. ”Heh heh. Weapons are a form of strength. There’s nothing wrong with winning by relying on a Meteor True Artifact. If you had one, you could give it to Zhaang Ye, couldn’t you?”

Chu Fangyuan also gave a dry laugh. ”Brother Helian is right. Weapons are a form of strength. Winning with a weapon is completely within the rules. It’s useless to be jealous.”

The Fourth Hall Master snorted and sneered, ”Don’t celebrate too soon. A weapon is still an external tool. Even with Meteor True Artifacts, it’s not a guarantee that Helian Bi Bi and Chu Yuxiang will make it into the top three.”

Helian Changtian burst out laughing. ”HA HA! My disciple Helian Bi Bi’s strength isn’t that different from Zhaang Ye’s. With a Meteor True Artifact, her power will increase dramatically. Zhaang Ye will be lucky to escape my disciple with his life, and you still think he can place in the top three? Absolutely impossible!”

Chu Fangyuan also nodded slightly and chuckled. ”Heh heh. The power of a Meteor True Artifact is immense. No matter how formidable Zhaang Ye’s Body Refining Technique is, it can’t stand up to it. The Wei Kingdom True Hall can forget about the top three. Heh heh heh...”

The Fourth Hall Master’s anger flared. In a cold voice, he said, ”Chu Fangyuan, Helian Changtian, don’t you two get ahead of yourselves. Let me tell you, anything can happen inside the Little World. He who laughs last, laughs best. I trust that Zhaang Ye will not disappoint me.”

Chu Fangyuan was dismissive of the Fourth Hall Master’s words and was about to offer a few sarcastic remarks when he suddenly felt a slight fluctuation in the Heaven and Earth Essence Qi. Something seemed to be approaching rapidly from the horizon.

Everyone present was a True Dao Expert with exceptionally keen senses. The moment the Heaven and Earth Essence Qi stirred, all fifty-two Hall Masters simultaneously looked up at the sky. A faint azure cloud had suddenly appeared. It approached from the horizon, moving with a speed that was both swift and effortlessly graceful. In the blink of an eye, it was hovering above the cliff.

WHOOSH!

The azure cloud came to a sudden halt, transforming into a massive boat dozens of yards long. The entire vessel shimmered with a verdant light, and images of white clouds seemed to drift across its surface, giving it the mystical appearance of a constantly flowing cloud.

One of the Hall Masters stared at the massive boat and exclaimed, ”The Azure Sky and White Cloud Boat! It’s actually the Azure Sky and White Cloud Boat! Has the Sect sent Envoys to scout the young experts of our Thirteen Countries?”

”Sect Envoys!” At these words, a trace of excitement appeared on the faces of the Hall Masters from the Thirteen Countries’ True Halls. Though they were all True Dao Experts who dominated their own lands—able to command the wind and rain as they pleased—their greatest aspiration was to enter a Sect to cultivate and achieve even greater breakthroughs.

One Hall Master said in confusion, ”Strange. The Sect Envoys usually only show up after the Little World opens. It’s still five days until then. Why have they arrived so early?”

”Exactly. Could it be that our Thirteen Countries have produced such an exceptional generation of young experts that it has attracted the Sect’s attention?”

”Attracted the Sect’s attention? Absolutely not. Outside the Land of Divine Abandonment, the Heaven and Earth Essence Qi is incredibly dense, and young experts are as numerous as stars in the sky. There are countless masters on par with Yangx Guyuan and Helian Bi Bi out there. In the eyes of the Sect, our so-called top four young experts are probably nothing...”

While the Hall Masters were murmuring amongst themselves, a woman in green robes and a man in black robes flew down from the Azure Sky and White Cloud Boat.

The green-robed woman appeared to be only fifteen or sixteen. Her black hair was swept up into a loose, cloud-like chignon, and her long dress fluttered gently in the breeze, lending her a graceful and charming air. She was clearly a Half-Step True Dao Expert; as she descended, streams of pure Innate True Qi formed into small clouds around her, making her resemble a celestial fairy descending from the heavens.

The man was a youth carrying two swords on his back. He was wreathed in dense layers of Innate True Qi, his skin was as translucent as crystal, and his gaze was so intense it seemed tangible. He, too, was a Half-Step True Dao Expert.

Although the woman in green and the man in black were not True Dao Experts, they were Envoys from the Sect, so not even the Hall Masters of the Thirteen Countries’ True Halls dared to be disrespectful. Seeing the two descend from the sky, the Hall Masters all bowed in unison and said, ”We respectfully welcome the two Sect Envoys!”

The green-robed woman’s gaze held a hint of killing intent. ”We are disciples of the Fourth Elder. I am Rong Xiu Li, and this is my junior brother, Shi Shuanglong. We are here to evaluate the young experts of the Thirteen Countries. We expect your full cooperation.”

The Hall Masters replied in unison, ”Of course. We will cooperate fully.”

Rong Xiu Li nodded. ”Very good. Now, if you please, hand over the lists and profiles of your disciples. We need to review the relevant information.”

The Hall Masters all nodded and subsequently handed over the information on their disciples to Rong Xiu Li.

Rong Xiu Li and Shi Shuanglong began flipping through the documents. As their eyes fell upon a few particular names, a flicker of killing intent emanated from both of them simultaneously. Although it vanished in an instant, everyone present was a True Dao Expert with extremely sharp senses, and they all immediately detected it.

The hearts of the True Dao Experts from the Thirteen Countries jolted. A single question surfaced in all their minds: ’These two Sect Envoys are emitting killing intent! Who on earth do they want to kill?’

Just then, they heard Rong Xiu Li say slowly, ”To think that five such young experts—Yangx Guyuan, Helian Bi Bi, Ling Kongyun, Chu Yuxiang, and Zhaang Ye—have appeared in the Land of Divine Abandonment. Very good, very good. I will now wait for them to emerge. I hope their performance is satisfactory.”

After saying this, Rong Xiu Li and Shi Shuanglong sat cross-legged to the side, quietly waiting for the Little World to open and for the young experts within to emerge.

All the Hall Masters felt that something was strange. They found the two Sect Envoys’ concern for the young experts in the Little World to be highly unusual.

...

「Inside the Little World.」

Zhaang Ye sat cross-legged in a pool of blood. The Ancient Dragon Power, Ancient Elephant Power, and Ancient Phoenix Power within his body circulated slowly, tempering his sinews again and again.

The Ancient Dragon Power, Ancient Elephant Power, and Ancient Phoenix Power were all rare forces, each containing profound mysteries. Under the tempering of these three Ancient Powers, the impurities in Zhaang Ye’s sinews were slowly refined away, making them increasingly resilient.

The 1st and 2nd Layers of the Dragon Elephant Skill refined the skin, while the 3rd and 4th refined the flesh. The 5th Layer refined the bones, and the 6th Layer refined the sinews. The human body has 365 major sinews, and Zhaang Ye had already finished tempering 300 of them. He only needed to temper the remaining sixty-five to advance his Dragon Elephant Skill to the Late Stage of the 6th Layer.

Tempering the sinews was an agonizing process, but Zhaang Ye’s willpower was exceptionally strong. He ignored the feeling of being flayed alive from the inside, focusing single-mindedly on the refinement.

Forty-nine sinews left!

Thirty-six sinews left!

Twenty-five sinews left!

Sixteen sinews left!

Zhaang Ye endured the excruciating pain, silently continuing the tempering process, drawing ever closer to the Late Stage of the 6th Layer of his Dragon Elephant Skill.

After another two days of cultivation, only three untempered sinews remained in Zhaang Ye’s body. These three were hidden deep within him, thin and fragile, and could be damaged by the slightest mistake. Zhaang Ye silently assessed them for a moment before steeling his resolve. He would temper all three in one go and break through to the Late Stage of the 6th Layer of his Dragon Elephant Skill.

’The Martial Dao teaches that success comes naturally when the conditions are right, but it values courageous advancement even more. I will act with both caution and courage, and break through to the Late Stage of the 6th Layer in one fell swoop!’ Zhaang Ye took a long, deep breath. The Ancient Dragon Power and Ancient Phoenix Power inside him slowly surged toward the three remaining sinews. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote with Recommendation Tickets and Monthly Tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)