Supreme Warrior in the City

The Jade-faced Judge’s heart stirred. The Second Elder’s words made him catch a whiff of something strange. To be honest, he was also very curious about what exactly the Heavenly Court was doing.

However, he didn’t directly ask the Second Elder. Instead, he gave Ge Kaiyang a look, signaling him to inquire. Such matters were not suitable for him to ask about.

Ge Kaiyang understood and quickly pretended to be curious, asking, ”Master, why do you say that? What’s the situation with the Heavenly Court now?”

The Second Elder glanced at Ge Kaiyang. Not having much caution towards these two, he directly said, ”This matter is actually a secret. However, you are my most trusted disciple, so there’s no problem telling you!”

”Master, rest assured, I will never leak it!” Ge Kaiyang quickly assured.

The Second Elder laughed, took a deep breath, and said deeply, ”Do you think, given the current situation in the Human World, why does the Heavenly Realm value it so much? Not only do they send countless people to the Human World every year, but with the strength of the Heavenly Realm, they have also established such regulations with Qinghe Academy, being hindered by Qinghe Academy everywhere.”

The Jade-faced Judge remained silent, while Ge Kaiyang shook his head, looking puzzled.

”The Human World’s spiritual energy is thin, and resources are scarce. Compared to the Heavenly Realm, it’s like night and day. Logically, the Heavenly Realm should despise the Human World. Or, any of the other Eight Realms is hundreds or thousands of times better than the Human World. Yet, those Eight Realms all covet the Human World. What is the reason for this?” the Second Elder asked again.

Ge Kaiyang still shook his head, while the Second Elder looked at the Jade-faced Judge and smiled, ”Old Ge, do you know why?”

The Jade-faced Judge thought for a moment and softly said, ”Could it be that there’s something happening in the Heavenly Realm?”

”You could say that!” The Second Elder nodded. ”The Heavenly Realm and the other Eight Realms focus on the Human World not for its resources. What they actually covet are the talents of the Human World!”

”Oh?” The Jade-faced Judge looked surprised, ”Talents?”

”That’s right, talents!” The Second Elder said, ”Although the other Eight Realms surpass the Human World in every aspect, and even their strength is much greater, the talents emerging from the Human World are something they covet greatly.”

Seeing Ge Kaiyang’s bewildered look, the Second Elder explained, ”To put it simply, whether it’s the Heavenly Realm or the other worlds, all their resources far exceed those of the Human World. However, their population is far less than that of the Human World. Take the Heavenly Realm, for instance; altogether, it has less than a million people!”

”What?” Ge Kaiyang’s eyes widened. ”That few? Not even the population of a large county in the Human World!”

”So, what the Heavenly Realm lacks most is talent!” The Second Elder remarked, ”In fact, the passage between the Human World and other worlds is sealed, but the passage between the Heavenly Realm and other worlds remains open. And there’s not complete peace among these worlds. For instance, the Heavenly Realm has wars with several other worlds, leading to frequent conflicts and casualties.”

”And with the Heavenly Realm’s small population, every casualty is a significant loss. Thus, the Heavenly Realm needs to replenish its people to maintain its strength. So, it focuses on the populous Human World, wanting to use it as a strategic reserve. They want to recruit talents from the Human World to serve as their soldiers and fight for them—that’s what I meant by talent!”

Both Ge Kaiyang and the Jade-faced Judge had looks of sudden realization, with Ge Kaiyang exclaiming, ”So, that’s the reason! I never expected it. I always thought the Heavenly Realm had its eyes on the Human World’s resources!”

”What’s the point of eyeing the Human World when the Heavenly Realm lacks nothing resource-wise?” The Second Elder scoffed.

”Then do the other realms also focus on the Human World for the same reason?” Ge Kaiyang asked.

The Second Elder nodded, ”Basically, yes, they all focus on the talents of the Human World!”

”I see! I see!” Ge Kaiyang exclaimed repeatedly, deeply shocked by this revelation.

”The Heavenly Realm’s goal is to recruit talents from the Human World to fight for them. However, the Human World is naturally unwilling to send their people off to be foot soldiers. So, the two sides couldn’t reach an agreement. In the end, the Qilin nearly broke the Heavenly Road, forcing the Heavenly Realm to compromise with Qinghe Academy. That’s how subsequent events unfolded,” the Second Elder explained. ”The Heavenly Realm sent people to the Human World to establish the Heavenly Court, effectively creating a foothold there. The Heavenly Realm would cease its aggression, while the Human World would have to compromise by sending a number of people to the Heavenly Realm each year.”

At this point, the Second Elder softly said, ”The selection for Law Enforcers you’re aware of is actually a process to provide talents to the Heavenly Realm. Those chosen as Law Enforcers undergo further selection upon reaching the Heavenly Court. The stronger and more promising ones are sent to the Heavenly Realm to fight for it. The slightly weaker ones remain in the Human World as Law Enforcers. Once their strength reaches a certain level, they are then sent to the Heavenly Realm to fight. It’s a compromise between Qinghe Academy and the Heavenly Realm, ensuring a steady supply of people each year while preventing a full-scale war by the Heavenly Realm, who must also maintain order in the Human World, as per the old rules of the Heavenly Court!”

Ge Kaiyang was in awe, exclaiming, ”So, many of those selected as Law Enforcers end up fighting in the Heavenly Realm? My goodness, isn’t that a death sentence?”

”Not necessarily!” The Second Elder shook his head. ”Those who head to the Heavenly Realm do become soldiers, but the Heavenly Realm doesn’t completely exploit them. If they can accumulate sufficient military merits, they can elevate their status and even become significant figures within the Heavenly Realm—comparable to its original leaders. I heard from the Heavenly Court Master that there was once a talent from the Human World who, relying on his strength, climbed to the top in the Heavenly Realm, becoming a figure of power comparable to any native luminary of the Heavenly Realm!”

”Really?” Ge Kaiyang’s eyes widened. ”Is there such a thing? My goodness, how formidable must that person be?”

”So no matter where you are, strength is key!” The Second Elder sighed.

Ge Kaiyang thought for a while and suddenly asked, ”What about Ye Sword Saint? Did he go to the Heavenly Realm and become a small pawn as well?”

”Ye Sword Saint?” A flash of irritation crossed the Second Elder’s eyes. He slowly shook his head, responding angrily, ”That man is lucky. He’s different!”