Chapter 999: Battle of Talents
As Ren Kongjue ran forward, he made space tremble, creating ripples like those in a lake. A regular opponent would already be vomiting blood and defeated just from this, without him even getting close.
If the powerful ancient races did not have any innate talent, how could they be known as a powerful ancient race?
Xiao Chen did not feel surprised at the ripples. He was just waiting for Ren Kongjue to make his move. These people before him were only appetizers. The true major players were waiting behind, watching coldly.
If he could use less effort here, he would increase his chances of success.
If these five people attacked together, even though he was at great grandmaster level, when facing these prepared outstanding talents, he would have to exert a lot of effort.
Just facing a single Ren Kongjue alone, an enraged Ren Kongjue at that, was much simpler.
The rippling space squeezed together. However, Xiao Chen already attained a Rank 4 Sage Body, so this did not affect him much. He stood there without moving. His eyes saw all the possible trajectories that Ren Kongjue could take.
With a flip of Xiao Chen’s hand, the Lunar Shadow Saber in his palm started spinning rapidly. A strong wind blew, sweeping off the sand and stones on the platform.
Xiao Chen, who was as calm as still water, suddenly erupted forth with a strong aura. The spinning Lunar Shadow Saber spread this aura out, pushing back the compressed space.
Ren Kongjue, who was charging over like a mountain, paused. Clearly, the wind that blew back at him caught him off guard.
“Bang!”
In the instant that Ren Kongjue paused, in less than a tenth of a breath of time, Xiao Chen’s spinning Lunar Shadow Saber stopped as well. A saber light that was as resplendent as the sun flared, encasing the entire platform in white light.
When the light vanished and the place turned calm again, everyone saw that the sheathed Lunar Shadow Saber was still in Xiao Chen’s hand—but with the tip of the scabbard pressed on Ren Kongjue’s forehead. Blood spilled from that point, covering his entire face.
All this happened in the time it took for a spark to fly. Aside from a few people, no one had seen clearly how Xiao Chen’s saber stopped spinning and when he made a move.
Everyone only saw the saber light extinguished and the earlier insufferably arrogant Ren Kongjue, who had been roaring as loudly as thunder before, not daring to move. He was panting, and his complexion paled.
“You are not even qualified to make me draw my saber. Are you still not convinced?” Xiao Chen’s voice was glacial like that of a death god. “Scram!”
Xiao Chen shifted the Lunar Shadow Saber down to Ren Kongjue’s chest. Then, a huge force burst out. Ren Kongjue vomited a mouthful of blood as he got knocked into the air. After he landed, he tumbled over a few times and fell off the platform.
The other four people still on the platform, Kui Dou, Wei Hua, and the others, all felt extremely uncomfortable, like they had a knife pressed to their backs—especially when Xiao Chen looked at them. They found it hard to advance or retreat.
Who could have imagined that Xiao Chen had advanced to great grandmaster-level Martial Sage? Who could have thought that he would defeat Ren Kongjue in one move, beating him to the point where Ren Kongjue did not dare to say anything and sending him rolling off?
Anyone else who dares to say that they are not convinced?! These words resounded in the four’s heads. With the example of Xia Houjue and Ren Kongjue, how could these four dare to say they were not convinced?
Nevertheless, there were so many eyes on these four. They could not bear to embarrass themselves by backing out.
These four remembered how they had stepped forward, displaying their sharpness and saying “I’m not convinced” in such a grand tone. They stepped up with grandeur, and yet they had to withdraw in such a dejected manner. They would probably suffer a lot of pain.
“What ‘anyone else who dares to say that they are not convinced?’ White Robed King Xiao Chen, with such arrogance, it’s no wonder you dare to kill even the people of the Astral Palaces!”
A cold voice resounded, and starlight fell from the sky. A pretty figure walked over to the platform. She was wearing black clothes that made it appear like night shrouded her entire body, revealing her charms and provoking wild and fanciful thoughts.
This person’s dress had a pale-white Astral Diagram embroidered on it, which gave off a cold light, shining like a star. It seemed like her attire was rather extraordinary.
As this figure slowly made her way over, a resplendent light descended from the sky. An overwhelming cold Qi spread, causing everyone’s breath to mist.
Soon, this figure arrived at the platform. When she stopped walking, the starlight ended. Then, she introduced herself. “I am the Cyclic Astral Palace’s Fu Hongyao. Whether you are conferred King or not has nothing to do with me. However, you killed my Astral Palace’s people. Today, you have to give an account for that.”
“Who is this person? How come I never heard of her before?”
Most people did not know of Fu Hongyao. However, they could sense that she was extraordinary, especially given the Astral Robes she wore, which were definitely not ordinary.
Wei Hua and the others quickly sneaked away now that someone else attracted everyone’s attention, not daring to stay any longer.
“Unexpectedly, Fu Hongyao is here as well. She is the inheritor of the Cyclic Astral Palace’s Moon Palace.”
The Cyclic Astral Palace was a huge faction in the Heavenly Starry Ocean, holding territory in the southern waters. The strength of this sect could compete with a leviathan like the Northern Sea Alliance.
There were many Astral Palaces of varying strengths under the Cyclic Astral Palace. The Sun Palace and the Moon Palace were the two strongest factions within this sect.
Many people of the Primal Chaos Domain had heard of Fu Hongyao’s name before. Within the Tianwu Plaza, some people recognized her name. This was a major character of the Heavenly Starry Ocean’s younger generation.
Fu Hongyao went straight to the point. “Did my senior brothers of the Big Dipper Palace die at your hands?!”
Xiao Chen had no need to deny it. Those people had wanted to kill him, so he killed them in retaliation. He did not feel guilty at all, so he answered honestly.
Fu Hongyao’s gaze turned cold as she said in a frosty voice. “You are rather straightforward, not showing any fear. However, you still have to die!”
Right after Fu Hongyao spoke, she grasped the air with her right hand and extended her left. The night-like Astral Robes she wore turned into a Lunar Astral Banner appearing in her hands.
In the distant Starry Heavens, the mysterious Lunar Star sent down a beam of starlight.
[TL Note: So, Lunar Star…I swear this is exactly what is in the raws. Perhaps the Chinese consider all heavenly bodies to be stars, so the sun and moon are stars, along with planets like Supreme Sky Star and Dragon Wood Star. Though I suppose the sun is actually a star.]
After losing her outer clothes, Fu Hongyao revealed a lot of her fair skin. She twisted her Astral Banner around, and the night-like banner immediately encased Xiao Chen and sucked him into it.
Quite a lot of people could not react to this sudden change. They all exclaimed in shock. This Fu Hongyao’s move was too unexpected. How could it be dodged?
However, while Fu Hongyao was fast, Xiao Chen was even faster. The instant she moved the banner, he drew the Lunar Shadow Saber with his right hand.
Instantly, a boundless saber intent surged out. A saber light like that of the sun scattered the night and knocked the banner pole right out of Fu Hongyao’s hands.
After sheathing his saber, Xiao Chen waved his right hand, sucking the Astral Banner over. “If I felt any fear in my heart, I would not have come to the King conferral ceremony. You want to take revenge for those people. However, you alone are only enough to make me draw my saber. I’ll help you call a few more people over.”
“Xie Zixuan, Xing Jue, and Di Wuque, how long are you three going to keep watching? Are you not even comparable to a girl?”
Xiao Chen looked past Fu Hongyao, at the inheritors of the East Mountain Ghost Monarch, the Heaven Punishing Corpse God, and the Heaven Abandoning Deity Sovereign, openly challenging them.
The moment Xiao Chen spoke, everyone was shocked. Unexpectedly, he did not even care for Fu Hongyao, directly challenging the three most powerful, outstanding talents of his generation.
What was Xiao Chen trying to do? Was he thinking of fighting these three outstanding talents alone?
When Fu Hongyao saw Xiao Chen holding her Lunar Astral Banner with his outstretched arm but not even looking at her, completely ignoring her, she could not help but feel angry.
“Lunar Astral Banner, come back!” Fu Hongyao shouted. The Lunar Astral Banner turned back into black robes, jerked free of Xiao Chen’s hand like a black fog, and flew back to her.
A strange look flashed in Xiao Chen’s eyes. However, he did not stop this, letting the other party reclaim it. He now stabbed the Lunar Shadow Saber, which was back in its scabbard, into the ground again. He rested one hand on it as he looked at Xie Zixuan, Xing Jue, and Di Wuque.
In challenging these three people, Xiao Chen had his own plans and considerations as well.
If he battled one after another, he would only end up exposing his trump cards, giving opportunities for the last person.
Hence, he might as well fight these three together. Given his great grandmaster-level Martial Sage cultivation, Rank 4 Sage Body, five Dragon Force of physical strength, and the Magic Energy saturating his sea of consciousness, he had at least an even chance of winning.
To Xiao Chen, this King conferral ceremony was a great opportunity.
If he succeeded, his King Grade True Dragon Luck might turn into an Emperor Grade True Dragon. He would reap great Luck, and no one in his generation would be able to compete with him.
However, if he was defeated, he would have difficulty escaping tribulations. His Luck would fall to rock bottom. If he wanted to climb up again, it would be extremely tough.
Xiao Chen had to defeat all those who tried to stop his conferral. The title of Azure Dragon King belongs to me. It was kept only for me!
“Since you want to die so much, then I, Xie Zixuan, will grant you your wish!” shouted Xie Zixuan, who could no longer hold back his killing Qi. A ghostly mist bloomed where he previously stood. Then, the ghostly mist flashed, and he appeared on the platform with his eight sabers hovering behind him.
This Movement Technique was strange and unfathomable.
“That is Ghost Shadow Step, a famed Movement Technique of the East Mountain Ghost Monarch. It requires an extremely high talent to train in it. Unexpectedly, Xie Zixuan has managed to perfect it at the age of thirty.”
“I heard that this Movement Technique creates a ghostly image with each step. Each ghostly image is a clone. After it reaches Great Perfection, one can take ninety-nine thousand steps, becoming unpredictable. He’ll surely kill his opponent.”
The moment Xie Zixuan appeared on the platform, his strange Movement Technique attracted everyone’s attention.
Xie Zixuan’s gaze was sinister as he looked at Xiao Chen, not concealing his killing Qi at all.
Previously, in the Nine Layers of Purgatory, Xie Zixuan had just advanced to grandmaster-level Martial Sage, and his cultivation had not yet been that firm. Due to his carelessness, he had suffered severe injuries from Xiao Chen’s twenty Dragon Force. Since then, that incident was never far from his thoughts.
Furthermore, this person in front of Xie Zixuan was close to the Ghost Empress’s faction. No matter how he looked at it, he could not let the other party succeed in being conferred King under his nose.
“Haha! The descendant of the Azure Dragon King, White Robed King Xiao Chen, I have long heard of your name. I, Xing Jue, will come and test you out as well.”
The First Disciple of the Heaven Punishing Corpse God, Xing Jue smiled gently. He took a step forward and landed on the King conferral platform.
Now, only Di Wuque had yet to make his move. Immediately, everyone focused their gazes on him. They wanted to see how this strongest person of the younger generation would react to Xiao Chen’s looking down on him.
Di Wuque’s emotions were currently very conflicted. Xiao Chen was once an ant-like existence to him, yet he now dared to openly challenge him before everyone in the world.
Furthermore, it was not a one-on-one challenge but as a group, together with Xing Jue and Xie Zixuan.
“I’ll go with you,” Tian Youxi said softly beside him.
When Di Wuque heard this, he was stunned. He waved his hand and said, “There is no need. If he had challenged us one by one, he would still have had a chance to live today. Now that he challenged all of us together, he does not stand a chance at all.”
“Boom!”
Di Wuque stood up. The Deities’ Nation image appeared behind him, and paeans of praise resounded. He did not land on the ground. Instead, he stood on the Deities’ Nation, flying it over to the platform and looking down at Xiao Chen from above.
“Di Wuque is making a move too!”
“Three powerful, outstanding talents plus the Cyclic Astral Palace’s Fu Hongyao, this is going to be interesting.”
It could be said that there had been many twists and turns since the start of the King conferral ceremony. Things kept happening, wave after wave. Xiao Chen, who originally came over in a rush, had been guaranteed to embarrass himself when people offered their congratulations and gifts. Who would have imagined that he would end up snatching the limelight away from Xia Houjue?
After that, a few outstanding talents had not wanted Xiao Chen to be conferred King. So these Sovereign Martial Emperors’ descendants stepped up to the platform, trying to force him to give up on being conferred the Azure Dragon King.
However, when Xiao Chen attacked in his anger, he revealed his great grandmaster-level Martial Sage aura. With one strike, he sent Xia Houjue flying far away.
This story should have ended here. However, Xiao Chen challenged three powerful, outstanding talents directly. The atmosphere here instantly climbed to the peak.