Xia Meng calmly observed the screen. Although she had lived for countless years and was not that much younger than Yuan Shi, time had barely touched her face. She was as absolutely stunning as in her youth. Rather, the ages had given her a mature flavor like a fine wine, only growing more fragrant as it aged.
Highsage Shenwei’s eyes were filled with infatuation whenever he looked at her, as this woman was truly too stunning.
“Cough, cough.” Some distance away, Mu En coughed to break the awkward atmosphere. “The current Xia family heir is rather weak.”
The others glanced at Xia Meng, but she did not show any reaction.
Highsage Shenwei spoke up, “He’s not weak. Rather, anyone who goes against the Tri-Yang Technique will suffer the same fate.”
Mu En looked over at Highsage Shenwei, bemused. “That fellow representing Eversky Island is not weak either, and he was even able to trade blows against the Tri-Yang Technique before eventually escaping unscathed. He’s strong enough that even Shang Qing has to be cautious around him. When he fought against Lei Nü, both sides suffered some injuries, and he left Lei Nü with no choice but to reveal her strength as an Enlighter. In the entire Mountain and Seas Zone, there are extremely few who can do this.”
Highsage Shenwei smiled. “He’s alright, but just that.”
Elder Yuan Ke said, “That Lu Yin’s not bad. I rather like him.”
Highsage Shenwei grew even happier, though he did not forget Xia Meng, and he walked over towards her. “Actually, every generation of the Xia family heir has been pretty good. Take him back and have him train hard, and he can be brought up in the end.”
Xia Meng looked up, her crescent eyes sweeping past Highsage Shenwei as she glanced over everyone gathered. She calmly said, “My Xia family does not want to ruin anyone’s plans, but my family wants a seat among the Cosmic Five.”
Everyone looked at Xia Meng, each one with a strange expression on their face. The most exaggerated one was on the Hall of Honor’s Mu En, who gave her a bizarre look. “At this time, there’s no use even if the Xia family pays a steeper price. The outcome has already been decided, and nobody can change it.”
Xia Meng’s lips curled up, brightening the universe in an instant. “I like you.”
Everyone was dumbfounded, and Highsage Shenwei was left utterly speechless, and even a bit stupefied. Mu En also seemed to be at a loss for words.
“-r last sentence,” Xia Meng slowly finished.
The crowd heaved a sigh of relief.
Highsage Shenwei felt drained. “Don’t speak in half-sentences! You could easily frighten a person to death.”
Mu En was speechless.
Xia Meng smiled and said nothing more.
At this moment, the crowd considered Xia Meng’s words; she liked Mu En’s last sentence? Mu En’s last sentence had been “nobody can change it.” What was she saying?
Mu En looked at Xia Meng in a serious manner; was she really that confident in her Xia family’s heir?
Within the Mountain and Seas Zone, Shang Qing had just thrown Xia Jiuyou off of the mountain, but he did not continue making his way upwards. Instead, he sat down, seemingly waiting for something.
Another ten days quickly passed by, and during this time, Lu Yin had been following along a current and picking up treasures every now and then. Among them were minerals, natural treasures, and even some battle techniques, though he had found nothing that was of much use to him.
During these ten days, he did not meet any of the other Ten Arbiters, though he heard about quite a few incidents.
One of them said that Wen Sansi had been severely injured and that he had fallen to the bottom of the sea. Another person said that Ling Gong had run into Yuhua Mavis and had been driven out of the Mountain and Seas Zone. And yet another one said that the Sword Sect’s Thirteen Swords had been broken and that the person from the Sword Sect had been sliced apart by an invisible person.
Along his way, all the news concerning the Ten Arbiters that Lu Yin heard was bad.
Although Lu Yin was confident in the Ten Arbiters’ abilities, Qiu Shi, Yuhua Mavis, and the others were all top heirs of the Neoverse’s strongest powers. Additionally, the most terrifying part of it all was that they might all be Enlighters.
Lu Yin believed that the Ten Arbiters were some of the strongest youths in the Mountain and Seas Zone, but it was no coincidence that the Ten Arbiters were unable to beat their opponents. After all, Lu Yin himself had been unable to defeat Lei Nü.
As for the other Arbiters, their victory and defeat was unrelated to Lu Yin. He was not worried about their survival, for the Ten Arbiters were people who could join together at the very least. Lu Yin did not feel that he was some genius who could face off against these elite Enlighters on his own.
Although he was representing Eversky Island, in the end, he had still come from the Innerverse, which meant that he represented the Innerverse and the Outerverse.
On one particular day, Lu Yin, Black, and White were all arguing over how their loot was being distributed. At this time, a distant mountain began to split apart.
At the exact same time, all five mountains began to split apart, and each revealed an extraordinary scene.
One mountain revealed giant eyes that covered the peak and looked down at the Mountain and Seas Zone. The pupils seemed to be glazed over, though each one contained a world within it, as well as numerous stars.
One mountain exposed a plant that looked like a root. It looked quite normal, but anybody who saw it would have a miraculous feeling, as if their minds were being cleared.
An overflowing fog appeared atop one mountain, and different scenes could be seen within the fog.
One mountain exposed a bizarre phenomenon. It sounded as though countless people were reciting something, and the entire area seemed to be resonating with the chanting.
A droplet of blood appeared atop the mountain that stood closest to the trio, and this drop illuminated the Mountain and Seas Zone, causing half of the continent to turn red. The light fluctuated with the illumination from the golden screens.
Lu Yin’s little group were dumbfounded as they stared at the five mountains splitting open, and they were all flabbergasted.
The Ghost Monkey’s voice suddenly rang out, and he sounded quite excited, “Progenitor’s blood! That’s Progenitor’s blood! Seventh Bro, hurry! Go and grab the Progenitor’s blood!”
Lu Yin was stunned, and he looked at the droplet of blood that had appeared atop the fractured mountain. “That’s a drop of Progenitor’s blood?”
“That’s right! Seventh Bro, you have to get it! A Progenitor’s blood is priceless—you can use it to comprehend the Progenitor’s inheritance or even use it like a Progenitor’s weapon to attack. It’s very profound, and it’s simply too valuable. You have to take it!” The Ghost Monkey was extremely agitated, and he had started babbling somewhat incoherently.
Lu Yin was also moved, as who would not be moved by something from a Progenitor?
“Go.” Lu Yin no longer cared about fighting over a bit of loot with Black and White, and he led the two brats closer to the mountain. Regardless of if they could actually seize the drop of blood, they still needed to at least try.
When the mountains cracked open, all of the cultivators in the Mountain and Seas Zone grew excited and dashed towards the various mountains.
At the base of the mountain with the eyes, Ce Jiu, Unseen Light, and the young master of Aurora Enterprises all appeared. An astounding battle immediately ensued.
Under the mountain with the weird rhizome, Xia Luo, Shu Jing, God Qingguang, and the experts from Gods’ Origin appeared.
Little Leaf King, God Taiyi, Xia Tian, and others all converged under the mountain with the roiling fog.
Beneath the mountain with the strange sound, there was Qing Longlong, the Hui family heir, the Yōu family heir, and Starsibyl.
Lan Si arrived at the base of the mountain with the Progenitor’s blood, and at the same time, so too did a veiled woman. Her eyes were as clear as flowing water, and her presence was intoxicating. Lu Yin’s group was also rushing toward this mountain.
The Astral Tower contest had already gone on for more than a month now, and most people had started making their way towards the mountains since then.
When the mountains split open, it coincidentally took place as when many cultivators had started to arrive at the bases of the mountains.
Shang Qing stood up from where he had been sitting on the side of the mountain with his eyes directed towards the top. When he looked down towards the base, he saw Ce Jiu, Unseen Light, and the young master of Aurora Enterprises locked in a fierce battle. Shang Qing’s gaze trembled, as everything was proceeding as planned. No accident had occurred, and none would in the future either. The so-called “Cosmic Five” had already been chosen long ago, and the only thing preventing them from announcing it was an opportunity to go public.
The Astral Tower contest appeared to be impartial, as everyone could compete for a Progenitor’s inheritance. However, was the universe really that absolutely impartial?
The inheritance of the five mountains and five seas truly did exist, but how could the Hall of Honor let such a thing go to outsiders? The inheritances of the Mountain and Seas Zone had been taken away long ago, and they had actually already been given away. All that was left was a pitiful charity that needed to be maintained in order to uphold the popularity and reputation of the Astral Tower contest.
If not for the inheritances from the Mountain and Seas Zone, then how else could the Hall of Honor possess so many powerful battle techniques and secret techniques?
These people were too pathetic. Each one of them was trying to vie for the position of one of the Cosmic Five, but none of them knew that the opportunity had already been taken away long ago. The Cosmic Five were something that was determined internally, and the inheritances that the five youths would receive had been given to them long ago.
This was the truth of the universe; some people were destined to be nothing more than supporting actors, and that was the simple fact of the matter.
At the foot of the mountain, Ce Jiu used his inherited battle technique, Combat Doctrine, to merge various battle techniques together. Combat Doctrine simplified the complicated, and it allowed the user to display a level of battle techniques that far surpassed what their peers could attain. Ce Jiu had even complemented this technique with his forcefield, and at the start of the battle, he had managed to suppress Unseen Light. However, Unseen Light’s domain was far too powerful, and the moment he opened his eyes, not even Combat Doctrine could predict his actions anymore, though Unseen Light was now able to see through Ce Jiu’s next moves.
Not even a minute later, Ce Jiu was pathetically beaten back, and he stared at Unseen Light with shock filling his eyes. This person’s domain was extremely powerful—so this was one of the Innerverse’s Ten Arbiters. They were complete monsters. Ce Jie had the Ce family’s inheritance as a foundation, and he had also cultivated within the Neoverse. However, he had been completely overpowered by this person. Just how had the Innerverse given birth to such freaks?
Nearby, the young master of Aurora Enterprises had already retreated, and he did not even look back, which confused Unseen Light.
The mountains had already split open, and the inheritances were about to emerge. Leaving at this time meant giving up. Or, was there another, greater inheritance?
Unseen Light was wrong with this line of thought, as the heir from Aurora Enterprises was not hoping to find a greater inheritance. Rather, he had seen who was already on this particular mountain: Shang Qing. With the Hall of Honor’s First Honor Chosen present, there was no reason to contest for this mountain.
A bolt of lightning flashed by as Ku Lei appeared, and he charged towards the mountain peak, ascending with a shocking speed. He had also noticed Shang Qing, but Ku Lei believed that he could withstand the Honor Chosen by relying on his secret technique. In his mind, he could obtain the inheritance as long as he entered the place with the giant eyes.
Ce Jiu frowned as the Astral Chessboard appeared beneath his feet. Ce Secret Art, Astral Chessboard!
The next moment, Ce Jiu arrived behind Ku Lei, and his forcefield manifested as a massive ruler above him that smashed down.
Ku Lei barked, “Scram!”
He tapped out with a finger.
The Ku family’s Finger Tap and the Ce family’s Combat Doctrine collided with each other.
The Ku family’s Finger Tap had a strange power that caused the targeted person to lose all desire to resist.
On the other hand, the Ce family’s Combat Doctrine was able to merge multiple battle techniques together and simplify the complicated. This allowed the user to respond to various situations during a battle, and this naturally included the Ku family’s Finger Tap.
The Seven Courts had joined forces to retain control of Progenitor Chen’s Mausoleum, but they also internally competed with one another.
Ku Lei and Ce Jiu both retreated at the same time.
At this moment, Shang Qing landed and lifted a hand. Three qi streams swept out to strike at Ku Lei, Ce Jiu, and Unseen Light.
The three youths could all feel the power of the Tri-Yang Technique, as there was no attack that could deal with this technique. It was also extremely powerful.
Ku Lei and Ce Jiu both attacked Shang Qing at the same time while Unseen Light’s forcefield became a giant version of himself. The colossus then smashed a palm down towards Shang Qing.
A qi flow shot out, piercing straight through the forcefield from bottom to top. Then, it continued moving on after that, aiming for Unseen Light.
Unseen Light was able to predict his opponent’s attacks and could thus formulate the ideal response for all situations, but he felt rather helpless against the Tri-Yang Technique, especially because his domain was not of much use against it.
With the arrival of Shang Qing, this battle had already ended.
This entire competition was just a show put on by the Hall of Honor. Shang Qing and a few others were the protagonists whereas Unseen Light and the others were simply the supporting cast. That was the truth of the matter.
At the foot of the mountain with the rhizome, Shu Jing and God Qingguang fiercely fought against each other while Tai Yuanjun faced off against Xia Luo.
