Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The altar beneath the participants’ feet started shivering and revolving at a faster speed. The Wood Clan’s language’s words were also becoming more complex and strange. Moreover, they appeared for less than half the time than they had done in the previous round before they turned into new Ancient Language’s words.
In other words, the Ancient Language’s words which would appear in the hour of the intermediate stage would be much more difficult to decipher than the words in the primary stage had been.
The two-headed man, Qin Lin, responded quickly and started deciphering them. They were interpreted correctly.
The master of ceremonies said, “Qin Lin got two points.”
Qin Lin managed to succeed once again in the second round and got two points.
In the third round, they succeeded, and in the fourth round… They did not fail until they reached the eleventh round, and it was then that the altar stopped revolving.
Su Yu noticed that they were allowed to make as many mistakes as they could in the primary stage, while if they made just a single mistake in the intermediate stage, they would fail.
They would get a single point for each successful interpretation in the primary stage, and two points for the intermediate stage. So, how much it would be for the last stage?
Lu Chuyi was eliminated in the primary stage so she obviously had to leave the stage. Another new participant would replace her.
“Lassie, you weren’t bad, and you got some of Qian’s skill,” Qin Lin’s two heads said in unison, praising Lu Chuyi.
The Deputy General Manager and Monk Zhou were also satisfied with Lu Chuyi’s performance. She had lasted longer than they had expected.
However, they still couldn’t help but furrow their brows when they looked at Qin Lin. The two-headed man’s knowledge of the Wood Clan’s language’s words was more profound than last year, and they were surprised that he had managed to continue until the eleventh round. They never surpassed the ninth round in the past.
The master of ceremonies said, “Lu Chuyi got five points, while Qin Lin got fifteen points in the primary stage, twenty points in the intermediate stage, and got in total thirty-five points. According to the agreement between both sides, the points accumulation will continue until the end of the sacrificial ceremony, and the one who gets more points will win. Moreover, the winner will get the total of their points minus the loser’s points.”
This was the agreement set between them. If the winner was the Heavenly Knife Region, it would be carried out like that, and if the winner was the Eighteen Blessed and Heavenly Lands’ camp, the Heavenly Knife Region would also lose a corresponding number of stores until it had none left and was driven completely out of Tianya City.
The next participant would be the Wood Clan’s language’s expert from the Returning Principal Palace’s Wind Control Sanctum. He was Yu Chenwen.
As for Qin Lin, they would still stay in the stage because they won the last match, and they wouldn’t be replaced by someone else.
Su Yu wanted to step forward on his own accord to expel Qin Lin out of the stage, which would help them avoid losing a large number of points.
However, when Su Yu saw Monk Zhou and the Deputy General Manager’s gloomy expressions, he gave up on such an idea. Even if he proposed such a matter, they wouldn’t agree to it.
“Fine, the situation of the Red Blood Palace’s industries in Tianya City isn’t related to me, and it’s fine as long as I do my best,” Su Yu muttered to himself.
Yu Chenwen was slightly worse than Lu Chuyi, and he managed to succeed in just four rounds, lasting just ten minutes. As for Qin Lin, he managed to reach the intermediate stage’s tenth round in one go once again.
“Yu Chenwen, four points. Qin Lin, thirty-five points.”
In the next match, it was the turn of the Demonic Eye Faction’s Hua Humei. Her skill was even lower than Yu Chenwen’s, and she managed to pass just three rounds successfully before she was defeated. Qin Lin continued until the intermediate stage as before, but this time, he managed to reach just the ninth round.
“Hua Humei, three points. Qin Lin, thirty-three points.”
Upon witnessing this, the expressions of the Deputy General Manager and Monk Zhou became extremely unsightly. In the past, they had Junior Brother Qian, who held the lines and provided support, and they managed to get many points. But now, their best performer was Lu Chuyi who got just five points, and there was a large disparity between her and the opponent.
Since they could get a store for each point they surpassed them by, their opponent could already get ninety stores. That was tantamount to a tenth of the Red Blood Palace and Purple Cloud Palace’s stores.
Moreover, the contest had just started, and the Eighteen Blessed and Heavenly Lands’ factions would still have to continue challenging them.
After half a day had passed, the Eighteen Blessed and Heavenly Lands’ camp had descended into silence. None could utter even a single word after witnessing their current disastrous state. Nine other offerings rituals ritual had been carried, and they suffered a disastrous defeat in all of them. The more it continued, the worse it became.
In the last matches, the Eighteen Blessed and Heavenly Lands’ camp had gotten zero points, and the disparity between both sides already reached more than four hundred points. What did this mean? It meant that the Eighteen Blessed and Heavenly Lands’ camp would lose around half of its stores.
A complete half! The sanctums would surely not forgive the Deputy General Manager and Monk Zhou for suffering such grave losses.
In the past, even though Junior Brother Qian couldn’t defeat Qin Lin, he could still deal with the other Wood Clan’s language’s experts, and easily crush them. This had always allowed them to get back enough points to overtake their opponents.
However, they didn’t have Junior Brother Qian now, so how could they get back such an astronomical number of points?
“Just two rounds are left. Hehe, the Eighteen Blessed and Heavenly Lands’ camp is really becoming worse year after year.” Hu Wangui pursed his lips and revealed a faint smile because he felt that they had already won. Wasting a great deal of effort to bribe the Returning Principal Palace Wood Clan’s Language’s expert, and asking him to kill the thorny guy surnamed Qian was really the best decision they had ever made.
Everything has proceeded according to our plans, and after Qin Lin deals with the last two Wood Clan’s language experts, everything will be set in stone, and we will get more than four hundred stores. Hehe, we have really managed to steal half of the Eighteen Blessed and Heavenly Lands’ camp stores.
In the future, Tianya City would be ruled by the Heavenly Knife Region.
Monk Zhou and the Deputy General Manager couldn’t speak. Even though they still wore a composed look, their hearts had already become numb and apathetic from despair.
“In the next round, it’s Master Gao’s turn. Please go to the stage!”
Qin Lin looked at him, and spoke calmly, “Since you were left until the end, it’s obvious that even the Red Blood Palace don’t think highly of you. Is there even a need to continue this contest?”
The previous five contestants had all got zero points, and it would probably also be the case for this one.
Master Gao spoke calmly. “Start!”
“Start the thirteen match of sacrificial offerings.” This sacrificial offering match started as the crowd shouted.
The altar started revolving, and many Wood Clan’s language words appeared. Qin Lin casually wrote his interpretation on a paper and threw it at Hu Wangui.
It was at this moment that an unexpected incident occurred. His opponent had also written it, and he was slower than Qin Lin by just two seconds.
“Is he this quick?” Qin Lin was surprised by this. Even Lu Chuyi was much slower than him. What skill could an old man in the final position in the order have?
Qin Lin was quite skeptical of this matter, and he looked at how his opponent deciphered the words, wrote a letter, and handed it over to the person in charge of making offerings. In the end, hazy light appeared atop Master Gao’s head and engulfed his whole body.
Qin Lin’s expressions stiffened, and his gaze became grave. Both his heads had detected that something was amiss. The old man before them was different than all previous Wood Clan’s language’s experts, and their intuition was informing them that this old man was anything but simple.
Hu Wangui furrowed his brows. “Is it a coincidence?”
“Qin Lin got a point, Master Gao…”
The Deputy General Manager had already become numb. The ones before Master Gao all got zero points, and since Master Gao didn’t get Junior Brother Qian’s teachings, he would also get just zero points.
“… Got a point.”
The words echoed. They were like a stone and gave rise to waves in the Deputy General Manager’s mind. He couldn’t help but open his eyes, and concern appeared in there.
The altar continued revolving, and the second line of Wood Clan’s Language’s words appeared. Qin Lin dealt with them easily, and it was also the case for Master Gao. They both succeeded.
The Deputy General Manager forced himself to reveal a smile. Master Gao’s situation wasn’t as miserable as that of the others, but would it be useful? There was a great disparity between the points gained by them, and a single person couldn’t change the course of events.
The contest continued. “In the third round, both sides got a point!”
Master Gao managed to succeed three times in a row.
“In the fourth round, both sides got a point!”
In the end, the Deputy General Manager noticed that something was amiss. He opened his eyes widely, and a glimmer of hope shone in his empty eyes.
The gloomy, pained and ashamed members of the Eighteen Blessed and Heavenly Lands’ camp had also opened their eyes and looked in surprise at the stage.
“What has happened? Is that old man in our side?”
“He’s the famous and renowned Master Gao. So, does he seem like a member of the Eighteen Blessed and Heavenly Lands to you?”
At this moment, the fifth round ended, and both sides had gotten a point.
“Hiss! He succeeded in five rounds consecutively, and it seems like he achieved it easily. Oh my God! It turns out that Master Gao’s attainment in the Wood Clan’s language is high.”
“It seems quite unreasonable. If it was the case, why didn’t the Deputy General Manager and Monk Zhou use him earlier?
They couldn’t understand what was happening, and it was also the case for the Deputy General Manager and Monk Zhou.
The Deputy General Manager and Monk Zhou’s dejection disappeared, and they pulled themselves together. Their eyes shone brightly, while they clenched the hands clasped behind their backs. It was obvious that they were both nervous and excited.
“Old Monster Wu, it seems like Master Gao’s performance isn’t any worse than Junior Brother Qian’s. Since you have such an expert, why didn’t you use him from the start? We would have then been able to turn the tide.” Monk Zhou was excited and couldn’t help but grumble about this matter.
The Deputy General Manager’s face was filled with confusion. “I was also unaware of this. Master Gao started studying the Wood Clan’s language just three years ago, and I checked his skill several days ago. It should have been quite average, and I also don’t know how he can give such a brilliant performance.”
“Is such a matter real?” Monk Zhou looked in doubt at the Deputy General Manager. How could he believe such words?
The Deputy General Manager found this both funny and infuriating. Why would he lie to him? The disparity between Master Gao’s previous and current performance was really too great, and even he was greatly surprised by it.
“We will discuss this matter later, but for now, let’s first observe the contest. If Master Gao is as skilled as Junior Brother Qian, it won’t be impossible for us to turn the tide on them,” the Deputy General Manager said in a deep voice. He couldn’t help but swallow his saliva due to his excitement.
Even though Monk Zhou was still skeptical, he locked his gaze onto Master Gao, who was making a meteoric rise. Monk Zhou also had high expectations for him.
In the sixth round, they both got a point.
In the seventh round, they both got a point.
In the eighth round, they both got a point.
The more it continued, the more impassioned the Eighteen Blessed and Heavenly Lands’ camp members became. They unevenly also had such a great Wood Clan’s language’s expert, which was on the same level as Qin Lin in the early stage.
Even the other million spectators in the surrounding got interested in this contest, which had a sudden shift in its trend, and they were all dumbfounded.
“What’s the Eighteen Blessed and Heavenly Lands’ camp up to? If they had such an expert, they should have used him early. I ended up getting worried for them in vain.”
“Haha, interesting! I almost got bored to death while watching this contest, but now, an amazing old man appeared in the end.”
While the Eighteen Blessed and Heavenly Lands’ camp members become impassioned and excited, Stars Plucker Old Monster’s expression became gloomy upon witnessing their situation turning for the worse. He pointed at Master Gao, who was on the stage, and shouted, “Hu Wangui, what’s going on? Didn’t you state that you found a way to dispose of our opponents’ thorny contestant? Why is still there someone, who isn’t any worse than him, and who is even better?”
Hu Wangui’s expression was already gloomy. “I wasn’t aware of this. Master Gao has an average skill, and I also don’t know how he is managing to give such a shocking performance.”
“Snort! You should better pray that we get more stores than last time, or else, the Heavenly Knife Region’s Master will have to consider replacing you with someone else,” Stars Plucked Old Monster said.
Hu Wangui replied, “Sir, please be at ease. Even though we won’t manage to get half of their stores as planned, we will still get more stores than last time. This is already a matter set in stone.”
In the eleventh round, they both got a point. In the twelfth round…
It was only after half an hour passed that the primary stage came to an end, and both sides got fifteen points.
Qin Lin’s expression became grave, and he asked in a deep voice, “Who’s your teacher? Even that guy named Qian’s knowledge is slightly lower than yours.”
Master Gao’s expression was indifferent and calm. He said, “You don’t need to know him. Continue on.”
The intermediate stage contest had started. In the first round, they both got a point. In the second round, they also both got a point.
In the fifth round, they both got a point.
It was the fifth round, Master Gao managed to persist until the fifth round. Even Junior Brother Qian could at most reach just the fourth round.
The Deputy General Manager and Monk Zhou almost couldn’t stop themselves from shouting out in excitement. It was really a surprise, a great surprise. Even though Junior Brother Qian had died, a person more amazing than him appeared.
According to the rules, once all Eighteen Blessed and Heavenly Lands’ camp’s contestants had been challenged, they had an opportunity to choose someone to challenge all of the Heavenly Knife Region’s contestants.
With the skill displayed by Master Gao, he should be able to crush all other contestants and get back a large number of points. It seemed like their losses this time wouldn’t be as grave as they expected.
It was like their desperate hearts were just nourished by spring rain. Their ashen faces became rosy, and they couldn’t help but reveal a delighted smile.
However, the fifth round was already Master Gao’s upper limit, and he was slower than Qin Lin in it. In the next round, he couldn’t decipher the words, and could only give up, and leave the stage.
Qin Lin’s mind must have suffered greater pressure this time. He ended up unexpectedly finishing in round eight.
“Qin Lin got thirty-one points, Master Gao got… Twenty-five points.” The master of ceremonies paused for a moment. He was also startled by such strange results. The ones at the front were too horrible, while the other marked a meteoric rise. Were the Eighteen Blessed and Heavenly Lands’ members responsible for arranging this matter sick in the head? Why had they left their trump card until the end?
When Master Gao left the stage, the Deputy General Manager and Monk Zhou both stood up and welcomed him with a smile, praising him.
“Hehe, I really didn’t expect that the true expert was you. I really had bad judgment, and I hope that you can forgive me if I ended up affronting you before,” Monk Zhou said with a smile. He knew he had wronged Master Gao just to appease Junior Brother Qian.
The Deputy General Manager also wore an apologetic look. “I also hope that you don’t take what occurred yesterday seriously.”
Master Gao smiled and nodded at them. “Sirs, what are you talking about? It’s my duty to do my best for the Eighteen Blessed and Heavenly Lands, and any sufferings I bore for it aren’t worth mentioning.
Upon hearing this, the Deputy General Manager’s mind was set at ease. “Master Gao, I will have then to trouble you to challenge the other contestants. You can probably gain back a large number of points.”
Master Gao pointed at Su Yu, who was sitting alone in a corner. No one had bothered with him. “He hasn’t been on the stage yet and it seems like it isn’t up to me to ascend the stage for the second time.”
Him? Who was he?
They both looked in the direction his finger was pointing in. It was only then that the Deputy General Manager and Monk Zhou noticed Su Yu, who had been almost forgotten by them.
Since he had been driven out the day before by Junior Brother Qian, no one had mentioned him. As for the Deputy General Manager and Monk Zhou, they were both troubled and didn’t pay attention to him.
If Master Gao hadn’t just reminded them, they would have already forgotten that they had someone like Su Yu.
Monk Zhou said with a smile, “Master Gao, are you cracking a joke? It’s only you who can take care of this matter properly…”
Master Gao just turned a deaf ear to him and walked to Su Yu. He bowed to him solemnly, and spoke in an ashamed tone, “Teacher, I’m too stupid, and managed to just persist until the twentieth round. I’m really ashamed of it, and I didn’t manage to live up to your teachings.”
Su Yu was helpless in the face of this. He had already instructed him to not expose the fact that he was his teacher, but it seemed like he was still too careless.
Master Gao must be really ashamed of himself to end up exposing Su Yu inadvertently.
“You needn’t blame yourself. I had already expected you would be able to reach just such a level after a single night. If you manage to digest fully what I had taught yesterday, you will surely make greater progress,” Su Yu approved of his performance.
“Teacher, I will surely follow your instructions.” Master Gao rose and stood half a step behind Su Yu.
Such a familiar-looking stance demonstrated clearly the two people’s relationship. They were a teacher with his student.
Upon witnessing such a scene, the spectators unaware of the ins and outs of this matter started discussing this affair spiritedly, while the people aware of the truth were dumbfounded.
Regardless if it was the Eighteen Blessed and Heavenly Lands’ Wood Clan’s language’s experts, or the Deputy General Manager and Monk Zhou, they were all dumbfounded. They just stood there quietly. They couldn’t utter a single word.
