Chapter 919 – Shield Talisman

The old man’s voice rang in every person’s ear. Everyone looked at each other and simmered down. He had a solemn expression and radiated justice; he did not look as untrustworthy as Song Yang.

Long Chen glanced at the old man, then at the direction where the old man came from. He sensed that someone was looking at him from that area.

Ye Xuan?

Long Chen could barely see him.

He smiled and did not say anything. If this old man came from Ye Xuan’s side, then it meant he would have no issues entering the Underworld Army.

The old man looked around, then said, “What happened just now was just an accident. I guarantee that incidents like this do not happen often, and it will definitely never happen again. Our trials are absolutely fair and open. From now onwards, I will take over Song Yang’s place. As for Fighter Number 380 from just now, Long Chen, I permit him to join the Underworld Army.”

The old man’s decision won over the crowd’s trust.

The only person with a grimace was Song Yang. He was one of the main examiners, but he had been fired from his position. He had utterly humiliated himself. However, this was considered a great outcome after such a major incident. If the old man had been in a bad mood today, he would have killed him.

This was a Ten Thousand-Sergeant. To the people present, a Thousand-Sergeant was already a highly ranked official, let alone a Ten Thousand-Sergeant. Many people’s goal in life was only to become a Thousand-Sergeant. A Ten Thousand-Sergeant was at the Second Divine Martial Stage and was considered a legendary master. Only a few dozen of them existed out of the five hundred thousand Underworld Soldiers in Underworld City.

Furthermore, Qin Xiong seemed to have a decent reputation. After his appearance, the crowd was clearly much calmer. The sounds of objection slowly died down.

This man was close to Ye Xuan, and he had likely stepped in to help because of Ye Xuan. Therefore, Long Chen quickly supported his decision. If the affected victim agreed with him, the other people would have nothing else to say. “I believe Ten Thousand-Sergeant will handle this matter well. Thank you!”

In the subsequent trials, Qin Xiong replaced Song Yang. Meanwhile Song Yang glared at Long Chen with seething hatred. He was sitting amongst the crowd, and Song Yuchun also had a stiff expression next to him. He knew that his grandfather had lost face today, so he did not dare say anything. All he did was glare at Long Chen, thinking of a way to get him back.

“Chun’er, let me explain something to you. Listen well,” Song Yang suddenly said with a sneer.

“Grandfather, what is it?” Song Yuchun asked, puzzled.

“Based on the trend so far, there will likely be about two hundred participants who will receive at least three passes. Then, I think they will pair the participants up to duel so that one hundred people will enter the Underworld Army. You and Long Chen were two consecutive participants who passed, so he’s likely going to be your opponent. That brat is very unpredictable and he’s likely quite strong. You may not be a match for him ...”

“What should I do, then?” Song Yuchun had witnessed Long Chen’s performance too. If he really was no match for Long Chen, then it would end in a tragedy for him.

“Don’t worry. I’ll give you something so you can kill him.” There was a sneer on Song Yang’s face.

Indeed, the oldest gingers were the spiciest.

***

Long Chen took a seat, and the arena quietened down. One by one, the young fighters fought feral beasts or mechs. In order to obtain three passes, every participant gave their all. Qin Xiong’s decisions were much fairer than before, so the audience felt much more assured.

Examining the few thousand fighters took almost ten days. In the end, only one hundred and ninety people passed. Long Chen’s incident was just a minor interruption. The most attention-grabbing event was Ye Xuan’s performance. Just as everyone expected, Ye Xuan killed his opponent, a Category Seven Emperor-tier feral beast, effortlessly.

Long Chen had a great revelation while watching him fight, especially with his True Martial Soul activated. He learned many things while watching duels, but he learned even more when he watched stronger people fight. Right now, he was very close to the Fifth Heavenly Martial Stage.

After the trials ended, the Underworld Soldiers cleaned up the area while the four examiners discussed how they would conduct the next round. They had one hundred and ninety people, but they only needed a hundred every month.

There were times when they needed more, but they only needed a hundred this month.

“All participants who received three passes and above, please gather below.”

Although there were supposed to discuss how they would proceed, the examiners were mostly just obeying Qin Xiong’s instructions.

Long Chen went into the pit with the other people. Due to what happened before, many people were eyeing him. He was already used to being the center of attention by now.

However, the person who attracted more attention than him was Ye Xuan.

He was a youth prodigy at the Divine Martial Realm, and he was the strongest person present. He was also City Lord Ye Xuan’s younger brother, and he had an easygoing personality that led to a halo effect around him. Ye Xuan seemed much more awesome than Long Chen, and he was surely going to enter the Underworld Army. He would surely climb to a high rank within a short time, so he was destined to take a different path compared to the rest of the examinees.

Qin Xiong was about to make an announcement, so they all waited quietly. Long Chen sensed a goading gaze on him, and when he looked over, he saw that it was Song Yuchun. When their eyes met, Song Yuchun huffed coldly, pointed a sassy finger at him, and then quickly turned his head away.

He’s being so secretive. I don’t know what he’s up to.

Long Chen ignored him.

Long Chen was capable of killing an Eighth Heavenly Martial Stage opponent, so Song Yuchun could not even pique his interest. The only threat this person posed to him was his grandfather, Song Yang, Divine Martial Realm cultivator.

𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

In the past, Divine Martial Realm cultivators were like legends to him. Now they were standing in front of him. Long Chen was impressed at how far he had come.

“Long Chen.” A voice that sounded slightly childish rang in his ear. When he turned around, he saw that it was the person at the center of attention, Ye Xuan.

“I didn’t know you’d also join the tryouts. What a coincidence,” Ye Xuan said with a laugh.

Long Chen thought that this guy was someone worth making friends with and he seemed like a decent person, so he smiled and said, “Thank you for getting me out of that sticky situation just now. Without you, I would not be able to get into the Underworld Army.”

“Don’t mention it. If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t be standing here today. Also, they’re going to announce the second round’s rules now. I need to tell you something,” Ye Xuan suddenly whispered into his ear.

“What is it?” asked Long Chen.

“Just now, I saw Song Yang stuff something into Song Yuchun’s hands. I couldn’t see it clearly, but I think it’s a talisman. They were surely talking about you at the time. Therefore, you must be careful later. Don’t fall into their trap. I have something for you.”

As he spoke, Ye Xuan discretely took out a talisman from his storage ring. It radiated invisible ripples. He said, “Put it away quickly. Don’t let other people see it.”

Long Chen stored it in the Primordial Realm and inspected it once it was inside. It was a piece of transparent talisman paper with dramatic, bright-red runes. The runes danced on the talisman, which radiated ripples of energy.

“That is a Shield Talisman. It can withstand a First Divine Martial Stage cultivator’s most powerful attack. However, it can only be used once. If your opponent uses a super-strong attack, use it against him,” said Ye Xuan with a nonchalant expression.

It can withstand a Divine Martial Realm cultivator’s most powerful attack?

“This is such an expensive item! Isn’t this a little too much?” said Long Chen.

“Don’t worry about it. I have many Shield Talismans like that one. Treat it as a gift from me. Use it for self-defense. If you don’t use it today, it’ll be handy some other time,” said Ye Xuan with a grin.

“Then I shall keep it safe with me.” Long Chen was not one to decline gifts. This was someone he had saved before, so receiving a gift from him was very normal.

And Ye Xuan had said it was a gift.

After the conversation started, they started chatting about other things.

“Actually, I think the only meaningful thing about joining the Underworld Army is the Underworld Battlefield. That’s the main reason why I am joining them. Once you enter the Underworld Battlefield, nothing matters. There are Underworld Beasts, natural disasters, and people trying to kill each other there. That’s a haven for training yourself. After training there, I believe I will grow very quickly. Long Chen, what’s your objective for joining the Underworld Army?” Ye Xuan asked curiously.

“The Underworld Battlefield,” Long Chen answered calmly.

Ye Xuan was stunned for a moment, then he said, “That’s what I guessed too. If we get a chance, we should spar in the Underworld Battlefield. I sense that you have many strong techniques up your sleeve.”

“Of course, if we get the chance.” Long Chen was not averse to sparring.

They continued chatting until Qin Xiong stood up to announce the rules.

“A total of one-hundred-and-ninety-three people received three passes and above. After discussion between the four of us, some people will directly become Underworld Soldiers, while the remaining people will be paired up according to their numbers. They will duel, and the winner will join the army. Now, I shall announce the people who will directly become Underworld Soldiers.”

The nerve-wracking moment had arrived.

Everyone listened carefully.

After Qin Xiong finished, Long Chen’s name was not on the list. People like Jiang Jinglong and Ye Xuan had been called out, while Long Chen would need to fight the fighter whose number was next to his.

Long Chen counted. His opponent would be Song Yuchun.