Chapter 1104: Nothing More Than An Ant

The swordsmen from Qingzhou and Nanzhou were still unleashing waves of sword intent. The intensity of their combined sword intents sent waves of oppressive force rippling through the space around them, and they were so overwhelming that the swordsmen from other states could not withstand it and had to retreat to the sides.

The space itself seemed to undulate like water, creating a scene that was both awe-inspiring and terrifying.

At this moment, both sides were fired up, nearly red-eyed with intensity.

Just then, Zhu Qiu suddenly appeared in the arena. With a sweep of his sleeve, the sword intents instantly dissipated. It was clear he had to intervene. If he hadn't intervened, the two regions would have started fighting, which would have been quite a challenge to contain.

Even though Zhu Qiu had dispersed the sword intents, the atmosphere remained tense.

The swordsmen from both Qingzhou and Nanzhou stared each other down, their eyes filled with fighting intent, ready to engage in an all-out battle.

The spectators from both regions shared this energy, standing off with a look that said they would happily jump in if given the chance.

Zhu Qiu glanced at the tense swordsmen and said, "Save your strength. You'll have plenty of chances to fight shortly." He looked at the sky and announced, "Now, let's welcome the geniuses and prodigies from each state onto the arena.

One by one, the representatives from each state descended from the clouds above, dropping straight into the martial arena.

Seeing this, Ye Guan turned to An Mujin and asked, "Brother An, weren't there supposed to be only five participants from each state?"

An Mujin explained, "The main competitors are five from each state, but for the sake of hype, they let everyone take part at first. Don't worry; the first round will eliminate at least ninety percent of them."

Ye Guan smiled. "I see."

"Begin!" Zhu Qiu announced, his voice echoing out like thunder.

An intense and terrifying aura descended straight from the sky, enveloping everyone in the martial arena in an instant.

Thud!

Hundreds of people were forced to their knees under the crushing pressure.

The crowd was taken aback.

Ye Guan was also a bit surprised. The aura belonged to a Great Time Sovereign, at the very least, and it was overwhelming for these young cultivators.

Those who were forced to their knees were promptly removed from the arena by a mysterious force. However, the pressure in the arena didn't weaken. In fact, it only grew stronger. More and more participants were forced to their knees.

On the viewing platform, Aunt Jiao and Uncle Butcher watched Fu Ji with visible anxiety. Yang Yian was also tensed up. She knew Ye Guan was strong, yet she could not help but feel a pang of worry.

Meanwhile, the aura continued to intensify. Within fifteen minutes, over half of the participants had been removed from the arena. Ye Guan observed his surroundings carefully, and soon, his gaze landed on a tall man standing confidently in the crowd.

The tall man was Han Yuntian from Yunzhou. He stood there, arms crossed, as solid and immovable as a mountain, seemingly unaffected by the pressure. It was as if this oppressive power had no effect on him at all.

Sensing Ye Guan's attention on him, Han Yuntian suddenly turned his head, his gaze fixed on Ye Guan, radiating sheer strength and confidence. Ye Guan raised an eyebrow slightly and then gave him a slight smile.

Han Yuntian's eyebrows immediately furrowed as he glanced at Ye Guan. Then, he looked away and transmitted,

"Master, is there something unusual about him?"

The mysterious voice replied,

"Yes."

Han Yuntian said,

"But his cultivation realm is very low."

"Cultivation realm is just one way to measure one's strength. It doesn't reflect a person's full strength. Understand?"

"Understood."

"I've been watching that young man. The aura of a Great Time Sovereign did not faze him at all. Clearly, he's pretending to be weak to hide his true strength. If you face him later on, be cautious and don't underestimate him. Got it?"

"Got it."

Ye Guan shifted his gaze from Han Yuntian to Zong Wu. As soon as his gaze landed on Zong Wu, the latter seemed to have sensed it as he turned sharply toward Ye Guan. His piercing gaze was like a blade that seemed to cut through to one's core.

Ye Guan was momentarily surprised.

What a sharp gaze,

he thought.

Zong Wu gave Ye Guan a cold look before turning away. Then, he transmitted,

"Master, there's something wrong with him."

"Doesn't that make things more interesting?"

a mysterious voice replied.

A faint smile crossed Zong Wu's lips.

"Indeed,"

he muttered, casting another glance at Ye Guan.

From a distance, Ye Guan smiled as well. It seemed that this year's Wanzhou Martial Contest was going to be quite interesting.

Zong Wu then looked around, his expression growing solemn.

"Master, this Great Time Sovereign's aura is indeed impressive."

"Nothing more than an ant,"

the mysterious voice said.

The aura became stronger as time went on, forcing more participants to collapse under its weight. Soon, Zhu Qiu reappeared in the arena, and the pressure abruptly vanished. However, over ninety percent of the participants had been eliminated, leaving only thirty-one people standing.

Qingzhou and Nanzhou had the most survivors, with six participants each remaining from both states.

Zhu Qiu looked around at everyone, letting his gaze linger on Zong Wu before he smiled and announced, "This year's Wanzhou Martial Contest has only two stages. The first round was to find out who amongst you is the strongest. Congratulations to those who have passed.

"Now, we will move on to the second round, called the Life or Death Trial. It's simple; soon, you'll all be transported to a special battleground..."

Zhu Qiu opened his palm, revealing two tokens. "These are Qingzhou Tokens, and there are only two of them. The state representatives must secure a token and exit the battleground alive to advance to the next round."

The crowd erupted in astonishment. Two tokens? There were nine states, so seven would be eliminated after this round. It was brutal, indeed, but thrilling for the spectators.

All eyes turned to the cultivators from Qingzhou and Nanzhou—they were widely regarded as the top contenders.

The Academy Chief of Nanzhou's Guanxuan Academy, Song Fu, said, "Zhu Qiu, please clarify the rules."

Song Fu explained, "The rules are straightforward. There's only one major restriction—participants may be assisted by a demonic beast, but the demonic beast's cultivation realm cannot exceed the participant's own realm by more than one realm.

"If anyone breaks this rule, they will be disqualified from the contest immediately, and their state will be banned from participating in the Wanzhou Martial Contest for ten years."

This rule was implemented to prevent outside interference. Given the influential backgrounds of these young prodigies, the organizers wanted to ensure that the contest remained a true test of the younger generation's skills.

To ensure fairness, whatever was happening on the special battleground would be recorded by the Cloud Recorder, allowing the audience to watch everything in real time. The influence of the Wanzhou Martial Contest was immense, so no state would dare to break the rules.

After announcing the rules, Zhu Qiu waved his hand, saying, "Begin."

A massive teleportation array appeared beneath Ye Guan and all the other participants. The next moment, a blue light enveloped them, and they all disappeared in an instant.

In the sky above the arena, four massive screens, each over hundreds of meters long, lit up. Within the screens, the space seemed to shimmer before revealing a vast wilderness, allowing the audience to watch the contest live.

Qingzhou's team, led by Ye Zhuxin, appeared atop a hill. An Mujin, Fu Ji, Chen Tianchen, and Shi Xiu were with her. Chen Tianchen was the Representative of Qingzhou Guanxuan Academy's Martial Department, while Shi Xiu was the Department Chief of the Literary Department.

Aside from Ye Guan and Fu Ji, the rest of them were all Time Immortal Realm cultivators. Just then, an image appeared in each participant's mind, revealing the locations of the two tokens—a move clearly orchestrated by the Academy.

Ye Zhuxin immediately commanded, "Let's go."

She mounted her sword and took off into the sky, with the others following closely behind her.

Moments later, she led her group to a valley. A few hundred meters ahead, a banner stood tall, with one of the Qingzhou Tokens hanging from it.

Ye Zhuxin's eyes narrowed slightly. "Move in."

Her sword flashed beneath her, and she vanished on the spot in a swift movement—a technique known as Instant Void Sword. She knew that they were not the only ones aware of the token's location.

Surely, the other states had also received the same information.

Sure enough, the moment she moved, a sword light from the opposite direction shot straight toward her, colliding with her in midair.

Boom!

Sword light shattered, and both figures were forced to retreat.

The attacker was Ye Chen!

Four people stood behind Ye Chen. Nan Feng, the Representative of the Nanzhou Guanxuan Academy's Martial Department; Qin Youran, the Representative of the Nanzhou Guanxuan Academy's Literary Department; Feng Qiu a brilliant swordsman from Nanzhou's Sword Sect; and a physique cultivator from the Li Clan of Nanzhou.

Unlike typical physique cultivators, this individual was small and unassuming in appearance. Additionally, there was a young lady in a dark green robe, holding a staff, clearly a Divine Mage.

It was a face-off between the teams from Qingzhou and Nanzhou!

Outside the battleground, the spectators erupted as the two powerful states faced off right from the start. It seemed like a prelude to the finals.

In the viewing platforms, the Academy Chief of Nanzhou's Guanxuan Academy, Song Fu, frowned as he glanced at Zhu Qiu in the distance. Could this be a coincidence?

Zhu Qiu's expression remained calm and unbothered, giving no indication of having noticed Song Fu's questioning gaze. Meanwhile, Yue Qi looked at Song Fu with a slight frown, her brows knitted in suspicion.

All around, the people of Qingzhou and Nanzhou erupted in frenzied cheers. Neither Nanzhou nor Qingzhou would back down, even if it meant fighting to the death!

Ye Chen looked directly at Ye Zhuxin. "Bring it on!"

Ye Zhuxin glanced at him calmly. "As you wish."

Hum! Hum!

Two resonant sword hums echoed across the heavens and earth. The instant Ye Chen drew his sword, Ye Guan was stunned. "So his master is that senior..."