Chapter 434 – Aiming for the Top Ten

Translator: Coca5156

Editor: Drea

Dong, dong!

Zhuo Rong’s words made Gu Lingzhi’s blood boil uncontrollably, almost like when she had seen Pan Luo in person.

“What you’re saying is that...Pan Luo will personally give lessons for the top-ten ranked clans?”

“In order to show that he values these clans, he has been doing this for many years now,” Zhuo Rong said flatly, as if he was describing something that was very normal in the Realm of the Gods.

However, the blood in Gu Lingzhi’s veins pulsated with passion as she promised herself that she would make it to the top ten of the Clan Rankings.

According to their cultivation levels now, it would take at least a few thousand years for them to infiltrate into the Deity King’s Palace. If they could get Pan Luo to come and find them himself, then it would save them a lot of trouble.

“Our Gui Yuan Clan must attain a spot in the top ten of the Clan Rankings!” Rong Yuan interjected all of a sudden before Gu Lingzhi could respond.

“Rong Yuan?” Gu Lingzhi turned her head when she heard his voice, a big smile on her face when she saw that it was indeed him. Rong Yuan snaked an arm around her waist and pulled her into a hug.

“...I’ve missed you,” Rong Yuan whispered into Gu Lingzhi’s ears, not caring that there were still people around.

Gu Lingzhi raised her arms and hugged him in return. “I’ve missed you too.”

Ever since they had gotten together, they had never been apart for such a long period of time. Now that they had been apart for months, it was not only Rong Yuan that had missed her; she missed him deeply too.

Gu Lingzhi could feel Rong Yuan’s embrace around her tighten and his body temperature rising. When she saw the fiery look in Rong Yuan’s eyes, she immediately pushed him away, her face reddening. It was not the time to catch up with each other.

Xin Yi, who could not stand the lovey-dovey scenario in front of him, cleared his throat. “Rong Yuan is right, we have to secure a spot in the top ten of the Clan Rankings no matter what!”

They could not afford to wait for a thousand more years. The natural laws of the world would change too much by then, and no one knew whether their plans would be foiled along the way. If that happened, they would be severely defeated even before they could amass enough spiritual power to go against their enemies.

“There are more than a hundred thousand clans in the Realm of the Gods. About a hundred of them have been formed millennia ago and they are extremely powerful. In every Clan Tournament, these clans occupy the top 100 rankings. It would be extremely difficult to reach the top ten of the Clan Rankings.”

Furthermore, they had only formed their clan about a year ago. If they advanced too quickly in the rankings, it would raise the suspicions of others.

“I suggest that in this year’s Clan Tournament, we should try our best to aim for the top hundred placings. True Gods have very long lifespans; it won’t be too late to try for the top ten positions once all of you have amassed enough power.”

“If we miss this opportunity, we’ll have to wait for another millennium,” Gu Lingzhi said with a hint of indignance in her voice. She did not want to give up such a precious chance.

However, Zhuo Rong was right. The Gui Yuan Clan was rather newly established and they had not accumulated enough strength in the Realm of the Gods yet. If they tried to aim for the top ten rankings during the Clan Tournament recklessly, it would greatly complicate things.

“Alright, it’s not like we can attain whatever rank we want just because we wished for it. For all we know, even with all our strength, we may not be placed in the top hundred positions. It’s too early to worry about this now,” Rong Yuan laughed lightly as he ruffled Gu Lingzhi’s hair when he saw that she was stuck in a dilemma.

“You’re right. We have not been in the Realm of the Gods for long and we do not have a clear understanding of the strength that other clans possess yet. We might end up at the last few places in the Clan Ranking even if we give it our all,” Qin Xinran said as she furrowed her brows, her eyes occasionally looking at Hunting Cat.

With Hunting Cat’s status, he would surely be familiar with the situation in the Realm of the Gods. If he could give them advice on how to formulate their plans so that they could go head-to-head with the other clans during the Clan Tournament, they could perhaps attain an unexpected result.

Receiving Qin Xinran’s expectant gaze, Hunting Cat pretended that he did not see it and looked elsewhere. However, she was someone that he liked after all, and he could not pretend that he did not care. He tried ignoring it for a few minutes, before he helplessly gave in, “Tell me whatever it is that you want me to do. I’m your prisoner now and don’t have the ability to resist anyway.”

Gu Lingzhi rolled her eyes at his comment.

Other than sealing his cultivation so that he could not use his spiritual energy, he could go anywhere he wanted without anyone stopping him as long as he did not leave the Gui Yuan Clan. He did not act like he was a prisoner as well when he chased after Qin Xinran every day. Anyone with eyes could tell that he was up to no good. Even if he unlocked his cultivation, he would probably think of another way to stay here so that he could continue chasing after Qin Xinran.

The way he had called himself a “prisoner” was obviously contrary to what his heart felt.

“I’m not asking you to do anything too difficult, I’m just hoping that you would help us examine our plans during the Clan Tournament so that we can achieve a better ranking,” Qin Xinran blinked innocently as she put out her request to Hunting Cat.

Zhuo Rong was stunned for a moment as a look of realization dawned on his face.

That’s right, his passion for cultivating had dwindled ever since he became a True God. He had expended the rest of his energy into his business after that. Though he knew people that were from clans that were placed in the top hundred places in the Clan Rankings, it was superficial knowledge. He did not know much about their abilities. With regard to this, Hunting Cat was indeed more knowledgeable than he was.

Hunting Cat furrowed his brows upon hearing Qin Xinran’s request as he thought about the few names that he knew who belonged to the top clans in the Realm of the Gods. He compared their abilities to the people in the Gui Yuan Clan and after a long while, he said, “If luck is on our side and we come head-to-head with the top clans in our first encounter, it will be possible to enter the top hundred rankings. We just have to be careful.”

“Only the top hundred?” Qin Xinran’s nose twitched and she pressed further, “What about the top ten? Don’t we stand any chance at all?”

“...It’s not entirely impossible,” Hunting Cat’s face reddened when he saw Qin Xinran’s wide eyes looking at him. He hesitated, “Although there are only a few of you, you’re all talented individually. There aren’t many people who can defeat me. If you plan it properly, it’s possible.”

“Yes! That means we have a chance!” Qin Xinran elatedly grabbed Hunting Cat’s hand and jumped for joy.

Gu Lingzhi watched as Hunting Cat’s expression changed into one that was lovesick. It seemed that Qin Xinran’s pretty looks were indeed put to good use this time. When Gu Lingzhi turned back to look at Rong Yuan, she could tell that Rong Yuan was thinking the exact same thing.

Whatever it took, they had to try their best to aim for the top ten.

Even though True Gods had extremely long lifespans, the people in the Tianyuan Continent did not have that much time to spare.

Zhuo Rong sighed when he knew what they were planning to do. From his Storage Ring, he fished out a pile of papers and passed it to Rong Yuan.

“This stack of papers are fake identities that I have created for all of you. Before the Clan Tournament, familiarize yourself with it so that there won’t be any slip-ups that will compromise your plan.”

Zhuo Rong then turned around and left. As the owner of the second largest business in the Realm of the Gods, the consolidation of his business in the Juluan City meant that there was much for him to do.

Rong Yuan looked through the stack of papers.

It was no wonder that Zhuo Rong once owned the second best business in the Realm of the Gods. The fake identities that he had created for them were flawless.

The fake identity that he had created for Gu Lingzhi was that she was born from a rural town in the Juluan City and had been taken in as a disciple by an elder from a middle-class clan two thousand years ago. In these two thousand years, she had gone back to the rural town multiple times to offer help in running the town, making her a figurehead there even though she had come from a small family.

She had taken on the identity of someone whose life was rather colorful. Towards the end, it was even specified that in the Gu Clan’s ancestral hall, there was a portrait of Gu Lingzhi for the descendants of the Gu Clan to admire and revere.

Rong Yuan continued looking through the stack of papers with interest, reading about the new fake identities for Xin Yi, Qin Xinran, Tianfeng Jin, Nie Sang...

Every important member of the Gui Yuan Clan now had a believable fake identity.

Some of them were described to have originated from the mountains and had to slog during their adolescent years; some were born in well-known families; some had no homes to return to and lived life on a whim every day. The one with the most ridiculous but most believable identity was Rong Yuan. He was going to take on the identity of a man who was a very rare but very outstanding Martial Artist that was discovered thousands of years ago. Within five hundred years, it was time for him to undergo a trial to become a True God. However, he was unlucky and upon entering the Thousand Mountains Range, he never came back.

At the end of the description was a hand-drawn image of that talented Martial Artist. It bore an extreme resemblance to Rong Yuan. People who did not know Rong Yuan personally would not be able to tell the difference between the image and his real-life figure. The most incredible thing about this fake identity was that the talented Martial Artist had come from a small clan. Within the clan, the highest ranking that any clan member had achieved was only a Demigod. Whoever that had seen him in real life had already been dead a long time ago. Thus, his identity was foolproof.

Even Hunting Cat, who had been reading through the fake identities, let out a sigh of admiration. They were truly flawless. The hardest question that they had to answer in the Clan Tournament was how they had managed to join the Gui Yuan Clan.

“What else could it be? Everyone knows that the Gui Yuan Clan was created and funded by Elder Zhuo. It’s normal for us as juniors to join a figurehead’s clan so that we can earn a reputation for ourselves and get favors from him,” Rong Yuan laughed, swaying everyone’s opinions immediately.

Xin Yi gave him a thumbs up, “Your Highness is clever indeed. It reminds me of that one time you managed to sway an entire city just with that mouth of yours, it was a magnificent feat. I’ll have to trouble you to think of what favors we have received from Elder Zhuo in order for us to join his clan.”

Rong Yuan smiled and pointed towards Tianfeng Jin, “Maybe you joined the clan due to your devotion for a man? What do you think of this reason?”

Nie Sang immediately spat the tea that he had taken a sip of.

Qin Xinran leaned on Hunting Cat and smiled.

Gu Lingzhi clapped her hands in agreement. “That’s not bad. Travelling from somewhere far away to join a stranger’s clan for the person you love – the reason suits you. Xiao Jin, don’t you agree?”

Tianfeng Jin was stunned, temporarily unable to react, before she understood what Rong Yuan meant. Immediately, her cheeks flushed, and the redness spread even to her ears. She opened her mouth but could not find anything to say. Under the teasing gazes of everyone, she did something that the Tianfeng Jin everyone knew in the past would never do – she stomped her feet cutely on the ground and glared at everyone before turning around to leave.

Qin Xinran giggled as she followed exactly what Tianfeng Jin did earlier and stomped her feet on the ground as well. She then gave Xin Yi a nudge, “Aren’t you going to chase after her? We haven’t finished discussing the important matters.”