Chapter 941: Divine Son, Holy Maiden
Man Ye rubbed his iron cauldron-sized fist and grinned. "Every one of those who can become a Flag Master of the Netherworld Heavenly Palace possesses top-tier talent. But how many of them have become Saints?"
Zhao Wuliang said, "Those Flag Masters of the Netherworld Heavenly Palace are indeed outstanding talents, yet not one of them is a Sacred Body."
"Could it be that among those participating in this Flag Master assessment, there is a Sacred Body?" Man Ye was clearly somewhat surprised, his eyes bulging like two large copper bells.
Zhao Wuliang nodded. "This person is the grand-disciple of Dharma King Chengxu, named Bai Yu. He possesses the Flying Immortal Sacred Body. Not only is his achievement in the Sword Dao extremely high, but due to his physique, his speed also far surpasses cultivators of the same realm."
Then, Zhao Wuliang extended a finger, pointing to an exceptionally handsome young man in the crowd. "That is him."
Bai Yu, true to his name, not only had extremely fair skin but also bore a pair of white wings on his back, clearly not of pure human blood but from a Half-Human clan.
Bai Yu carried a white ancient sword on his back. Standing casually among the Half-Saints, he gave off a sense of standing out like a crane among chickens, making all the other Half-Saints appear dull and lackluster.
"With extraordinary speed and supreme Sword Dao, this child's future achievements are limitless." Man Ye's eyes lit up, and he smiled. "This King wants to take him under his wing. Don't you dare compete with me for him."
"Whatever."
Zhao Wuliang merely smiled faintly, having no intention of vying with Man Ye.
Man Ye sensed something unusual and stared at Zhao Wuliang. "Zhao Wuliang, since when did you become so easy to deal with? Could there be a seedling even more outstanding than Bai Yu?"
"I wouldn't dare say he's definitely better than Bai Yu, but this King has already set his sights on him," Zhao Wuliang said.
Man Ye asked, "Who exactly is it that you value so highly?"
"There's no harm in telling you. This person is the grand-disciple of Dharma King Diyuan, named Ning Guihai. He has trained from a young age in assassination, poison, Gu arts, invisibility, and so on. Not long ago, he successfully assassinated a Fifth-Step Half-Saint. This King still has some friendship with Dharma King Diyuan. If Ning Guihai enters the Netherworld Heavenly Palace, this King naturally intends to guide and look after him," Zhao Wuliang said.
To assassinate a Fifth-Step Half-Saint with a Third-Step Half-Saint's cultivation was indeed quite frightening.
Even a Sacred Body would find it impossible to cross two realms and defeat an opponent.
Just then, another person walked slowly from the distance, arriving at the foot of Mount Poluo.
This person wore a Confucian robe, appearing to be around thirty years old, looking quite refined.
However, the moment he appeared, Bai Yu and Ning Guihai both shot sharp glances, looking eager for a challenge.
He was the grand-disciple of Dharma King Tianji, Yan Kongming, known as the "Thousand Calculation Arithmancer," whose fame was no less than that of Bai Yu and Ning Guihai.
The three experts appeared simultaneously, and before the assessment had even begun, the atmosphere was already tense.
"Yan Kongming has come to participate in the assessment as well. That's interesting. Three of the Four Dharma Kings each have a representative. Why hasn't Dharma King Haiming sent a grand-disciple?" Man Ye frowned, looking somewhat curious.
Zhao Wuliang gave a sinister smile. "Among Dharma King Haiming's grand-disciples who have reached the Half-Saint realm, they should all be dead by now."
Man Ye's gaze fixed on the distance, and seeing three light shuttles flying rapidly, he laughed. "Not necessarily. Look, isn't that them coming?"
"Is that so?"
Zhao Wuliang's eyes showed surprise, clearly somewhat disbelieving.
After all, Zhao Wuliang alone had killed seven of the grand-disciples Dharma King Haiming had sent to the Netherworld Heavenly Palace.
No matter how vast Dharma King Haiming's power was, how many Half-Saints could he cultivate?
As far as Zhao Wuliang knew, among Dharma King Haiming's grand-disciples, there was no longer anyone capable of competing for the Flag Master position.
The three light shuttles landed on the ground, revealing their true forms: Lan Ye, Ji Shui, and Zhang Ruochen.
Many present recognized Lan Ye and Ji Shui, but their cultivation was too high, clearly not there to compete for the Flag Master position.
Finally, everyone's gaze fell upon Zhang Ruochen.
"Is he the one Dharma King Haiming sent to compete for the Flag Master?" Bai Yu glanced at Zhang Ruochen and immediately shook his head.
"He's far too weak, only a Second-Step Half-Saint. Has Dharma King Haiming run out of people to use?"
...
Everyone withdrew their gazes, no longer paying attention to Zhang Ruochen. In everyone's minds, Bai Yu, Yan Kongming, and Ning Guihai were the three insurmountable mountains.
Some of the weaker Half-Saints were secretly communicating, planning to join forces. Only by first defeating one of the three experts could they have a chance to become Flag Masters.
Bai Yu, Yan Kongming, and Ning Guihai felt no pressure. In their view, the three Flag Master positions were already theirs for the taking. The assessment process was merely a formality; they could seize them with minimal effort.
Lan Ye glanced at Zhang Ruochen, his tone devoid of emotion. "Go. Even if you have to fight to the death, you must become a Flag Master of the Netherworld Heavenly Palace. If you fail, even if the Master doesn't kill you himself, the Blood God Gu will devour you in a month."
"Wait."
Ji Shui called Zhang Ruochen to a stop, took out a pair of crimson red metal gauntlets, and handed them to him. "The Sacred Crow Gauntlets. Borrow them for your use. They should help you somewhat."
Zhang Ruochen was slightly surprised. He hadn't expected that even in the Blood God Sect, a place that only cared about interests, there could be a trace of human kindness.
Zhang Ruochen didn't stand on ceremony. He took the Sacred Crow Gauntlets and looked at Ji Shui with a rather sincere gaze. "Thank you, Uncle-Master Ji."
Lan Ye merely glanced faintly at Ji Shui but said nothing.
The Sacred Crow Gauntlets were a Sacred Artifact with five hundred and thirty-six inscriptions inside. Even without infusing Saint Qi, each gauntlet weighed five hundred jin, radiating scorching heat.
Donning the gauntlets, Zhang Ruochen's arms were wrapped in crimson metal pieces. He stepped forward and walked among the Half-Saints.
Zhao Wuliang looked at the sun, which had already risen to the treetops, and said, "The time is about right. The assessment can begin."
Man Ye nodded, his eyes fixed on the Half-Saints below. He introduced himself briefly in a thunderous voice. Then he said, "Since you've come to Mount Poluo, you should have some understanding of the Netherworld Heavenly Palace's assessment. Now, this King will explain it once more."
Man Ye turned and pointed to a layer of clouds behind him. "See the three black war banners at the mountain peak? The rules are simple. Whoever reaches the summit first and pulls down a banner becomes a Flag Master of the Netherworld Heavenly Palace."
Everyone's gaze followed where Man Ye pointed.
Mount Poluo's body was over thirteen thousand meters tall, piercing through the clouds, appearing extremely majestic, as if thrusting beyond the heavens.
The Half-Saints' eyesight was exceptionally sharp, easily penetrating the clouds to see the three black war banners.
"This mountain is no ordinary one," Zhang Ruochen noted, sensing something unusual.
The other Half-Saints had some understanding of Mount Poluo, so they knew that reaching the summit was no easy task.
Just as everyone was about to begin climbing, two more figures flew in from the distance and landed at the foot of Mount Poluo.
They were a man and a woman.
Seeing these two, all the Half-Saints present were shaken and immediately bowed to them.
"Greetings, Divine Son, Holy Maiden."
Zhang Ruochen, standing among the crowd, also bowed.
However, his gaze was secretly sizing up the Blood God Sect's Divine Son and Holy Maiden.
That Divine Son had three eyes, a very robust body, wore golden battle armor, and held a serpent-shaped spear, exuding an extremely powerful aura.
That Holy Maiden stood to the Divine Son's right, appearing slender and graceful, with a soft, beautiful figure and crystal-like skin. She stood within nine layers of holy light, appearing dreamlike and illusory, making it hard to see her true form.
The Blood God Sect had only one Holy Maiden, so her status was extremely high. If the Holy Maiden's talent was outstanding enough, she could even surpass the Divine Son and have a chance to become the future Sect Leader of the Blood God Sect.
The appearance of the Divine Son and Holy Maiden clearly caught everyone off guard. Even the two Flag Kings of the Netherworld Heavenly Palace, Man Ye and Zhao Wuliang, immediately went to greet them, cupping their hands in salute.
"Greetings, Divine Son, Holy Maiden."
The Blood God Sect's Divine Son, Mei Lanzhu, slightly raised his hand. "No need for formalities, Flag Kings. This Divine Son and the Holy Maiden are here by the Sect Leader's order to train in the Netherworld Heavenly Palace."
Man Ye asked curiously, "Since you're here by the Sect Leader's order, why not go directly to the Netherworld Heavenly Palace? Why come here instead?"
The Blood God Sect's Divine Son smiled. "For the sake of fairness, the Sect Leader means for the two of us to also participate in the assessment."
All the Half-Saints present were stunned.
The Divine Son and Holy Maiden were also going to participate in the assessment?
There were only three spots to begin with. With the Divine Son and Holy Maiden's cultivation, they would surely take two of them. That left only one spot for the rest.
Even Bai Yu, Yan Kongming, and Ning Guihai were no longer calm, beginning to observe each other.
After all, they had all taken the Blood God Gu, and the orders from the three Dharma Kings were clear: they must become Flag Masters.
If they failed, even if they didn't die, their fate would likely be quite miserable.
Zhang Ruochen was also slightly taken aback. How had the Blood God Sect's Divine Son and Holy Maiden gotten involved? Wouldn't that make seizing the war banners even more difficult?
Without allowing anyone to think further, Man Ye immediately gave the order: "The Netherworld Heavenly Palace Flag Master assessment begins now."
The word "begins" had barely left his lips when all the Half-Saints present unleashed their fastest movement techniques, charging toward the summit of Mount Poluo.
Mount Poluo was densely covered with formations. Even Half-Saints stepping into it would lose their ability to fly.
Moreover, the higher the cultivators climbed, the stronger the gravitational pressure from the mountain's force would become. (To be continued.)