Chapter 302: Outstanding Talents Gather
"What boldness, wanting to take the Primordial Saint Body as a servant—that's truly an eye-opener for me." An old man upstairs spoke drunkenly.
Ji Biyue let out a silvery laugh and said, "Taking the Primordial Saint Body as a servant—what a fine idea. Upon careful thought, even I find myself tempted."
Another middle-aged man drank a cup of wine and sighed, "Has the Primordial Saint Body truly fallen so far? Recalling its peerless grace in days past... times change, and nothing can be predicted."
Xia Jiuyou was young in years but quite cold, lacking any youthful innocence. He said coldly, "So what if it's the Primordial Saint Body? Survival of the fittest—it's long since adapted to this world and can only serve as a servant."
"Since ancient times, no one has dared to take the Primordial Saint Body as a servant. This is unprecedented. The invincible constitution has indeed been buried by the dust of history."
On the tavern, many frowned at Xia Jiuyou but had to sigh in agreement. It was an undeniable fact—the so-called Sacred Body was now crippled, unable to amount to anything.
"Little Brother Xia, I too want to take this Sacred Body as a servant. What do you think?" Ji Biyue's smile was sweet, like a green peony emitting radiance.
Xia Jiuyou was only thirteen or fourteen, with rosy lips and white teeth, eyes sparkling like black gems, beautiful enough to make women jealous, yet his words were quite domineering.
"I've said it before—no one can compete with me. This Sacred Body is mine. I'll use his blood to refine divine medicine, and from now on, he'll be my most loyal servant!"
"Little brother, you're too overbearing. Big sister here also wants to take him as a slave. How about this—to avoid conflict between us, whoever captures him first becomes his master?" Ji Biyue's smile bloomed like a flower.
"Because of some matters involving your Ji family ancestors, I don't want to fall out with you either. So let it be—whoever captures him first becomes his master." Xia Jiuyou replied coldly.
The two spoke as if no one else was around, their simple words deciding the fate of a commodity without much concern.
"And what if I capture him first?" Li Rui, a top young expert from Yaoguang Holy Land, spoke up. His heroic aura was restrained, with occasional flashes of lightning in his eyes.
Ye Fan possessed the Primordial Mother Qi, so Li Rui had to act; otherwise, how could he live up to the "expectations" of certain Yaoguang Supreme Elders? This was his chance to become a Holy Son.
"Brother Li Rui also wants to take the Primordial Saint Body as a servant?" Ji Biyue smiled charmingly.
"He kidnapped my Yaoguang's Holy Son and Holy Maiden. Naturally, I must act and bring him back to Yaoguang for the elders to judge." Li Rui had no choice; he had to act. For both public and private reasons, he needed to capture or kill Ye Fan.
"I've heard of the Yaoguang Holy Son, but who are you to compete with me?" Xia Jiuyou was young but quite overbearing.
"This is one of Yaoguang's four great young experts. He entered the Four Extremes Secret Realm three years ago and is an unparalleled genius of Yaoguang, with few rivals among his peers." Tu Fei explained slowly. He wasn't being kind; he hoped they'd clash like a meteor hitting a comet, sparking a destructive battle.
Ye Fan smiled beside him and said nothing.
"I only want to know if he's stronger than the Yaoguang Holy Son." Xia Jiuyou snorted coldly.
Many upstairs watched from the sidelines. This handsome white-robed youth, as beautiful as a demon, looked down on everything with soaring arrogance. They all eagerly awaited a battle from him.
Li Rui, from Yaoguang Holy Land, remained calm and composed, offering no response, only a peaceful smile.
"If you're not as good as the Yaoguang Holy Son, then don't compete with me. Leave now." Xia Jiuyou toyed with his wine cup and spoke indifferently.
"Little brother, don't you think you're too overbearing? Who exactly is your master?" Li Rui's expression turned cold.
Even a clay figure has some temper, let alone a genius repeatedly belittled. If he ignored it any longer, it wouldn't be grace but weakness, tarnishing Yaoguang's reputation and ruining his chance at becoming Holy Son.
"Why ask? Don't you just want to test me? Go ahead and strike." The white-robed youth Xia Jiuyou was very direct.
"You're too arrogant." Li Rui shook his head.
"Why be so hypocritical? Think and act. Since you can't lower yourself and need an excuse to strike, let me hit you instead."
With that, the white-robed youth Xia Jiuyou acted, direct enough without any extra words.
He raised his hand and pressed forward. His slender, jade-like fingers were more beautiful and flawless than a woman's delicate hand.
At that moment, many felt their hearts race and struggled to breathe under the immense pressure.
Xia Jiuyou flicked his jade fingers, conjuring an iron stele covered in shimmering patterns, filled with the aura of the Dao. It was immensely powerful and descended instantly, trying to suppress Li Rui.
Everyone was startled. This wasn't a weapon but a "Dao Stele" condensed from divine power by the white-robed youth. He did it effortlessly, as if casually.
"Bang"
Li Rui raised his hand to support the sky, holding the Dao Stele in place, preventing it from falling. But his expression changed—the stele shocked him, numbing his arms from the pressure.
"Chi"
Patterns on the Dao Stele flickered, shining brightly. The aura of the Dao spread like flowing water, growing heavier.
"Ka"
The floor beneath Li Rui cracked like a spiderweb, spreading outward. He was about to sink through, bearing an immense, unmatched pressure.
Suddenly, dazzling holy light burst forth. Li Rui's body became sacred, as if burning with fierce holy flames, lifting the Dao Stele.
"This is... the Primordial Holy Light Art, said to be invulnerable to all techniques, the strongest defensive secret art in the Eastern Wasteland!"
"Li Rui obtained this inheritance. Is he really going to replace the Yaoguang Holy Son?"
Many were shocked. This secret art was Yaoguang's closely guarded inheritance, usually taught to only one or two of the younger generation, mostly held by the previous generation.
"Above the azure sky, below the yellow springs..."
The white-robed youth Xia Jiuyou chanted softly. The Dao Stele grew more patterns, as if weaving Dao and Principle. With a hum, it trembled, manifesting like a true divine Dao stele.
Not just Li Rui in the arena, but even those nearby felt immense pressure. Many nearly fell from their seats.
"Ka"
The floor cracked again. Li Rui frowned, sensing something was wrong. This white-robed youth indeed had the capital to be arrogant.
"Clang"
Suddenly, divine light blazed, forcing everyone to close their eyes. A holy sword slashed down, knocking the Dao Stele aside.
At the stairway appeared a yellow-robed man, young and spirited, but very calm. The holy sword flashed and vanished into his body—he had intervened to break the stalemate.
"Who dares to strike at me?" The white-robed youth Xia Jiuyou's eyes glinted coldly.
"Da Yan—Xiang Yifei." The yellow-robed man announced his name.
Everyone was startled. The holy sword had blazed like a divine sword from the heavens, and some had guessed it. Now it was confirmed.
The Da Yan Holy Sword was incredibly heaven-defying. At its peak, it could cut through everything and evolve myriad small worlds.
"So you're from the Da Yan Holy Land. Do you want to fight me?" Xia Jiuyou asked. Though young, his aura was intimidating.
The Da Yan Holy Land had never produced a Great Emperor or an Extreme Weapon, but it was renowned in the Eastern Wasteland as one of the most powerful forces.
The name "Da Yan" represented the process of heaven and earth's evolution. Taking such a name naturally meant they were extraordinary. They followed nature and possessed various unfathomable divine arts.
In fact, the Da Yan Holy Land was older than many holy lands, one of the oldest traditions in the Eastern Wasteland, unfathomably deep.
Xiang Yifei, coming from this holy land, naturally represented strength and mystery. No one dared underestimate him. He spoke, "I only wanted to act as a mediator, not to see you two fight to the death."
"Does fighting him require life and death?" Xia Jiuyou sneered, showing no mercy.
"You..." Li Rui grew angry, his black hair flying wildly.
Xiang Yifei of the Da Yan Holy Land smiled slightly and said, "Little brother, you're only thirteen or fourteen, but you have a heaven-gifted talent. Your future achievements are limitless, but your temper is a bit too much."
Everyone present had witnessed the white-robed youth's temperament—hard to bear. His domineering nature made them overlook his age until now.
At this age, he could already contend with heirs of various holy lands. That was astonishing, truly a rare prodigy among geniuses.
"Standing out in youth doesn't mean one will be a genius in adulthood. Haven't there been enough examples in history?"
"In the Eastern Wasteland's past, there were peerless geniuses who entered the Four Extremes Secret Realm at eight or nine. What happened? In the end, they became ordinary."
Some, unable to tolerate Xia Jiuyou's arrogance, retorted.
"Better than being born ordinary like you." The white-robed youth Xia Jiuyou remained unrepentant, sneering as he scanned everyone.
Many fell silent. This youth was reckless, acting as if he dared to oppose the whole world.
At this point, even Ye Fan wanted to extend a finger at him—whether it would be a thumb or another finger was hard to say.
"Most ancient peerless geniuses grew up; accidents were the minority." An old servant behind the white-robed youth spoke calmly.
The crowd fell silent. Xia Jiuyou was only thirteen or fourteen but could already overpower Four Extremes experts. If he grew up, he'd be a monster!
"Boundless Heavenly Venerable!"
A pleasant Daoist chant rang out, like celestial music cleansing the soul. A young Daoist nun had appeared at the stairway unnoticed.
She was tall and graceful, with an otherworldly aura. She gave a very peculiar feeling—standing there without mist or divine light, yet her features were unclear.
She seemed like a beautiful shadow in the Moon Palace or a celestial orchid on a sheer cliff, as if one with the Dao, impossible to gauge or see clearly.
"A successor of the Dao Yi Holy Land!" someone exclaimed.
Ye Fan's heart jumped. He had experienced the strength and ethereal nature of this young Daoist nun. When the ancient tomb in Li City was breached, she chanted "Boundless Heavenly Venerable" in a soft, heavenly voice, purifying thousands of yin soldiers and horses.
"Sister from the Dao Yi Holy Land is here too. This way, please." Ji Biyue laughed, twisting her slender waist as she walked over and pulled the young Daoist nun aside.
Ye Fan and Tu Fei exchanged glances. Something was definitely wrong here. Someone was likely trying to set up the two holy lands, drawing in these strong figures as witnesses to create momentum.
"What use is so many people? You'd better leave now. You have no chance." Xia Jiuyou scanned everyone, unfazed even if the whole world were his enemy.
"Aren't you afraid the Primordial Saint Body will slap you to death?" Tu Fei's expression was hostile. As a descendant of a great bandit, he had no qualms about challenging even the invincible Yaoguang Holy Son of the younger generation.
"What's the Primordial Saint Body? Just a servant I'll keep. If he dares disrespect me, I'll flip my hand and turn him to ash."
Tu Fei wanted to slap him. Xia Jiuyou could say anything else, but constantly talking about servants made Tu Fei's palm itch.
Let alone Ye Fan, who tapped the table lightly, eager to teach this white-robed youth a lesson.
"You two, leave now!" Xia Jiuyou addressed Ye Fan and Tu Fei, who were closest to him, wanting to "clear the field" and drive away all cultivators.
"And who do you think you are to make us leave?!"