Yan Renjie had always believed he was born for the sword, a prodigy of the Sword Dao! It was just his martial arts realm that lagged a bit behind. But still, for soone his age to reach the early Master Stage... who else could compare?!
Then he t the heaven-defying Lin Tang. The saying was true: comparison is the thief of joy. Yan Renjie felt like he had wasted his entire life. To think he'd been so pleased with himself when he broke through to the Master Stage, even planning to return to Jiangbei for revenge. How laughable!
Just as Yan Renjie was lost in despair, Yan Luoyang's expression suddenly soured.
"Hmph!"
Mu Fan, who was sitting beside him and seed to be listening intently to sothing, turned to glance at him. "What's wrong?"
"That damned Lin Tang," Yan Luoyang said. "He used so trick to sever my connection to Lee Encai. If they move now, I won't be able to track their location."
Mu Fan smiled mysteriously. "I thought it was sothing serious. The Old God is watching. As long as we pray, He will guide our way."
He walked over to the dazed Yan Renjie. "You refused to believe that Lin Tang has beco a Celestial King, so we took a risk to let you see for yourself. So, have you made up your mind? Just nod, and unbelievable fortune and glory will be yours for the taking."
Yan Renjie looked up numbly. "Can I really gain incredible power just by believing in the Old God with you?"
"Of course." Mu Fan spread his hands, speaking with imnse pride. "Otherwise, how do you think a live-in son-in-law who used to be bullied by everyone like suddenly beca a supre master capable of crushing you with ease?"
In fact, he was quite amazed himself. His grandfather, Mu Jiuzhou, had worshipped the Old God for nearly a century, offering a constant stream of precious sacrifices to curry favor. Yet, the power the Old God granted his grandfather was nothing compared to what he, a re freeloader, had received. He hadn't offered a single sacrifice, just hastily dripped a bit of blood in the ancestral cavern.
"Okay, I agree."
After a long hesitation, Yan Renjie could no longer resist the temptation and nodded solemnly.
As long as I can beco stronger than Lin Tang! Even if I end up like Mu Fan, half-man and half-woman, I don't care!
"What should I do?" he asked eagerly.
"SHHH." Mu Fan put a finger to his lips, once again assuming a posture of listening intently. Yan Luoyang was not surprised, knowing that Mu Fan could hear the whisperings of the Old God he worshipped.
A mont later, Mu Fan said, "Bring your most beloved sword and follow to my Mu clan's ancestral cavern... Yan Luoyang, do you want to co along?"
Yan Luoyang's expression remained unchanged. "I'll pass."
You must be joking! I have no intention of worshipping so bizarre Old God and becoming its slavish dog.
"Hehehe…" Mu Fan gave a neurotic smile and didn't press the issue.
Before long, he took Yan Renjie and flew by helicopter straight toward the ancestral cavern.
Deep inside the cave, Yan Renjie was suddenly overco by waves of panic and intense discomfort. It was a dizzying sensation, like an ordinary person suffering from severe motion sickness or altitude sickness. A chill ran through his heart. Forcing himself to suppress the urge to flee, he followed Mu Fan to the altar.
The instant he saw the massive statue, it was as if he had touched a high-voltage wire. His entire body convulsed, and he collapsed heavily to his knees, letting out hoarse, pained gasps. Everything before his eyes began to twist and distort, while a torrent of chaotic, insane whispers flooded his ears.
What the hell is this thing?! Yan Renjie was terrified. His body trembled violently, as if countless tiny insects were writhing beneath his skin.
His mind was severely corrupted, and his body began to twist into a grotesque shape. At the sa ti, his breathing and heartbeat grew faint as his life signs rapidly faded. Mu Fan watched quietly from the side, not interfering until Yan Renjie had transford into a deford monster and breathed his last. Only then did Mu Fan begin to dance, letting out strange cries.
Vague shadows erged on the cave walls, seeming to dance along with him and exuding a primitive, savage, and evil aura.
If Lin Tang, having just swallowed the Golden Core, had been present, he would have been able to "see" Yan Renjie's soul shoot straight into the giant vertical pupil cradled in the statue's arms. As the crystalline pupil began to glow, his soul underwent a mysterious transformation, connecting to an endless abyss in an unknown realm.
What appeared before his soul's eyes was a gargantuan, mushroom-like face.
So this is the Old God? It's clearly a 'Shroom God! This is the thing I'm supposed to worship?
"IYAAH!!" Seemingly sensing Yan Renjie's deeply irreverent thought, the mushroom-like face grew angry. It opened its mouth and blasted out an overwhelming gale, blowing Yan Renjie's soul high above the abyss.
HUMMM!
A Formation constructed of four ancient swords shimred, causing ripples in the air. After countless runes flashed, the four swords were revealed.
Yan Renjie was so dizzy his soul was on the verge of dissipating, but he was suddenly frozen in place. In his vision, everything else vanished. Only one thing remained—a sword! A fine sword! An unparalleled, exquisite sword! He had never imagined a sword could be so magnificent, so beautiful it defied all description. It was as if it contained the entire universe, shattered into innurable fragnts.
Yan Renjie was utterly srized, forgetting everything. I am willing to beco a sword... to cut you, to cut him, and to cut myself!
The very instant this thought ford, he seed to earn the recognition of one of the ancient swords. Its blade trembled slightly, and a faint beam of light shot out, burying itself in the depths of Yan Renjie's soul.
The next mont—
"HAAH!"
Yan Renjie shot upright, gasping for breath. His once-silent heart began to pound violently again. He was alive. He had returned to the real world, back inside the ancestral cavern.
"You actually succeeded? Your luck is truly heaven-defying," Mu Fan's mocking voice comnted.
Yan Renjie looked dazed, subconsciously picking up the longsword beside him. Just as he was about to stand, he froze.
Power! Incredibly strong power! As long as I hold this sword, this power flows endlessly into !
"I..." With a light tap of his foot, Yan Renjie floated gently into the air, hovering for several seconds before landing. From his new perspective, Mu Fan—a man he previously couldn't have hoped to resist—suddenly seed to be riddled with flaws.
"So weak. You're so weak." Yan Renjie tilted his head. "Since you're so weak, what right do you have to look down on like an ant?"
SWISH!
He was about to cut down Mu Fan, whom he'd long seen as an annoying lunatic. But the mont his killing intent arose, his entire body exploded in unbearable pain.
"AAAAHHH!" he scread, collapsing to his knees again and rolling on the ground in agony. Grayish-white fungal filants squeezed out from every one of his pores, causing him to hunch over like a great ape.
"HAHA!" Mu Fan laughed maniacally. "What an idiot! A complete fool! You gained this incredible power with the help of the Old God, but did you really think there wouldn't be a failsafe? Tsk, tsk. Since you're a dog that can't be tad, I'll just take that power back."
"No, please, no! I was wrong! I'll never dare again! I beg you, spare ! I'll do whatever you say!" Yan Renjie frantically kowtowed, begging for rcy.
To lose this incredible power now would be worse than death.
Hmph. I'll endure this for now. Once I find three other Sword Dao geniuses like myself and gain the blessings of the other three ancient swords, I will combine their power. Then I will be invincible, and it won't be too late to get my revenge! he thought, bearing the humiliation.
「Several days later.」
After a rigorous screening process, the vast majority of the unqualified "beauties" were eliminated. Only ten remained as the final candidates, their fates to be decided by Long Tianji. Shen Youling and Ning Yuexi were among them, standing like puppets on a string.
Of course, those who were eliminated were not sent away. Instead, they were seated in the audience as guests—who knew, perhaps Long Tianji's unique tastes would lead him to fancy one of them. Wei Zichu, who loudly proclaid herself to be Long Tianji's woman, was seated among them. Chen Yuyan, who was just along for the ride, was also included.
In addition, the guest seats were filled with many other young ladies from influential families from across the nation. Mu Fan's wife, Li Xinyuan, was also supposed to be in attendance, but she was already dead. Furthermore, foreign contestants like Shatana were naturally not among the ten final candidates. Instead, they were seated in a separate area as special guests.
The grand concert hall was suddenly filled with so many stunning beauties, creating a spectacle no celebrity ball, awards ceremony, or variety show could ever hope to match. This was all done for the sole purpose of pleasing Long Tianji, a testant to the imnse stature of a Celestial King. An intimate event like this—essentially a concubine selection—could certainly not be broadcast to the public. No journalist had the qualifications or the courage to sneak in.
As the ti reached seven o'clock in the evening, even seasoned figures like Xiao Xuanye and Guo Jufeng were feeling tense.
"Zhao Xinghe, is Celestial King Long confird to arrive tonight? He'd better not stand us up."
"No, no, he won't! He told personally that he would definitely co!" Zhao Xinghe replied, sweating profusely under the imnse pressure. If Long Tianji breaks his promise, I'll be torn to shreds, he worried.
After all, even an elder from the capital was seated in the center of the front row. Many other high-profile dignitaries had also arrived, giving Long Tianji an extraordinary amount of face with their presence.
At seven-thirty, Long Tianji still had not arrived. The entire venue was silent. By seven forty-five, he was still nowhere in sight, and not a sound could be heard from the audience.
Finally, the clock ticked to seven fifty-nine, re seconds away from the official eight o'clock start ti. Where was Long Tianji? How could such a major figure not have shown up yet?
BUZZ...
Murmurs of conversation finally began to spread through the guest area. Everyone was guessing—with Long Tianji's unpredictable temperant, was he really playing such a massive joke on them all? Even for a Celestial King, wasn't this taking things too far?
Finally, eight o'clock struck. Then eight-oh-one. Eight-oh-five and thirty seconds. He still hadn't arrived. The entire venue erupted into an uproar.
Long Tianji, damn you and your entire family! Zhao Xinghe internally scread, breaking into tears as he felt countless murderous glares lock onto him. He was on the verge of wetting his pants from sheer terror.
"My apologies, there was so traffic. Am I late?" a polite voice suddenly asked.
A collective sigh of relief filled the hall.
"Long Tianji is finally here!"
"Wait, that voice... that's not right. Why does it sound like that beast, Lin Tang?"
"It really is you!"
"I'll kill you!"
User Comments
0 comments from readers