AGM 420 – Selection of the Marriage Candidate
The demon sword stood outside Pill Emperor Hall. This matter soon circulated all around Moon Continent and everyone who knew of it couldn’t help but sigh in admiration in their hearts.
This story of love touched the heart of many – a young man dragged a gigantic sword for a hundred thousand miles all the way to the Moon Continent, and even went so far as to place the sword right in front of the Pill Emperor Hall’s doorstep.
He was telling everyone that he, Qin Wentian, had returned. He would definitely make Luo He pay a price for her actions.
However, nobody thought it was possible. Although Qin Wentian had outstanding talent, his current strength was just too weak, merely at the first level of Heavenly Dipper. How could he clash with grand characters like the Pill Emperor Hall and win?
Experts were as common as clouds in the Pill Emperor Hall. What people saw was merely the tip of the iceberg, if the pillars of the Pill Emperor Hall were lured out, the consequences would be unimaginable for Qin Wentian.
Qin Wentian truly had no way to wield the demon sword – he could only drag it. If push came to shove, even if he borrowed the sword might from the sword, he would end up dying without a doubt.
What he was facing, was one of the top-tier transcendent powers, ranked within the top five in the entire Grand Xia, the Pill Emperor Hall.
Qin Wentian had the aspirations to sunder the heavens, but could he with his puny strength shock the heaven ascending hall of the Pill Emperor Hall at the top of the ninety-nine flight of steps?
The marriage candidate selection event organised by the Pill Emperor Hall for Mo Qingcheng had already caused gigantic waves of commotion throughout all of Grand Xia. Countless people all came to the Moon Continent either to participate or to be spectators of the grand selection. In addition to the smack Qin Wentian issued to Luo He’s face, the erected demon sword just outside the Pill Emperor Hall’s entrance, this storm of commotion brewed even greater in intensity.
Today, the day of the selection finally arrived.
Before the entrance to the Pill Emperor Hall, below the ninety-nine flight of steps, human silhouettes could be seen crowding on the ground. However, the cultivators all avoided a certain area. Over there, a gigantic towering sword could be seen, nobody dared to near it.
At the peak of the ninety-nine flights of steps, the experts from the Pill Emperor Hall stood there surveying the crowd. Luo He stood in the centre-most position, her countenance ice-cold as she stared at the gigantic demon sword right in front of their door step.
Qin Wentian dared to smack her face? She really wanted to see if Qin Wentian dared to come today.
If he really came, she will make sure he would never be able to return.
Shifting her gaze onto the crowd, Luo He’s voice resounded out, “Friends from the other transcendent powers, please feel free to ascend the ninety-nine steps. We welcome all of you to act as witnesses for this selection.”
As the sound of her voice faded, several figures among the crowd moved as they climbed the heaven ascending steps before they sat down on the seats at the peak of the steps that were already prepared for them.
“Participants of the selection are to stand on the ninetieth step and below.” Luo He continued, and momentarily, whistling sounds echoed in the air as numerous silhouettes appeared and squeezed on the ninetieth step. Just an instant, and the ninetieth step was completely full with no space available. If anyone else wanted to stand there, they would have to knock someone else down to take their place.
“So many people, the participants for the selection are all Heavenly Dipper Sovereigns below thirty. Not only that, their looks and talents are a cut above the common crowd. For those at Yuanfu, wanting to marry Mo Qingcheng is just a fool’s dream.”
The Pill Emperor Hall is selecting a son-in-law and the marriage partner is Mo Qingcheng. No wonder so many outstanding characters appear. Firstly, leaving aside those from the transcendent powers, the major powers a tier below them have also sent out many of their younger generations over. If any of them could really become the son-in-law of the Pill Emperor Hall, and married Mo Qingcheng, the status of that power would naturally be positively affected as well.”
However, how could it be so easy to last all the way to the end and win the selection?
“An incense stick worth of time, only those who stand upon the ninetieth step will be able to proceed upwards to my Pill Emperor Hall. This is but a preliminary test to weed out the weak.” Luo He faintly continued, “Let the selection begin.”
As the sound of her voice faded, the atmosphere became charged with nervous energy. Luo He had already told them her standards – only participants with the qualifications to stand on the ninetieth step after the time it takes to finish burning an incense, would be able to proceed to the next round.”
At this moment, those who stood on the ninetieth step all felt an overwhelming pressure bearing down on them. The Astral Souls and Novas of those who stood on the steps below them were already released into being. Instantly, battle intent and powerful auras radiated out in the air.
Complete and utter mayhem. The fight was even swifter and more brutal that what the spectators had expected.
Not even half a second had passed since Luo He’s voice faded away, yet the frenzied and chaotic combat erupted instantly. No quarters were given.
Viewing this terrifying battle that erupted instantaneously, the spectators only felt their heart violently pounding from the sight. Over there, blood splattered about, falling down like rain from the skies, while miserable screams and blood-curdling screeches mingled together to form a cacophony of pain that resounded in the air. In the mere blink of an eye, it was unknown how many of the participants had died or were seriously injured. It was just too cruel.
Although Luo He was the daughter of the Pill Emperor, she definitely wasn’t some nice soul that advocate kindness. She chose to use the most direct and brutal selection method to test the participants.
“There are a few that are quite powerful. Nobody could knock them down from the ninetieth step.”
Very quickly, the spectators soon noticed those participants who were more dazzling. Their cultivation was all approximately the second or third level of Heavenly Dipper.
For young cultivators who were below thirty and had a cultivation base at third level of Heavenly Dipper, their talents were already considered extremely terrifying. Even in the transcendent powers, only those more elite, demon-level characters would be able to achieve such a feat.
As for those below thirty who was at the fourth level of Heavenly Dipper, the spectators hadn’t noticed any yet. Even Hua Taixu didn’t achieve this. The concept of a fourth level Heavenly Dipper Sovereign was simply too fearsome to believe.
Hence, those participants with a cultivation base at the third level of Heavenly Dipper could already be considered as the peak-level participants in the selection this time around.
As for those at the first level of Heavenly Dipper, these people suffered the most, they belonged to the weakest group. They were sitting ducks and were blasted down the steps by those stronger than them. Many had injuries from the collision, they simply didn’t have power enough to dash up the ninetieth step.
“The majority of those that are able to stand upon the ninetieth step are from the transcendent powers. Chen Lie from the Chen Clan was extremely famous back in those days as well. He’s the elder brother of Chen Wang and although his talent wasn’t as outstanding as Chen Wang, his current cultivation is higher than him. He was also one of the top few rankers on the Heavenly Fate Rankings three batches ago. The Chen Clan actually chose him to represent them.”
“Hua Cheng of the Hua Clan is here as well. Although his brilliance was totally suppressed by Hua Taixu, he could also be considered one of the more powerful ones in the younger generation of the Hua Clan. Seems like it’s true that there are many cultivators who want to obtain the belle. The competition is intense indeed.”
“That person that is Wang Yifei of the Wang Clan from War Continent. His combat prowess is said to be extraordinary. I also heard that not long ago, Wang Jue was slain by Qin Wentian when the latter was pulling out the demon sword. I wonder if this matter is true or not, if it’s true, then the hatred the Wang Clan feels for Qin Wentian would surely be carved deep into their bones. If Qin Wentian appears here today, I wonder how he would be able to walk out alive. The Chen Clan, Hua Clan and Wang Clan all want him to die. Not to mention that the Pill Emperor Hall and the Star-Seizing Manor also have grudges with him.”
“Qin Wentian is actually also worthy of admiration. Who would dared to take the actions he took? But sadly, it’s destined that he would fall today. Back then, the Azure Emperor also died in the same way, surrounded by enemies too overwhelming for him to handle.”
The discussions of the crowd began to shift towards Qin Wentian again. After Qin Wentian showcased his brilliance to the world, each and every action he took caused way too much commotion. And let alone today, when he he might be here to smash the selection apart. His sword was currently erected outside the Pill Emperor Hall, there’s no way the marriage selection would proceed as smoothly as the Pill Emperor Hall has planned.
“Hey look, who’s that person? He’s quite good looking and succeeded in standing on the ninetieth step despite only having a cultivation base at the first level of Heavenly Dipper.” At this moment, someone in the crowd pointed at a figure on the ninetieth step. This person had an ancient halberd in his hands and projected an air of unmatched tyranny. For those who wanted to target him would all suffer underneath his halberd. So far, none had succeeded when they tried to knock him down.
And right now, a cultivator at the second level of Heavenly Dipper was rushing at him. This person wielded a lightning-attributed sword in his hands and the instant he neared, the power of lightning abruptly stabbed out, the Astral Nova of the attacker exploded with a terrifying light, augmenting his attack. However, the crowd only saw an ancient halberd blasting out, containing a strange and surreal; fluctuation akin to a phantasm. This halberd strike didn’t seemed to be real but the moment it came into contact with the sword, an irresistible force penetrated directly through, cancelling out the force of the sword attack, smashing into the attacker’s chest, blasting him right down the steps.
An incense worth of time passed very quickly. When Luo He announced that the first round was over, there were only a total of forty-eight participants remaining on the ninetieth step.
“All of you are qualified to come up here.” Luo He waved her hands before turning and walking to the seat of the host.
The forty-eight participants ascended the ninety-nine steps and arrived at the peak where the Pill Emperor Hall was located. At the peak of the steps, was a vast piece of land and surrounding them were all people from the various transcendent powers that came to spectate. As for the other spectators who had no background, they weren’t qualified to be up here.
Although only around ten to fifteen minutes have passed, the forty-eight participants remaining were all elites among elites. All of them were extraordinary characters.
Many among them were cultivators from the younger generations of the various transcendent powers. The spectators from their respective powers all had smiles on their faces. If their representative could really marry Mo Qingcheng, it wasn’t too bad even if they had to marry into the Pill Emperor Hall. This way, their relationship with the Pill Emperor Hall would only become closer.
Luo He sat on the host’s seat. Mo Qingcheng was her disciple, hence she was the host for the selection event today.
Her eyes were currently staring ahead, fixed on the demon sword erected outside their sect. That sword was even taller compared to where she was seated now. Her eyes flashed with a glint of coldness as she stared at it.
She truly wanted to see when Qin Wentian would appear. Did he really dare to show up and cause chaos during this selection?
Retracting her gaze, she then turned to the forty-eight participants as she stated, “All of you are good looking enough and possess strength above average. For the groom selection this time around, there’s no need for a ranking system. We only need to know who are the top three among the forty-eight of you. The rules are simple, right now, each of you choose your own opponent. The loser shall be ousted while the winner continues on to the next round.”
As the sound of her voice faded, the participants moved and immediately started selecting their opponents.
There were still other challenges after this round. Hence, in these earlier battles, participants would naturally all choose the weakest ones of the group. Han Qing of the Swallow Swordsmen from Yan Continent picked an opponent who was at the first level of Heavenly Dipper. His opponent had an ancient halberd and was extremely tyrannical. But regardless, with a cultivation base at only the first level, how strong could his opponent be?
Han Qing stood in front of the halberd user and calmly regarded him. He then spoke, “Han Qing of the Swallow Swordsmen. Please guide me.”
As his voice faded away, the sword in his hand buzzed as it erupted into motion. The corners of Han Qing’s lips curled up in an unpleasant smile, although the words he spoke were polite, the tone of his voice contained a unmistakable hint of disdain!