Chapter 348: Gathering Of The Elites!
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
"Heavens, what kind of skill is that?"
"That is too powerful! His wings are made of black flames, totally terrifying!"
"Is that person from Fire Country?"
"Looking at where he's headed, he should be attending the Imperial Tombs Contest!"
"Let's hurry up and go there as well to check out who that powerful man is."
"The back view of that man is eerily similar to the young man who was grilling the chicken wings that night…"
"Come, we should go and take a look…"
Many cultivators sped up. Some were travelling on flying swords, some driving divine chariots, but all were headed towards the Imperial Tombs!
...
At the same time, the entrance of the Imperial Tombs was already packed with people!
Besides the cultivators who had come to participate in the contest, there were others who had come here to spectate. There were also countless guards guarding the Imperial Tombs and maintaining law and order.
Obviously, the Imperial Tombs Contest was a very important event!
Everyone knew that this contest would matter greatly for the princes who were vying for the position of Crown Prince. No doubt the competition would be heated, and accidents might occur. More guards had therefore been sent to the Imperial Tombs in the hopes of avoiding or reducing the number of casualties!
The Imperial Tombs Contest for the princes this year might even be the most exciting one ever in history!
The princes who were competing for the position had expended great effort or paid a tremendous price to invite renowned elite cultivators to join their teams and attempt the contest together!
According to the rules, as long as one person in the team passed a checkpoint, that meant the whole team would have passed that round of the contest!
And so, in every team, there were basically one to two people who had skills suitable for specific checkpoints!
Some were highly proficient in driving divine chariots whereas some were good at weapon forging. There were even elites in the event whose names were well-known but were hardly ever seen by the public. This was, in a way, a gathering of the elites!
"Look! That's Zhang Lin who is reputed to be the World's Greatest Chariot King. Everybody calls him Chariot King Zhang. His skill at controlling divine chariots is pretty much right at the top!"
"Heavens! Even Chariot King Zhang is here, and he's standing together with the Second Prince. He must be here to help him!"
"Wait, look at the Eighth Prince's team!"
"Woah, it's the Ghost of Divine Chariot, Qi Yun Fei. He's here too?"
"This guy's Soul Strength is very powerful. I've heard that his skills are not in any way inferior to Chariot King Zhang!"
"That's not all! Look over there at the Eldest Prince, there's also someone strong!"
"Tsk… it's Gao Qiao Jie! The Number One Genius from Spirit Treasures Pavilion!"
"That guy's divine chariot is the best in Metal Nation. It is said to be the most valuable treasure of the Spirit Treasures Pavilion. If he's here, how will anyone else win the race against him?"
"It's only the first round of the contest and there are already so many talented elites and geniuses. I can't wait for the contest to begin!"
As the crowd discovered the identities of the famous elites and geniuses, they became filled with enthusiasm!
But soon, some people noticed the Third Prince's predicament and were puzzled.
"Hey, look at the Third Prince's team, there isn't any expert with him who seems suited for handling the first round!"
"I heard that the Third Prince has sought help from Xu Que from the Exploding Heavens Faction. Apparently that guy is very strong and efficient at controlling his divine chariot. I hear he owns a divine chariot that can even transform!"
"But didn't that guy go missing? For the past two days, the Third Prince and the Seventh Princess have been searching for him, but to no avail!"
"Looks like the Third Prince is at a disadvantage this time!"
"Yeah, although there is a fixed quota for entering the Imperial Tombs, the contest this time is really about the fight for the position of Crown Prince. The teams will accumulate points according to their ranking at every checkpoint. The prince whose team has the most points will become Crown Prince!"
"Sigh, it looks like the Third Prince has lost without a fight!"
Many people were shaking their heads with regret.
If the team missed getting a good ranking this round, it would be difficult to close the gap with the winning teams later on. That would mean that the Third Prince would lose his chance at the title!
At that very moment, the Third Prince and the Seventh Princess were burning with anxiety.
For two days, they had been searching for Xu Que. But nobody knew his whereabouts.
From what they had gathered, Xu Que's last appearance had been in the Palace where he had kidnapped a eunuch, but there had been no trace of him subsequently.
"This guy… where on earth did he go?" commented a troubled Third Prince.
He had listened to the Seventh Princess's suggestions over the past two days and placed his hopes on Xu Que. He had also used his authority to oppose the Jade Sword Sect.
That was the reason why Jade Sword Sect's wanted notice for Xu Que had not reached the Imperial City yet!
However, Xu Que had disappeared. This made him very jittery and stressful. He had a feeling that he had suffered a double loss!
The Seventh Princess's brows were furrowed, her eyes full of unease.
"According to our spies," the princess spoke in soft tone, "Young Master Xu seemed to have entered the Palace and made second brother so angry that a lot of people heard his angry roar! Unfortunately, information is being blocked, and nobody knows what exactly happened!"
"Could it be that… Xu Que has already been brutally killed by our second brother?" exclaimed a prince.
The Seventh Princess shook her head lightly. "That should not be possible. With Young Master Xu's strength, he would never be taken down so easily without creating an uproar!"
"Where would he have gone then?" another prince asked in doubt. "Could it be that someone else offered something else to him in exchange for a no-show today?"
The hearts of the princes immediately sank upon hearing that. This was what they were most worried about.
The Seventh Princess, however, was very calm. She responded seriously, "with my understanding of Young Master Xu, he is not that kind of person!"
"Seventh Sister, you only talked with him a few times. How can you trust him so easily?"
"Exactly, it is impossible to judge a man's heart from his face. Xu Que is certainly not as simple as you think he is!"
"Just look at his dog and you'll know. If his pet's like that, the owner won't be too different. That dog has been creating a lot of trouble over the past two days. And every time that dog achieved what it wanted, it just ran away! The whole Imperial City is in a mess now!"
The princes refuted the princess's words and shook their heads. They felt that asking Xu Que for help had been a mistake.
The Third Prince puffed a sigh. If Xu Que didn't come for the contest, he would really lose big time.
The Seventh Princess was left speechless at her brothers' words as she was also perturbed by Xu Que's disappearance.
Even though she believed in Xu Que, there were many things in the world that relied on results. If Xu Que stood her up today, that would be tantamount to crushing her Third Brother's hopes for Crown Prince!
Boom!
However, just then, a sudden, muffled clap of thunder was heard from the sky, alerting everyone at the scene.
Everyone looked up at the sky. They saw a figure with an enormous pair of flaming wings which stretched over ten feet in length. Lightning flashed at the person's feet. They were headed to the Imperial Tombs.
It was Xu Que!
His magnificent, suave, heroic and cool figure instantly won the hearts of numerous female cultivators present.
The Seventh Princess was slightly startled. She then dismissed all of the negative emotions she had been experiencing and smiled, completely relieved.
She was still wearing a veil so nobody could see her face, but they could make out a gentle smile. "He's finally here!"
Bang!
A loud sound was heard. Xu Que looked like a shooting star falling from the sky as he zoomed down to earth, hitting the ground heavily.
Everyone was stunned!
To make an appearance like this was a strong show of his prowess. It was too astounding!
If one were to sum it up in one word, the word would be—dashing!