Heavenly Desolation Continent.
Eastern Domain, Heavenly Extremity Sacred Land.
Forbidden grounds, within the Ascending Dragon Pool.
At this moment, Dao Wuhen was no longer at the edge where he had been before.
If anyone had been there, they would have seen faint golden light flickering across his body.
"The closer I get to the center, the stronger the tempering on the body truly becomes..."
Dao Wuhen gritted his teeth and endured the pain as he spoke.
Though the pain was immense, he had no intention of retreating in the slightest.
"I have to grow stronger too!"
His conviction firm, Dao Wuhen took another step toward the center.
At the same time, inside the Holy Master's hall.
Ye Xinran, Lin Tianci, Jin Xiaoya, Xuanyuan Hao, and Xiao Yueming had all gathered there.
"We'll soon be heading to the Central Domain to participate in the Sacred Land Grand Competition. Do you have confidence?"
Looking at the five before him, Xuanyuan Chen was brimming with confidence.
Especially when he looked at Ye Xinran, Xuanyuan Chen could not imagine who could snatch first place away from her this time.
"Holy Master, when are we setting out?"
Jin Xiaoya asked.
"Today. This time, we are no longer as we were before.
"In the past, our Heavenly Extremity Sacred Land had always ranked third among the four great sacred lands. We rarely took second place, and we had never taken first.
"But this time, it is our turn to sit in the first-place seat."
Xuanyuan Chen wore an excited expression, already unable to wait for the Sacred Land Grand Competition to begin.
It was time for Heavenly Extremity Sacred Land to claim first place.
"We're leaving today..."
Hearing Xuanyuan Chen's words, Jin Xiaoya murmured softly.
She seemed somewhat unwilling to go.
Before long, a flying ship set off from Heavenly Extremity Sacred Land, its destination the Central Domain.
Southern Domain.
Extreme Sea Sacred Land.
Inside a grand hall.
"Apart from the Central Domain's Divine Firmament Sacred Land, we can take down everyone else with ease."
A middle-aged man in a blue robe looked at the five young men and women before him, his expression spirited.
"Master, don't worry. Other than the Divine Firmament Sacred Land in the Central Domain, we can defeat all the rest easily."
The seventeen- or eighteen-year-old youth standing at the front replied with a confident expression.
"Senior Brother is right, Master. Please rest assured."
A girl in a pink dress chimed in.
"Good. As long as you are confident. Relax—aside from Divine Firmament Sacred Land, the other two great sacred lands are very weak.
"With your strength, as long as you perform normally, you can firmly secure second place."
Seeing that his disciples were all full of confidence, the middle-aged man was greatly pleased.
He could not possibly have imagined that the more arrogant he was now, the harder his face would be slapped later.
Northern Domain.
Cold Spirit Sacred Land.
In this snow-covered land, a palace resembling an ice sculpture stood amid the wind and snow.
Within the hall, a graceful and beautiful middle-aged woman sat in the seat of honor.
She calmly looked at the five disciples below, her red lips parting slightly.
"What you must do this time is hide your true abilities. Fourth place is not shameful for us.
"Though the resources allocated by the Sacred Land Grand Competition are considerable, they are not something our Cold Spirit Sacred Land absolutely needs.
"Remember, no matter who provokes you, you must not reveal your true strength.
"Do you all understand?"
"We understand."
The five disciples replied one after another, all wearing confident expressions.
"Good. Liu Qing, you will lead them to participate in this competition."
The middle-aged woman then looked toward a female Elder at the side, dressed in a light green gown.
"Yes, Holy Master."
"Alright, set off. Remember my words."
With that, the middle-aged woman vanished from the hall.
The Elders and disciples in the hall seemed unsurprised by this sight, as though they had long since grown accustomed to it.
"Let us set out."
After the middle-aged woman left, Liu Qing spoke to the disciples.
Before long, a flying ship soared out from Cold Spirit Sacred Land, heading straight for the Central Domain.
Aboard the flying ship, the five young men and women were high-spirited, yet unlike the other sacred lands.
Their goal had never been to win the competition and receive the allocation of resources.
Central Domain.
Divine Firmament Sacred Land.
Inside a magnificent hall.
Several young men and women were discussing something.
"Divine Son, are you sure you want to participate in this competition?"
A black-robed youth looked at the purple-eyed youth seated in the seat of honor and asked.
"Is there a problem?"
The purple-eyed youth curled his lips into a smile.
"Divine Son, that is not what I meant. It is merely a Sacred Land Grand Competition—why would it require you personally?
"Wouldn't it be enough to leave it to us Holy Sons and Saintesses?"
The black-robed youth said with a fawning smile.
"I heard that Heavenly Extremity Sacred Land has produced quite a few geniuses. I would like to see exactly how much they are worth.
"And her... Jin Xiaoya. While I was in seclusion, she ran off to the Eastern Domain without a word.
"Does she look down on our Divine Firmament Sacred Land...?"
By the end, the purple-eyed youth's tone had turned somewhat cold.
"Oh? Jin Xiaoya went to Heavenly Extremity Sacred Land? No wonder she did not come to our Divine Firmament Sacred Land."
A girl with a bun hairstyle spoke thoughtfully.
"I have already spoken to my father. This time, I will personally take action.
"First place is mine, and Jin Xiaoya should not even think of escaping."
The purple-eyed youth slapped the armrest, sneering coldly.
"Divine Son, what about the remaining four? We have seven Holy Sons and Saintesses."
The black-robed youth asked.
"Just pick any four of you. With me here, it makes no difference."
Hearing this, the purple-eyed youth cast him a glance, his eyes carrying a hint of disdain and arrogance.
No one present objected upon seeing this, because they all knew that the purple-eyed youth was qualified to act this way.
Only the girl with the bun hairstyle seemed to be thinking about something else and had not taken the purple-eyed youth's words to heart.
Heavenly Realm, Lintian Dao Domain.
Since the top ten of the Heavenly Prodigy Ranking all came from the Lintian Dao Domain, these famed prodigies soon arrived near the Heavenly Mystery Tower.
"Look, that is Chen Haotian of the Chen Clan, ranked fifth on the Heavenly Prodigy Ranking.
"And that one is Nangong Qingyu of the Wind Snow Divine Sect, ranked sixth on the Heavenly Prodigy Ranking."
"Nangong Qingyu really came! She is so beautiful, truly my goddess! A fairy descended to the mortal world!"
"Nangong Qingyu, who possesses beauty, strength, and talent all in one! I have finally seen her in person!"
"Have you never seen a beauty before? Look at Shangguan Yun Ya of the Shangguan Clan over there. Though she is ranked seventh, isn't she even more beautiful than Nangong Qingyu?"
"You are right. Compared to Nangong Qingyu, that ice beauty who keeps people a thousand miles away, Shangguan Yun Ya is gentle and charming, with a unique allure of her own."
"But it must be said that the Shangguan Clan actually holds three spots on the Heavenly Prodigy Ranking.
"Shangguan Fengyun, ranked tenth, has come as well. Judging by this, could it be that the three strongest members of the Shangguan Clan's younger generation are all joining the Primordial Divine Hall?"
"Look at who is beside Shangguan Yun Ya. What is he doing? Can he keep some distance? Stay farther away from my goddess!"
"That is Lu Heng, the Young Clan Leader of the Lu Clan, ranked ninth on the Heavenly Prodigy Ranking.
"He has always been devoted to Shangguan Yun Ya. Who would have thought that even after being rejected so many times, he still persisted?"
As the prodigies on the Heavenly Prodigy Ranking arrived one after another, the onlookers gathered there continued discussing them without pause.
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