In the sky, there was actually a ship!
Shouldn’t ships only be able to sail on water?
Everyone felt their scalp tingle, utterly shocked.
Shi Hao also raised his eyebrows, a memory surfacing; he suddenly understood.
This was a Sky Ship, a special vehicle that could fly in the sky. Although its speed was not exceptionally fast, it could overcome the influence of terrain, which was quite convenient.
The ability of a Sky Ship to soar was the result of the combination of various Formations—Weight Reducing Runes, Floating Runes, Power Runes, and so on, the production requirements of which were extremely high. Only the most professional Artifact Forging sects could build them, and most powers simply purchased them outright.
However, the maintenance of so many Formations consumed a staggering amount of Spirit Stones; thus, many forces could afford to buy, but not to upkeep them.
Therefore, possessing a Sky Ship could also be seen as a symbol of a powerful force.
Of course, this did not apply to the Eastern Fire Continent; the Artifact Forging powers here could not possibly build a Sky Ship, let alone afford the terrifying operational and maintenance costs.
Could it be... that people from another continent had arrived?
The Sky Ship sliced through the air and slowly came to a halt, casting a huge shadow. It was as if this shadow also fell on the hearts of each person below, involuntarily arousing their awe.
It was a display of might without the need for battle.
By this time, the Tianyun Temple had also reacted. The temple doors flung wide open, and a troop of monks wearing King Ming-colored robes rushed out; others were dressed in casual clothes, no different from ordinary people.
"Who is the esteemed visitor that graces our Tianyun Temple?" a middle-aged man clad in white spoke up to the sky, his voice compressed to a line. Although the Sky Ship was dozens of feet away, his voice clearly carried across the distance.
"West Rock Continent, Eight Gods Hall!" A voice boomed back from the Sky Ship, rolling like thunder.
"May I ask what brings the esteemed friends of the Eight Gods Hall here?" the man in white asked again, neither humble nor arrogant.
"Heh, we’ve brought a few youngsters to take part in the Endless Trial," came the voice from above once more.
"Since the distinguished friends from the West Rock Continent have come with high regard, our Tianyun Temple will certainly show proper respect," the man in white said lightly, "Please, come down for a talk."
After hesitating for a moment, a voice from the Sky Ship replied: "Very well!"
Swiftly, the Sky Ship began to move again, not to leave, but to descend.
When the Sky Ship finally touched down, a door opened on its hull, and a procession of about a dozen people filed out, led by two very elderly looking individuals. The rest were younger, both men and women, all stunningly attractive and brimming with arrogance.
The man in white greeted them with a retinue, but the crowd, blocked by those from Tianyun Temple, could only watch from a distance.
The two elderly leaders emitted a terrifying aura; it was unknown whether their strength was of the Founding King Court level, or even greater. The young men and women, handsome and beautiful, had every right to their pride—they hailed from the West Rock Continent, where the martial arts realm was far more advanced than that of the Eastern Fire Continent.
The man in white quickly led the people from the Eight Gods Hall up the mountain. The temple gates returned to their usual state as if nothing had happened—if not for the Sky Ship still parked there, people might even think they had imagined it all.
"It’s over; now even the West Rock Continent has sent people. That’ll squeeze out several of our spots."
"Don’t dampen our spirits. So what about the West Rock Continent? Are they that impressive?"
"Among the Four Continents, our Eastern Fire Continent has the weakest level of martial arts. Besides, have you ever seen a ship that can fly?"
The arrival of the Eight Gods Hall on a Sky Ship alone proved their might, even surpassing that of the Tianyun Temple.
Would a sect like that raise mediocre disciples?
There were originally only ninety-nine spots to pass the trial, and now there would be several less, no wonder there was an outcry of grief among the people.
"So what if it’s from the Western Rock Continent?" someone suddenly said, "They still have two eyes and two hands. As long as the realms are equivalent, my Young Master can certainly thrash them!"
People couldn’t help but look over, only to see a seventeen or eighteen-year-old youth, dressed as a pageboy, somewhat skinny, but with an arrogant expression, chin tilted slightly upward, showing strong disdain for the Western Rock Continent.
Looking at the young man beside him, he was dressed as a scholar, in Qing Yi, with black hair flowing, a touch of wild unruliness amidst his scholarly aura.
"Who is your Young Master, and where does this confidence come from?" someone couldn’t help but ask.
"My Young Master is none other than Shi Haotian," the pageboy said proudly.
"Who is Shi Haotian?" many people were clueless.
"Shi Haotian? Who’s that?"
"Never heard of him."
But some people’s expressions changed immediately and they blurted out, "The Shi Haotian who destroyed a city with demonic sound!"
"What demonic sound destroyed a city?" many people turned to look at the speaker.
Still shaken, that person took a while before speaking, "Three months ago, a mysterious young expert emerged from nowhere, and with just a performance of demonic sound, he wiped out all the living beings in an entire city!"
Everyone was shocked, looking over at Shi Haotian.
Such a feat of city annihilation, not only required immense strength, but also extraordinary ruthlessness, to do such a thing.
The pageboy simply smiled faintly, "Don’t misunderstand, it was not an ordinary city inhabited by common folks, but a den of several gangs of bandits, all beyond redemption, which is why my Young Master decided to act and eliminate these desperadoes."
The crowd was still stunned, regardless of how it was put, it was still a "city". To kill all beings in a city with a tune was still a terrifying feat.
No wonder a mere pageboy was so arrogant; this Shi Haotian was no small deal.
"Haha, if we encounter people from the Western Rock Continent in the secret realm, this Young Master will also let them know that the Eastern Fire Continent is no short of geniuses!" another person laughed. He was tall and slender, with a sword tied to his waist, his entire presence like an unsheathed long sword, brimming with Sword Intent.
"The Heartless Sword Sha Fenghua!" someone recognized him.
"The Sha Fenghua who consecutively defeated eleven geniuses in Canglan City?"
The crowd was once again amazed; this Endless Trial really did attract many geniuses.
"That’s right, although the martial arts level of the Western Rock Continent is higher than ours, that’s due to the environmental difference, but when it comes to a fight between equals in realm, our geniuses may not necessarily lose to them."
"Looking forward to the showdown!"
The successive statements of the two geniuses greatly boosted everyone’s morale.
"Oh, is that so?" A voice of disdain rang out, as two young men were seen walking out from the gate in companionship.
These were the two disciples from Eight Gods Hall who had gone in earlier.
The crowd felt somewhat embarrassed, bad-mouthing others behind their backs only to be caught red-handed.
"Sha Fenghua, I challenge you to a fight," stated the white-clothed young man from Eight Gods Hall indifferently, "My name is Zhu Ye, remember it, because I will soon bestow upon you a defeat."
"I am Tang Hai," the other young man, much more arrogant, pointed at Shi Haotian, "I will be the one to defeat you!"