Ye Xuan clutched the sword that had pierced his body, the veins on his forehead bulging prominently. The sword’s power ran rampant within him, relentlessly tearing at his organs and flesh.
Space seemed to split open on its own as two figures appeared, one to the left and one to the right of Ye Xuan.
"Ye Xuan, struggling is useless. You’re destined to die today," they declared.
Each figure held a weapon, their faces twisted with cruel smiles.
Ye Xuan roared, his aura bursting forth. The sleeves of his garment exploded into shreds as he viciously slammed into the two figures, sending them flying back, coughing up blood.
The vast void collapsed, and the two figures fell into a spatial tempest, their bodies instantly shattered and torn apart, turning into countless pieces of flesh, yet still connected, indicating that despite suffering that blow, they had not perished.
However, at that moment, a fourth figure appeared in front of Ye Xuan, holding a black spear that seemed to hail from hell itself. As Ye Xuan was distracted by destroying the other two Martial Gods, the spear plunged mercilessly into his chest.
"Ye Xuan, times have changed, accept your fate!" the attacker proclaimed.
As the power from the black spear erupted, Ye Xuan’s Divine Body shattered as well. A beam of light shot forth from the Divine Palace within him, streaking across the sky like a shooting star.
Meanwhile, the real-world Ye Xuan was completely engulfed in black mist, the entire room shrouded in an illusionary fog created by the Heart Demon using Ye Xuan’s soul power.
However, it wasn’t long before the black mist began to dissipate, revealing Ye Xuan’s figure once more.
The Heart Demon was vanquished.
Ye Xuan had long come to terms with his past death, but that didn’t mean he would forget the ordeal. It was simply buried deep within his heart, a lingering risk lurking as a Heart Demon.
The debt of death must be repaid.
Those four, although one was killed by him, the remaining three were likely still alive. After all, reaching the level of Martial God meant having a lifespan that was almost endless, and it had only been a few years.
From his battle with the Heart Demon, Ye Xuan had gathered enough strength to meet the final condition to perfect the Dragon Demon Dominating Fist.
Once comprehended, the remaining learning would be a trivial matter for Ye Xuan.
When Ye Xuan stepped out, the scene was as bustling as usual, with many young heroes leisurely sipping morning tea while engaging in enthusiastic discussions.
"The Fire God Crown Prince, Tie Wanqiong, Duanmu Yu, the Thousand Faces Maiden, Bu Qianfan, the Star Swordsman—these individuals are all renowned geniuses on the Spirit Martial Continent. Who do you think will ultimately come out on top?"
"Among these six, the Fire God Crown Prince, Duanmu Yu, and Bu Qianfan are the strongest, each holding the top three positions on the Martial Saint Candidate List. However, it’s hard to say for the others, the gap between them is small."
"Yes, I’ve heard that ranking higher in the preliminary tournament will be advantageous for the subsequent trial of the Continent’s Son. The one who secures the first place stands to gain enormous benefits. Therefore, it’s probable that these competitors will fight tooth and nail for the top spot, resulting in an epic showdown."
"Don’t overlook the hidden experts. The eight domains collectively make up three-quarters of the Spirit Martial Continent, and who knows how many masters are concealed within? Among them, there might be figures who can rival these top contenders."
"That’s true. Didn’t someone unknown appear in Demon Flames City yesterday and defeat the Fire Cloud Swordsman Song Qing? That could be a dark horse."
Overhearing these conversations, Ye Xuan, who was enjoying his morning tea, smiled. These unknown individuals they were referring to were none other than himself.
But to the others here, their discussions were mere banter, guessing strengths and weaknesses served no purpose. For geniuses, a year or two could change many things, and a breakthrough could mean a significant leap in power. That was the thrill of competition among geniuses—no one knew who might have the upper hand, each confident in their progress, believing they could defeat all others.
Even the Fire God Crown Prince probably didn’t possess absolute certainty of victory in such a significant competition.
Such uncertainty made things interesting, after all, a contest without suspense would draw no interest.
Currently, Ye Xuan was exceedingly powerful, with almost no match below the rank of Martial Saint. Yet even on this dazzling stage, he wasn’t completely assured of claiming the first place.
He had many techniques at his disposal—strong Swordsmanship for attack, the Dragon Clan’s body for defense, and Heavenly Realm Perfection level soul power. His abilities were nearly Perfect.
Now that he had mastered the Dragon Demon Dominating Fist, adding a new level of strength. After absorbing a trace of the Heart Demon’s power, even Ye Xuan was surprised by its increased might, which would play a key role in this competition.
Securing the first place in the preliminaries was decidedly crucial, not just because they were a part of the process, but because the real challenge lay in the trial of the Continent’s Son. Gaining an initial advantage was vital, and undoubtedly, the rankings in the preliminaries mattered immensely.
According to the chatter, the higher the rank, the greater the advantage in the trials, and this was certainly not unfounded gossip.
At that moment, the voices of those discussing nearby reached him again, "That unknown person is called Ye Xuan, apparently coming from the Yunlan Domain."
"The Yunlan Domain? Such a weak place producing someone like that is quite a rarity. What rank do you think he’ll achieve in this preliminary round?"
"Top twenty, perhaps. Song Qing ranks around twenty or thirty, and since he defeated Song Qing, that’s probably about right. At best, he might make it into the top fifteen."
"Top twenty might be an overestimation. I heard that Song Qing’s loss was due to underestimating his opponent. Otherwise, it’s uncertain who would have won."
"Then top thirty, a noteworthy figure, but a spot in the top ten is impossible for him."
The crowd discussed fervently and soon estimated a rank for Ye Xuan. Top thirty was a severe underestimation of Ye Xuan, but he didn’t really mind. He didn’t want to draw too much attention; the less resistance he faced in securing the first place, the better.
"There are only three days left until the preliminaries kick off. Looks like we should head out tomorrow."
Hearing the young talents’ deliberations, Ye Xuan also considered the timeline. In three days, the tournament would commence.
The preliminaries weren’t to be held in Demon Flames City but north of the Fire Domain. Traveling there from Demon Flames City would take some time.
His condition was nearly optimal now, and the Dragon Demon Dominating Fist was fully mastered. Everything was ready; all that remained was for the competition to begin.