Yayoi Chiyoko and Yamato Hanaori's expressions stiffened, their delicate bodies trembling slightly.
Yayoi Chiyoko spoke, "Your Highness Prince Gan, you do like to joke."
They had come to beg Chen Jiuyang for mercy. Those who had fought Chen Jiuyang in four matches had all died on the spot. If they were to face Chen Jiuyang, they would surely be defeated. However, they had not come this far easily and did not wish to die so soon.
If they could sacrifice some interests in exchange for a chance to survive, it would not be a loss for them.
Chen Jiuyang's eyes turned slightly cold, "You joked first, so what if I joke back?"
"This is the Martial Rankings World Championship. Everyone carries the destiny of their nation's martial rankings."
"How can it be treated so casually?"
"If you are afraid, then admit defeat."
"A honey trap? Do you look down on me?"
"I am only twenty-three years old. If I want beautiful women, there are countless people in our Dragon Country lining up to sleep with me."
"What are you two, then?"
Yayoi Chiyoko and Yamato Hanaori's faces turned pale.
Yayoi Chiyoko quickly lowered her head and gritted her teeth, "We apologize, Your Highness Prince Gan. We were rude. We shall take our leave."
With that, the two Eastern women left Chen Jiuyang.
Chen Jiuyang sneered. His few confidantes were all peerlessly beautiful, and he truly disdained these foreign women.
Why would wild flowers be as fragrant as home-grown ones?
It was truly laughable.
He had thought these two women had come to discuss the matter of the old monster from the Lotus Sect, but it was not as he had imagined.
For the next half-day, apart from Chen Jiuyang, few contestants were in a relaxed mood. They were all frantically studying the information of other contestants to find their weaknesses.
At midnight.
Chen Jiuyang received a call from Chen Biandao in Longjing, Dragon Country.
Chen Jiuyang was somewhat surprised and asked, "Patriarch, calling me at this hour, has something happened?"
Chen Biandao opened his mouth and said, "Something has indeed happened... but it is not a matter concerning the family."
Chen Jiuyang was relieved upon hearing this, "Then what is it?"
Chen Biandao said, "Your performance in the Asian Martial Rankings has brought glory and reflected back upon the destiny of our Dragon Country."
"The Five Great Sacred Lands and we have all been schemed against."
"Longjing, Suhang, Feng Province, Shushan, and other places... In the past few days, reincarnated immortals have been born."
"Many infants, just a day or two after birth, can speak human language and claim to be reincarnated immortals or gods."
Chen Jiuyang's expression suddenly turned to shock, "Reincarnated immortals and gods?"
"Is it true? Not fake?"
Chen Biandao gave a bitter laugh, "It is indeed true. We didn't know at first until today when it was confirmed."
"Some infants speak human language and reveal their past lives. Today, many hidden forces have come out to acknowledge their ancestors and are receiving them with great ceremony..."
"Even our Shushan has two ancestors who have returned. The Shushan Sacred Land has an ancestor who personally welcomed them back into the sacred land's secret realm. Before long, we should receive a proper explanation."
Chen Jiuyang's expression was uncertain, "Immortals and gods have been gone for so long, why would they appear and reincarnate now?"
Chen Biandao said, "I don't know the secrets behind it. Almost all long-standing factions have reincarnated ancestors."
"Currently, the Five Great Sacred Lands are in urgent communication to figure out what has happened."
"I am calling just to inform you."
"You do your best in the Martial Rankings competition."
After speaking, Chen Biandao hung up the phone.
Chen Jiuyang did not know what these secrets represented. Perhaps Han Peiling knew.
He found Han Peiling and explained the situation.
Han Peiling's expression was calm as he said, "This is the ancient Immortal-Mortal Covenant."
"The ancient immortal path was severed, martial arts rose, and immortals and martial artists fought fiercely, spilling blood everywhere, with constant smoke and fire."
"Later, a Martial Saint proposed that if these immortals did not disappear, this world would completely lose its spiritual energy."
"At that time, our human martial arts were flourishing, and the immortal path was declining. An immortal proposed that they could disappear, but human martial arts must be suppressed. Otherwise, if martial arts continued to advance, when they returned reincarnated, this world would not tolerate the immortal path."
"Thus, the ancient Immortal-Mortal Covenant was established. To nourish the world's spiritual energy and reopen the prosperous path, this world was suppressed to prevent the emergence of beings beyond the transcendent realm."
Chen Jiuyang's expression sharpened, "Which realm is transcendent?"
Han Peiling smiled and said, "The Venerable Realm."
"After the Immortal-Mortal Covenant, the world underwent another great change and entered a phase of recuperation. Various immortal realms and true realms fell into the mortal realms."
"The Immortal-Mortal Covenant seemed to have been agreed upon by the Heavenly Dao. Since then, the Universal Heavenly Lock has existed."
"Breaking the Universal Heavenly Lock can restore the mortal realm to a spiritual realm, and from the spiritual realm upwards is the true realm, and above that is the immortal realm."
"After the Immortal-Mortal Covenant, the strength of our human race was unprecedentedly weak, leading to the civilization of Huaxia, where humanity, with its own strength, opened the path of sword-wielders to protect their descendants from foreign invasion."
"Foreign races?" Chen Jiuyang's brow furrowed again, "Are there truly foreign races?"
Han Peiling chuckled, "What do you think the fragments of the Nine Provinces Cauldron suppressed by the Five Great Sacred Lands are?"
"In ancient times, the Nine Provinces Cauldron was an artifact of the Divine Ancestor, peerlessly powerful. Supported by the worship of billions of people of the Han Huaxia human race, this cauldron protected our human race."
"The Nine Provinces Cauldron is divided into nine fragments, each fragment sealing a passage for foreign races to return to the mortal world."
"Our Dragon Country suppresses nine passages of foreign races, and other countries have their own Divine Ancestor artifacts for suppression."
"Now that our Dragon Country's destiny is prosperous, and spiritual energy has been nourished for countless years, it is normal for these immortals to return to the mortal world."
"Or perhaps something major has happened, which is why they have prematurely reincarnated and returned."
"What are you afraid of? If the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up. You haven't reached the Heavenly Realm yet, so it's not your place to worry. The Five Great Sacred Lands will handle these matters."
After speaking, Han Peiling turned and left to find a place to rest.
Chen Jiuyang sat in place for a long time, digesting the secrets revealed by Han Peiling.
The next day.
At eight o'clock in the morning.
The top sixteen contestants entered the arena.
According to the previous rankings, everyone was assigned a number.
Chen Jiuyang, representing Dragon Country, was ranked first, and as the top player on the team, he received number one.
Yan Hongming was number two, and Ye Tiannan was number three.
And so on.
"Please, contestants, come on stage to draw lots."
Chen Jiuyang walked onto the stage and put one hand into a small wooden box. He drew a slip of paper and opened it. The referee announced, "Number one will battle number six."
Someone in the audience immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
Number six was Abulan from the Indian God Kingdom.
After the draw, it was Yan Hongming and Ye Tiannan's turn to draw.
They each drew number nine, Sakurai Sanpo from Japan, and number thirteen, Kasa from Thailand.
One after another, they took the stage!
Whether it was a desperate struggle or a king's conquest, it would be revealed in today's battles.
Bring it on!