Divine Emperor of Death

The Mandate Emperor looked fairly satisfied with the reactions of the millions of cultivators who had gathered for this grand and impressive competition. However, he always had his golden eyes appear sharp as though searching for something within the crowd with the tiny movements of his pupils.

Not only him, but the Karmic Guardian Emperor, Vast Sky Emperor, and the Starnova Emperor also had a sharp eye on the crowd, the latter even appearing to be like jesting and flirting with his fiancée Farah Lanate while carefully surveying the crowd.

Indeed, although the competition was important, they were all here for only one thing.

To find the source of the Calamity Light!

"I'm sure you're all eagerly awaiting the rewards in store for the Eighth Stage Young Experts Segment, but we will announce it only at the end of the Seventh Stage Young Experts Segment. As for the rewards for the Ninth Stage Young Powerhouses Segment, it'll be announced after the end of the Eighth Stage Young Experts Segment."

"…"

People didn't boo, or one should say that they didn't dare to boo. However, the excitement in their hearts certainly did die down a bit.

"As the battle arena's name suggests, a new era is upon us."

The Mandate Emperor took a deep breath as he closed his eyes before his eyes shot wide open.

"Youths of the great righteous lands, liberate yourself from the fetters of powers and boundaries and see yourself as a whole in protecting these lands. The future rests on your shoulders, and this is the time you reveal yourselves and make the world a better place for us to live in. Although chaos would ensue without a doubt as it shares the same destiny as yin and yang, we, as the righteous path people, must merely make sure that order stays for a longer time so that prosperity and security remain. Is everyone clear?"

"Yes!!!"

The crowd became active again, raising their hands to the skies as they cheered.

A black-robed woman smirked with amusement in the west corner of the hegemonic floor.

"Not gonna lie. He's making a good point..."

"If they stop being hypocritical about it and truly made the world a better place, I would participate in it too. However, you saw what happened to the Earth Dragon Queen before she proved herself to be a force to be reckoned with. In this kind of prosperity, the wealthy and powerful would always have the upper hand, just not explicitly and honestly as the wicked path does."

Another black-robed woman spoke, except she was hooded and wore a mask, which made her conspicuous in her own way, but amidst the millions of people, she was just like a speck of dust in the dusty area.

These two were none other than Mo Mingzhi and Schleya.

Many people wore masks to hide their identity, and as long as they didn't do something stupid, people wouldn't generally bother with them.

Nevertheless, as they stood side by side and listened to the speech of the Mandate Emperor, they commented while the others stayed silent, making their voices sound rather glaring to the immediate crowd. Cultivators had good ears, and unless someone was purposefully limiting the range of their voice, they could still hear it, and coincidentally hearing these two women talk made their eyes twitch.

Who were these two scrawny women? They dared to bring the word 'wicked path' here?

Even if they were the Emperor of Death's women, they couldn't be this daring, right?

Coincidentally, the Mandate Emperor also heard them speak, but he didn't bother with them as he knew they were similar to their man, doubting and demonizing the righteous path for its weaknesses and areas that it couldn't cover. He just lamented why couldn't they see the overall good that came from it.

"The state of the righteous world will most likely be decided by the people who win in these battles. As a direct manifestation, we Four Great Righteous Sects have decided to allow the three top winners of the three segments to become hegemons themselves, claiming the spots to fill the gap left by a few powers of the Nine Western Territories that faded to history."

The Mandate Emperor raised his hand and waved.

"With this, I hereby announce the start of the Nine Western Territories Young Expert Competition!"

"Long live the righteous path! Long live the Four Great Righteous Sects!!!'

The crowd chanted in an uproar, taking the atmosphere to a great high again. Quickly, powers began sending their list of youths to take part in the competition. Previously, there was a quota to the number of participants a power could send, and that hadn't changed, but the number of powers who could participate drastically increased, and the number of participants they could send was almost a third of the hegemons, which meant if a hegemonic power can send nine people, the other powers could send one or two youths representing their power.

As for vagrant cultivators, they had to join a power themselves to obtain a spot.

Many people had fought and even lost their lives to have their youths stand in these spots, so one could see how valuable it was.

The youths made their way as they walked down the red stairs of blood and glory. It signified the blood that they would shed her to make history.

However, it was both amusement and hope to see who and all would enter the top five to win!

Above the skies of the battle arena, two white-robed figures could be seen.

They were none other than Honorable Elder Julian Kruse and Honorable Elder Mihangel Evans. They both acted as arbitrators for the battle arena and the fights that were going to take place in it.

Almost everyone couldn't help but admire their stature and bearing, making them appear in a way that wouldn't be of any embarrassment to their two powers.

"Before the battles begin, we'll confirm that everyone competing in the Seventh Stage Young Expert Competition is under hundred years old amidst the watchful eyes of the crowd. This way, not only can all doubts be cleared, but the people can also appreciate how powerful our youths are at such a young age."

In the battle arena that stretched hundreds of kilometers, there were eight entrances as there were eight directions. At the entrance of each side was an Advanced Age Determining Formation. The formation trembled a bit, and each passing individual's brown color shone, making the crowd aware that they were all below a hundred years old.

Many youths with mighty, eager, indifferent, or carefree bearing entered the battle arena one by one, and the first thing they did was measure their opponents with scrutiny in their eyes. Some already had rivals. Some were alone and didn't bother to socialize, unlike a few others who quickly struck up a conversation, wanting to make alliances with their powers.

"Let's go, shall we?"

In the Alstreim Family's seating area, Sophie and Niera nodded to each other before they stepped out. They flew down above the red stairs hand-in-hand. Followed by them, Logan, Claire, and Nora stepped out, making it a total of five participants from the Alstreim Family.

No one said anything but smiled as they nodded their heads.

However, even Mo Mingzhi and Fiora joined them who were only at Law Manifestation Stage, causing the others to roll their eyes as they saw that these two troublemakers possessed wide grins on their faces as if they were going to make the participants miserable.

Overseeing them all was Evelynn. She saw if the others wanted to go before she cast a direct look at the two figures above the battle arena.

"Question. If I participate in one segment and win, am I still eligible to participate in the other two segments?"

"…"

Her melodious voice instantly started the millions of people as they came to a standstill. The atmosphere dropped to a pin-drop silence as they saw who it was. Some even gulped as they saw this veiled yet voluptuous beauty. Her stark purple eyes were so extremely sexy that they were completely charmed for a moment before they looked away, not daring to look at her.

Not only was she the Emperor of Death's first wife, but she was also the person who massacred the entire Poison Lord Villa in retaliation, wrongfully coming to be known as the Hex Demoness! Only her might and her title were widespread, and most people had already forgotten her real name.

Even Honorable Elder Mihangel Evans gulped before her gaze as he was well aware of what she was capable of.

Was she planning on participating in this competition? Isn't that a bit too overkill!?