Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Dragon City.

In some courtyard, two people sat across from each other.

On top of the square wooden temple in the middle, there was a complete tea set. As boiling spirit water was poured in, white mist ascended and the fragrance of tea wafted out.

"Please."

On the left was a man who seemed to be around 30 years of age. He had a calm and handsome appearance. As he smiled and spoke, he gave off a warm and friendly atmosphere.

The cultivator across from him was completely covered by black robes. His voice was harsh and grating as he asked, "Just who are you?"

This was a question he had thought about for a long time but had never figured out the answer to. That secret should have been thoroughly destroyed with that saber many years ago.

But this other party clearly knew about it.

He knew that this person would only dare to appear in front of him if he had full confidence in his safety. If it weren't for that, he would have struck this person down on the spot.

The middle-aged cultivator pointed his finger at the tea cup. "This spirit tea is precious and was nurtured and bred from the heavens and earth. Fellow daoist hasn't disappointed so far."

The black-robed figure was silent for a long time. Then, he picked up a tea cup, and disregarding how boiling hot it was, drank it all down in one gulp. "The tea has been drunk. Just who are you and what do you want? Tell me honestly!"

Moments later, the black-robed figure rushed out of the courtyard. He turned and glanced backwards, hatred in his eyes. Then, he huffed away.

At the table, the middle-aged cultivator started to soak the tea leaves a second time. Only like this could one fully appreciate the charm of the spirit tea in its entirety.

"Nothing but a cow chewing peonies, completely oblivious to their worth."

The man gently sighed. He slowly drank the tea and placed the cup back on the table. Slowly, starting from the tea cup he had held, everything began to disintegrate to dust, from the tea set and then the table.

These things had been contaminated by the aura of a mediocre person; how could he ever use them again? He stood up with his hands held behind his back. There was a lofty expression on his face as he happily smiled.

Winning the bet was extremely easy to begin with, so why go through so much trouble? The Senators were far too cautious.

Now, he had already made the first move and silently flourished his sword in a quiet place. He wondered whether or not this Mister Ning Qin would be able to resolve this matter safely!

…

As noon approached, Qin Yu brought Yun Die out of the laboratory. Another cultivator led them to the main hall of the temporary station area.

The Hidden Fog Sect people were already waiting here. When they saw him arrive, they all stood up and bowed.

"Greetings, Mister Ning Qin!"

Qin Yu nodded, "Shall we begin?"

As his voice fell, the earth beneath him started to tremble.

It was a low and hollow rumbling, like thunder from beyond the horizon wildly attacking their eardrums.

The Hidden Fog Sect Master drew in a deep breath, "The arena has opened!"

At this time, if someone were standing above the clouds and looking down at the sprawling Dragon City, they would discover that the edges of a massive square in the city were packed with cultivators looking inside with shock and amazement.

Within the giant square, tiles began to rise up, forming giant arches that curved outwards and seemed to prop up the heavens.

The ground in the center sank down, becoming an immense platform. The surrounding terrain started to rise up in rings, forming a circle.

In each ring, the tiles had transformed into chairs. The sizes of these chairs were titanic, so large that it was hard to imagine just how gigantic one needed to be to fit properly into these stone seats.

And in front of these stone chairs were seven round tables supported by stones. At the front of each table were raised stone seats that allowed one to overlook the entire arena…this was where the seven great sects were to arrive.

In a short several breaths of time, an astonishingly large-scale arena that emitted an ancient aura had risen up from the depths of the earth, appearing before everyone present.

Outside the arena, the cultivators who saw this all flushed red, shaking with excitement.

This was a sight akin to a miracle!

And this was only the opening salvo of today's events. Dragon City's arena had opened and the seven great sects were going to enter the arena. They just had no idea who was going to win today's first collision.

"I'm favoring the Witchcraft Sect. Although they were suppressed by the Hidden Fog Sect when they entered the city, they must be hiding their strength."

"That's right. The Witchcraft Sect's spirit beast is powerful and brutal, and more importantly it is bloodthirsty and fearless. It possesses all sorts of strange and inexplicable methods that are difficult to deal with."

"Compared to the rest of you, I'm looking forward to Radiance Temple! I heard that several years ago in some ancient ruins, they managed to catch a heaven-shockingly strong great monster, and they managed to tame it into becoming their sect's spirit beast. They are sure to win this Beast King War!"

"Hehe, you should all wash your eyes and carefully choose which side you wish to support. When the Beast King War is over, the victor's camp will obtain a collective gift from Dragon City."

"Hahaha! Of course, otherwise why would I bring my disciples from a trillion miles away to watch this battle!"

A tall cultivator whose body was like an iron tower and whose figure resembled a mountain said, "The arena has just opened and the seven sects will enter using their own methods. It's not too late to look at their performance first before coming to a decision."

As his voice fell, a cruel aura shot into the skies from the southwest area of Dragon City. Suddenly, a black fog wildly gathered, instantly turning into a heaven-obstructing cloud that darkened that part of the world.

Within this black cloud, giant shadows tumbled about. They were merged together with the clouds so that it was impossible to see their appearance. But from the way the clouds tumbled about, one could see that whatever it was, it was mind-bogglingly large.

A pair of red eyes appeared in the black fog, like seas of blood that were looking down at the world with disdain. There was a loud roar that swept out, leaving ripples in its wake and causing the air to surge about in wild waves.

"It's the Witchcraft Sect!"

"That's right, they were hiding their strength. The strength of that spirit beast leaves my heart shaking!"

"How terrifying!"

Then, from the western side of Dragon City, a resonant sword cry soared into the havens. A trillion sword lights shot forth, forming a straight beam of light.

Within this light beam, a single eye appeared. It was silver-white in color without any impurities. As the eye looked down, one could feel the annihilating intent contained within it, as if it could rip apart anything in the world!

"Limitless Sword Sect!"

"I heard that there is a strange beast in their sect. This beast followed the last master of the Limitless Sword Sect to cultivate for over 5000 years. It has managed to open up its spiritual wisdom and form its own sword intent, and is even known by some to be the Vice Leader of the sect. It is said to be able to open its eyes and cause the world to collapse!"

"That is clearly the strange beast that formed its own sword intent!"

"I always believed my family's sword arts to be wise and profound, but I don't even dare to look at that single eye. The seething sword intent contained within it is simply too dreadful!"

A cry rang out. It was coldly arrogant and domineering, containing an aura that suppressed all sides. From the northeast end of Dragon City, motes of starlight appeared in the skies and started to fall down like feathers.

The star light gathered in midair, turning into a snow white bird with a laurel crown on its head. It unfurled its wings, revealing its magnificent demeanor.

"That's where Radiance Temple is from!"

"That must be the great monster that they were rumored to have subdued several years ago. I never expected it to be a phoenix luan!"

"That's not a pure phoenix luan, but one that has undergone some sort of variation mutation, giving it the ability to interact with the stars."

"To quicken a change in the heavens, this is a scene that only a top spirit beast could create!"

Before entering the arena, the competition between the seven sects had already begun.

By displaying their strength, they wanted to attract the attention of the cultivators in the city to join their side.

Because the number of cultivators one attracted was also one of the keys to winning first place!

A powerful aura erupted from the Hidden Fog Sect's station. As sounds of cheers and acclaim rose up, the cultivators from the Hidden Fog Sect flushed red and their heart rates started to accelerate!

Eyes began to look over.

The Hidden Fog Sect Master took a deep breath. He shouted, "Go!"

He looked at Qin Yu. Seeing Qin Yu nod a little, he no longer hesitated and stepped out.

Behind him, Qin Yu, Yun Die, and the other people of the Hidden Fog Sect followed.

Pa -

Pa -

Their footsteps gradually became one. A fearless and imposing aura was released from their bodies, gathering together and becoming some sort of signal to charge forward.

Roar -

With a deep cry, the dark star ice serpent's aura erupted, condensing into its massive figure in the skies above the Hidden Fog Sect's station. It was shaped like a flood dragon with a sharp pair of claws beneath its abdomen. Between its eyes, there was a single silver-white horn that thrust into the skies like a spear.

Silver-white textures appeared in its eyes. Its pupils were cold and indifferent, possessing the potential of a king!

As it breathed, light white fog circulated around its nose and mouth. The temperature in the world started to drastically fall, condensing into countless pieces of ice that danced in the air around it.

"It's the Hidden Fog Sect!"

"That's the one that crushed the Witchcraft Sect's spirit beast outside the city gates that day!"

"That spirit beast is called the dark star ice serpent. Just as the rumors say, its strength is horrifying! Look at the pieces of ice surrounding its body. With just a single shard, you can freeze an entire river!"

"It's a pity that the Hidden Fog Sect wasn't able to maintain their calm. They fell for the Witchcraft Sect's provocation and exposed their cards ahead of time. Now everyone knows that the dark star ice serpent favors ice-attribute supernatural powers. I fear everyone is already prepared for it by now."

"That's true. Otherwise the dark star ice serpent might have had the chance to contend for the position of leader!"

With all the cultivators and influences that had gathered at Dragon City, many of them had vast fields of experience and knowledge. They naturally realized what was so amazing about the dark star ice serpent.

This was why they felt this situation was so unfortunate. For a spirit beast whose attributes were known, as long as the enemy party used targeted means to deal with this specific attribute, it would be enough to nullify most of the threat coming from it.

Many people sneered inwardly. Hidden Fog Sect…humph, how stupid of them!