Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Dragon City, arena.

There was still a while before the finals would begin. Almost all the cultivators of Dragon City had gathered here, waiting for the competition to start.

"This year's Beast King War has been completely unpredictable. The Hidden Fog Sect had a chance to become the leader, but they were ruined by the Blue Origin Sect."

A cultivator commented. His tone seemed to be regretful, but his eyes were filled with joy.

The reason was simple. He was a supporter of Radiance Temple. Now that the Hidden Fog Sect had left the stage ahead of time, that meant Radiance Temple had the highest chance of being the leader.

As long as Radiance Temple won, he would receive the present from Dragon City.

One's own benefits always came first!

"The Blue Origin Sect is usually on good terms with everyone and rarely does anything to offend others, but to think they would actually use such a suicidal attack, there must be something behind all of this."

"Moreover, the Blue Origin Sect has remained silent afterwards. And so what if some secret is found out? The result cannot be changed. The Hidden Fog Sect is in deep trouble this time."

"What use is there in talking about a sect that has basically been kicked out already? We should talk about who we think will be the last one left standing."

"It has to be Radiance Temple!"

"How ridiculous. Moonkeep Tower's spirit beast can interfere with the connection of yin and ying. They will definitely be the leader!"

"Haha, I think that the Limitless Sword Sect's spirit lizard is the strongest!"

The three cultivators soon fell into an argument, with the initial topic being quickly forgotten. Losers that had been left behind didn't have the qualifications to be focused on.

The finals had not yet started, but in everyone's eyes, the Hidden Fog Sect had already left!

Suddenly, a sword's cry rang out. It seemed to come from the distance but also seemed to echo right beside one's ears. Everyone felt hairs rise up on their arms and a cold chill gush out from their hearts. The noisy and rowdy arena crowd quickly fell silent.

Limitless Sword Sect!

Sharp, cold, and stern, it was like even if thousands of mountains and rivers were overlapped upon each other they could still be cut through.

Famous sword cultivators walked forward silently, one after another. Invisible sword intent was gathered around their bodies, transformed into a boundless raging current.

It came slowly, but it carried with it an irresistible power. A power that would destroy all obstacles in its path until final victory was achieved.

At this time, everyone could feel the Limitless Sword Sect's faith in winning.

Shua -

There was a flash in the void. The sect's spirit lizard, a beast that had cultivated for over 5000 years, appeared with a sword in hand. Its expression was faint and cold, like a profound pool without waves.

Within this tranquility, there was pride and confidence. It would become the leader of this Beast King War, stamping all opponents beneath its feet!

Cool moonlight sprinkled down from above, awakening everyone who had been caught up in the sword intent. They suddenly looked up and discovered that another moon had appeared in the skies.

The light faintly dimmed, like a light spring rain. They seemed to have their own intelligence as they gathered together, coalescing into the moon praying beast with the crescent moon between its eyebrows.

As this happened, Moonkeep Tower arrived. Opposed to the vast and mighty momentum of the Limitless Sword Sect, they were quiet and reserved, fully confident in themselves.

As if saying displays of strength didn't matter…because in the end, they would be the victors.

Their auras mixed together. The eyes of the sword wielding spirit lizard and moon praying beast clashed in midair. Without exchanging a single move, fighting intent flooded every inch of the arena.

The Moonkeep Tower Master lifted a hand. The moon praying beast mumbled beneath its lips and lowered its head docilely, allowing her slender fingers to stroke its soft fur.

"Sword Master, even if we must fight, let us do so in the arena. Calm down so that we don't waste each other's energy right now."

The Sword Sect Master nodded, "What the Tower Master says is true. Spirit lizard, there is no need to be so impatient. There is time for you to show off your skills today."

The spirit lizard lowered its sword. It closed its eyes peacefully and calmed its mind. It was like a peerless swordsman, ready to shock the world with the drawing of its blade.

Before entering the arena, the performance of the Limitless Sword Sect and Moonkeep Tower had stimulated the crowd, leaving them awed and shocked at the same time, as well as excited for what was to come.

But today, the most essential side had yet to come…even the supporters of the Limitless Sword Sect and Moonkeep Tower had no choice but to admit that in terms of strength, Radiance Temple's phoenix luan was incomparably powerful and absolutely had the qualifications to compete for the title of Beast King.

Now that the Limitless Sword Sect and Moonkeep Tower had arrived, Radiance Temple wouldn't remain silent for any longer.

The general trend of the battle would be determined before all parties even entered the arena. They wouldn't allow the Limitless Sword Sect and Moonkeep Tower to hold the advantage in this.

"They've come!" There were sudden shouts from the crowd.

A gust of wind blew in, rolling up a storm of dust and lifting everyone's robes.

At the end of everyone's line of sight, the beautiful and graceful female cultivators of Radiance Temple appeared. They didn't have the overbearing confidence of the Limitless Sword Sect nor the solemn silence of Moonkeep Tower, yet when they entered the stage their 'beauty' naturally attracted the most attention.

Many cultivators were left dazzled and entranced as their eyes fell on the bodies of Radiance Temple's cultivators. Because of their cultivation methods, every action and movement they made had the ability to affect the hearts of others.

At the front, the Radiance Temple Master Bei Qing was calm. Her pearl-like yes swept across the audience. "My apologies. We arrived late because we were delayed by some matters."

Not too long ago, there had been an argument within Radiance Temple. Afterwards they finally made up their mind with a slim majority passing the vote.

Bei Qing knew that her actions would leave some Elders unhappy, but as long as she could win and Radiance Temple became leader, all of the accusations and anger would vanish into thin air.

The Sword Sect Master's eyes flashed. "Temple Master Bei Qing, since Radiance Temple has come, where is the phoenix luan?"

The seven great sects all had a fragile relationship with the Shadow Clan, so it was natural for each of them to have made arrangements within each other's camps. Although it was difficult to find out what happened at the Time Altar a few days ago due to the Shadow Clan's silence, there was still some news they could find out.

Radiance Temple's phoenix luan had been borrowing the power of the Time Mystic Realm to complete a breakthrough, but it had been kicked out by the Hidden Fog Sect ahead of time. Even an idiot could tell that this was a bad thing.

If something happened to the phoenix luan, the leader of today's struggle would either by the Limitless Sword Sect or Moonkeep Tower.

The Moonkeep Tower Master had a serene expression as if she didn't care about this at all. It seemed she had enough confidence that whether Radiance Temple's phoenix luan had suffered an accident or not, it still wouldn't be able to compete with the moon praying beast.

Bei Qing looked over. She said, "After entering the arena, the phoenix luan will make an appearance."

The Sword Sect Master furrowed his eyebrows. Could there be flaws in the information? Radiance Temple's actions didn't seem to indicate that there was a problem with the phoenix luan. This was different from what he thought. His lips moved as he sent a sound transmission to the spirit lizard. It slowly nodded, its expression calm.

After cultivating the sword for 5000 years, it had already reached large success of its sword heart. It was difficult for any news to shake its mind.

The Sword Sect Master relaxed. He said, "Since that's so, let's enter the arena!"

"Wait a moment." Bei Qing softly said.

The Sword Sect Master's complexion slightly changed.

The Moonkeep Tower Master said, "Of course. Waiting is no problem."

When the three spoke, they didn't conceal their voices. Everyone in the crowd could hear them.

The crowds all paused, their thoughts confused. The three sides of today's battle had already arrived, so what were they all waiting for?

But as their minds raced, some of them soon regained their bearings. Their eyes subconsciously widened with shock and disbelief.

Hidden Fog Sect!

How was this possible? On that day, when the Blue Origin Sect's blue ape challenged the dark star ice serpent, everyone had personally witnessed how brutal and tragic that scene had been. The dark star ice serpent was already lucky enough that it was able to survive with its life intact. Could it be that it had recovered in a short few days and was able to participate in the finals today?

What sort of joke was this!?

Or had the Hidden Fog Sect decided to change to a different spirit beast to participate with in today's finals? This made more sense, but if they were to do this then they were only bringing trouble upon themselves.

Within the silence, there was the sound of footsteps. When the crowd first saw cultivators from the Hidden Fog Sect appear they all gasped out loud.

Then, they all cried out in alarm.

The Hidden Fog Sect Master Hu Fu at the front was like a completely different person from before. He had an incomparably old aura around him, one filled with decay, as if he would die off at any moment.

Just what had happened for a great figure like this, a solemn Sect Master who ruled a region of the Eastern Plains, to end up like this in a short few days?

"Everyone has arrived. Then let's enter the arena." Hu Fu's voice was hoarse and weak. Just speaking these words seemed to use up an enormous amount of energy. His complexion paled further as beads of sweat formed on his forehead.

He turned and cupped his hands together, "Mister, with my condition I cannot handle today's matters. I hope you can manage the finals today."

Hu Fu hadn't discussed this decision with everyone. But after the Hidden Fog Sect people were startled, they all remained silent.

Beneath his black robes, Qin Yu thought for a moment and nodded, "Alright."

The finals concerned Yun Die's destiny. It might as well be personally managed by him.

Hu Fu was overjoyed. "Thank you, mister!"

A disciple supported his arm and brought him to the side. As he fell back, Qin Yu's position was immediately highlighted.

Countless eyes gathered on him.

The mysterious black-robed cultivator from the Hidden Fog Sect had already drawn everyone's attention. It seemed he would be standing in on behalf of the Hidden Fog Sect today.

As everyone thought back to the first day of the competition and how ten rings had been broken, they were all left bewildered. Could the Hidden Fog Sect still be hiding some cards?

Bei Qing looked deeply at Qin Yu and forcefully restrained the anger and hatred in her heart. This person was of mysterious origin and seemed to have great powers. It was best not to be enemies with such a character. But if there was a chance in the future, she didn't mind sending this black-robed person into the depths of hell!

"Since everyone is here, let's not waste any more time." As the Radiance Temple Master finished speaking, the Radiance Temple cultivators all soared into the arena.

"They can win!"

"Radiance Temple will be victorious!"

Their supporters cheered on from the stands.

The Sword Sect Master looked at the incomparably old Hu Fu and then the black-robed Qin Yu. A swift and fierce light flashed in his eyes.

Whoosh -

Whoosh -

Sword energy shot out like a bolt of lightning, falling on the Limitless Sword Sect's platform.

Qin Yu could feel eyes on him. He furrowed his eyebrows and met the gaze of the Moonkeep Tower Master. The other party had a calm expression. She bowed and said, "Since the Hidden Fog Sect was the last to arrive, then you might as well be the last to enter."

The moon praying beast roared out loud. The moonlight that sprinkled down lifted up everyone from Moonkeep Tower and flew them into the arena. This caused everyone to cry out in alarm once more. It seemed that the moon praying beast's control over the power of moonlight was stronger than anyone had expected.

"Moonkeep Tower will be the leader!"

"Haha, Dragon City's present is ours already!"

Their supporters laughed out loud.

Qin Yu looked away from the Moonkeep Tower Master. He didn't know if it was an illusion or not, but he thought he felt some pity in those eyes of hers.

He turned and glanced at Hu Fu. Hu Fu was tense and there was hatred in his eyes. When he sensed Qin Yu looking at him, he immediately restrained his mood. But, this change had already been seen by Qin Yu.

It seemed that there were other issues in play between the Hidden Fog Sect and Moonkeep Tower.

Qin Yu's thoughts turned before he suppressed them. He didn't care much if there were problems between these two sects. He lightly said, "Let's go."