99: The geniuses gathered together, the Fallen Saint Space

The atmosphere in Tianxuan City grew increasingly tense as the opening day of the Prodigy Grand Assembly approached. On the streets, powerful young figures were visible everywhere, some walking alone with an air of arrogance, others in groups, all with sharp eyes and high battle intent. An invisible scent of gunpowder filled the air, and friction and probing between major powers occurred frequently.

In a quiet room deep within the Pill Tower's compound, Xiao Chen slowly opened his eyes, his gaze sharp yet contained, his aura perfectly harmonious. After several days of meditative adjustment, he had brought his state to its peak; his Seven-Star Dou Zong cultivation was thoroughly stabilized, and his control over the "Heaven Opening Axe Intent" was even more refined. In his soul perception, he could clearly detect the most powerful young auras in the city, like lighthouses in the night, emitting heart-pounding fluctuations.

"The Young Hall Master of the Soul Hall, the Saint Son of the Heavenly Nether Sect, the Fairy of the Flower Sect, Ice Talisman of the Ice River Valley... and several others, hidden but no less powerful..." Xiao Chen murmured to himself, his battle intent quietly rising. This was the true battlefield for prodigies!

"Junior Brother Xiao, it's time to go," Han Yue's voice sounded from outside the door.

Xiao Chen pushed the door open to find Han Yue, Ye Chong, Lin Xiuyai, and more than ten other core disciples of the Pill Tower already prepared. Everyone looked solemn, their eyes filled with anticipation and gravity. After several days of secret communication, the Pill Tower had reached preliminary alliance intentions with several friendly powers (such as Starfall Pavilion, Sound Valley, etc.), agreeing to assist each other within the secret realm.

"Let's go." Xiao Chen nodded, and the group left the compound, merging into the vast flow of people heading towards the towering Prodigy Platform in the city center.

The Prodigy Platform was the iconic building of Tianxuan City, a thousand zhang tall, entirely constructed of white jade, inscribed with countless ancient runes, emitting a majestic aura that seemed to suppress heaven and earth. At this moment, the area around the high platform was a sea of people; representatives from various forces across the Central Plains and observers gathered here, their clamor shaking the heavens.

Above the high platform, four figures stood side by side, their auras as deep as the sea, representing the four giants of "One Hall, One Tower, Two Sects"! In the center was a figure shrouded in a faint black mist (the Vice Hall Master of the Soul Hall), an old man with an immortal aura (a Pill Tower giant), a stern-faced middle-aged man (the Sect Master of the Heavenly Nether Sect), and a peerlessly beautiful woman (the Sect Master of the Flower Sect). Their presence enveloped the entire square in an invisible pressure.

"Silence!" The Vice Hall Master of the Soul Hall spoke faintly, yet his voice clearly reached everyone's ears, and the entire venue instantly fell silent.

"The Prodigy Grand Assembly begins today! The rules are as follows: All participants will enter the newly discovered ancient secret realm – the Fallen Saint Space! Within the space, opportunities and dangers coexist, and killing is not prohibited! After ten days, the final ranking will be determined by the number and quality of the 'saint spirit marks' you obtain within it! The top ten will gain qualification to undergo baptism in the 'Sacred Spirit Pool' and will be eligible to comprehend the fragments of a Heaven-tier Dou Technique jointly presented by our four sects!"

Heaven-tier Dou Technique fragments! Sacred Spirit Pool baptism!

The crowd below immediately erupted in an uproar, and countless young geniuses' eyes burst forth with fervent light! Such rewards were enough to drive any force mad!

"Now, open the Space Gate!"

The four giants simultaneously made their moves, injecting their majestic Dou Qi and soul power into the formation at the center of the high platform! With a buzzing sound, a huge spatial vortex, emitting a chaotic aura, slowly formed!

"Enter the realm!"

With a command, the impatient geniuses from all sides soared into the sky like locusts, rushing into the spatial vortex one after another!

"Let's go too!" Xiao Chen shouted, and he, Han Yue, and the others transformed into streaks of light, disappearing into the vortex.

After a brief dizziness, Xiao Chen landed firmly, and the sight before him made his pupils contract slightly.

This was a desolate and silent world. The sky was an eternal dull yellow, without sun, moon, or stars. The earth was cracked, covered with bottomless ravines, and huge white bones and fragments of broken weapons were visible everywhere. The air was filled with a dense aura of death and an ancient, vicissitudes of life (ancient and vicissitude-filled) pressure. In the distance, some broken palace ruins were faintly visible, like ghosts under the dim yellow sky.

"Is this the Fallen Saint Space? Such a dense death law and... battle- Remains (residual) will!" Xiao Chen's soul perception spread out, and he immediately felt countless chaotic, violent, and unwilling fragments of will filling the air, as if he could hear the shouts of battle from an ancient battlefield.

"Everyone, be careful! The space here is unstable, and there are residual restrictions!" Han Yue reminded, holding a Starfall Pavilion positioning jade token, trying to contact their allied forces.

However, the spatial vortex's transmission seemed to be random, and their group was scattered. Beside Xiao Chen, only Han Yue, Ye Chong, and Lin Xiuyai remained.

"Let's find a place to regroup first, then explore," Xiao Chen said in a deep voice. With his strongest soul power, he took on the responsibility of scouting.

The four cautiously advanced across the wasteland. Not long after, intense energy collision sounds and sounds of battle came from ahead!

"Someone's fighting!" Ye Chong's eyes narrowed.

They concealed their auras and quietly approached. On a ruined square, two groups of people were engaged in a fierce battle! One side consisted of Ice River Valley disciples dressed in ice-blue clothing, while the other was made up of cold-blooded Styx Alliance assassins! Both sides were fighting fiercely over several saint spirit marks glowing with a pure white light, suspended beside a relatively well-preserved giant skeleton in the center of the square.

"saint spirit marks!" Han Yue exclaimed softly. The energy fluctuations emitted by the marks were pure and ancient, clearly of no low quality.

"When the snipe and clam fight, the fisherman profits," Lin Xiuyai's eyes flashed with cunning.

Xiao Chen, however, shook his head, his sharp gaze sweeping across the battlefield: "It's not that simple. Others are hidden nearby, their aura... it's the Soul Hall!"

As soon as his words fell, an unexpected change occurred!

"Hehehe... Thank you for helping us collect the marks!" With a sinister laugh, several dark figures shot out from the shadows, heading straight for the center of the battlefield! The leader's aura had actually reached Eight-star Dou Zong, and he was a Soul Hall Elder! His target was those saint spirit marks!

"Soul Hall scum!" The people from Ice River Valley and Styx Alliance were both shocked and enraged, but caught off guard, they instantly fell into a disadvantage.

"We can't let them get away with it!" Xiao Chen's eyes turned cold. The Soul Hall was his sworn enemy; how could he stand by and watch them grow stronger? Moreover, those saint spirit marks might help him comprehend the laws of this realm.

"Attack!"

Xiao Chen shouted, his figure shooting out like lightning! The Heaven Opening Axe Intent condensed on the edge of his palm, and he struck with a palm blade at the Eight-star Dou Zong from the Soul Hall! Han Yue's sword light was like the moon, sealing the left side, Ye Chong's vines entangled, and Lin Xiuyai's sound wave attacks interfered with the right side!

"Pill Tower juniors? You're courting death!" The Soul Hall Elder sneered, striking back with a palm, his death qi condensing into a giant ghostly claw!

"Boom!"

Axe intent collided with the ghostly claw, and energy waves surged! Xiao Chen's body swayed slightly, but he didn't retreat a single step! The Soul Hall Elder's expression, however, changed; he felt that the opponent's axe intent contained a will to destroy all things, actually splitting his death qi by several points!

"This kid is strange! Form a formation, kill him first!" The Soul Hall Elder roared, and the other Soul Hall assassins immediately abandoned the struggle for the marks, turning instead to besiege Xiao Chen and the three others!

The great battle instantly erupted! Xiao Chen fought the Eight-star Dou Zong Venerable Elder alone, relying on his Spirit Realm Soul and Heaven Opening Axe Intent, and although at a disadvantage, he defended flawlessly! Han Yue and the two others tangled with the other Soul Hall assassins, and for a time, it was difficult to determine a winner.

Meanwhile, the people from Ice River Valley and Styx Alliance, who were originally fighting, seeing the sudden change in situation, stopped attacking in unison and retreated to the side, watching with cold eyes, clearly intending to reap the benefits.

"Hmph, thinking of taking advantage?" Xiao Chen sneered inwardly, his offensive suddenly changing. He no longer fought head-on but, relying on the "Illusory Spirit Steps" and spatial distortion, his figure drifted, leading the battle circle towards the direction where the Ice River Valley and Styx Alliance people were!

"Not good!" The leading disciple of Ice River Valley's face changed, but it was too late to retreat!

The Soul Hall Elder, caught up in the thrill of the kill, unleashed an area-of-effect death qi shockwave that enveloped the people from Ice River Valley and Styx Alliance as well!

"Bastard!"

"Soul Hall, how dare you!"

Forced into the battle, the people from Ice River Valley and Styx Alliance were both shocked and enraged, and could only defend themselves. The scene instantly descended into chaos, a four-way melee!

Xiao Chen took advantage of the chaos, his soul power locking onto those saint spirit marks. A fragment of the heaven burning furnace was quietly unleashed, generating a faint suction force that instantly collected the two closest marks!

"Kid, how dare you!" The Soul Hall Elder noticed, furious beyond measure, abandoning everyone else and attacking Xiao Chen with full force!

"Senior Sister Han, Brother Ye, Brother Lin, retreat!" Xiao Chen fought and retreated, signaling.

Han Yue and the two others understood, feinted a move, shook off their opponents, and regrouped with Xiao Chen. The four joined forces to execute a combined attack, forcefully breaking through the encirclement and fleeing towards a distant group of ruined palaces!

The Soul Hall Elder wanted to pursue but was entangled by the Ice River Valley and Styx Alliance people who had reacted, and could only watch as Xiao Chen and the others disappeared into the ruins.

"Xiao Chen! My Soul Hall will surely kill you!" An angry roar echoed across the wasteland.

In the distance, Xiao Chen and the three others landed behind a broken wall, taking a moment to catch their breath.

"That was close!" Ye Chong said, still shaken, "We almost got surrounded."

"Junior Brother Xiao, that trick of yours, leading the trouble to others, was truly brilliant!" Lin Xiuyai laughed.

Han Yue also looked at Xiao Chen, her beautiful eyes sparkling with admiration. Facing an Eight-star Dou Zong and multiple forces, Xiao Chen remained calm in danger, not only snatching food from the tiger's mouth but also successfully escaping. This courage and adaptability made her feel inferior.

Xiao Chen smiled faintly and took out the two saint spirit marks. The marks felt warm and cool in his hand, and the pure energy and a trace of ancient battle will contained within them made his soul feel a burst of comfort.

"These marks are indeed extraordinary," he said, sensing the energy within them. "It seems the competition in this Fallen Saint Space is even more brutal than we imagined. From now on, we must be even more careful."

He looked up at the depths of this dull yellow, silent world, his gaze profound. There, it seemed, more powerful auras and opportunities awaited. And the Soul Hall's pursuit would never stop. The real challenge had only just begun.