289: The game begins

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Amidst the fervent gazes of the crowd, the loud sound of gongs and drums rang out, announcing the commencement of the grand ceremony.

Accompanying the drumbeats, a massive martial arts arena rose from the ground in the center of the city, serving as the venue for this martial arts competition to select a spouse!

Around the arena, colorful banners fluttered in the wind, each adorned with different patterns. Some depicted auspicious dragons and phoenixes, while others showcased various divine weapons, appearing quite magnificent.

Around the arena, various weapon racks were set up, neatly displaying all kinds of weapons: swords, spears, halberds, hammers, shields, and staffs, all readily available. Even various obscure hidden weapons were present!

These were all weapons crafted by the masters of Profound Weapon Pavilion!

This martial arts competition to select a spouse, on the surface, was to help Chu Lingxin, the eldest young lady of Profound Weapon Pavilion, choose a husband. At the same time, it also served to promote the prestige of Profound Weapon Pavilion and increase its influence.

As the arena appeared, the atmosphere of the grand competition instantly reached its climax, with deafening shouts that even drowned out the booming drums!

“Everyone, quiet down!”

A majestic voice rang out, and then a middle-aged man slowly appeared in the very center of the arena.

And the aura of this middle-aged man was, surprisingly, at the mid-Emperor Realm!

“This venerable one is Wu Zun, an Elder of Profound Weapon Pavilion, and also the referee for this grand competition!”

As his words fell, the crowd instantly quieted down.

The appearance of the referee also signified that this martial arts competition to select a spouse was about to begin…

Mu Wuchen was slightly startled as he looked at the man who suddenly appeared.

This person…

He seemed to be the one behind the scenes who had shown him goodwill and given him a token after he first arrived in Qianyan Immortal Domain and stayed at an inn for a million immortal crystals.

Speaking of which, his smooth entry into the Secret Realm of Profound Weapon Pavilion was inseparable from this person's help…

Although it wouldn't have been difficult for him to enter the Secret Realm with his own strength, it would have certainly involved some trouble.

Just then, Wu Zun on the arena continued to speak.

“After several rounds of selection in this martial arts competition to select a spouse, a total of two thousand five hundred and sixty prodigies have been chosen!”

“All participants will be randomly divided into groups of ten. The ten will all enter the arena to compete. Those who concede or fall off the arena will be considered defeated, and the final victor will enter the ultimate elimination round!”

Mu Wuchen nodded slightly upon hearing the rules.

Although this preliminary selection had already gone through multiple rounds of screening, there were still over two thousand people remaining. With only one arena, it was naturally impossible for everyone to compete in one-on-one matches…

And having ten people on the arena simultaneously could both save time and directly show the combat power gap between the various prodigies!

The final two hundred and fifty-six people who stood out should be the ultimate candidates…

Such an arrangement also added more suspense and uncertainty to this competition…

Unless there was someone among these ten who possessed the absolute strength to take on nine people alone, if they showed overly powerful strength, they might very likely be ganged up on by others!

After all, everyone on the same arena was a competitor, and no one wanted one person to dominate.

At that point, even if one's strength was the strongest among the ten, they might still be overturned.

This arrangement required not only strength but also strategy and temperament.

“First group, Lin Feng, Coldly Arrogant, Deng Taiyi… Ji Tai Mei, step onto the stage!”

On the arena, as Wu Zun called out each name, the atmosphere instantly reached its peak!

“That’s Lin Feng, the number one genius of the Lin family from Subei City! He actually came!”

“What’s the Subei Lin family? That Coldly Arrogant is the direct disciple of the Cold Ice Sect Master, and he is very likely to be the next Cold Ice Sect Master in the future!”

“Damn it, you guys are talking about minor characters. Haven’t you heard of Deng Taiyi? He is the Divine Son of Taiyi Divine Hall! It’s said that several years ago, he already came to Profound Weapon Pavilion to propose marriage. I didn’t expect him to come again this time. I think he’s determined to win this time!”

Every time Wu Zun on the stage spoke a name, the crowd below would stir.

The reason was simple: those who could pass the selection of Profound Weapon Pavilion were all exceptionally talented prodigies.

Most of these geniuses were already well-known and had achieved fame for a long time…

After all, most top powerhouses achieved fame at a young age and dominated their way through; stories of waste becoming strong were ultimately only a small part.

As Wu Zun’s voice fell, ten figures slowly walked onto the arena. These figures wore different attire, and the auras they displayed were completely distinct.

But without exception, all of them had solemn expressions, looking around cautiously, daring not to be careless. However, their eyes were all filled with fighting spirit…

Mu Wuchen looked at the prodigies on stage and nodded slightly.

The gap between the Ancient Domain’s Heavenly God Domain and Qianyan Immortal Domain was evident at this moment.

Among the ten people on stage, the weakest had reached the Profound Infant Realm, most were at the Celestial Human Realm, and there were even two young individuals at the Heavenly King Realm!

In the Xuan Domain or Ancient Domain, among the younger generation, the Profound Infant was already considered top-tier. As for the Celestial Human, they could already become an Elder of a sect…

As for the Ancient Domain's number one prodigy, Beichen Lintian, when he first met her, she was only at the late Celestial Human Realm, though her combat power at the time was already on par with a Heavenly King…

The reason for this gap was not a difference in talent or comprehension, but rather a difference in cultivation resources.

If the prodigies of the Ancient Domain and Heavenly God Domain had the same cultivation environment as Qianyan Immortal Domain, they might not be inferior at the same age.

For example, Beichen Lintian, after only a few years of cultivation in his System World, had already broken through from the late Celestial Human Realm to the mid-Heavenly King Realm.

This was even under the premise that she deliberately stabilized her realm.

If she had solely pursued realm breakthroughs, she might have advanced even faster.

After all, the cultivation speed in the System World, which was dozens or even hundreds of times faster, was no joke!

And reaching the Emperor Realm was an even greater hurdle.

Heavenly King powerhouses, in most cases, were already the limit of what ordinary cultivators could achieve.

As for the Emperor Realm, it was no longer something that could be changed by quantitative accumulation alone.

Breakthroughs to the Emperor Realm and Supreme Realm, in addition to the quantitative accumulation of absorbing spiritual energy, also required enlightenment.

If one's comprehension was insufficient and talent lacking, even if they absorbed countless spiritual energies throughout their entire life, they would likely find it difficult to break through.

This was also why many Emperor Realm and Supreme Realm powerhouses could get stuck in a single realm for thousands or even tens of thousands of years if they weren't careful.

When the little fox broke through to the Emperor Realm and achieved the Supreme Realm, even with her talent and comprehension as a Nine-tailed Celestial Spirit Fox at that time, it still took her over ten years…

On the arena, to ensure fairness in the competition, each participant was not allowed to use their own weapons but had to use the weapons provided by Profound Weapon Pavilion around them.

At this moment, the ten people on the arena had all chosen their weapons…