When Chu Ying walked over, several Holy Son Candidates’ gazes flickered. He was once the top-ranked Holy Son Candidate, a man of unmatched prestige and former glory. The keyword being “once”—because now, Chu Ying was crippled! That much had been confirmed! Otherwise, who would dare provoke him like this?
“Who just said they’d challenge Chu Ying as soon as he appeared? Go on, let us witness it!” someone suddenly called out, addressing the 80th-ranked Holy Son Candidate.
“Which one of you was boasting about displaying your Cave Heaven Realm strength and humiliating Chu Ying? Go on, perform for us!”
Earlier, before Chu Ying had arrived, many Holy Son Candidates had been arrogantly spouting nonsense, full of themselves. As if with Chu Ying gone, they were now top contenders. Now, someone stirred the pot, hoping for chaos, eager to see how far the once-dominant top-ranked Holy Son Candidate had fallen.
However, most Holy Son Candidates only responded with low mutters to the provocation. When it came to actually stepping up to provoke Chu Ying, few had the guts.
“Go on, brother! We’ve got your back!” the 80th-ranked Holy Son Candidate suddenly felt a kick from behind, and before he could react, he was stumbling toward Chu Ying.
This scene drew the eyes of all the Holy Son and Saintess Candidates.
“Once a proud genius, now barely hanging on. Chu Ying, oh Chu Ying, even nobodies dare challenge you now,” Su Yichen said with his arms crossed, sneering in contempt.
“When the competition starts, I’m going to stomp that guy’s face into the dirt. I’ve always hated how arrogant he used to be,” Xiao Yan smirked, his tone dripping with mockery.
The Saintess Candidates each wore different expressions, but most looked forward to what would happen next.
Would there be a fierce battle?
Or would Chu Ying, the former top-ranked Holy Son Candidate, lower his head?
The 80th-ranked Holy Son Candidate was still thinking about what words to use to humiliate the now-disgraced Chu Ying. But suddenly, he felt a chilling, bone-piercing aura as Chu Ying stared at him coldly.
Instantly, he lost his nerve.
When he was just three steps away from Chu Ying, he stopped abruptly and blurted out, “Senior Brother Chu Ying, you’re here too?”
???
The other Holy Son Candidates were stunned.
Weren’t you going to challenge Chu Ying?
Why the hell are you calling him Senior Brother Chu?
The Saintess Candidates’ expressions turned strange. When they looked at the 80th-ranked Holy Son Candidate, a bit of disdain filled their eyes.
That 80th-ranked Holy Son Candidate realized what he had just said and turned beet red on the spot! Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing?!
Back when Chu Ying was top-ranked, it was natural for him to call him Senior Brother. But the problem was… Chu Ying was crippled now! What the hell was he doing still calling him that?!
The 80th-ranked Holy Son Candidate was very annoyed by Chu Ying’s calm demeanor. He was already ruined, with no future to speak of, yet still put on this detached, above-it-all act?
He made up his mind—once the duels began, he would be the first to challenge Chu Ying and stomp him down!
Putting on a calm smile, he said, “Hope Senior Brother Chu can earn a good ranking.”
Chu Ying nodded and said, “You too. Try not to rank last again.”
“Pfft!”
Hearing this exchange, many Holy Son Candidates felt deeply humiliated. That 80th-ranked guy had just disgraced them all! Yet some of the Saintess Candidates couldn’t help but laugh.
The 80th-ranked Holy Son Candidate’s face turned as grim as if he’d eaten dung.
“Chu Ying, you’re already crippled, and you still dare come here? Aren’t you afraid of ending up with nothing—reputation and status both lost?” Su Yichen mocked coldly.
“Exactly! If you hadn’t come, you could still keep your title as former top-ranked Holy Son Candidate. But now that you’re here, you’ll only be remembered as the lowest ranked one,” Xiao Yan sneered.
Chu Ying’s expression remained calm, as if he didn’t even see them. To him, they were nothing more than clowns.
“Chu Ying, I once thought of you as a worthy opponent. But now it’s clear—on the path of martial cultivation, there’s only me. You’ve already been eliminated,” Ye Junfan, the Archaic Sacred Body, suddenly fixed his gaze on Chu Ying.
“Just as the blossom fades and the mirror shatters, nothing lasts forever. If you hadn’t come, you might have preserved your former glory,” Ye Junfan even sighed, as if genuinely lamenting the loss of a great rival.
An opponent was also a whetstone, a grindstone that made him sharper. But unfortunately, that whetstone had broken itself.
Chu Ying smiled. “If I didn’t come, wouldn’t that be exactly what you wanted?”
Ye Junfan’s expression remained unchanged.
He knew Chu Ying was referring to Yao Ruoxi.
In terms of potential, he possessed the Archaic Sacred Body. Once he broke his shackles, his potential would be limitless. So why should Chu Ying even be compared to him?
In terms of strength, his current power already surpassed Chu Ying’s!
With the Archaic Sacred Body, he was unrivaled among peers. He had reached the 9th stage Spirit Sea Realm, and within that realm, he was invincible!
Not to mention, his battle power had already reached the one-restriction, nine-star level. No one could match him. Even a 1st stage Cave Heaven Realm cultivator would be no match for him!
That was his confidence. That was his pride.
Fifteen minutes quickly passed.
All Holy Son and Saintess Candidates had arrived—except for Saintess Yao Ruoxi.
But whether she came or not didn’t matter. She was a Saintess. She didn’t need to participate in this competition—unless someone challenged her.
“I am Wu Lin from Martial Peak. I will be hosting this Holy Son and Saintess Candidate competition.”
“You all know the rules. Other than personal weapons, no external tools or items may be used.”
Wu Lin looked around, his gaze pausing a moment on Ye Junfan, whose aura was like a blazing sun. He nodded silently.
“Now, we will conduct the battle power level test.”
“Those who do not meet the standard will have their Holy Son Candidate title revoked.”
Suddenly, on the wide arena platform, a stone stele appeared, with two bold characters carved on it: Martial Dao!
Martial Peak. Martial Dao Stele!
It was specially made to test disciples’ battle power levels!
At this moment, disciples all over the Supreme Profound Holy Land, through formation projections, saw the Martial Dao Stele and couldn’t help but exclaim.
“It’s the Martial Dao Stele again!”
“To join Martial Peak, you need to strike a one-restriction battle power on the Martial Dao Stele!”
“And to qualify as a Holy Son Candidate, you must surpass one-restriction battle power!”
Many disciples were filled with awe. Seeing the Martial Dao Stele, they finally understood the gap between them and the Holy Son Candidates.
Others could fight beyond their level, even display nine-star power in the same realm. But they couldn’t. That was the difference!
“Hmph! I’ll go first!” the 80th-ranked Holy Son Candidate snorted coldly, seemingly trying to redeem himself from earlier shame.
He leapt onto the platform and unleashed his full strength at the Martial Dao Stele.
A string of star-like imprints lit up on the stele—finally stopping at ten stars.
Battle power level: One-Restriction One-Star!
Wu Lin glanced at it and said, “One-restriction, one-star. Do you want to test again?”
“Of course! I haven’t even used a martial technique yet!”
The 80th-ranked Holy Son Candidate smiled proudly. Even with a casual punch, he achieved one-restriction, one-star battle power. That was what made him a Holy Son Candidate!
Even if he ranked last, he was still far above ordinary disciples.