Volume 1, Chapter 9: The Divine Martial Tournament

"Second stage of Spirit Realm, let's try gathering power again!"

The waterfall, hanging like a thread in the distance, crashed against the rocks, kicking up a mist of cool water. Si Nanxi stood firm upon a boulder at the junction of the waterfall and the lake. Bare-chested, he unleashed his spiritual power, his body glowing with a faint blue light.

With a thunderous roar, Si Nanxi collapsed into the pool. A crystal-clear Jade Spirit Stone slipped from his hand, tumbled a few times, and floated on the surface.

"How was it? I used every ounce of strength I had. What’s my limit?"

Si Nanxi panted heavily, struggling to turn his head. A sturdy, stout man blocked his view entirely.

"Don't block me, don't block me, let me see."

"Third stage of Spirit Realm, Spirit Division Stage!"

"Did I make it?"

Si Nanxi pushed against the boulder, struggling to stand up. The stout man raised his hand, and with a suction motion, the Spirit Stone rose from the water, splashing a ring of droplets as it returned to his palm.

"Look at this spirit stone. If the tester is in the Spirit Realm, it turns gray after absorbing spiritual power. The higher the realm, the deeper the color. With this shade, there’s no doubt—you’ve hit the third stage."

After a few cycles of deep breathing to steady his core, Si Nanxi leaned on the man’s arm and rose shakily.

"Why are you so drained from just one test? Did you sneak off to a brothel recently and lose your innocence?"

"Go to hell. You know as well as I do that spiritual power forced by medicine is hard to control. At least I’ve mastered the basic cultivation techniques, so I can finally maintain the second stage steadily without relying on pills."

"Heh heh, just joking, just joking. Young Master, let’s go! Old Wu will treat you to something good to build your strength back up."

With that, Old Wu dove into the lake with a powerful leap. Si Nanxi smiled, suddenly reminded of the past, and dove in after him.

In the memories of this body, back when he was very young, Old Wu wasn't such a greasy, stout man. Every morning, when Si Nanxi would sneak out, Old Wu would teach him how to dive. When they were tired, they would compete to see who could catch the fattest, freshest fish.

Swimming freely in the lake, Si Nanxi felt as if he had returned to the childhood of another world—happy and carefree every day. When he grew tired or ran out of breath, he would return to the shore to find Old Wu already gutting fish and starting a fire.

Si Nanxi rested on the bank for a moment while Old Wu skillfully built a campfire and dried his clothes. Si Nanxi tossed out two large grass carp he had caught at the bottom of the lake.

"How about that? These two are big enough, right? Kill one, and take the other back for little Liuli."

"Not bad, not bad. To find the largest fish in the entire lake in less than half a cup of tea’s time—you’ve certainly made progress."

"I didn't understand before. I only knew how to look with my eyes and feel with my hands. The bottom of the lake is full of silt; one movement makes it murky and impossible to distinguish anything. Now that I can use spiritual sense, it’s naturally faster." Si Nanxi put on his shirt and answered simply.

As they spoke, the lively grass carp on the ground was quickly transformed into a fragrant roasted fish under Old Wu’s skilled hands.

"How’s that? Is my craft any worse than the cooks in your father’s mansion?"

Si Nanxi’s mind was elsewhere; he gave a few perfunctory answers.

"Old Wu, do you know what happened at the last Divine Martial Assembly? I..." Si Nanxi paused, then continued, "I have a friend who wants to participate in this upcoming one. When I was in Si Nan Province years ago, I scoured all the records of the Divine Martial Assemblies. Every dynasty and every session was documented, except for the last one. There’s no official record at all. Why is that?"

The stout man, his face smeared with grease, changed color at the mention of the Divine Martial Assembly. He froze, and it wasn't until the freshly roasted fish tail burned his lips that he suddenly stood up.

"The friend you're talking about... it's not you, is it?"

"Don't worry about that. Just tell me what happened."

Old Wu finished the fish in three bites, stamped out the fire, and sighed.

"Sigh, let’s put it this way: if that incident hadn't happened, I would certainly support you going to the Divine Martial Assembly for experience. But with your current cultivation, if a situation like the last one happens again, I’m afraid you won't be coming back."

"Did a lot of people die at the last assembly?" Si Nanxi asked in disbelief.

"The Divine Martial Assembly has always been a contest of skill. You can concede if you're losing. Even if someone wanted to take the opportunity to kill, the eight arbiters on the judging panel are all Earth-Rank spiritual masters or martial artists of the ninth grade or higher—pure elites. How could they let something like that happen?"

Seeing Si Nanxi’s doubt, Old Wu moved with surprising agility, landing right in front of him.

"Then let me ask you: have you heard of the Four Great Grandmasters of the Central Plains and the Exotic Wastelands, and the Five Spirits of God?"

Si Nanxi had known of these legendary figures from the moment he arrived in this world; his ears were practically calloused from hearing them. He answered without hesitation.

"The Five Spirits of God refer to the strongest masters of the current age who practice the five elemental powers: gold, wood, water, fire, and earth. As for the Four Great Grandmasters, they are the four top-tier experts from the Central Plains and the Exotic Wastelands who have successfully cleared the trials of the Ancient Jade Mountain Secret Realm in the last hundred years—the strongest combatants in the world."

Old Wu grinned awkwardly. "Fine, you know your stuff. Then let me ask you: of these four grandmasters, excluding the one from your own Si Nan Province, the Emperor of Yun Province in the east, and Xi Jinliang, the founder of the Cultivation Academy—do you know what kind of technique the last one uses, or who he defeated to earn the title of 'God of War'?"

Si Nanxi searched his memory, but there was very little about this person’s life or rumors. He had fought several battles against Wei Yang with the Baiyi Army a few years back, but he had only heard the name, never seen the man. Old Wu’s question truly stumped him. Reluctantly, Si Nanxi shook his head.

Old Wu leaned in close to Si Nanxi’s ear and spoke in a mysterious tone.

"The fourth grandmaster is named Wei Qingying. During the last Divine Martial Assembly, he took his opponent—the then-Crown Prince of You Province—and two of the You Province arbiters, and... *snapped* them."

Old Wu made a throat-slitting gesture to scare Si Nanxi.

"He... he killed two arbiters as well?"

"Not only did he kill two arbiters, he wounded two others. In that battle, he took on two Earth-Rank spiritual masters and three ninth-grade martial artists alone. Afterward, he slaughtered the entire You Province delegation, including the Crown Prince."

Si Nanxi was shocked, but quickly calmed down. "No wonder there was no news about the last assembly. So that was the secret they were hiding."

"Sigh, that’s why I’m so surprised you’re planning to go to the next one."

"So, according to you, this upcoming assembly is fraught with danger?"

"Not necessarily." Old Wu went to the lake, cupped the crystal-clear water in his hands, and splashed his face. "Before, it was because Wei Yang wanted to wipe out the Central and You provinces that he took the opportunity to strike. Because of that, Xi Jinliang, one of the four grandmasters, has decided to preside over the next assembly personally. Theoretically, there shouldn't be any major problems."

Si Nanxi sneered. "It seems there’s one more reason I have to go to this assembly."

Old Wu’s eyes flickered with a hint of terror. He stared for a long moment before asking, "Are you... planning to take revenge for the Battle of the Snowy Night in front of the Grandmaster?"

Si Nanxi’s expression was calm as water, but Old Wu felt a chill run down his spine. He knew Si Nanxi’s nature was one of deep forbearance, but he also knew that Si Nanxi would seek justice for the 2,300 brothers of the Baiyi Army no matter what.

Si Nanxi suppressed the bitterness in his heart and offered a wry smile to Old Wu.

"Let’s go. If we don't head back, little Liuli will be going hungry."