355: Chapter 355 A Hundred Boats Race

"Look, the people from the Liuli Xuan Sect are here! That's Ye Tian!"

"Hiss... so young! He really is in the Sea Transformation Realm! This Aura... it feels much more stable than a few days ago!"

"Nonsense, he obtained the Thunder Emperor's Legacy and had five days of rest due to a bye. How could he not have improved? I just wonder how much substance there is to his Sea Transformation First Layer."

"The people from the Nangong Family and the Beiming Family have arrived. Look over there..."

Ye Tian looked in the direction of some subtle pointing.

On the east side of the platform, in the Nangong Family area, Nangong Lie was sitting there, his face gloomy. His crimson eyes stared at Ye Tian, his killing intent almost solidifying into something physical.

Beside him sat Elders like Nangong Yang and Nangong Shuo, while behind him were participating juniors like Nangong Xiao and Nangong Yan, all with unfriendly looks in their eyes.

What made Ye Tian's eyes narrow slightly was that standing beside Nangong Xiao and Nangong Yan were two dull-faced men in ordinary green martial arts suits. They were the two Red Hand Hall Guest Elders who had ambushed him a few days ago!

They had actually blended into the Nangong Family's team and obtained eligibility to compete.

On the other side, the Beiming Family area was much quieter.

Bei Minghong sat alone at the very front, his silver-gray eyes indifferently watching the distant Ancient Skyfall Battle Platform, seemingly oblivious to everything around him.

The two men in black behind him were like statues. The entire Beiming Family area exuded an Aura that warned strangers to stay away.

Additionally, Li Xuanxiao of the Heavenly Sword Sect stood with his sword held in his arms, the Disciples behind him all as sharp as swords. The Ghost Girl of the Xuanming Way sat alone in the shadows, her black robes trailing on the ground.

In the Zhenbei Princes Mansion area, a young general in mysterious armor sat upright. It was the heir, Qin Pojun, with a cultivation of Sea Transformation First Layer and a blood-iron, murderous Aura.

In the direction of the Xiahou Family, a burly young man with thick eyebrows and tiger-like eyes sat casually. It was Xiahou Ba, with a cultivation of True Martial Tenth Level Great Perfection, his blood-qi as vigorous as a furnace.

There were also some Loose Cultivators or representatives of small forces with unique Auras. Among them, a quiet young man in plain clothes carrying an ancient sword box was quite eye-catching; someone whispered his name, Han Xiao.

"It really is a gathering of heroes..." Feng Xuan sighed softly, quickly introducing some noteworthy faces and forces to Ye Tian via voice transmission.

Suddenly, a horn sounded from the imperial city's Main Platform for viewing at the highest point, the sound traveling for a hundred miles and suppressing all the noise.

Everyone's spirits were lifted as Prince Rong's figure reappeared on the Main Platform, his gaze sweeping across the vast sea of people below.

"The time has come," Prince Rong spoke. "The second round of the Supreme Ranking, 'A Hundred Barges Competing,' the Arena Realm Competition, begins now. All participants, prepare to enter according to the lot numbers and batches shown by the Kuitian Pavilion!"

As his voice fell, the Ancient Skyfall Battle Platform floating in mid-air shook violently!

The ancient Formation patterns on its surface suddenly lit up with a blinding light. Countless lines of light intertwined, projecting a huge, constantly changing light screen above the battle platform.

On the light screen, 641 names were clearly listed, along with their corresponding lot numbers and entry batches.

A hundred Arena Realms would be opened in ten batches, with ten Arena Realms proceeding simultaneously in each batch.

"First batch, Arena Realms one through ten, participants enter!" a royal eunuch shouted loudly.

The identity spirit pendants of the participants whose names were called automatically glowed, establishing a connection with the Ancient Skyfall Battle Platform.

In the next moment, figures wrapped in the light of their spirit pendants turned into streaks of light, shooting towards the corresponding ten positions on the Ancient Skyfall Battle Platform and disappearing into the glowing Formation patterns.

Ripples appeared on the platform's surface like water, and vague scenes could be seen changing inside, though not clearly.

"It's started!" A wave of low exclamations rose from the viewing platforms.

Soon, the huge light screen above the Ancient Skyfall Battle Platform changed.

The original list disappeared, replaced by a hundred independent, smaller light-and-shadow images, which were the real-time scenes from inside the hundred Arena Realms!

However, the images were somewhat blurry, and only the general terrain and silhouettes of the figures could be seen. Many details and sounds were filtered and blocked by the Formation, clearly to prevent excessive external interference and maintain some suspense.

But even so, it was shocking enough.

The hundred Arena Realms had different terrains: some were volcanic craters with blazing fires, some were cliffs with whistling astral winds, some were mysterious ancient forests, and some were rocky deserts...

Each Arena Realm contained different dangers and opportunities.

And at this moment, in the first batch of ten Arena Realms, battles had already broken out!

In the light-and-shadow images, various colors of True Essence light erupted, figures crisscrossed, and roars and booms were vaguely audible even after filtering.

The battles were incredibly intense from the very start.

For the sole promotion spot, no one held back. Instantly, someone was heavily injured and spat blood, crushing their identity spirit pendant to turn into light and be eliminated, while others didn't even have time to react before being overwhelmed by several attacks, their life or death unknown.

It was cruel and direct, with no room for maneuver.

Exclamations and cheers rose and fell on the viewing platforms. Elders and companions from various forces stared nervously at the images of the Arena Realms where their juniors were located.

Ye Tian also watched intently. Although he had a bye, among these people might be his opponent for the third round.

He focused especially on those who were high on the points list or were well-known.

The first batch of battles ended quickly. The shortest Arena Realm took less than half a cup of tea's time to decide the winner, and the longest did not exceed the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.

Ten beams of light shot out from the battle platform, teleporting the ten winners back to their original positions.

Most of these ten people had unstable Auras and were injured, some even quite seriously.

The losers were teleported directly to a specific area of Huangji Square. Most had pale, defeated faces, and some were even carried away by fellow Disciples or clansmen for emergency treatment.

"So fast! So ruthless!"

"This is the true clash of Prodigies, no luck involved!"

"Look at that saber user, he seems to be from the West Desert Mad Saber Sect. Zhenwu Ninth Level, and he sent two people of the same level flying with one strike!"

"That female cultivator isn't simple either, she's from Cold Silence Valley and froze the entire Arena Realm..."

Amidst the discussions, the second batch, the third batch... participants continued to enter, and the battles continued to play out.

Some relied on overwhelming strength to crush the field, some used mysterious movement techniques to hold out until the end, some turned against temporary allies after working together, and some were injured by the natural hazards of the Arena Realm and were regretfully eliminated.

All aspects of life were on display, showing the cruelty of the martial path.

Ye Tian watched silently, gaining a general understanding of the average strength of the participants in this Supreme Ranking competition.

True Martial Seventh and Eighth Levels were the mainstream, Ninth and Tenth Levels were the elites, and the Sea Transformation Realm was still as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns. Only two had appeared so far, both winning easily.

And those highly anticipated top Prodigies, such as Qin Pojun, Xiahou Ba, Han Xiao, Li Xuanxiao, and the Ghost Girl, had not yet appeared, clearly having later lot numbers.

On the Liuli Xuan Sect's side, Pei Tieshan entered in the fifth batch.

His Arena Realm was a Metal Mine with abnormal gravity.

Pei Tieshan let out a wild roar, his muscles bulging like refined iron. He endured several times the gravity and the attacks of three opponents like a humanoid tyrannosaur. His punches shattered mountains, sending his opponents flying one by one. Ultimately, he won boldly at the cost of minor injuries, drawing a burst of cheers from the Liuli Xuan Sect area.

He grinned broadly upon his return and shook his fist at Ye Tian and the others.

Shui Qingdie was in the seventh batch, and her Arena Realm was a Secluded Valley of Misty Butterflies full of illusions.

She didn't even attack directly, but simply stood lazily in the valley, surrounded by pink mist that transformed into countless fluttering butterfly shadows and graceful figures.

Her opponents soon fell into various illusions, either killing each other or standing blankly on the spot. Eventually, she easily sent them out of the Arena Realm, winning effortlessly and demonstrating her powerful mastery of illusions.

Yu Miaoqing was in the ninth batch, and her Arena Realm was a Frozen Wind Hanging Waterfall.

She did not unsheathe her sword, but used her fingers instead. Streaks of piercingly cold Sword Qi moved with unhindered power, turning the entire Arena Realm into her Domain. Three opponents were frozen into ice sculptures, and two were forced to surrender by the Sword Qi, allowing her to advance easily.

The three True Disciples of the Liuli Xuan Sect demonstrated powerful strength and successfully advanced, drawing the attention of many forces.