790: Chapter 791 Ranking Challenge

In the air, invisible Auras collided and ground against one another.

No one shouted, but in everyone's eyes burned a similar fire—fanatical, arrogant, expectant, and eager to try.

The fierce competition, the life-and-death tempering in the illusions, and the seven days of secluded cultivation and refinement were all for this moment.

The ancient sword in Ling Guzhou's arms emitted a clear and long hum, its Sword Qi soaring to the heavens.

Haoran Qi circulated around Li Xuanfeng, clear and transparent; his gaze toward the top of the Heaven-Reaching Platform was as firm as a rock.

Gu Shitian licked his lips, the golden flames of war burning fiercely in his eyes. His bones emitted slight popping sounds as the World-Destroying Demon Ape's fists collided, a wild and violent Aura rushing forth.

Some were indifferent and self-contained, some were arrogant and flamboyant, and some were bloodthirsty and restless.

But in everyone's heart, there was only one thought: Fight!

“The time has come.” A grand, ancient Dao voice echoed deep within the Sea of Consciousness of every Prodigy.

As the voice fell, before anyone could react, everyone felt the scene before them blur and distort.

In the next instant, the figures of the fifty Prodigies appeared within a brand-new, incredibly vast Pure Land space.

This was the last piece of Pure Land protected by the will of the immortal domain with everything it had when the Ancient Immortal Domain was on the brink of shattering; it was the final spark of the immortal realm and the ultimate trial ground for hope.

The ground was as warm and smooth as jade, and immortal springs flowed gurglingly; what overflowed from the spring eyes was all condensed Immortal Realm Origin Qi.

In the distance, the divine mountains were towering, with Immortal Qi falling like waterfalls. No grass grew, yet Dao Rhyme arose naturally. Every wisp of air carried the stability and weight of settled ages, forming a world of difference from the barren, shattered, and malice-ridden immortal realm outside.

Isolated from the world for countless years, this place preserved the purest life force and Dao laws of the Ancient Immortal Domain. It was the last untainted Holy Land for cultivation in the entire Myriad Heavens and Realms.

In the center of this Pure Land, ten giant martial stages rose from the ground!

The martial stages were built entirely of Seven-Colored Divine Stones branded with ancient Dao patterns. They were a hundred zhang high and over a thousand zhang in length and width, resembling ten ancient arenas floating in the Void Realm, their majestic Aura suppressing all directions.

Around each martial stage, a hazy Chaos light curtain enveloped it, upon which complex and profound runes flowed. Even the fierce battle of an Immortal Sovereign would find it difficult to shake them in the slightest.

“These are the Dao Discussion Platforms,” the ancient Dao voice sounded again, explaining the rules to everyone.

“Using your current rankings on the heavenly pride list as the initial sequence, those with lower rankings may challenge any higher-ranked individual. The higher-ranked individual cannot refuse.

The winner takes their place, inheriting their ranking, and receives the right to rest for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn to recover and refuse subsequent challenges.

The loser's rank will drop by one. Each person can challenge up to three times.

The one at the top of the list shall be bestowed the imperial dao true seed. The others will be granted different opportunities according to their rank.”

The voice fell, and the entire field was deathly silent. Every Prodigy instantly understood the cruelty and fairness behind these rules.

Lower ranks can challenge higher ranks, and higher ranks cannot refuse. This was not a mild competition; this was a forced battle!

The strong cannot hide, and the weak cannot escape. Whoever is strong stays up, and whoever is weak goes down. It was fair to the point of being cruel.

Gu Shitian laughed at the sky, his golden blood energy making the Void Realm hum. “Good rules! Only this is worthy of being called a battle of Prodigies!”

The World-Destroying Demon Ape's eyes swept in all directions. “The initial rankings are merely for show. Only the strong are worthy of standing at the top!”

Ling Guzhou closed his eyes to rest, the ancient sword in his arms humming as if already impatient. Feng Qianshang pressed his hand on his saber hilt, his Saber Intent already locked onto several figures ahead.

Huang Jiutian's flames burned slightly as his gaze swept directly toward the top position on the list.

This was the ultimate test of strength, endurance, wisdom, and even luck. To reach the top, one not only had to be able to fight their way up but also be able to hold their ground.

At this moment, a phantom list condensed from golden light slowly unfolded above the ten Dao Discussion Platforms, with fifty names clearly listed.

This list was exactly the one finalized seven days ago at the Ancient God Burial Plain!

However, the names of those who had failed, fallen, or been eliminated in the subsequent illusions had already dimmed and disappeared.

On the list, only the fifty people who finally passed all the trials and stood upon this Pure Land remained!

On the list, fifty brilliant names were arranged in order from top to bottom, emitting a heavy luster like that of destiny:

Top: Ao Zhan

Second: Gu Shitian

Third: Sword White Robe

Fourth: Huang Jiutian

Fifth: Battle Asura

Yun Yandao, Demon Ape Cang Li, Li Xuanfeng, Feng Qianshang, Ji Qingyi...

Every name was like a challenge letter, a bullseye, a temptation, and a step that must be crossed or guarded.

The moment the list unfolded, everyone's gaze swept across it quickly, instantly locking onto their own positions.

In the crowd, Fang Hanyu looked at himself, ranked third, and chuckled as Chaos Sword Qi flickered slightly in his eyes.

“It seems someone will be coming for me soon.”

In the air, Battle Intent instantly boiled to its peak! But of the fifty Prodigies, not one moved rashly.

The Prodigies who could enter here were each person who had experienced life-and-death slaughter and the tempering of Dao Heart illusions; every one of them was deep-thinking and meticulous.

Three challenge opportunities were worth a thousand pieces of gold; each use meant one less, and there was no reason to waste them. Everyone was carefully measuring and seriously choosing their target for challenge.

Especially the Prodigies ranked lower, their expressions varied; since their positions were at the back, if they didn't take the initiative to challenge, they would never be promoted.

The three opportunities were their only bargaining chips for a counterattack; they had to seize the timing, strike first, and grab a favorable position.

Time passed slowly, and undercurrents surged silently among the crowd. Gazes crossed, full of probing, evaluation, and maneuvering.

A moment later, the silence was broken. From the back of the crowd, a beam of starlight suddenly shot into the sky!

Saint Son Xing Wuji's body surged with the power of stars, his robes fluttering as he stepped onto the vacant Dao Discussion Platform in the center.

Standing on the high platform, his gaze locked straight onto a figure below surrounded by towering demon flames, his voice shaking the entire field:

“Demon Son Xue Lu, come up.”

As soon as he spoke, all eyes turned toward them. Saint Son Xing Wuji and Demon Son Xue Lu were both descendants of top-tier forces in the immortal realm.

The Saint of the Purple Micro Star Sect and the Demon Son of the Ancient Demon Race had both been famous in all directions long ago in the outside world.

Now, after gaining insights from the Immortal Emperor and refining a dao seed, both of their cultivations were at the Immortal Sovereign Early Stage, their Auras powerful and overbearing.

But even so, in this Pure Land of Prodigies, the two of them were only ranked forty-fifth and fortieth, which was enough to show the high level and terrifying strength of this sequence competition.

Saint Son Xing Wuji's Star Dao Rhyme condensed into substance, with hundreds of millions of star-seeds floating around him, his Aura as stable as an abyss.

The called-out Demon Son Xue Lu slowly raised his head, his eyes as red as blood. Upon hearing the words, he suddenly took a step forward!

Demon flames exploded, and Evil Qi soared into the sky as the White Bone War Spear in his hand hummed and vibrated.

He grinned, revealing a smile that could be described as ferocious, and leaped up, landing directly on the Dao Discussion Platform to face Saint Son Xing Wuji from a distance.

Demon flames burned the sky, and blood energy was like a prison—overbearing and fierce.

Saint Son Xing Wuji's face was cold as he spoke, “In the past, during the battle at the Ancient Plain of Fallen Stars, you and I should have determined a winner, but someone interfered, and it was cut short.”

Speaking of the interference, his eyes instinctively drifted toward Li Xuanfeng and then quickly pulled back, his expression slightly unnatural.

After all, that day, the two of them had joined forces only to be swept away by Li Xuanfeng's single sword strike, ending in a pathetic retreat—it was the greatest humiliation of their lives.

The chill in Demon Son Xue Lu's eyes deepened as he instantly understood what the other meant. Amidst the churning demon flames, hatred surged, but even more so, there was an irrepressible sharpness from his transformation and a towering ambition.

“Fine. The contest that wasn't settled that day will be completely concluded here today!”

Demon Son Xue Lu's voice was low and raspy, his killing intent restrained but even more terrifying, his crimson eyes looking toward Li Xuanfeng.

He didn't say it explicitly, but that cold gaze had clearly told everyone that winning this battle was only the first step.

The next one would be Li Xuanfeng.