234: Chapter 234 Offspring Participation

The nine chimes of the bell faded, their echoes reverberating through the thousand-mile Imperial City.

The first Immortal Dao Grand Meeting of the Eastern Wasteland officially opened for registration and selection.

The central white jade arena was vast and boundless, surrounded by packed spectator stands where prodigies from the Sects of the Six Domains, noble families, and visitors from outside the domains had all taken their seats.

On the streets, countless young Cultivators were rubbing their hands in anticipation, crowding forward with hearts full of expectation.

The rules of this Grand Meeting were fair, and the rewards were generous, encompassing almost every Opportunity most craved by the new generation of the Eastern Wasteland. Whether it was Medicinal Pills for Breakthroughs, training in the Dao Enlightenment Pool, Origin crystals, guidance from Elders for the top ten, or the quasi-saint treasure for the champion, each item was enough to make countless Cultivators fight with their lives.

In front of the registration desk, the duty Disciples were orderly, and the registration light list floated in mid-air. Prodigies from top Sects like the Misty Rain Pavilion, the Sky-Splitting Sword Sect, and the Ancient Beast Sect were the first to step forward to register, followed closely by countless Disciples from small and medium Sects and Loose Cultivator prodigies. The stream of people was endless, and the scene was lively and grand, exuding an atmosphere of a prosperous age everywhere.

But just as the registration craze reached its peak, a group of youths with distinct temperaments suddenly walked out from the direction of the Imperial City Secret Realm.

They were all young, their appearances... well, suffice it to say, they were surrounded by a mysterious Dao aura that ordinary people could hardly reach.

They were none other than the offspring of Yuan Chen, each possessing strange Daos and unique talents.

Because their strength had reached the required level, most of them came to participate this time, walking calmly towards the registration desk.

Yuan Luo, who was leading, had a calm expression. He was the first to walk to the desk, his voice clear: "Yuan Luo, registering for the competition."

Following closely, Yuan Yun, Yuan You, Yuan Su, Yuan Lei, Yuan Shuang, and the other offspring stepped forward one by one to report their names and register their cultivation information.

Their cultivation levels were all in the range of Golden Core to Nascent Soul, perfectly fitting the competition rules of the Grand Meeting.

In a short moment, more than a dozen of Yuan Chen's offspring finished registering and stood quietly to the side of the registration desk.

The noisy and bustling registration scene instantly fell silent.

The prodigies who were lining up to register stopped one after another, looking over in astonishment. The originally surging crowd came to a grinding halt, and even their breathing subconsciously softened.

On the spectator seats with millions of people, countless Cultivators widened their eyes, their faces filled with disbelief, and exclamations burst out one after another.

"Is that... Yuan Chen's children? They all came to register?"

"My god! They are all participating! How are we supposed to play?"

After the uproar, a thick sense of anxiety and worry instantly enveloped the hearts of all the Cultivators, and the blood and anticipation from just a moment ago dissipated by more than half.

A Nascent Soul Prodigy with a youthful face clenched his fists, his tone full of bitterness and unease: "It's over, we're in trouble now. Each of Yuan Chen's offspring possesses a Heaven-Defying strange Dao and is born with a Dao body. They have received personal teachings from experts since childhood and have been nurtured by heaven and earth; their Foundation and heritage far exceed ours. If they compete with all their might, where will we have any chance?"

"Exactly!" A Loose Cultivator beside him nodded repeatedly, his heart filled with trepidation. "Opportunities were already limited, and the spots were already fiercely contested. Now that this group of top-tier prodigies has entered the fray, it's a clear case of dimensional reduction strike. Forget about competing for the top spot or the quasi-saint treasure; I'm afraid we won't even be able to squeeze into the minimum rewards!"

Several Disciples from the Sky-Splitting Sword Sect looked at each other, their previous arrogance completely gone, and whispered with a sigh: "We originally thought this Grand Meeting would be about grassroots counterattacks and a hundred schools of thought contending. Now it seems we thought too simply. With these darlings of heaven present, no one among their peers can contend with them."

For a time, the entire audience was restless, and worry spread.

Countless Cultivators who had already registered or were about to register were in a state of confusion, caught in a dilemma.

The atmosphere of the entire arena changed from the previous passionate heat to a depressing and heavy one, with the same question hovering in everyone's mind: Was this Immortal Dao reward not just a game played at their expense?

Just as the whole city was in panic and anxiety, and the mental state of countless prodigies was on the verge of collapse, a grand and gentle Dao sound suddenly spread from above the Imperial Palace, resounding throughout the entire Imperial City. It fell into the ears of every Cultivator, incomparably clear, without a shred of oppression, yet carrying supreme credibility.

"His Highness has decreed: My children are young, have lived in the Secret Realm for a long time, and lack experience. They are all registering this time solely to participate in the early melee, to hone themselves, familiarize themselves with actual combat, and experience contention among their peers."

"All Yuan offspring will only participate in the first round of the qualifying melee. Once the list of those advancing in the Grand Meeting is finalized, they will all voluntarily withdraw from the competition. They will not participate in the subsequent ranking battles, will not compete for rankings, and will not vie for the final grand prizes."

"All high-level rewards and ranking Opportunities of this Grand Meeting belong to the local participating Cultivators of the Eastern Wasteland. Everyone need not worry about their Opportunities being taken away; just compete with peace of mind."

With one decree, the matter was settled, soothing ten thousand hearts.

In an instant, the stagnant atmosphere of the entire arena suddenly loosened, and the oppressive feeling was swept away.

Countless Cultivators breathed a long sigh of relief, their tense minds completely relaxing, the despair and trepidation on their faces fading away, replaced by wild joy and relief.

"So that's it! It's just for early training, and they will withdraw directly in the later stages!"

"You scared me to death! I thought this Opportunity had nothing to do with us anymore! Your Highness is magnanimous!"

Everyone was relieved, the previous anxiety was gone, and their passion surged again.

As long as they weren't competing for the final rankings and top treasures, there was still hope.

Although the first round of the qualifying melee would be more intense with Yuan Chen's offspring present, it was also a perfect Opportunity to hone themselves, face the gap, and break through their limits; it might not be a bad thing.

The atmosphere in the arena warmed up again, even more intensely than before.

With the decree from the Imperial Palace, the Grand Meeting officially began its first round of qualifying.

The white jade arena was divided into dozens of competition zones, with a massive number of Cultivators taking turns on the stage, engaging in one-on-one duels and melee battles. Spiritual light exploded, techniques flew, Sword Qi crisscrossed, and beast roars shook the sky. All kinds of Cultivation Techniques and secret arts were performed in turn, with the sounds of collisions and roars resounding through the arena.

After Yuan Chen's offspring took the stage, they did not display overwhelming, brutal slaughter. Instead, they restrained their strength and fought steadily.

Although they possessed Heaven-Defying strange Daos, they deliberately suppressed their cultivation, did not rely on their Dao bodies to crush others, and only used basic Cultivation Techniques and actual combat experience to fight their peers. They earnestly dealt with every sparring match, steadily accumulating combat experience, and perfectly practicing the word "training."

Even so, their Foundation, Comprehension Ability, and combat intuition were still far beyond ordinary people.

Every duel was fought in a composed and fluid manner, with controlled movements and a balance of offense and defense, leaving all the Cultivators in the arena amazed and filled with admiration, with no more dissatisfaction or jealousy.

With them overseeing the first round of the arena, they invisibly raised the competitive standard of the entire Grand Meeting. All participating Cultivators raised their spirits to the highest level, not daring to slack off in the slightest, going all out to polish their Moves and compete in combat power. The atmosphere of the arena was unprecedentedly upright, and the competitive spirit was unprecedentedly intense.

Prodigies from all over the Eastern Wasteland displayed their strengths: Sword Cultivators were sharp, Pill Cultivators were profound, Body Cultivators were domineering, and Spell Cultivators were mysterious, with a hundred schools of thought contending and a hundred flowers blooming. Some made comebacks against the odds and stunned everyone, some fought steadily and successfully advanced, and some were defeated with regret, though they had no regrets in defeat.

The entire Immortal Dao Grand Meeting was in full swing and extremely grand.

On the cloud platform, Yuan Chen stood with his hands behind his back, quietly overlooking the bustling scene below.

The number of people registered for this Grand Meeting alone exceeded one hundred thousand, and Yuan Chen even agreed that forces outside the Eastern Wasteland could also participate, making the event even more massive. It wouldn't be finished for several months.

After watching for a while, he felt that the early stage was not very interesting, so he called over the high-level officials of the other forces from the Eight Domains to discuss other matters.