Tianwu

"Hey, did you see those huge holes in the mountains nearby? Did a battle between experts take place?" A local gossip.

"But none of us noticed who fought there. All we heard is loud explosions and tons of clashing."

I gulp as I eavesdrop on their conversation. The power of the fourth stage and fifth stage...is on another level.

As for the demonstration, I will leave it until the tournament as a surprise.

Before setting off for Tianwu, I bought the Supreme Skin for 50,000 points.

A gigantic bird soars around Nielong. Everybody gazes at the sky to see the spectacle.

The bird lands outside of Nielong as I walk to it.

A Tamer cultivator jumps down the bird and looks at me. "Are you the one who called for my service?"

I nod. "Bring me to Tianwu."

The road to Tianwu is packed with carriages. If I travel by carriage, I will be late for the tournament.

He gazes at me and Li Ruo. "I am not responsible for your safety but I can prevent your fall for an extra 50 silver coins."

"Not a problem, we can take care of ourselves," I say as I give him one gold coin.

...

"Alright." He hops back in his bird and pets it.

I grab Li Ruo by her waist and jump up onto the bird, Li Ruo is sweating buckets from anxiety.

After a few flaps of wings, the bird jets into the sky. I hold Li Ruo tightly as I control the atmosphere Qi to neutralize inertia.

The tamer looks back and his eyes widen. "W-What? Your Meridians and Dantian are broken but you are controlling Qi?!"

"What's wrong?" I ask.

...

"Forgive me for my rude behaviour, I've failed to notice a master." He says.

The journey became an awkward and silent one.

After 2 days, I finally see signs of civilisation, a majestic city surrounded by tall mountains and floating islands, a meticulous surrounding array is put into place.

The city is separated into many sections, some on parts of the tall mountains, some on floating islands. The buildings are tall and well maintained in Tianwu with many decorated with gold and jewellery. The streets are packed to the brim with countless mortals and cultivators alike, creating a sea of humans.

This is... Tianwu.

The large bird created a huge scenery at the foot of Tianwu attracting a flock to witness who the rich person is.

"Young master, we are here." The tamer says as he jumps off the beast.

I leap off with Li Ruo. The tamer widgets with his robe before taking out a gold coin. "I assume the young master is here for the Junior Cultivation Tournament, it is my honour to give you a ride."

...

I take the gold coin and pocket it. The tamer bows at me before setting off with his bird.

"A rich mortal? He looks very young."

"Maybe an ancient descendant? But I don't feel any Qi within him."

"What family is he from?"

My entrance spur much gossip among bystanders. Some cultivators glare at me, some envy me, while the majority of cultivators...are emitting malicious intent.

They are jealous that a mere mortal is richer than they are, many of them are planning to steal from me once they have the chance.

Leading up the first section of Tianwu is a long stair. A long queue of humans fills the stairs up.

Hmm...

I grab Li Ruo tightly by the waist again and bend my knees.

Leaving behind an explosive force, I jump to the top of the mountain with one leap.

!!!!!!!!!

Cultivators have their jaws dropped by the spectacle.

"What's wrong? Why are you looking at that cultivator?" A mortal girl asks a cultivator beside her.

"T-That guy... He isn't a cultivator, his meridians are broken."

!!??

Surrounding mortals turn their heads to look at me when they hear that.

The guard stationed at the gate of Tianwu glares at me. "Mister, we have a line-"

His glare disappears shortly when I stare at him.

"Ack!"

He grasps his chest as he falls to the ground, constantly catching his breath. The guard seems to be trying to pull something out from his chest.

Oh?

People near me are doing the same as Azrim glows.

(It's your sword intent tormenting them, retrace it by relaxing. Your frustration released it unintentionally.)

I take a deep breath and breathe out.

"Hah! Huff huff huff... You... Fuck... Do you think I'm easy to bully because I am a peak foundation establishment?" The guard blurts.

...

"Fine, you watch your back."

The guard lets me in.

Strange... Li Ruo should not have any cultivation yet she was unaffected by that.

A sword intent is something only a master sword practitioner possesses. Most of them can release their sword intent and affect mentally weaker people, causing an illusion of being pierced and suffocation.

Li Ruo and I roam the streets, attempting to find the registration booth.

However...

Li Ruo's mouth drools as my stomach rumbles.

The food here... Even the smell has an alluring Qi...

"Oh! Brother Wang Ji!"

?

The voice comes from a carriage stationed beside a grand building called "Jade Weaponry".

Xu Lou alights the carriage and shows himself.

"Hi," I say. "How did a carriage even come up here?"

"There's a teleportation array for carriages at the base of the mountain." Xu Lou says.

Li Ruo peeks out from behind when Xu Lou's eyebrows raised in amusement.

"The smell disappeared, what rich elixir did you use?"

"Uh..."

Xu Lou scratches his head. "I guess she is fine like this."

Just like what Xu Lou mentioned, no longer are there many glares directed at Li Ruo but instead glances, part of it may be due to her clean appearance.

Xu Lou invites us to the Pavillion beside Jade Weaponry. "I've earned a huge fortune thanks to the mysterious disease going around. Many are requesting herbs because of how hard it is to recover so the price of herbs increased."

Herbs are ineffective, Xu Lou will be striking gold.

We enter the pavilion to embrace a rush of Qi. The entire place is filled with a constant supply of Qi from the kitchen. Most of the customers are cultivators or rich nobles.

The waiter ushers us to a table.

"Order anything you want, my treat!" Says Xu Lou.

I throw a glance at Li Ruo. "You shouldn't phrase it like that."

...

"U-Uhm... Maybe not too much?" Says Xu Lou.

----------------

One bite into the dumpling and the soup inside sips out.

!!

I spit it out instantly. "Ack ack!!"

Fuck... My meridians...

"S-Sorry, I forgot about that." Says Xu Lou.

On the other hand, Li Ruo's body is absorbing all the Qi and she started her path in Cultivation, reaching the first stage of Qi Condensation. Her body emits a slight glow.

"Huh? What? Is it that easy to become a cultivator?" Exclaims Xu Lou who chomps down all the food afterwards but to no avail.

Xu Lou sighs.

"Regardless, thanks for the food. Do you know where I can register for the Junior Cultivation tournament?" I ask.

...

Xu Lou frowns. "I... Are you sure about participating? This year, there are several rising geniuses taking part in the tournament. For example, Xie Mo of the Heavenly Divine Dragon sect, within a month, has shown incredible improvements and shook the entire Tiansu. Although he has offended many, he has also gained the favour and admiration of many. I get that you are special but-"

"Who else should I look out for other than Xie Mo?" I ask.

"...Brother, I will not stop you if you are that determined. There are 5 people you need to look out for: Yue Li of the Mountain Fist sect, Hong Kai of the Eight Shield School, Huang Zhao from the Eight Trigrams Sect, Shang Guowei from the Shang Clan, and Zhou Zilang. Zhou Zilang is a rogue cultivator and I heard that all of his Martial Arts are self-created, making him the most unique participant. That's why I flagged him." Says Xu Lou.

...

I stare at Xu Lou. "How did you get all this information?" I ask.

"H-Huh? I am a merchant who travels to sell, of course I know a lot from gossip."

He stuttered...

...

"A-Anyways, you want to register for the tournament right? I know the way there, let's go."

"But the food-"

The food all disappeared as Li Ruo's mouth is stuffed with gravy and food.

...

!!

"S-Sowwy Mustar, a-arr yi hingri?" Li Ruo attempts to speak with her mouth full when I look at her with a frown.

I shake my head.

"Let's go." I get up and follow Xu Lou out of the pavilion.

"Although this competition accepts anyone as long as you are below the age of 20, the entrance fees are as expensive as 1 gold coin. Thus, sects, schools, clans, or families only choose the best of the best to attend this competition and raise their reputation. This competition is also a 'hunting' ground for promising talents. That's why many organisations spectate the tournament." says Xu Lou.

"Is that the genius?"

"The one who defeated the inner disciples of the Yijian sect? Yes, that's him."

"Woah, he looks so much handsome up close!" a woman says.

Xu Lou turns his head. "Speaking of the devil..." He says.

Xie Mo walks down the streets of Tianwu with 4 beauties, one young girl, and two men behind him. he smiles and waves at everyone. One of the four beauties is Li Xing.