Translator: Tim Editor: GlobeGlotter
"Brother Xiang, I fear that Sect Leader Wang might never return," Feng Wu spoke in a low tone. After saying this, his eyes narrowed.
Xiang Mingwang was dazed and said subconsciously, "The tournament is once every five years; itâs a major event in the hidden sects. Even if Sect Leader Wang is busy, how could he not come. Does he not want the geniuses from his sect to enter the spirit well? Even if he doesnât care about that, does he not want that crystal?"
Xiang Mingwang doubted that Ye Moâs heritage was really so valuable that he wasnât even going to come to the tournament and would just go home. He was giving up the chance to reach great heaven!
"Because Ye Mo has brought someone to the tournament, and heâs sitting in the 36 Riverâs region," Feng Wu said plainly. He didnât say directly why Wang Lenchan didnât come, but everyone knew what he meant. Ye Mo came yet Wang Lenchan didnât.
"What? Ye Mo is here?" Xiang Mingwangâs face changed, and he stood up abruptly. The man behind Xiang Mingwang also seemed shocked and quickly walked out. After a moment, he came back, and his face looked as bad as Xiang Mingwangâs. Obviously, he had seen Ye Mo.
At this moment, Zeng Zhengxia stood up and said, "There was supposed to be four of us holding the tournament, but since Sect Leader Wang isnât here, weâre missing one person. I think that since Ye Mo has his newly risen sect and since Flowing Snakeâs pills are so well-renowned, we might as well let Ye Mo come in as a substitute judge for the tournament. What do you two think?"
Feng Wu looked at Zeng Zhengxia in surprise and thought about it.
"No, Ye Mo is just a junior, how can he be a judge for this tournament?" Xiang Mingwang commented without thought.
"Thatâs right, Sect Leader Zeng, Ye Mo is only in his 20s. Heâs at most at the earth level primary stage. I agree with Sect Leader Xiangâs words, Ye Mo has no right to be a judge," a middle aged man behind Feng Wu stood up and said.
Feng Wuâs face went cold, "Zheng Chao, weâre discussing major matters here, you donât need to intervene."
"Martial Brother?" Zheng Chao looked at Feng Wu strangely. He didnât expect his martial brother to talk to him in such a tone. When he was about to speak up again though, he was stopped by a middle aged woman.
"Brother Feng, what is your opinion?" Although Xiang Mingwang could ignore Zeng Zhengxiaâs words, he still needed to ask about Feng Wuâs opinion.
Xiang Mingwang didnât believe that Ye Mo could kill Wang Lenchan at all.
Feng Wu hadnât been planning on saying anything but now that Xiang Mingwang asked, it wasnât like he could act dumb now, so he replied, "Our tournament has always been all about whose power is higher and whose fame is greater. However, since this is a peaceful era where weâre even supported by the government; there shouldnât be any unexpected trouble, so I believe we can put the matter of power aside for this. Sect Leader Zeng also suggests Ye Mo, and the fact that he was able to reach his current stage at such a young age means that he is indeed a genius. I agree with Brother Xiangâs words from a principled point of view, but Sect Leader Zengâs words are also sound. Hence, itâs hard to make a decision just like that."
For the first time, Xiang Mingwang didnât get impetuous, and he first contemplated instead. It was very strange that Zeng Zhengxia, who was ranked fifth, dared to make such a proposal, but even Feng Wu wasnât helping him out? What was this?
At this moment, that middle aged woman walked up to Feng Wu and whispered, "Martial Brother Feng, I believe we should agree to Sect Leader Zeng."
Feng Wu had merely guessed some things without being certain. Now that someone from his sect supported his thoughts, he looked confusedly at that woman and asked, "Martial Sister Caiji, why do you say that?"
The woman answered in a very careful tone, "Sect Leader Wang went to find Ye Mo last night for sure and as you said, heâs not the kind of person that would let Ye Mo go, yet Ye Mo came to the tournament now, and we canât see a single person from the Wang family. We didnât even see them at their residence this morning.
There can only be one explanation; the people Wang Lenchan took along with him last night all died, and the person who caused that is probably Ye Mo. We didnât offend him yesterday night, and there are only 4 crystals anyway, so even if we donât agree, we wonât get one extra. Thus, we might as well show some goodwill."
Feng Wu nodded. He had of course considered this, but this way, he would be offending Xiang Mingwang.
As though reading his mind, Caiji smiled and said, "Martial Brother Feng, if that Ye Mo can kill Wang Lenchan, heâs no simple person. Whether he killed Wang Lenchan or the person behind him did, we shouldnât get on their bad side. I believe Xiang Mingwang wouldnât get on our bad side for just one spot."
Hearing this, Feng Mu finally made up his mind. He smiled and broke the silence, "I think since times are desperate, we might as well listen to Sect Leader Zeng and let Ye Mo substitute for Sect Leader Wang. After all, there are only 4 crystals. If we have one less person, it will be hard to split them equally."
Seeing this, Xiang Mingwang also had to agree. After all, it was two votes against one.
....
When Ye Mo was pulled out by Zeng Zhengxia to be the judge, he looked at him helplessly, "Brother Zeng, I really donâtâ want to be this judge, itâs a waste of time."
Zeng Zhengxia smiled mysteriously, "Brother Ye Mo, would I harm you? Do you think this judging is done for free? You know how the top 3 can cultivate in the spirit well for three months, right? That spirit well produces four crystals every five years. Those crystals are the reward for being the judge. Hehe, you havenât seen this crystal yet, but when you do, you will know why you didnât waste your time."
Crystals inside the spirit well? Ye Mo wondered, âcould it be spirit stones?â and immediately nodded.
....
320 people had come to the tournament. This meant that only every one out of one hundred would be able to enter the spirit well. The competition was very intense indeed.
The rules were simple; the first four rounds were elimination rounds. 320 people would duel each other in 1v1 battles in order to enter the next round.
In order to avoid the black levels facing each other early on, the 11 black levels were seeded for the first round and numbered 1 to 11. After the first round though, there would be no more seeded positions.
Han Yan was black level too, and her number was 10. Her first opponent was number 311.
Although the people who had come were all elites of their sect, their movements were full of holes in Ye Moâs eyes. There was no point in watching them.
Han Yan was at the peak of the black level primary stage while her opponent was at the yellow level tertiary stage. Despite Han Yan not knowing any powerful moves, she still beat the yellow level off the stage in just a couple of moves.
Other than a few rare evenly matched fights, the duels usually ended very quickly. Around 1 p.m., the first round was over, and 160 people went onto the next round.
Round 2 was to start at 2 p.m. Ye Mo basically had to do nothing as the judge, because there were also auxiliary judges at the tournament. Only when they couldnât make a decision or if there were an accident would the four judges be needed.
The morning round went smoothly, and there was no big arguments, but the fights in the afternoon were obviously more intense.
Suddenly, two girls caught Ye Moâs attention, because he knew the both of them.