Not only the youngsters, but the audience on the cloud platform was also surprised.
“It looks like this Ye Wei kid had a major breakthrough not long ago; I am pretty sure he was not a condensed prime Warrior on the first day when he fought Qi Xiu.”
“He hasn’t been a condensed prime Warrior for longer than Shi Hun Tian has, so I am a bit surprised to see this result!”
“This kid is very extraordinary, he might even have the ability to challenge Feng Yi!”
The patriarchs and other powerful cultivators began to speculate and share their opinions and thoughts on this dazzling, rising star.
In the middle of the cloud platform, the City Lord and the Green Army generals smiled satisfyingly, They were overjoyed that a talented youngster was on the rise because mankind depended on new blood to fight the wild beasts and demons, to keep the lands at peace.
After this battle, Ye Wei’s name was imprinted on everyone’s mind as the newest God’s Seven, and as a heaven defying cultivator. The spectators would later find themselves relishing the memories of how Ye Wei fought and defeated Qi Xiu and Shi Hun Tian, two youngsters who were expected to go far before they were beaten by Ye Wei.
Ye Wei was declared the winner after the City Lord removed the shield, and the judge went onto the platform to check on Shi Hun Tian. Shortly after Shi Hun Tian jumped off to join his classmates and return to the palace.
As the group was leaving the martial platforms, a group of young cultivators from Seven Star School decided to walk towards the South Star camp, and the dark skinned boy looked at Ye Wei with an aggressive glare.
Ye Wei felt a jolt go through his body as their eyes connected.
“What is his name?” Ye Wei turned to the side asking Chen Mo.
“Tu Fu Sheng, from Seven Star School. He is quite mysterious. He has only fought twice in these two weeks. The first time he defeated Qi Xiu, and the second time he defeated Golden Wood Academy’s Luo Wu Xue. While it is true that Qi Xiu was weakened after fighting you, but Tu Fu Sheng beat him with ease!” Chen Mo said sincerely.
“Humm,” Ye Wei nodded and rubbed his chin caught in deep thought. The presence he sensed on Tu Fu Sheng was similar to what he felt when the demon he fought was transforming.
Back in the palace, after a few hours of cultivating in the courtyard, Ye Wei took a scrolled letter out of his bag. The scroll had a black hue and it was made from the same material as mystic scrolls. Inspecting the scroll closely, he could see glows of runic light from the other side of the scroll shining through. This was the letter of recommendation given to him by Master Yi when they spoke about applying to the Runemaster Union.
“In the next three days our team will not be facing any worthy opponents… Liu Jian, Chen Mo, and the rest should be able to deal with the upcoming matches. We won fifteen fights in a row; it shouldn’t affect our ranking much if we drop one or two.
Their winning streak put South Star into top five; they were far ahead of most teams apart from fighting Zhoutian Sword School, Galaxy Academy, and Seven Star School, Ye Wei really saw no point in participating.
Ye Wei looked over the letter of recommendation again and realized that right now was the best time to fulfil his promise to his master; the best time to take the Runemaster qualification examination as the tournament’s schedule would not allow him to take time off later on when South Star is matched up with stronger opponents. It was not only his master’s decision, becoming a part of the Runemaster Union meant a lot to Ye Wei as well.
After confirming his plan with the vice-principal, Ye Wei packed the essentials and headed down the mountain to one of the busiest parts of Ning City’s center Vermilion Bird Street where the Runemaster Union’s regional branch was located.
He could see an enormous bluestone statue from afar before he even stepped foot on the street. The statue was over three hundred meters tall and had the shape of a charismatic middle-aged scholar holding a book with one hand with his other arm folded behind his back. One could tell by the expression on the statue’s face that the subject was absorbed into whatever he was reading.
The statue captured the living essence of none but the Combat Master, one of the three fabled Sages. He was the one who set up seventy-two holy conservatories and invented mystic scrolls.
This Combat Master statue was hollow, housing Ning City’s Runemaster Union branch inside it.
“So this is what the Combat Master looked like?”
Ye Wei stood before the towering statue as he admired the grand structure and reverently bowed three times. He was not the only person who did so, even the passerbys would bow to it as they all knew mankind would not have lived through the savage wild beasts’ ambushes and the sinister demons’ hunts without the contribution of the Sages.
All of a sudden, Ye Wei felt a penetrating gaze as the statue lit up. He felt as the mysterious glow shone throughout his body. He was startled and thought. ‘How can a statue possess such a powerful presence?’
‘The Monument stance… older generations of human are indeed capable of greatness…’ A demonic voice of admiration rang in Ye Wei’s Sentient.
“Monument stance?” Ye Wei mumbled confusingly.
‘It harvests the power of belief! I created the stance when I became renown. It is a stance that splits the users’ consciousness into all statues and monuments that are connected to them. With every bow, every gesture of appreciation, the belief, the positivity, will be converted into energy which the user receives!’ A bright voice echoed in Ye Wei’s Sentient.
A figure then appeared in Ye Wei’s Sentient, one that resembled the shape of the statue he stood in front of.
Ye Wei was shocked as he saw the image of the Combat Master. This was something he never imagined would appear in his Sentient.
‘Hey black scales, It’s been a while,’ The Combat Master’s voice echoed as if it came from a great distance despite this it was clear to the letter.
‘This is a prime example of mankind’s despicable behaviour! Using the people’s power for your own benefit; if it wasn’t for this stance, none of the three Sages would have been able to match the peerless strength of us demons! Ha it took more than a few centuries to accumulate enough power for your presence to spot me. How pathetic!’
‘Mankind is united, and a lot of this generation’s ancestors sacrificed their lives to pass on this stance to secure the safety of the future generations, to safeguard civilisation’s foundations. You demons only know how to destroy! Sometimes you even consume others of your kind just to become a tiny bit stronger; it’s good that the power of the heavens can recognize who the despicable one are at least!’
‘Say whatever you want you silly Sage. The day I return to my true form, I will turn all your statues into dust!’ The Progenitor did not disguise his disdain, clearly he was jealous of how the heavens’ power protected mankind but not his race.
The Combat Master giggled, happy to have touched his old foe’s nerve. He then switched his attention to Ye Wei.
‘Your Grace!’ The mysterious stance left Ye Wei in awe as he respectfully bowed. He never expected to find the Combat Master’s consciousness in a statue, and certainly did not expect it to enter his Sentient. ‘There are statues of the Sages all across the land does that mean that the Sages’ consciousness are spread throughout the world!?’
The Combat Master nodded and smiled at Ye Wei, ‘I was attracted here by black scales’ presence, and the next thing I knew I could feel the old mountain’s presence too once I got inside your Sentient! I think destiny has brought us together. I see that you are contaminated by demon blood.’
‘Judging by how that dog’s presence is trying to take over, I am sure you have slain one of the Black Mist clan. Be sure to keep the scale for your own safety, you have to be careful, black scales bites! You know what? I will place protective runes on you so that the demons can’t detect anything in your Sentient,’ The Combat Master said as he rose his right hand sending a faint light deep into Ye Wei’s mind.
‘Damn it, Xiang Xian! Why do you have to stick your big nose into everything? You just made this personal!’ The Progenitor screamed and shouted, furious that his plan of leaving a traceable mark in Ye Wei’s presence had failed.
‘Haha, you have shed many more scales in your time; it’s okay if one or two of them become useless! Just look at it as a small souvenir you gifted this kid,’ Xiang Xian, the Combat Master’s laugh eventually faded, ‘You, kid, what’s your name?’
‘My name is Ye Wei!’ After a little pause, realizing he was close to falling victim to the Progenitor’s plot without even noticing, Ye Wei answered politely grateful for the Combat Master’s intervention. ‘Thank you for saving my life your Grace!’
Xiang Xian casually laughed, ‘Being a sage, it’s my responsibility to protect mankind, not to mention you have the mountain’s presence in your Sentient. I am sure it will lead you to me in the future. Keep up you effort, and defend what you know is worth defending! The scale in your possession contains the power of the Black Scale Progenitor. When the time comes you will find out how to use it to your advantage… Goodbye for now!’ His voice sounded while dissipating.
Ye Wei suddenly sobered up as he shook his head to make sure he was awake. He widened his eyes and looked at the statue with a respectful gaze.
‘Kid, don’t get cheeky now just because Xiang Xian placed a few measly protective runes on you; you are far from safe! I will prove to you and him that demons are superior to humans!’ The Progenitor screamed testily.
‘Humph! You evil dog if it was not for the Combat Master, I could have fallen to your schemes! If you keep being annoying and having funny ideas, I swear I will place the scale into a piece of dog shit!’ Ye Wei was becoming more fearless as he thought about all the Sages’ statues everywhere. He realized he was more protected than he had previously thought.
‘How dare you!…’ The Progenitor softened up, afraid that Ye Wei, being a wild child he was, would actually place the scale in such filthy places; if that actually happened he would never be respected by other demons again.
Seeing the Progenitor turn quiet, Ye Wei smiled satisfyingly as he found out that pride was the one of the demon’s weak spots.