Translated By – DemonKiller
Checked and Edited By – Livewidsmile
ProofreadBy-DemonKiller
Please do not host our works anywhere else without our permission.
Chapter 0515: Unfathomable Mystery
"Looking for death….." The man with the wild hair slapped his palm out.
That man with the wild hair had an Undead Cultivation; as such, that slap brought forth a powerful Celestial Essence Force, turning all the seats between him and that young girl into fly ash.
Although Ning Cheng and Ruan Mingshu sat quite the distance away, they could also feel the suppression brought forth due to an authoritative domain. One could only imagine that the young girl with just a Celestial Novice Cultivation faced a more unfortunate than a fortunate situation.
Ning Cheng secretly shook his head; looks like this Celestial Novice young woman really likes to run her mouth. Just when he and Ruan Mingshu had come in, this young woman referred to them as 'a fresh flower stuck in shit'. He only had the cultivation of Celestial Novice Realm; as such, Ning Cheng did not care about what others thought of him. However, not many people would have the same mentality as him. Invariantly, the words of that young woman annoyed and attracted the ire of that wild-haired man.
Although the Revolving Jade City did not allow any sort of fights within the city, it only depended on the situation. Once a junior with poor cultivation took the initiative to insult others with higher strength, even if that junior ended up dead, no one would do anything about it. This was an unspoken law within any city and not just the Revolving Jade City.
Just when all the people thought that the young woman would die, the woman with a veil covering her face suddenly stood up and shot out a palm slap in the same manner.
"Boom….." Raging True Essence's from both sides rushed towards each other. If such powerful Celestial Essence actually collided, it would turn the entire Rest Stop into fly ash. Most likely, in that scenario, the Rest Stop would cease to exist or become a pile of ruins, at the very least.
In was at this time that a white-robed young man sitting on the other side, raised his hand and the explosive Celestial Essences suddenly disappeared; it looked as if he had casually snatched it out of the air. The rest stop remained safe and sound, except the destroyed seats resulting from when the man with the wild hair had struck out.
Not to mention Ning Cheng, at this moment, every other guest within the rest stop remained silent. Such powerful strength could only belong to a Heaven Seated Powerhouse.
A Heaven Seated Powerhouse appeared in a small and insignificant rest stop. Moreover, this man still looked so young and even unusually handsome.
Ning Cheng gave out a sigh in his heart. He was just a puny Celestial Novice Cultivator, who still struggled in the Arena, while this young and handsome looking male cultivator already had a Heaven Seated Cultivation. One really could not judge two people just by their appearance.
Not to mention this young man, even that woman with a veil covering her face, Ning Cheng found it difficult to perceive her cultivation; now that he carefully looked at it, she had an Undead Cultivation, at the very least. Otherwise, she could not have managed to block the attack from that man with the wild hair.
"For this junior to prance around senior, I ask senior for punishment." The man with the wild hair immediately sobered up. A cultivator in the Heaven Seated Realm could kill dozens of people like the wild-haired man with just his fingertips.
The white-robed man waved his hand and spoke, "It's none of your business. Just go get your drink."
"Many thanks for such kindness." The wild-haired man quickly thanked him before carefully walking to the server. He then took out and placed a stack of Blue Coins on the table with the words, "Please accept this compensation."
After paying the Blue Coins, the wild-haired man no longer dared to stay in that place. He turned and quickly left the rest stop.
Once the wild-haired man left, the woman with a veil over her face walked to the white-robed youth and apologised with a graceful bow.
"It's all right. This younger sister is quite a naive little girl. You do not have to care about such minor matters. If you don't mind, you can come to me for a cup or two of Spirit Tea sometime." The white-robed man showed a faint smile and spoke with a genial tone.
The veiled woman quickly apologised, "Little Mei and I will not disturb senior anymore. Many thanks to senior for taking care of us."
With that, the woman hurried back, then whispered to the young girl sitting beside her, "Sisi, if you do this again, I will take you back."
"Got it." The young woman grumbled out a few words in an unhappy tone.
The white-robed man did not care, standing up, it gave the impression that he wanted to leave. The rest stop's server also came to thank him; however, the man just waved his hand and showed a smile before walking away. Only, he decided to walk towards Ning Cheng, before suddenly smiling at Ning Cheng and speaking, "Brother, you have quite a good vision. Work hard, okay."
With that, he also showed a very charming smile to Ruan Mingshu before slowly walking out of the Rest Stop.
After the white-robed youth left, the atmosphere in the rest stop once again returned to normal.
"Junior Apprentice Sister Mingshu, it looks like walking with you makes me noticeable to others, hehe." Ning Cheng seemed to be laughing at himself; however, he felt furious in his heart.
He did not even know this white-robed youth, yet this white-robed youth left a Spiritual Consciousness Tag on him, which was inexplicable. Moreover, it was an exceptionally well-hidden Spiritual Consciousness Tag. Ning Cheng felt sure that if not for his Starry Skies' Sea of Consciousness, the Sea of Consciousness resulting from crossing the Nirvana Thunder Tribulation, he might not necessarily have noticed this mark even if he advanced to the Celestial Bridge Realm.
Ruan Mingshu showed a faint smile, "Senior Apprentice Brother Ning, it’s just that he doesn't know you. I originally was not in a good mood today, but now I want to drink even more. What would you like to drink? Spirit Tea or Spirit Wine?"
"I wanted to have a black pot of 'None to depend on', but since they have a blue pot here, I want to give it a shot." Ning Cheng had strong thoughts surging within his heart. Whether it was Ruolan, or Luofei and Qionghua. This 'None to depend on' might just give him a temporary release that he so desired.
"Well then, please help us get two blue pots of 'None to depend on'." After Ruan Mingshu called the server over, she and Ning Cheng relocated to a window seat and sat down.
Ning Cheng also felt a little absent-minded. He could not help but think as to why the white-robed youth thought it necessary to place a Spiritual Consciousness Tag on him. To say that he discovered the Mysterious Yellow Bead on him was definitely impossible. Once information about the Mysterious Yellow Bead leaked, the white-robed youth would have killed him and taken his things away.
What made him even more anxious was that the Spiritual Consciousness Tag seemed to sink slowly into his robes without any stop. Once it attached itself to his body, he would have to remove it immediately.
It was not that he did not want to remove the Spiritual Consciousness Tag immediately. However, this Spiritual Consciousness Tag came from a Heaven Seated expert. If that person detected that a Celestial Novice Cultivator had managed to remove his Spiritual Consciousness Tag, the consequences would not look good.
"Sisi, didn't you just say that that man looked like a pile of shit stuck to a flower? Just looking at him makes me feel a little angry, to the point that I want to spill a pot of wine over him….." The woman with the veil covering her face sent a sound transmission to the young woman sitting next to her.
The young woman shot a surprised look at the woman wearing a veil over her face and spoke, "Sister Qinyu, I didn't think that a gentle and demure lady like you would have such a demon-like heart. Don't need to feel angry, I'll help you do it….."
Without finishing her words, the young woman grabbed a jug and walked up to Ning Cheng. Just as she arrived at Ning Cheng's side, she suddenly staggered, and the jar of wine in her hands immediately spilt onto Ning Cheng.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean it." The young woman seemed to look at Ning Cheng with a surprised look; however, her eyes did not contain even a hint of apology within them.
The woman with the veil quickly came over and pulled the young woman back with the words. "Sisi, what are you doing?"
With that, she looked at Ning Cheng with an apologetical look, "This friend, I'm really sorry. I did not think that Sisi would act with such insensibility. If you change your robe, I can help you clean your robe for you as an apology."
Even the ordinarily soft and gentle looking Ruan Mingshu had a somewhat ugly look over her face. This brat's action obviously looked intentional. Any cultivator could easily make out such deliberate 'arbitrary' actions; otherwise, it would only highlight his or her weakness.
Ning Cheng snorted and immediately took off his outer garments before tossing it to the side. Then with a cold expression on his face, he spoke up, "There is no piece of clothing that I can't afford. I don't need your help."
With that, he quickly took out an outer robe and put it on. However, in his heart, he felt quite happy with such a development. Whether or not was this matter intentional, he anyway had thoughts about throwing out the previous outer robe when the jug of wine came pouring over it.
Ruan Mingshu stood up and spoke out to the veiled woman, "Although you might be a senior, you deliberately indulge in playing small tricks on others. Did you think that you would not face any scruples in the Revolving Jade City with just your cultivation?"
The young woman who had splashed wine on Ning Cheng gave a snort before speaking, "Can't even differentiate good intentions….."
The veiled woman quickly stopped the young woman once again before turning to Ning Cheng and Ruan Mingshu and apologetically speaking up, "I am not a senior. In fact, I just have a Celestial Gatherer Cultivation. I had used a Talisman just now, which allowed me to block that person……"
Ning Cheng immediately understood a few things, no wonder he could not sense Undead Realm cultivation fluctuations from this veiled woman. It turns out that she initially used a talisman to create that effect.
"Forget it, just tell Little Mei to be careful about her words around people. Not everyone would be like me." Ning Cheng also stopped Ruan Mingshu, who looked like she actually wanted to continue arguing.
These people helped him, whether intentionally or not, it turned out to be a good thing. Just the act of expressing his anger and generosity properly was enough.
"Many thanks for this friend's magnanimity. We will be taking our leave. Sisi let us go. I won't be bringing you out again the next time." The veiled woman once again apologised to Ning Cheng before pulling the young woman out of the rest stop.
Ning Cheng had trained his Spiritual Consciousness at the two women, and it was not until the two of them reached the door that he heard the young woman, named Sisi, muttering, "Sister Qinyu, didn't you say that you wanted to pour wine all over that fellow? Why did you apologise to him….."
Hearing those words, Ning Cheng immediately grasped something in his mind. That woman initially had helped him intentionally. However, what he could not understand was how this veiled woman knew that someone had put a restriction over him, and why did she want to help him. After all, the two of them did not even know each other.
"Let's go back. With such things happening, I don't feel like drinking anymore." Ning Cheng did not want to stay in the place where someone had marked him with a Spiritual Consciousness Tag. Now that he had gotten rid of his outer robes, he tried to leave this place as fast as possible.
"Okay." Ruan Mingshu replied with her usual soft voice. However, she did not forget to purchase the two pots of wine sent over by the server, before whispering to Ning Cheng, "Let's head to my room to drink. Although it is a fake wine, I still want to taste it."
Although Ruan Mingshu spoke out with her usual demure tone, it contained a hint of incomprehensibility within it, causing Ning Cheng unexpectedly to feel desirous enough to comply with her wishes.
"Huh, what's going on? Jingshan, find out what happened in that rest stop. Why did that male cultivator take off his robes in the rest stop and why did those fellows leave?" On one of the more bustling streets of the Revolving Jade City, a white-robed youth suddenly frowned and stopped before speaking to one of the people around him.
"Yes…." The middle-aged man next to him quickly responded and immediately left.
Not long after, the middle-aged man returned to the white-robed man's side and reported, "Reporting to master. The little girl involved in the previous incident in the rest stop deliberately splashed a pot of wine on that male cultivator. Following which, the male cultivator immediately took off his outer robed. The two sides almost came to blows because of that incident."
The white-robed youth nodded before speaking, "Then let's forget it. Guess that fellow got lucky."
He did not overthink about it, that young woman indeed was a troublemaker and had even referred to that pair as a flower stuck in shit. It was only reasonable to expect the two sides would end up in conflict eventually.
Translated By – DemonKiller
Checked and Edited By – Livewidsmile
ProofreadBy-DemonKiller
Please do not host our works anywhere else without our permission.
Chapter 0516: A Challenge Visit
"Ning Cheng, if you have enough cultivation resources, would you still head to the Man Lun Starry Skies' Tryouts?" Ruan Mingshu spoke after drinking most of the pot of wine. Her face had a reddish hue to it, and her eyes sparkled with moisture, which enhanced her beauty even more.
At this time, she stared at Ning Cheng with scorching intensity, and even forgot to address him as 'Senior Apprentice Brother Ning'; even her tone contained a unique charm.
Ning Cheng took a sip of wine but did not look at Ruan Mingshu's face. Currently, he felt somewhat fascinated with Ruan Mingshu's room. This room was an epitome of a maiden's vision and even filled with pink colours.
"Not necessarily, participating in the tryouts is also a test of your own experience. I heard that the Man Lun Starry Skies has many geniuses, and only by going against these geniuses would one progress." Ning Cheng put down the wine pot. Although this wine was just an imitation, it still instilled a strong sense of parting.
"Ning Cheng, say if I had a lot of cultivation resources, would you like to run away with me?" Ruan Mingshu's voice felt as if it came from the somewhere below the ground, and felt somewhat unreal.
Ning Cheng looked at Ruan Mingshu in surprise, "Junior Apprentice Sister Mingshu, if I'm not mistaken, you would not even look at people like me, right? Then why would you choose me to run away with you?"
Ning Cheng found that people who usually drank 'None to depend on' had some similarities with each other. Initially, it was Jing Wuming, and now it was Ruan Mingshu.
Ruan Mingshu behaved as if she did not hear Ning Cheng. Although she looked at Ning Cheng with a desolate look in her eyes, Ning Cheng felt sure that her eyes were not looking at his face or him for the matter.
It was a long time later that she muttered, "Often apart, abandon heart; gazing into the distant stars, none to depend on… The first half of this poem is definitely wrong; often apart, abandoned heart….."
Ning Cheng only then came to understand that when Ruan Mingshu spoke about eloping with him, it did not really mean that she wanted to flee with him, and indicated that she had a person whom she loved. She tried to run away to meet that man. Sadly, the reality was not something that she could control. Her father wanted her to look for the Perpetual Moon Lake. It looked like even if Ning Cheng agreed to her demands, Ruan Mingshu would not actually run away with him.
Ning Cheng shook his head and slowly stood up and left Ruan Mingshu alone in her room. Ruan Mingshu did not even feel him go and still muttered to herself.
It was after a while that she finally sobered up. Looking at the empty seat in front of her, she gave out a sigh and muttered to herself, "If you had agreed with me, we could have made it good by eloping. You are a good man, but I'm not….."
The Revolving Jade City had more than one arena; however, the most famous one currently was the Celestial Forest Arena. More specifically, it was its 19th Battle Ring, championed by Wanderer from the starry skies. This starry skies' Wanderer did not have a Celestial Wheel; however, he remained undefeated since the moment he debuted.
Because of this, even individual Celestial Gatherer Cultivators made their way to the 19th Battle Ring to issue challenges, something rare. Generally, Celestial Gatherer Cultivator held a lot of pride in themselves and would rarely go to challenge Celestial Novice and Celestial Shatterer Cultivators in their Battle Rings. Especially since these kinds of challenges not only needed the lower-level Champions' consent but also required those with high-level cultivations to pay Celestial Coins to issue those challenges.
If one won, it would not matter much; however, if they lost, their pride would take a huge hit. Besides, regardless of who came to the arena, everyone wanted to improve. As such, who would willingly challenge someone with lower cultivation? Something akin to a thankless job.
However, what made the 19th Battle Ring stand out the most was that every Celestial Gatherer Cultivator that came to challenge ended up defeated.
Moreover, the person presiding over as the champion of the 19th Battle Ring possessed a formidable intent, which benefitted the cultivators spectating a lot.
At this moment, the Celestial Forest Arena's 19th Battle Ring had gained enough fame to cover almost half the Revolving Jade City. Every day, the tickets for the 19th Battle Ring sold clean, not just the Challenge Tickets but also the Spectating Tickets. Even so, more and more cultivators wanted to head to the 19th Battle Ring to spectate.
Many people even started to queue to buy Spectating Tickets to the 19th Battle Ring in advance. Similarly, even those who wanted to buy the Challenge Tickets to the 19th Battle Ring had to line up to purchase tickets in advance lest they could never get a chance. All these challenging cultivators had a number assigned to them from which the Champion would openly select someone at random; as such, only those selected could come out and fight.
Even the other three battle rings of the Celestial Forest Arena, which also had undefeated champions, had lost popularity because of the new champion of the 19th Battle Ring.
Ning Cheng felt quite satisfied with the recent proceedings while gaining a lot from the arena. Not only had he seen a variety of Spiritual Techniques and skills, he even experienced many types of fighting styles.
Fighting in this kind of place had allowed him to proliferate. Moreover, because of the Mysterious Yellow Formless' power, he could even operate the cultivation method while fighting. This kind of fights allowed both his cultivation and strength to advance ten thousand miles every day.
Most of the opponents who came to challenge him were Celestial Shatterer or Celestial Novice Cultivators. He also fought a few Celestial Gatherer Cultivators. However, those cultivators' strength could not even match up to Gongxi Kui or Kirk, or even Ni Feng; as such, Ning Cheng did not feel too much pressure. The cultivators of the starry skies, even within the same realm, could have a vast disparity in strengths. However, Ning Cheng still actively avoided picking strong Celestial Gatherer Cultivators. Even with a Starry Skies' Sea of Consciousness, he did not want to take any unexpected risks.
The Celestial Forest Arena also had on several occasions tried to find him to sign a contract; however, he ceremoniously rejected them all. He could only stay in this battle ring for a month at max and would definitely leave this place after this month. How could he enter into a contract with the Celestial Forest Arena?
However, he did accept the Immortal Gave given to him by the arena. Sometimes, after the fights, he would choose to stay in this place and cultivate.
Apart from this reason, there was another reason why Ning Cheng felt slightly embarrassed to head back, the Grade 4 Celestial River Array Disc that he had previously borrowed from Ruan Mingshu. A Grade 4 Celestial River Array Disc was not something that one could obtain easily, and Ning Cheng felt at a loss as to explain things to Ruan Mingshu. As such, he hoped to drag things one day at a time.
This was the eleventh day since Ning Cheng had taken over the 19th Battle Ring. At this moment, an attendant from the Celestial Forest Arena arrived at his place, intending on catching him before he went to the battle ring.
At this time, Ning Cheng's cultivation had also started to stabilise at the middle of Celestial Novice Realm. If Ning Cheng cultivated at the same pace as before, he affirmed that it would not be impossible to achieve such progress this fast. However, for Ning Cheng, cultivation improvement remained secondary; the main thing for him was that his strength had improved a lot compared to before.
The person who came to meet Ning Cheng was one of the stewards of the Celestial Forest Arena, who went by the name, Zeng Chuxiong.
"Dao Friend Wanderer, you don't have to head to the battle ring today." Zeng Chuxiong on seeing Ning Cheng immediately asked Ning Cheng to not head to the battle ring.
This made Ning Cheng feel very weird. Heading to the arena definitely made a lot of money for these fellows. So why was this fellow trying to stop him?
"Why? Steward Zeng?"
Zeng Chuxiong spoke to Ning Cheng with a face full of smiles, "The Gale Arena's premier champion came to our Celestial Forest Arena to issue a challenge. It is going to be an exciting match that would stir the entire Revolving Jade City. You can take a break for two days and then participate in this match. Your name definitely would rise up within the Revolving Jade City after this match. Even resounding throughout the Orchid Borough Celestial River."
Ning Cheng spoke out calmly, "I most likely would end up dead in this match. If that were to happen, my name would also turn to ashes in the wind."
Trying to make him fight strong Celestial Gatherer Cultivators, he would not agree even under brain damage. Ordinary Celestial Gatherer Cultivators were not as good as Celestial Shatterer Cultivators; as such, he could still act tough. However, how could they expect him to face off against strong Celestial Gatherer Cultivators? Was it not akin to seeking death?
Zeng Chuxiong showed an awkward smile, "Dao Friend Wanderer, with your skill, you would never lose to that Suo Qiaoye, who is just a madman with a simple mind. Moreover, as long as you win this match, you would even earn an unimaginable sum of Blue Coins."
Ning Cheng sneered in his heart; how could a simple-minded person become a champion? He and the Celestial Forest Arena did not have any contract between them; moreover, the reason he came here was to find a variety of people to fight. However, using his life to exchange for money, and even helping others count the money was not something he felt willing enough to do.
"Steward Zeng, the number of experts in the Celestial Forest Arena are akin to clouds in the sky. Moreover, the champions from the 1st, 3rd and 15th Battle Rings are even stronger than I am and are real Celestial Gatherer Powerhouses. Moreover, they even have a contract with the Celestial Forest Arena; why not let these strong fellows compete in the match? Rather, why do you want me, someone with just a little fame to his name, to take the stage?"
Although Ning Cheng spoke in a bland tone, he believed that Zeng Chuxiong could definitely hear the underlying intent.
The three battle rings that he mentioned had a single champion each. Moreover, they were the three most dominant champions of the Celestial Forest Arena. As for the contract, it was to remind Zeng Chuxiong that Ning Cheng was a free person; compared to those three, he could just choose to walk away from this place.
"Your popularity and cultivation made you the best candidate to represent our Celestial Forest Arena. Besides, are you unwilling to compete? This time, the prize money is 500 billion Blue Coins, which is equivalent to 5 billion Green Coins. With 5 billion Green Coins in your pocket, you could buy countless good things within the Man Lun Starry Skies." Zeng Chuxiong spoke cautiously.
He also felt somewhat helpless in his heart. If the Celestial Forest Arena had any Celestial Novice Cultivator on contract who could fight against that Suo Qiaoye, why would he willingly come to this Ning Cheng and try to worship him as his grandfather?
Ning Cheng remained unmoved; although 5 billion Green Coins indeed was a lot of money, it only concerned ordinary Celestial Scryer Cultivators. For him, 5 billion Green Coins was not even enough to purchase a real Celestial River Battleship.
"If you are willing to take the stage, I will help you with one request; as long as it is within our capability, my Celestial Forest Arena will definitely help you with it." Another voice arrived.
Zeng Chuxiong quickly turned around and gave a respectful bow towards the person who came in, "Arena Master."
The person referred to as the Celestial Forest Arena's Arena Master, Ning Cheng had also heard a lot about him. As such, he quickly put up his fists and spoke, "Wanderer greets the Arena Master."
The newly arrived fellow gave the nod and asked, "What do you think of my proposal?"
Ning Cheng hesitated for a moment before speaking out slowly, "No matter what the conditions are, I only have a Celestial Novice Cultivation. I will not fight against a Celestial Gatherer Champion. I hope that the Arena Master can understand my concerns."
The Arena Master froze for a moment before he burst out into laughter and could only speak after a while, "Who told you that the other party is a Celestial Gatherer Cultivator? That fellow is just the same as you, a true Celestial Novice Cultivator. If Gale Arena wanted to use their Celestial Gatherer Cultivators to issue a challenge to my Celestial Forest Arena's Celestial Novice Champion, they would immediately lose by default, without even the chance to enter the battle ring."
"Celestial Novice Cultivation? A Celestial Novice Cultivator could still take the spot of the Premier Champion?" Ning Cheng asked a question, thinking it was some kind of a trick.
The Arena Master immediately understood Ning Cheng's utter ignorance towards the Premier Champion, and explained patiently, "The lower the Arena Champion's cultivation, the more famous they are. At the same time, the Arena would also rake in more money. If they used a champion with top-tier cultivation, it would not make much sense; on the contrary, it would only harm their reputation. As such, the Arena's select their Premier Champion through a comprehensive assessment of both strength and cultivation. A lower one's cultivation but possessing a higher strength, the higher would your visibility and ranking be."
"You can also understand why your 19th Battle Ring became so popular. That is because you could jump levels to take on challenges. This is something that everyone desires to see. The reason that the Gale Arena could overshadow my Celestial Forest Arena for so long is due to a Celestial Novice Powerhouse, Suo Qiaoye. However, in recent times, you ended up making a name for yourself at my Celestial Forest Arena, shaving away at the popularity of the Gale Arena. This is why those people came to challenge us."
Translated By – DemonKiller
Checked and Edited By – Livewidsmile
ProofreadBy-DemonKiller
Please do not host our works anywhere else without our permission.
Chapter 0517: To become a wanderer
That was the case. From the looks of it, if one had a sufficient strength despite low cultivation, the audience would find their matches the most appealing. Ning Cheng had already made it clear that he was just a Celestial Novice Cultivator. At the same time, most of his opponents were Celestial Shatterer Cultivators, apart from a few Celestial Gatherer Cultivators. From the looks of it, most of his matches had ended up as level-surpassing challenges, which had invariantly contributed to his newfound fame.
The Arena ranked their champions based on their abilities to take up level-surpassing challenges. Once one decided to take up level-surpassing challenges, as long as they could remain the champion, they would then be able to pick their opponents. If a Celestial Gatherer Cultivator challenged them, they could either refuse or agree. At the same time, of the Celestial Forest Arena's three most formidable champions, two had a Celestial Gatherer Cultivation while the other had a Celestial Shatterer Cultivation. No wonder the Stage Master wanted him to take the stage.
Using a Celestial Gatherer Champion to fight against someone else's Celestial Novice Champion, even if they won, there would be no glory it in. Moreover, not many people would come to watch the match.
However, if that Suo Qiaoye really had just a Celestial Novice Cultivation, then he would not have to worry too much, as long as his cultivation remained within the Celestial Novice Realm. Even if he had a late-stage Celestial Novice Cultivation, so what of it?
Thinking of it, Ning Cheng spoke up, "If I can obtain the Wishful Treasure Light Silk and the Sky Treasure Silk, plus the 5 billion Green Coins, I can think of taking up the challenge."
Ning Cheng did not feel afraid knowing that he had to fight against a strong Celestial Novice Cultivator. Moreover, there were also benefits involved now. As for whether he became famous or not, he did not care about it. Especially since his current appearance was not his actual appearance.
The Arena Master pondered over it slightly before speaking, "The Sky Treasure Silk is too precious, and I won't be able to obtain it; however, I can help you get the Wishful Treasure Light Silk."
Ning Cheng spoke up without missing a beat, "Deal; however, if I have to take up the challenge, I would need the Wishful Treasure Light Silk right now."
The reason Ning Cheng had not wanted to take up the challenge previously, apart from not wanting to fight against strong Celestial Gatherer Cultivators, was to avoid becoming a puppet. It was just plain stupid to risk his small life to help a few unknown people earn money.
If the Celestial Forest Arena could take out the Wishful Treasure Light Silk, everything would change. As long as he could obtain the Wishful Treasure Light Silk, he could use it immediately to upgrade his Twin Wings of the Heavenly Light to four pairs of glittering lights, which would improve his odds of surviving tremendously.
"Ok, you will get the Wishful Treasure Light Silk tomorrow. For now, just rest for the coming two days. In these two days, we will work on promoting this fight to the entire Revolving Jade City. Two days later, you and the Gale Arena's Suo Qiaoye will duke it out in the Celestial Forest Arena. Dao Friend Wanderer, this time my Celestial Forest Arena will depend on you." The Arena Master spoke out straightforwardly.
"Stage Master, rest assured that as long as I get what I want, I will definitely go all out." Ning Cheng expressed his own determination according to the circumstances. With appropriate benefits, one could even work themselves to death willingly.
Ning Cheng decided to stay put for now. Waiting in the Immortal Cave, he began to consolidate and temper his cultivation and Spiritual Consciousness. At the same time, Ning Cheng also prepared to immediately retreat after the fight. If he could kill Suo Qiaoye, it would definitely make him famous. However, having concealed his identity, fame would not bring him any advantages.
Ning Cheng had not thought that before the Wishful Treasure Light Silk had arrived, someone else came to his Immortal Cave. Moreover, it was someone he knew, Shi Yulan.
Ning Cheng opened the restriction over his Immortal Cave. Looking at Shi Yulan garbed in robes from top to bottom, he could not help but frown. Even if Shang Mou Celestial River King had temporarily left the Revolving Jade City, he believed that Shi Yulan should not have come out at this time.
Seeing Ning Cheng frown, Shi Yulan quickly spoke up, "Wanderer, you should not know me, my name is Shi Yulan, and I'm a huge fan of your fights. Moreover, you even helped take care of two enemies of my Senior Apprentice Sister and me. Today I just came to ask you about something. It might be a bit presumptuous of me, but….."
She originally came as a fan, Ning Cheng thought as he spoke up, "Please come in and have a seat."
"What do you want from me?" Ning Cheng looked at Shi Yulan, who sat opposite to him and asked bluntly while feeling somewhat funny inside.
Shi Yulan looked nervous. She knew that starry skies' wanderers were an unrestrained and unruly bunch. For these starry skies' wanderers, women served only a single function, that is, for venting. Because of this, most of the male cultivators wandering the starry skies had no respect for female cultivators.
Only, she worshipped the starry skies' wanderers a bit too much. From this starry skies' wanderer in front of her, she understood a lot many things that she could not comprehend while staying in seclusion. After each fight, her cultivation had also advanced a lot. However, whenever Ning Cheng fought, to avoid troubles, she never dared to use her Spiritual Consciousness to sweep outside the battle ring. As such, no one knew that she had come to watch the matches.
However, hearing a relatively polite tone from Ning Cheng stunned her for a few moments. This starry skies' wanderer seemed a little different from the others.
"I heard that you're going to fight against Gale Arena's Suo Qiaoye. I came to tell you specifically not to represent the Celestial Forest Arena. You can't say yes to this fight." Shi Yulan felt slightly at peace in front of Ning Cheng for some reason. Even her previously nervous mood had calmed down a bit.
"Oh, why do you say that? I heard that Suo Qiaoye is just a Celestial Novice Cultivator. Why shouldn't I say yes?" Ning Cheng asked in a calm voice.
Hearing Ning Cheng's calm voice, the last shred of anxiety within Shi Yulan completely disappeared. "Dao Friend Wanderer, that Suo Qiaoye is too powerful. I heard that he has killed more than one Celestial Gatherer Cultivator. I heard that his Chess Domain has already reached a deep level. Even a Celestial Bridge Cultivator cannot pry into his Chess Domain."
"His Chess Domain?" Ning Cheng asked in confusion.
Shi Yulan gave an affirmative nod, "Yes, his weapon of choice is a chess board; however, there are only three chess pieces on his chess board. Supposedly, the number of chess pieces increases with every advance in his cultivation. From what people say, he has more than three chess pieces, and only Celestial Gatherer Cultivators can force him to use more pieces. By the way, I brought you a crystal ball with a recording one of his fights against a Celestial Shatterer Powerhouse. It might be of some use to you."
"Why are you helping me?" Ning Cheng looked at Shi Yulan and asked calmly. He felt confused. Even if he helped avenge Lan Ya, Shi Yulan would not help him. To say that Shi Yulan recognised him, Ning Cheng would also never believe it.
A slightly defective middle-grade Dao Artefact was still a middle-grade Dao Artefact. If a minor Celestial Gatherer Cultivator could see through the essence of this middle-grade Masking Dao Artefact, then this middle-grade Dao Artefact was just worthless.
Shi Yulan's face turned red before she stood up and spoke, "I don't know. I need to leave now. If you really want to fight this match, then you should be careful."
Shi Yulan quickly hurried out of the Immortal Cave and only left behind a gratitude-filled thank you for Ning Cheng. She honestly had no idea as to why she came here to help this person. However, what she did know was that the fights of this starry skies' wanderer in the battle ring had truly shocked her. Although that bearded starry skies' wanderer gave off a feeling of vicissitudes, it had an ethereal feel to it.
What she did not know was that her senses were right on the mark. Ning Cheng had disguised himself with an illusion, and the person she saw didn't exist at all.
After Shi Yulan left, Ning Cheng immediately looked into the crystal ball that she had given.
Seeing Suo Qiaoye's appearance in the crystal ball caused a bit of surprise to Ning Cheng. He had initially thought that Suo Qiaoye had an appearance similar to him, that is, a rough and unobtrusive look, maybe even a beard. Primarily due to Zeng Chuxiong's words, which described him as a maniac without any brains.
However, the fact was that Suo Qiaoye had a slightly pale face, thinner than him. He even had a somewhat slim figure and wore his hair shot. However, when he held up his cupped fist to speak before the match, he showed quite a powerful expression.
The crystal ball could not record Celestial Wheels; as such, Ning Cheng could also not make out Suo Qiaoye's cultivation from the crystal ball. Presumably, the Celestial Forest Arena's Arena Master will not lie to him, and this person should have only a Celestial Novice Cultivation.
Suo Qiaoye's opponent was not tall, and a seemingly young cultivator. After the two people cupped their fists and spoke a sentence, Suo Qiaoye began.
Ning Cheng saw Suo Qiaoye take out a weapon, which indeed turned out to be a chessboard. Moreover, the board indeed had three pieces over it.
Suo Qiaoye's opponent wielded a pair of cross-swords. The moment this pair of cross-swords appeared, many cross-sword shadows filled the sky. The moment these cross-shadows came out, these cross-sword shadows immediately submerged Suo Qiaoye.
However, Suo Qiaoye's hand flicked twice, and two of the pieces on the board flew out. The two pieces swirled around the cross-sword shadows and quickly formed a huge vortex. The vortex started turning faster and faster. In just a few breaths, it completely swallowed these cross-sword shadows.
The cultivator, the one controlling the cross-sword, seemed to have felt a suppressive force and quickly started retreating in panic. However, he ended up stopped by a massive iron wall, which was Suo Qiaoye's chessboard. In the next moment, the only remaining piece transformed into a giant peak. This peak then fell down and directly smashed the cultivator wielding the cross-swords into a meat paste.
The entire battle was clean and neat without any shred of lag.
"What a powerful fellow." Ning Cheng thought as he put away the crystal ball. Taking a deep breath, he realised that this Suo Qiaoye turned out more powerful than his imagination. Moreover, Ning Cheng also felt sure that Suo Qiaoye had not even used half of his abilities.
However, there was one point that struck out; Ning Cheng did not see any indication of an Intent Field within Suo Qiaoye's chessboard or the chess pieces.
Inside Bright Gist Resting Pen, Lan Ya stared at Shi Yulan for a long time before speaking, "Yulan, you are crazy. You have been sneaking out to the arena for the past few days regularly to watch the matches. Now you even went to the point of purchasing Suo Qiaoye's crystal ball and even trying to gather information about him from the people. Do you know how dangerous it is to do such things? In case that Shang Mou Celestial River King came to know about this, you would die. Not only would you die, but even Ning Cheng who helped you would also die."
Shi Yulan, somewhat embarrassed, grabbed Lan Ya's hand and spoke, "I'm sorry Senior Apprentice Sister Lan. I have been watching that Wanderer's matches for the last few days, and it helped me deepen my understandings about Intent Fields. Also, Shang Mou Celestial River King already left the Revolving Jade City a long time ago, why would he care about such a small matter?"
"Small matter, you were the woman that he had taken away, do you think it is a small matter?" Lan Ya spoke quietly.
Shi Yulan's face turned slightly ugly, "Senior Apprentice Sister Lan, you don't have to speak such harsh words. Although I went with him, I, however, am not his woman. I am me, and he is he."
"You are beautiful and attractive, if even I cannot help but admit it, do you think that someone like that Shang Mou Celestial River King would let you go? Don't try to deceive me." Lan Ya spoke without any ill intentions.
Shi Yulan's face turned even harder to look at, "Although that Shang Mou Celestial River King is despicable, he definitely has a Celestial River King's pride. As such, he does not lack beautiful women. Even if he did not desire it, countless beautiful women would willingly throw themselves at him. Do you think that he would take the initiative to ask a woman to sleep with him?"
"Ok, I'm in the wrong here. Let's talk about things after a good night's rest." Lan Ya on seeing Shi Yulan turn angrier by the word quickly comforted her.
"You go and sleep with Senior Apprentice Brother Ning for the night; I'm just a 'nobody'." Shi Yulan spat out words in anger before quickly turning to leave.
Lan Ya did not feel angry, instead smiled and spoke out in a calm tone, "He and I are just passers-by in each other's lives, but it’s better for you if you match with him."
Shi Yulan gazed in the direction of the arena for a while before she spoke with a hint of sadness in her eyes, "He and I are not even passers-by, Senior Apprentice Sister Lan, after these tryouts end, let's head into the starry skies to wander. Maybe, it might not turn out bad to become a starry skies' wanderer."