"Mu Chen..."
As the Dominator of Daluo's voice resonated, the massive crowd momentarily fell silent before an unsuppressed commotion of whispers broke out.
Everyone was stupefied and looked at Mu Chen, who was equally stunned.
Xu Qing and Zhou Yue were startled for a moment, and then they looked at each other. Their lips moved, but they could not utter a word, as they dared not go against the choice of the Dominator of Daluo.
Though they spoke not, their eyes revealed their suspicions. They had witnessed clashes between Mu Chen and Wu Tian before, therefore, they knew that there was more to the young man than met the eye.
However, Mu Chen did depend on the Nine Nether Troop's fighting spirit during his battle with Wu Tian. But in the upcoming fight, he could only rely on his own strength. The crowd couldn't help but doubt him.
As the furor spread, not only was the crowd dumbfounded, but even Mu Chen could not stop himself from leaving his mouth open. He looked at Tang Bing beside him, whose lovely face was equally startled.
Evidently, she could never have imagined Mu Chen being selected by the Dominator of Daluo.
Although many expressed their disbelief, the Dominator of Daluo's commanding authority was absolute, and no one dared disapprove. The silence after an agitated uproar created an uncanny contrast.
Nine Nether gave Mu Chen a strange look. After a short hesitation, she finally cupped her right fist with her left palm and said, "My Lord, Mu Chen is still inexperienced. Would it not be too risky to send him?"
The three upcoming battles were of extreme importance, and any selected candidate would be put under enormous pressure. If they won, all would be well, but if they lost, the stress they would have to bear would not be light. Although Nine Nether also hoped that Mu Chen could shine in this fight, she could not allow herself to put Mu Chen in such danger.
Upon hearing this, the Dominator of Daluo waved his palm and said with a relaxed smile, "Worry not. He will do."
At Dominator of Daluo's insistence, Nine Nether resisted no more. However, she still had a curious look in her elegant eyes. She still could not fathom why the Dominator of Daluo was so keen on Mu Chen. Logically, with his power level at this point, Mu Chen shouldn't even have the right to be noticed by the Dominator of Daluo.
The crowd kept quiet when they saw this. The word of the Dominator of Daluo was absolute. Since he was determined in his choice, not a soul dared to go against him.
And so, the candidacy in the battle of commanders fell upon Mu Chen's shoulders just like that.
The countless powerful masters in Daluo Territory looked at each other, every one of them sighing in their hearts. Now they could only hope that they won the first two matches, as Mu Chen's result would not matter then.
Facing the countless sighs and odd looks, Mu Chen could only curl his lips. He was equally ignorant about which nerve in the Dominator of Daluo went haywire, causing him to insist on sending Mu Chen.
"Hehe, it seems like the Dominator of Daluo has picked his candidate!" The Sword-Hiding Elder laughed. He took a glance at the drowsy Sleeping King, and dread rose in his eyes. He clearly understood that the Sleeping King was the most unpredictable among the Three Kings.
Then he looked at Lord Asura. He was clad in armor and was expressionless. But underneath his seemingly peaceful eyes, a terrifying massacre was surging, and those who saw it quivered in fear.
Among the Nine Lords of Daluo Territory, Lord Asura was no doubt the strongest. It was said that if a top power were to be promoted to king, it would most certainly be Lord Asura.
Finally, the old man set his sights upon Mu Chen, and he was shocked at once. Grade Two Sovereign? When had the commanders of Daluo Territory gotten so weak?
A sliver of doubt flashed in the eyes of the Sword-Hiding Elder, but he did not show it. He merely let out a laugh. "Since the candidates have been chosen, let the Dominator of Daluo decide on the order of the battles."
The Dominator of Daluo shone with a bright light, and then he took a look at the Sleeping King. The latter walked out unhurriedly and said with a smile, "Let's start with the strongest, then."
With a leap, his figure appeared high up in the air, and he looked at the Demonic Sorrow Sovereign saying, "It was rumored that you broke through the shackles of the world and are an exceptional genius. I am honored to be able to witness that today."
The Demonic Sorrow Sovereign laughed, and his figure rippled and disappeared eerily. Then, like a wave of water, he materialized before the Sleeping King.
"I have also heard of Brother Meng's Great Dream Nerve that enables meditation in a half-asleep state. Such a fascinating technique. Hopefully, I will learn a lot from you today," the Demonic Sorrow Sovereign spoke slowly while staring at the Sleeping King with his eyes that looked like two galaxies.
"Your words are too kind."
With a laugh, the usual drowsiness and grogginess dissipated from the Sleeping King's eyes and was replaced by a sharp glint.
With a wave of his sleeves, the blue skies were seemingly twisted. Then, a horrifying spiritual energy pressure great enough to crush the skies covered the heavens and the earth.
Bang! Bang!
Above the heavens, all layers of clouds exploded and shattered, and space itself seemed to have twisted. Violent cracks spread throughout space. As the Sleeping King grasped the air, blackish spatial cracks appeared on his palm like tiny, slithering snakes. Only those with a wise eye could tell how dangerous the power of those tiny snakes formed from spatial cracks was.
That was the power of space.
"Grade Eight Sovereign, spatial control!"
Between the heavens and the earth, innumerable powerful individuals inhaled sharply. To bend space to one's will was a feat only Grade Eight Sovereigns could achieve. Obviously, the Sleeping King had attained Grade Eight!
At the back, while the Condor King and the Spiritual Pupil King were watching this scene, they could only smile. It seemed like the Sleeping King had taken the lead. While they both had met the requirements to be a Grade Eight Sovereign, they were still a distance away from actually entering its gates.
"As expected from Master Sleeping King." Tang Bing unknowingly let out the words of praise. According to her knowledge, the last time the Three Kings displayed their prowess, their strength was around that of Grade Seven Sovereign. Now, it was obvious that her knowledge was outdated.
Mu Chen nodded slightly in response. He looked at the silhouette standing erect in the sky. The power emanating from his body was truly capable of obliterating the heavens and the earth.
Focused on by countless gazes of shock and awe, the Sleeping King gave the Demonic Sorrow Sovereign a mischievous smile, and with a flick of his finger, the tiny black snakes in his hand disappeared in a peculiar fashion.
BOOOOM!
It was at this moment that the space around the Demonic Sorrow Sovereign suddenly convulsed, immediately followed by a tear in space. Spatial cracks, black and ferocious, started to materialize, like scissors cutting through space, flying toward the Demonic Sorrow Sovereign without hesitation.
While that type of attack wasn't one that packed an earth-shattering spiritual energy, it was far more vicious than the collision of spiritual energies. The power embedded within the spatial cracks could instantly dice a Grade Five Sovereign into pieces. Most importantly, normal individuals could never evade that attack. As fast as one could be, no one could outrun the shredding of space.
The spatial cracks tore space apart, but the Demonic Sorrow Sovereign's expression was stoic. He only put an arm out in front of himself and smiled faintly. The space around him was twisted at once, and spatial cracks that were equally ferocious spread out from him and clashed with cracks that were surrounding him.
Crrrrrk! Crrk!
Thin noises echoed through the air. As the spatial cracks collided with each other, they merely canceled each other out and dissipated in puffs of smoke. They did not cause any devastating shockwaves.
"Spatial control?!"
"Even the Demonic Sorrow Sovereign has entered Grade Eight!"
Several exclamations emerged from the crowd. Anyone who saw the event would see that the Demonic Sorrow Sovereign used the same technique to defuse the attack of spatial cracks.
Obviously, the Demonic Sorrow Sovereign had attained the capability of a Grade Eight Sovereign!
"This fella, he truly is a powerful individual who has broken the shackles of the world," Tang Bing said while she knitted her brows.
"It seems like to determine a victor, a difficult battle will have to take place." Mu Chen's face was grave. It was no wonder that the Demonic Sorrow Sovereign was selected as the opponent of a King-level, powerful individual. It seemed like they hid many of their capabilities as well. This Grade Eight Sovereign should be considered the strongest among the Big Three of Hundred Battle Territory.
"Interesting. After a long hiatus, I hope I am not rusty." The Sleeping King could not stop himself from smiling when he saw the incident. The look in his eyes had started to sharpen. This opponent was worthy of his full attention.
"I'm looking forward to your lesson, Brother Meng," Demonic Sorrow uttered with a smile, but his eyes were emotionless.
The Sleeping King smiled in return and gently shut his eyes. As his eyelids closed, the wide space behind him started to twist and turn. It was as if that area had turned into a black hole, frantically devouring the spiritual energies in the heavens and the earth.
As the spiritual energies turned into rays of rainbows and converged in that area, a gargantuan figure of a few tens of thousands of feet gradually took shape.
That figure was sitting cross-legged in the void, its whole body covered in dazzling light. But it wasn't a mere projection. As the light flowed in between, the figure became an actual body, a real giant!
Furthermore, a gigantic golden dragon seemed to be circling above the figure. The humongous dragon remained on top of the figure with its head raised high, as if it wanted to devour the heavens and the earth.
When the monstrous figure appeared, the whole sky shuddered and shook, as if it could not bear the pressure of the figure.
ROAR!
The gigantic golden dragon roared at the sky, and its voice resonated in the heavens. A golden tide of sound swept out. At that very instant, the heavens and the earth shattered!
Below, Mu Chen gazed at the enormous figure and the gigantic golden dragon around it. He could not help squinting, and he mumbled to himself, "Is this… the Sky Dragon Celestial Body?"
The Sky Dragon Celestial Body, ranked 70th among the 99 Sovereign Celestial Bodies!