"Nine Nether Palace, Mu Chen."
As Mandela's last sentence reverberated, the noise in Daluo Square seemed to have stopped for a moment, and then a thousand stares of astonishment were cast towards Mu Chen's direction, and the commotion resumed.
"Mu Chen? The new Commander of Nine Nether Palace?"
"Even he can join the Ceremony of Bestowing Lordship? Isn't it too hasty? He entered our Daluo Territory only less than a year ago."
"Although he excelled in the Dragon-Phoenix Rift, the Ceremony of Bestowing Lordship is much more difficult than that, and it was said that Mu Chen could only win the first prize in the Dragon-Phoenix Rift because of the help of the daughter of the Flame Emperor."
"It is said that there is this reason…"
"…"
After all, the time Mu Chen had spent in Daluo Territory was too short, and the speed of his rise was too rapid. Ordinary people had to struggle in the world of Daluo Territory for many years to achieve success, but he could do it in less than a year.
This difference always caused many people to feel jealous and envious, so it was inevitable for them to pick on Mu Chen.
Qiu Taiyin was dressed in a black robe and smiled at Mu Chen, but at the same time, he did not show any emotion. In his eyes, only Qin Zhong could pose a threat to him. As for Mu Chen, he may have immense talent but after all, he was too young to be viewed as a threat.
He must win the position of the tenth Lord!
Mu Chen paid no attention to the overwhelming uproar that questioned his qualifications. He kept his eyes down, and his expression was calm. Tang Bing, Tang Rou, and the members of the Nine Nether Palace behind him were indignant for him, but they did not argue and refute them as Nine Nether had stopped them from doing so.
Arguing and stating refutations at this time would obviously be ridiculous and useless, as facts were needed to prove a point.
Atop the golden throne, Mandela's little face was expressionless as she looked at the uproar in the square. Her petite hands pressed down gently, and the crowd in the square immediately quieted down.
In this Daluo Territory, she was the sole ruler. Whatever she said was an irrevocable law.
"Now that everyone has arrived, I declare the Ceremony of Bestowing Lordship officially started." Her little hand waved gently, and her majestic voice made it seem as if the world was trembling slightly.
Bong!
The bell rang once again throughout the world, and countless powerful people's eyes blazed with passion. They knew that the Battle of Bestowing Lordship was bound to be a fierce one.
Whoosh!
Amid the countless gazes, Qiu Taiyin smiled faintly. His body moved and directly appeared on the Platform of Bestowing Lordship. He had one hand placed behind his back. He ignored Mu Chen and pointed to Qin Zhong and laughed. "Brother Qin Zhong, I hope you can teach me much in this duel."
Qin Zhong took a look at Mu Chen. A smile appeared on the latter's young face, and with a flash, he appeared on the Platform of Bestowing Lordship like a specter, standing opposite Qiu Taiyin.
The confrontation between the two men saw great spiritual energy that swept over the atmosphere. An oppressive pressure permeated the platform so that even countless strong men's gazes turned grave.
Qin Zhong's eyes locked onto Qiu Taiyin sharply, and his fists slowly clenched. The latter was now gaining popularity among many of the old strongest men in Daluo Territory, and the supposed man who was next in line to become a lord was no mere rumor.
The Battle of Bestowing Lordship today would not be an easy one.
Boom!
Mighty and powerful spiritual energy erupted from Qin Zhong's body like a storm, and his gaze immediately turned cold. His feet stomped, and his figure soared straight into the sky. His palms looked as if they were transformed from white jade and sparkled with a beam of jade light that emanated a powerful force.
"Jade Tripod Palms!" Qin Zhongli roared. In his white, jade-like palms there was a hidden Jade Tripod Symbol that emerged, and then the mighty spiritual energy transformed into the blow of a palm that surged out. In that spiritual energy palm, there was also a Jade Tripod light symbol, emitting infinite power as if it could suppress majestic mountains.
"Haha, for a long time, I have heard that Brother Qin Zhong's Jade Tripod Divine Art is powerful indeed. Well, I'll have to try it for myself today." Qiu Taiyin saw Qin Zhong's aggressive attack. He smiled nonchalantly, and with a twirl of his palms, rolling black smoke gushed out. That thick smoke was filled with spiritual energy chilling enough to freeze the atmosphere.
Whoosh!
The thick black smoke squirmed like a living creature, and eventually turned into a massive black python soaring into the sky, directly clashing with the blow of the Jade Tripod.
Bong!
The violent spiritual energy swept out domineeringly, and the impact of the shock waves distorted the space.
Qin Zhong's eyes flashed, and his hands suddenly conjured up a myriad of seals, resulting in a glittering light suddenly rising from his body. His whole body unexpectedly transformed into white jade.
"That's..." Mu Chen's eyes looked at Qin Zhong's body in astonishment. He could feel that Qin Zhong's body seemed to become especially strong.
"That is the Divine Jade Tripod Physique. Qin Zhong obtained this Divine Art from an ancient ruin. He was able to become the Duke of Tianluo City because he possessed this," Nine Nether explained quietly.
Whoosh!
During the conversation between Nine Nether and Mu Chen, Qin Zhong, whose body became sparkling, suddenly disappeared from thin air. When he appeared again, he appeared behind Qiu Taiyin like a ghost. Then, a glimmering fist carrying a terrible force that could shatter a mountain bombarded the latter's back with a speed as swift as lightning.
In the face of Qin Zhong's thunderbolt offensive attack, it seemed that Qiu Taiyin had no time to react to it and could only allow Qin Zhong to deal his blow.
Psh.
Qin Zhong's fist directly penetrated through Qiu Taiyin's chest, but when it penetrated, Qin Zhong's face suddenly changed because he saw that where his fist pierced, Qiu Taiyin's body was like smoke.
Qin Zhong had an ominous feeling in his heart and hurried to withdraw his fist.
"Haha, Brother Qin Zhong, one should give as good as one gets. You should also try my foggy body." Qiu Taiyin's mouth curved into a strange smile, and the fog around his chest suddenly solidified. The terrible chill directly froze Qin Zhong's arm, and black ice spread rapidly along his arm, as if attempting to freeze his entire body.
The sinister cold invaded Qin Zhong's body and attempted to freeze his spiritual energy, which caused his expression to change dramatically. His gaze turned grave immediately, and his spiritual energy burst out without any reservation.
Boom!
The vast spiritual energy swept through, forming a powerful oppressive aura. This immediately attracted numerous gasps and exclamations, because everyone could feel that Qin Zhong's spiritual strength had surpassed Fourth Grade Sovereign level and was one step into advancing towards Fifth Grade Sovereign.
"It seems that Qin Zhong has made some progress in these years. If he is given some more time, he will soon break through to become a Fifth Grade Sovereign." Some people sighed. Qin Zhong had remained in the realm of a Fourth Grade Sovereign for many years, but now he had finally made some progress.
A flash of surprise colored Mu Chen's eyes. Qin Zhong did have some cards up his sleeve. Such strength was similar to the Prince of Netherworld's, as the latter was also one step into the rank of Fifth Grade Sovereign.
Crash!
On the Platform of Bestowing Lordship, the spiritual energy swept over Qin Zhong's arm, and the black ice shattered into pieces. His body staggered backward, while the spiritual energy fluctuations caused the chill that invaded his body to dissipate.
"Ah, so Duke Qin Zhong is already one foot into becoming a Fifth Grade Sovereign. My sincere congratulations." Black smoke surged as Qiu Taiyin slowly turned to face him. His lips curled and were as sharp as a knife's edge.
Qin Zhong's face was calm, and his immense spiritual power rippled all around him like the sea. With every move, the power of shattering mountains emanated.
He kept a close eye on Qiu Taiyin. Although he was one foot in to becoming a Fifth Grade Sovereign, he did not know why he still felt a trace of pressure from the latter.
It looked like he had to give it his all, then.
Qin Zhong took a deep breath, and immediately his hands conjured up seals at a speed as fast as lightning. Suddenly, a brilliant jade light burst out, and a massive figure condensed and emerged.
On the white, jade-like body, an ancient symbol of a tripod could be seen. A powerful force rippled between the sky and the earth, which made people feel oppressed.
"That's... Qin Zhong's Jade Tripod Celestial Body!" When the huge, white, jade-like shadow appeared, an uproar emerged in the heavens and earth, as they were clearly no stranger to seeing Qin Zhong's Sovereign Celestial Body.
Qin Zhong's figure appeared on the top of the massive white jade shadow. He looked down at Qiu Taiyin in a condescending manner.
"At last, you have employed the Jade Tripod Celestial Body." Qiu Taiyin also looked up at the dazzling white, giant jade shadow with a faint smile on his face.
"It seems that if I want to beat Brother Qin Zhong today, I'll have to go all out." Qiu Taiyin laughed, and with a wave of his sleeve, the black fog rolled up into the sky like wolf smoke, and finally the wolf smoke condensed into a huge, dark, giant shadow.
The dark mist around the giant shadow was like a black dragon, and the chilling air lowered the temperature between the sky and the earth.
Some people exclaimed, "That is Qiu Taiyin's Lunar Celestial Body!"
Mu Chen looked at the two huge figures. These two Sovereign Celestial Bodies were ranked among the last in the 99 Sovereign Celestial Bodies, but it was obvious that both Qin Zhong and Qiu Taiyin had cultivated them to a great degree.
"It's really hard to say who will win in a straight fight."
Qiu Taiyin also appeared above the Lunar Celestial Body's head in the fiery gaze of the crowd. He looked at the figure of Qin Zhong, and his lips seemed to curl into an unsettlingly smile.
"Hard to say who will win? I don't think so…"
Qiu Taiyin's hands slowly spread out, and his gaze turned extremely cold and fierce. Black spiritual energy like wolf's smoke surged from his body like a tornado.
The originally bright day was suddenly darkened by the wolf's smoke covering the sky and overwhelming the earth with an extremely strong oppressive power.
Aware of the power of this oppressive spiritual energy, Qin Zhong's face changed drastically.
Mu Chen and Nine Nether's eyes narrowed fiercely. They took a deep breath involuntarily, for the power of this kind of spiritual energy had reached the true rank of a Fifth Grade Sovereign!
Qiu Taiyin had actually already completed the breakthrough and took the lead in advancing into the rank of a Fifth Grade Sovereign!