Eternal Heavenly Emperor

"Ha ha, let's talk this over, no need to get so heated," Luo Ping quickly intervened to diffuse the tension. Even though he wanted to see the pinnacle showdown between Chu Hao and Cao Jingwen, it was clearly not the right time.

In his opinion, it would take Chu Hao at least two years to catch up with Cao Jingwen, who was also a super genius.

Cao Jingwen snorted. In front of An Feifei, he had to maintain some dignity. After all, as the senior brother of Yunliu Sect, it would be laughable if he became petty over trivial matters.

"Junior Brother Chu, many people have come for the martial arts competition, and there's plenty of good stuff for sale at the city auction house. Interested in taking a look?" An Feifei extended an invitation to Chu Hao. With her status, she naturally didn't have to fear Cao Jingwen.

Chu Hao was not afraid of Cao Jingwen either. He immediately nodded and said, "Sure."

"Please." An Feifei gestured with her delicate hand.

The two walked side by side and soon exited the room.

Watching their departing figures, Cao Jingwen's gaze darkened, filled with murderous intent.

As a heaven-talented individual, he shouldn't have been so petty. But when it came to matters of the heart, his usual magnanimity evaporated. Previously, Chu Hao was just a somewhat talented individual in his eyes. Now, he was a thorn in his side.

How dare he covet my woman!

Luo Ping noticed his expression and sighed inwardly. "A beauty is a blade that hangs above one's head." Chu Hao appeared smart, yet made such a grievous mistake.

There was no choice; he could only clean up Chu Hao's mess.

...

Chu Hao and An Feifei went to the auction house. Due to the martial competition, almost all the young talents from Tianhe County had gathered there. Naturally, they weren't alone; they were accompanied by elders from their family or sect, and these elders certainly didn't lack wealth.

The martial arts competition would take place the next day. If they could buy a Treasure Artifact or some top-grade Pills today, their strength would surely increase significantly by tomorrow.

This was the so-called last-minute preparation; even if not perfect, it would still shine.

However, Pills that could directly expand meridians were scarce. Most were like the Purple Jade Pill, enhancing cultivation speed, which took time to manifest.

Chu Hao indeed saw a few Pills that could directly expand meridians, but they had significant side effects. They would make the meridians stiff, preventing further expansion—fine if the meridians had already expanded 95 or 99 times, but risky if only 50 or 70 times.

As for Treasure Artifacts, his Grey Rock Sword was already the strongest among eighth-grade artifacts. For "shield," the good armor was outrageously expensive, costing at least twice as much as the Grey Rock Sword. Chu Hao could only look on helplessly.

An Feifei didn't plan to buy anything either. She merely used this pretext to get closer to Chu Hao, knowing personal relationships needed frequent communication to strengthen.

After sitting for a while at the auction house, An Feifei, as the leader of the An Sect, displayed her excellent conversational skills, keeping the atmosphere lively.

"Junior Brother Chu, are you interested in competing for a spot among the Seven Stars?" An Feifei suddenly asked.

"Isn't the Seven Stars list already decided?" Chu Hao replied.

"It's not fixed." An Feifei shook her head. "The Four Talented or the Seven Stars are simply honors or rankings. The weaker ones who can't defend their positions must step down."

"However, this time, the Seven Stars have greatly improved their strength. I believe they'll challenge the positions of the Four Talented. Besides Senior Brother Jin, someone like Cao Jingwen, Yao Di, and Gao Fei might have to give up their spots."

Chu Hao nodded. Jin Yunlin had broken through to Martial Sect, becoming the undisputed leader of the young generation in Tianhe County, unless someone else also broke through.

"Junior Brother Chu, don't underestimate the rankings of the Four Talented and Seven Stars. Our Middle Nine Counties has an Ancient Training Ground that opens once every three years, but only a limited number of people can enter. Our Tianhe County has only eleven slots for the Four Talented and Seven Stars." An Feifei continued.

"Ancient Training Ground?" Chu Hao was slightly surprised.

An Feifei nodded lightly. "The Ancient Training Ground is a special place passed down from ancient times, opening once every three years but only for those under 22, thus called a trial ground."

"It's said that each trial passed in the Ancient Training Ground earns a reward, and those who emerge alive typically break through to Martial Sect."

Chu Hao nodded. No wonder Cao Jingwen, knowing that Jin Yunlin had already broken through, still came. He wasn't there to humiliate himself or congratulate Jin Yunlin but sought his own breakthrough.

Originally not planning to gain glory for Yunliu Sect, Chu Hao changed his mind seeing the importance of the Ancient Training Ground's slots.

He had to see it for himself!

Moreover, he wanted to experience a real fight with contemporary heaven-talented individuals.

Returning to his residence, he saw Cao Jingwen standing at the door, his face gloomy, eyes filled with a murderous glint.

Chu Hao sighed inwardly. Beautiful women indeed brought trouble, but he was unafraid, as he had already wanted to fight Cao Jingwen.

"I'll give you a choice. Leave Yunliu Sect immediately, or at tomorrow's martial arts competition, I'll make you understand what public humiliation means!" Cao Jingwen said coldly.

Chu Hao smiled, "Senior Brother Cao, as one of the Four Talented, do you still want to challenge me?"

Cao Jingwen's expression changed slightly. He was trying to intimidate Chu Hao into giving up on pursuing An Feifei. As Chu Hao said, in martial arts competitions, newcomers challenge renowned experts, not the other way around.

Moreover, they were both from Yunliu Sect. Challenging his own peers? Wouldn't that make him a laughingstock?

Well, this brat had guts, not easily scared. But could Chu Hao avoid returning to Yunliu Sect forever? Cao Jingwen would deal with him sooner or later.

"Cao Jingwen, if you want to fight, then let's fight. If no one beats you tomorrow, I'll challenge you!" Chu Hao said boldly, "Back at Yunliu Sect, I intended to sweep all of you from the Native Faction!"

Bold indeed!

Cao Jingwen's face grew even darker. This brat was rebellious, intending to overthrow the Native Faction? He laughed coldly, "If you dare challenge me tomorrow, I'll show you your place!"

Chu Hao waved him off, striding into the courtyard.

Cao Jingwen stared at his back, crushing a stone in his hand to powder.

The distance away, Luo Ping took a swig of wine, shaking his head. He wanted to protect Chu Hao, but if Chu Hao insisted on challenging Cao Jingwen, his hands were tied.

Hopefully, Chu Hao wouldn't do something foolish out of momentary bravado.

...

Morning dawned, the sun rose warmly, filling everyone with comfort.

Chu Hao's residence was set halfway up the mountain, enveloped in clouds and mist in the morning, resembling a fairyland.

With Elders Cao and Luo leading, they headed toward the mountaintop.

"The martial arts competition is organized by Fifth Grade sects," Elder Cao said. "When our Yunliu Sect was still a Fifth Grade sect, we hosted it every twelve years."

"What a pity!" Elder Luo shook his head. They both glanced at Chu Hao and quickly looked away.

The move was subtle, but Chu Hao, with his powerful derivation abilities, noticed their expressions. Without Lin Cheng's notes, he would be clueless.

However, knowing that Lin Cheng had stolen the Flowing Water Jue, Yunliu Sect should've had more War General experts, maintaining its position among the Fifth Grade Sects.

Thus, in the minds of knowledgeable elders, disciples from the Lower World were thieves, the culprits for Yunliu Sect's fall to Sixth Grade.

In this mindset, how could they appreciate disciples from the Lower World? Representing various families, their disdain influenced the younger generation, resulting in conflicts between the two groups.

Chu Hao stayed silent. These figures only saw their grievances, forgetting they initiated the war on the Lower World, turning it into a slave ground to plunder indiscriminately.

How could they expect no resistance?

Ridiculous!

The group reached the mountaintop quickly. A large space was prepared, surrounded by tables and chairs. The nearest seats to the arena were for the leaders of the three Fifth Grade sects.

A circle of tables beyond that was for the leaders of the Sixth Grade sects, and further out, the lower the status.

Sky Heart Sect had arranged everything, with names on each table. It was easy to find your spot, but only one table with two chairs was allotted; Elders Cao and Luo sat, leaving Chu Hao, Luo Ping, and Cao Jingwen standing.

The same went for all sects. Elders sat while juniors stood, varying slightly in numbers.

Elders Cao and Luo soon mingled, and as more arrived, the area buzzed with chatter and clear divisions. Some sects had no interaction.

For instance, Yunliu Sect, Rain Field Sect, and Ten Brocade Sect, upon seeing each other, would exchange hostile glares.

With overlapping territories and frequent conflicts, there was no cordiality. If not for mutual checks, they would have fought to the death long ago.

"Brother Chu!"

"Brother Chu!"

Several voices called out. Chu Hao smiled, recognizing Shen Chao, Lv Han, and Hu Yan. Half a year ago, they had ventured into Eternal Spirit Sect's treasure ground together, barely escaping Nangong Rou's trap.