Soul Emperor Martial God

"Why won't you give it to me?"

Xiao Yi's face was cold as he stared directly at the Golden Emperor.

"Boy, I have already made myself clear just now, and yet you continue to pester?" the Golden Emperor said with a cold voice.

"It's not pestering," Xiao Yi replied sternly, "I'm just asking for an explanation."

"An explanation? Hahaha," the Golden Emperor laughed out loud.

On the entire spectator stand, tens of thousands of martial artists, some frowned, some sneered, some looked on with contempt.

They seemed to mock Xiao Yi's presumption in the presence of such an important figure as the Golden Emperor.

However, the sharp laughter surrounding him only caused Xiao Yi's eyes to narrow slightly, his gaze growing colder, but it did not trigger any other change in his expression.

"I have said it before," the Golden Emperor stated impatiently, "25 teams, nearly encompassing all the subteams from 16 countries, with hundreds of geniuses, have all died under your sword."

"Do you still think you're entitled to any reward?"

"That's not a reason," Xiao Yi's voice was not particularly loud, but it was especially deep.

"I did not violate the rules of the Festival, and I secured first place with my own strength."

"The reward belongs to me. On what grounds do you refuse to give it to me?"

"I've told you, you are a killer by nature…" the Golden Emperor furrowed his brow, starting to repeat the same words.

Xiao Yi coldly interrupted, "As I said, that's not a reason; that's just your opinion."

"The East Sea Festival is held by the East Sea Fortress."

"I, of the Sky-splitting Sword Sect team, came to participate and have won first place, it's that simple."

Indeed, to put it plainly, the East Sea Fortress held the Festival, and the Sword Sect team emerged as the victor, it's that simple.

And now, the Golden Emperor did not intend to provide the reward.

When it comes to the position of the Fortress Commander, the Golden Emperor could indeed use the earlier reasons to trouble Xiao Yi, labeling him as a killer without virtue.

But when it comes to the reward, that's utterly indefensible.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Xiao Yi overpowered the heroes and won first place—that was an undeniable fact.

He deserved that reward, and it belonged to him.

Each issue should be addressed on its own merits.

Position appointment should be kept separate from the reward distribution.

The East Sea Festival first determined the ranking among the young talents and distributed rewards based on the rankings.

Then, the strong from the East Sea would choose their successors.

Of course, this selection must be based on rankings.

Commander positions must be selected from among the top eight.

Great Commander positions, from the top 32.

After that, the selection continues among the talents ranked beyond the 32nd spot.

Xiao Yi looked coldly at the various Great Commanders and the 'endorsing' powerhouses of the Fortress in the spectator stand below.

"If you oppose me taking any position at the East Sea Fortress, I have no objections, I don't even care."

"But…" Xiao Yi's cold gaze pierced directly at the Golden Emperor, "are you, Golden Emperor, intending to welsh on my reward now?"

Welsh?

As soon as Xiao Yi spoke, exclamations erupted from the spectator stands.

One of the Eight Emperors from the magnificent East Sea Fortress.

The old country master of the Heavenly Gold Kingdom, the wealthiest nation for hundreds of years, was being accused of welshing?

The face of the Golden Emperor turned dark in an instant.

"You brat," the Golden Emperor shouted angrily, "what right do you have to question me?"

"If you weren't one of the participants in the East Sea Festival, just for the act of killing my Heavenly Gold Kingdom's dozens of talents, I could squash you to death right now."

The Golden Emperor's tone was clearly frantic.

Because he knew that what Xiao Yi had just said was true.

He could oppose Xiao Yi holding any Fortress positions but could not withhold that reward.

The reward for the first place in the East Sea Festival is a tribute from the East Sea Fortress to the strongest young talent on the continent.

It is a sign of respect for the most powerful among the younger generation.

Xiao Yi sneered inwardly.

He was well aware that the Golden Emperor's public reasoning was one thing, but what he truly feared was the backing of the Senior Swordswoman behind Xiao Yi—

—Not that so-called 'one of the participants'.

He was even more aware that the Golden Emperor's targeting was because he had wiped out all three teams of the Heavenly Gold Kingdom,

The Royal Family of the Heavenly Gold Country, the Golden Evil Sect, and the Golden Wind Sect—three major powers lost all their young talents.

It would be strange if the Golden Emperor could let him go.

But he had always been calm and unafraid.

Because behind him stood the Senior Swordswoman.

Those so-called successor positions and titles of the Fortress—he had never cared about them.

But the reward that belonged to him, Xiao Yi would never give up without a fight.

From the seats of the Eight Great Commanders.

Emperor Yee spoke sharply, "Xiao Yi is right."

"Golden Emperor, we made the rules; the second round allows fighting and killing."

"He did not break any rules."

"He already proved his strength, and that reward belongs to him."

"Are you not ashamed of yourself, getting so angry and frustrated in front of a junior?"

"Hmph." The Golden Emperor snorted coldly, "I have said before, the rules are set by us, and certainly can be changed by us."

The Emperor Yee said solemnly, "The rules have been set long ago, they must not be changed at will."

"Don't think I'm not aware of what you're plotting."

"Your Heavenly Gold Kingdom has an abundance of High Grade Primordial Artifacts."

"You intended for your three teams from the Heavenly Gold Kingdom, to each be equipped with High Grade Primordial Artifacts, from the captains to the ordinary soldiers, in the third and final round of the competition."

"With such combat power, the Heavenly Talents from your country would surely take the ultimate first place."

"But you never anticipated, that in the second round, all three teams would be wiped out by Xiao Yi."

"Now that Xiao Yi has won the first place, you want to change the rules and strip away the reward, how is this any different from bullying by abusing power?"

The Golden Emperor's face grew darker and after a long moment, he simply flicked his sleeve and snorted coldly, "The Emperor cares not for what you say."

"After all, just now, more than half of the Commanders and more than half of the strong ones of the fortresses have agreed with me."

"The matter has been settled."

"You..." Emperor Yee's face turned cold.

The woman beside Xiao Yi scoffed coldly, "What a Golden Emperor, throwing a tantrum, eh? I'd like to see if you have the capability you boast."

"Sky-splitting Sword Maiden, I'd advise you not to act recklessly," the Golden Emperor sneered.

"Although you are strong, your Sky-splitting Sword Sect is not even as good as a second-class sect."

"In front of the Soldier Inspection Platform, if you strike at me, it will be seen as provocation against the entire East Sea Fortress."

"Do you want your Sky-splitting Sword Sect to go to war with the entire East Sea Fortress?"

"If it's war they want, it's war they'll get." The sword in the woman's hand was already raised.

With a snap,

a strong hand grabbed her arm.

"Senior need not be angry," Xiao Yi shook his head, smiling, a smile so chillingly cold.

"The reward, if the Golden Emperor does not wish to give it, then so be it, it can be taken away."

"Hmm?" The woman frowned.

Xiao Yi smiled and said softly, "I just suddenly feel that many of the people and things here are too contemptible, I scorn to take them."

Xiao Yi glanced at the seats of the Eight Emperors.

There, apart from Emperor Yee who showed an angry expression,

the other seven Emperors, Emperor Huang and Emperor Tong knitted their brows; Wind Emperor, Rock Emperor, Poison Emperor, and Ice Emperor bore indifferent expressions.

The Golden Emperor kept sneering.

Xiao Yi smiled softly and looked at the woman, "Of course, senior also knows my character well, I am quite vengeful."

"What others owe me, some day, I will take it all back."

The woman was startled, the coldness in her eyes vanished in an instant, replaced by a confident and playful smile.

"Fine, I'll leave this account for you to settle. I really want to see what these people will look like in a dozen years."

With that, the woman pulled Xiao Yi and with a flash, they both descended from mid-air, saying, "Let's go."

The people from the Sword Sect got up one after another, ready to leave.

Behind them, the Golden Emperor and the dozen Commanders sneered, taking joy in their misfortune, seemingly mocking the Sword Sect's people for their 'piteous escape'.

But right at that moment, a figure suddenly flew from afar over the Endless Black Sea.

An overwhelming aura came with the approach of the figure, becoming even more terrifying, even more suffocating.

The entire Endless Black Sea suddenly roiled under this aura, giant waves thousands of feet high surged as if trying to swallow the sky and devour the earth.

It was filled with dominance and an unstoppable ferocity.

Almost as soon as the aura arrived, the figure appeared, the entire fortress instantly stirred.

From within the 16 fortresses, figures soared out.

Strong ones who had been in seclusion for a long time looked solemnly into the sky.

Not much later, millions of human strong ones from the 16 fortresses gathered.

The newcomer was an elder, and a domineering voice came from him.

"Is my East Sea Fortress a place where you come and go as you please?" The elder's gaze fell upon the people of the Sky-splitting Sword Sect.

The people of the Sword Sect changed their expressions instantly.

Xiao Yi even showed a look of shock.

The elder's matchless aura made him feel like he couldn't muster even a sliver of resistance.

But in the next second, the elder suddenly revealed a hint of a smile.

"The successor I have chosen cannot simply leave as they wish."

The elder stared straight at Xiao Yi, eyes full of admiration.

Around him, a great many Martial Artists bowed in homage.

"Greetings, Divine Martial King."

Millions of strong ones greeted in unison, their awe-inspiring voices shaking the heavens!

...

The third update.