Chapter 191: Spirit Beast IQ
In the world of spirit beasts, speed often determined the outcome of a battle.
The legendary White Moon Lord, a single leap tearing through the skies of ten realms, her movements too fast even for fellow legendary beings to track, a power beyond human comprehension.
Countless legends and stories about her were passed down through generations.
Even a legendary spirit beast had once remarked, “The White Moon Lord is the most terrifying legendary being I’ve ever encountered.”
This indicated that even among legendary beings, the White Moon Lord stood at the apex.
The Sea Region Ranking Battle: Second Round.
First Test: Speed.
Amidst the cheers of the audience, ten spirit beasts, each carrying their Spirit Master, stood at the starting line.
Of the five tests, Intelligence and Beauty were too unpredictable. Speed, Strength, and Spirit Energy Capacity were more reliable sources of points.
For the Speed test, the Snow Fairy Mansion sent out their Pure Saintess.
Her spirit beast was a high-rank White Ice Antelope, its graceful, streamlined body like that of a holy maiden among beasts.
A mere kilometer? The White Ice Antelope could cover that distance in less than ten seconds!
Its combat abilities might be average, but its speed was unmatched!
The Pure Saintess smugly surveyed her competition, her disdainful gaze suddenly pausing at the white-haired woman’s… chest.
Those terrifying weapons… what were they…?
Bai He of the Sea Concubine Palace stood calmly, a snow-white full moon disc floating beside her, flitting about like a playful sprite.
Her appearance drew eighty percent of the gazes in the arena, everyone’s eyes widening, their mouths suddenly dry.
This woman… was simply too… endowed!
After the Ranking Battle, the Sea Concubine Palace would likely be flooded with love letters from eager young women.
This wasn’t lust, but a desire to improve their family’s bloodline, to ensure their children’s healthy development!
As the Speed test was about to begin, Bai He grasped the floating moon disc, assuming a throwing stance, her… assets… jiggling enticingly, causing many in the audience to blush.
Boom!
As the referee signaled the start of the race with a burst of spirit energy, the ten spirit beasts, confident in their speed, shot forward, creating a cloud of dust.
Almost instantly, the White Ice Antelope took the lead, leaving the other spirit beasts far behind.
Dead Sea Stage spirit beasts couldn’t stray too far from their masters, so the Spirit Masters were carried by their spirit beasts. There was only one exception.
As everyone watched in shock, Bai He stood motionless, not moving a single step.
Four seconds passed. Just as the White Ice Antelope was about to cross the finish line, a white blur, a rapidly spinning full moon disc, zipped past, overtaking it by a hair’s breadth.
Swish!
Crossing the finish line in second place, the Pure Saintess’s face darkened.
Being defeated by an unknown Spirit Master from a lower-ranked faction wasn’t uncommon, but it was still incredibly humiliating.
And what was with that… vulgar white-haired woman? How could her spirit beast be so far away from her…?
Weapon-type spirit beasts did have techniques to increase their control range, but those were usually considered useless, niche skills. And yet, it had actually been useful here!
[Sea Concubine Palace: 3]
[Snow Fairy Mansion: 2]
[Pool of Hidden Secrets: 1]
Under the audience’s intense scrutiny, Bai He returned to her seat beside the Sorrowful Saintess, her expression calm.
Many in the audience sighed inwardly.
Seeing… that… swaying before her every day, the Sorrowful Saintess couldn’t possibly resist. This Bai He must have already been… taken.
Who would dare touch the Sorrowful Saintess’s woman? The consequences would be dire.
The others now looked at Bai He with a mixture of envy and… something else, a look she couldn’t quite decipher.
Soon, it was time for the second test: Intelligence!
The rules were simple. Ten spirit beasts would be shown a series of numbers and then have to write them down using their spirit energy. A single mistake meant failure.
And yet, the first number, 0, was enough to eliminate all the low-rank spirit beasts from the bottom-tier factions.
The remaining spirit beasts, from the Pool of Hidden Secrets, the Sea Concubine Palace, the Cold Court, the Winter Floating Sky, and the Ice Shield Palace, continued the test.
This test, easily solved by a child, had them sweating.
After much deliberation, the Sea Concubine Palace’s mid-rank, elemental spirit beast drew a large banana on the ground, eliciting laughter from the audience.
The Cold Court’s spirit beast drew two carrots, barely passing.
The Ice Shield Palace’s spirit beast drew two cucumbers, barely passing.
The Winter Floating Sky’s spirit beast drew two eggplants, barely passing.
The Pool of Hidden Secrets’ spirit beast wrote the number 69, drawing envious and incredulous stares from the other spirit beasts.
The next round, with three-digit numbers, quickly determined the winner.
[Pool of Hidden Secrets: 3]
[Winter Floating Sky: 2]
[Cold Court: 1]
The third test, Strength. The Fearful Saintess of the Tide Pavilion confidently entered the arena, then proceeded to score a resounding 0.
Her supposedly powerful spirit beast’s punch against the testing artifact had no effect, while the Winter Floating Sky’s spirit beast punched a hole right through it.
The bandaged, gloomy woman stared at the Spirit Masters from the Winter Floating Sky, the Cold Court, and the Ice Shield Palace, her eyes wide with shock and disbelief.
So this was the power of the top factions… She had been utterly crushed.
[Winter Floating Sky: 3]
[Ice Shield Palace: 2]
[Cold Court: 1]
Even the unknown Spirit Masters from the Sea Concubine Palace and the Pool of Hidden Secrets had performed better than her, a Saintess.
Just how powerful were the Saintesses of the top factions?
The Fearful Saintess had dreamt of becoming a dark horse, rising to the top, defeating all the high-ranking Saintesses, but reality had dealt her a harsh blow.
She recalled angrily confronting her faction’s higher-ups, complaining about not being chosen for the Final Battle, denied the opportunity to gain fame and recognition.
How utterly foolish she had been…
The Spirit Masters from the lower-ranked factions felt a sense of shame and frustration.
Their Saintesses, representing their peak combat power, renowned within their own factions, were no match for even unknown Spirit Masters from other factions.
And so far, not a single Saint-rank spirit beast had appeared in the Ranking Battle…
Chapter 192: The Final Battle
The fourth test: Spirit Energy Capacity!
This test didn’t measure the amount of spirit energy, but the maximum amount a Spirit Master could unleash in an instant.
Even novice Spirit Masters understood the difference between potential spirit energy and manifested spirit energy.
Only through diligent daily cultivation or constant battle could one increase their burst potential. This was a straightforward test with clear results.
This was also likely the area where the gap between the higher and lower-ranked factions was most pronounced.
However, unexpectedly, the Spirit Masters from the top factions were utterly crushed.
The Hateful Saintess of the Azure Stream Palace.
Her soft, water-blue hair flowing gently, she unleashed a torrent of spirit energy that almost filled the kilometer-wide Water Heart Stage, eliciting gasps of surprise.
She far surpassed the Spirit Masters from the Sea Concubine Palace, the Ice Shield Palace, and even the Pool of Hidden Secrets.
The Azure Heart of Water, a top-tier spirit technique of the water lineage…
The amount of spirit energy she unleashed in that instant was almost equal to the combined total of the other nine factions.
The Hateful Saintess, her face pale with exhaustion, a triumphant smile on her lips, had achieved her goal.
By surprising everyone and surpassing the higher-ranked factions, she would gain more attention and followers. A little hardship in the Azure Stream Palace was a small price to pay.
She was famous!
[Azure Stream Palace: 3]
[Sea Concubine Palace: 2]
[Ice Shield Palace: 1]
Finally, the fifth and final test of the second round.
This time, it was Beauty.
Of course, this wasn’t about the Spirit Masters’ physical appearance, but their attractiveness to wild spirit beasts.
Ten graceful, voluptuous young women lined up, their beauty to be judged by a spirit beast.
A high-rank spirit beast, the Water Lotus Colored Cherry Blossom, kept by the Winter Floating Sky, was released into the arena, acting as the judge.
No one worried about it being biased towards the Winter Floating Sky. After all, it was notoriously fickle and obsessed with beauty.
In the center of the Water Heart Stage, a colorful, humanoid flower strutted back and forth before the girls, like an emperor choosing concubines.
A few seconds later, it opened its petals and spat a glob of phlegm onto the Jade Pot Palace Spirit Master’s face.
The Jade Pot Palace girl stared blankly, then her face lit up with joy. Had she been chosen?
Seeing her ecstatic expression, the audience was surprised. Another dark horse?
However, to their amusement, the Water Lotus Colored Cherry Blossom continued spitting at the girls, drenching them all.
Jade Pot Palace, 98 spits, eliminated.
Snow Fairy Mansion, 71 spits, eliminated.
Azure Stream Palace, 65 spits, eliminated.
…
…
Sea Concubine Palace, 9 spits, 1 point.
Winter Floating Sky, 8 spits, 2 points.
Pool of Hidden Secrets, 6 spits, 3 points.
The Water Lotus Colored Cherry Blossom spat at anything it found ugly or repulsive.
The fewer the spits, the higher the score.
Learning the rules, the Jade Pot Palace girl’s face fell, her spirit crushed.
She was so ugly, she disgusted everyone…
With that, the second round concluded.
[Winter Floating Sky: 8]
[Sea Concubine Palace: 7]
[Pool of Hidden Secrets: 6]
[Ice Shield Palace: 4]
[Cold Court: 3]
[Water Wish Pavilion: 3]
[Tide Pavilion: 3]
[Azure Stream Palace: 0]
[Snow Fairy Mansion: -2]
[Jade Pot Palace: -2]
Seeing the scores, the spectators were surprised.
The Water Wish Pavilion and the Tide Pavilion, which had held the lead, hadn’t scored any points in this round, falling back to their previous positions.
However, the Tide Pavilion’s loss was due to the Fearful Saintess’s… embarrassing performance, while the Blissful Saintess of the Water Wish Pavilion hadn’t even participated yet.
The second round concluded, and it was finally time for the final, decisive round of the Ranking Battle…
The true leader of the Sea Region would be decided here.
Under the watchful eyes of all, Gong Lianyue rose from her seat and walked towards the center of the Water Heart Stage.
At the same time, the Desireless Saintess of the Winter Floating Sky, the Grieving Saintess of the Cold Court, the Wrathful Saintess of the Ice Shield Palace, the Blissful Saintess of the Water Wish Pavilion, and the Saintess of Salvation from the Pool of Hidden Secrets, all emerged with their teams.
The auras of the four Spirit Masters behind the Sorrowful Saintess were incredibly weak, even less than those who had participated in the previous rounds, increasing the sense of anticipation and dread.
The Sea Concubine Palace was confident in their Sorrowful Saintess’s victory!
The Saint-rank battle… was it finally about to begin…?
The spectators, their hearts pounding with excitement, watched, their scalps tingling, their blood boiling. After all, ninety-nine percent of them had never seen a Saint-rank spirit beast before.
The final round of every Ranking Battle always featured a spectacular clash of Saint-ranks, like watching a superhero battle.
Saint-rank spirit beasts, beings from another dimension.
The Final Battle began!!!
Fifty Spirit Masters stood in the center of the Water Heart Stage as a powerful wave of spirit energy, like a swirling waterspout, enveloped them, pulling them into a secret realm.
This was the Winter Floating Sky’s battle secret realm, the White Velvet Snow Forest!!
Since Saint-rank spirit beasts would inevitably destroy the arena, even endangering the audience, the final round had to be held within a secret realm.
Of course, it would be broadcast live via spirit energy, the scene split into countless different perspectives, displayed on a massive crystal screen in the sky.
Just as all the Spirit Masters entered the secret realm, the Nether Empress, seated high above, tossed a mysterious spirit artifact.
The massive, lock-shaped artifact, like a cage, sealed the entrance to the secret realm. It was a strange artifact, obtained from an unknown source, capable of suppressing all beings within to the Dead Sea Stage.
Her suggestion had been unanimously approved by the other four Emperors. A thousand years ago, there had been a cheating scandal where a Spirit Master had smuggled in a Samsara Stage spirit beast after the secret realm had been sealed.
That Spirit Master had been from the Pool of Hidden Secrets, so the Nether Empress’s insistence on reinforcing the seal seemed fair and impartial.
“…”
“…”
After a moment of silence, a subtle smile appeared on the Nether Empress’s lips.
Beneath her beautiful facade, her heart raced, a dark, almost manic glee, as if tainted by a corrupting, black, watery spirit energy.
Her body trembled as she whispered, her voice barely audible,
“The Snow Monarch… is coming—”
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