Chapter 368 363: Spirit Body Realm Debut: Earth-Shattering, Emperor's Might on Full Display

From the corridor outside, the many arena doors were packed tightly together, arranged like hotel rooms stretching to the end of the hall. Who could have imagined they contained whole other worlds inside?

To expand a space of perhaps a few dozen square meters into tens of thousands of square meters... and there were tens of thousands of such arenas. Moreover, Arena #10086 was a Low Level arena, utterly ordinary in itself. This showed that both the wealth and the power of the Three-Life Race were impeccable.

BUZZ—

Suddenly, the aftershock of a spatial tremor came from the opposite side, interrupting his thoughts. He turned to see a steel door open out of thin air—it was the door to the other arena.

A blue, humanoid creature with gills strode out, head held high. He looked remarkably like a salted fish that had grown long legs, yet his dead-fish eyes simmered with an intense arrogance, as if he alone was the most honored being in all creation.

He held a fish spear in his hand, standing there with his chest puffed out, as proud as an admiral of the great seas. An unknowing observer might have thought he ruled all the world's oceans, a Sea King of his generation!

With a single glance, Jiang Qiu saw through to his true nature. 'A salted fish that gained sentience...'

"So this is the so-called Fishman Race?" Jiang Qiu raised an eyebrow. He glanced at the other party and, out of curiosity, asked, "Can that fish spear of yours summon waves?"

"Hah, you ignorant little whelp," Sansan sneered, his fish-like mouth curling high. "I am Sansan, the peerless genius of the Fishman Race. I wouldn't deign to summon the Vast Water Spirit Charm to deal with the likes of you!"

The moment he spoke, the number of online viewers began to skyrocket. For no other reason than his relatives, friends, and acquaintances from his race had all tuned in, eager to see their prodigy make a spectacular debut. "Young Master Sansan, don't finish off this member of the Human Race too quickly! We want to admire your magnificent presence a while longer!"

"We're taking off, we're taking off! I get to watch Young Master Sansan's challenge live! My day just got so much better~"

"Wait, bro, who is this? His stream just got pushed to my feed. And it's just some measly Spirit Body Realm debut..."

"Insolence, you peasant! This is Young Master Sansan, the most gifted of the Fishman Race's younger generation! He started his Cultivation from scratch and reached the Spirit Body Realm in only six months! How dare you be so disrespectful?"

"Holy shit, no wonder this is so bizarre. So they're the damn Fishman Race. My bad, my bad. A bunch of stinking, dead-eyed fish. Oh, look how great your Young Master Sansan is. Like every race doesn't have a few decent prodigies of its own?"

"Heh, exactly! I bet that kid from the Human Race can wipe the floor with your Young Master Sansan!"

Since the Fishman Race was putting special emphasis on Sansan's debut, they had spent a good deal of money to boost the stream's traffic. Thirty thousand people flooded in within a short time, and since there were too many "haters" among them, the two sides launched into a verbal war.

Fortunately, the Celestial Star Arena's recommendation algorithm was quite reasonable. Low-tier challenges were rarely recommended to high-tier viewers. Most of the audience here came from races of comparable strength to the Fishman Race.

They argued back and forth, with neither side gaining an edge.

However, Jiang Qiu and Sansan couldn't see the scrolling comments yet. There was no awkward silence before the fight officially started, as Sansan began to boast, his arrogance knowing no bounds. "This is my first time debuting in the Celestial Star Arena. You should feel quite honored to be my first opponent.

You see, countless people wish to become my enemy, but none are worthy. Among the Fishman Race, I possess the most stunning talent. I am the hope for the resurgence of my people.

I will ultimately lead the Fishman Race to glory and become the first Harmonization Realm expert in our race's history!

Why are you so quiet? Are you simply incapable of comprehending my greatness? I am the chosen son of the Fishman Race, and I broke through to the Spirit Body Realm in just six months..."

After listening to him drone on for quite a while, the expression on Jiang Qiu's face, hidden behind his mask, grew increasingly grim. He frowned slightly. "Dead-Eyes, could you please stop being so cringey?"

'To be fair, he's just a piddling first-level Spirit Body Realm cultivator. What is there to be so proud of?'

'Countless Spirit Body Realm slaves and challengers die in the Celestial Star Arena every single day. It's the lowest tier... Ugh, I don't even know what to say...'

"Dead-Eyes?" Instantly, the color drained from Sansan's face. The corners of his mouth plunged, his pupils widened, and rage visibly surged through him. His fin-like fingers gripped the fish spear—which resembled the Trident of the Sea God—as an invisible aura unfurled from him. "How dare you call me that!"

At that moment, an aura rivaling the Harmonization Realm seemed to erupt from him. The weather in the once-sunny arena began to shift, and dark clouds coalesced above his head.

RUMBLE—

Thunder was actually brewing within the clouds. A Gale whipped Jiang Qiu's hair back, and his clothes fluttered violently. Yet he stood like a pillar amidst the wind, utterly still, his expression turning serious.

In his eyes, a Fishman "Emperor"—who strongly resembled a salted fish that had gained sentience—wielded a "Trident of the Sea God" and glared down at him. The world's ambient energy gathered around him, and he was faintly wreathed in mist.

Standing on the grassy field, he had the strange illusion that a torrential downpour was about to fall and turn the arena into an ocean.

'I have to admit, that's quite an imposing aura,' Jiang Qiu thought. 'It's nothing like what a typical first-level Spirit Body Realm cultivator should possess!'

But with those big, vacant, dead-fish eyes staring so wide, it was hard to keep a straight face.

"Challenge, begin!"

The electronic announcement boomed like a clap of thunder, just as Sansan's aura reached its peak. He raised his fish spear high, his expression screaming, 'I will drown the three thousand worlds!' His salted-fish face was a mask of utter seriousness.

At that moment, the scrolling comments stopped. The audience, now numbering 58,000, fell as silent as a stagnant pond. Clearly, everyone was stunned.

A Spirit Body Realm cultivator can be this powerful?

Is that a Secret Technique? How is the scale so massive!

Holy shit, is he summoning Thunder? He can Call the Wind and Summon the Rain!

The random viewers who had been mocking the Fishman Race fell silent, unable to believe this was a debut match for a first-level Spirit Body Realm cultivator.

As the winds in the arena intensified, someone finally couldn't resist commenting: "I've seen first-level Bright Soul Realm masters fight before, prodigies included, but none of them had a Secret Technique with such an insane visual effect. What the hell did this Sansan from the Fishman Race cultivate?!"

"Forget the Bright Soul Realm! I've seen challenges between incredible Dharma Realm experts, and I'd say Sansan's aura is on par with theirs, maybe even stronger! That level of arrogance is just off the charts!"

"No way. Are the Fishman Race actually going to get away with this flex?"

"Hahaha, now you see the power of the number one prodigy of our Fishman Race's new generation, don't you? That's the great Young Master Sansan, destined to reach the Harmonization Realm!"

"Young Master Sansan is mighty! Obliterate that human into dust and show these people how incredible the Fishman Race is!"

"WOOHOO—"

The number of viewers continued to climb steadily—forty thousand, fifty thousand, seventy thousand, and in the blink of an eye, it hit one hundred thousand. Clearly, the traffic boost the Fishman Race had paid for was now in full effect.

Meanwhile, in the arena, Jiang Qiu stared at the roiling thunderclouds above his opponent's head and rubbed his nose. "Why haven't you made your move?"

Sansan gave a cold, incredibly arrogant smirk. "Because there aren't enough people watching, of course. Did you really think you'd still be alive otherwise?"

"You want to kill me?" Jiang Qiu's eyes narrowed, and the corners of his lips curved up slightly. "Are you serious?"

He wasn't actually in a hurry to end the fight. The daily battles were held at fixed times, and his next challenge wouldn't begin for at least two hours. Winning now or winning later made no difference; he would just be waiting around after he left anyway.

'Might as well see what kind of flashy nonsense this Sansan is trying to pull.'

"Heh. If you surrender now, or if you withstand my attack and then surrender, I won't kill you," Sansan said, his salted-fish head held high, as proud as an Emperor pardoning a criminal. "In any case, I'm giving you a chance. I will only use this one move."

"Oh, really? Thanks."