Chapter 680 - 677: The Battle Begins

Chapter 680: Chapter 677: The Battle Begins

On this day, more than half of the Seventy-Two Celestial Dukes flew from their estates. Four of the Ten Great Celestial Marquis soared into the sky. Two streaks of light shot across the void from the Divine Palace, and across the Divine Capital, countless other figures stirred at the news...

And the destination for all of them... was the Nine-Fingered Celestial Peak!!

For today was the day the number one on the Celestial List would be decided!

Soon, the skies around the Nine-Fingered Celestial Peak were filled with a crowd that included thirty to forty Celestial Dukes, over a thousand Half-Venerables, and even several Celestial Marquis!

Celestial Marquis! These were Celestial Marquis!

It was normally difficult to even catch a glimpse of one, yet today, they had appeared in force.

The top spot on the Celestial List merely decided the number one fighter below the Venerable realm. While that was an unreachable height in the eyes of an ordinary Martial Artist, it shouldn’t mean much to a Venerable. So why had this battle drawn so many Celestial Marquis?

"Tsk, Celestial Marquis Yann, Celestial Marquis Zhao, Ouyang Celestial Marquis, Celestial Marquis Liu... four Celestial Marquis appearing at once. Qin Ya and Xifeng must have some incredible influence."

"It’s not about influence. I’m afraid there’s some hidden story behind this."

"Indeed. Everyone knows Yann Yuntian holds a grudge against Qin Ya. His presence here probably means he’s up to no good."

"And I heard Ouyang Celestial Marquis and Celestial Marquis Liu are quite close with Celestial Marquis Yann in private. For them to come together... that’s certainly something to think about."

High in the sky, the four men split into two opposing sides. On one side stood Yann Yuntian and the other two Celestial Marquis; on the other stood Zhao Songyuan, all alone.

"Heh. Celestial Marquis Liu, Ouyang Celestial Marquis. I never thought you’d be interested in the battle for the Celestial List. To make a special trip just to watch... how surprising."

Zhao Songyuan said faintly, his tone carrying a strange, unspoken meaning.

Celestial Marquis Liu, a refined-looking middle-aged man, smiled faintly. "I have long heard of the name of Qin Ya, the Qin Tianjue. I made a special trip today to see him for myself."

The Ouyang Celestial Marquis, clad in a suit of Golden Armor, said in a booming voice, "The most demonic genius in the history of the Divine Country. That’s a title I’m very interested in."

"Heh heh."

Zhao Songyuan chuckled, but inwardly he was cursing.

’Interested? You old foxes, you lie with every breath. No matter how incredible Qin Ya is, he’s just a King. Is he really worth you making a special trip?’

He then turned to Yann Yuntian and smiled faintly. "If I recall, about twenty years ago, Xifeng had a conflict with Celestial Marquis Yann over a Sword Technique, didn’t he?"

"Indeed."

"And afterward, he took three of your moves without being defeated, so you gifted him that Sword Technique. Am I correct?"

"That is correct."

Zhao Songyuan’s eyes glinted. "So, in other words, Xifeng owes Celestial Marquis Yann a favor. Heh, then today’s duel... could it be...?"

"Celestial Marquis Zhao, you’d best be careful with your words."

Yann Yuntian’s expression shifted, and his tone grew heavier.

"I didn’t even..." Before Zhao Songyuan could finish, he looked into the distance, the corners of his mouth curling up. "Heh, they’re finally here."

SWOOSH, SWOOSH...

Just then, two more streaks of light arrived high in the sky, taking their place beside Zhao Songyuan and creating a standoff against Yann Yuntian’s group of three. The newcomers’ faces were shrouded in a mist that obscured their features, but their figures revealed them to be two women. And their auras... were those of two Venerables!

Venerables! Two female Venerables...

HISS... In an instant, countless people sucked in a sharp breath.

The only known female Venerable in the Divine Capital was Celestial Marquis Yux, one of the Ten Great Celestial Marquis. For two more to suddenly appear out of nowhere was simply inconceivable!

Yann Yuntian’s gaze grew grave. One of them was undoubtedly Meiying Venerable, but he had no idea who the other one was.

"This battle is a duel. No one is to interfere."

The indifferent voice resounded between heaven and earth.

The owner of that voice was... the Divine Lord!

As the words faded, hundreds of silver lights surged forward with immense momentum, completely surrounding the Nine-Fingered Celestial Peak. It was... the Divine Guard Army!

Seeing this, the crowd gasped again and again.

Heavens, this battle had even drawn the attention of the Divine Lord himself!

To dispatch so many from the Divine Guard Army to maintain order... on top of several Celestial Marquis, dozens of Celestial Dukes, over a thousand Half-Venerables, and countless Martial Artists—this was likely the grandest duel the Divine Capital had seen in a hundred years.

At the summit of the First Finger Peak, Xifeng sat on the ground, a longsword cradled in his arms. He swept a glance over the surrounding Martial Artists, his expression as indifferent as ever. Even the Divine Lord’s sudden pronouncement had only caused his expression to flicker for a bare moment.

In his eyes, there was now only one opponent: Qin Ya!

Even though Qin Ya had not yet arrived, he believed that Qin Ya would absolutely not fail to appear!

Time passed. In the blink of an eye, three hours had gone by.

"What’s going on? There’s still no sign of Qin Ya."

"He couldn’t be scared, could he? Too afraid to show up?"

"If he really doesn’t come, his reputation will be ruined from this day forward."

"Reputation? Is a reputation more important than your life?"

Just as the crowd’s doubts were mounting, Xifeng, who had been resting with his eyes closed atop the First Finger Peak, suddenly opened them. In that instant, a sky-piercing Sword Intent swept out!

"He’s here!!"

Miles away from the Nine-Fingered Celestial Peak, a youth in white was walking slowly forward. Each step he took spanned a thousand feet. In just a few moments, he entered everyone’s line of sight, and instantly, all eyes were fixed upon him.

"Qin Ya... he really came."

"Tsk, so that’s Qin Ya? He looks pretty ordinary."

"Ordinary? Heh, you’ll soon find out just how terrifying he is."

"He’s here, he’s here! The battle of the century is about to begin!"

As if he hadn’t heard the crowd’s chatter, Qin Ya slowly arrived at the Ninth Finger Peak, stepping into the range of Xifeng’s Sword Intent. The Sword Intent felt tangible, like a thousand peerless Divine Swords scraping against his skin.

Qin Ya chuckled softly, and then a burst of the Qi of Destruction erupted from him!

The Sword Intent and the Intent of Destruction collided in the void, exploding with a BANG. Shockwaves rolled out, and even from miles away, the crowd could feel the terrifying power contained within. For a moment, they were all chilled to the bone.

"So, you are Qin Ya."

"And you are Xifeng."

The two, who had never met, both radiated an ultimate War Intent.

"The injuries on Shen Yun... you caused them."

"I did. Do you want to avenge him?"

"Excellent. Now the fight won’t be boring."

As his words fell, Xifeng slowly rose to his feet. The Sword Intent coiling around him erupted, accompanied by terrifying True Essence, condensing into a massive, mile-long phantom sword that suddenly slashed down at Qin Ya. Its power was so immense it made heaven and earth tremble.

Seeing this, Qin Ya instantly summoned a pitch-black spear into his hand. The body of the spear let out an excited hum as four-colored energy coiled around it. He thrust it out, and a terrifyingly massive spear gleam tore through the air, seeming to embody the endless, unceasing cycle of the Four Seasons.

The spear gleam and the Sword Shadow collided abruptly!

With a deafening BOOM, the Fifth Finger Peak of the Nine-Fingered Celestial Peak exploded!