Realizer of Death : The Reaper

"Okay, we don't need to pay attention to what he says. You guys must know that there are spies from the Gu family within the Wang family. But that's not what you should be thinking about right now. You guys better focus on the competition and prove that you can win. After this event, you can find and eradicate the rats in your family." Tenku pat Wang Ruyue on the shoulder and said softly to calm her down.

"Yes, you're right. Now is not the time for us to be distracted by other problems. We have to focus on the competition and win it." Wang Ruyue nodded, and her face became calmer than before.

"Then let's go to arena D." Wang Zeming said and led the people from the Wang family to where the participants gathered.

The martial arts competition had eight battle arenas from A to H to accommodate the large number of cultivators participating in the event. On his way to arena D, Tenku saw many people crowding around, some of whom were loose cultivators.

"By the way, shouldn't we re-register to confirm the participants from the Wang family?" Tenku looked at Wang Ruyue and asked.

"We don't need to do it since my grandfather, and the elders have already taken care of it." The person who answered his question was Wang Zeming.

Tenku nodded and said nothing else. They only needed a moment to get to their destination. After Tenku and the participants from the Wang family arrived at the place, they were shocked after seeing a large number of people there.

"Are there usually this many participants in martial arts competitions?" Tenku muttered and looked around. This was his first time participating in such an event.

"No. When I watched the martial arts competition five years ago, there weren't this many, maybe only half of it." Wang Ruyue shook her head. She also didn't expect that this time's martial arts competition participants would be that many.

"Is it because of the prize or for another reason?" Tenku doubted that they were participating just because of the prize. Only three people could obtain the prize, and it was certain that it would fall into the hands of the major families.

"Not everyone who participates in the martial arts competition wants the prize. They know they can't beat the geniuses of the major families, so how could they want to fight over it?" Wang Xin replied.

"Loose cultivators and geniuses from other martial arts families participate in the competition to hone their skills and test them against tough opponents. Moreover, some sought opportunities to break through to the next realms. The stronger their opponent, the greater the pressure. The cultivators can surpass their limits if they can withstand that pressure, and their strength will skyrocket." Wang Zeming added.

"I see. So they were participating in the competition, not for the prize but for the battle experience they would gain in this place. They could fight all kinds of geniuses from all over China, which was extremely beneficial for a cultivator." Tenku nodded and quickly understood after hearing their explanation.

After Tenku and the people from the Wang family arrived at arena D, they lined up behind the crowd and waited for their next instructions. Even though it was a bit far away, Tenku could see Wang Haotian sitting on a high platform with the Wang family patriarch and other elders.

Apart from them, Tenku also saw other people there. He guessed those people were the patriarchs and elders of the other major families, while the one person sitting in the middle must be the city lord of the Jin family.

Not long after, a white-haired old man walked through the air and landed right in the middle of the battle arena. Then he looked around and opened his mouth.

"Is that old man a cultivator in the Innate realm!?"

"Yes, only cultivators in the innate realm can walk on air!"

"This is my first time seeing a cultivator in the innate realm!"

The old man's appearance aroused the participants' curiosity and made the atmosphere in arena D boisterous.

"No. He is not innate. He compressed the Qi in the air and made it a foothold. So that old man seems to be floating." Tenku shook his head when he saw that. He had done that trick once against the wyverns at Lake Shima.

When the participants were noisy talking about the old man, the person in question finally opened his mouth.

"I am one of the elders of the Jin family, and my name is Jin Zhaohui. I'm not Innate. As far as I know, there isn't a single innate realm cultivator in Beijing or perhaps China. My cultivation base is only at the Great Perfection of the Sky Origin realm. I just used a little trick to get me to walk on air. You are the future of the cultivation world, and one of you might be able to reach the innate realm in the future." Jin Zhaohui said and smiled gently.

The participants were noisy again but for a different reason. Zhaohui could only shake her head and speak again to calm them down.

"Alright. I won't say too much and will start the competition now. But before that, I have to tell you the new rules. First, the participants must be less than thirty years of age. Second, the minimal cultivation base is the Earth Origin realm. Thus, before starting the martial arts competition, we must check and test you again." Jin Zhaohui explained.

After hearing what he said, the participants panicked and complained because they did not accept the new rules. Many of them are over thirty years old. Some had cultivation bases at the Great Perfection of the Human Origin realm and wanted to seek opportunities to break through to the Earth Origin realm in that competition.

"Please be quiet!" Jin Zhaohui said and used Qi in his words. His voice boomed and echoed for several kilometers.

The people with low cultivation bases trembled and fell to their knees upon hearing that voice, and the rest with higher realms could endure it and only felt dizzy.

"These rules have become our decision and cannot be debated. We did it because the number of participants was too large. We will confirm your age and cultivation base with the ancient artifacts of the ancestor of the Jin family. We apologize that we cannot directly believe your origins from your ID cards. With these artifacts, none of you can lie.

Therefore, those of you who do not meet the requirements, please leave this place immediately so as not to embarrass yourselves." Jin Zhaohui pointed at the transparent crystal ball and a black stele more than two meters high behind him. The young cultivators were gathered in one place because the Jin family only had two artifacts. So they will need a long time because they will check and test the participants in turn.

The people were confused when Jin Zhaohui showed them the two artifacts because it was their first time seeing them in a martial arts competition.

"What tool is that?" Tenku whispered to Wang Ruyue. He felt as curious as the others.

"I also do not know. This is also my first time seeing it." Wang Ruyue shook her head and replied in a weak voice.

"Alright, we will start the age and strength assessment now. Who will go first?" Jin Zhaohui smiled and looked at the participants.

"Me! I'll try it first." a middle-aged man raised his hand and walked toward the two artifacts.

"At the age check, you must drop your blood on the crystal ball, and your age will be displayed." Jin Zhaohui explained.

"I understand, Elder Jin." The middle-aged man answered curtly. He bit his fingertips and dripped his blood onto the crystal ball.

Shine!

The crystal ball shone brightly and displayed numbers on it like a hologram

[27]

"You passed the age check. In the strength test, you must strike the stele with full force, and a score will appear to determine your cultivation base." Jin Zhaohui explained another artifact.

The middle-aged man nodded and began to compress the Qi in his right hand. After that, he punched the stele.

Boom!

The stele vibrated slightly and displayed a number on its surface.

[11299]

"Huh? What does that number mean, Elder Jin?" The middle-aged man looked at Jin Zhaohui in confusion. He didn't know if the number was high or low. The other participants also turned their attention to him and waited for his explanation.

"That number represents your attack power in pounds. So your fist has the damage equivalent to a 11299-pound object." Jin Zhaohui replied. After that, he explained the power levels in the Earth Origin realm.

1. Initial stages 10000 – 24999 pounds

2. Middle stage 25000 – 49999 pounds

3. Late stages 50000 – 74999 pounds

4. Great perfection 75000 – 99999 pounds

The attack power below 10000 was the Mortal Origin realm, and above 99999 was the Sky Origin realm

"The initial stage of the Earth Origin realm. You passed. Please return to your place to wait for the competition to start." Jin Zhaohui smiled and asked the middle-aged man to return to his place.

After that, the other participants came forward to check their ages and cultivation bases.

[32]

"Your age exceeds the rules. You failed."

[9887]

"Cultivation base at the Great Perfection of the Mortal Origin realm. You failed."

[23329]

"The initial stage of the Earth Origin realm. You passed."

[25]

"You passed."

An hour later, almost all of the participants in the venue had already checked their ages and cultivation bases. Only the people from the four major families haven't done it.

The Long Family decided to carry out an age and strength assessment before the other major families; the most powerful person among them was Long Aotian.

[24]

[90875]

After that, the Lin family took their turn, and the strength test results showed that Lin Zhantian's power was not much different from Long Aotian's.

[24]

[91033]

The Gu family stepped into the battle arena for an age and strength assessment after the two major families. The numbers that appeared for Gu Qingyang on the two artifacts astonished the people in the venue.

[25]

[99979]

"What!?"

"Isn't he on the verge of breaking through to the Sky Origin realm?"

"Amazing! Genius! He would be the first person to break through the Sky Origin realm at age twenty-five after the cultivation world had been in decline for hundreds of years." Jin Zhaohui said in awe. The geniuses of the Jin family were powerful, but they looked faint compared to Gu Qingyang.

At a time when people were amazed by the number on the stele for Gu Qingyang, only Tenku was acting casually because he had realized something.

"He restrained his strength when he attacked the stele." Tenku smiled and said indifferently.