Chapter 3260: Xu Lang the Verdant Prairie Celestial Emperor

“The third and final test will take place in the Sword Trial Pavilion.”

Lei Ying led Duan Ling Tian and the other participants into one of the courtyards on the floating island in the Heavenly Pool Palace’s estate. They were then brought into a pavilion.

At this moment, there were many people surrounding the pavilions, watching with curiosity. Naturally, these people were members of the Heavenly Pool Palace. Otherwise, how could they be here?

Duan Ling Tian saw a plaque with the words ‘The Sword Trial Pavilion’ hung on the main entrance of the pavilion. The characters were neatly aligned as though they were printed.

The Sword Trial Pavilion was vast. Perhaps, this place was the location to select and test disciples, it was rather empty.

“Pavilion Master.”

Just as they arrived at the entrance of the pavilion, ten middle-aged and old men stood in a row waiting for Lei Ying and greeted her when she arrived with the participants in tow.

Lei Ying nodded slightly before she said to the ten men, “Bring them into the pavilion.”

Although Duan Ling Tian and the other participants did not know why Lei Ying was not entering together with them, they obediently followed the ten men into the Sword Trial Pavilion.

After Duan Ling Tian and the others left, a tall young man dressed in blue robes flew over from the distance and landed next to Lei Ying. The young man had an ordinary appearance, but he had an aura about him that made him seem amiable and warm. He asked without beating around the bush, “Lei Ying, I heard there are two highly talented participants this time?”

“Xu Lang, you’re really well-informed,” Lei Ying stared at the young man intently as she said, “The Sword Trial Pavilion wants both of them so don’t even think about poaching them”

Xu Lang, the blue-clad young man, was one of the nine titled Celestial Emperors in the Heavenly Pool Palace. He was given the title Verdant Prairie, and as a titled Celestial Emperor as well, he was, naturally, not inferior to Lei Ying.

Earlier, Xu Lang had received news about two monstrously talented participants who were not even 300 years but have strength comparable to a titled Celestial Lord.

“Lei Ying, you’re being too greedy.” Xu Lang shook his head. “You must let me have one of them… Don’t forget the favor you owe me 1,000 years ago.”

Lei Ying scoffed. “You shouldn’t have brought this matter up. Hearing it again makes my blood boil! That brat you threw to me was a good-for-nothing troublemaker. He even ended up offending the Heavenly Emperor. If I didn’t let him die a miserable death, the Heavenly Emperor would’ve been displeased with me!”

1,000 years ago, during the disciple selection for the Heavenly Pool Palace, Lei Ying did not oversee the selection of the disciples. Instead, the task was passed onto the Vice Palace Master. There were a few participants with potential, but none as talented as the current ones. Since she did not oversee the selection, when the talented participants were finally accepted into the Heavenly Pool Palace, all the talented participants had been snatched away by others, including Xu Lang. As a titled Celestial Emperor, Xu Lang even managed to get two of the talented participants to follow him. When Lei Ying came to him to ask for one of the talented participants, he let one of the talented participants follow her. However, that participant was arrogant and unruly and ended up offending the Heavenly Emperor of the Boundless Heaven when the Heavenly Emperor visited. When she saw how furious the Heavenly Emperor was, she personally killed the participant to save herself from trouble.

“Lei Ying, that was an accident. When I let him follow you, I didn’t know his personality and didn’t know he would cause such a huge trouble,” Xu Lang said slightly sheepishly, “Be honest. Did I hesitate when you asked me for one of the participants? This time…”

Lei Ying did not let Xu Lang finish his sentence. She interjected, “Both of them will watch them participate in the third test. If either one of them is willing to be your disciple, then I won’t say anything about it.”

“Don’t worry.” Xu Lang smiled confidently. “As long as you’re willing, I have my means.”

The reason Lei Ying did not enter the pavilion with the others was due to Xu Lang’s message that asked her to wait for him. Now that both of them had reached an agreement, they entered the pavilion together.

…

When Duan Ling Tian and the other participants entered the pavilion, they saw a vast and empty platform in the middle of the pavilion. However, when they turned around, they discovered the entrance had disappeared. At this moment, apart from Duan Ling Tian, the other candidates, and the ten old men who led them onto the platform, there was no one else.

‘Is… Is this a Little World?’ Duan Ling Tian’s heart skipped a beat. Soon after, he saw two figures in the distance. One of them was Lei Ying, and the other person was a young man whom Duan Ling Tian had never seen before since his arrival at the Heavenly Pool Palace and the Sword Trial Pavilion. Therefore, he had no idea who the young man was. However, for the young man to be able to stand side by side with Lei Ying, it was not difficult to guess that the young man’s status in the Heavenly Pool Palace was on par with Lei Ying’s status.

While Duan Ling Tian was still mulling over the young man’s identity, he heard someone say, “In the Heavenly Pool Palace, there are only two young men who are Lei Yin’s peers. Based on this person’s appearance, he must be Xu Lang the Verdant Prairie Celestial Emperor.”

The person who had spoken was a middle-aged man. Duan Ling Tian remembered seeing him in the group of people between the ages of 900 and 1,000. During the second test, the middle-aged man broke out of the Attack Formation right after the third person, Jun Hao Xuan, came out. Jun Hao Xun was placed behind Duan Ling Tian and Huan’er during the second test.

Upon hearing the middle-aged man’s words, many of the participants whispered among themselves and looked at Duan Ling Tian and Huan’er furtively.

“Xu Lang the Verdant Prairie Celestial Emperor? Why did he come?”

“There has to be a reason why he’s here. Would a titled Celestial Emperor come over here just to watch a show?”

“He must have heard about those two people!”

Meanwhile, Duan Ling Tian’s eyes glinted as he thought to himself, “Another titled Celestial Emperor? Two out of the nine titled Celestial Emperors in the Heavenly Pool Palace are here?’

Following that, Duan Ling Tian sent a Voice Transmission to Huan’er. “Huan’er, if Xu Lang came for either of us, I’ll choose to follow Xu Lang at the end of the test. Meanwhile, if Lei Ying wants to accept you as her disciple, agree to it.”

Upon hearing these words, Huan’er hurriedly replied through Voice Transmission, “Brother Ling Tian, I don’t want to be separated from you.”

“Silly girl, we’re not truly separated. We need as many advantages as we can get, and we need to use every advantage we have to investigate your parents’ whereabouts,” Duan Ling Tian replied.

Huan’er’s brightened when she heard Duan Ling Tian’s words, and she no longer protested.

At this moment, Lei Ying, the Merciless Celestial Emperor, the Pavilion Master of the Sword Trial Pavilion in the Heavenly Palace Pool, began to announce the third test. “The third test is…”

Similar to the first two tests, the participants would be divided into ten groups again. Regardless of the number of people in each group, the last ten men standing would pass the test.

‘Survival of the fittest?’ Upon hearing Lei Ying’s explanation, Duan Ling Tian finally realized for the third test they would have to battle their peers until only ten people remained.

“The battle will take place one group after another… Those who are eliminated will be given a last chance to join the Heavenly Pool Palace through a resurrection match,” Lei Ying continued to say.

The group with the most participants was still the group of people under the age of 100; there were 116 participants in that group. This group would also be the first group to battle each other. All of them were determined to fight without holding back, hoping to be one of the remaining ten so they could be disciples of the Heavenly Pool Palace.

Meanwhile, the other participants from the other groups watched the hundred over people on the platform, who were as quiet as a mouse, from the side and spoke among themselves in hushed voices.

“The competition in this group is intense.”

“Only ten are allowed to pass out of 116 people… This means 106 people will be eliminated.”

After getting the green light from Lei Ying, the 116 participants from the group of people below the age of 100 began to attack each other immediately with all their might. There was a lot hanging on the line, after all. Therefore, it did not take long before a few had already died. Upon seeing this, those who knew they did not stand a chance of winning hurriedly surrendered.

After half an hour, there were only 32 participants left on the platform. All of them were scattered around the vast platform, looking at each other warily and fiercely.

As Duan Ling Tian looked at the 32 participants, he asked Huan’er, “Huan’er, who do you think will definitely pass the test?”

“I think it should be him,” Huan’er said as she looked at one of the participants who had performed brilliantly among the 32 remaining participants. Naturally, as outstanding as that person was, he was only slightly stronger than his peers. He could not compare to Duan Ling Tian and Huan’er at all.

“I disagree.” Duan Ling Tian shook his head. He had taken notice of the participant that Huan’er had pointed out earlier. Although that person was the strongest among the 32 participants, he was too ostentatious and reckless.

As it turned out, Duan Ling Tian was right. Apart from that person, among the 31 participants, more than 20 people joined forces to kill that person Huan’er mentioned as a potential winner.

Huan’er was slightly taken aback by the accuracy of Duan Ling Tian’s prediction.

Upon seeing the surprise on Huan’er’s face, Duan Ling Tian patiently explained to her, “Huan’er, one must learn to keep a low profile unless one has absolute strength. If he had known to hide his strength and kept a low profile, there was no doubt he would have passed the test.”

After the strongest person from the group of people under 100 years old died, the other 31 participants began to fight each other again. In just a blink of an eye, many of them died. After another fifteen minutes, only ten participants were left.

At this moment, Lei Ying turned to briefly look at a middle-aged man standing behind her and said indifferently, “Bring them away, and arrange for them to join the palace.”

“Understood, Pavilion Master!” the middle-aged man responded before he brought the ten remaining participants from the first group away.