Nine Nether Dragon Emperor-Chapter 235: The Number of Participants is a Tiny Bit Less Than Last Time…

Chapter 235: Chapter 235: The Number of Participants is a Tiny Bit Less Than Last Time...

Inside the mobile villa, the women were all agape. Although they stayed in their rooms so as not to disturb Ning Xuan, they could see the extraordinary phenomenon unfolding outside through their windows. This wasn’t simply cultivation! It was like a dragon emerging from the Nine Nether, ready to dominate the world and reign supreme!

"This guy isn’t human. I’ve never seen anyone in the Heavenly Realm create such a terrifying spectacle while cultivating!" Wu Pianpian exclaimed in amazement. Yun Wangshu nodded in deep agreement, and Qian Yourong felt the same.

As for San Wu, she stared blankly outside, her mouth so wide open it looked like it could fit an egg.

Uncle Mute, it’s not that San Wu doesn’t want to avenge you, it’s just that he’s too strong! Maybe... I should just let this grudge go?

As soon as the idea appeared, she quickly convinced herself. Back when she had first set out, aside from the mute uncle, everyone else had been sent by the Mo Family to monitor her. Even the mute uncle’s intentions weren’t entirely pure. He had wanted her to be his daughter-in-law!

"Oh my, Xiao Bai, you’ve broken through!" a surprised, doll-like voice suddenly attracted the attention of the other women. In an instant, all their eyes focused on Xiao Bai.

Xiao Bai flushed, embarrassed by the attention. "He... Thank... I..." she began, her explanation coming out in a halting, childlike voice, but the others understood her.

"You mean to thank him, right? After all, he was the one who gave you the Bloodline in your body."

Xiao Bai nodded eagerly and continued, "Line..." She gestured on her body with her hands.

Her body had been unable to withstand the Bloodline Power on its own. It was Ning Xuan who had stepped in and sorted out the flow of energy within her body for her. Clearly, the pathway he established had become deeply ingrained in her mind. This time, as Ning Xuan cultivated, the energy between heaven and earth was overwhelmingly abundant. Some of it overflowed into the villa, where it was absorbed and assimilated by Xiao Bai.

In just a short amount of time, she had ascended two minor realms! This was utterly inconceivable, especially considering Xiao Bai was now in the King Realm. To advance two minor realms in such a short period just by scavenging the overflow... one could only imagine how powerful Ning Xuan truly was!

The other women were relatively calm, as they had seen Ning Xuan cultivate before. Qian Yourong, however, had never witnessed such a thing. The terrifying spectacle made her nervous.

For someone like Ning Xuan, a true dragon among men, the Yao Guang Realm is probably just a starting point! My family is cursed with an unbreakable hex; no matter how stunning our Martial Arts talent, we can never cultivate past the King Realm. That was why we merely went through the motions before each Competition of the Ten Clans. After all, in the Yao Guang Realm, the King Realm is merely the entry-level. To go there with such a limitation would be a desperate struggle, a life worse than a dog’s! If I followed Ning Xuan, maybe things could change... but that would likely only apply within the Yao Guang Realm. What about places higher and farther beyond? Qian Yourong began to grow anxious, worried about the potential gains and losses.

「Outside.」

Ning Xuan’s cultivation continued. As he frantically devoured Heavenly Crystal energy and the world’s Element Qi, his cultivation broke through to the peak of the Tenth Heavens of the Heavenly Realm. Then, like popping a balloon, he breached the barrier and stepped into the Eleventh Layer Heavens. Afterwards, he continued to ascend.

Inside his body, what had been trickling streams of energy rapidly swelled into a vast ocean. The ball of golden light within his dantian’s sea of qi grew ever more brilliant, on the verge of transforming into a golden lake! As this terrifying power circulated, a divine aura began to emanate from Ning Xuan.

PUFF!

With another soft sound, Ning Xuan shattered the barriers of the Eleventh Layer Heavens. With that, he stepped into the Twelfth Layer of the Heavenly Realm, the absolute pinnacle! All of this had happened in less than half an hour since he had left the Heavenly Palace.

「Heavenly Palace Square.」

Atop the high platform, Nanling Bully, who had been watching the arrival of the prodigies with interest, frowned once again.

"Uncle Bully, what’s wrong? You’ve been distracted five times already," You Ruo could no longer hold back and asked him in a low voice.

Nanling Bully replied, "The Element Qi in the world feels... off. Why does it seem to be draining away?"

You Ruo’s expression changed instantly. "Ah, have they made their move?!"

Nanling Bully shook his head. "No, the energy isn’t flowing upward. It’s moving in that direction." His eyes suddenly widened. That was the direction Ning Xuan had taken when he left!

Could it really be him? The thought had barely formed before he vanished on the spot, setting out to investigate.

In the square, some elders from the various families had just mustered the courage to speak. But when they looked up, they discovered the Venerable One had disappeared! While they heaved a sigh of relief, they also felt a keen sense of loss. Could it be that the Venerable One has no interest in even glancing at the Qilin our clan has poured its heart and soul into cultivating?

Fearing that their clan’s Qilin would suffer a blow to their Mental State, one elder immediately sent a telepathic message, "He must be occupied with something important. It doesn’t matter. There is still one more Venerable One who has yet to appear. We just have to wait for them!"

The incident where Ning Xuan had executed a Venerable One here had naturally been kept secret. After all, no one was audacious enough to simply leave and spread the news.

"I wonder when the other Venerable One will show up?"

"This one seems so difficult to approach. The other one must be much nicer!"

Unaware of the truth, the crowd continued to wait in anticipation.

Meanwhile, the Venerable One they considered so difficult to get along with was flashing through space, already a considerable distance from the Heavenly Palace. He could now sense the drain of the world’s energy with even greater clarity. He hesitated, however, a rare occurrence for him. He was already so far from the Heavenly Palace, yet he still couldn’t see any sign of the person responsible. To cause such a phenomenon from this distance, the cultivator responsible had to possess an utterly terrifying Cultivation Realm. If he were to recklessly intrude and anger such an expert, he could very well be killed!

Forget it. The Competition of the Ten Clans is more important! Muttering to himself, Nanling Bully chose to turn back.

As for Ning Xuan, he had already been ruled out as a suspect. Causing a disturbance from such a great distance was impossible for someone in the Heavenly Realm, let alone the King Realm or even the Emperor Realm! The other party’s strength had to be at least in the Venerable Realm, and a high-level one at that, starting from the Ninth Layer Heavens!

By the time Nanling Bully returned to the Heavenly Palace, You Ruo immediately asked, "How did it go? Was it that guy, Ning Xuan?"

Nanling Bully chuckled. "You give him too much credit. How could it possibly be him?"

You Ruo nodded, not pursuing the matter further. She guessed that Nanling Bully must have turned back halfway.

"Ask them how many are still missing. As soon as the time is up, we begin!" Nanling Bully ordered, interrupting You Ruo’s reverie.

"Alright!" You Ruo composed herself and replied formally.

At that moment, an enforcer presented her with a data slate. She went to hand it to Nanling Bully, but he simply shook his head. You Ruo quickly read through the information herself, her expression growing troubled.

Nanling Bully asked, "What happened?"

"There are... a few less participants in the Competition of the Ten Clans this time."

"A few less? How many?"

"Eighteen..."

Nanling Bully’s eyes narrowed. "I recall there being thirty-two participants in the last competition. Are you telling me only fourteen are joining this time?"

"Yes... that’s correct."

"Why?!" 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

You Ruo didn’t answer. Instead, her gaze shifted to the empty space where the mobile villa had once stood.