"It seems like Duan Ling Tian from Nine Specters County hasn't shown up yet, right?"
"I wonder what County Governor Tian is thinking? Is it possible that he's only going to send Duan Ling Tian out when the winner has been decided to challenge the winner?"
Someone scoffed. "I don't think it has anything to do with the County Governor of Nine Specters County. It's more likely that he has died outside in the wild. After all, the world is a very dangerous place."
"Yes, that's possible."
Apart from the people from Nine Specters County and Fair Mountain County, the people from the other 14 counties began to whisper among themselves. Some of them thought Tian Ji Yu was hiding him and waiting for the right time to send him out. There were also some who thought he had died while traveling the world.
After a while, the powerhouse sent by King Qin's Mansion to preside over the battle arrived. The battle would be fought among the temporary top ten participants. This battle did not include the preselected 13 participants that would fight in the final round.
As time passed, more and more people were defeated.
"Qin Yu!"
Soon enough, it was Qin Yu's turn to fight.
As soon as Qin Yu walked into the center of the arena, a middle-aged man dressed in luxurious robes who was in the VIP area, located at the side of the arena that was hidden by a curtain, suddenly rose to feet. He stared at Qin Yu intently.
The two old men serving the middle-aged man in luxurious robes were startled by his sudden action. They wondered why their master seemed to have suddenly lost his composure. "Your Grace, the Third Prince, w-what's the matter?"
In King Qin's Mansion, King Qin had the highest status. King Qin had three younger brothers; the Second Prince, the Third Prince, and the Fifth Prince. The Third Prince had requested to be in charge of the Martial Competition of the 16 Counties. The master of ceremony was one of his most capable subordinates.
The Third Prince ignored the two old men and stared at the young man in the middle of the arena as he murmured to himself, "Alike… They're too alike… It seems like his name is Qin Yu?" His eyes lit up like the dazzling stars in the night sky when he spoke.
"W-why does he resemble the Fourth Prince so much?"
"His nose, his lips, and his forehead are exactly the same as the Fourth Prince. W-who is he?"
When the two old men regained their senses, they looked at each other and saw shock and incredulity in each other's eyes. The Fourth Prince was the fourth brother of King Qin. Before he left, he was already stronger than King Qin! However, due to Qi deviation, the Fourth Prince left King Qin's Mansion after injuring King Qin a few decades ago. After that, he had never been seen.
King Qin's Mansion had sent people out to look for him but to no avail. Now that several decades had passed, they actually encountered a young man during the Martial Competition of the 16 Counties who greatly resembled the Fourth Prince. Moreover, the young name's family name was also Qin. With these in mind, it was not difficult for them to connect the dots and come up with a conclusion.
"Could Qin Yu be..." The two old men looked at each other again and saw they had the same thought in their minds.
"Elder Qi, investigate Qin Yu," the Third Prince ordered in a low voice. A hint of excitement could be seen in his eyes as he looked at the young man standing in the middle of the arena as though he had just seen a friend whom he had not met in a very long time.
"Yes," one of the two old men immediately responded and left.
...
Meanwhile, the Martial Competition of the 16 Counties continued on.
Qin Yu was battling with a young man who seemed to be at the same age as him. Initially, they were evenly matched. However, after a few dozen breaths had passed, a powerful energy suddenly surged out from Qin Yu's body. Countless palm prints appeared, seemingly able to block out the sky.
Bang!
In just an instant, the power of the palm prints surged before it directly crushed and defeated Qin Yu's opponent, sending the opponent crashing to the ground. His opponent was severely injured from the attack and died soon after.
Meanwhile, the palm prints were stained with blood.
Many of the spectators inhaled sharply when they saw this.
"It seems like Qin Yu from Nine Specters County has been hiding his strength!"
"What's the technique he used earlier? It looks like a Divine Ability! An assist-type Divine Ability that's stronger than the other assist-type Divine Ability he had cast earlier!"
"I think this assist-type Divine Ability should be a profound Divine Ability at least!"
"Apart from that, it's probably not a common profound Divine Ability. I have seen ordinary profound Divine Abilities before, and I can tell you those Divine Abilities can't compare to the Divine Ability he had just cast!"
A commotion broke out as everyone from the various counties under King Qin's Mansion began to discuss Qin Yu's assist-type Divine Ability.
Meanwhile, the elder and the Revered Elders of Nine Specters County were in shock. A hint of approval could even be seen in Zheng Qiu and Pang Bing's eyes.
"I didn't expect Qin Yu to conceal his strength!"
"Based on Qin Yu's strength, it shouldn't be difficult for him to rank in the top three for now, before the 13 selected participants make their moves."
"Qin Yu's cultivation speed is really fast. Given more time, he might even become the next Duan Ling Tian."
On the other hand, Tian Ji Yu looked at Qin Yu intently. Something in his mind caused his eyes to widen as an expression of shock and disbelief appeared on his face. It was as though he had seen a ghost. "That assist-type Divine Ability looks like…"
Similar to Tian Ji Yu, the other fifteen County Governors were also in shock and disbelief when they witnessed this scene. Many of them even gasped when they saw it.
"The Heavenly Dance of Blood Marks!"
"That's the Heavenly Dance of Bloody Marks!"
"Isn't the Heavenly Dance of Blood Marks a profound assist-type Divine Ability that is exclusively cultivated by direct descendants of King Qin's Mansion?"
"How did this kid from Nine Specters County master a profound assist-type Divine Ability that solely belongs to King Qin's Mansion? Where did he secretly learn this Divine Ability?"
"It's a capital crime to cultivate the profound assist-type Divine Ability meant for King Qin and his family!"
Even the spectators who were in the know whispered among themselves. Most of them speculated that Qin Yu had sneakily mastered the assist-type Divine Ability from King Qin's Mansion.
...
The Third Prince who was hidden behind the curtains in the VIP area who had just sat down rose to his feet again. An excited expression on his face as he said, "The Heavenly Dance of Blood Marks! H-he must be fourth brother's son. Fourth brother has a descendant!"
The Third Prince looked at the master of ceremony, who was standing above and looking at Qin Yu in shock, said through Voice Transmission, "Meng Ping, bring Qin Yu to me."
Meng Ping, the master of ceremony for the Martial Competition of the 16 Counties, responded, "Yes, Third Prince!" Then, he looked at Qin Yu who was still standing in the middle arena and said, "Qin Yu, the Third Prince wants to meet you. Please follow me!"
Before Qin Yu could respond, the entire place broke into an uproar again.
"The Third Prince?"
Everyone's eyes turned to the VIP area that was hidden by a curtain. Unfortunately, they could not see beyond the curtain. Only the people in the VIP area would be able to see outside, not the other way around.
"I think this kid from Nine Specters County is out of luck. The Third Prince is definitely going to punish him!"
"Although I don't know when or how he secretly learned the Heavenly Dance of Blood Marks, there's no doubt it's a capital crime!"
Many people thought Qin Yu was going to get into trouble.
However, a small minority of people thought Qin Yu might be a descendant of King Qin who had been lost based on Qin Yu's family name.
"I don't think the Third Prince is going to punish him. Perhaps, he's a relative?"
"That's right! He has the surname Qin as well."
Tian Ji Yu narrowed his eyes as he said, "No wonder I found Qin Yu familiar. He actually resembles the Fourth Prince..."