Immortal Only Accepts Female Disciples

The crowd roared in approval and the day’s festivities began. The Fox Volant of Beast Mountain was something they all looked forward to. It was supposed to be fun but also a way for cultivators to make a name for themselves.

A grizzled elder came up to the stage. With a deft leap off one foot, he left a wooden cage at the top of the pillar. Inside was a small black fox that was curled up into a ball. It was looking around warily and taking phantom bites at the humans that had imprisoned it.

It was a popular breed known as the ebony cloud fox. Its body was light and fluffy and had an innate ability to glide like a cloud. It was an expensive fox on the market that would go for at least ten thousand taels of gold.

The arena buzzed with excitement at the prize. All eyes fell on the front rows to see which side would step forward first. There were a lot of promising names, those that had reached the top one hundred of the Monster Fightin Competition, those that had done well at the Convocation of Swords.

After a few breaths to build anticipation, a trio from the lion lord’s side strode up to the stage. Their cultivations were at the early levels of the Spirit Initiate Realm but they each carried themselves with confidence and swagger.

“It’s them!”

“They really came!”

“Wow!”

The three people, two men and one woman came to a stop beneath the pillar. They turned towards the crowd and bowed.

“We are Team Skylark, I am Jin Zenan!” The middle figure spoke in a bright voice.

He was tall and muscular, well a well-proportioned face. He wore only some sparse pieces of armor around his forearms and shins. He even dared to be bare-chested.

“I am Zhang Jinyou!” The second man said.

He was more round than tall. He had a neck that was thicker than his head and the fur-lined armor that he wore didn’t do him any favors. From a distance, he looked like a giant meatball.

“I am Huang Tongyang!”

The third was a pretty lass in her late twenties. She wore a form-fitting battle dress that highlighted her figure. With one glance, anyone could tell that she was high-class. Just the way she said her name was filled with elegance.

“It’s Team Skylark!”

“It’s really them!”

The crowd burst into excitement as if they had seen three celebrities.

“Team Skylark…” Qu Jing, who was seated beside Li Yuechan, leaned over and explained, “They made a name for themselves during the insect siege. When some of insects broke through the walls and invaded the city streets, we had to expend a lot of blood and tears and clear them out. Team Skylark performed extremely well and killed over a hundred insects at the Spirit Initiate Realm, directly saving countless peoples’ lives.”

“I see…”

“But don’t worry, we have our own young talents.” He made a gesture with his hand.

Three people behind them got up and took the stage. They were called Team Antbear. They were three men and their fame was no less than Team Skylark. They had also performed well during the insect siege, though not so excessively.

“Competitors, take your badges.” The elder called out.

The first trio took wooden badges for the three beast kings. Jin Zenan was the monkey king. Zhang Jinyou was the toad king. And Huang Tongyang was the mantis queen. The second trio were the three lords.

The elder also made sure to warn them, “During a fight, fists and swords have no eyes. If you cannot hold on anymore, it is up to you to crush your wooden badge and give up!”

With that, the elder left with a leap, leaving three contestants on the stage. The two sides glared at each other, building up tension between rival factions as well as rival cultivators. This group would have more battles after this one, at the next Immortal Sect Competition and other events along the way.

The man with the snake lord badge made a move first. His figure blurred as he dashed ahead. His fist shot out, directly at Jin Zenan.

“Useless!” Jin Zenan snorted.

Pa!

The punch was blocked with a strong palm, leaving the snake lord in an awkward spot.

Jin Zenan smirked and stomped down. The snake lord had to roll away indignantly to save himself.

After that, the other four joined the action and the battle became chaotic. All six were cultivators of the Beast God Sanctum so they were beast arts cultivators. Hence, they began with close-range martial arts that they had all grown up practicing. Three pairs of fighters traded punches and kicks rapidly. Those who suffered a blow got up quickly to retaliate. Sometimes it would be two verses one or two verses two but it would always devolve into single duels.

Nobody held back. Even though both sides lived in the same city, they had long disliked each other. For several generations before the fall of the snake lord’s faction, each faction only saw the other as competitors and not brothers.

Pa!

A particularly heavy blow from Jin Zenan sent the snake lord competitor flying. He landed at the edge of the stage and was slow to get up. They clutched their chest and coughed up some blood.

“Hmph, boring. You’re not my match!”

“You… rabbit bastard, I’m not done yet!”

With a roar, the snake lord competitor started to transform. Spiritual energy rippled off his body as it grew in size. His hands became furry and grew long claws. His head elongated and turned into that of a fearsome wolf. When it was done, it looked like a misshapen giant dire wolf that had learned to walk on two feet.

“Wolf transformation art!”

It was the same wolf transformation art of Immortal Wolf Hunter Nan Lang.

At his cue, the other two members of his team also activated their beast arts. One transformed into a muscular monkey while the other one grew wings out of his back like a giant bird.

“Hmph, we can do that too.” Jin Zenan said and snapped his fingers.

The rotund Zhang Jinyou seemingly exploded in size and turned into a giant bull three meters tall. Beside him, Huang Tongyang grew vicious claws out of her hands.

As for Jin Zenan, his figure remained largely the same. Only, his skin became shiny and acquired a scaled pattern. It was like he was wearing a skin-tight suit of armor from head to toe.

“Snakeskin transformation art!”

“This is the snake lord’s snakeskin transformation art!”

Many experienced pairs of eyes in the crowd instantly recognized this beast transformation art. It had resounding fame for over five hundred years as the snake lord’s secret art that he only passed down to direct descendants. Ever since the snake lord and his faction fell, it had never been seen again.

“Where did you get that?”

“That’s impossible!”

Jin Zenan stood tall amidst the shouting and admonishments. He seemed unperturbed by the whole thing.

Chen Wentian, as Qu Jing, watched the scene with great interest. There were many possible explanations as to how this secret art landed in Jin Zenan’s hands. But none of them mattered.

What mattered was why it was being shown off now. This Jin Zenan must have gotten approval from He Zicheng or one of the lords under him. Otherwise, he would not have dared to reveal such a strength.

If he had to guess, then the news of Chen Wentian’s arrival in the city and the possibility of an alliance with the eagle lord forced He Zicheng to act. The lion lord let Jin Zenan reveal this secret art to tell the city that he, He Zicheng, was the stronger faction and the one who would eventually unite the city under one banner.

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