Actually, all the competitors had already gathered before noon.
For such a major event, it was laughable that anyone would be late. One would be ridiculed by the whole Dark North Kingdom.
You Xue and the final participant from the royal family had arrived as well. However, because her elder brother and sisters were all there, she could not come over. The royal family was always the center of attention, and Wu Yu would be equally watched if they came over.
The Dark North royal family, with their highest public profile, immediately drew all eyes with their arrival.
Wu Yu also looked at her siblings, and they were indeed extraordinary. Each of them was of the finest talent, no less than You Xue, and they were also older and had much experience. Their dao enlightenment was profound, and looked much more mature and awesome than You Xue's.
Even amongst the crowd of competitors, these royal family members stood out. Not only in ability, they were also a cut above in presence, manner of speech, and worldliness.
Besides, they also had their own distinctive qualities.
Of course, amongst these 1,000 people, there were many hidden ones who were not as high-profile as they are.
Amongst these 1,000 people yet to reach a century of age, Wu Yu indeed felt a surge of respect for all these cultivating geniuses in the mix.
The parents and elders of these young talents were also present in large numbers, many of them of provincial lord caliber. Many of them held important stations for the nation, and there were many experts amidst their number.
Many Dao Querying Realm middle-aged and old people were gathered, laughing and talking. Wu Yu also spotted You Shang chatting in a crowd.
Even Minister Yin, the Master of Justice, and other highly eminent people were present, although Wu Yu did not know who was who.
Close to the gates, there were many who could indeed pose a fatal threat to Wu Yu. These were people who Wu Yu was completely sure that even the second tier of the Somersault Cloud could not escape from.
Such beings could be deadly to Wu Yu.
Basically, anyone of provincial lord status and above already made Wu Yu feel his vulnerability strongly. The same feeling as a lamb wandering into a pack of lions or tigers.
It was all lions here.
Not a good feeling.
The good thing was that there were many lambs alongside him. When these important people appeared, a silence fell on the spectators, and they waited obediently. Anyone who made a sound would soon feel pressure directed their way.
Until the end, only the august members of the entire kingdom were left speaking.
There were many people from the Dark North royal family present as well. You Shang was one of them, and there had to be others. Wu Yu saw one person who was even more highly ranked than You Shang. His arrival silenced the entire crowd, and Wu Yu felt a jolt of fear in his heart when he looked upon the white-haired elder, even though that person did not look his way. This was an old man on the verge of becoming an immortal, and even You Shang was very respectful towards him.
He was probably an elder of a generation before You Shang and the Dark Sea Emperor, and a national treasure. Others called him Ancestor Yang.
Although Wu Yu did not dare to let his gaze linger on this person, his presence alone was a knife poised at Wu Yu's heart. Even breathing was difficult. Wu Yu looked around to see everyone's heads bowed, afraid to speak. They probably felt the same way as he did.
"This is a being on the verge of immortalhood?" Wu Yu was very amazed.
"Probably. But I don't think he stands much of a chance. He's too old. In the Three Disasters Realm, even if one struggles past the last disaster, one can still die in the Great Trial of the Immortal Dao. It's virtually unheard of for such an old man past his peak to pass the Great Trial of the Immortal Dao. At most, he has a few decades to live," Ming Long said indifferently.
"Oh?"
Even someone of such caliber could not escape the fate of death.
It looked like it was best to surge to immortalhood while one was still young, or middle-aged at most. The possibility seemed higher then. Once one aged, it was simply a matter of waiting for death.
Ancestor Yang was highly respected and had unlimited fame, but probably only he knew how it felt to be so close to death. After all, he was but two steps away.
Many people had no hope of becoming immortal, but he did.
Right now, the Dark North Capital was both lively and serious.
The sheer number of people made the atmosphere lively, and yet subdued because of the elites who were present.
Noon.
Names began to be called.
Although it was obvious that all the experts were already here, it was an age-old tradition, not for the purpose of attendance, but for each participant to enjoy their name being called out and ringing through the whole Dark North Capital, and even the Dark North Kingdom.
Especially since You Shang was personally calling the names.
It was the dream of many for their name to ring throughout the Dark North Capital.
Today, it had come true for many.
Firstly, the royal family. As each name was read, a beam of light illuminated the person's body.
Wu Yu could also recognize these 1,000 people.
"You Yang!"
He fixed each name to a person.
You Shang was quick, and each person was lit only for a brief moment.
However, it was enough to remember them.
The participants of the Eight Main Armies came later.
The Dark Sea Army was the first of the Eight Main Armies.
As per the order previously, Wu Yu's name was at the back. He still had something of a reputation, and many looked over as his name was called. When the beam of light lit him up, Wu Yu felt like he was the center of the world. In that instant, everyone was looking at him, including Ancestor Yang.
This pressure was too great.
In that instant, he felt his world crack, as though his body and mind were both crumbling.
Fortunately, You Shang very quickly moved on to the Stygian Nightmare Army, and the light vanished from Wu Yu. Although quite a few were still paying attention to this outsider, the pressure was already considerably lower.
Finally, it ended.
All were present.
In the instant that it was concluded, the entire Dark North Capital was roused.
You Shang announced, "For the opening, head to the Dead Souls Prison!"
The Dead Souls Prison was the venue for the real opening. This was but the rendezvous point.
At the Dead Souls Prison, there were 800,000 elite people watching. They had come from the entire Yan Huang Ancient Region, and this was a place that truly took one's breath away.
Wu Yu and the other participants moved in first. They boarded a colossal warship, black of body and with a grandness to it. It had more than 100,000 spirit designs, etched over every single plank and piece of metal. This black warship was made of immortal essences and precious treasures. This was definitely an advanced dao treasure!
Compared to Yan Huang Imperial City's warship, this was too far beyond it. The Imperial General's warship was but a small dingy compared to this.
What impressed Wu Yu the most was the 18 skulls carved on the body of the boat. Huge quantities of black smoke plumed from the mouths and nostrils of the skulls, shrouding the entire warship in black mist. It looked truly apocalyptic.
"This is the Underworldly Skeletal Warship of Army General You Shang. An advanced dao treasure!" Yin Ying said in envy.
Many must've wished to board this Underworldly Skeletal Warship!
Wu Yu was among the first to board. This warship looked very intimidating from the outside, but it was luxurious and well-furnished once boarded, like the Dark North Royal Palace.
You Shang steered the ship of both competitors and spectators. If he used his full speed, it would only take 15 minutes to reach their destination.
Of course, in order to create a ceremonial effect, the Underworldly Skeletal Warship would circle the major cities of the Dark North Kingdom once, receiving the cheers of the entire Dark North Kingdom. It would only reach the Dead Souls Prison five days from now!
Firstly, it would fly over the 99 satellite cities.
At each city, they could see the people milling around below, cheering wildly. Wu Yu could deeply feel the brand of the Dark North Kingdom.
This ceremonial feeling made Wu Yu feel how seriously this battle was taken by the kingdom.
The entire Dark North Kingdom was worked into a fervor.
After five days, Wu Yu was already mostly desensitized to these cheers.
Finally, they were about to reach the Dead Souls Prison. When they arrived, the Dark North Battle for Supremacy would immediately commence. Which was why the closer they got, the more nervous they were. Even for these geniuses, they were unable to calm themselves on such a momentous occasion.
Actually, Wu Yu also knew that such major events were the best chance for the youths of the entire nation to fight for glory and cultivation.
This battle was organized once every decade, and would allow the best talents of the Dark North Kingdom to emerge and keep the nation strong.
Standing on the Underworldly Skeletal Warship and looking through the black mist, they could see a huge "egg" on the horizon. It was only half an egg, but it covered the land.
This was actually the Dead Souls Prison.
Of course, the actual Dead Souls Prison was underground. This huge structure was actually the arena for the Dark North Battle for Supremacy. There were more than 1 million magnificent seats, made to house all the spectators who would watch the performance of these 1,000.
Right now, the 800,000 spectators had mostly arrived, and they were simply waiting for Wu Yu and the rest of the batch.
All around the Dead Souls Prison, there were numerous spirit designs. As the Underworldly Skeletal Warship neared, the spirit designs were temporarily deactivated, and reactivated after entry.
Of course, this prevented even the stronger sea region demons in the vicinity of the Dark North Kingdom from entering national borders. Demons imprisoned here had virtually no chance of escaping - they could only seek release through the Dark North Battle for Supremacy.
Actually, each time it took place, only a few dozen demons would leave due to the Dark North Battle for Supremacy. The Dark North Kingdom kept its word and released them. Fulfilling this promise made the remaining demons fight even harder. Perhaps they looked forward to the Dark North Battle for Supremacy even more than the competitors did.
As they neared, they discovered that there were actually a million seats within this half egg.
The Underworldly Skeletal Warship entered through a hole at the top.