Chapter 2558: Gathering at the City Lord’s Office
The City Lord’s Office was very quiet at the moment, and many top cultivators were focusing at the arena on that side.
If what happened in the previous two rounds were coincidences, with so many unknown master armorers exhibiting their strengths, could a powerful master, a total unknown, defeating Meng Yan in this round be just another coincidence?
Such a person would definitely be very well-known. All forces would be vying for a top master armorer in the peak Renhuang level. Even if he continued to cultivate on his own, he would be highly coveted by every principality.
But it was precisely such a person known to no one from the City Lord’s Office of Tianyan City. They had never seen him nor heard of him.
Was that even possible?
Such probability was very unlikely.
“It all started from Upper Renhuang,” someone spoke up, and everyone nodded. This anomaly really started from the seventh round of the competition, which was also the realm of Upper Renhuang. Then, the same thing happened again in the eighth and the ninth rounds.
“Meng Yan’s armor-making ability is not necessarily weaker than him, but he was overly confident. But he has reasons to be confident, except he did not expect a similarly powerful person would appear,” someone from the City Lord’s Office said. Besides Meng Yan, none of them had expected this.
After all, Meng Yan’s level in armoring was truly at the peak level of the Renhuang realm.
Who would have thought that someone else would appear to compete with him? Someone who was equally strong as him?
Meng Yan sought the safe route and didn’t expect his opponent to forge a powerful implement of divine arms. In turn, Meng Yan’s divine arms were suppressed, so he lost.
Many nodded, agreeing with this observation. Indeed, Meng Yan’s forging ability was not necessarily lesser than that of the other, but still… it was truly a pity!
Such an awesome master armorer was eliminated thusly.
“Go and see where Master Meng Yan has gone, and invite him to come to the City Lord’s Office as a guest,” a top figure inside the City Lord’s Office said. Immediately, someone took his order, along with several powerful people. They were all dispatched to look for Meng Yan.
Meng Yan was proud by nature. This failure meant that he didn’t even have the right to enter the City Lord’s Office to make armors. Then, he might leave straight away, never showing himself in Tianyan City again, which meant never entering the City Lord’s Office to cultivate armoring.
Judging from Meng Yan’s character, it was most likely that he would work privately on his cultivation in armor-making. It would not be until the day he could produce Sub-divine arms that he might emerge again.
Those master armorers who had already arrived at the City Lord’s Office gathered together. They had seen that amazing showdown just now, and they were a little sorry for Meng Yan. If he came to the City Lord’s Office, he would have the same excellent performance in the City Lord’s Office.
But now, he left with a sense of loss, a reputation of failure.
“Nine rounds of Armorer Competition are officially over. Next, we will wait for the competitors to enter the City Lord’s Office for the tenth and final round of the competition.” At this time, the City Lord of Tianyan said, “The decisive battle of the tenth round will see all the master armorers forging their weapons together. At the same time, from each realm, the City Lord’s Office will select a powerful armorer to participate in the competition. In addition, those of the Tribulation Plane who can produce Sub-divine arms are not required to have participated in previous competitions. They can go right ahead and participate in the tenth round of the Armorer Competition.”
There are not many master armorers who were in the Tribulation Plane and capable of making Sub-divine arms. There were not many such existences in the entire Divine Prefecture. The kind of existences that could produce sub-divine arms certainly did not need to go through the prequalifying competitions.
They were the topmost master armorers in the Divine Prefecture.
“Finally, they are coming.” Many people were somewhat expectant. The tenth round of the competition would be held in the City Lord’s Office, and it was also the final showdown. All the most powerful masters armorers in different realms were gathering together and forging at the same time.
Moreover, if they could emerge victoriously this time, gaining entrance into the City Lord’s Office aside, there would also be many rewards. Even if they did not choose to go with the City Lord’s Office, they had the option to enter other top forces and received support in their future cultivation by these major forces.
No matter which realm it was, no one would want to miss a master armorer with superb potential.
Therefore, the armor-making this time was even more important for people in the lower realms because it had a bearing on their future.
As for the high-level armorers, they had already achieved fame and were respected by everyone, everywhere. No matter where they went, they were the center of attention. Of course, they also needed those giant-level forces to provide them with better resources to help them in their cultivation.
Only when their realm of cultivation had been elevated could their ability be upgraded.
Whether it was armor-making or alchemy, just with the talent for both was far from enough. The realm of cultivation was the foundation. Without cultivation, even the endowment of natural talent in armor-making and alchemy was meaningless because there was no way it could be realized.
Ye Futian was watching everything happening in the crowd. The City Lord of Tianyan and other cultivators from the City Lord’s Office were calm and at ease. They did not exhibit the slightest alarm. However, they must have guessed it already, that there was probably a mysterious hidden force that was participating in the competition this time.
The master armorers this time had shattered all of their expectations, with high probabilities that things may go in a direction they could not predict. In other words, they were no longer in control of the direction in which the competition might proceed. Even though they were the host of this competition, they could not change the rules now and bar them from participating in this round of the competition!
In that case, Tianyan City would be discredited, and this centennial feast would become the butt of all jokes, to be ridiculed by everyone.
Of course, as far as Ye Futian was concerned, he didn’t mind for the situation to evolve in this direction. Behind this feast at the Armorer Competition, there were plans targeting the Ziwei Segmentum. But now, with someone here to disrupt everything, he was happy enough to watch it all unveil.
He even hoped that the situation would get a little more chaotic.
Now, perhaps everyone was speculating who the actual principalities in the dark were.
Ye Futian was also guessing.
Who had such an incredible connection to mobilize a group of top master armorers to participate in the Armorer Competition?
In the land of the Divine Prefecture, there was only one principality that may have this ability, and that was the City Lord’s Office of Tianyan.
But the City Lord’s Office of Tianyan was the host of the feast. Therefore, the mysterious power in the dark may not be a power from the Divine Prefecture.
So, who else could it be?
The answer was right in front of them.
Dark Court, Empty Divine Mountain.
Only these two forces could mobilize top masters to come here to participate in the Armorer Competition. This also meant that the cultivators of the Dark World and the Empty Divine Realm had arrived on the land of the Divine Prefecture.
Princess Donghuang and the cultivators from the Imperial Palace guessed as much. At this moment, the divine aurora in their eyes retracted inward. Who had come from these two major worlds?
In other words, they were all here.
Now, would they be so bold as to come directly onto the territory of the Divine Prefecture? That would be truly arrogant!
However, without a ruse, one could not arrest and depose any of the powerful master armorers out there.
Perhaps there were really some amazing unknown figures among them?
This Armorer Competition seemed to be getting more and more exciting by the minute.
All of Tianyan City was extremely looking forward to the tenth round of the competition.
Many top figures in the City Lord’s Office were chatting while they waited. It didn’t take long before they saw people coming over in the direction from the south. They were the winners who emerged from the ninth round of the Armorer Competition.
The land to the south was empty before, but gradually it was filled with more people who arrived later, and they were all people from the Armorer Competition, now reconvened there.
When the winner from the ninth round of the Armorer Competition arrived, the inside and outside of the City Lord’s Office began to quiet down.
The attention of many drifted toward the man in black, who was also the master armorer who defeated Meng Yan. Where exactly did he come from?
But the other man’s expression was calm as he looked straight ahead, without showing the slightest sign of concern. The others were the same, standing quietly among the crowd. They were just cultivators who came to participate in the Armorer Competition.
“You guys get out there too.” The City Lord of Tianyan said, and immediately, nine figures walked out behind him at the same time.
Each of the nine persons corresponded to a realm, representing the highest level of armorers within the City Lord’s Office.
They came to the opposite side of these people, separated by the nine raised platforms. This Armorer Competition was also a point of contact between the master armorers of the City Lord’s Office and the masters from the outside.
At this grand event every hundred years, generally half of the winners were from the City Lord’s Office.
“Next, master armorers in the Tribulation Plane, both inside and outside the City Lord’s Office, may come directly into the City Lord’s Office by air.” The City Lord of Tianyan announced loudly, and his voice could be heard throughout Tianyan City. He gave the greatest respect to masters armorers at this level by allowing them to enter the City Lord’s Office from the sky.
Soon after, three figures walked out from both sides; all three were masters at the level of Tribulation Plane. Such figures were extremely rare, but because it was the largest armoring event in all of Divine Prefecture, they were here as well.
Outside, high above the sky, two figures appeared there, then landed on the ground. They came over and bowed slightly to the City Lord of Tianyan, saying, “Greetings to City Lord Wang.”
“The grandmasters had come from afar, and it has been a long journey.” The City Lord of Tianyan continued, “If there is anyone else, please come forward.”
A while after his voice faded, another person appeared in the sky above the City Lord’s Office; the temperament of this man was also incredibly transcendent. When he appeared, the cultivators from the City Lord’s Office inquired about his identity, but no one recognized the man.
They knew the five people who appeared, but no one knew this master armorer.
There was a degree of seriousness now in the City Lord of Tianyan’s eyes as he looked at the man, only to see him landed and saluted in the direction of the City Lord of Tianyan. “Armorer Mu Yan greets the City Lord.”
“Mu Yan!”
No one had heard of this name before.
“Where does the grandmaster come from?” the City Lord of Tianyan asked.
“I came to participate in the Armorer Competition; it doesn’t matter where I’m from.” Mu Yan responded. The City Lord of Tianyan looked at him, but it was impossible to question him further. He turned to look at a young man in the back and said, “You too, go out.”
“Yes.” The man nodded, then stepped forward. At this moment, in Tianyan City, countless people’s eyes looked at him through the mirror image in the sky. This, then, was that extremely enchanting figure, long hidden by the City Lord’s Office. It was not until recently that Tianyan City became aware of his existence!