There was quite an uproar in the city. Firemoon cultivators who had previously challenged Xu Qing looked on with glittering eyes. None of them did a thing. For most of them, issuing challenges was a way to earn some reputation. Nothing more. When you coupled the fact that Xu Qing hadn’t accepted any challenges with the reality that someone was trying to stir things up from behind the scenes, it meant that… none of them had actually considered doing any fighting.

They had mostly been wanting to watch sparks fly. That said, there were some Firemoon cultivators who really did want to fight Xu Qing. They just couldn’t accept having a human cultivator be superior to their species. It was a humiliation that became pure rage.

Cultivators like that always had various trump cards to call on, as well as a lot of self-confidence. They had heard about Xu Qing’s achievements on the road to God Mountain, and even the story about him killing Crown Prince Brightsouth. But… to them, the purpose of life wasn’t necessarily to live a long time, but rather, to shine brightly. They would rather go out in a huge blaze of glory than live quietly with their heads bowed. The Firemoon Darkheavens were an inherently valiant species, and weren’t known for showing fear.

Thus, it didn’t take long for dozens of Firemoon cultivators to shoot up into the air. First-stage Void Returning auras pulsed as they flew outside of the city.

Innate fleshly body abilities erupted, creating cyclones of energy and blood. Wild colors flashed in heaven and earth. Streaks of light shot through the air as the power of dozens of cultivators became like a huge hand crushing down toward Xu Qing.

This was giving a little glimpse into what reserve powers the Firemoons had on hand. In the remote territories occupied by humankind, Void Returning experts were considered the cream of the crop. But among the Firemoon Darkheaven people, they were considered talented, but not necessarily elite.

And thus, a host of first-stage Void Returning cultivators shot toward Xu Qing and unleashed destructive, crushing attacks.

When Firemoon Darkheavens issued challenges, they didn’t limit themselves to one-on-one fighting. They were well aware that powerful experts… weren’t always able to fight enemies one at a time.

A truly powerful expert would instill confidence by fighting one versus a hundred or even one versus a thousand. That was how they established dominance in their generation. Only cultivators like that were considered chosen among the Firemoon Darkheaven people. That was why none of these cultivators hesitated for an instant. They became streaks of light shooting through the air like metallic dragons.

Dozens of extraordinary magical treasures were unleashed, including a host of weapons. They also became blurred streaks heading toward Xu Qing. And of course, fleshly body power and divine abilities raged. Magical laws collapsed and natural laws faded. Wind, rain, thunder, and lightning fell, while the chaotic vicissitudes of spring, summer, autumn, and winter played out.

Xu Qing looked up coldly. He could sense the magical and natural laws blurring, and he could feel pressure building up around him. He could sense himself being hemmed in. It was the feeling of his heavenly dao power being forcibly shoved away and replaced by the heavenly daos of his enemies.

However, he wasn’t worried. Maybe the power of the four seasons was in chaos… but with enough strength, neither the wind nor the waves could shake him. Millions of soul threads shot out of Xu Qing, converging behind him in his first-level god state. Next came the second-level god state, followed by the third.

Xu Qing formed them so quickly that his enemies didn’t have any chance to react. Instead, he unleashed crushing pressure on them. That was his custom.

As terrifying fluctuations rolled out from his third-level god state, taboo poison power erupted, combined with violet moon power and seething blood. The red glow from the sky mixed with the blood, staining everything.

At the moment, numerous gazes and countless streams of divine will from Heavenfire City were all focused on what was happening above. Although it wasn’t possible to see clearly what was happening in the red light there, the fluctuations were clear to the senses.

There were some people who were holding back while others led the charge. All of them wanted to see Xu Qing’s true battle prowess. That said, both inside and out, they were very calm and relaxed. Although they were paying attention to what was happening, they weren’t exactly shocked.

They were Firemoon Darkheavens! They were one of the superpower species in the Revered Ancient mainland. They were backed by three gods, and in all of the many lands they ruled, they were superior to everyone. What was more, their Great Hunt always attracted ambitious members of other species. The dignity of their species led to them feeling arrogant. Therefore, they never got nervous when fighting members of other species.

Xu Qing was special because he was the champion of round one of the Great Hunt. He had accomplished a few minor things.

But… their calm, tranquil behavior only lasted for about ten breaths of time. That was when a blood-curdling scream rang out from the red glow. Then, things really started to change.

Two Firemoons shot out from the red light, their faces masks of shock as they tried to flee. One of them barely moved any distance at all before a screaming sound closed in on him from behind. A blood-colored hand of countless soul threads raced up to him, and before he could fight back, wrapped around him and then burrowed inside of him. It jerked back, and the Firemoon cultivator could only wait in despair as he was dragged into the red light.

The other cultivator fled toward Heavenfire City below, a look of terror on his face. If he could get into the city, he would be safe, as fighting wasn’t permitted there. However, when he was only about 30 meters away, he lurched to a halt. Then, the terrified look on his face turned into a faint, gruish grin. His eyes, though, remained as terrified as before. Suddenly, his hands shot up to his own neck, and he jerked them to the side. A popping sound rang out, then he spun to the side as his cultivation base ignited and his entire body burst into flames.

Some more deafening booms rang out, and then the red light collapsed, revealing a host of mangled corpses. Hovering in the middle of them was a figure like a god, in the middle of a lake of blood, countless blood-red tentacles swaying around him. He was just looking calmly down at the city below, not saying a word.

The Firemoon cultivators in the city had very serious expressions on their faces. They were all in different parts of the city, but their hearts were all trembling at the sight of that one figure.

One reason was because of how dozens of their fellow Firemoons had just been killed. But also it was because of… how calm Xu Qing looked. From beginning to end, he hadn’t spoken. And now he was just hovering there. A subtle pressure began to radiate off him that seemed capable of crushing an entire era.

At this point, some of the older Firemoon cultivators were really starting to feel shaken.

“A top chosen from humankind….”

Humankind had once been the most powerful species in the Revered Ancient mainland. Now they were in a period of decline in which each generation failed to surpass the previous. And yet, the afterglow of their former glory was something members of the older generation still remembered.

Some of the chosen cultivators described in the second jade slip from Grand Prince were in the city. However, none of them chose to take action at the moment.

Similar to Xu Qing, they wanted to get good mounts in the second round of the Great Hunt. With that boost to battle prowess, they would have a much better shot at succeeding in the third round.

Getting into a fight right now would be pointless. And they knew that if they got into a fight to the death with Xu Qing, even if they won, they would end up with injuries. That would affect things later on in the Great Hunt, and wasn’t worth it. Therefore, after checking the outside situation from the safety of their mansion grottoes, they ultimately retracted their divine will.

That included all the top chosen that Xu Qing had learned about from Grand Prince.

In the sub-city devoted to Starfire, a young Firemoon with a cold expression and fine clothing sat cross-legged at the top of a tall tower. A heavy black sword rested on his knees that pulsed with the aroma of blood. The Firemoon wore a black robe and had long hair, as well as mysterious markings that covered his entire body, including his face. They pulsed with terrifying fluctuations. His fleshly body had surpassed the mortal and entered the saintly, and his cultivation base was too profound to read directly. But from the fluctuations coming off him, he was apparently in the great circle of Void Returning.

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This person ranked fourth among Firemoon chosen. He was… Sir Heavenink. The mysterious markings and the heavy sword were his distinctive features.

He was also looking outside the city at Xu Qing. He had heard some of the stories about Xu Qing, and was aware of who had been manipulating things behind the scenes. He hadn’t participated. Competing with other chosen wasn’t the path he walked. He was just interested in blood from a god domain. Therefore, he simply looked at what was happening, and then looked away.

In the sub-city devoted to Moonfire, a young Firemoon cultivator sat in a restaurant, clad in a green scholar’s robe that resembled the fashion of humankind. He seemed gentle and refined as he sat chatting with two Firemoon girls.

“Is that the human you’re talking about?” he asked, taking a sample of one of the dishes from the table. “I heard about him. He’s very interesting.”

The two girls at the table were pretty, and also resembled humans to a degree. However, there was something unusual about the luster of their skin. What was more, they were sitting there completely unmoving. There were other guests in the restaurant, so many that it seemed like the place should be loud and busy. Except not one of those guests was moving. Off in the corner, the restaurant’s host had his mouth open as if he were calling out something. There was even a waiter with his foot on the stairs as if about to run up them.

However, if you took a closer look, you would realize that none of these people were alive. They were all puppets made of jade.

In the entire restaurant, that young Firemoon was the only living being. There was one person among the Firemoon Darkheaven people who was known for his love of puppets. And that was the chosen who ranked number three… Fan Shishuang.

After speaking those words so casually, he nodded. “The two of you are right. His eyes really do remind me of your eyes. In that case, do you think we should have him join you?”