Chapter 25

Dozens of gazes mostly lingered on Sima Ao and Lin Yingluo for a few breaths, occasionally sweeping over Ye Wuxie but quickly moving away. Clearly, Lin Yingluo and Sima Ao's cultivation at the initial stage of the Essence Soul Cleansing Realm had caught the attention of these people, while Ye Wuxie, who had just reached the initial stage of the Heroic Soul Cleansing Realm, was directly ignored.

With calm eyes, Ye Wuxie surveyed the surroundings and found that these dozens of gazes all came from the young geniuses representing the major main cities who had come to participate in the Hundred Cities Battle. There were men and women, some proud, some confident, some profound. When Ye Wuxie's gaze swept over them, most of them first focused their eyes, then seemed to detect the cultivation fluctuations from Ye Wuxie, and subsequently showed expressions of disdain.

At a glance, Ye Wuxie found that there were at least a hundred geniuses whose cultivation had reached the initial stage of the Essence Soul Cleansing Realm, and several dozen more who had reached the middle stage. However, many geniuses deliberately concealed their cultivation, making it impossible for others to detect.

The young geniuses from the major main cities each occupied a spot, with little verbal interaction between them. Only their gazes continuously probed each other, ignoring those with relatively weaker strength, and making initial assessments of those with powerful or peculiar cultivation, then remembering their appearances.

"Hum" "Whoosh"

...

There were still many streaks of light and treasure radiance descending from the sky, with various young new faces continuously joining, one after another. Since the Hundred Cities Battle involved the entire Eastern Land, and the distance to the battlefield varied, it was impossible for everyone to arrive simultaneously. Longguang Main City was relatively close.

Ye Wuxie, Sima Ao, and Lin Yingluo found a relatively secluded corner to stand. The white jade platform was a thousand feet in size, so despite several hundred people standing on it, it still appeared sparse. Through this observation, Ye Wuxie discovered some noteworthy young geniuses.

About ten to twenty feet to the east, two men and one woman stood, with the woman leading. She was the slender, long-legged woman seen earlier in the sky. Her face was now completely exposed, her beautiful features revealed. She was extremely tall, her figure wrapped in a white and green close-fitting martial dress, forming a stunning curve, extremely alluring. However, she exuded a formidable aura, making her appear very resilient and competitive. Behind her, two young men stood on either side, one silent and the other looking around.

All three of their cultivations had reached the middle stage of the Essence Soul Cleansing Realm, making them outstanding even among all the main cities, so they attracted many gazes.

The look of contemplation in Ye Wuxie's eyes flashed and disappeared, and he shifted his gaze. To the northeast, three young men stood, the leader standing out like a crane among chickens, as if he had just walked out of a thousand-year ice mountain, emitting a cold aura. He wore a black martial robe, his eyes slightly closed, standing with his hands behind his back, his aura deep and vast, floating and sinking, extremely formidable.

"This person is extremely powerful, at least at the late stage of the Essence Soul Cleansing Realm, perhaps even stronger."

However, Ye Wuxie noticed that this person seemed a year or two older than most other geniuses.

Seemingly sensing Ye Wuxie's gaze, this person suddenly opened his eyes, his gaze sharp and domineering, looking directly at Ye Wuxie. Their gazes met, and upon discovering Ye Wuxie's cultivation, this person closed his eyes again. Ye Wuxie also withdrew his gaze, but he didn't see that this person's eyes suddenly opened again, his gaze like two blocks of ice, carefully examining Ye Wuxie.

"It seems the cultivator with fiery fists is determined to cause me some trouble..."

At this moment, about ten feet to the west of Ye Wuxie and his companions, three cultivators in purple martial robes stood. The one at the back was Yue Chengfeng, who had made a throat-slitting gesture to Ye Wuxie in the Burning Cloud. Yue Chengfeng's gaze was still fixed on Ye Wuxie, his eyes flashing with dangerous light, his face occasionally showing anger and humiliation.

However, Ye Wuxie's gaze was not on him but on the other two standing in front of him. Their cultivations were very high, especially the leader, whose face was flushed, indicating he possessed a highly advanced fire-based cultivation technique or combat skill.

Just as Ye Wuxie was about to withdraw his gaze, he noticed the cultivator with fiery fists suddenly change his expression. Out of curiosity, Ye Wuxie followed his gaze and saw a flicker of excitement in his eyes.

"Feng Caichen..."

Ye Wuxie saw the sword-wielding youth from the Ancient Forest, Feng Caichen. Feng Caichen wore a white martial robe, his face handsome, a long sword on his back. Just standing there, he emitted a sharp and formidable aura, as if he and his sword had become one... Behind him stood a man and a woman, both carrying long swords, their expressions similar.

"Feng Caichen, hah, you said you would wait for me in the Hundred Cities Battle. Now, Ye Wuxie has arrived, truly... looking forward to battling you."

Feeling the unique sharpness of a sword cultivator from Feng Caichen, Ye Wuxie's heart was completely ignited. His gaze was like a bolt of lightning, piercing toward Feng Caichen. Ye Wuxie knew Feng Caichen would sense it.

"Clang"

A faint sword cry seemed to echo. Under Ye Wuxie's battle-filled gaze, Feng Caichen's sword trembled lightly. Feng Caichen's slightly closed eyes suddenly opened, his eyes sharp and piercing, immediately sensing Ye Wuxie's gaze!

"Snap"

Their gazes instantly met in the air. Feng Caichen's eyes were crystal clear, and upon seeing Ye Wuxie, his sharp and piercing eyes seemed to light up, focusing intently on Ye Wuxie!

"Feng Caichen, I am Ye Wuxie. I have come to the Hundred Cities Battle..."

His lips moved slightly, Ye Wuxie softly spoke these words, his gaze filled with battle spirit. He felt a powerful aura from Feng Caichen that made his body tremble with excitement!

"My sword actually resonated... very good, Ye Wuxie, you have become even stronger. This Hundred Cities Battle, Feng Caichen... will not be in vain!"

Feng Caichen read Ye Wuxie's lips, and Ye Wuxie also read Feng Caichen's lips. The two young men, feeling the powerful fluctuations from each other, their blood was already boiling!

Such scenes were constantly occurring among the geniuses from the major main cities. In their eyes, everyone else was an opponent, and their goal was to defeat all opponents, win the final victory, and become the most dazzling one in this Hundred Cities Battle!

In the center of the white jade platform, the city lords of the Hundred Main Cities of the Eastern Land were gathered. Unlike the geniuses, the city lords were all familiar with each other and were now standing in small groups, chatting. However, this friendly chat was tinged with a subtle undercurrent of tension.

"Ha ha... Old Jiang, I haven't seen you in a year, how did you get so fat? I told you to eat less meat, or you might not be able to lift your famous saber!"

"Hey... Who's that? Old Sun, you have the nerve to say that? Everyone knows you can't go a day without drinking. I should warn you to be careful not to fall into the river and not be able to get out..."

A tall, thin old man and a short, fat old man were teasing each other. The short, fat one was Jiang Yuntao, the city lord of Han Yue Main City, one of the Hundred Main Cities. The tall, thin one was Sun Ruofeng, the city lord of Gu Xing Main City, another of the Hundred Main Cities. The two were old friends, and they were now teasing each other mercilessly.

The other city lords were used to this and stood aside, laughing at the spectacle. However, Jiang Yuntao and Sun Ruofeng were known for their sharp tongues, and they often dragged others into their teasing.

Other city lords were also chatting, but their conversations invariably revolved around the Hundred Cities Battle, and their gazes often drifted toward two other figures.

One was Qi Shilong, and the other was a middle-aged man in a dragon robe. Qi Shilong smiled at the man in the dragon robe, whose eyes were sharp like a dragon, named Zhao Wujie, the city lord of Tian Feng Main City.

"City Lord Qi, it's been years. You look healthy. It seems your injuries are no longer a problem."

Zhao Wujie's tone was playful, his face smiling.

"Ha ha ha... City Lord Zhao, you're joking. If your injuries are healed, what are mine? City Lord Zhao, what do you think?"

Qi Shilong's eyes flashed, and he laughed, the two of them exchanging glances and then bursting into laughter. The other city lords, seeing this, shook their heads. Everyone knew that Qi Shilong and Zhao Wujie's cultivation ranked among the top ten of all the city lords of the Hundred Main Cities. They were close friends in their youth but later became bitter enemies. Despite the apparent harmony, they had engaged in countless open and covert struggles, with Zhao Wujie, known for his cunning, often getting the upper hand over the more carefree Qi Shilong.

"Oh? City Lord Qi, are those the three geniuses from your Longguang Main City? Let me see, two who have just broken through to the initial stage of the Essence Soul Cleansing Realm, and... a little guy who has just condensed a Soul Moon? Ha ha... Old Qi, I don't know what to say to you. Your Longguang must be short of talent if you're sending a little guy who has just condensed a Soul Moon to the Hundred Cities Battle. That's sending him to his death!"

Zhao Wujie looked at Ye Wuxie and his companions, smiling, then pointed to another group of two men and one woman, and said to Qi Shilong, "Old Qi, at least they should be at this level to participate in the Hundred Cities Battle. I'm really worried about your three geniuses. Don't worry, if they encounter my Tian Feng people, I'll make sure they show mercy... ha ha ha..."

The three geniuses from Tian Feng Main City were the woman with the long legs and formidable aura, a silent man, and a man looking around.

Qi Shilong maintained his smile, looking at Zhao Wujie, and said, "City Lord Zhao, it's too early to say. Who can laugh last is the true winner. Let's wait and see."

"Is that so? Good, let's wait and see."

Qi Shilong and Zhao Wujie laughed again.

"Hum"

As time passed, the sky finally calmed down. The white jade platform, including the hundred city lords of the Hundred Main Cities, now had exactly four hundred people. All the geniuses from the Hundred Main Cities had arrived for the Hundred Cities Battle.

Ye Wuxie had already withdrawn his gaze and closed his eyes to rest, his mind still pondering the great discovery of the Dragon Assault Formation. He planned to teach it to Lin Yingluo and Sima Ao as soon as possible, which would increase the formation's power by at least thirty percent!

"Hum"

At this moment, the entire white jade platform was enveloped in a vast aura, waking up all the geniuses. At the same time, a solemn voice echoed across the platform.

"Welcome to the battlefield of the Hundred Cities Battle."