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"Very well, Wang Xiaoqiang, we all have high hopes for you and hope to see you at the award ceremony of this tournament!"

The official sitting in the center of the row of tables, the chief executive of this tournament, stared at Wang Xiaoqiang with admiration as he spoke.

As he said this, one of his staff members had already registered Wang Xiaoqiang's name in the enrollment book.

Seeing this, the crowd let out a collective sigh of amazement!

Such a notorious villain, a veritable god of death, had actually passed the identity verification and obtained the qualifications to participate in the contest!

Moreover, he was so highly regarded by the lofty chief executive and was even spoken to personally; this was a total subversion of people's moral baseline.

Apart from True Person of Taiyi and the Yans Family Sisters, almost no one could accept this.

Wang Xiaoqiang didn't say much more, nodded to the chief executive, then turned and returned to True Person of Taiyi's side. He patted on the shoulder of True Person of Taiyi, who still had tear stains at the corner of his eyes and a face full of indignation, and said meaningfully, "Taiyi, don't worry about what others say, just follow your own path!"

True Person of Taiyi wiped the tears from his face and said, "Little Qiang, I didn't realize you suffered so much in these two years..."

Wang Xiaoqiang smiled faintly and said, "If it weren't for these hardships, how could I have grown so fast? In fact, I should thank those who tried to kill me and those I killed. Without them, where would Wang Xiaoqiang be today?"

The Yans Family Sisters had not expected Wang Xiaoqiang to speak such enlightened words; at this moment, they too stared at Wang Xiaoqiang, their eyes growing somewhat fervent.

"Alright, don't just stand there, let's go back. We shouldn't disrupt others here with the registration!" Wang Xiaoqiang seriously said to the three.

Thus, Wang Xiaoqiang left the square with the three, under the complex and strange gazes of tens of thousands of people.

The group of people who had been tracking them from Huiwei Tavern since yesterday, waiting for a chance to take revenge on Wang Xiaoqiang, no longer dared to follow after witnessing his past.

Although Wang Xiaoqiang had killed three of their brothers at Huiwei Tavern yesterday, the thought of having tracked such a god of death made them tremble with fear, and they quickly discarded the idea of revenge.

...

They returned to Dragon Gate Inn.

The four sat in the octagonal pavilion of the inn's garden to rest.

Wang Xiaoqiang began, "From the registration process of the Armor Snatching Tournament, we can see that it's truly a bloody game. I suspect the Emperor is using the tournament to let cultivators slaughter each other to unearth talents, ensnare them, and thus solidify his rivers and mountains..."

Wang Xiaoqiang's words caught the other three by surprise; they hadn't thought of this angle. After hearing him mention it, they began to think in that direction but couldn't quite grasp the concept, showing puzzled expressions on their faces.

Wang Xiaoqiang continued to analyze, "If there are experts among the common folk who go undetected by the imperial dynasty, and one day they quietly break through to the Immortal Emperor Realm, that would pose a great threat to the empire's authority..."

Hearing this, all three had an epiphany, deeply convinced by Wang Xiaoqiang's words and admiring his intelligence and wisdom.

True Person of Taiyi said, "Little Qiang is absolutely right. The Armor Snatching Tournament only verifies identities and not the nature of good and evil; it neglects the weak and values the strong, especially favoring ruthless and villainous individuals with high cultivation bases. This clearly demonstrates the point. The Armor Snatching Tournament is indeed prepared for such ruthless and villainous individuals, fearing they will practice cultivation in secret and one day break through to the Immortal Emperor Stage, looking to overturn imperial power!"

The Yans Family Sisters nodded in agreement. Yans Ruyu smiled at True Person of Taiyi and said, "Taiyi, you speak too frankly. By saying that, aren't you categorizing Little Qiang as one of the ruthless and villainous?"

True Person of Taiyi, embarrassed and somewhat ashamed, said to Wang Xiaoqiang, "Little Qiang, I, I wasn't talking about you..."

Wang Xiaoqiang waved his hand and said, "I am indeed a great villain; there's nothing to hide about that. Moreover, I intend to continue being vicious..."

Hearing this, all three couldn't help but smile wryly.

Yans Ruxue said earnestly, "Little Qiang, the Armor Snatching Tournament is a trap. In my opinion, it's better not to jump in if you can avoid it..."

Wang Xiaoqiang replied, "I don't care whether it's a trap or not. The important thing is to use it to improve my cultivation base. When the day comes that I break through to the Immortal Emperor Realm, I indeed intend to visit the Imperial Palace and see if that enchanting voice comes from a beautiful woman..."

Wang Xiaoqiang's words scared the three once again. Speaking such rebellious words under the Son of Heaven's feet was like playing with fire—a moment's carelessness could lead to self-immolation!

Seeing the three with looks of shock, Wang Xiaoqiang decided not to continue, fearing their nerves couldn't handle the fright. He smiled lightly and said, "With so many participants, registration might take two days. Why don't we head to 'Yan Mountain' to see what the competition field looks like?"

None of the three objected, so the group of four headed towards Yan Mountain, outside of Dragon City.

Yan Mountain, with its high and magnificent terrain, stretches thousands of miles and is connected to Dragon City. The Imperial Palace of the Yellow Dragon Empire is located on a flat area at the mouth of the mountain.

```

The Imperial Palace was built here because they wanted to rely on the Yan Mountain as a natural barrier to block invasions from other great powers. Because even Immortals couldn't surpass the existence of Yan Mountain.

The reason Yan Mountain could stop Immortals was not because of its high and dangerous terrain, but because deep within Yan Mountain, there were many Spirit Beasts scattered throughout.

These Spirit Beasts ranged from First Level to Tenth Level.

Spirit Beasts are one level higher than Demon Beasts.

Spirit Beasts, having opened their Spiritual Apertures, can not only speak the human tongue but also possess brains capable of thought like humans, unlike the foolish Demon Beasts. Some Spirit Beasts are even more intelligent than humans.

All Spirit Beasts have cultivated Spirit Mantras.

Spirit Mantras are somewhat similar to Immortal Techniques, and they are very powerful Spell Techniques.

Spirit Beasts can contend with powerful Cultivators and hold their own against great Cultivation empires!

Among the Spirit Beasts in Yan Mountain, there were terrestrial beasts as large as mountains, aquatic beasts as massive as aircraft carriers, and even flying beasts larger than airliners.

These Spirit Beasts guarded their territories very strictly; not to mention passing through the mountains, even flying over the Yan Mountain would lead to their ruthless interception and killing.

So, it is said that Yan Mountain is an insurmountable barrier.

The officials holding the Armor Snatching Tournament in Yan Mountain is tantamount to treating the participants' lives as a joke, as if their lives are worthless!

Although the site was initially chosen on the periphery of Yan Mountain, even the periphery is frequented by low-level Spirit Beasts, and if the competitors encounter these Spirit Beasts, it will be a dire predicament.

In the end, there are only two outcomes.

Either slaughter these Spirit Beasts or be devoured by them.

Wang Xiaoqiang and his group of four left Dragon City and arrived at the foot of Yan Mountain, where they saw an enormous stone stele at the mountain's base that reached to the heavens, with the two characters "Yan Mountain" inscribed on it in Dragon Flying and Phoenix Dancing script.

At the bottom of the stele, there was an inscription.

This inscription described Yan Mountain, clarifying that there were powerful Spirit Beasts roaming inside, and it was very dangerous, warning people not to enter lightly.

After reading the inscription on the stone stele, Wang Xiaoqiang flew up into the sky, stood in the air, and with his hands shading his eyes, peered into the depths of Yan Mountain.

He saw towering, heaven-piercing peaks standing amongst the clouds, stretching endlessly and crosshatched, and from afar, between the mountain peaks, clouds and mist loomed vaguely, like a sea of clouds.

One could faintly spot gigantic flying beasts navigating through the sea of clouds, emitting terrifying roars. Although it was only a faint sound, it was equally heart-shaking.

Wang Xiaoqiang descended back to the ground and said to the three, "Yan Mountain is indeed perilous... Cultivators below the Immortal Emperor Stage simply cannot cross it!"

Yans Ruxue said, "Having the Armor Snatching Tournament in Yan Mountain and extending the arena deeper into the mountain ranges as the competition progresses ostensibly aims to train the courage and perception of the participants, but in reality, it's pushing people into a pit of fire. Little Qiang, if you really can't, just withdraw after the first round!"

Wang Xiaoqiang, staring at Yans Ruxue with a smile, said, "Ruxue, you're so worried about me, huh? If you're really that worried, then I'll listen to you..."

Yans Ruxue's fair cheeks, surpassing the frost and the snow, blushed deeply in an instant, and she spat, "Pfft, I'm not worried about you at all."

With that, she hurriedly turned away and stopped paying attention to him.

True Person Taiyi and Yans Ruyu both revealed teasing smiles on their faces.

True Person Taiyi cleared his throat and said, "Ah, actually Miss Ruxue is a very passionate and righteous person... Little Qiang, you must not fail to appreciate the deep feelings she has for you..."

Upon hearing this, Yans Ruxue whirled around, glared at True Person Taiyi fiercely, and said with a mix of embarrassment and anger, "Taiyi, you, why are you also spouting nonsense and disrespecting your age now..."

"Ah, I, I..." True Person Taiyi was extremely embarrassed. He turned to Yans Ruyu with an innocent face and asked, "Miss Ruyu, did, did I say something wrong?"

Yans Ruyu gave True Person Taiyi a blank look, then took Yans Ruxue's shoulder and the two women walked away, whispering to each other.

Seeing that the two women had walked away, True Person Taiyi, as if to claim credit, said to Wang Xiaoqiang, "Little Qiang, that remark I made just now was pretty good, wasn't it?"

"Hmm, not bad, Taiyi. Keep it up, and once you help me convince the Yans Family Sisters, you'll also learn how to flirt! Heh heh!" Wang Xiaoqiang patted True Person Taiyi's shoulder and sneered with a mischievous smile. (To be continued. If you like this work, please come to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)

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