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Among the four gates, White Tiger Gate is undoubtedly recognized as the most difficult to challenge.

Those who dare to attempt it are all highly confident in themselves, and each carries a sense of pride - young masters seeking to confront the man of legend, Zhang Zhiyun, who was said to have the power to annihilate an entire nation.

The number of spectators for this gate could be said to be the most numerous.

Since midnight the previous night, commoners began to occupy their spots, and those who arrived later could not even see the images on the crystal screen from afar, as the crowd was so dense that even vendors attempting to do small business couldn’t squeeze through.

Chen Ye didn’t arrive too early, for the more significant the battle, the more he had learned to relax and ensure he had ample energy; an old veteran had taught him this.

Many magicians didn’t like dealing with warriors, but he quite enjoyed it.

He felt that warriors, especially those from the battlefield, were best at fighting, while many privileged magicians lacked this very trait.

It seemed like the other contestants at the West Gate had all arrived earlier than him, many of whom Chen Ye didn’t recognize.

"Master Shen seems to have arrived quite late."

Chen Ye looked over to see a familiar face initiating conversation - Su Changqing, the legitimate eldest son of the Su Family, the direct inheritor from the Illusion Law Gate family of magicians.

The family’s Illusion Marten technique was said to be one of the seventy-two Earth Fiend Techniques, which had only been inherited by three people over a thousand years, and this fellow before him was one of them.

In the Southern Sea, he certainly qualified to inherit the Southern Sea True Dragon Bloodline, but in the end, he chose the bloodline of the Yunze Dragon to elevate his family’s Illusion Technique to its peak.

He was one of the few young people from the Southern Sea that Chen Ye was not fully confident he could handle.

"Brother Su..." Chen Ye replied respectfully with a bow. The Chen Family’s upbringing allowed him to maintain modesty in front of anyone, not to mention someone of eminent strength like this peer before him.

"The Nie family kid is here too," Su Changqing murmured softly, glancing into the distance.

Chen Ye looked in the same direction, a solemn glint in his eye.

The Nie Family, to be strict, wasn’t considered a Capital City noble family. They had always been in the north but were invited to the Southern Sea by his own father before the great serpent’s attack.

The Nie Family’s technique was dangerous; one of the Earth Fiend Techniques called Evil Ghost Gate, known to be one of the most perilous ghost techniques.

Many families feared the technique of the Nie Family, and hardly anyone wished to become in-laws with them.

In the north, the Nie Family was marginalized.

Chen Ye wondered why his father had invited them.

Among the young generation of the Nie Family who had succeeded in mastering the Evil Ghost Gate technique was rumored to be an illegitimate child, a ghost child whose mother was a concubine married in a ghost marriage; she died and gave birth eight months later.

The head of the Nie Family named him: Nie Youyun.

The Nie Family was the odd one out, and this boy, in particular, was considered the most peculiar in the Nie Family. Over the past two years in the Southern Sea, Chen Ye had tried to approach him, but the guy was aloof; the kind of cold that made one’s skin crawl just by being seen by him.

Chen Ye always remembered the ice-cold feeling when they were alone together last year.

The other’s gaze was fixed on him, as if staring at a piece of meat; he didn’t regard anyone as human, including himself.

"Does he actually have such arrogance?" Chen Ye remarked indifferently.

"It’s not necessarily arrogance..." Su Changqing sneered, "The Evil Ghost Gate enjoys tormenting the strong. He chose this gate, maybe because it’s instinct... Be careful. It’s permissible to attack each other during the trial.

He didn’t act before because the Nie Family was controlling him, but here, there might not be anyone who can restrain him. "

"That’s also true..." Chen Ye nodded in agreement, responding amiably to Su Changqing’s words, but there wasn’t the slightest ripple in his eyes.

The other was formidable, but he had never been afraid.

Last summer, he had actually hoped that the other would act, for he still hasn’t had the chance to thoroughly test just how strong he is now. ..

"Are there only the three of us from the Southern Sea challenging this gate?" Chen Ye looked around, slightly surprised.

There were hundreds of outstanding elites from the Southern Sea accompanying his father, yet only three had chosen the West Gate!

Where had the others gone?

"Well..." Su Changqing slightly smiled and said, "It’s not that the others lack integrity, but the rewards given by Heavenly Master Mansion are too eye-catching. Noble families are all about calculating the odds of success. Of course, they’ll go where the chances are higher. Our family, well, there are quite a few descendants more powerful than me; my absence wouldn’t make much of a difference. But for you..."

Chen Ye frowned slightly. The Su Family had an abundance of talented individuals in this generation.

Besides Su Changqing, several other descendants had shown excellent performance.

The second legitimate son, Su Changgui, was also a genius, having merged with the Southern Sea True Dragon Bloodline and reputed to have combined the Southern Clear Li Fire with the Su Family’s Illusion Technique very effectively, to the point where even the Su Family elders could not compete with him.

In contrast, his own Chen Family... the brothers born to his legal mother were, indeed, quite the topic...

"The people from Jiangnan didn’t come?"

"Jiangnan..." Su Changqing was taken aback, then laughed, "Are you still holding a grudge against Jiangnan?"

Chen Ye didn’t respond. He didn’t much like being targeted by his stepmother and brothers back home, so when Jiangnan rose to prominence, he was the first to consider going to take a look. But, as it turned out... he was eliminated.

It was related to his mediocre academic talent, but the academy didn’t hesitate to dismiss him, disregarding his sorcery talent. He was curious about what kind of people Jiangnan Academy really aimed to cultivate and whether any of them could actually fight.

"You..." Su Changqing shook his head amusedly, thinking to himself: In the end, he’s still young and impetuous.

Chen Ye was young, and although he seemed composed, at his core, he was still a child who had not yet reached the age of twenty. But perhaps this is just human nature, after all.

As for Jiangnan...

Su Changqing looked over with a deep gaze, "That person... don’t you recognize them?"

When Chen Ye heard this, he looked over to see a girl with a refined appearance. Her brows and eyes exuded an air of valor not found in ordinary women, and she seemed somewhat familiar, but he couldn’t remember where he had seen her before.

"Don’t you recognize her?" Su Changqing smiled and said, "That’s the headmistress from Jiangnan Academy."

"Chen Ying?" Chen Ye’s eyes lit up with a flash of brilliance.

He remembered now, that proud woman in white who, back in Jiangnan, had decisively eliminated all of them, the direct descendants, without hesitation.

At the time, many people secretly complained that she was settling private scores under the guise of public duty, deliberately putting them, the descendants, to shame. He himself didn’t speak up, but deep down he somewhat entertained the same thought.

This woman... she actually came to compete herself?

"She really is confident!" Chen Ye said with a cold smile.

"The inheritor of the Azure Dragon Sorcery, don’t you want to see for yourself?" Su Changqing also said with a smile.

"Indeed..." Chen Ye nodded at these words. When Chen Ying inherited the Azure Dragon Sorcery, many were amazed at Chen Qing’s generosity, as the Four Saints Technique was handed over so casually.

And it was the foremost among the Four Saints...

Today was a good opportunity to see whether this rumored strongest of the Four Saints Technique was indeed as formidable as claimed.

While he was pondering, the sound of a bell rang out, and a sonorous voice resounded at the gate: "All competitors, please gather at the gate. Once the palace gates open, anyone who does not enter within a quarter of an hour will be eliminated first!"

"Oh?"

Many were curious and looked towards the palace gate. If the gate was to open by itself, why would there be difficulty entering? Could it be some sort of formidable magical formation?

As they were wondering, the massive White Tiger Gate suddenly creaked and slowly began to open.

And what followed was a gust of wind...

This wind howled through the cracks of the door, sharp as blades, making almost all magicians activate their spiritual power for protection in an instant.

For in everyone’s eyes, what kind of wind was this?

It was clearly countless flying blades, a relentless barrage of blades charging towards their faces!

Ah!!

In an instant, countless screams rang out, and dozens of people were almost instantly slashed into a mess of flesh by this tempest of blade winds!!

This scene frightened many magicians into continuously retreating, and some even stepped out beyond the palace gates.

This competition for the Heavenly Master... was unexpectedly dangerous?

Many hadn’t anticipated that this competition... could be deadly?

"This is..."

Su Changqing watched all this, but his eyes were brimming with a sharp gleam.

No... this is... Illusion Technique!!