Supreme of the Heavenly Realm
Chapter 245 - 242: Ultimate Arena

Chapter 245: Chapter 242: Ultimate Arena

After the elimination of the Four Kings Pirates, the fleet encountered no significant danger, only minor troubles, making the journey smooth. Seven days later, the fleet arrived at Golden Island.

Due to the gathering of numerous commercial forces, Golden Island was exceptionally prosperous, the origin of its name.

In sight, a vast, boundless island floated quietly in the azure ocean. Golden Island was immense, perhaps several times larger than the entire Great Xia Kingdom; calling it an island seemed an understatement—it was more like a continent.

From afar, at the port, numerous large ships were already docked, with a terrifyingly heavy flow of people coming and going.

After the fleet docked, Lady Xuan organized a few things before taking Ye Xuan to the largest city on the island, Golden City.

Riding on a flying Demon Beast, it didn’t take long for the group to arrive at Golden City.

In the Chaotic Sea Domain, gold was no longer the universal currency; instead, Xuanyuan Pills were more prevalent. Many things that couldn’t be bought with gold and silver were exchanged with Xuanyuan Pills, making them the universal medium of exchange.

On the city streets, it was common to see martial artists going to and fro, carrying swords and dressed in various clothes. Although the city was quite free, random killing was forbidden. After all, Golden City was not completely lawless; it was controlled by a commerce alliance.

Golden City itself boasted a population of millions, with an alarmingly high ratio of martial artists compared to the Tiannan Region. From what Lady Xuan said, the current leader of the commerce alliance was a Half-Step Martial Venerate expert, a level of mastery unimaginable in the Tiannan Region.

"Boss Xuan, what exactly is the method you mentioned before to obtain a complete sea map?"

After walking with Lady Xuan for a while, Ye Xuan couldn’t help but ask. Without a complete sea map, he had little interest in anything else.

"You must be tired after today’s long journey. I will take you there tomorrow. For today, just rest well."

Lady Xuan still didn’t tell, she took Ye Xuan to an inn owned by their trade association. With no way to refuse their warm hospitality, Ye Xuan checked in. After enjoying a hot bath, he had a sumptuous dinner with Lady Xuan and then went to bed early.

The next day.

Early in the morning, Lady Xuan arrived as promised and found Ye Xuan. The two of them immediately headed out toward the city center.

After a good night’s rest, Ye Xuan felt much more refreshed. And from what Lady Xuan said, he finally learned what her method was.

Indeed, their destination for today was Golden Island’s ultimate arena.

The so-called Golden Island’s ultimate arena was actually a battle arena established by the "Commerce Alliance" that had a long history and attracted many martial artists to compete, making it a great place to gain fame.

By continually winning a set number of matches, one could obtain impressive rewards. If someone managed to win ten consecutive matches, the rewards would be particularly substantial and selectable—like the complete map of the Chaotic Sea Domain Ye Xuan wanted, available among the ten-win rewards.

Usually, any martial artist confident in their own strength would go to the ultimate arena to prove themselves. Winning ten consecutive matches provided a chance to be listed on the "Commerce Alliance" Battle List.

Only known fighters were ranked on the "Battle List." Once listed, one could become renowned across the land.

The Battle List was meticulously compiled by the commerce alliance, with high accuracy and considerable authority in the Chaotic Sea Domain. The more victories you had, the higher you would rank, spreading your fame throughout the domain.

The commerce alliance’s information system was highly developed. They had a solid understanding of notable martial artists throughout the Chaotic Sea Domain and maintained contacts and connections with many of them. Almost every period, they invited well-known young talents or veteran martial artists to the ultimate arena to refresh the rankings on the Battle List.

Thus, the ultimate arena was never lacking in popularity and, with it at the core, the gambling industry also thrived, amassing substantial wealth for the commerce alliance.

Winning ten matches provided a chance to enter the Battle List. If one could win twenty consecutive matches, that was a certain entry into the Battle List, and the rewards would be extremely generous, including a large amount of Xuanyuan Pills. However, easier said than done; the commerce alliance’s money was not easy to earn. As your consecutive victories increased, so did the strength of your opponents. Winning twenty matches was extremely difficult.

With Ye Xuan’s current Second Grade Martial Sect Cultivation, even winning ten matches was hard—twenty was almost an impossibility.

However, the Battle List did not include all the top experts, as some were simply beyond caring about such rankings, especially the Elders from Fourth Grade or even Fifth Grade Sects; they wouldn’t give it any value even if the Commerce Alliance invited them. Therefore, the Battle List ranked mainly younger Martial Artists, young people who revered Martial strength and were more competitive.

Having learned this information, Ye Xuan became interested in the Extreme Arena Battle as well. No wonder they had mentioned the need for combat ability; it turned out to be true. If a single battle tested pure strength, then series battles like five, ten, or even twenty in a row tested not just strength but also resilience and intelligence, among other factors. Since there wasn’t just one opponent, one had to minimize their own exhaustion to defeat opponents with the least cost.

A narrow victory was considered a failure, as the next match would most likely result in a loss. Speaking of intelligence, that meant needing to suppress one’s strength, gradually emerging victorious, rather than revealing full power in the first match. By doing so, opponents would inevitably send stronger Martial Artists into battle unless one possessed exceptionally tyrannical strength to afford such arrogance in the Extreme Arena Battle.

On the Battle List, there were thirty-six ranked individuals. This list was updated rapidly; to secure one’s place on it required constant Cultivation and challenges, undoubtedly spurring competition among the experts.

Older generation Martial Artists progressed slower in their Cultivation due to their depleted potential. They focused mainly on Martial Arts, honing their combat skills, enhancing their combat experiences, and even practicing various secret techniques. Compared to the younger generation, these older Battle List experts were stronger.

"How confident are you? Each expert on the Battle List is incredibly strong. Even those who have been on the Battle List before are far stronger than ordinary sea pirates like the Four Kings. Winning ten consecutive matches is not easy. Compared to that, joining the Commerce Alliance would be much easier," Lady Xuan said.

Lady Xuan knew Ye Xuan had the Cultivation of a Second Grade Martial Sect. While he could defeat those above his grade, the Four Kings pirates were mere rabble compared to the Battle List experts. Moreover, the Extreme Arena was labeled ’extreme’ for a reason; it challenged the limits. Each battle had very short intervals, and with low Cultivation, the True Qi would definitely be insufficient, causing too much exertion. In her view, it would be quite impressive if Ye Xuan could survive even five matches.

"We’ll see if it works once I try," Ye Xuan replied, now more intrigued than ever. He knew Lady Xuan wanted him to be aware of the difficulties. But his interest was piqued, especially since there were too few experts in the Tiannan Region, while the Chaotic Sea Domain was filled with them, providing a place to unleash the long-suppressed urge to battle within him.

"Alright then."

Lady Xuan sighed inwardly, but she still doubted Ye Xuan would succeed. Perhaps he would consider her earlier suggestion after facing some setbacks.

Under Lady Xuan’s lead, it didn’t take long for them to reach the Extreme Arena’s battleground.

Entry to the battleground required a hundred Xuanyuan Pills, as without some cost, it would already be overflowing with people. Even with an entry fee, the place was packed, seats filled to capacity. Even outside the arena, many Martial Artists observed from afar, watching the exciting battles on the stage.

Looking around, the spectator seats formed-ring after ring, filled with heads, the noisy din soaring up to the skies, deafening.

They weren’t late, but the arena was so popular that they struggled to find vacant seats.

The whole arena was circular, loops interlocking with a vast number of seats in each round. From these seats, one could clearly see the battles on the stage. Around the stage, there was a faint Light Shield to prevent overly intense fights from harming the spectators.

"Eh, isn’t that Lady Xuan? What wind blew you here today? Why didn’t you notify me beforehand?"

Just as Ye Xuan and Lady Xuan were looking for seats, a pale-faced, white-clothed young man approached. His gaze at Lady Xuan was tinged with undisguised fervor.

"Ah, it’s Mr. Fu."

Upon seeing this young man in white approaching, Lady Xuan managed a strained smile, forced to stop.

"Lady Xuan, I’ve invited you several times to hang out, and you’ve always declined due to being busy. Now that you’re here at the arena, how about we have dinner together tonight?" The young man’s eyes roved over Lady Xuan’s form, his look scorching. If not for the public setting, he likely would have been more direct.

Behind the young man stood several guards. They smiled coldly, accustomed to this scenario. Mr. Fu had always favored beautiful mature women, and Lady Xuan’s repeated rejections had led their master to consider a forcible approach, making plans to deal with her.

If their master enjoyed the chase, they might even get a share afterward.

Just as Lady Xuan was caught in a dilemma, she felt a hand grasp her wrist and pull her aside.

However, the two guards, sticky like glue, came forward and blocked the way, grinning. "Lady Xuan, where are you going? You haven’t answered our master yet."

"Get lost."

As they grinned foolishly, Ye Xuan slightly lifted his eyelids, and a surge of momentum burst from him, sending the two guards flying out, tumbling over themselves like rolling dogs.