Chapter 787: Chapter 787

Xuan Chengming and Yue Shu left right after making an agreement with Li Pin.

However, from the heavy expressions on their faces, it was not hard to see that both of them also felt the pressure.

It was foreseeable that in the next thirty years, they would surely turn pressure into motivation and push forward with all their might. Otherwise, now that things had come to this, if they failed again and were once again defeated by this young man who had cultivated for less than three hundred years, what dignity would they have left? What right would they still have to call themselves prodigies?

With those two left, Zhan Tianxiu, Yan Sheng, Yu Shenghui, Wu meng, Zi Zaitian, Luo Wuji, and the others didn't stay for long.

There was a gleam of light in the eyes of Zhan Tianxiu and the others.

"Thirty years later, huh," muttered Zhan Tianxiu.

A temporary defeat was nothing! Recognizing failure, rising from where one fell, was true success. If they could do that, then not only could they defeat Li Pin, they could also surpass themselves!

"Li Pin, just wait. In these thirty years, I'll develop in silence. When the time comes, I'll defeat you and shock the world to reclaim the dignity and glory I lost today!"

Several prodigies held back a breath, determination flashing in their eyes.

They would return and enter training in seclusion.

As long as they didn't die from training, they would continue to train like mad.

Looking at the solemn expression on each contestant's face, the Divine Martial Emperor muttered, "The results are far better than I expected...."

Even Xuan Chengming and Yue Shu seemed to have felt pressure from Li Pin. Now, there was one more person who could make them wary aside from Emperor Ara.

A satisfied smile appeared on the Divine Martial Emperor's face.

This was the catfish effect. It created immense pressure on everyone.

With this kind of pressure, it was likely that many contestants who had already reached their limits and were stuck on the verge of a breakthrough might be able to push even further in the coming decades.

"No, it's not just better than expected, beyond that, it even gave us an entirely new surprise." This Heavenly Emperor turned his gaze to Li Pin, who had become a pressure beast.

That was the reason for the surprise.

The Divine Martial Emperor had struggled to believe that Li Pin truly possessed the strength to defeat Zi Zaitian, despite Mo Xuan sending over the record of him passing the eighty-fifth step of the Supreme Ladder, long before Li Pin arrived at the Myriad Astral God Hall.

At most, he thought that Li Pin would just serve as a supporting role outside of the lead commander, helping to weaken enemy opponents.

As for Yu Shenghui, Zhan Tianxiu, and the others, he hadn't given them any consideration at all.

But now, Li Pin not only defeated several highly anticipated contestants, he had even earned the right to challenge Xuan Chengming and Yue Shu.

This means we now have another near-trump card on our side. And a trump card practically guaranteed victory, leaving no room for suspense, as long as the dispute didn’t touch the core interests of our race.

Thinking of the core interests, the Divine Martial Emperor couldn't help but regretfully muse, "If only you had been born tens of thousands of years earlier... no! Even just ten thousand years earlier, then... the question of who would be the lead commander in the struggle for the execution ground of the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations Proposal might've sparked a real debate..."

Watching the figure descend from the Divine Martial Battlefield, Mo Xuan stepped forward to give his greetings. "Li Pin."

Li Pin gave a slight nod. "As expected of contestants carefully chosen by the major factions. Each one of them has reached the pinnacle of the Tyrant Stage. I gained a great deal."

He truly meant what he said. Prior to this, he already knew what was cultivated in the Cosmic Radiance and Tyrant stages. However, knowing what they cultivated was one thing; learning how to master and apply those things was another.

It was no exaggeration to say that comparing ordinary Cosmic Radiances and Tyrants to these participants was like comparing bookworms to hands-on experts. Even if they may have similar education levels, the effectiveness they displayed in real-life scenarios wasn't even on the same level.

Hearing these heartfelt words, Mo Xuan and the Divine Martial Emperor felt rather speechless.

After a while, the Divine Martial Emperor smiled and said, "Light of Origin, you truly gave me a great surprise. It's hard to believe you've been cultivating for less than three hundred years. In terms of cultivation time alone... among all the supreme prodigies I've witnessed, you're easily number one."

"Then overall, I'm still not number one?" Li Pin asked curiously. "Then, among all the prodigies you've witnessed, Divine Martial Emperor, who is considered number one?"

Just as Mo Xuan was about to stop Li Pin from pressing further with this question, the Divine Martial Emperor had already answered without reservation. "It is Emperor Xi."

Li Pin was hit with realization.

"That's right, Divine Emperor Xi," the Divine Martial Emperor said solemnly.

Emperor Xi's given name was simply "Xi." The title of "Emperor" in his name was merely an honorific the world had bestowed upon him for his achievements.

He was one of the only three Divine Emperors of the Human Race, a being rarer than even Supremes.

As for disciples, Divine Emperor Xi had only ever accepted one disciple since becoming a Divine Emperor, and that was Emperor Ara.

Because Emperor Xi had placed great hopes in Ara and trained him in every aspect to become a perfect Divine Emperor, in recent years, people ceased to call him by his original name and instead honored him with the same title as his master, referring to him as Emperor Ara. This alone showed Emperor Ara's great talent and strong power.

He was the only one unanimously placed in a separate tier by all the contestants.

Even though he had only reached the ninetieth step of the Supreme Ladder, what the outside world didn't know was that he had not used a single Peak Divine Weapon or Sovereign Divine Weapon to reach the ninetieth step. He had relied solely on his own strength.

The only reason this information hadn't been made public was to protect the human race's interests in the debate over the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations Proposal.

At this moment, Mo Xuan spoke, shifting the topic. "Divine Martial Emperor, Li Pin's strength should be more than enough for him to participate in the Ten Thousand Tribes Dominion War."

The Divine Martial Emperor nodded. "Of course. Not only can he participate in the Ten Thousand Tribes Dominion War, he can take the field as a lead commander, and even compete for the most critical interests."

He looked at Li Pin. "Later, I'll send you a list ranking the thirteen disputed interests between the Human Race and other races in the competition. Take a look and see which one you'd like to choose..."

The Divine Martial Emperor seemed to recall something at this point and paused. "Perhaps, you may be just as strong as Yue Shu or Xuan Chengming, but my advice to you is not to choose any of the top three in the lineup...

"Your aptitude is so high that, if you don't fall prematurely, you might have a sliver of hope to contend for Supreme. Therefore, achieving victory and ensuring your own safety are both equally important for you."

Mo Xuan nodded and advised, "Li Pin, don't rush to give your answer yet. Take your time to think it over."

"No need," said Li Pin calmly. "The biggest point of contention in this Ten Thousand Tribes Dominion War lies in the location where the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations Proposal will be executed. That is the event I wish to participate in."

Upon hearing this, Mo Xuan showed a helpless expression. But at the same time, he felt that this was very much like Li Pin. It was within expectations.

On the other hand, the Divine Martial Emperor slightly furrowed his brows, then soon felt a little helpless as well. "What is this? A clash of Supreme Prodigies?"

He shook his head. "If you want to register for this event, it definitely won't work. The lead commander for this event has already been decided—it has to be Emperor Ara. If you insist on signing up for this one, you can only act as his vice commander.

"But do you know what it means to be a vice commander? It means you'll have to spare no effort to weaken his original opponent on his behalf, in order to build enough of an advantage. At the critical moment... you might even...."

The Heavenly Emperor paused. "You must be prepared to sacrifice yourself if necessary."

Every event in the Ten Thousand Tribes Dominion War allows for three participants per side, and victory was only decided when all three members of a team had been defeated.

The first two members would do everything in their power to weaken the opponent's forces, ideally forcing the enemy's lead commander to join the battlefield.

Then, regardless of the method—even if it means unleashing all of your power and being consumed by the Eternal Oblivion Force on the spot—you had to force the opponent to exceed their own limits and get another layer of Eternal Oblivion Force on themselves. This would then allow their team's lead commander to have a better chance of winning.

This was what a vice commander was supposed to do. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to refer to them as cannon fodder.

To make someone like Li Pin, a Supreme seed, into cannon fodder was something that even Supremes couldn't bear to see, let alone these Heavenly Emperors.

"Li Pin, if you insist on participating in the Ten Thousand Tributes Dominion War, you can only compete as a lead commander," declared Mo Xuan cautiously.

A lead commander would have a much higher chance of survival compared to the vice commanders.

"I can only compete as the lead commander..." Li Pin smiled slightly and looked at the Divine Martial Emperor. "I have made up my mind to participate in the tournament. As for the lead commander and vice commander issue... why don't you let Emperor Ara be my vice commander? I'll be the lead commander."

The Divine Martial Emperor and Mo Xuan exchanged glances, seeming as if they had expected this.

Li Pin was really brash and full of youthful spirit. Especially after just defeating several strong contenders, Li Pin's momentum at this moment was at an unprecedented peak.

They weren't the least bit surprised Li Pin would say something .

The Divine Martial Emperor replied, "Thirty years from now, there will be one final ranking of lead commanders and vice commanders. If you can defeat Yue Shu and Xuan Chengming, I'll have Emperor Ara fight you. If you insist on being the lead commander... then prove you're stronger than he is.

"The reason Emperor Ara has earned everyone's respect is because he has already defeated all the other contenders. He's even made them give up the notion of challenging his status as number one. This process is necessary."

Li Pin nodded slightly. "Alright."

Originally, the Divine Martial Emperor didn't want Emperor Ara to crush Li Pin's spirit. After all, he still had to compete in the Ten Thousand Tribes Dominion War.

But judging from the strength Li Pin displayed, even if Emperor Ara did blunt his momentum, it wouldn't be much of a problem for him in the Ten Thousand Tribes Dominion War.

Besides, it might not be a bad thing to let him suffer a minor setback. What if, like the other contenders, he felt the pressure from Emperor Ara and made another breakthrough in response?

Therefore, letting them fight a match wasn't entirely meaningless. Content orıginally comes from novel·fıre·net

With this decision made, the Divine Martial Emperor relaxed. "Then... let's talk about the participation subsidies you want. What do you need this time?"

"A rare treasure that can allow me to travel quickly through the Astral Realm," Li Pin answered. "I want to take a trip to the alien race territory."

He had managed to get a clear sensing during this period. The third fragment of the Ruoxi Sword was located in one of the top clans outside of the Human Race— the Skyblaze Tribe.