Chapter 133: Battle Preparation

"Swish!"

Just as Ye Zihan was feeling somewhat dissatisfied with Moyou's laziness, he suddenly felt a fierce gale whip out from his sleeve. Moyou instantly flew out from it, reverting to his true form.

Roar!

With a series of wild roars that shook the surrounding wilderness, Moyou's body instantly expanded to over two zhang in length. Following that, powerful ripples of energy surged from within his body, forcing even Ye Zihan and the others to circulate their Five Elements Source Energy to resist.

A series of loud, cracking sounds echoed across Moyou's entire body. Suddenly, his already massive frame grew even larger, instantly stretching to over five zhang in length—more than double his previous size.

As one of the three great clans of the Beast Domain, the Nether Blood Mirage Dragon possessed exceptionally formidable innate strength. However, their realm breakthroughs were also somewhat slower compared to ordinary human cultivators, because the amount of source energy they consumed was several times, or even higher, than that required by others.

Yet, by the same token, once they broke through, their strength would invariably far surpass other cultivators of the same tier.

"Haha, Moyou has broken through as well!"

Allowing the fierce wind stirred up by Moyou's breakthrough to buffet against him, Ye Zihan couldn't help but say in pleasant surprise.

"Congratulations to the Pavilion Master and the three Deputy Pavilion Masters on your successful breakthroughs." Mo Wuhuan and the others, who had hurried over upon hearing the news, offered their respectful congratulations to Ye Zihan and his companions one by one. Phantom Ji stood off to the side, a hint of a smile gracing her face. She looked exceptionally alluring, charming, peerlessly captivating, and utterly mesmerizing.

Even though Phantom Ji had dominated the Three Realms back in the day and had witnessed all sorts of geniuses, deep down inside, she still couldn't help but feel a trace of astonishment at the innate talents of Ye Zihan and the others. Individuals with talents like theirs were exceedingly rare to begin with, and each of them possessed deep backgrounds, hailing from prominent families.

Generally, genius figures of this caliber were extremely proud and rarely felt admiration for other prodigies. Yet Chen Yiyan, Yanzhen, and Moyou—one human and two beasts—were all prodigies within their respective clans, and yet they had all gathered around Ye Zihan, getting along harmoniously with one another and unanimously taking Ye Zihan as their leader.

However, upon second thought, Phantom Ji grew somewhat resigned. She still remembered clearly the words Ye Zihan had spoken earlier in front of so many people.

"Anyone who dares to bully my brothers shall be shown no mercy, no matter how strong they are!"

What kind of unyielding ambition was that, what kind of magnificent spirit, what kind of towering resolve, what kind of profound brotherhood!

Perhaps it was precisely because of this genuine affection that these proud geniuses were drawn together.

Seeing the joyous expressions of the four of them, Phantom Ji inexplicably felt a surge of loneliness. Back when she was the head of the Four Sacred Fiends, all she had obtained was the thrill of dominating the world and receiving the worship of others. Yet deep down in her heart, she truly harbored the chilling solitude of standing at the very heights.

Now that her strength had plummeted, despite having these subordinates, who among them truly submitted to her willingly? Compared to Ye Zihan and the others, Phantom Ji always felt a lingering trace of desolation in her heart.

"Haha! Big Brother, I've broken through too!" After successfully breaking through, Moyou immediately restrained his form, shrinking back into his original miniature size, though his entire body now shimmered with an even more radiant luster. He fluttered around Ye Zihan as he spoke.

"I told you so! We Nether Blood Mirage Dragons are a top-tier powerful race in heaven and earth. We can even break through while sleeping."

***

Bang!

"Moyou, you've only reached the Sixth-Star realm and you're already this arrogant? When you reach the Seventh-Star realm, or even the Eighth-Trigram realm, won't you turn the heavens upside down?" Ye Zihan flicked Moyou lightly, smiling as he reprimanded him.

"Alright, I know, Big Brother." Although Moyou had a somewhat wild streak, he still held immense respect for Ye Zihan. Even though the two of them had forged a contract—which could be said to constitute a master-servant relationship—Ye Zihan had never treated him as a mere mount or servant, but rather regarded him as a brother.

"Pavilion Master, the weapons of the two Deputy Pavilion Masters have already been repaired by this subordinate." Seeing that their conversation was coming to an end, Mo Wuhuan chimed in, holding the newly repaired weapons in both hands.

"Oh?" Chen Yiyan and Yanzhen noticed something unusual about Mo Wuhuan's weapons. Reaching out with a grab, they summoned their respective weapons into their hands through the air and began to inspect them closely.

"They seem a bit different now." Chen Yiyan and Yanzhen exchanged glances, joy flashing in their eyes.

"Not only are they repaired, but they're actually even stronger than before!" Chen Yiyan was a complete battle maniac. The moment he grasped the battle axe in his hand, he began brandishing it, whipping up successive shockwaves of sonic booms.

The previously fractured marks on the battle axe were completely invisible now. The entire body emanated faint ripples of baleful aura, with a layer of purple radiance occasionally circulating across its surface. Especially along the edge of the blade, a single glance was enough to reveal its peerless sharpness.

As Chen Yiyan swung the battle axe casually through the air, the very atmosphere emitted sonic booms, displaying astonishing power.

"Good, good, good!" Chen Yiyan uttered three words of approval in succession, his inner joy completely laid bare. Meanwhile, Yanzhen tested his Breeze Sword and similarly discovered that it had grown much stronger, leaving him immensely excited.

"Haha, now I've reached the Sixth-Star realm as well! Coupled with this weapon that fits me so well, little lasses of the Misty Rain Pavilion, just wait to be ravaged by your lord here!" Yanzhen burst into wild laughter, as if he had already foreseen the scene of himself utterly defeating the members of the Misty Rain Pavilion. Chen Yiyan was also stirred by his words, causing his battle intent to soar.

"This subordinate occasionally chanced upon a small piece of wind-grade mysterious silver ore. When I was helping the two Pavilion Masters repair their weapons, I fused it into them. It's just that the piece of wind-grade mysterious silver ore was too small, and this subordinate's smithing skills are limited, so I was unable to help the two Pavilion Masters elevate their weapons fully to the wind-grade level."

Mo Wuhuan explained as he stood before them. Knowing that he was trying to curry favor with them, Ye Zihan nodded in acknowledgment.

"Mo Wuhuan, you've done very well. I've kept it in mind, and there will be no shortage of benefits for you in the future."

"Working for the Pavilion Master is this subordinate's honor. How could I dare ask for any reward? This subordinate is overwhelmed with trepidation." Though Mo Wuhuan put on a look of being pleasantly surprised, his heart was practically blossoming with joy.

Because of the incident with Moyou earlier, Mo Wuhuan had completely offended Ye Zihan, and now he had no choice but to seek ways to make amends. To earn Moyou's forgiveness, he had even taken out all of his treasured crystal cores—which could be considered a massive bleeding of resources.

"How is the situation outside right now?" Ye Zihan brought up the serious matter at hand.

"Reporting to the Pavilion Master, basically, following the exit of the Pavilion Master and the three Deputy Pavilion Masters, people have been successfully breaking through the Abyss of Demons one after another. Right now, most of them have already gathered near the viewing platform, awaiting the final showdown." Mo Wuhuan reported the situation over there.

"How many people successfully cleared the trials this time in total?"

"Because the Pavilion Master brought the Heavenly Lord out, the difficulty of the Abyss of Demons was significantly reduced. Therefore, the number of people who successfully cleared the trials this time is much higher than before—there are over twenty of them." As the guardian of Nameless City, Mo Wuhuan had the entire city under his control and could obtain any information regarding Nameless City and its surroundings at any time.

***

"Su Zhi from the Misty Rain Pavilion has arrived as well, hasn't she?" Ye Zihan suddenly asked. He still attached great importance to this opponent who was a match for him. She was a formidable rival in his bid for the position of City Lord, even though Ye Zihan could now be said to have firmly secured the position of City Lord with the support of Mo Wuhuan and the others, meaning anyone else who came would only be forced to leave in dejection. However, this did not affect his determination to battle other genius experts.

"Su Zhi?" Mo Wuhuan paused slightly, and the look he cast at Ye Zihan immediately turned somewhat peculiar, carrying an ambiguous expression that seemed to say 'I understand.'

"Young Mistress Su Zhi of the Misty Rain Pavilion was the second to pass through after the Pavilion Master broke out of the Abyss of Demons. As far as this subordinate knows, right after Miss Su Zhi emerged from the Abyss of Demons, she began asking others about the Pavilion Master's whereabouts." Mo Wuhuan cast another ambiguous glance at Ye Zihan.

"Moreover, she seemed extremely concerned about the Pavilion Master."

"Pfft!" Yanzhen finally couldn't hold back his laughter. Pointing at Ye Zihan, he said, "Haha, I told you! There's a romance, there's definitely a romance! Look, I guessed it right! You wouldn't admit it before, but now you better honestly confess—what on earth happened between you and that Su Zhi inside that water sphere? The water sphere was filled with water after all. When there's water, your whole body gets wet. A pair of soaked man and woman, in a cramped space where no one else could see..."

The gaze Yanzhen directed at Ye Zihan was filled with all sorts of hidden implications, wearing an expression that said 'you know, I know, everybody knows.' Even the usually honest and earnest Chen Yiyan looked at Ye Zihan with a rather strange expression.

"Yanzhen, you damn kid, what nonsense are you spouting? Is your skin itching for a beating?"

Ye Zihan gritted his teeth as he glared at Yanzhen, then shot a fierce glare at Mo Wuhuan, leaving the latter feeling quite aggrieved. Mo Wuhuan felt he hadn't said anything wrong, so why did the Pavilion Master look so displeased?

"Haha, Big Brother, it looks like that young lady has taken a fancy to you! Hurry up and conquer her, and then you can ruthlessly discipline her while I go and thrash that Lan Youcha to vent the hatred in my heart!"

Moyou, who had just burrowed back into Ye Zihan's sleeve, poked his head out to join the fun, shouting repeatedly.

"Mo... You..."

Ye Zihan dragged out his icy tone. Sensing that something was amiss, Moyou tried to slip away, but it was already too late. He was grabbed by Ye Zihan, who began kneading him back and forth with both hands.

"Wuwu~ Big Brother, stop squeezing, I'm going to fall apart! I was wrong." Moyou, who had just been thinking about ravaging others, found himself thoroughly ravaged by Ye Zihan first. Fortunately, he was a Nether Blood Mirage Dragon with a formidable physique, so Ye Zihan's actions couldn't possibly harm him; it just made his words come out muffled and slurred.

"No one is allowed to bring this up again." Ye Zihan couldn't do much about his group of unprincipled friends, but that didn't mean he couldn't handle Mo Wuhuan. He issued the cold command, causing Mo Wuhuan to shiver involuntarily.

"Yes."

"Let's stop messing around. Su Zhi and I had nothing going on between us before. Don't go guessing wildly." Ye Zihan couldn't help rolling his eyes at Yanzhen. As for Su Zhi, he truly didn't harbor any romantic notions; at most, the two of them shared a mutual appreciation between genius powerhouses.

"Zihan, um... actually, what Moyou said isn't a bad idea either. If you can win over Su Zhi, you might even be able to bring the entire Misty Rain Pavilion under your control..."

Yanzhen's voice trailed over, but his person had already zipped away through the air.

"You're courting death!" Ye Zihan shouted angrily, flashing forward in pursuit.