Next were the places where cultivators competed, such as various Arenas or the battle Secret Realms of the Linglong Pavilion. Everything else came after.
“Actually, the Saint Sect shops aren’t that interesting. It’s better to go up on an Arena for two rounds,” Shiqi muttered softly.
“You’re just used to it. Others don’t have your luck,” Hua Jian said with a roll of her eyes as she ate her breakfast.
Today, she had brought the Spiritual Civet along and had even ordered a special breakfast for it.
Ever since Hua Jian had pulled out the Spiritual Civet, the shopkeeper’s gaze had been quite strange.
It was as if he were looking at a deity.
Hua Jian felt a bit uneasy under his gaze and couldn’t help but ask, “Is something wrong?”
The shopkeeper quickly withdrew his impolite look.
He glanced around to ensure no one was paying attention before whispering, “Guest, your Spirit Beast partner… could it be the Frost…”
The shopkeeper didn’t finish his sentence, but Hua Jian understood what he meant. No one who managed to plant roots in Ascension City was ordinary.
To recognize the Shuanghua Lingmao in just a few glances, this shopkeeper was no simple person either.
Hua Jian nodded calmly. “That’s right.”
“I didn’t expect it to really be one. You have impressive methods, guest,” the shopkeeper flattered her in a low voice. Being able to tame a Shuanghua Lingmao was enough to prove her capabilities.
Hua Jian didn’t bother explaining. If someone thought she was powerful, was she supposed to be humble?
At a time like this, she should act a bit proud and mysterious. When it was time to be proud, she had to be proud.
After quickly finishing breakfast, Hua Jian and Shiqi headed straight for the Arenas.
According to Shiqi, this was the most interesting place in all of Ascension City.
Hua Jian had a slightly different opinion on that assessment, but she didn’t think the Saint Sect’s shops were much better than an Arena where people fought for real.
Since Shiqi recommended it so much, she would go take a look.
Many large Arenas were distributed throughout the Outer City. The livelier the area, the more Arenas there were, occupying a significant amount of space.
Cultivators didn’t have to pay anything to get on an Arena. As long as there was someone issuing a challenge, any cultivator who felt they were strong enough could go up and fight.
However, if a Spirit Master was issuing a challenge, a Ling King could not go up.
This was to prevent people from bullying those weaker than them.
But the reverse was allowed: if a Ling King issued a challenge, a Spirit Master could go up to meet them.
This was considered a way for Spirit Masters to challenge their own limits.
“Generally speaking, those who fight on the Arenas are Spirit Masters. There are very few Ling Kings,” Shiqi whispered to Hua Jian.
Ascension City was located in the Core Region of the Central Continent, but because of its unique purpose, the people gathered here were almost all geniuses at the Spirit Master rank who had traveled from all over the world.
Furthermore, the vast majority of Ling Kings in Ascension City were Disciples of the Saint Sect.
If these Saint Sect Disciples were seen bullying Spirit Masters on the Arena, they would inevitably face a lecture.
Over time, the Arenas had become a place for various geniuses to interact. Records on the Arena also became a barometer for judging the strength of these talents.
“Before we arrived, there was a list of ten geniuses circulating in the Outer City. It’s said that every genius on it is qualified to directly enter the Saint Sect’s Neimen,” Shiqi continued.
“The list is updated very quickly. I don’t know who has so much free time…”
Hearing this, Hua Jian felt a spark of interest.
This setting sounded quite fun. Ten geniuses? As the protagonist, shouldn’t she be climbing that list step by step until she stood at the very top?
“Who are they? Tell me.”
“See for yourself. The list changes frequently, and there’s a massive reshuffle after every Ascension Gathering. There’s no point in memorizing it,” Shiqi shrugged, pointing to a scroll hanging on a wall next to the Arena.
It displayed today’s Genius List.
The geniuses of Ascension City were replaced every year.
After all, the top ten would definitely be recruited by the Saint Sect, and those who weren’t recruited wouldn’t have the face to remain on the list.
“Besides, there will always be geniuses like you who hide in the shadows, or those who arrive just before the Ascension Gathering. The Genius List can’t possibly account for everyone.”
“That’s true. I’ll go take a look.” Hua Jian understood.
This list was likely the work of some bored Saint Sect Disciples. For it to be displayed so openly, it had to have some Saint Sect backing.
Outer Disciples happened to have the time and interest for this, so it made sense.
If that was the case, Hua Jian felt it was worth a look to understand her future opponents.
“Alright, I’m going to prepare for my first match.”
Bidding farewell to Shiqi, who had already entered battle mode, Hua Jian carried the Spiritual Civet toward the list.
She found quite a few cultivators crowded around it. Most of them were young cultivators of similar age and strength to her, likely having similar ideas.
“There are a lot of changes on the list today. Many newcomers have made it on.”
“Who the heck is this ‘Justice Swordsman’? Is it a pseudonym?”
“Shiqi must be that girl with the black sword who’s been coming here lately. I have no problem with her being on the list, but what’s the deal with this other guy?”
Hua Jian heard Shiqi’s name. It seemed Shiqi had already made a name for her self over the last few days.
As for her being on the list, Hua Jian wasn’t surprised. Shiqi’s strength was undeniable; making it onto the Genius List should be easy for her.
There were ten spots, and it only counted the currently known and famous geniuses.
If Shiqi couldn’t squeeze into that, then Linglong’s assessment of her would have been wrong.
Linglong had personally declared that Shiqi was a genius who could definitely enter the Jian Sect’s Neimen.
“Excuse me, let me through.” Hua Jian rubbed the Spiritual Civet’s head, letting it release a cold current.
This froze the cultivators squeezed in front of her, causing them to move aside.
The cultivators chilled by the cold turned around. When they saw a young girl like Hua Jian pulling tricks, they immediately became unhappy.
“How can you do that?”
“I’m just a weak girl who couldn’t squeeze in; what other choice did I have?”
Even though she was the one in the wrong, Hua Jian spoke with total confidence, as if the person asking was the one at fault.
The youth she responded to hadn’t expected such a reaction and was momentarily speechless.
Hua Jian didn’t bother with him further. Squeezing to the front, she began to scan the Genius List.
First, she found Shiqi ranked tenth; it seemed she had indeed just made it onto the list.
Ranked just above Shiqi was the “Justice Swordsman” someone had mentioned earlier.
The name really gave Hua Jian goosebumps. What kind of decent person would put “Justice” in their name? It felt very narcissistic.
Looking further up, the names became more normal. They were all people Hua Jian didn’t recognize.
Next to the names were their previous rankings from the day before.
The overall rankings hadn’t changed much, though some spots had swapped, likely because their strengths were very similar.
When Hua Jian’s gaze landed on the very top of the Genius List, the glittering golden name almost made her doubt her own eyes.
“Fairy Caiyue? What kind of name is that!”
She had thought Justice Swordsman was the limit, but it turned out there was always a higher mountain.
As the top-ranked person on the Genius List, how could someone choose such a shameless name?
Calling yourself a fairy when you haven’t even made it onto the Xianzi Ranking.
“You brat, you’re so rude. ‘Fairy Caiyue’ is just what everyone calls her.”
The young cultivator she had pushed aside with the cold air earlier suddenly jumped out.
He looked at Hua Jian with a contemptuous gaze.
“You must have just arrived in Ascension City if you don’t even know Fairy Caiyue.”
“Exactly. I really did just arrive.” Hua Jian admitted her newcomer status quite openly.
This shameless response left the youth, who had wanted to continue his verbal attack, feeling frustrated.
It was the powerless feeling of punching a bale of cotton.
Since she admitted she was new, it was normal for her not to know Fairy Caiyue.
If he continued to snap at her, it might damage the Fairy’s reputation, and the Fairy had strictly warned them not to do that.
“Hmph, then let me tell you how incredible Fairy Caiyue is. There isn’t a single thing wrong with calling her a fairy!”
Since someone was willing to provide free lore, Hua Jian was happy to accept. Over the next few minutes, she learned about Fairy Caiyue’s background from the snippets provided by the surrounding young cultivators.
Broadly speaking, Fairy Caiyue was the young lady of a great family. Her personality and talent went without saying—how could anyone ranked first be weak? More importantly, she had a story!
Fairy Caiyue had run away from an arranged marriage to participate in the Ascension Gathering!
“The Fairy’s father wanted her to marry a waste young master from a small family in their city. The Fairy refused and ran to Ascension City alone.”
‘Oh? A young lady? Running from a marriage? A waste young master?’ Hua Jian perked up immediately. This setting was interesting.
‘Is that young master currently training hard to show Fairy Caiyue a thing or two?’
“What happened to that waste young master? Is he furious? Is he coming to Fairy Caiyue to get revenge for the broken engagement?” Hua Jian’s eyes sparkled.
The young men around her looked at each other. How could they know?
The Central Continent was massive, and they came from all over.
No one here was from Fairy Caiyue’s hometown.
Who knew what was happening with the young master in the background?
“Probably not?”
“That kind of thing only happens in storybooks.”
“If he really shows up, I’ll eat this wooden board!”
While the group was talking over each other, a cultivator suddenly flew over from the distance.
The man’s face was filled with extreme urgency as he shouted to the gossiping crowd.
“Fairy Caiyue’s fiancé has found her!”