Chapter 48: Part 1
At this moment, it was nearing midnight, and the full moon hung high in the sky.
Everyone present was undoubtedly favoring Ye Jingyong. After all, he wielded the powerful Mountain-Opening Seal, the Broad Cloud Sword, and had two formidable spirit beasts by his side.
However, at this moment, Ye Jingcheng waved his hand again, and before him appeared a golden-scaled beast, covered in golden armor.
The golden scales, though not as striking as the sharp red spikes of the Crimson Armored Beast, still gave an overwhelming sense of power.
With its golden armor and agile body, the Gold-Scaled Beast was equally as impressive and awe-inspiring to the gathered cultivators.
Moreover, the beast's large tusks and sharp claws gleamed with golden light, dazzling the onlookers.
The cultivators, who were well-versed in spirit beasts, could easily tell that while the Gold-Scaled Beast might not be as impressive as the Crimson Armored Beast, it was certainly stronger than the Cloud-Leaping Leopard.
From this perspective, Ye Jingcheng's beast was clearly superior to Ye Jingyong's.
After all, everyone had witnessed the strength of the Crimson Flame Fox!
"It seems Second Brother is about to lose!" Ye Jingyong mocked himself, but his hands didn't pause, and he immediately began to form seals!
The first thing he did was release the Broad Cloud Sword!
The sky was instantly filled with dazzling sword shadows!
Meanwhile, the Cloud-Leaping Leopard and the Crimson Armored Beast rushed toward Ye Jingcheng's Crimson Flame Fox, one biting at it, while the other burrowed into the ground, heading directly for the fox!
[Translator: sauron]
Compared to the Gold-Scaled Beast, covered in thick scales, the Crimson Flame Fox was clearly seen by Ye Jingyong as the weak point.
But Ye Jingcheng was already forming seals, and in an instant, countless Ironwood Vines shot into the sky, wrapping themselves around the Cloud-Leaping Leopard!
At the same time, nine Silver Snow Needles flew towards Ye Jingyong in a sneak attack!
Splitting his focus, Ye Jingyong immediately released the Mountain-Opening Seal towards Ye Jingcheng.
A flash of spiritual light enveloped Ye Jingcheng, rendering him unable to move. The scene was strikingly similar to when Ye Jingyong had claimed victory before!
Many cultivators quietly sighed at Ye Jingcheng's lack of caution.
But in the next moment, Ye Jingcheng's Ironwood Vines pulled him out of the trap and reached towards the Cloud-Leaping Leopard.
The speed of the Cloud-Leaping Leopard was swift, evading many of the Ironwood Vines, but just then, a bell transformed into a large clock, trapping the Cloud-Leaping Leopard inside!
Ye Jingyong's expression changed drastically. He hadn't expected that Ye Jingcheng had lured him into a trap, and just as he believed the Crimson Armored Beast would succeed—
The Gold-Scaled Beast stomped on the ground, sending countless earthen spikes through the soil, piercing the Crimson Armored Beast's Earth-Burrowing Technique and forcing it to emerge. As it surfaced, it was met with a barrage of five consecutive fireball spells!
The brilliant explosions rang out one after the other, and at the same time, Ye Jingcheng launched the nine Silver Snow Needles toward Ye Jingyong!
The Cloud-Leaping Leopard was trapped in the Sky Bell, and the Crimson Armored Beast's most advantageous technique was destroyed by the combined efforts of the Gold-Scaled Beast and the Crimson Flame Fox.
The Crimson Armored Beast was also under siege from the Crimson Flame Fox!
Frowning, Ye Jingyong rushed to assist the Crimson Armored Beast, using the Broad Cloud Sword to cut through the Ironwood Vines. He also recalled the Mountain-Opening Seal, intending to smash it onto the Gold-Scaled Beast!
Yet, even though the Gold-Scaled Beast was enveloped by spiritual light, Ye Jingcheng's Ironwood Vines pulled the beast out of range of the light's effect!
At that moment, an Ice Talisman appeared beneath the Crimson Armored Beast's feet!
As the ice spread, the Crimson Armored Beast was frozen in place and took a direct hit from a fireball spell, being blasted off the arena.
In a moment of desperation, Ye Jingyong dashed forward, aiming to defeat Ye Jingcheng while he was still unable to fully control the Ironwood Vines.
But the Gold-Scaled Beast stomped on the ground again, sending a wave of earthen spikes toward Ye Jingyong's abdomen.
The scene left Ye Jingyong in shock.
While attempting to dodge, he was entangled by the Ironwood Vines. At the same time, the Crimson Flame Fox in the distance spewed out a massive fireball, ready to strike Ye Jingyong.
Though reluctant, Ye Jingyong admitted defeat.
"Jingcheng, Second Brother has lost!"
Ye Jingyong's face showed bitterness. He knew that this was merely a competition. In a real life-or-death battle, Ye Jingcheng's Crimson Flame Fox and Gold-Scaled Beast would have been even more ruthless!
The coordination of dual spells, combined with Ye Jingcheng's Ironwood Vines, was simply too difficult to counter!
Of course, Ye Jingyong also admired Ye Jingcheng's ability to control both spirit beasts simultaneously.
"Jingcheng, does refining pills with spirit beasts help improve their control?" Ye Jingyong couldn't help but ask.
"It does!" Ye Jingcheng nodded. In truth, he wasn't entirely sure.
His advantage came from the blood contract formed through the treasure book, allowing him to understand every thought of his spirit beasts. However, he couldn't reveal this secret to Ye Jingyong.
While he couldn't guarantee complete synchronization, he could increase their sensitivity to spells.
Both the Gold-Scaled Beast and the Crimson Flame Fox constantly practiced!
However, ordinary cultivators couldn't replicate his training methods, as he used the treasure book to restore the spiritual energy of his beasts.
"Ye Jingcheng wins!"
"For the mid-stage Qi Refining competition, Ye Jingcheng is ranked first and may choose between an Earth-Tier technique or a late-stage Tier-One spirit beast. Ye Jingyong is second and may choose a Yellow-Tier technique or a late-stage Tier-One spirit beast. Ye Xingyuan is third and may choose a Yellow-Tier technique or a mid-stage Tier-One spirit beast!"
[Translator: sauron]
Ye Xinghe began to announce the results!
The top three were able to choose between techniques or spirit beasts, while those ranked fourth through tenth received spirit stones, magic tools, or spirit pills.
The choice was left to the individual cultivators!
For those in the late stages of Qi Refining, since there were only ten participants, all of them received rewards.
This was in recognition of their achievement of reaching the late stage before the age of fifty.
"All rewards will be available for collection at the Treasure Pavilion tomorrow!" Ye Xinghe concluded.
Meanwhile, the early-stage Qi Refining competition quickly came to an end as well.
The announced results were similar to those of the mid-stage competition.
"Alright, the family competition is over. Remember today's shame, from the blazing sun to the bright moon, we must never forget!" Ye Haiyi flew into the sky and spoke again!
This statement was met with a unified response from all the Ye family members.
Ye Jingcheng couldn't help but glance at the mountain, his expression changing slightly. He still hadn't seen Ye Haiyun.
Logically, with Turtle Ancestor's incident, Ye Haiyun should have been free.
With so much evidence mounting, Ye Jingcheng's suspicion that Turtle Ancestor was still alive grew stronger!
However, he understood that his current strength was still too low, insufficient to be part of the family's decision-making center.
He knew he had to keep his thoughts to himself. If he pushed too hard to investigate, he might be seen as a spy from another family.
Shaking his head, Ye Jingcheng returned to contemplating his techniques.
Both of his spirit beasts could enhance his cultivation, but the most important thing was finding a technique that matched his fire and earth attributes!
Yet, what gave Ye Jingcheng pause was the fact that his Beast-Taming Pattern was seven inches long, allowing him to tame several more spirit beasts!
Ideally, he wanted to choose a technique with four attributes to correspond with his four spiritual roots!
However, this could result in him raising too many spirit beasts, potentially hindering his progress.
As he pondered, he walked under the moonlight towards his small courtyard.
Before long, the entrance to his courtyard appeared in front of him.
(End of Chapter)