The fourth-round maneuver was over, and a total of twelve finalists remained. Only eight clans had qualified for this round, which included three upper-high-ranking clans, two lower-high-ranking clans, two upper-middle-ranking clans, and one low-ranking clan.

The fifth round of maneuvers would select only six contestants from the twelve. Diao and Den had a high chance of being matched against each other, but that opportunity would not arise because Zheng-Fu had controlled the drawing of lots himself.

Zheng-Fu did this because he wanted both brothers to take first and second place. Therefore, he chose their opponents carefully, ensuring they faced worthy challengers. He didn't select anyone incompetent or weaker than the two brothers, as he believed that a true martial artist's path required difficult trials.

In a special seat on the high tower...

"City Governor, it seems that an uninvited guest is approaching from thousands of li away," one of the elders seated behind the young woman suddenly spoke, sounding serious.

Huh...?

Dan-Ge's expression immediately changed upon hearing this. He couldn't sense the guest's presence yet, but he knew that the elder wouldn't have sounded so serious if this person's arrival had been friendly.

"May I ask how strong this guest is, Elder?" Dan-Ge asked.

"The intermediate ninth level of the Divine Emperor stage. His skills are on par with ours. But don't worry, we'll handle him. You stay here and protect the princess!" said one of the elders, commanding Dan-Ge to remain behind.

"I understand, Elder. Rest assured, as long as I'm here, I won't let any harm come to her—not even a hair on her head!" Dan-Ge responded firmly. He knew how crucial it was to protect the young woman. If she were harmed, both he and his family would face severe consequences.

Woooosh!!!

The two elders instantly disappeared. Only Dan-Ge, Luo-Qing, and the young woman who had accompanied the two elders remained in the special seating area.

"Uncle, who is this guest?" Luo-Qing asked, curious after the elders had left.

"I don't know yet, but judging by the elders' reactions, this person isn't coming with good intentions. Stay here in this room; it has a high-level protection spell," Dan-Ge urged the two young women to remain inside for their safety.

"We understand," the veiled young woman responded with a serious tone.

Unbeknownst to the general public, who were still enjoying the rally, only a few individuals were aware of the impending danger—Zheng-Fu, Jin-Tian, and the city's powerful figures, including members of the Mo-Qing Chamber of Commerce and the Blood Fog Armament Store.

These organizations were informed by their spies about the highly skilled martial artist approaching the city. They were prepared to leave but sensed that two martial masters had already rushed out to confront the threat.

Back to the maneuver arenas...

After the fourth-round maneuver, the fifth round began. Diao and Den were not matched against each other. Instead, Diao faced the second young miss of the Flaming Dawn Clan, while Den faced the eldest young master of the Frenzy Lion Clan.

The second young miss of the Flaming Dawn Clan was a fifth-level Immortal Soul stage cultivator, known as the strongest young woman in Huang-Di City and infamous for her temper. Den's opponent, the eldest young master of the Frenzy Lion Clan, was a sixth-level Immortal Soul stage cultivator, renowned for his aggressive, combative nature. Both brothers faced emotionally intense opponents.

Zheng-Fu had deliberately arranged for Diao and Den to fight these two challenging opponents. He wanted them to face fighters who would rather die than surrender—opponents that would test their mettle in the most difficult ways.

Back at the Silver Body Clan seats...

Zheng-Fu, always aware of the situation, knew that the two martial masters had gone to confront the incoming guest. He considered following them because he realized the guest was from the Demon Tribe, and this could be an opportunity to claim a Demon Tribe body.

"Jin-Tian, take care of things here. I have something to deal with outside," Zheng-Fu whispered, instructing Jin-Tian to take charge.

"Yes, Master," Jin-Tian responded without question.

After leaving Jin-Tian in charge, Zheng-Fu quietly disappeared without anyone noticing—except for the veiled young woman in the special seating area, who murmured softly, "He's gone? Is it him, or is it not?" The sentence was only heard by herself alone. She was still skeptical whether the young man was the same one as the one in her mind right now or not.

Meanwhile, the maneuvers continued, and both Diao and Den faced their formidable opponents. The battles grew increasingly intense, exciting the audience. Those who had once insulted Diao and Den were now shouting their names. Regardless of the outcome, these two brothers had won the audience's admiration.

From being a bottom-tier clan, the Silver Body Clan was now on everyone's radar. No one would ever look down on them again.

…………….

As for Zheng-Fu, he was now only a few pings away from the two martial masters. Neither of them realized he was following them. The uninvited guest continued to approach with unrelenting speed.

Hundreds of pings away...

"Grandfather, we're not far from Huang-Di City, one of the six major cities of the Monster Tribe," said a shadow-like young demon beside the red-skinned elder demon.

"Hmph! Soon, they will learn what happens when they insult the Demon Tribe!" the elder demon sneered.

"They dared to kill Grandfather Green Demon from our branch clan. They all deserve to die!" the young demon added provocatively.

"You don't need to tell me. It's already decided. You and your father should be ready. Bring the troops once I finish dealing with them," the elder demon ordered, before charging forward with more speed.

"Yes, Grandfather!"

After receiving his orders, the young demon's body vanished, leaving no trace. Actually, the young demon had never been there, it was only a magic item that allowed the young demon to communicate via a shapeshifter.

The distance between the two elder martial masters and the elder demon was only a few hundred pings now. Both sides were aware of each other but did not slow down, including Zheng-Fu, who continued following in secret.

'This is going to be an intense fight. I'd better prepare a hidden dimensional space spell talisman. This will also be a good chance to test the power of a spell engraved with Demon Tribe blood,' Zheng-Fu thought. In his mind, he was sure that the fight would be extremely powerful, but he already prepared his items in advance as he also wanted to test his spells' power.

Swish!!!

Wooooosh!!!

Flop!!! Flop!!! Flop!!!

The three martial masters soon halted. They were now only a hundred ping apart.

"Stop right there and turn back!" one of the elder monsters commanded, releasing his energy.

Woooosh!!!

Huh!!!

Booooom!!!

The elder monster's energy dissipated as the elder demon countered it. "That level of power is nothing to me. You'd best surrender and commit suicide now!" the elder demon taunted.

"How arrogant! Do you think you alone can defeat both of us? Your energy isn't that much higher than ours," the other elder monster retorted, unfazed.

"Ha ha ha, not that much different?"

Wooooosh!!!

The elder demon released an overwhelming wave of energy, far stronger than the two elder monsters'. It was on par with the power of the Monster King's personal great guardian.

"The high ninth level of the Divine Emperor stage?!"

The elder monsters' expressions shifted instantly. They realized that the elder demon's power far exceeded their own. Even though they were at the beginning of the ninth level of the Divine Emperor stage, the difference in power between their levels and the elder demon's was enormous. In the Divine Emperor stage, even a slight difference in level equated to an overwhelming difference in strength.

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