Chapter 461: The Tournament Of Talents!
"You really caused a lot of commotion." Seeing Noah appear out of his cultivation abode, Ming Ye laughed heartily as he greeted him.
"Congratulations on creating a peerless technique, Elder Noah." Shisan also did not shy away from giving a compliment and properly greeted Noah.
There was no bad blood between the two of them, so it was not really painful for her to greet the young man.
"Thank you for your kind words." Noah chuckled lightly before saying, "I have been in cultivation for a while, so I will go take a walk in the world."
Just then, two figures appeared beside Ming Ye and Shisan out of nowhere. They were none other than Xin Yan and Elysia.
"How long has it been since I started my cultivation?" Noah smiled warmly at the two women and asked.
"It's been almost two months since the day you entered this cave." Although the rest could not sense it, there was a hint of bitterness and longing in her voice.
It was clear that she did not like not being able to talk to Noah for such a while. Seeing the sudden change in atmosphere, the old man sneakingly took his leave, Shisan also followed behind the old man and disappeared as well.
"How have—" Before Noah could say anything, he was caught off-guard by their actions. Xin Yan and Elysia slowly walked towards him and hugged Noah without saying anything.
Noah could feel it, the firmness of their grip around his body. His eyes softened as he let out a small sigh and patted their heads.
"Congratulations on your successful seclusion." It took a while for them to calm down. Seeing Xin Yan's warm smile, Noah felt half of his stress from cultivation vanish.
Noah's heart could not help but warm up seeing how they did not utter a single complaint about him being away for so long. It showed their unwavering support.
"It must have been hard on you," Elysia muttered while touching his face, puzzling Noah a little.
As if understanding what he was thinking, Elysia smiled and added, "For us, it was merely two months, most of which I spent staring at your face, but for you, that was years of isolation where you could not even focus on anything else but your cultivation."
Noah understood why they were acting like that and smiled warmly. If he was honest, Noah sometimes felt like dropping cultivation and opening his eyes to see the faces of the women he loved.
But he recalled the reason he was cultivating, the reason for his journey, and his resolve strengthened.
Silently, Noah hugged the two of them as well. He was trying to take in two years' worth of warmth from their bodies.
After a while, the three of them separated and looked at each other.
"I plan to take a walk in the outside world, do you want to come along as well?"
"Is that even something you have to ask? I am going wherever you want to go."
"I also plan to take a break from my sword cultivation." Elysia and Xin Yan readily agreed to Noah's proposal. After a small separation, they wanted to spend time with the boy.
One could only imagine what they might do if it was a long separation!
"What happened to the events that Wuhan is hosting?" Noah suddenly remembered that it was already close to the time for Wuhan to start with his plans.
"The event has already started. The first event, the first challenge, was held yesterday." Elysia shared everything she knew about the event, which was almost everything.
"Geniuses from all around the empire and some low-level kingdoms came to change their fate and garner the favor of the emperor."
"Sounds good. Watching such a grand event should be fun." Noah smirked. Getting a nod of approval from the two women before him, he brought out a flying artifact.
Seeing his eagerness to leave this place, Elysia chuckled before flying behind Noah. Xin Yan shook her head and followed suit.
…
Royal City,
The whole city was bustling with people, not just residents of the city but also cultivators and aspiring talents from all over the world.
"Yesterday's test was boring! Are the rest going to be the same?"
"What boring? It was a test for those who aspire to be court officials. Scholars from all over the kingdoms came to take part in it."
"Ah, I remember. Didn't they say that His Majesty is placing this challenge for all the talents all over the world? Not just genius cultivators, but also alchemists, weapon refiners, and even talisman refiners."
"Indeed, this tournament is very unique. Unlike any other tournaments from the past, this one is made for all kinds of professions." Read new adventures at empire
"I heard it's the turn for the alchemist tournament today. And the winner will also be awarded all kinds of treasures of heaven and earth."
While the group of cultivators talked, smoking themselves sitting in the middle of a small inn,
The whole ground floor was made into a restaurant for the guests to eat without going anywhere far.
The whole floor was packed with people. Naturally, their voices were loud in the middle of the crowd, but they still managed to reach the ears of a group sitting a little far away from them.
This group was really mysterious, dressed in similar black robes, their faces covered with a straw hat and a veil. Despite their odd dress, they still managed to stay away from anyone's gaze.
"Are you sure about this?" Ignoring the words of the people around them, one of the veiled figures asked.
"There is nothing to think about. The emperor clearly wants to poach the new talents right in front of us. This is clearly a slap to our face!"
"What Au—the leader said is correct. There is no way we can let this slide!" The last person in the group also agreed with the second one.
Although the voices of all three of them sounded feminine despite their lack of figure, it was unknown for anyone to discern their identities. But the moment the last woman exclaimed, a pair of red lights flashed from her veil.