Chapter 440: Tian Wu Lan

"Reigning Over Nine Heavens" Find the latest chapter!

"Go Kela!" Wu Di waved his fists fiercely beside her, his eyes gleaming. "The Great Elder must be watching us!"

Kela nodded, unable to resist glancing at the stands again, though she still couldn’t spot who the Great Elder was...

This time, a beastman was stepping onto the stage. Compared to the jeers from several other Holy Sanctuaries toward beastmen earlier, the atmosphere in the arena now was relatively friendly.

The murmurs and discussions around them were endless, and though some mocking remarks could still be heard, none of them targeted the beastmen’s status. After all, this was the First Holy Sanctuary, the city of the League of Blades—those who looked down on others still had to maintain their dignity.

But that didn’t mean the residents of the League of Blades or the disciples of the Heavenly Peak were friendly toward beastmen. On the contrary, they despised the beastmen more than anywhere else in the alliance.

What were beastmen? Laboring slaves, the lowest of the low, the embodiment of filth, poverty, rudeness, savagery, illiteracy, and every other negative trait imaginable. The reason they didn’t openly mock them was simply because they were too proud to stoop so low as to discard their own manners and grace for a mere beastman...

This could be seen from the seating arrangement of the Southern Beast Tribe’s Great Elder in the VIP section.

The long row of VIP seats had the continent's rising stars—such as the Saint-Child and Lucky Heaven—seated at the center. Fu Changsheng, as the host, naturally accompanied them, while Hawkland, as the headmaster of the participating team, sat with them at the core.

To the right were the headmasters of various Holy Sanctuaries, seated according to their rankings. To the left were the nobility and gentry.

The first tier was undoubtedly occupied by the influential figures of major factions—Yama of the Eight Tribes, the Canglan Grand Duke of the Nine Gods, Gui Zhicai of Darkmoon Island, the Li brothers, the princes of various duchies, and others. The second tier consisted of the leaders of alliance families, as well as honorary figures like the Sea Dragon Prince and the Mermaid Princess, who held little real power on land.

It had to be said that the Supreme Sage Teacher had indeed bestowed dignity and pride upon humans. In the past, the proud sea clans would have taken offense immediately.

And the Southern Beast Tribe’s Great Elder was seated in the second tier... At first glance, it didn’t seem like a problem—he was surrounded by well-known figures. But in truth, this was an insult to the beastmen.

Given the territory and population under the Southern Beast Tribe’s control, their strength was at least comparable to a top-five duchy. They were an indispensable force in the League of Blades, and their seat should have been placed at the forefront of the first tier... Yet they were looked down upon. Not only in seating, but even in the League of Blades’ parliament, the Great Elder of the Southern Beast Tribe held only the position of an ordinary council member.

The people around him occasionally exchanged a few polite words with him, all smiles and courtesy. But the Great Elder knew very well that in their eyes—and in the eyes of the fifty thousand League of Blades citizens and Heavenly Peak disciples in the arena—beastmen were no different from articulate beasts. Even he, the Great Elder, was just an ape wearing fancier clothes...

This was the tragedy of the beastmen. And precisely because of this, Kela, who stood on that stage representing the beastmen despite all the pressure, and Wu Di, who had yet to fight, were all the more precious.

Go on, child. You must win honor for our beastmen!

Behind that calm smile, hidden within his sleeves, the Great Elder’s fists clenched slightly. The times had been decided—the rise of the beastmen could not rely on war, only on playing by human rules. And who would have thought that the ones to find a way would be two unknown beastmen and that... peculiar human?

Kela had already taken her position on the field. Meanwhile, at the Heavenly Peak’s side, perhaps due to something Tianzhe Yifeng had said during the previous fight, or perhaps because of Ye Dun’s stunning Heavenly Silkworm Nine Transformations, he had finally regained command over the team. This time, no one stepped forward without orders—they all waited for his arrangement.

It was clear that Tian Wu Lan and Amogan had calmed down somewhat. Ye Dun smiled faintly. "Which of our senior brothers or sisters would like to give it a try?"

Tianzhe Yifeng chuckled but said nothing. Amogan wasn’t particularly interested either—he didn’t care if the opponent was a woman, but a beastman simply wasn’t his type.

Tian Wu Lan glanced at the expressions of her two senior brothers. "Then I’ll go."

This genuinely surprised Ye Dun. Tian Wu Lan was strong—years ago, she had already been hailed as the Holy Sanctuary’s top Exorcist. But honestly, she didn’t seem like the best fit for this fight... The Heavenly Peak's reigning beauty had countless suitors. She practiced the Celestial Allure Art, an ancient and obscure branch even among Exorcists. It was said that no man below the Ghost-level could escape her gaze. But... Kela was a woman.

Seeing Ye Dun’s hesitation, Tianzhe Yifeng smiled. "Little Leaf, your senior sister’s abilities have long since evolved. Don’t worry—just sit back and enjoy the show."

Shen Luan Tianwulan. Many in the audience wore strange expressions upon seeing the Heavenly Peak’s response, whispering among themselves.

Kela studied her opponent intently.

In just the time it took for the previous two matches, the Li clan had already delivered detailed information on all five members of the Heavenly Peak team. To compile such thorough reports in just over half an hour—the Li clan's intelligence network was frighteningly efficient.

Tian Wu Lan. According to the records, she specialized in allure arts, which were said to be 100% effective against men... but far less so against women. However, thinking that meant an easy victory would be a grave mistake. Tian Wu Lan could also control so-called "Celestial Luan Birds." When activated, countless luan birds would soar through the sky, dancing like divine spirits, surrounding and slaughtering all enemies.

Those Celestial Luan Birds weren’t Spirit Beasts but spiritual manifestations resembling them, carried by spirit kites... In truth, she was also a puppeteer—and an exceptionally skilled one at multi-threaded control.

"This duel is interesting. That little girl Tian Wu Lan seems much more mature now," Gui Zhicai remarked with a laugh. He was quite interested in this matchup—both fighters below were familiar to him. Kela, of course, had spent a month in closed-door training on Darkmoon Island. As one of the less burdened elders, Gui Zhicai had been tasked by the Island Lord to mentor these disciples, racking his brains over them constantly.

Tian Wu Lan was even more familiar. When she was still at the Zenith Holy Sanctuary, she had once gone to Darkmoon Island for further study, hoping to become a disciple of the Thousand-Handed Ghost King. Although Ghost Elder Gui Zhicai did not accept her as a disciple, out of respect for the Zenith Holy Sanctuary, he still gave her some guidance. Her Celestial Phoenix Dance bore some resemblance to the Thousand-Handed Ghost King's techniques.

"Ghost Elder, who do you favor more?" Li Xuanyuan asked with a smile. Down on the stage, Tian Wu Lan had made a name for herself in the Bounty Hunters Guild over the past two years. Though she was far from being noticed by someone of Li Xuanyuan's stature, Puppeteers were rare, and as fellow practitioners, they naturally paid more attention to each other.

"Hard to say," Gui Zhicai replied with a shake of his head. "I’m not sure how much Tian Wu Lan has changed in these two years. If she’s only progressed at her usual pace, I’d say it’s about evenly matched."

"So, we’re in for a good show?"

"We'll see."

The two on the stage were now locked in a standoff. Kela’s gaze lingered on Tian Wu Lan’s face—a face of exquisite beauty, delicate and refined, not seductive but rather warm and inviting. This made Kela cautious. While same-gender charm techniques should theoretically be ineffective, that warmth still served as a warning.

Her soul power had already gathered in her consciousness, but she didn’t fully release it outward to exert pressure or enhance her strength. Instead, she kept a significant portion within her soul to guard against any mental temptations. Beyond that, she needed to watch out for the "Paper Kites." Puppetry techniques always had telltale signs before activation. Without knowing their exact power, her best strategy was to subdue Tian Wu Lan before she could unleash her killing move.

"Begin!" Head Judge An Nanxi announced.

Kela’s eyes sharpened. Her body, already slightly crouched, was about to lunge forward when, in that instant, Tian Wu Lan’s pupils vanished. The sudden mutation made Kela hesitate for a split second—just long enough for her body to shudder violently for two or three seconds before freezing completely.

Down below, Old Wang’s heart sank.

*She fell for it. This isn’t charm techniques—it’s eye-based illusion, an illusion! I should’ve realized. A woman’s charm is just the foundation of high-level illusions, a theoretical derivative. The moment you assume she can only charm you, you’ve already fallen under her spell!*

Though Kela had strong resistance to witchcraft, illusions were an entirely different matter. Fortunately, Old Wang had trained her using the Soul Refining Array, which also involved illusions. Constant exposure had given her some adaptability. It was clear she had struggled against the illusion before succumbing, meaning she had been on guard. Now, it all depended on whether she could hold onto her true self and resist the illusion’s invasion.

Unlike when Mapeier had been bound, being trapped in an illusion didn’t necessarily mean complete helplessness. Before fully subduing the target, the caster had to maintain the illusion and was equally immobilized. Thus, it couldn’t be ruled as a loss of resistance.

The audience quickly fell silent as they watched the two beauties standing motionless against each other. Compared to the dazzling, blood-soaked battles earlier, this was undoubtedly the most aesthetic match so far.

An endless oppressive force surrounded Kela, but unlike what she had experienced in the captain’s Soul Refining Array, she didn’t see the Beast Ancestors. Instead, colossal human figures loomed over her, their faces filled with disdain, as if she were nothing more than an insignificant insect.

"Kneel," one of the towering figures commanded indifferently.

Kela couldn’t make out his features—he was too tall, too distant, just a shadowy silhouette exuding overwhelming authority.

She refused to kneel. In the captain’s Soul Refining Array, she had knelt countless times before, but she had since learned methods to withstand such overwhelming pressure.

Gritting her teeth, she held her ground. But soon, grotesque human faces appeared around her—far weaker and more wretched than the towering figures, yet their eyes brimmed with scorn and mockery.

"Beastmen are just slaves. When told to kneel, you kneel!"

"Filthy, lowly subhuman monkeys. Do you even understand human speech?"

"Either leave the human world or crawl on your belly like dogs!"

"Only eat what your masters give you. If they don’t, even if food falls to the ground, you don’t touch it!"

Kela endured the taunts, her fingers trembling slightly, but her mind remained clear. She knew she was trapped in Tian Wu Lan’s illusion. As long as she held onto her sanity, she could outlast her opponent. Maintaining an illusion drained soul power—Tian Wu Lan was the one at a disadvantage.

But then, the scene shifted. Images of beastmen flooded her vision.

...In a dilapidated cave, a beastwoman, rags barely covering her, tried to nurse her child. But she hadn’t eaten in days and had no milk left. The baby wailed from hunger, and the mother wept harder—because outside the cave, another beastman waited anxiously with his own child. This was the last time she could feed her baby. In minutes, the two families would exchange their infants… as food to survive.

...A village burned as terrified beastmen fled. Black-armored human smugglers chased them down, killing any who resisted. Rape? These humans had no such interest. Female beastmen like Kela were rare—most were either brutish, hairy, or even more rugged than the males. The only difference was the two sagging mounds on their chests. Humans captured them for one purpose: to sell as slaves. Though the Blade Alliance had long banned this, laws were ignored in practice. To these "slave hunters," beastmen were just livestock.

...In a human slave market, several strong beastmen stood bound on a platform while humans inspected them like goods. An ornately dressed noblewoman wrinkled her nose at the male beastman’s exposed member. "Cut off that filthy thing. A slave has no use for it."

Scene after scene flashed before Kela’s eyes. Though she desperately reminded herself it was all an illusion, some emotions couldn’t be suppressed. Her limbs grew colder, her rage burned hotter.

A sharp buzz—

Finally, Kela’s pupils vanished too, leaving only empty white voids.