The Decimo Dao Palace was huge. At the very least, it was a lot bigger than the Grand-Orient Sect. He heard that they could only walk around in the academy section of the Decimo Dao Palace, which meant most of it was closed to disciples. The architecture was relatively simple and elegant. It was clearly different from the majestic and solemn Imperial City. Compared to the Ancient Qilin Clan’s Manor City, most people walking around were youngsters.
Then again, Tianming, Feiling, Li Qingyu, and Ye Lingfeng had attracted the most attention. Out of the four of them, only the Sky Hall King’s disciple, Ye Qingyu, was well-known by everyone. As for the other three, including Feiling, this was the first time the other disciples had seen them. All four of them had different temperaments, which made a strange combination. But at the same time, they had also attracted much attention, especially Feiling, who was holding onto Tianming’s arm.
“Who’s that girl? Why have I never seen her before?”
“She’s attached?”
“Who’s that white-haired brat? What a waste!”
“I don’t recognize him.”
“White hair, what a poor taste!”
Wherever they went, they would attract jealous gazes. Tianming had no intention of hiding Feiling in the Decimo Dao Palace; she deserved to live under the sun. Tianming was already feeling guilty about hiding her existence in the Grand-Orient Sect. When he saw how happy she looked running around, Tianming was satisfied. They eventually walked to Treasure Street.
“Big brother, I want this!”
“Buy it then!”
“What about this?”
“Buy! Buy it all.” Tianming was someone who had made a fortune in the Grand-Orient Sect through war, so he wasn’t stingy.
Li Qingyu was familiar with the street. As they walked, she explained some important rules of the Decimo Dao Palace, including the Decimo Sky and Earth Ranking. Perhaps it might be related to the national funeral, but today’s atmosphere in the Decimo Dao Palace was rather solemn.
“Let’s take a look at the Evil Suppression Dao Plaza,” Tianming said after shopping around with Ling’er and filling his spatial ring.
“Alright, let’s go.” The Evil Suppression Dao Plaza was where the ‘ranking battles’ of the Decimo Sky and Earth Ranking were held.
…...
Before Tianming was an enormous pillar. He had seen the Decimo Gate Pillars during the day, but this pillar was truly towering compared to those. It was directly plugged into the clouds. When he tried looking up to see the top, he almost broke his neck, but he still couldn’t see it. The enormous pillar was entirely black, and the surface looked like it was covered in countless black scales. If he didn’t look at it carefully, he would’ve mistaken it for a giant snake. The scales seemed somewhat similar to Tianming’s black arm, but their shape was different.
“What’s this?”
“The Evil Suppression Pillar. It has a long history and has existed since the establishment of the Decimo Dao Palace. It’s rumored to be a saint beastial weapon, but there doesn’t seem to be any saintly heavenly patterns on it,” Li Qingyu explained.
“Saint beastial weapon?” Tianming didn’t think it looked like a weapon. After all, who in the world could lift such an enormous saint beastial weapon?
The Evil Suppression Pillar is the symbol of the Decimo Dao Palace,” said Li Qingyu.
“Got it. So putting it bluntly, it’s useless.”
“Maybe.”
Seeing that Tianming was looking at the thousand golden names arranged on the pillar from top to bottom, Li Qingyu explained, “This is the Decimo Sky and Earth Ranking’s Earth Ranking.”
Raising his head, Tianming asked, “So is the highest one ranked number one in the Earth Ranking?”
“Yeah. I heard that empyrean manna is rewarded for this year’s first place,” said Li Qingyu.
Tianming looked at the names and saw Dongyang Yu’s name ranked at the top. “Why does this name look so familiar?”
“Didn’t you see him this morning?”
“It’s him? I see.…”
“Big brother, you also want to participate and fight for first place?” Li Qingyu asked.
“Don’t you have any confidence in me?”
“Of course. With my big brother around, nothing’s impossible. The empyrean manna is just at your fingertips,” said Li Qingyu.
“Haha.…” Although Li Qingyu put it like that, he couldn’t afford to be sloppy. There were many geniuses in the Divine Capital, and none of them were pushovers.
“Why are there so many people with the surname ‘Dongyang’ ranked at the top then? The Dongyang Clan is from the Theocracy?” Tianming asked.
“Yes, but not all of them.”
“What do you mean?”
“The title of Ancient Theocrat is only passed down to men, and only males can establish the royal bloodlines. On the other hand, even if the women get married, their children’s status is lower than the princes. Hence, only males with the closest bloodline to the current Primeval Autarch and the three generations can use the surname of Dongyang. As for females or distant lineages, they can only use the surname Jiang. So if you encounter someone with the surname Dongyang, they’re mostly all within the core of the clan. As for those with the surname Jiang, they either have an ordinary bloodline, or they’re women.
“For example, Autarch Yun, who had just ascended the throne. Aside from those in the thirteenth bloodline, everyone had to change their surname to Jiang. For example, Dongyang Yu will probably have to change his surname soon. Furthermore, even among the thirteenth bloodline, the daughter of Autarch Yun can’t use the surname Dongyang.”
For women to suffer from such strict traditions made Li Qingyu unhappy. This tradition kept the status of women low right from their birth. When the previous Primeval Autarch, Autarch Qian was still alive, the males of three generations of his bloodline could use the surname Dongyang. But when it came to Autarch Yun, everyone other than the thirteenth bloodline had to change their surname to Jiang. It was complicated, but that was the reality.
Oh. No wonder the princess was named Jiang Lingjing, while her brothers were named Dongyang Ling and Dongyang Yu. Tianming understood the relationship within the Ancient Theocrats. Li Qingyu hadn’t said anything, as she still hadn’t realized it. When Tianming raised his head, three people among the top ten had the surname Dongyang, while the other two were surnamed Jiang. He could tell that the two with the surname Jiang were female, judging from their names, with just a glance.
“The Theocrats occupy five out of the top ten?” Tianming asked with a depressed mood. This showed how domineering the Theocracy was.
“Well, they’re really powerful, and there are only two from the four halls,” said Li Qingyu.
“Four halls? So weak?”
“Yeah. There’s nothing we can do about it. Most of the geniuses on the ranking are basically from the Divine Capital, and they all have backgrounds. On the other hand, the disciples of the four halls were basically born commoners, and normally, we can’t compete with them,” said Li Qingyu.
“That makes sense. It looks like your brother will have to make a move and turn the situation around,” said Tianming.
“Not bad. I’m optimistic about you,” Li Qingyu smiled. If others heard their conversation, they would probably cramp up from laughing so hard. After all, Tianming wasn’t even a saint. When Tianming was done boasting, he noticed that Feiling was a little depressed.
“Ling’er? What’s the matter? Who made you upset?” Tianming asked.
“Big brother, the Theocrats are too much! Why does being surnamed Jiang mean having low status?” Jiang Feiling said unhappily.
Only then did Tianming realize that Jiang Feiling also shared the same name. He comforted, “Ling’er, don’t be angry about that. No matter how low the Jiang surname is, you’re still above the Li surname.”
Feiling was dumbfounded.
“Big brother, I suspect you’re trying to be a rogue.” Li Qingyu smiled wryly.
“Calm down. It’s normal.”
……
Bai Zijin told him that everyone in the Earth Ranking was in the Saint stage, and they were all pretty young. Clearly, Jun Niancang would be nothing if he was in the Decimo Dao Palace. On the other hand, Ning Wushuang, the triplet beastmaster, was in the second level of the Earth Saint stage. Eventually, Tianming found her name ranked at 180!
No wonder Bai Zijin said that he would only be ranked among a hundred at best. The Evil Suppression Plaza was relatively empty today, as most people had probably gone to the funeral. However, that didn’t mean that the ranking battles had stopped—there were still some people fighting on the stages.
“The rules for ranking battles are for one side to issue a challenge, and the other side accepts. If the challenge succeeds, you’ll replace your opponent on the ranking. If you fail, then no more challenges are allowed within five days. Any disciples on the ranking have a fixed number of times they can refuse challenges. Once you use all of your refusals, you must accept a challenge within three days.
“Due to the top ten ranking reward, the challenging rules are more detailed and complicated. So let’s talk about it when you enter the top ten,” said Li Qingyu.
“You’re saying that we just have to defeat our opponent, and we’ll replace them in the ranking?” Tianming said with a heated gaze.
“That’s right.”
After understanding the rules, Tianming was about to leave. But when he turned around, he suddenly noticed a furious gaze directed at him. What a coincidence, it’s Ning Wushuang!
“You’re pretty bold not to hide in the Ancient Qilin Clan. Are you here to seek death?” Tianming’s expression instantly darkened.
“Haha!” Ning Wushuang tugged her arms with flames gushing from her eyes. “I never expected that you'd be able to come out of the Infernal Soul Volcano. I’m here to find you! You want to leave the Ancient Qilin Clan without paying a price? Dream on!”
“And who gave someone like you, who I’ve already defeated, your confidence?” Tianming smiled. If this weren’t the Decimo Dao Palace, he would’ve killed her the moment she showed up before him.
“I have to thank you for that. You forced me to make a breakthrough, and now I’m in the third-level of Earth Saint stage. I’m now fully capable of entering into the top fifty in the ranking!” Ning Wushuang sneered.
“Ranking?” Tianming turned around and said, “Ning Wushuang, I’ll give you a chance to kneel and beg for mercy. Get up on the stage.”
“You’re saying you want to challenge me?” Ning Wushuang smiled.
“That’s right.”
Bai Zijin wasn’t wrong. He was only in the Heavenly Will stage, and it wouldn’t be easy for him to find a saint to challenge. But it was a lucky coincidence that he met Ning Wushuang here.
“Li Tianming, if it wasn’t for the lifetime curse, the first in the Earth Ranking would be mine! I’ll fulfill your wish. Did you think that you could underestimate me just because you defeated me once? I’ll make you understand the price of underestimating your enemy!” Ning Wushuang sneered and stepped onto the stage.
“Ling’er?” It has been a long time since Tianming had fought together with Feiling, and he missed the sensation a little.
“Okay.”
Right before everyone, Feiling glowed and merged into Tianming.