The tournament arena was dead silent.
All duels had stopped. All eyes had turned to the massive central platform where only two names remained etched in gold fire on the jade slab.
Shen Zian vs. Shen Liang.
One, the exiled heir, risen from the wilderness with corpse flame and beast cores.
The other, the prodigal son of the Shen Clan, bearer of a divine beast egg, polished and refined since birth.
This was no longer just a match—it was a reckoning.
Shen Zian walked toward the platform.
No banners flew for him.
No clan elders nodded in approval.
Only the rogue cultivators rose in unified silence, fists clenched at their sides. In him, they saw possibility. Defiance. A flame against the mountain that had crushed them all.
Across the platform, Shen Liang descended from the sky on a cloud of golden qi. Applause broke out instantly. Nobles, sect leaders, even a few high-ranking judges clapped lightly.
Liang's robe shimmered with protective seals. His eyes radiated unshakable confidence.
But they flickered—just slightly—when he saw Zian step onto the platform.
"I'll give you this," Liang said, voice laced with amusement. "You survived longer than expected."
"I won't just survive," Zian replied calmly. "I'll bury your arrogance here."
"We'll see."
The judge stepped forward.
"Begin!"
The battle exploded in an instant.
Liang wasted no time. A seal on his palm burst open, summoning a beast from a golden array—
A Sky-Fanged Qilin.
It was magnificent—scaled with silver and sapphire, horns like lightning rods, and eyes that shimmered with intelligence. The beast roared, sending shockwaves rippling across the barrier.
Even high-tier disciples staggered back.
"It's already rank 5!" Mei gasped from the crowd. "That's almost spirit beast level!"
Liang smirked and pointed.
"Crush him."
The Qilin leapt.
Zian's corpse flame erupted, a storm of violet and blue swirling around him. He activated three beast echoes in succession—
Panther's Step for speed,
Molten Veil for defense,
Frost Ape's Guard for impact resistance.
He vanished in a blur, just dodging the Qilin's thunderstrike. The ground where he had stood cracked like shattered porcelain.
Zian leapt forward, palm glowing with a layered echo—Boar's Might combined with a new core: Stoneback Lizard's Tremor Pulse.
He struck the Qilin's leg.
A shockwave surged through it—but it barely flinched.
"Too weak," Liang sneered. "You think scraps of beasts can match a divine-blooded spirit?"
Zian didn't respond.
Instead, he pulled a vial from his sash and drank.
The corpse flame roared.
His qi twisted.
Bones shifted.
He activated a forbidden state: Beast Assimilation Phase One.
A translucent shadow of a beast layered over him—a fanged wolf, its aura ravenous.
"You copied more than cores," Liang said, finally frowning. "You're fusing with them."
Zian charged again.
This time, he didn't aim for the Qilin.
He aimed for Liang.
Caught off-guard, Liang raised his jade scepter—but Zian's palm slammed into it, corpse flame devouring the runes etched into the weapon.
Cracks splintered down the handle.
Liang hissed, backstepping. The Qilin lunged forward to shield him, but Zian twisted midair and landed behind it, igniting the beast's rear leg with corpse fire.
It bucked, snarling—but now it limped.
The crowd gasped.
Zian was forcing a divine beast to retreat.
Liang lost his composure.
"You want to fight like a monster?! Then die like one!"
He bit his thumb, bleeding essence into the air.
"Heaven-Sealing Technique: Jade Sky Bind!"
The sky itself shimmered. Golden chains of qi descended, aiming to bind Zian's soul directly. The technique was forbidden—only used to suppress unholy cultivators.
Zian's eyes narrowed.
He welcomed the chains.
"I learned to thrive in chains."
He raised both arms and released every ounce of his corpse qi in a violent surge. It wasn't technique—it was will. The beast inside him howled, and the chains exploded midair.
The arena trembled.
Even Judge Xun leaned forward.
"What… is that beast inside him?" one elder muttered.
Liang stumbled back, sweat beading on his brow.
Zian stepped forward.
"You shattered my dantian, brother. You cast me out."
"Now I'll show you what a shattered heir can become."
With one final surge, Zian struck.
The corpse flame burst, coiling into a massive fang-shaped spiral—his most refined technique yet: Fang of the Forgotten.
It struck the Qilin head-on.
The beast roared—then vanished into its summoning seal.
Liang fell to his knees.
The judge raised her hand, face unreadable.
"Victor: Shen Zian."
The arena erupted—first in stunned silence, then in deafening uproar.
Liang's pride had shattered before everyone's eyes.
And Shen Zian stood tall, corpse flame swirling behind him like the banner of a sovereign.
He had earned his place among the ten.
And the Spirit Realm Gate now pulsed in response.
It had chosen its prey.