Chapter 8 – First on the Human Stele
The earlier commotion was quickly overshadowed by the announcement of new names.
After several disciples from top sects were revealed—
"Sixty-third place, independent cultivator Chen Sanxiao from Yunzhou!"
"Who is Chen Sanxiao?"
The crowd in the square looked at each other in confusion.
"Seems like he didn't attend this grand event. Hard to tell if that's good or bad."
"Heh, naïve. You think skipping the event means the top sects won't find you?"
Before the words even faded, the air suddenly filled with exploding transmission talismans. As expected, these top sects had planted agents in every province centuries ago.
Thousands of li away, on a cliff, a one-armed swordsman in a straw raincoat stood beside a bewildered child. Just as he looked up, the white-browed elder of Xuantian Sword Sect arrived on his sword, tossing a bag of spirit stones at his feet. "We're taking your disciple."
When the one-armed swordsman tried to object, a sword tip was already pressed to his throat. "Or would you rather be a corpse?"
Feeling the immense difference in cultivation, the raised sword scabbard slowly lowered in silence.
…
As more names appeared on the stele, most belonged to disciples of the great sects. The few exceptions were swiftly claimed.
In cultivation, wealth, companions, techniques, and territory were all essential. The resources of a top sect could never be compared to those of a small one.
In the northwest corner of the square, sobbing rang out as a female disciple from a small sect was taken aboard the flying vessel of Jiuxiao Palace. Her master sat collapsed on the ground, clutching half of a jade pendant—a gift given to him by his disciple on his birthday just days ago. The words "A master's grace is like a mountain" were carved into it, now buried under Jiuxiao Palace's golden confetti.
"Ah, these great sects are truly heartless."
"Heartless? Letting geniuses rot in small sects is the real crime."
The square buzzed with debate.
When the golden characters "Princess Jinxiu of Great Zhou" appeared in third place, a hundred thousand cultivators bowed in unison. Their respect for Great Zhou came from the heart—for without it, rogue cultivators would have no place to survive.
Thirty-six golden-armored warriors carried a gilded palanquin through the air. A veil of shark-silk hung from it, swaying without wind, faintly revealing fingers as delicate as scallions.
On the upper pavilions, the faces of noble clans and sect representatives turned grim. The more support Great Zhou gained, the more it threatened their influence.
Far away in the imperial capital, eighteen bronze bells rang together, playing the "Ziwei Heavenly Anthem," a tune reserved only for the Holy Sovereign's court.
"Peace to the Princess! Peace to Great Zhou!" The roar of the crowd shook icicles from the eaves.
Several old cultivators were so moved they tore their white beards. "She's in the top three of the Human Stele! Great Zhou will endure! We have heirs!"
The stele's projection showed a thirteen-year-old girl practicing sword in the imperial garden. As her blade swept past, peonies bloomed in the dead of winter. The most seasoned sword cultivators noticed that the falling petals always avoided her shadow.
Still…
"If even Princess Jinxiu is only third, who could the top two be?"
Curiosity swelled.
When the announcement for second place came, a bloody light shot into the sky, and even the bells paused for a heartbeat.
"Hong Xianglong of the Hong Clan, Lingzhou!"
The scarlet characters looked as though written in blood. The projection showed a five-year-old boy biting into the neck of a Tongxuan Realm beast, golden beast blood staining his lips. When he raised his head, his left eye held double pupils, and his right eye bore three spinning blood-red stars.
"A Heavenly Saint Physique!" The Taixuan Sect master crushed his jade ruyi. "And not only that—he has the Supreme Blood within a Heavenly Saint Physique!"
The Hong Clan's blood-red spirit ship smashed through the clouds, its bow carved with a roaring yaozhi beast clutching a dragon's spine. Hong Tianque, draped in a black cloak embroidered with white bones, stood beside Hong Xianglong, who toyed with a string of crystal beast bones.
When the stele began to trace the origins of his talent, the clan leader flung out a blood curtain.
"What! He dares try to hide from the Human Stele?"
But the stele's golden light shredded the curtain with ease, revealing a chilling scene—
On a bed of cold jade lay two newborns side by side. From the girl's body, dozens of hair-thin blood threads ran from her meridians into a blood-gathering pearl above her head.
When her blood was drained dry, a red light rose from her body and condensed into a crimson jade soul.
"That is… Supreme Blood!" The elder of Jiuxiao Palace dropped the medicine gourd in his hand, "So, this man drained the girl's blood just to force the Supreme Blood to appear early and save its master!"
Sure enough, after the blood-colored jade soul appeared, it was seized by the man and forcibly implanted into the boy's body.
The boy suddenly let out a beast-like roar as countless blood threads surged beneath his skin. At the same time, the three blood stars in his right eye spun wildly, corroding the cold jade bed to pits nearly an inch deep.
In the image, the man hurriedly bit his tongue, spraying a mist of blood, then sealed all of his son's acupoints with twelve silver needles.
…
"Beast! To improve his son's aptitude, he actually drained the blood of his own daughter!"
"No wonder, though there was news the Hong Family had twins, there's been little mention of their legitimate daughter over the years. Having her blood drained and her Supreme Blood taken, she's most likely dead by now!"
"Even a tiger does not eat its cubs! This Hong Family patriarch… ah!"
Under the power of the Hong Family as a top clan, everyone could only curse in their hearts, not daring to speak out.
Several sects friendly with the Hong Family even smiled and offered congratulations, though who could know what they truly thought.
Still, all felt the Hong Family patriarch had set a terrible precedent.
If everyone could seize another's innate talent, then how would any cultivator born of humble origins ever rise again?
Yet at this moment, people's attention was fixed on the Human Monument, with no one thinking further on it.
The Celestial Sacred Body and the Supreme Blood—either alone was enough to be called the bearing of a Saint Lord.
But the Hong Family's legitimate son, Hong Xianglong, who possessed both, was still only ranked second. Just how terrifying was the one who claimed first place this year? And which family did they hail from?
People could not help but grow even more expectant.
At this moment, however, Hong Tianque's outward appearance contrasted sharply with his true inner state.
His face still seemed as steady as a mountain, without the slightest ripple, but beneath that seemingly calm exterior, his heart was already surging like a violent storm.
"Why is it second!" The thought circled in his mind endlessly, as if to devour his reason entirely.
He could not accept such a result. He had sacrificed his own daughter so that his son would possess both the double Supreme Bloodline and the Celestial Sacred Body—two extraordinary talents that should have swept this era, suppressing all other prodigies!
…
Just then, "The first place is about to be revealed!"
Someone pointed to the top of the monument in alarm.
Suppressing his inner restlessness, Hong Tianque narrowed his eyes, "Let me see who it is…"
At that instant, everyone's breath seemed to pause for half a beat.
On the surface of the Human Monument, a single name slowly appeared, towering above all others—
"Hong Yuechan."
…