On the other side, pitch-black cracks appeared out of thin air, devouring the light energy that surged toward him. Jin Anguo's eyes burned with focus as those cracks surrounded him. They appeared naturally and they did not cause any visible phenomena, but just based on the fluctuations of the light energy in the atmosphere, one could tell just how violent the energy around Jin Anguo was. But Radiant Dragon King Xu An'yu didn't give up his probing attack. Instead, he asked in a low voice, "Still want to fight?" Jin Anguo's gaze flickered slightly, and the cracks around him shrank back a little. Then, he replied with just two words. The holy light receded, and the cracks in space around Jin Anguo vanished along with it. Eh? It's over, just like that? From up in the air, the Undying Demon Emperor announced, "Winner, Xu An'yu of the Radiant Dragon clan. Two points awarded." Hey, hey, hold the fuck up. What was that!? The spectators erupted in a clamor. This had clearly been a clash between two titans, two of the strongest contestants, yet it had ended just like that? As the Lord of Sky-Splitting City and successor to an Emperor, Jin Anguo had chosen to surrender outright? Wasn't that too cowardly? Only those with true strength understood that the contest between them had already started from the very first instant. Xu An'yu's Light Sprite had exceeded Jin Anguo's expectations. Jin Anguo had his own trump cards, of course, but this was only the first match of the semifinals. If he revealed his hand right now, then even if he won, the exposure would make the rest of the tournament extremely difficult. More importantly, that was if he won. Jin Anguo wasn't confident of victory. And this wasn't a match he absolutely had to win in the Battle for the Throne. Rather than risk a hard fight that could leave him heavily wounded and struggling in the rounds ahead, he chose to concede strategically. There was another deeper reason: they were both from demons. In terms of their nation's interests, it was better to ensure all the nymph contestants were dealt with during the round-robin. That was the common interest of the Empyrean Dominion. So why would they choose to clash at this stage when they could duke it out later? There were three spots in the finals, after all. At the same time, Jin Anguo's concession also meant that Xu An'yu was indeed the stronger one, and no one failed to take note of that. Ning Chen'en frowned. Naturally, he had hoped Jin Anguo would win—Jin Anguo was his brother-in-law. If Jin Anguo had defeated Xu An'yu, it would have made Ning Chen'en's own path much smoother. Now that Jin Anguo had lost this match, it meant he would have to win more in the rounds ahead, perhaps even win every match from now on. Xu An'yu was indeed powerful, which made Ning Chen'en deeply wary. The instantaneous amplification from the Light Sprite could be felt even through the protective barrier surrounding the platform. As someone considered qualified to take over Crystal City, Xu An'yu's strength had never been in doubt. And with the Light Sprite, he now had one foot in the Emperors' domain. That was why he showed no deference even to the Tenebrous Demon Emperor. The dragon race was truly dominant this time. It was already insane to think they had three out of eight male semifinalists, and now, with Jin Anguo conceding to Xu An'yu right out of the gate, the dragon race's prestige soared to new heights. Tang San nodded to himself. This result was not unexpected. His next opponent was thus going to be Jin Anguo, and he wouldn't encounter Xu An'yu until the final match of the round-robin. The Celestial Fox Demon Emperor's voice rang out again. "First pair of female contestants, take the platform." The female semifinals were about to begin. Tang San's pupils dilated almost immediately—he had sensed a familiar spatial fluctuation. Sure enough, in the next instant, silver light flashed in the arena, and Mei Gongzi gracefully appeared on the battlefield. Even though this tournament had started because of her, this was the first time she appeared on stage. Among the nine female contestants, counting Mei Gongzi, there were three demon contestants and six nymphs. It was likely for her to get a nymph opponent. And indeed, before her appeared a Great Nymph King. This opponent was also strikingly beautiful. This was nothing unusual; human aesthetics were appreciated everywhere, and any female nymph who had cultivated to this level and assumed human form would naturally ensure her appearance was stunning. When she appeared, her whole body glowed with shifting, rainbow-colored brilliance. There was a strange, enchanting aura about her that naturally drew goodwill. Around her shimmered seven-colored ripples of illusory light, and her entire form seemed slightly ethereal. Silver light coiled around Mei Gongzi, while her opponent shone with dazzling multicolored radiance. In terms of appearance alone, this match far surpassed the earlier bout between Xu An'yu and Jin Anguo. Cheers erupted instantly from the crowd. Tang San hadn't paid any attention to the female matches before, so he hadn't realized that the female contests actually drew even more interest from the audience. But of course, this made sense. After all, almost all the contestants were stunning beauties! Especially on the nymph side, where every female Great Nymph King was otherworldly in her allure. Mei Gongzi's opponent turned out to be a powerful Great Nymph King from Rainbowglaze City, a descendant of the Rainbowglaze Nymph Emperor. This did, in fact, make her rather unusual; mineral-type nymphs didn't really have or take a gender, and even if they did, they usually wore full-body armor at all times, so most people would have no idea anyway. More importantly, however... she was a seeded contestant! Mei Gongzi was facing a seed in her first match! But when Tang San saw who Mei Gongzi was up against, he couldn't help but smile. This should be easy enough. The referee was once again the Undying Demon Emperor, who acted as if he didn't even recognize Mei Gongzi. He landed between the two and nodded curtly. "Prepare!" After saluting the referee, both Mei Gongzi and the Rainbowglaze Great Nymph King released their bloodline power. Around Mei Gongzi, silver light distorted strangely as silver portals spread quietly outward, layer upon layer. The entire area around her was flooded with potent space energy. Meanwhile, the Rainbowglaze Great Nymph King radiated seven-colored light that transformed into a fantastical multicolored domain. Rainbowglaze stone was famous for its myriad colors, and the Rainbowglaze Nymph clan's innate ability was directly related: endless transformations. They wielded elemental power, like many others, but not just one. Instead, their specialty was in the five-phase cycle; they had earth as the primary element, but then gained equal control over wood, fire, metal, and water. The five phases cycled in mutual reinforcement and suppression, creating endless variations.[1] Individually, Rainbowglaze Nymphs weren't the strongest, but they were the most versatile, and they were especially adept at large-scale attacks. As both released their innate abilities, the battlefield became a dazzling spectacle. Ning Chen'en asked Tang San, "Who's your pick for this one?" Tang San smiled. "Of course, my future wife." Ning Chen'en burst out laughing. "Future wife, huh? You really are here for the matchmaking tournament. How about this: If I win the throne, I won't take the... other prize. I'll give her to you, how about that?" Tang San gave him a side glance. "Love has to be earned. I'll win her heart with sincerity." Ning Chen'en laughed. "If every bit of your skin was as thick as your face, you'd be at least as tough as I am. But honestly, I'm not optimistic about your 'future wife' in this match. That Rainbowglaze Nymph King, Nan Xuewei[2], is the progeny of the Rainbowglaze Nymph Emperor. She's been a Great Nymph King for many years, and her control over the elements is unmatched. She's among the strongest in the female group. Mei Gongzi may be a city lord and whatnot, but they have no Emperor, and she hasn't been a Great Demon King for long. Strength-wise, she's definitely at a disadvantage." "That's true, but there's also... phase suppression." Ning Chen'en tilted his head in confusion. "Phase... what?" "Mm, phase suppression."[3] 1. In case you’re wondering whether this should be “the five elements,” it actually isn’t. The original term in this case is not what we translated as “element,” but wuxing, a.k.a. the Five Phases, and they are not actually elements in the same way water/fire/earth/wind are. Rather, they are transitions or processes, and they are not often used to refer to matter, which is why “elements” is not really the best translation. For instance, the wuxing wood usually does not refer to physical trees or actual wood, but to the growth of trees and their vitality—hence why the Blue Gold Trees have life energy. They are also associated with parts of the body, natural phenomena, and astrology (e.g. as stated in an earlier chapter, the White Tiger is associated with metal). In any case, the use of wuxing here is somewhat conflicting with the other elements. For that matter, wood is only ever mentioned as a type of energy in this one context; there are four main elements in the SL universe (water, fire, earth, wind) and a number of other forces considered elemental such as light/darkness, lightning, space etc. Wood and metal only appear as such a few times in this entire novel, and they are all references to wuxing. ☜ 2. Not the same surname as the Scorching King. His means "south" and is pretty rare in real life, hers is a kind of camphor tree and is not a surname at all. ☜ 3. The five phases support each other and restrain each other at the same time, depending on the cycle. One is the reinforcement/generation cycle: Wood feeds fire, fire produces earth (e.g. ash), earth bears metals (mineral ore), metal collects and purifies water (water vapor condenses on metal), water nourishes wood. Another one is the suppression/destruction cycle: Wood depletes earth, earth obstructs water, water extinguishes fire, fire melts metal, and metal chops wood. Of course, Ning Chen'en doesn’t understand the term Tang San is using, and he also has no idea how this applies here. ☜