The viewing platform was buzzing with thoughtful conversations and laughter as the powerhouses of the world watched the tournament unfold far beneath them. Servants brought delicious food and exotic drinks to them, ensuring their patrons were satisfied at all times.
The Prime Shadow silently appeared on the platform, his arrival unnoticed by all but the top powerhouses.
"Ah, you've finally joined us," the Yang-Sovereign said without turning around, his words causing the others who had failed to notice the Prime Shadow to turn around and look at him. Many of them had no idea who he was, and only knew that the Prime Shadow was a secretive and powerful man.
The Prime Shadow walked towards the others, then took his seat which was placed between the Yang-Sovereign and Mage Sovereign. The Mage Sovereign eyed the Prime Shadow up and down, a curious glint in her eyes.The Sword-Saint, seated several seats down, didn't acknowledge the Prime Shadow, instead opting to speak to Ji'Han instead.
"What was so secretive that you had to create that shrouding barrier?" she asked curiously.
With how powerful she and the other Sovereign's were, they were easily able to notice the Prime Shadow's darkness barrier despite the distance. It was not something that could be hidden easily from powerful eyes like them.
"If the matter was important enough to shroud it from outside ears, why would I divulge that information now?" the Prime Shadow replied, giving the Mage Sovereign a pointed look.
"Hmmm, so secretive," she said musingly, her mouth curled into a small smile.
"What about you? Any secrets you wish to divulge?" the Prime Shadow asked her, shifting the focus of the discussion on her.
"I have nothing to discuss, but the Yang-Sovereign surely does," she said, her eyes shifting to look at the Yang-Sovereign nearby.
"Is that so?" the Prime Shadow asked, turning to the other side to look at the Yang-Sovereign.
"I merely mentioned that I am making progress with the Nine-Petal Yang Lotus, and might be able to absorb it in the near future," the Yang-Sovereign said flatly, as if he were describing something mundane.
The Prime Shadow raised an eyebrow, surprised to hear such a claim. The Nine-Petal Yang Lotus was one of the most potent and powerful natural treasures in the world, and had rebuffed any attempt to be absorbed in the past. In fact, several powerhouses had perished in the past trying to assimilate the lotus, some even as strong as the Yang-Sovereign.
"Do you mind divulging how you plan to tame and absorb such a powerful object?" the Prime Shadow asked, truly curious about the matter.
The Yang-Sovereign gave him a quick glance, then looked back to the fight unfolding in the arena.
"I'm afraid I cannot divulge that information," the Yang-Sovereign answered. The Prime Shadow had not been expecting an answer, as such information, if divulged, could potentially lead to others attempting to tame the lotus in secret, using the Yang-Sovereigns method. While that was highly unlikely as the Yang-Sovereign was not only incredibly powerful, but also controlled the Yang-Dao Sect, it was not impossible.
The conversation quickly shifted topics, focusing on the tournament and other things. The first round of the tournament was expected to take several days to complete, with five hundred fights taking place before the next round started.
Several hours later, after one of the fight's ended, a commotion broke out as a large group of non-human cultivators, some ten thousand strong, entered the arena from one of the tunnels below. They flooded out onto the empty arena, their presence silencing the stunned crowd. Trails of ice followed behind them as they walked, and an icy chill filled the air, as if everything would be frozen solid before long.
"What's the meaning of this?" the Mage-Sovereign asked the Yang-Sovereign, who didn't give her a reply.
The group gathered in the center of the arena, then looked up towards the viewing platform. A moment later, the crowd erupted with taunts, insults, boos, and more, becoming wild with anger and hatred. It appeared as though the crowd was about to rush forward towards the group and tear them apart.
"Silence," the Yang-Sovereign's calm yet powerful voice filled the arena, silencing everyone in an instant.
All eyes shifted to him, who now stood at the front of the viewing platform looking down at the group that had gathered in the arena.
The group of ten thousand figures looked up at the Yang-Sovereign, meeting his gaze. Each member of the group had a large and powerful frame, standing nearly ten feet tall. They had humanoid figures, with two arms and two legs, although they were built more powerfully than typical humans.
None of them wore any clothes. Instead, they were covered from head to toe in a thick layer of ice, which was shaped and molded to their body in a way that resembled clothing.
Some had tight fitting robes of ice, while others had elegant ice-dresses that shimmered with mesmerizing beauty. Their shoulders, arms and backs were covered with spikes of ice, as were their heads, which seemed to be their equivalent of hair.
Most exotic of all were their faces. Each figure had large yellow eyes twice the size of a humans, and a large beast-like mouth filled with sharp teeth.
Standing in front of the group was a single figure, larger than the rest by a head, who's cultivation was in the Middle Holy Manifestation Realm. That figure locked eyes with the Yang-Sovereign, then tilted his head forward ever so slightly in a gesture of respect.
The Yang-Sovereign returned the gesture, surprising everyone who saw it happen. The Yang-Sovereign, one of the leaders of humanity, had just greeted the Netherfrost Beasts, a long-time enemy of humanity, with courtesy and respect.
After greeting the leader of the Netherfrost Beasts, the Yang-Sovereign shifted his gaze across the stadium before him, then addressed the confused crowd.
"For too long, humanity has been at war with both devils and beasts, throwing this world into chaos," the Yang-Sovereign said, his powerful voice reaching every inch of the stadium. "While there were good reasons for both humans and beasts to detest each other, that time has long since passed. The enemy, the true enemy of humanity, has always been the devils.
As such, I have reached out to the beast race, specifically the Netherfrost Beasts, as a gesture of good faith, and have invited them to be my honored guests for the remainder of this tournament. I aim to put the enmity between beast and human in the past, so that our two groups may focus on the real enemy of this world. If my sect, the Sect of Yang, can come to an understanding, and perhaps even a friendship with the Beasts of Ice, of Yin, then so too can the rest of humanity come to an understanding with the beast race as a whole."
The Yang-Sovereign's words stunned the crowd completely. It was one of the most unexpected things they had ever been part of in their lives. Every human had grown up considering both the devil race and beast race to be their mortal enemies. Wars had been fought between humans and beasts in the past, and blood was still shed on the Continent of War between the two groups whenever it opened.
And yet, the Yang-Sovereign had revealed a newly formed alliance between the two powers, stunning everyone, including the other powerhouses of the human race.
"Apologies for our late arrival. We were delayed by a great storm over the ocean between our two continents. As for the matter at hand, my Netherfrost Clan accepts this gesture of goodwill, and we look forward to our future cooperation," the leader of the Netherfrost beasts replied, its voice filling the stadium as well. Its inhuman voice was cold and crackling, almost like the sound of breaking ice.
The Yang-Sovereign smiled, nodded, then waved his hand to the side, releasing a burst of Qi. A moment later, a formation flared to life, and a large viewing platform next to his materialized, filled with ten thousand seats. The Yang-Sovereign gestured to the platform, at which point the Netherfrost Beasts flew up towards it and took their seats shortly afterwards.
The Yang-Sovereign then instructed the Yang Elder to continue the tournament, which resumed shortly afterwards. The fights started again, although the focus of the crowd was almost entirely on the Netherfrost Beasts, as they were still unable to process everything that had just happened.
"An alliance with the beast race?" the Mage-Sovereign asked, both eyebrows raised with surprise. "When were you going to tell us of this plan?"
"Now," the Yang-Sovereign replied, unbothered by everything that had just happened.
"Creating an alliance without consulting either of us," the Sword-Saint said with great displeasure. "You alone cannot decide the future of the human race. We are an alliance. You do not speak for all of us."
The Yang-Sovereign looked at the Sword-Saint, meeting his eyes.
"Just test the alliance out for this tournament," the Yang-Sovereign said. "Talk to them, discuss future plans, mingle as much as you want. By the end of the tournament, I'm certain you will agree that an alliance between us and the beast race is the best course forward."
The Sword-Saint met his eyes with a glare, then sneered and looked away. After a while, the crowd finally came to accept the unexpected events, and focused on the tournament once more, their cheers, taunts, and roars of passion and excitement filling the stadium once more.
