When the violet-robed woman descended into full view, unhindered by the masses, the breaths of those beneath the Mystic Ascendant Realm, be it male or female, were held in their chest. Stunned—their hearts beating wildly. Astonished—the throat of men felt dry, gulping saliva after saliva. Heated—the gazes of all men, Ascended or otherwise, burned with ardent, instinctive desire.
Some of their pants felt a little tighter, others less so. Regardless of their endowed features or lack thereof, the raging heat beneath their navel was kindled by the visual feast before them.
"Wh-who's that?!" Zhang Yang breathily stuttered out. His fingers rubbed against his sweaty palms as he opened his eyes just a little wider to get a better view. There were many like him uttering this question, immensely shaken by the violet-robed woman's appearance and aura.
The concept of beauty had its limits, especially physically. However, the magnetic qualities of a person could be separated into various parts, and when combined, one's beauty could reach levels rivaling immortal myths. It wasn't hard to look visually gorgeous, especially with cultivation methods existing that could mold one's features to match society's beauty standards or through mortal make-up. That said, the lines of falsity, those glaring traces of falsehood left on one's body made it extremely hard for cultivators to not notice that alterations had been done with spiritual sense, especially to one's face.
In the eyes of true experts, this change was glaringly obvious, rather disgusting to look at, like seeing an abstract painting of their face or body. While weaker cultivators might find beauty on the surface, those at an equal level or higher, which was typically the target of beautiful and outstanding women, could see the truth that lay beneath. As such, the purpose of elevation of beauty through forceful means defeated the main purpose, except for gaining adoration from weaker men or women.
This 'beauty' was separated into three main aspects by societal standards: genuineness, aura, and appearance—for both men and women.
The violet-robed woman's genuineness was untouched by any changes, as real as the heavens and earth, while her aura was attractive to a zenith degree, stimulating their yang, and her appearance was top-tier in every way.
She was the definition of a nation-toppling, sky-collapsing, world-destroying, heaven-shaking beauty.
Lin Ming's eyes widened slightly as his body reacted too. However, a cooling sensation surfaced from his glabella, sending bursts of icy chill throughout, and his breathing calmed down. The Aegis of the Elements, gifted to him by Lin Xianxei, had a regulation effect infused with a wisp of ice power. It didn't just guard the body but the mind also.
"Na Xinyi?" Lin Ming instantly recognized this violet-robed woman. It wasn't just him, but Lin Xianxei found her incredibly familiar. It was only when Lin Ming said her name that her thoughts came back to the initial gathering of the Myriad Yore Continent long ago, almost two decades.
It was the young woman who fought against Su Mei at that time, accusing Wei Wuyin of wronging her while emitting killing intent and indignant fury. While she had grown and changed a little, such as her height, cultivation, and hair, she was too difficult to forget.
After all, it was the first time that she got a look into Wei Wuyin's personality.
"Na Xinyi?" Zhang Yang's eyes were shining as he uttered the name. He said it a few times as if refusing to forget, etching it into his spirit, mind, and soul.
Wait.
"Na Xinyi?!" Zhang Yang muttered again in shock. "Na Xinyi? That Na Xinyi? The Extreme Yin Saintess, Na Xinyi?!" Like most of the young men and women here, the open invitation for all those on the Immortal Rankings, Saintesses, and Heroes, was one of the main reasons they bravely ventured into the light alongside their seniors. They wished to see, interact, and shoot their shots with these extraordinary figures.
"Extreme Yin Saintess?" Lin Ming was slightly taken aback. He had heard of the Saintesses a little on the way and knew that the Extreme Yin Saintess was said to have an exceptionally powerful Yin Physique, and it was one of the core reasons she was placed on the Immortal Saintess Ranking, and so high at that. Out of the top ten lists, the Extreme Yin Saintess was certainly the most desired figure for male cultivators.
"She's more beautiful than the rumors…" Zhang Yin mindlessly commented aloud.
"..." Many of the True Element Sect's members looked towards this young female Chosen, their eyes a little strange as they saw Zhang Yin salivating a little, her eyes reflecting the image of Na Xinyi with abundant clarity. A wisp of obsession could be seen in those eyes of hers.
It was clear at this moment of Zhang Yin's orientation. Quite a few prospective Chosen felt their heart get crushed almost instantly.
The True Element Sect wasn't the only one to react strangely or strongly. Unfortunately, as if the Earthly Saints knew of the ensuing chaos, those men who shot upwards to breach beyond the artificial gravity were halted by a bouncy, harmless, yet impenetrable barrier. They were sent back to their boxes, aghast and aggrieved.
How many sought to ally with Na Xinyi?
Too many!
The sounds of thuds from above were quite apparent. Na Xinyi lifted her bewitchingly bright grey eyes upwards to see the chaos, her expression unchanged.
"Do you wish to ally?" San Luoyang's voice rang out. It tethered the hopes and dreams of many men.
"No."
SHATTER!!!
It was like countless hearts shattered at that moment. An opportunity ripped from their clutches with merciless brutality. It was truly unfortunate that no one could escape their designated boxes and visit others, or communicate with them via spiritual transmissions, or most would've long since given their try at meeting the various Saintesses and Heroes.
"Extreme Yin Saintess, 7th Rank; Chosen of Dark Yin Palace. Age: 46. Cultivation Realm: Astral Core. Cultivation Stage: Sixth. Entity Level: Mortal, Lesser Timelord."
"The same?" Lin Xianxian was startled by the Entity's level. It was the same initial level as Xue Yifei's.
"So young?" Zhang Yang was astonished. All those of the younger generation challengers have been extremely young, all under a hundred, and this was very strange for their absurdly high cultivation base.
'...She's my age,' Lin Ming couldn't help but think about her age. She was forty-six!
"Her age is why she's ranked so highly as a Saintess. The ranking takes into account: age, talent, background, and beauty. Same as the Heroes ranking," Lin Xianxei explained. Unlike Chosen, whose defining requirements were age, talent, and combat strength, the Immortal Rankings didn't consider strength at all. She was a Saintess herself, so she was extremely aware of this fact.
In a way, the Golden Gate Pavilion had placed these lists out to help attract potential wives or Dao Companions. One of the many stories about the origins of these rankings was that a powerful Ascended cultivator wanted to find outstanding mortal women that had the highest potential to become an Ascended, to greatly reduce his fear of their untimely death. As such, the Golden Gate Pavilion divined using their Heavenly Seers and gave him a list of 1,000 potential candidates.
It later became normalized after his passing and was still used by many today for Dao Companion searching. Quite a few of the Heroes and Saintesses end up in a relationship, becoming Ascended together. Of course, this was merely one of the widely believed origins. That said, no one knew the full list of considerations of either ranking, except the Golden Gate Pavilion.
"Do you wish to continue?" San Luoyang's voice asked.
"Yes," Na Xinyi answered. As she did, her grey eyes suffused with a worldly light. Her skin pulsed slightly with power.
World Armor!
She, too, had grasped World Armor, gaining inspiration from Su Mei! There were many prospective Chosen, genuine Chosen, Saintesses, and Heroes that were still trying to grasp this method, especially those who obtained an Ever-Domain Pill.
The black obelisk whirled into activity; It formed an Entity. It had a feminine shape, greatly reinforcing that genders coincided with challengers, and wielded twin longswords. Within its revealed lifeless eyes, wisps of time energy surged within.
"World Armor: Aegis of Yin," Na Xinyi softly muttered to herself as the worldly light within her eyes was infused with a strange spiritual strength. The pulsating power emanating from her skin changed also, emitting a faint yin chill. Clearly, an additional layer of protection had been added.
The Entity didn't wait for Na Xinyi to act, unfurling its Worldly Domain, engulfing the entire stage, and then rushing towards her while exuding intense sword force, becoming a comet of sword light. At the edge of both swords, sharp light exploded!
Na Xinyi wasn't moved by its violent rush, the World Armor fended off the Worldly Domain's crushing strength, allowing her to slowly lift her left arm upwards, open her palm, and push to her left. From her palm, a storm of chilly wind manifested. At first, it was minor, then it rapidly exploded engulfing miles of distance. The comet of sword light vanished, as if consumed by time.
"...!"
Before anyone could react with verbal comments or gasps of concern for the Extreme Yin Saintess, the storm subsided and to Na Xinyi's direct left was a figure with their sword slashing out, its lethal edge just a few inches from her delicate neck.
It was seemingly frozen, but no ice could be seen anywhere on its body. Its normally lifeless eyes flashed with a spiritual yin light, overwhelming any signs of temporal power.
Na Xinyi wasted no time, bringing out a double-edged sword with a pure white blade. She violently plunged it into the Entity's head with a fierce thrust, and then the light within its eyes erupted like a raging light show, unleashing vast spiritual strength outwards.
BOOM!
The Entity exploded!
"...What?!"
