Chapter 592 - 589: Nine Netherworld

"Hello viewers, welcome to the live broadcast of the Celestial Human Title Match qualifiers. I’m the commentator: Qing Ning!"

"And I’m Shuli!"

The two commentators, both handsome and beautiful, sat gracefully in the studio, with a large live screen behind them.

Between the two commentators sat a hefty middle-aged man. His arms were as thick as a grown person’s waist, and even sitting down, he was a head taller than the two commentators!

If he stood up, this hefty middle-aged man would be at least two meters tall, sitting there like a mountain of flesh.

In front of the hefty middle-aged man was a nameplate with the words "Wenjiu" printed on it.

"Let me introduce to you, we are honored to have a standing member of the Central Hub assembly, the current Power King—Lord Wenjiu! For such Candidate Level duels, Lord Power King, as a pinnacle powerhouse, can better understand each move and detail of the competitors, providing everyone with a more comprehensive viewing experience..."

Power King "Wenjiu" chuckled softly, lacking the aloofness typical of a Central Hub dignitary, and spoke in a friendly tone, "Thank you to the two commentators. I’m here as a guest commentator mainly out of curiosity, to see how far the young people of today have come. In terms of professionalism, I’m definitely not as good as the two commentators."

Qing Ning and Shuli quickly offered some modest remarks, visibly a bit nervous. Being the official commentators for a global live broadcast was already a lot of pressure, and having this Central Hub bigwig sitting beside them only added to it.

"Alright, we can see that today’s two competitors have already entered the Celestial-Human Battlefield of the Virtual Spirit Realm..." the male commentator Shuli said.

The female commentator Qing Ning quickly followed, "It’s said that the pinnacle title battlefield was specially created in the Virtual Spirit Realm by the Spirit Realm Will. In terms of realism, it’s almost indistinguishable from the True Spirit Realm. Lord Power King, is that correct?"

The Power King smiled, "The realism is definitely there, considering it’s the handiwork of the Spirit Realm Will. However, the Virtual Spirit Realm still lacks the flesh and blood connection of the real world."

After a pause, the Power King explained, "The principle of the Virtual Spirit Realm is to scan the various data of both competitors, generating two temporary character cards. The competitors then control their own character cards to battle in the Celestial-Human Battlefield. This can certainly showcase one’s strength, but it lacks the power boost that comes from emotional outbursts, and there can be no breakthrough in combat techniques (Mystical Arts) during a fight..."

"Lord Power King is right, which is why only the qualifiers are held in the Virtual Spirit Realm. For the official tournament to compete for the pinnacle title, the Spirit Realm Will will open a new battlefield within the True Spirit Realm for the qualified contenders to compete," Qing Ning said.

"Indeed, the official tournament is something to look forward to. For now, let’s return to the qualifiers... Today’s two participants set a new record for the Celestial Human Title Match, which is the ’maximum age difference’ record," Shuli stated.

"Yes, the challenger Gangxin is only eighteen years old this year, while the defender Nine Netherworld is thirty-eight, a full twenty years apart."

"It’s truly a contest between two generations. Gangxin awakened less than two years ago, while Nine Netherworld has been awakened for over twenty years. There’s a huge experience gap between the two. So, Lord Power King, what’s your take on this match?"

The Power King rubbed his chin and spoke slowly, "I’m quite familiar with Nine Netherworld; we’ve had both competition and cooperation in the Spirit Realm. His strength is not to be underestimated. Although he’s a close combat profession, he compensates for his long-range attack shortfall with Dark Gold Equipment, which gives him an advantage in the Celestial Human Title Match. As for Gangxin, I don’t know much about him, only heard from friends that he seems to lack long-range attack methods?"

"So Lord Power King favors Nine Netherworld?"

The Power King shook his head, his small eyes gleaming with cunning, "It’s too early to say. Nine Netherworld just has a slight advantage so far. Gangxin has risen quickly, so he must have something extraordinary..."

The screen switched, showing the two competitors having completed their pre-battle preparations and entering the Celestial-Human Battlefield.

The Celestial-Human Battlefield in the Virtual Spirit Realm was set in the sky.

Eight towering Mountain Giant Statues sat in a circle, enclosing a large battlefield with a diameter of three kilometers.

These Mountain Giant Statues cannot land; directly below is a boiling sea of acid.

This means that the final battle must take place in mid-air within a three-kilometer diameter area.

Fortunately, between each pair of opposite Mountain Giant Statues, there was a Black Rope connecting them. Four Black Ropes intersected in the air, providing the only foothold for the combatants.

Bai Pu appeared in front of a Mountain Giant Statue, standing on a Black Rope.

The mountain wind blew, the Black Rope swayed, and Bai Pu’s figure rose and fell with it.

Bai Pu held the "Doomsday Blade" short spear.

The short spear itself added 30 Agility points, bringing Bai Pu’s Agility up to 127 points. Even with the fierce mountain wind and swaying iron cable, his feet seemed glued firmly to the Black Rope.

Bai Pu considered whether he could utilize the split feature of the short spear and Hand Guarding Staff, by equipping the short spear first to reach the complete Purple Weapon standard in Agility, and then equipping the Hand Guarding Staff.

In this way, he wouldn’t need to activate both major enhancement talents each time to use the complete Purple Weapon.

However, Bai Pu’s attempts proved this was not feasible. When trying to equip the Hand Guarding Staff while holding the short spear, both the short spear and staff would prompt, "Your Basic Attributes are insufficient to equip."

On the opposite side, the candidate "Nine Netherworld" appeared.

Nine Netherworld was a small and thin middle-aged man, wrapped in a black robe exuding a chilling aura.

"Celestial Human Candidate Nine Netherworld, Close Combat Agility Profession ’Ghostly Mist Blade’, estimated Agility over 200, other Attributes all above 100, Professional Skill is the Domain-like Ability [Netherworld Mist]..."

A series of intelligence about Nine Netherworld flashed through Bai Pu’s mind.

Some of this intelligence was public, but a considerable portion was collected through various secretive channels by Li Ling and Wushan Divine Lady.

For example, the information that Nine Netherworld purchased a piece of Dark Gold Equipment [Raider’s Flying Axe] and enhanced his Flying Grapple in the [Storm World].

Opposite, Nine Netherworld slowly spoke.

"Gangxin, what are you doing in the Celestial Human War as a Tank Profession? This isn’t your arena—you should just concede!"

"The opponent is stalling time, preparing to activate Netherworld Mist." Bai Pu thought this as he took large strides on the Black Rope, aiming to close the distance with Nine Netherworld.

With a slight smirk at the corner of his mouth, Nine Netherworld revealed a bit of a cold smile, "Looks like the intel was right, you lack long-range attack abilities, immediately thinking of close combat. Although I’m also good at close combat, I won’t give you the opportunity!"