Starting as dockworkers, they swept through Chongqing.

Chapter 544 Tinos, Conflict

Xilun glanced at her.

What is the Star Ring Ranking?

"Um?"

Elena, who had been resting with her eyes closed, slowly opened them upon hearing this.

"Fischer mentioned before leaving that he was going back to the Sea Demon Temple to go into seclusion and prepare for the Star Ring Ranking Tournament."

Xilun said, "You seem to have mentioned before that the current top student in the Inner Court has participated in this competition."

You mean the eldest brother?

Elena adjusted her posture slightly, and her brow furrowed almost imperceptibly as the movement aggravated the wound on her back.

"The Star Ring Ranking Tournament, simply put, is a ranking competition among the younger generation of the five major powers."

"A duel?"

"Similar, but much more important than a regular fight."

Elena lifted the car curtain.

On both sides of the road was a forest that had been washed clean by the rainstorm, and in the distance, the white smoke from a steam train could be faintly seen.

The sea breeze swept through the forest, bringing a moist and slightly salty scent.

"The true determinants of power in Star Ring Island and the surrounding core islands are top-tier figures of the fifth rank or above."

But at that level, the entanglements between them are too great, and they rarely clash.

"After all, once fifth-tier experts truly engage in combat, the loss will not only be two people."

The disciples, businesses, allies, and even the entire island's power structure will be affected.

Xilun nodded.

A fifth-tier expert is no longer someone who can act casually.

Even after fully cultivating the Overturning Sea Technique at the monastery, one can only support a fifth-tier foundation.

This shows just how rare such people are.

Elena continued:

"The older generation was reluctant to take action, and everyone wanted to determine who was superior, so the Star Ring Ranking Tournament came about."

"Each of the five major powers selects disciples under the age of forty to participate, and the outcome will determine the ranking of the younger generation, which will also, to some extent, determine the distribution of reputation and benefits for each party over the next five years."

She paused, her eyes becoming slightly serious.

As the saying goes, the younger generation is the future.

"If a faction fails to produce any decent young masters for several consecutive terms, outsiders will naturally think that it is facing a talent shortage."

The power dynamics of a vassal state may shift, chambers of commerce may choose new partners, and even resources that were previously agreed upon may be snatched away.

Xilun seemed to be deep in thought.

The so-called glory of the younger generation is still based on real interests.

This is true both in Saint Laurent and in the Sea of Chaos.

What are the past achievements of the Holy Light Monastery?

"The Holy Light Branch and the Correctional Institution jointly select students. Their grades aren't bad, but they're not the best either."

Elena's expression became somewhat complicated as she spoke.

"The Sea Demon Temple has become the strongest in recent years. They occupy several underwater ruins and possess a large number of high-level sea beast bloodlines. Monsters are constantly emerging among the younger generation."

"As for our monastery..."

She sighed softly.

"The eldest brother has participated twice already."

"You can't participate if you're over forty. He first competed when he was twenty-five, and then went again five years ago."

At that time, he was already the top student in the inner court, but he failed to win first place twice.

Xilun raised his eyes.

"Is the eldest brother very strong?"

"certainly."

Elena answered without hesitation.

"The First Allah of the Inner Court, a fourth-order extraordinary being, was the examiner during your entrance examination."

The image of the man who had easily blocked many of his attacks with just invisible force flashed through Xilun's mind.

When he first arrived at the Monastery of Holy Light, it was Allah who saw that his foundation was flawed, but did not turn him away because of his mixed strength.

What was his best achievement?

"second."

Elena's voice deepened.

"In the second competition, the senior brother fought his way to the end, but ultimately lost to a disciple of the Sea Demon Temple."

That battle lasted nearly two hours, and I heard that a large part of the playing field was destroyed.

"After returning, the eldest brother spent four months recuperating from his injuries."

"This is his last time participating in the Star Ring Ranking Tournament."

The limitations of being forty are like an invisible door.

Once you cross that threshold, you're no longer part of the younger generation.

Allah has participated twice already, and this third time will be his last to fight for that glory.

Xilun remained silent for a moment.

"Is Fisher also planning to participate?"

"He has this idea, but he may not be able to qualify."

Elena shook her head. "The competition within the five major powers is equally fierce. Although Fisher is not weak, his Thunder Prison Three Blades has too obvious flaws. After the third strike, he is almost at the mercy of others."

"If we hadn't created the opportunity for him, he wouldn't have been able to complete the Dragon Slayer Technique at all."

Xilun understands this all too well.

The power of the Thunder Prison Three Blades is extremely astonishing.

The third strike, in particular, severed an arm and cleaved open the chest of even the monstrous body of the innocent prince.

However, the greater the power, the greater the cost.

Fisher needs someone to restrain his opponent in order to build up his momentum.

If he encounters a true master in a one-on-one fight, the opponent will not give him such an opportunity.

"There are still three months left," Elena said. "After we go back, the Inner Court should start selecting participants very soon."

"If you go into the inner courtyard, you can take a look."

A slight smile played on her lips.

"Although you certainly don't qualify to participate now, it's good to get a feel for it beforehand. That level of combat will be very helpful for your future cultivation of the Overturning Sea Technique."

Xilun did not refute.

His most important task now is to complete the Yi Jin Hua Qi transformation and further refine his foundation.

As for the so-called Star Ring Ranking Competition, it's still a long way off for him.

The carriage continued on its way.

As dusk approached, the towering walls of Star Ring Island finally came into view in the distance.

Large plumes of white smoke billowed from the port chimneys, gas lamps lit up one after another along the road, and steam wagons loaded with goods moved slowly along the tracks.

However, just as the carriage was about to enter the monastery's territory, Xilun suddenly raised his head.

A deafening roar of colliding forces came from ahead.

The sound wasn't loud, but it caused ripples to spread across the puddles beside the road.

The horse was startled and suddenly raised its front hooves.

The driver struggled to pull on the reins and turned back in alarm.

"My lords, there are people fighting ahead!"

"parking."

Elena was the first to stand up.

The two stepped off the carriage and saw seven or eight people dressed in monastic robes standing on the open ground beside the road ahead.

One of them was Samuel.

His face was gloomy, his outer robe was tattered, and he held a long sword in his right hand.

Only Roel and a pale-faced disciplinary academy disciple remained beside him.

The leader of the other side wore a dark inner robe with three blue stripes embroidered on the cuffs.

The man was tall and slender, with a pale face and narrow eyes. He was the young man in dark clothes who had accompanied Samuel to the riverbank to examine the traces earlier.

Xilun squinted.

This person possessed an extremely powerful aura.

Although it has not yet reached the fourth rank, it has already far surpassed the ordinary third rank.

"Tinos".

Elena said softly.

"Second in the inner courtyard."

Tinos, who was confronting Samuel, turned around when he heard the sound of the carriage.

His gaze first fell on Elena, then slowly shifted to Siron.

Finally, he saw the body wrapped in tarpaulin behind the carriage.

A strange light flashed in Tinos's eyes.

"What a coincidence."

A faint smile appeared on his face.

"I was just asking Samuel where Hogg had gone, and now you've returned with a corpse."

Samuel's expression turned even more unpleasant when he saw Siron and Elena appear side by side.

He had personally witnessed Hogg chasing and killing the two men.

Hogg is now dead, but the two of them have returned alive.

Even more strangely, one of his Samuel's men was found dead near Hogg's body.

Even though the evidence at the scene indicated that the disciple died from Hogg's Blue Tide Sword, Samuel still couldn't completely dispel his doubts.

"Elena".

Samuel stepped forward, his gaze sweeping over her slightly pale face.

"How badly are you hurt?"

"It's none of your business."

Elena spoke in a flat tone.

Samuel paused for a moment.

Tinos, however, burst out laughing.

"It seems you're not very likable."

He ignored Samuel's gloomy face, walked to the carriage, and casually waved his hand.

A stream of cyan energy transformed into a thin thread and wrapped around the oilcloth.

Xilun held his golden spear horizontally.

The gun barrel shattered the blue energy.

Tinos stopped in his tracks.

The people around also fell silent.

"What are you going to do?" Siren asked.

"Examine the body."

"This is my spoils of war."

"your?"

Tinos narrowed his long, narrow eyes slightly.

"Blue Sword Hogg is one of the five most notorious members of the Blue Ocean Pirates. How dare an outer court disciple claim that his corpse is his spoils of war?"

He stared at Xilun for a few moments.

"Hogg, was he killed by you?"

Elena's expression remained unchanged.

"no."

"Oh?"

"Siron and I were being chased by Hogger, and we managed to escape by using the terrain of the Black Abyss Forest. When we returned to the riverbank, we found that Hogger had been killed."

"There were signs of a fight next to the body, indicating that the attacker was extremely powerful. They must have been an outsider."

Tinus seemed to be deep in thought.

There are no obvious flaws in this explanation.

Moreover, judging from their strength, he didn't think that Siron and Elena could join forces to kill Hogg.

Although Hogg was only at the third rank, he was close to the pinnacle of the third rank, and he also possessed two treasures: a curved sword and a sea demon blood cotton coat.

When it comes to a life-or-death battle, his strength is greater than that of Siren and Elena combined.

The two were lucky to escape from Hogg's clutches.

"So, an outsider killed Hogger but didn't want his body and equipment, which allowed you to get away with it?"

"You could say that," Elena said.

Tinos chuckled.

"You're quite lucky."

His gaze swept over Xilun's gray robe, and suddenly he raised his hand and grabbed.

The cyan energy lifted a corner of the robe from a distance, revealing a dark red sea demon blood cotton coat underneath.

"It was you after all."

Xilun pressed his hand to his collar, his eyes turning cold.

Tinos, however, seemed not to notice his expression.

"Take off the Sea Demon Blood Cotton-padded Coat and give it to me."

"On what grounds?"

"You can't protect it."

Tinus answered matter-of-factly.

"Hogg's Blood Cotton Coat comes from the Sea Demon Temple and is woven with the blood threads of three high-level sea beasts, which can weaken the impact of energy."

Wearing something like this on an outer court disciple is simply a waste.

"Give it to me, and I can compensate you with five hundred pounds."

The inner court disciples around him had strange expressions.

One hundred pounds is a lot, but it's nowhere near as good as the Sea Demon Blood Cotton Coat.

This is no longer an exchange, it's outright robbery.

Xilun, gripping his golden spear, calmly said:

"What I kill, I keep."

Tinos's smile faltered.

"Didn't you just say that you didn't kill Hogg?"

"A slip of the tongue."

"interesting."

The smile on Tinos's face vanished completely.

"If I say I want it, you should give it to me."

The moment he finished speaking, he flipped his five fingers and pressed a palm down on Xilun's chest from a distance.

A burst of blue flames erupted from his palm, and the surrounding air suddenly distorted.

Xilun's pupils contracted.

Before he could unleash the golden spear, he could only raise his left arm horizontally, and the power of the Overturning Sea Technique instantly covered his skin and muscles.

boom!

A muffled, thunderous crash resounded.

The stone slab beneath Xilun's feet cracked, and he slid backward seven or eight steps, his shoes carving two clear white marks on the ground.

The sea monster blood-red cotton coat on his chest glowed with a dark red luster, deflecting most of the impact to the surroundings.

Even so, the blood and energy that had just recovered in his body still churned.

Tinos stood there, tilting his head back and laughing loudly.

"With your strength, you're not even as good as Samuel. How dare you possess the Sea Demon Blood Cotton Robe?"

Samuel looked grim, but did not utter a word in rebuttal.

Tinos is second in the Inner Court.

He certainly has the right to make such a assessment.

Tinos took a step forward, and blue flames flickered slowly between his fingers.

"A mere outer court disciple dares to defy me to my face."

"If I say one more thing, I will not only take this garment, but I will also tear you to pieces and forge your flesh and blood into my weapon."

Xilun's eyes flickered slightly.

To forge the flesh and blood of the extraordinary into weapons?

Such methods were hidden inside the monastery?

He was surprised, but showed no fear on his face.

Elena suddenly stepped forward, blocking the path between Siren and Tinos.

That's enough.

She drew her longsword, its blade pointing diagonally at the ground.

"Tinos, Siren is the one I invited to join the mission. He's also the one who brought back Hogg's spoils; you have no right to steal them."

Everyone around was stunned.

Samuel's face was so gloomy it was almost dripping with water.

Elena actually turned against the second-in-command of the inner monastery in public for the sake of a rogue monk who had only joined the monastery six months prior.

Tinos was also stunned for a moment.

He glanced at Elena, then at Siron, and suddenly chuckled.

"It seems you two got along well in the Black Abyss Forest."

Elena's gaze suddenly turned cold.

"Watch your mouth."

"it is good."

Tinos seemed to take a step back, and the blue flame in his palm gradually subsided.

"I don't need the Sea Demon Blood Cotton Coat."

"But I must have Hogger's right ear."

Elena frowned.

Why?

"I had promised Samuel a dose of the Heinrichment Potion."