Soul Land 5: The Rebirth of Tang San
Chapter 922: Battle for the Throne

Chapter 922: Battle for the Throne

Ancestral Court, White Tiger Grand Hotel.

Silver light shimmered as Tang San reappeared within the teleportation array on the top floor, a faint smile still on his face. Her scent lingered all over him, and it felt wonderful.

"You're really using my place like a personal teleportation gate, huh?" came a familiar voice.

Tang San chuckled. "Well, it's because we trust you. Where else would I do it?"

He didn't even need to look to know who it was. Not even an Emperor would notice someone teleporting in and out from here, but as the owner of the place, the White Tiger Demon Emperor definitely knew when something happened.

The White Tiger Demon Emperor looked at Tang San in surprise. This kid seems different... again.

Indeed, Tang San's aura had become so restrained that even with the White Tiger Demon Emperor's cultivation, he could no longer gauge Tang San's true strength.

"You've advanced again? Your rate of improvement is insane," the White Tiger Demon Emperor said in shock.

Tang San smiled slightly. "It's not bad. I've had some good opportunities recently."

The White Tiger Demon Emperor asked, "You were in the Ancestral Court earlier. Where did you teleport to?"

"Naturally, I went back to see Little Mei. I've been out traveling for a while, searching for opportunities. You know better than anyone that it takes more than just cultivating hard to become an Emperor. You need both experience and enlightenment, and you need to make good preparations."

The White Tiger Demon Emperor shook his head in disbelief. "You've only been a Demon King for a few months, and you're already thinking about becoming an Emperor?"

Tang San gave a bitter smile. "I don't want to rush it either, but time waits for no one. Little Mei is being forced to set herself as the prize for a martial contest. If I don't push myself now, I might lose my wife."

The White Tiger Demon Emperor raised an eyebrow. "You're going to participate in the matchmaking tournament?"

Tang San nodded. "There's nothing in this world more important to me than Little Mei. She's all I live for. No matter the consequences, I will participate, and I will win."

The White Tiger Demon Emperor's expression turned serious. "You better think this through. This isn't just a normal martial contest; it's tied to the future Emperor seat. Celestial Fox and some others are planning to leverage it for their own purposes. The scale is far beyond what you imagine. Talented Great Demon Kings and Great Nymph Kings from every clan will be competing, and all the Emperors will be there to witness it. Hiding your abilities will be almost impossible. And if you're exposed, there will be consequences. Even I won't be able to protect you."

Tang San frowned. "It's that serious?"

The White Tiger Demon Emperor said, "Who wouldn't be tempted by a chance to become an Emperor? I already told you that there's a strict limit to how many Emperors this plane can sustain. This kind of opportunity is rare. If the Crystal Demon Emperor hadn't fallen, and recently the Adamant Nymph Emperor too, none of the young talents across the clans would even have a shot. They'd be stuck waiting, possibly until their deaths. Eleventh-order beings only live up to a thousand years, and that's being generous. But someone like the Crystal Demon Emperor lived three whole millennia. Becoming an Emperor means gaining another thousand years of life, more if you're lucky. Who wouldn't want that?

"Basically, since there are multiple vacant seats this time, it's more than just a martial tournament—it's a trial ground for the next Emperors. The strongest contenders will gain their clan's backing and even the favor of current Emperors. The final winner of this battle will take not just the bride but the throne as well. In fact, so far as the Council is concerned, this so-called matchmaking tournament is already being viewed as a battle for an Emperor's seat."

Tang San nodded. He had suspected that stakes would reach this level at some point, but he hadn't thought they had already risen this high. "No wonder the Ancestral Court insisted on Little Mei doing this. But she already refused once, so what if she does it again?"

The White Tiger Demon Emperor shook his head. "There's no refusing. If she really declines, it's like cutting off her own path to becoming an Emperor. She's not the only one from the Empyrean Dominion with potential, after all. Every clan has talented candidates. If she doesn't come, it'll be seen as forfeiting. The winner of the tournament will still become her husband, because that's the will of the Ancestral Court's Council, and she'll lose the right to ascend. So not only must she attend, she must also win, so that she proves herself worthy of the title. Undying and I will talk to her and convince her to go. This is an opportunity she can't miss."

Tang San nodded slightly. "Well, there's no need for that. I just spoke with her and told her to come to the Ancestral Court. I'd guessed some of this, but I didn't realize just how critical it had become."

The White Tiger Demon Emperor said solemnly, "It's more serious than you think. Talents from all clans who have been in long-term seclusion are coming out for this. Many of them are possible successors of their clan's Emperor. They stayed in seclusion to preserve their lifespans until a seat became vacant, so now, with this opportunity, they've emerged. Among them are even peak-level Great Demon Kings. Your strength is impressive, but if you can't use all your bloodline abilities, winning will be extremely difficult. Not to mention... Well, we had this discussion before. You're human."

A contemplative look crossed Tang San's face. After a while, he said seriously, "In that case, I may really need your help."

The White Tiger Demon Emperor replied, "That might be difficult. I can't help you with your identity as a human. Little Mei told me you intend to participate as a Sea God's emissary. That's problematic. Even if the Sea God truly exists, they are not a power recognized by our Daemon Continent. Even if the Endless Blue Sea is officially an ally of Kali City, the Emperors likely won't accept it. Even if they do and you are allowed to compete, you'll become everyone's target. And even if you win, you may still not be allowed to marry Little Mei. Worse yet, your presence might affect her own claim to the Emperor's seat."

Tang San smiled slightly. "That makes sense, but what if I compete under this identity instead?"

As he spoke, blue light surged from his body. Spikes emerged from his back, his skin took on a different color, and his figure subtly transformed. In just a moment, he had become a different person.

Even with his twelfth-order cultivation, the White Tiger Demon Emperor could not help but be surprised by this transformation. His divine consciousness erupted instantly, and his aura surged toward Tang San to suppress him.

A blue-gold aura exploded from Tang San, barely managing to assimilate the Emperor's oppressive force and diffuse it into the halo of blue light swirling around him.

"Please don't overreact," Tang San said helplessly.

The White Tiger Demon Emperor stared at him wide-eyed. His pupils enlarged, and his gaze was filled with disbelief. He was speechless for a long moment, and when he did try to speak, he couldn't find the words. "You... you... this is far too bold. You..."

Just recently, he had met this very individual—supposedly the new leader of the Blue Gold Tree clan from Skytree City, who had come to the Ancestral Court for the city lord evaluation. He was allegedly the representative of the Ancestral Tree, someone the Sunborne Nymph Emperor had even called a "junior Ancestral Tree."

But he had never imagined that the new clan leader of the Blue Gold Tree clan was an imposter, let alone that the imposter was none other than Tang San. It was too bold. Too unbelievable.

The White Tiger Demon Emperor was well aware of the grudge between Tang San and the Celestial Fox Demon Emperor. Wasn't he afraid of being exposed?

He had come to the Ancestral Court once with Mei Gongzi for her city lord evaluation, and that one time had been enough to throw the place into turmoil, even shaking the foundation of the Celestial Fox clan. Now, just like that, he'd become a nymph, and not just any nymph, but a clan leader shining with the Ancestral Tree's brilliance, one who had passed his own city lord evaluation just the day before. It was beyond imagination.

Tang San kept a smile on his face, looking completely innocent. "I didn't mean to. I was just traveling and I reached Skytree City, where the Blue Gold Tree clan resides. By sheer coincidence, I took on a form that they mistook for a direct bloodline descendant of the Ancestral Tree. And just like that, I became the patriarch of the Blue Gold Tree clan."