Absolute Choice
chapter-495-30041322

The person who entered to the cheers of the audience was a beautiful girl. She wore a pure white long-sleeved blouse, a blue plaited skirt, white knee socks and black boots. It was a simple get-up but it fully showcased her skin that rivaled snow and her exquisite disposition. Pink long hair draped across her shoulders as a calm and collected smile hung on the corners of her lips. She was beautiful and graceful, demure and elegant, tall and slim, just like a noble princess.

The eyes of the old man with a red goatee suddenly lit up as he held his goatee with his right hand. He said with a chuckle, "Isn't this Xiao Lingtian's granddaughter? She's already so grown up after not seeing her for a few years. Tell me, with that ugly mug of Xiao Lingtian, how is he able to have such a lovely granddaughter?"

The man in shades was slightly surprised but he immediately responded with an awkward smile, "Maybe it's because his wife has better genes?"

The red-goateed old man's eyes glared before saying with a hearty laugh, "No wonder!"

The man in shades secretly wiped the cold sweat off his brows. Although Xiao Lingtian was a businessman, his wealth could rival a country's. He had a lot of say and power in China. Only the old man with the red goatee had the status to dare speak sarcastically of Xiao Lingtian in such an unbridled manner.

The man in shades lowered his head and looked at the information in his hand. He hurriedly switched topics by saying, "Xiao Xiao, Battle Arena Corporation's Chairman, Xiao Lingtian's only granddaughter. Her parents died in an accident a few years ago; hence, she's the only legal successor to the Battle Arena Corporation. Due to her outstanding good looks, impressive family background, and the excellent result of being third in Beijing's entrance exams, she has been labeled 'Princess Xiao Xiao' by the people."

"A few months ago, Princess Xiao Xiao had participated in a private virtual game competition organized by the Battle Arena Corporation. She encountered the assault of the Church of Virtuality's Arch-Cardinal and had nearly gotten into trouble. She luckily survived it and from then onwards, began cultivating arduously. Her strength has improved significantly and in two short months, she had grasped the basics of 'Azure Descendence Bow'. Furthermore, her superpower greatly augments her archery skills. Her strength is rather imposing and she had successfully reached the semi-finals during the tournament selection. Although she was defeated by Bunny Cao in the semi-finals, her performance was still considered astounding."

The red-goateed old man nodded slightly and extolled, "To be able to pull the Azure Descendence Bow at this young age isn't simple."

The host was equally not stingy with his praise of Xiao Xiao when he introduced her. This "Nation's Princess" had always been popular in China. She was both outstanding and hardworking, so although she was just a freshman, she had already the vague indications of being a 'celebrity hero'.

As the audience listened to the host's introduction with their eyes trained on Xiao Xiao, a fat, bald monk began walking slowly out of the passageway.

This fat monk, who did not 'follow the rules', was of a large and plump build. He had a round face, bald head, and big ears. His eyes were narrowed into a thin line as a smile beamed on his face. He was like the laughing buddha, Maitreya Buddha that gave off an inspiring vibe. The fat monk was wearing a martial outfit. Behind the martial outfit wrote a large "Zhu". It clearly did not match his body as his rotund tummy was exposed for everyone to see. The layers of cellulite would tremble with every step he took, making it look rather humorous.

The host's face turned ashen as he quickly ended his praise for Xiao Xiao and turned his head to introduce the fat monk that walked in.

"Interesting."

The red-goateed old man bit on his cigar and began looking at the fat monk with a ruminative look. He asked, "Who is this monk?"

The man in shades hurriedly said, "Sir...Ahem. This fat monk comes from no ordinary background. He is the third son of the Zhu family, one of China's four great families. His name is Zhu Shiye. Due to certain reasons, he was left in Jinlin's Shaolin Monastery and became a monk. He doesn't cultivate using the psionic cultivation system but instead is trained in Shaolin martial arts. He is a warrior monk that focuses on ancient martial arts and internal energy. Although Zhu Shiye is a lazy person and is often called 'Piggy Monk' by his senior brothers, his martial talent is rather high. He is adept at Golden Bell and Iron Shirt. His superpower also happens to be the defensive 'Lava Rigid Body'. Therefore, his defense is extremely high. Even exponents at the Psionic Soul Realm would find it hard to cause him trouble. However, his offensive skill and movement technique are weaker. When he was at the quarter-finals, he was kited by Princess Xiao Xiao and received more than a hundred 'Frost Ice Arrows' shots before he finally succumbed."

The old man looked at the simpering Zhu Shiye and said thoughtfully, "For him to reach the realm of outer aura at such a young age, I can't deny that this fat monk is well endowed. I happen to have the 'Vajra Body Defending Divine Skill'. I wonder if this fat monk will want to learn it or not."

When his subordinate heard that, he had nearly exclaimed in alarm.

Vajra Body Defending was a lost art of Shaolin! Why is it in your hands? That's not right. There's nothing impossible when it comes to you, but why are you giving it so easily?

The man carefully glanced at the old man and said with a stiff smile, "Your Excellency seems to place great importance on that matter?"

"Obvious bullshit."

The red-goateed old man smacked his lips and said with a sneer, "Anything that has to do with my goatee is a matter of life and death importance."

Don't tell me that scarlet-red goatee of yours is your lifeblood?

The man in shades cursed in his mind but he did not dare to speak further. He thought to himself how Zhu Shiye had truly met an eminence in his life.

Why didn't he encounter such a good thing when he was young?

Well, that's not right. Wasn't he standing beside such an eminence? Even if he did not get meat to eat, he could at least get some soup to drink sooner or later, right?

Haha, wasn't it the good fortune of three lives to become the chief's subordinate?

"Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah~"

At that moment, the boy-crazy crowd, which had finally come to a rest, suddenly roared once again.

"Ah! Ah! Ah~"

The old man refused to play second fiddle and immediately shouted louder than the maniacs.

The man in shades was staring in a dumbfounded manner as he sensed the 'burning' gazes from the audience stands. He hurriedly slipped behind the red-goateed old man and cursed in his heart.

The good fortune of three lives my ass. It's clearly the punishment from ten lives worth of sin!

The man carefully probed his head out and looked at the passageway to see the 'culprit'.

The person who walked out was a thin youth. He had stylish black hair with a cut face. His facial features were distinct with sword-like eyebrows and brilliant looking eyes. He had a cold expression and he could not be deemed handsome, but he was very cool. The stylishness he demonstrated during the tournament had destroyed several fanatics that had raging hormones.

"This person is Wei Long," said the man in shades with a cough. "God of Assassination Wei Tai's son. Well-versed in the art of assassination. He is proficient at hidden blades and shadow strikes. He has extremely fast speed and he can have astounding bursts of speed. On a certain level, he can restrain Bunny Cao and is the only rookie at the tournament who had a chance of defeating Bunny Cao. Unfortunately, he had encountered Chen Lingcun in the quarter-finals. He had stabbed Chen Lingcun in the back but failed to break his defense. Finally, he was punched out of the arena with one strike."

The red-goateed old man finally stopped his 'wailing' upon hearing his subordinate's description. He stroked his goatee and said softly, "That punk, Wei Tai, is actually willing to expose his son. It looks like he can't bear nurturing his son into an assassin and wants to make him a hero assassin... If there is a chance, I can actually help him."

His subordinate looked at Wei Long in envy. He thought to himself how lucky these children were. Who said that people born in the same era as Bunny Cao and Speechless Li had been born in the wrong era? If not for the two children, 'that matter' would absolutely not have happened. This bunch of children would also not have such great opportunities.

The host quickly finished introducing Wei Long since there was not much information about him as he was the God of Assassination, Wei Tai's son.

"Tinkle—"

Chimes were heard from the passageway before a petite young girl in Daoist robes walked out of the passageway slowly.

The girl in Daoist robes had elegant features and her black, lustrous hair was tied into a Daoist bun. Her eyes were as bright as the stars and she wore a white Daoist robe with flowery patterns. There was a white brocade by her waist that hung several bells. With each step, her bells would shake incessantly.

"Tinkle—"

As the audience looked toward the petite girl in Daoist robes, they suddenly recalled her diligent performance in the arena. Immediately, they broke out into thunderous cheers.

The man with the shades also revealed an appreciative look as he said, "Your Excellency, this girl is a female disciple of the Three Clarities Daoist Temple. Her name is Petite Yu and she is proficient in Daoist arts. However, it's mostly supportive techniques so she isn't skilled at duels. Despite that, she became a dark horse during the tournament selection by managing to squeeze into the top eight."

"Like Chen Lingcun, she had used her affiliations to enter an autonomous university, forcefully gaining the qualifications to participate in the selection. Apparently, it has to do with her senior brother's participation in the collective training selection so she had pleaded with the old Daoist priest for permission to participate in it. The old Daoist priest thought that it was impossible for her to enter the top ten, considering how she had only cultivated in supportive Daoist arts, but Petite Yu had managed to use the eight Daoist incantations that she was unfamiliar with to defeat one opponent after another. It is apparent how talented she is."

The old man nodded and said with a smile, "Not bad!"

Truly, there were very few rookies that focused on supportive skills. It was not easy for a person to enter the top ten in the selection tournament based on her own strength.

Without holding back, the host similarly spewed out praises for Petite Yu. His praise for her made her blush slightly. She was a shy person, to begin with, so under the gazes of so many people, she was eager to shy away.

At that moment, Xiao Xiao, who was standing close to her, gave her a friendly smile. It immediately left Petite extremely touched as she hurriedly moved close to Xiao Xiao. Out of the top ten rookies for the tournament selection, there were only three girls. It was truly a depressing sausage fest.

Petite stayed close to Xiao Xiao and immediately, she felt safe. With the two beauties standing close together, it became a beautiful scene. It attracted the gazes of the audience.

And at this moment, a rookie walked out of the passageway at an inopportune moment. It made the audience draw a gasp when they turned to look at him.

They felt that the change of scenery was too drastic, making them turn their gaze back.

It was no wonder the audience acted so. It was because the rookie that had appeared was an intolerable sight to the eyes.

He was a stout man. His arms and back were bulging with muscles like a dragon. They seemed to contain immense power and he had a face that wasn't too much to be described as 'extremely vicious'. A patch of hair that circled the remaining black hair had been trimmed away, and in the middle of his head was yellow hair that stood up like a rooster's crown. His slightly widened eyes seemed to be filled with flames of anger, while a hideous scar went from his forehead down past his right eye. His mustache was a messy scrawl, and a prominent double chin brought out the terrifying weirdness of his face.

The man in shades took a glance at his information and his expression changed slightly. With a sigh, he said, "His name is originally Ye Youtian and now, he has taken on the alias, Ye Jiaquan. He was once a 'wolf cub' reared by Seven Duke Wolf..."

Upon hearing the words Seven Duke, the gaze under the old man's shades changed slightly. IChooseDogLeading (我选择狗带) when read in Chinese sounds like I Choose Go Die. It was a meme that resulted from a former member of famous Korean boygroup, EXO, TAO (Huang Zitao). At a concert, there was a part in a rap that where he said "", but due to a mispronunciation, it sounded like he will not easily choose to be led by dogs. This phrase now means 'I'd rather die/I choose death'.