"What?!" the white wolf shouted in its distorted voice. Ritz and the black cat looked at the wolf, but said nothing.
The wolf knew it had taken the wrong approach. "I am sorry, but surely my art is better than that of this useless cat," the wolf said in a more subdued voice.
Ritz looked as though he were on the edge of killing the wolf, but surprisingly, he seemed to change his mind and explained his decision. "Yes, your art is better in many ways, but you seem to be too self-centered. Otherwise, you would have noticed that the cat cultivated the human art as it was, without any side effects. Surely you must know what this implies."
The wolf was shocked. How could a beast cultivate human arts? The wolf had tried this and ended up on the brink of death. It looked at the cat, who was smiling smugly with victory.
"I see," said the wolf after inspecting the cat.
"I know that you are as talented as the cat since you managed to create a brand new art in less than six months, and this art is superior to the Faceless Transformations," Ritz explained to the wolf and the cat. "The reason I have chosen the cat is because it can cultivate human arts, and most likely, human cultivation techniques will not be a problem for it either. This means the cat will be able to cultivate my techniques and arts directly, while you would simply use them for inspiration to try and create your own."
"I understand your decision," said the wolf, whose voice was becoming clearer with each passing second. "Can you at least spare my life since I have clearly not failed the trial?" the wolf asked, bowing slightly.
The cat was excited at the prospect of seeing its oppressor die. The cat and the wolf looked at each other, waiting for Ritz's decision.
"I will not be killing you today," Ritz said, disappointing the cat and the wolf. "I am taking the cat as my first disciple and you as my second disciple. You are both too talented to kill; I should bring you both to my side." The wolf was disappointed, as it was now the second disciple,a junior to the "useless" cat.
The wolf and the cat underwent the discipleship ceremony and began cultivating with their new master, Ritz.
In a basement in the Tinding Kingdom, Huang Biren stood in a formation that was gradually lighting up. Her father, Huang Yuanjia, now king of the Tinding Kingdom, stood outside the formation looking at his daughter. The king was crying like a baby, making the other people in the basement try not to laugh. Huang Biren wasn't dying; she was just going to the central continent to join her sister, Huang Shengyi, in a powerful sect. In a sect, one could have better cultivation resources and techniques. Although the Huang royal family had a cultivation technique that was not inferior to those of the sects, their techniques had certain conditions that had to be fulfilled first.
"Father, don't worry, we will be back before you know it," Huang Biren said, which only made her father cry even more. She sighed before she disappeared from the basement.
Once his daughter was gone, the king regained his composure but seemed extremely angered. He turned around to find some people giggling. They quickly pretended not to laugh. King Huang looked at them, and when they saw his serious face, they stood at attention.
"Prepare to start the war of conquest in two years. The dignity of the Huang family must be restored immediately, or we must die trying," the king commanded. The other people in the basement had excited looks on their faces as they accepted the command.
In a desolate wasteland, a scrawny young man walked towards a solitary mountain range. At the entrance stood two one-hundred-foot-tall, demonic-looking statues. The statues held black spears and had goat-like horns that pierced the heavens. The mountains were barren and black, but atop them stood magnificent palaces in endless grandeur. The palaces seemed to be made of pure gold, silver, and many other precious materials.
The mountains were connected by large black chains that formed bridges. Mighty beasts like cranes, eagles, and black flood dragons could be seen flying in the air above the palaces, with people seated on them. Some people even flew on their own, while others stood on giant flying swords.
Between the giant demons at the gate, a sign read 'NINE DEMON SECT'. The writing was not in the common human language, but whoever looked at the words seemed to understand what they meant.
The scrawny man approaching the sect was Tinding Mu, the former first prince of the Tinding Kingdom. He looked at the sect in awe. It had taken him years to reach the sect, and he was already at the peak of the Origin realm.
In front of the sect, two guards appeared before him with their spears pointed at his chest. Tinding Mu felt a chill down his back, but he had gone through worse situations to reach the sect.
"I have come to join the mighty Nine Demon Sect," said Tinding Mu.
The guards looked at him before bursting into laughter. "You think any fool can just walk up to our sect and join?" the two mocked the weak fool.
Tinding Mu reached into his pocket and pulled out a black medallion with a demonic face on it. He handed it to one of the guards, who immediately went silent. Tinding Mu was quickly escorted into the sect to meet with the sect elders.