Chapter 1342 The First Deputy Chief

"Ha-ha! Hello, my old friend, it's been a while. Of course, you are always welcome here!"

Wally let out boisterous laughter as he greeted the newcomer with open arms.

In the next moment, a middle-aged man wearing cyan robes came into Ricky's view.

Although the older man's breath was muted to Ricky's senses, he could vaguely tell that this person
was a lot stronger than Wally. Besides, Ricky also had a feeling that the middle-aged man had reached
a higher level of the Sage Level.

'Is it possible that this man has reached the Demi-spiritual Potentate Level?'

wondered Ricky to himself as the two men greeted each other.

"That's possible," agreed the Dragon Intent Grass. "But Wally's momentum feels slightly weaker than
that man's."

"Deputy Chief!"

Wally said to the cyan-clad man, inclining his head in respect. After that formality, a warm smile
brightened his face, as he began to treat the other man like a close friend.

'He called him the deputy chief... Is that guy the Misty South Palace's First Deputy Chief?!'

Ricky inwardly gasped in surprise when he heard Wally's words. Although, of course, his face remained
sharp and impassive.

A total of seven palaces were located in the Misty South, and each chief of the Misty South Palace
came from those seven palaces. These chiefs were also the strongest warrior in the land. The First
Palace was the most prestigious one, for the Misty South Palace's chief originated from them.



As for the other palaces, they weren't listed in any particular order.

In practice, the leaders of other palaces were all called deputy chiefs, and they were also arranged in
no particular order, meaning that there were no specific second or third deputy chiefs and so on.

However, the First Palace's leader was always the most powerful one.

And he was aptly known as the First Deputy Chief, the one in charge of the Third Sheol City.

This First Deputy Chief was undoubtedly a demi-spiritual potentate and the most powerful in the four
continents.

At that point, the middle-aged man in cyan clothes turned his attention to Ricky and assessed his
strength. His once serene expression became one of surprise as he addressed Wally.

"My friend, I see that you weren't lying. I'm glad to see that this little guy is fine, or I won't be able to
face the lord."

"Lord? Is he talking about Master Otis?" Ricky blurted out when he heard these words.

"Ha-ha! You are right, boy. It seems that Otis still remembers you. He was probably the one who asked
the First Deputy Chief to help you, but Wally noticed your abilities, so he didn't make a move,"

the Dragon Intent Grass surmised, sounding amused at the turn of events.

"Sometimes, good talent can be a kind of capital!"

"Hello, sir!"

Ricky greeted the cyan-clad man with the utmost respect.



"I, have been entrusted by the lord with your safety. He sent me here to find you and protect you from
any harm before the selection," the First Deputy Chief relayed to Ricky.

"Thank you so much, sir. I am honored by your attention," said Ricky, who was grateful that he had one
more strong ally at his side.

When they had briefed the First Deputy Chief on the situation, the man was also shocked to learn that
Ricky had successfully cultivated the Shadowy Emperor Replication. Since the First Deputy Chief was
a top-tier warrior, he knew how difficult it was to master this skill.

"You tricked a lot of saints, boy, and that will give you an edge in the upcoming selection," the First
Deputy Chief remarked. "Alas! The devil race is bound to invade, but we, creatures of the continents,
are still fighting against each other."

Frustration and worry were evident in his voice.

Truth be told, the devil race was not much stronger than the creatures on the continents. And yet, they
had managed to win almost all the battles for countless years despite the efforts of the continents'
creatures.

The only time that the continents' creatures managed to suppress the devil race was way back in the
era when the Desolate Sorcery tribe was still a formidable force.

The most important factor that led the devil race to victory was that they, despite their love for killing,
had the same ambition. They had one goal that united them, which was to invade the continents.

In sharp contrast, the creatures of the continents were a disorderly group. They would only unite once
the situation had taken a desperate turn, or when the despair of facing the invasion of the devil race
became too much. But, at that point, the opportunity to get the upper hand while dealing with the devil
race had already passed them by.



"I think it's because we, creatures of the continents, need a leader—but not any run-of-the-mill leader.
We need a real leader, one who can suppress everything and is on par with the Desolate Sorcery
tribe's patriarch,"

Wally muttered in a low voice. He fully understood how the First Deputy Chief felt, as he too was
frustrated with the situation.

"Only a strong and genuine leader can lead all the creatures of the continents—someone who can
intimidate and inspire them to follow his orders!"

"My friend, perhaps, you are right. But, unfortunately, it is too difficult to achieve those requirements.
Even Paul wasn't strong enough to do that!"

the First Deputy Chief replied with dismay.

"And besides, it's even more difficult in our era because we have no spiritual potentates. None of the
demi-spiritual potentates at this time have overwhelming force, and although they periodically have
matches to see who are strongest, there is no real top-ranked warrior in their midst!"

"Indeed. You are absolutely right!"

'Lack of a leader?' Ricky thought to himself when he heard the two warriors' conversation.

"My friend, tell me the truth. Is your lord training this boy as his successor?" At this time, Wally's face
grew serious, and he asked the First Deputy Chief through his internal power.

"Like you, I have no idea. But I've never seen our lord pay so much attention to a young man. In fact,
he was the one who kidnapped this young man back then," the First Deputy Chief revealed. Then, he
added, "Besides, that guy even contacted those old monsters in person."

"Really? He did all those things? Then, he may be really considering this young man as his successor,"



Wally remarked in shock.

"Ha! The Endless Shadow are also interested in this young guy?" the First Deputy Chief asked.

"Of course! Apart from Brad, this young man is the first one to cultivate the Shadowy Emperor
Replication while he is a middle spiritual emperor in the history of the Endless Shadow. And he
managed to do that without the instruction of any top masters," said Wally, sounding amazed by Ricky's
achievements.

"Plus, for your information, Brad successfully cultivated this very method when he was an upper
spiritual emperor back then.

So, to some extent, this young man is probably more talented than him!"

"Hmm... Let's wait and see. I think it's still too early to say that. After all, we can only see a top-ranked
warrior's true talents when he has ascended to the Sage Level," the First Deputy Chief replied.

The two masters talked with Ricky for a while, and afterward, they went on separate ways. The older
men were both busy with official business, while Ricky opted to rest in Wally's palace, waiting for the
selection to start in three days.

As for those geniuses of the Endless Shadow, Ricky didn't try to get to know them, for he didn't want to
have any trouble before the selection. Instead, he kept to himself in the palace. He believed that Wally
meant no harm to him, but that didn't mean he also trusted the Endless Shadow's geniuses. He hadn't
forgotten that some people wanted him for Paul's inheritance, and it was also because of it that he
couldn't let his hair down.

During this period, Ricky also learned about the selection's rules and regulations.



He discovered that killing a devil at the lower Emperor Level would get him ten points. If he took down
a middle spiritual emperor, he would earn one hundred points, and an upper spiritual emperor would
gain him a thousand points.

Of course, the best reward was reserved for whoever killed a devil at the Demi-saint Level, as he would
directly become the Misty South Palace's core disciple.

In addition to those rules, a candidate could also earn ten thousand points to become the core disciple.

Of course, that was quite difficult to achieve. The ordinary candidates set their sights on becoming an
ordinary disciple of the Misty South Palace, which they could attain if they were able to collect five
thousand points.

No one was allowed to use their backgrounds, such as the influence of their family or force, and only
warriors who were participating in the selection could help each other.

All participants must be under three hundred years old, or else it would also be useless to have the
selection token to take part in it.

Besides all these rules, Ricky also learned that they would spend two years in the Passage World,
where the contest would be held.

Of course, anyone who couldn't stand these conditions, especially the long-term stay in the passage
world, could choose to quit the selection.

All participants were required to stay in the passage world for the entire two years, and they would
automatically forfeit the selection if they left, regardless of the reason.


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