I Have a God Simulator

After settling on the general direction, Luh Yao made some detailed adjustments.

The Fourth Martial Arts Tournament would introduce specially invited participants. The Ghost Realm and the Bamboo Reed Kingdom would each receive one spot, cordially inviting the powerhouses of both nations to join the grand event. This matter was communicated to the Apostles of both kingdoms by Ambassador Yan Jiu.

Both Divine Kingdoms expressed their honor and delight at being invited.

And so, on the day the tournament began, two brand-new contestants appeared in Sand City.

Luh Yao looked at the characters sent by the two kingdoms and was a little speechless.

’I invite you guys over to liven things up, and you send your top dogs to come throw down, is that it?’

The Ghost Realm sent its Apostle, Hubbard, while the Bamboo Reed Kingdom’s representative was its Apostle, Zhur Nan.

Two Apostles, each representing the strongest Combat Power of their respective Divine Kingdoms, were participating personally.

’Are these two Divine Kingdoms trying to give me face, or are they here to crash my party?’

Luh Yao couldn’t say for sure.

In any case, the situation wasn’t quite what he had imagined.

But it wasn’t a big deal.

’If you have what it takes, come and win the championship. You’ll get every reward you’re due.’

Originally, Luh Yao’s goal was to add some new contestants, increase the enthusiasm and participation of the two Divine Kingdoms, and at the same time, give the Yao Race’s Extraordinary Beings more opponents for real combat practice.

He never expected them to send two Apostles right off the bat, maxing out the difficulty level.

Slime Mod suggested, "Lord God, should we dispatch one of our own Apostles to ensure the final victor is from the Yao Race?"

Luh Yao said there was no need.

In a way, Luh Yao was actually looking forward to one of the Divine Kingdom Apostles winning.

If they managed to win the championship, he could justifiably reward them with a one-day tour of the Yao Race World, saving him the trouble of finding an excuse.

The Martial Arts Tournament, held once every five years, began as scheduled. This time, the total number of participants reached 89.

Basically, this was the size of the Martial Cultivator population above LV20. After accounting for those absent for various reasons and natural attrition from combat, the total number hovered just over one hundred.

Apostle Hubbard was up first.

He ran into a tough opponent: the champion of the second tournament, the Ice Giant Monster, Bingg Quantou.

Bingg Quantou had now reached LV31, putting him on par with Hubbard in terms of level.

The battle between them was exceptionally brutal. Both the Ghoul’s and the Ice Giant Monster’s flesh-and-blood bodies were gifted with extraordinary talents—one was naturally toxic, the other had tough skin and thick flesh.

However, Bingg Quantou possessed a crucial special ability.

...

[Ice Fist]: Fist attacks have a small chance to trigger a [Freeze] effect, slowing the enemy.

...

In close combat, Ice Fist was a powerful skill.

The two traded furious blows, both abandoning their defenses. The more Hubbard fought, the slower his attack speed became, while Bingg Quantou grew fiercer with every exchange... Before long, Hubbard’s Life Value had plummeted to rock bottom, and he was on the verge of death.

His eyes went red with fury and he refused to concede, so he was finally dragged off the stage by a Guest Monk, who declared Bingg Quantou the winner.

After his defeat, Hubbard sat in a hidden corner, a tangled mess of lines appearing above his head. He still couldn’t accept the fact that he’d been eliminated right after making his debut.

There was nothing Luh Yao could do.

’Competition is just this cruel. The winner is king, the loser is a bandit. All you can do is try again next time.’

On the other side, Zhur Nan’s path to advancement was relatively smooth.

This experienced Apostle was LV35, far stronger than most of the contestants, and he smoothly fought his way into the semi-finals. At this stage, he finally met a formidable opponent.

His opponent was a LV30 Rotting Guard.

The Rotting Guard is an advanced form of the Corrupter. Not only does it possess [Stubborn], which counters Magic, but it also has another ability that is extremely potent in actual combat.

...

[Strong Wall]: Innately possesses high Defense.

...

When the agile and explosive Zhur Nan faced the defensive, Counterattack-focused Rotting Guard, the battle became exceptionally drawn-out and arduous. In the end, Zhur Nan was the last one standing, having won by a narrow margin.

In the finals, Zhur Nan’s opponent was the Rose Envoy, Huang Lie.

Bingg Quantou, who had previously eliminated Hubbard, had been knocked out by Huang Lie.

Luh Yao remembered that Huang Lie was a member of Pinkman’s gardener team. When he first saw him, he was only just over level 20. An era had passed, and this Yellow Rose Envoy had surprisingly reached LV33, an excellent growth rate.

Though slightly lower in level, Huang Lie was an even match for Zhur Nan in actual combat, going toe-to-toe with him.

Unlike before, Zhur Nan’s opponent this time was the same type of fighter as him.

This battle was different from the previous ones. Both sides were extremely cautious, spending a great deal of time observing each other and maintaining their distance, like two light-footed boxers probing each other’s attack patterns.

Both were extremely explosive, possessing both dexterity and speed. Every exchange was a life-or-death moment that could decide the victor.

After five exchanges of solid, flesh-on-flesh blows, Zhur Nan lost his ability to fight and conceded defeat.

Huang Lie’s trump card was a type of Flower Language Magic.

...

[Flower Language Sixteen: Golden Salute]: A Flower Language Magic. The greatest respect for an enemy is to give them a tribute. Locks onto both self and enemy, thereby increasing the specific damage both parties deal to each other. Each time damage is dealt or taken, Golden Salute will continuously stack its buff effect.

...

Golden Salute was an amplifier, simultaneously boosting the attacks of both sides to see who would be killed first. It was especially effective when fighting opponents of a higher level if used properly.

Zhur Nan lost because he didn’t want to die, while Huang Lie was not afraid of death.

Luh Yao was just a little disappointed.

’An Ice Giant Monster and a Yellow Rose Envoy, neither of them knows how to pull their punches. The excuse I just came up with is useless now. I’ll have to think of another one.’

Huang Lie won the championship of the Fourth Martial Arts Tournament, and Luh Yao raised his level by one.

The Yellow Rose Envoy knelt to express his thanks, but he did not choose to change his class to become a Sand Walker. He was very proud of his identity as a Rose Envoy and had no intention of traveling to other Divine Kingdoms.

The reason he participated was due to his fanatical love for fighting.

Next, Huang Lie challenged the Eighteen Calamity Beasts. He defeated the first Calamity Beast but fell at the feet of the second.

Even so, he was the first Extraordinary Being to overcome one of the Calamity Beasts under the Guest Monk’s command.

Huang Lie returned to the Divine Valley, content, and went back to growing roses under Pinkman.

...

The two invited Apostles were both low in Morale, with dark clouds and tangled lines appearing above their heads.

Zhur Nan and Hubbard sat in the shadow of the city wall, one on the left and one on the right, without saying a word.

A clone of Slime Mod, holding a Silver Staff, walked up to them.

"Misters Apostles, it’s not easy for you to make a trip to Sand City. How about I act as your guide and show you around?"

Exclamation marks popped up over the two Apostles’ heads, and they quickly stood up.

’The interests of our Divine Kingdoms are more important than personal wins or losses.’

"Then we’ll be in your debt."

"Please, lead the way."

After giving a standard introduction, Slime Mod stopped and said, "As the Mayor of Sand City, I am ashamed that I have failed to fulfill my duties as a host this time, allowing our two guests to encounter such unpleasantness."

The two Apostles were speechless.

"As compensation, I have an idea. I wonder if you two would be interested in visiting some other cities?"

Giant exclamation marks lit up above the two Apostles’ heads.

"We’d appreciate that very much!"

"Yes!"

"This is just an idea of mine. However, since it involves other cities, I still need to communicate with the Prophets and Mayors of those cities..."

Slime Mod said, "Please wait a moment."

The two Apostles waited nervously.

After a moment, a dialogue box appeared above the statue-like Slime Mod’s head: "Unfortunately, Yao City is currently very busy testing the [Brass Furnace Dragon] and improved Steamships, so Prophet Longg Ji has politely declined the visit."

"Over in Yan City, they are expanding the [Yan City Bathhouse], the City Guard Army’s [Armored Warrior] legion is conducting large-scale combat exercises, and the city’s streets are also being repaved... After discussing it, Prophet Shi Bao and Mayor Boutu felt that this is not a good time to welcome visitors."

Sighing emoticons popped up above both Zhur Nan’s and Hubbard’s heads.

Slime Mod’s tone shifted. "However, the two cities of Crystal City and Uda City would be very happy to welcome you."

"Both of these cities are overseen by Lord Yao God’s Subordinate Gods, Lord White God and Lord King Wuzi, respectively. They are also two major cities with strong development momentum. Sand City can’t yet compare to them."

"I wonder, which city would you two like to choose?"

Zhur Nan and Hubbard discussed it for a moment.

They decided to go together: Crystal City in the morning and Uda City in the afternoon.

A sweating emoji appeared above Slime Mod’s head.

"Gentlemen... these two cities aren’t close at all. If you want to see more, it would be better for you to go separately. Of course, touring together would certainly be more comfortable."

In the end, Zhur Nan chose Uda City, and Hubbard decided to go to Crystal City.

Apostle Zhur Nan couldn’t help but ask, "Does Yao God agree to outsiders like us entering the Yao Race’s world?"

A smiley face lit up above Slime Mod’s head. "To disturb the Lord God with such a small matter would be a great sin. However, this is in line with the Oracle handed down by the Lord God—the world of the Yao Race welcomes the goodwill of friends, and it also welcomes the challenges of enemies. This is a token of gratitude for your care of Yan Jiu and other Yao Clan People."

"If you would permit it, I am also very curious about your two Divine Kingdoms and would like to pay a visit to explore the possibility of further exchange and cooperation between our cities."

Luh Yao felt a sense of satisfaction as he watched.

A master is a master.