The Genius Tournament Begins

When Ling Xuan left the secret realm, he had reaped a bountiful harvest. Setting aside the entire Spirit Essence Crystal Core, the treasures and materials he had obtained were worth as much as the possessions of a powerful Peak World Lord, according to Puff's estimate. On top of that, he had unexpectedly found five precious Soul Nourishing Fruits.

Ling Xuan eagerly ate one of the Soul Nourishing Fruits. However, with the Heart of the Martial God enhancing him, his comprehension had already surpassed that of ordinary people, so the fruit brought him no noticeable improvement.

Ling Xuan wasn't surprised. The earlier incident with the Spirit Essence Crystal Core had already given him a general idea of the treasures in his secret realm.

"I'll take them back for my eldest and second sisters. They need them more than I do."

"Puff, let's head back."

"Yes, Master." Little Puff obeyed, piloting the ship out of the Zhulong Secret Realm and back to Manlong Planet.

As the Crimson Flame landed above the Ling Family's home on Manlong Planet, Ling Xue looked up curiously from where she had been training outside the hide tent.

"Big sis, come look! Some big shot's come to our house!"

Ling Yue lifted the tent flap and hurried outside as well, looking up.

A D9-Grade ship was reserved for elders of the Zhulong Clan on Manlong Planet. Its passenger was both an elder and a big shot, so the sisters had no choice but to come out and greet them.

The hatch opened, and Ling Xuan landed in front of his two sisters.

"Big sis, second sis, I'm back."

"Third brother? Is this your ship?" Ling Xue excitedly circled around him, taking a good look.

"The Temple Envoy gave it to me so I could travel between Manlong Planet and the Zhulong Secret Realm. I'll be going over there to train sometimes," Ling Xuan explained.

"Wow, little bro's made it big!" Ling Xue exclaimed. She had always been lively, and the siblings had been close since childhood, so she didn't stand on ceremony with Ling Xuan.

Ling Yue smiled happily too.

"Take a look at what I brought you."

Ling Xuan took out four Soul Nourishing Fruits and the Spirit Essence Crystal Core and handed them to the two women.

"What are these? Do they taste good?" Ling Xue asked, eyeing the Soul Nourishing Fruit, which gave off a faint, soul-soothing fragrance.

"Of course they do."

Soul Nourishing Fruits weren't Devil Fruits, after all. Few spirit fruits among the treasures of the universe tasted bad.

"Never mind, I'll try one first!" She grabbed a fruit and took a bite. The moment its flesh touched her tongue, her whole body jolted.

The parts of the secret technique she had previously struggled to comprehend suddenly became clear.

"What is this?"

"A Soul Nourishing Fruit, right?" Ling Yue said. Her Auxiliary Optical Computer had already pulled up the relevant information.

"Five hundred billion Universe Coins each?"

Ling Xue looked at the price on the virtual screen, then at the Soul Nourishing Fruit in her hand, which now had a huge bite taken out of it.

"Ugh! That bite of mine must've cost at least a hundred billion Universe Coins. Even if you sold me, it wouldn't be enough to pay for it," Ling Xue groaned.

"Not even close. We could add Mom and Dad, Grandma and Grandpa, and three generations before them, and it still wouldn't amount to a fraction of one percent," Ling Yue added, piling on.

"It's over..." Ling Xue looked utterly despondent.

"Hahaha, it's not that bad. You've got a genius younger brother, after all." Ling Xuan burst out laughing, unable to suppress his grin.

"Third brother, where did you get these?" Ling Yue asked.

"Didn't I tell you? I'll be going to the Zhulong Secret Realm to train often. I brought these back from there. They're not much use to me, so I thought I'd give each of my two sisters two."

Ling Yue pushed Ling Xuan's hand back toward him, while Ling Xue tried to return the Soul Nourishing Fruit she had already bitten into.

"Even if they're not much use to you, you could sell them and buy powerful secret techniques."

"Big sis, don't refuse. These fruits wouldn't be enough to buy a truly powerful secret technique, and the clan has already taken care of that for me." As he spoke, he showed them his Tier 5 Top-Grade Force Weapon.

"The clan had it made specifically for me."

"You're really giving them to us?" Ling Xue still found it hard to believe. He had just given her something worth five hundred billion Universe Coins to eat.

Wasn't that a little too extravagant?

Would Dad beat her to death when he found out what a wasteful daughter she was?

And Mom?

Would they both team up and beat her?

Ling Xue shuddered at the thought. But she had already eaten it, and there was no way to get it back now. It was too late for regrets.

"Don't worry, you two. Your little brother isn't short on things like these now, and there'll be even better things in the future. I don't want to look back after standing at the peak of the universe and find that neither of you is by my side," Ling Xuan said.

Even the Great Emperors of the Shrouded Heavens World, with their lifespans of over ten thousand years, had felt utterly alone. How much more so in Swallowed Star, where lifespans could be eternal?

After Ling Xuan's earnest persuasion, Ling Yue and Ling Xue finally accepted the Soul Nourishing Fruits.

The ship rose into the sky again. Ling Xuan gazed at the clouds rushing past the porthole and murmured to himself, "Next, I'll keep cultivating the Zhetian Method. But to make rapid progress in the Hualong Realm, I'll need Dragon Marrow to provide dragon qi. I don't have anything like that."

The Zhetian Method was a shortcut to power and an important asset on his cultivation path. His Hualong Secret Realm training couldn't wait.

Dragon Marrow wasn't even considered precious in the relatively impoverished Shrouded Heavens World. In this vast universe, there would surely be treasures that could take its place.

"Puff, head to the Cosmic Galaxy Bank in Manlong City and open an account. Let's sell off all our spoils of war," Ling Xuan ordered decisively.

Opening an account went surprisingly smoothly. After Ling Xuan consigned spoils worth ten Hunyuan Units for sale, he finally met the requirements for a three-star customer and got an account of his own.

He then immediately had Puff search the Virtual Universe for cultivation treasures that could replace Dragon Marrow.

The results were just as he had expected. He spent a little over three million Universe Coins to gather the substitutes, which cost less than an E-Grade Nutrient Chamber. Most of what Ling Xuan had bought was raw material, so there were almost no processing fees.

Ten years passed in the blink of an eye.

During those ten years, Ling Xuan's life was regular and fulfilling.

By day, he devoted himself to comprehending the Divine Bird Secret Pattern of the Law of Fire and the accompanying secret techniques of the Fire God Absolute Domain Blade in the temple. At night, he immersed himself in the Dao's essence within the Void Mirror and studied the Void Sutra, searching for the truths of the Great Dao in its obscure passages.

In his spare time, he would visit the Zhulong Secret Realm to "stock up."

The Temple Envoy and the Zhulong Secret Realm's guardian knew what he was doing, but both turned a blind eye.

After all, although the treasures in the Zhulong Secret Realm were the Zhulong Clan's primary source of wealth, Ling Xuan was the clan's most outstanding genius. He had crossed the threshold of the Law of Fire in his second year, making this investment more than worthwhile.

Besides, the resources he could take away were only a drop in the ocean.

To avoid hindering the young genius's growth, they simply allowed him to continue.

Ling Xuan made remarkable progress over those ten years.

In his second year, he crossed the threshold of the Law of Fire, received personal guidance from Manlong Marquis, and was granted the spatial movement secret technique Youlong and the soul defense secret technique Soul Suppressing Cauldron. In his third year, while studying the Void Sutra, he grasped a trace of the Law of Space. By his fifth year, he had officially crossed its threshold. By his ninth year, his mastery of the Law of Space had advanced to the point where he could summon hundreds of Phantom Bodies. He had also trained Youlong to its third form, Dragon Battles in the Wild, and the Soul Suppressing Cauldron to its third layer. At the Star Level, it was safe to say that soul attacks could hardly hurt him.

His cultivation of the Zhetian Method proceeded steadily, without the slightest slackening.

However, of all his cultivation techniques, the most important was the Fire God Absolute Domain Blade.

The Fire God Absolute Domain Blade was comparable in value to the Nine Great Divine Weapons.

Although martial weapons came in too many varieties for there to be a definitive ranking like the one for the great divine weapons, it was undoubtedly one of the finest Fifth-Order Force Weapons.

Its accompanying secret technique had nine forms, each one a step higher than the last.

The first form, "Flame Blade First Bloom":

It was quite difficult for a Star Level martial artist to execute.

The user had to precisely control the combination of Origin Force and the power of the Law of Fire to unleash the move's true might. At the Star Level, it was practically invincible.

The second form, "Burning Wave Horizontal Slash":

The moment the blade swept across, flames surged like waves, forming a wall of fire a hundred meters wide.

Wherever the flames passed, the air twisted into charred vortices. The attack could suppress groups of enemies or melt an opponent's weapon with its intense heat.

As the move was executed, flames surged around the blade and swept toward the opponent like roiling ocean waves.

Each wave of fire carried tremendous force. It could not only burn the opponent's skin but also injure their internal organs.

Like waves that never ceased, the attack continued without pause.

The third form, "Blade Domain Whirlwind Kill": A Universe Level expert spun as he swung his blade, the arcs it traced transforming into three afterimages.

The afterimages intertwined into a net. They could tear an opponent apart when attacking, or form a defensive barrier when retreating, trapping the enemy within the blade's reach and killing them.

The fourth form, "Sun Piercing Slash":

As the blade fell, it was like the sky collapsing. It could cleave mountains and split seas, and was unrivaled below the Universe Level.

The fifth form, "Space Rending Moon Slash": With a tremor of the blade, three curved waves of sword energy shot out at incredible speed.

The air rippled wherever the waves passed. The wounds they inflicted were like those made by an invisible blade slicing again and again, and were difficult to heal.

The sixth form, "Imprisoning Dragon Binding Tiger": The blade's momentum flowed without pause, every slash linked to the one before it, forming a cage made of radiance.

Anyone trapped inside who tried to break out would collide with the dense web of blades and be dismembered.

The seventh form, "Falling Meteor Strike": A Peak World Lord leaped high into the air, raised the Three-Pointed Double-Edged Spear, and brought it crashing down.

The instant it hit the ground, the earth would collapse for thousands of kilometers around the point of impact. The shock wave could sweep away anything in its path.

The eighth form, "Myriad Phenomena Blade Return": The user poured all his strength and Law Comprehension into the move, unleashing countless blade shadows in an instant.

The shadows looked chaotic, but each followed a hidden trajectory. They ultimately converged into a single, deadly strike, leaving the opponent nowhere to dodge.

The ninth form, "God Slaying Strike": The user swung the blade in a manner that returned to simplicity. The move looked simple, yet contained the ultimate understanding of strength and the martial path. Everything the blade touched would be severed. Even Immortal Experts had to meet it with caution.

Over those ten years, Ling Xuan had successfully mastered the second form, Burning Wave Horizontal Slash.

One day, as Ling Xuan was honing his skills in the Killing Field, the sky of the Virtual Universe suddenly split apart with a thunderous boom. An immense black announcement appeared out of nowhere.

Mysterious light shone along its edges. The entire announcement was black as ink, but the words blazed with dazzling white light, striking and majestic.

"Cosmic Humans—Peak Genius Tournament"

"Once every ten thousand years!"

"Coming soon!"

"Jointly hosted by the Giant Axe Martial Arena and all the Universe Countries!"

"Are you a genius? Can no one at your level and rank stand against you? Then take part in the 'Peak Genius Tournament'! There, countless geniuses from all the Universe Countries will fight!"

"For details, please use your virtual assistant to visit the official website of the 'Virtual Universe Network.'"

In the Virtual Universe continent where the Ganwu Secret Realm was located, within Ganwu Universe Kingdom.

The greatest being in the Ganwu Universe Kingdom, the Ganwu Kingdom Lord, had gathered all the Star Level geniuses he had cultivated to address them.

"Listen up, all of you. In this Genius Tournament, you're going to take at least half of the top one thousand spots in the Ganwu Universe Kingdom, and at least one of you had better make the top one thousand in the entire universe. Don't bring shame on the Ganwu Universe Kingdom."

Among the countless Star Level geniuses below, some trembled with fear, while others burned with confidence, thinking the Kingdom Lord was making a fuss over nothing. Surely a top-one-thousand ranking would be theirs for the taking?

Ling Xuan stared at the announcement in the sky. His heart pounded, and his eyes gleamed with excitement. "It's finally here!"

Manlong Marquis, who had been guiding Ling Xuan, was just as excited. He clenched his fists and murmured, "This time, the Zhulong Clan is destined to make a stunning entrance!"

With Ling Xuan's astonishing strength—able to create hundreds of Phantom Bodies at the Star Level—he could almost certainly claim first place in the Genius Tournament, unless he encountered one of the peerless human geniuses who appeared only once every ten million eras.

But in the endless river of time, how could one era possibly give rise to two such astonishing super-geniuses at once?

The answer was obvious.

"Sign up! Tell that brat to register right away. He absolutely can't miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!" Manlong Marquis paced back and forth in the Virtual Universe, frantic with worry. His eyes remained fixed on the Genius Tournament registration page, as if he were afraid of missing some crucial detail.

This was a chance to make a name for himself across the universe, one that came only once every several trillion eras. It absolutely could not be missed.

"You brat, what are you waiting for? Hurry up and sign up!" Manlong Marquis rushed into the Virtual Universe and hurried over to Ling Xuan. When he saw the boy still staring blankly at the sky, he immediately stepped forward, ready to register for him himself.

Ling Xuan smiled. He had only wanted to see how quickly the numbers could climb. "Puff, sign me up. It's time for the entire universe to know my name."

"Yes, Master. Let's show the whole universe what we can do!" Puff's voice held a hint of excitement as her fingers flew across the virtual keyboard, submitting Ling Xuan's information in an instant.

By then, the number of registrants in the Ganwu Universe Kingdom had already surged past two billion, and it was still climbing at an astonishing rate. That showed just how influential the Genius Tournament was across the universe.

"With your strength, boy, making the top ten in the Genius Tournament will be easy. If nothing unexpected happens, taking first place shouldn't be a problem either. But remember, you mustn't get careless. This event has the eyes of all Cosmic Humans upon it. If you stumble at the last moment, you'll make a fool of yourself in front of the entire universe," Manlong Marquis warned him gravely.

Ling Xuan straightened his chest slightly and replied solemnly, "Don't worry, Ancestor. The Zhulong Clan has brave warriors who die in battle, never fools who let their guard down."

"Good. Go on. If you take first place in the Genius Tournament, the clan will give you a rare treasure," Manlong Marquis said with a satisfied nod, his smile growing broader.

"Hm?" At that moment, Manlong Marquis seemed to receive some important news. His eyes instantly shone with a sharp glint. "Come with me. The ancestor says he'll personally guide you in the Laws of Fire and Space."

With that, he grabbed Ling Xuan and activated a teleportation in the Virtual Universe.

In a flash of light, the two appeared before a vast island, shrouded in layers of clouds and radiating grandeur.

"This is Tianzhou Island, where the Giant Axe Martial Arena is located. All the Immortal Experts affiliated with the Giant Axe Martial Arena live here in the Virtual Universe. We don't yet have the standing to visit the ancestor where he resides in the real world, but we can come visit him here in the Virtual Universe whenever we want." As he explained, Manlong Marquis led Ling Xuan toward an ancient-looking temple at the foot of the mountain, one that radiated a mysterious aura.

At the entrance to the temple, two powerful characters in Universal Script were carved into the stone: "Zhulong."

"Once we go in and meet the ancestor, be extremely respectful in everything you say and do. Understand?" Manlong Marquis reminded him again, his expression full of reverence.

"Yes." Ling Xuan nodded firmly, curious and respectful toward the Zhulong King, a being who had lived for countless eras and was practically a living fossil among humanity.

Manlong Marquis stood silently before the temple entrance for a moment.

A short while later, the temple doors slowly swung open on their own with a heavy creak.

Both nervous and excited, the two stepped inside, one after the other.

They hadn't walked far along the long corridor before they saw the Zhulong King waiting quietly in a spacious hall.

The Zhulong King before them was a burly old man with red hair, which blazed around his head like a wild flame.

Yet the aura around him was extraordinarily restrained. They couldn't feel any of the terrifying pressure one would expect from a King Rank expert. He seemed just like an ordinary old neighbor.

His appearance and demeanor were completely at odds.