Facing Off

Ling Xuan walked into the Trial Tower, transformed into a streak of light, and flew toward the first tower. The entrance stood before a tower more than ten kilometers tall, and the pillar beside it bore the mark "1." It was indeed the First Trial Tower.

The opponents in all seven Trial Towers were the same; only their individual strength differed. The first level in each tower held ten thousand Blood-Haired Mammoths.

Each Blood-Haired Mammoth killed earned one point. Killing all of them earned ten thousand points and sent the contestant directly to the second level.

"Then let's begin." Ling Xuan leaped into the roaring, charging herd of Blood-Haired Mammoths. A wave of blade light swept out, killing a large group at once.

The ten thousand Blood-Haired Mammoths didn't last ten strikes before he killed them all. He was immediately transported to the second level.

It wasn't that he didn't know that, given his Law Comprehension, clearing all seven Trial Towers was nearly impossible. Nor was he unaware that Luo Feng had once stayed in a Trial Tower for the full ten days before leaving, using the time to cultivate and make greater progress.

But in truth, Luo Feng had relied more on his two clones to cultivate. His true body had actually been fighting. Ling Xuan had no clones, so he couldn't leave his consciousness outside to cultivate and study the laws, nor could he abandon his defense to cultivate.

Besides, Luo Feng's Mosha Race clone had only just been born, and its strength was improving rapidly. A few extra years of study meant a tremendous increase in power. Ling Xuan's rate of progress, on the other hand, had always been steady. Even with a few more years, his Law Comprehension wouldn't be enough to clear the Tongtian Tower. This method suited only Luo Feng, or contestants like Yi Feng, the Sword of Life, who hoped to achieve a better ranking in the Trial Towers. It wasn't right for Ling Xuan at this point.

The battles in the Trial Space weren't broadcast publicly throughout the universe. Only changes to the rankings were made public.

However... the undying beings of the various Universe Countries had permission to watch each contestant's trials.

With the Temple Envoy's authorization, Ling Xuan's family was also watching the trial.

"This Cao Benqi really is ruthless. He rushed straight into first place!" Ling Yue exclaimed.

"Third brother isn't far behind. He's keeping right on Cao Benqi's heels. They reached the second level almost back-to-back," Ling Xue said.

"Mm. Come on, third brother! Pass him!" Ling Yue nodded, her eyes gleaming.

"Third brother's gotten so strong without us even realizing it. Those are ten thousand Star Level, ninth-rank monsters, and every one of them is stronger than Dad." Ling Xue exclaimed, "Now third brother can kill one Dad with every strike."

"Brat, what nonsense are you spouting?" Hearing that, Father Ling gave his second daughter a rap on the head. "Watch the match quietly. What's with all this racket? Don't disturb the Temple Envoy."

Ling Tianhe couldn't help feeling annoyed when he thought about how his son had casually killed him as soon as he entered the World Zone—without even realizing his father was in the crowd.

Ling Xue covered her sore head and grumbled as she hid in her mother's arms, muttering that her father didn't love her anymore.

"Third brother isn't an ordinary genius. He's destined to soar to great heights," Ling Yue murmured.

"Alright, everyone, watch quietly." Mother Ling held her daughter and smiled as she rubbed the bump on her head.

"Ha ha, it's fine. Young people should have some energy," the Temple Envoy said with a smile and a shake of his head. With an undying being's powerful consciousness, he could play games, watch the match, and listen to them chat all at once—and still instruct the youngsters in their cultivation in person.

If he didn't want to listen to them, he could also shut them out completely. It was entirely up to him.

"Blood Sword, your Ganwu Universe Kingdom is doing pretty well this time. Ling Xuan's been right on Cao Benqi's heels. It's hard to say who'll win."

The thousand powerful undying beings could easily view the rankings and watch the trials. Now they represented their respective Universe Countries, and naturally hoped their own country's geniuses would shine brighter. That was what brought them prestige.

For beings who had lived through endless ages, prestige and dignity mattered a great deal.

"Not bad." Blood Sword Marquis nodded slightly as he sat in the broad chair, looking at the two screens before him.

The screens showed Cao Benqi and Ling Xuan. They had cleared the First Trial Tower one after the other, and had now entered the second.

"Ha ha, that's only because the first few Trial Towers are too easy. Once they reach the fifth, sixth, and even seventh, the gap will become obvious," scoffed a Marquis Immortal from the Yanshen Universe Kingdom.

Blood Sword Marquis's expression turned cold, but he didn't have much of a retort. He could only pray that Ling Xuan would prove himself and make a breakthrough in the middle of the trial, giving the other man a good slap in the face.

Seeing Blood Sword Marquis fall silent, the Marquis Immortal didn't press him further. Instead, he started discussing the match with several acquaintances nearby.

On the rankings, the two of them quickly pulled away from the contestant in third place.

Just as predicted before the competition, they were firmly in the top two.

The first five Trial Towers weren't difficult. The two advanced neck and neck, and at times Ling Xuan even overtook Cao Benqi to take first place.

While everyone else was still in the third or fourth Trial Tower, the two had already reached the Sixth Trial Tower.

But from the Sixth Trial Tower onward, the gap between them gradually began to show.

When Cao Benqi had killed everything on the first level, Ling Xuan still had ten mammoths left.

By the second level, Cao Benqi had killed all the Nine-Headed Pythons, while Ling Xuan still had fifty left.

Ling Xuan had to be credited with his extensive experience fighting the Monster Race in the secret realm. For now, he managed to stay close in points.

The thousand Metal Lifeforms of the Tuoluo Race on the third level began to widen the gap. This time, Ling Xuan fell sixty kills behind.

By the time Ling Xuan reached the seventh level, where the Zerg Mother Empress awaited, Cao Benqi had already killed all the warriors guarding her. He was on the verge of clearing the level.

"Come on, third brother!" Ling Yue prayed for Ling Xuan. She hoped her younger brother would earn more points and receive more resources and attention.

"Wow! Third brother's got second place locked down!" Ling Xue was more optimistic. As far as she was concerned, coming in second among all the Cosmic Humans was already an incredible achievement—one strike, one dad.

Father Ling was too focused on Ling Xuan fighting in the swarm to bother with the little lunatic Ling Xue. His eyes stayed fixed on the battle, and only his tightly clenched fists betrayed how nervous he was.

At that moment, the other people of Manlong Planet were also watching the rankings in the Virtual Universe. Ling Xuan was the planet's sole hope in hundreds of millions of years, and everyone was following his progress and cheering him on.

When they saw Cao Benqi pull ahead in points, they all felt their hearts tighten.

It wasn't that they thought second place was bad. They just hoped he could take first!!!

"Come on, Ling Xuan!"

"Yanmo, keep going! There's a bug behind you!!"

By now, some of the geniuses had been eliminated from the Trial Towers.

The plaza was already crowded with countless powerful figures. The geniuses who had been eliminated early hadn't chosen to leave right away. Even if they'd come just to see the spectacle, they wanted to stay until it was over.

"See that? Cao Benqi, the Yanshen of my Yanshen Universe Kingdom, is the strongest. He's already pulled ahead of that Ling Xuan."

"The match isn't over yet. Why are you celebrating already?" A genius from the Ganwu Universe Kingdom fired back without backing down. They feared a peerless genius like Cao Benqi, but they weren't afraid of the other Yanshen Universe Kingdom geniuses who'd been eliminated around the same time as them. At that moment, they all stepped forward to defend Ling Xuan, the genius of their own Universe Country.

"Stop talking tough. One step behind means you're behind at every step. Do you really think Ling Xuan can defy the heavens? I say the seventh level of the Sixth Trial Tower is his limit."

"Still better than a good-for-nothing who got eliminated after reaching only the Third Trial Tower." A Savage Giant in black animal hide stepped forward from the Ganwu Universe Kingdom's side.

"How far did you get?" the other man challenged.

"The fourth tower." The Savage Giant sneered.

The man fell silent at once. No one from the Yanshen Universe Kingdom spoke up for him either. Instead, they looked at him with disdain.

How much dog food did Yanshen give you to make you suck up to him like this?

You're busting your gut licking his boots and putting Ling Xuan down. Do you think he even knows who you are?

Even if Yanshen did find out, when he gets carried away and starts mocking everyone, would he even mention you?

Wouldn't he still call you a good-for-nothing?

That's enough.

Tone it down and watch the match quietly.

Thanks to 'Piaofeng Gulang' for the five monthly tickets, to 'Reader20220407223845441' for the two monthly tickets, and to 'Lao Guo' for the one monthly ticket.