Chapter Summaries

Luo Zhiyuan tested his improved soul defenses, then traveled to Red Bat Planet to take the Trainee Mercenary assessment. He entered the dangerous Illusion World and planned to spend the three-month trial training in the Virtual Universe while Xingxing kept watch.

• Luo Zhiyuan withstood a full-power Mental Shock from a Universe Level 7 Illusionist before losing consciousness, and Bulieni explained that the attack had reached his limit.
• Luo Zhiyuan learned he needed to become a Trainee Mercenary before entering a Universe Secret Realm, so he registered for the assessment and traveled to Red Bat Planet.
• During the journey, Luo Zhiyuan practiced the second level of the Shadow Divine Weapon in the Virtual Universe's Killing Field.
• At the assessment site, a bald giant warned Luo Zhiyuan that the Illusion World had only a 10 percent pass rate and handed him a metal box to guide him out after three months.
• Luo Zhiyuan entered the Illusion World, found himself in a dark forest, and decided to remain in place and train in the Killing Field while Xingxing guarded him.

Luo Zhiyuan fought three Qingyu Planet natives who tried to steal his guide device, but a Universe Level One monster’s Soul Secret Technique left them unconscious. As he prepared to bury them, the Illusion World changed the terrain again.

• Luo Zhiyuan watched five test-takers lost in a lava valley before the Illusion World transported him to a wilderness.
• Fifteen days later, Luo Zhiyuan encountered three Qingyu Planet natives in a ruined city, and they demanded his guide device.
• Luo Zhiyuan refused and battled the three Star Level Nine Martial Artists, who revealed fire-, water-, and metal-element Domains and combined them into a shield.
• A Universe Level One monster attacked with a Soul Secret Technique, leaving the three natives unconscious while Luo Zhiyuan remained unharmed.
• Luo Zhiyuan subdued the monster with Consciousness Pressure and ordered Xingxing to kill it, then began preparing a grave for the three natives before the terrain shifted again.

After completing the Trainee Universe Mercenary exam, Luo Zhiyuan prepared to enter the Suonsai Universe Secret Realm and accepted Bulieni’s challenge to bring back ten Radiance Stones. He set off confident he could finish the mission in two months, though the secret realm’s storms and hostile adventurers posed dangers.

• Luo Zhiyuan stayed in the Illusion World for three months, then followed his guide out, became a Trainee Universe Mercenary, and left Red Bat Planet.
• Luo Zhiyuan told Luo Feng he planned to explore a secret realm, and Luo Feng warned him to be careful of both the environment and other people.
• Bulieni explained that Suonsai was a developed miniature secret realm where Trainee Mercenaries could earn 100,000 Universe Coins for each Radiance Stone they found.
• Bulieni warned Luo Zhiyuan that secret-realm storms could be deadly and that adventurers often killed one another over Radiance Stones.
• Bulieni assigned Luo Zhiyuan a mission to obtain ten Radiance Stones in three months, and Luo Zhiyuan accepted, promising to return with them in two.

Luo Zhiyuan bought high-precision detectors, collected his Suonsai Secret Realm credentials, and traveled to Radiance City. After gathering local information, he left the city alone to search for Radiance Stones, but nearly advanced to Star Level Nine after entering energy-rich clouds.

• Luo Zhiyuan bought two expensive detectors at a Free Trade Zone shop and gave them to Bulieni to operate.
• He collected his Suonsai Secret Realm qualification certificate and Radiance Stone scanner from the Universe Mercenary Alliance, then traveled to the secret realm.
• Luo Zhiyuan arrived at Radiance City, registered, and paid a long-time Trainee Mercenary for information about places to search for Radiance Stones.
• He left his bodyguards in the city and departed alone, while residents warned one another not to provoke him.
• Luo Zhiyuan explored floating boulders and rocky peaks before entering energy-rich clouds, where his body began absorbing energy and nearly advanced to Star Level Nine.
• He fled the clouds and flew onward to begin searching for Radiance Stones.

Luo Zhiyuan searched the Suonsai Secret Realm for a Radiance Stone, learning how unlikely the find was before encountering a lucky adventurer who had just found one. He defeated Shi Yunmu with the Soul Fusion Technique and claimed the Radiance Stone.

• Luo Zhiyuan searched a rich mining area and passed up adventurers fighting over Fire Pattern Grass because he wanted only Radiance Stones.
• Nizade invited Luo Zhiyuan to join his team and explained that its members had searched for decades or centuries without finding a Radiance Stone, but Luo Zhiyuan continued toward other mining areas.
• Three days later, Luo Zhiyuan found a Thunder Star Feather and hurried toward an energy fluctuation nearby.
• Shi Yunmu emerged from a breakthrough holding a Radiance Stone and demanded Luo Zhiyuan hand over the Thunder Star Feather.
• Luo Zhiyuan used the Soul Fusion Technique to overwhelm Shi Yunmu, then took the Radiance Stone and examined it while searching Shi Yunmu's memories.

Luo Zhiyuan found three more Radiance Stones and slaughtered the adventurers who fought over them, bringing him halfway to his goal. After collecting the stones, he addressed someone hiding nearby and invited them to come out.

• After twenty days of searching, Luo Zhiyuan detected a Radiance Stone and killed three adventurers who attacked him, then absorbed the first discoverer’s memories of the water domain and claimed the stone.
• Luo Zhiyuan found a standoff between two large groups over three Radiance Stones and attacked, triggering a battle among the adventurers.
• Luo Zhiyuan killed more than fifty adventurers with his Lightning Shuttle and used Soul Fusion Technique on several domain users, causing the survivors to flee.
• Luo Zhiyuan excavated the three Radiance Stones and noted that he had completed half his required amount.
• Luo Zhiyuan turned toward a hidden observer and called on them to come out and chat.

Luo Zhiyuan met Ai Chen, a talented Mengluo Wing Race cultivator, and demonstrated that his mastery of the Laws of Light and Time let him find her and create two real figures. Ai Chen offered him six Radiance Stones in exchange for ten fights, and Luo Zhiyuan agreed before recognizing her name.

• Ai Chen appeared using the Light Imperial Technique, and Luo Zhiyuan explained that he had detected her with both a Detector and his understanding of the Laws of Light and Time.
• Luo Zhiyuan demonstrated his Time Flow technique, creating two real figures and surprising Ai Chen.
• Ai Chen challenged Luo Zhiyuan to fight her, then offered six Radiance Stones in exchange for ten matches.
• Luo Zhiyuan accepted the stones and exchanged Virtual Universe contact details with Ai Chen, who introduced herself as a member of the Mengluo Wing Race.
• Luo Zhiyuan recognized Ai Chen's name and realized who she was.

Luo Zhiyuan fought Ai Chen in the Virtual Universe’s Killing Field, and she proved able to withstand his powerful techniques. He then revealed a higher level of Time Flow, leaving Ai Chen facing ten versions of him at once.

• Luo Zhiyuan challenged Ai Chen to a Battle Space match and used Godly Evasion to attack her with a hundred illusions, but Ai Chen’s Light Domain let her locate his real body and repel his assaults.
• Luo Zhiyuan used Time Flow to create a Historical Phantom, and Ai Chen countered their attacks with a technique that combined defense and offense.
• Luo Zhiyuan escalated to two enormous Light Shuttles and thirty-six guard blades, trapping Ai Chen in a cocoon of light until she unleashed her full Law Comprehension and broke free.
• Luo Zhiyuan suggested ending the match, but Ai Chen demanded that he use his full strength and defeat her.
• Luo Zhiyuan warned Ai Chen that she was about to see a higher level of Time Flow, then created nine Historical Phantoms so ten versions of him could attack with Light Shuttles.

Luo Zhiyuan defeated Ai Chen in their sparring match, then left the Suonsai Secret Realm and headed back to Qingyu Planet. On the journey, he learned that Xu Xin was about to give birth to his twin younger brothers, easing his worries about changing the future History Trajectory.

• Ai Chen charged Luo Zhiyuan again, but his ten Lightning Shuttle attacks broke through her defense and sent her out of the Battle Space.
• Bulieni explained to Luo Zhiyuan that changing Ai Chen's History Trajectory would be unlikely to bring consequences on him, and Luo Zhiyuan invited her to spar again.
• Luo Zhiyuan told Ai Chen he was returning to Radiance City, then traveled back and gave Nizade a Radiance Stone as a memento.
• Luo Zhiyuan returned to Radiance City, declined to sell his Radiance Stones, and boarded a ship for Qingyu Planet.
• Luo Zhiyuan learned that Xu Xin was due to give birth to twin boys soon and realized their birth would preserve Luo Feng's descendants in the future.

Luo Zhiyuan arranged to send his family a rare supplement to improve their constitutions, then bought a stronger weapon and went with Ai Chen to her family’s private training grounds for another fight. He left poised to test whether Ai Chen had learned from their previous battle.

• Luo Zhiyuan arranged for mercenaries to deliver Secret Realm Spirit Marrow and Zhenshui to Luo Feng, warning him to keep the treasure secret and explaining how the family could use it.
• Luo Feng accepted the supplement for the family, while Babata explained its immense value and urged Luo Feng to train harder than his son.
• Luo Zhiyuan discussed his limitations with Bulieni, bought the light-element Fifth-Order Psionic Weapon Yaori, and learned its third combat form in the Time Chamber.
• Ai Chen teleported Luo Zhiyuan to Dream Island, her Mengluo Wing Race family’s private training grounds, to avoid leaving records in the Battle Space.
• Ai Chen said she had absorbed the lessons from their last battle, and Luo Zhiyuan welcomed the chance to fight her again.

The Seventh Elder, Bai Laoqi, learned that Luo Zhiyuan had defeated Ai Chen and watched their match with Qika, who decided to recruit Zhiyuan into the Virtual Universe Company. After seeing how the fight had helped Ai Chen improve, Bai Laoqi planned to arrange more matches between Zhiyuan and the clan’s disciples.

• A message told Bai Laoqi that Ai Chen had fought Luo Zhiyuan again, and he reviewed Zhiyuan’s background and recent trip to the Suonsai Secret Realm.
• Bai Laoqi asked Qika for the match footage, and the two watched Zhiyuan and Ai Chen display their mastery of the Laws of Light and Time.
• Zhiyuan revealed ten copies of himself and overwhelmed Ai Chen, prompting Qika to recognize his extraordinary talent and arrange for a subordinate to recruit him into the Virtual Universe Company.
• Bai Laoqi watched the match again and noticed Ai Chen’s Law control had improved since their previous fight.
• Bai Laoqi decided to arrange more matches between Zhiyuan and the clan’s promising disciples, while charging him to use their training grounds.

Luo Zhiyuan endured the Time Chamber’s thousandfold time distortion and advanced his comprehension of the Law of Time, while his Shadow Race Clone practiced combat techniques. His cultivation was interrupted when a Peak World Lord from Ai Chen’s clan attacked his manor, and Ai Chen confirmed the attacker’s affiliation but knew nothing about his motive.

• Luo Zhiyuan chose to improve his comprehension of the laws before studying more secret techniques and went to sample restaurants in Qingyi City.
• Bulieni put Luo Zhiyuan’s main body through the Time Chamber’s thousandfold time distortion, and Luo endured it after three days of training his will.
• Luo Zhiyuan’s main body began comprehending the Law of Time in the chamber while his Shadow Race Clone cultivated combat techniques outside.
• A Mengluo Wing Race Peak World Lord attacked Luo Zhiyuan’s manor while Luo was fighting Ai Chen in the Virtual Universe, forcing him to pause their match.
• Luo Zhiyuan showed Ai Chen a screenshot of the intruder, and she identified him as a member of the ruler’s clan but said she did not know why he had attacked.

Luo Zhiyuan survived an attack by a Mengluo Wing Race assassin and learned that the clan had not ordered the attack. After secretly tracking the attacker, he discovered that an unknown master had sent him to kill Luo Zhiyuan, leaving him wondering who was behind the plot.

• Luo Zhiyuan asked Ai Chen and the Seventh Elder whether the Mengluo Wing Race had ordered the attack, and the Seventh Elder confirmed it was an individual act.
• Luo Zhiyuan had Bulieni use the Machine Race Spaceship’s weapons against the attacker, who withdrew when Qingyu Planet’s Public Security Bureau experts arrived.
• The Seventh Elder offered to send Mengluo Wing Race disciples to spar with Luo Zhiyuan, while Luo Zhiyuan sent his Shadow Race Clone to follow the attacker.
• Luo Zhiyuan’s Shadow Race Clone followed the attacker into space and heard him report his failed assassination attempt to his master.
• The attacker self-destructed along with his spaceship, killing Luo Zhiyuan’s clone, and Luo Zhiyuan realized he was the target of an unknown master’s assassination plot.

After an assassination attempt, Luo Zhiyuan improved his escape options by creating an Xingshuo incarnation and resumed cultivation while preparing for future danger. Two years later, he and Ai Chen saw the announcement for the Cosmic Humans—Peak Genius Competition.

• Luo Zhiyuan considered who might have arranged the attack and followed Bulieni's advice to seek a soul-bearing clone candidate among the Xingshuo.
• Luo Zhiyuan created an Xingshuo incarnation, discovered its Teleportation and Lie Kong techniques, and used it to advance his Space Law training.
• Luo Zhiyuan and Bulieni decided he would avoid the Killing Field, cultivate in the Time Chamber, and spar with the Mengluo Wing Race on Dream Island.
• Luo Zhiyuan spent two years cultivating with his different bodies and incarnations, sparring with the Mengluo Wing Race, and improving the Shadow Divine Weapon to its fourth level.
• On March 9, 2066, Luo Zhiyuan and Ai Chen saw the announcement for the Cosmic Humans—Peak Genius Competition.

Luo Zhiyuan and Ai Chen registered for the Cosmic Humans—Peak Genius Competition, then prepared for its Xuanyi Universe Kingdom selection. When the Preliminary Elimination began, Luo Zhiyuan entered his assigned virtual world and swiftly killed nearly a thousand nearby contestants with the Divine Illusion Bead.

• Luo Zhiyuan and Ai Chen read the tournament rules, registered, and challenged each other to show their strength in the competition.
• Luo Zhiyuan told Luo Feng he had registered; Luo Feng said he and his two uncles had signed up and hoped to meet him in the Peak Finals.
• Registration closed with 835.2 billion contestants in the Xuanyi Universe Kingdom, and Luo Zhiyuan reviewed the elimination rules while awaiting the selection.
• At the start of the Preliminary Elimination, Luo Zhiyuan equipped his Divine Illusion Bead and Light Wings before being teleported to a barren virtual world.
• Luo Zhiyuan unleashed the Divine Illusion Bead's strengthened Spiritual Force, incapacitating nearly a thousand contestants within ten kilometers.

Luo Zhiyuan used his soul attacks and time-based Light Wing technique to sweep through the virtual world, rising to first place in the Preliminary Elimination. As the contest neared its end, he had secured a spot for the Xuanyi Universe Kingdom and earned the nickname “Ten Phantoms,” while its leaders recognized his extraordinary talent.

• Luo Zhiyuan killed 986 opponents with one Soul-Extinguishing Arrow, then began building a Nine Mountains soul defense while searching for areas with more people.
• Luo Zhiyuan entered a skyscraper full of battle zones and silently defeated hundreds with controlled Soul-Extinguishing Arrows; a three-eyed man resisted one attack and escaped.
• Luo Zhiyuan swept through more than a dozen skyscrapers, then used his Light Wings to create nine copies and attack ten buildings at once.
• Spectators reported Luo Zhiyuan’s unusual combat technique, and Immortal experts—including Bai Laoqi—recognized his talent and passed his profile to the Xuanyi Universe Kingdom’s leaders.
• Luo Zhiyuan cleared much of the city and reached first place, then traveled through every city; with two days left in the elimination, his score was more than three times the runner-up’s and he had secured a qualifying spot.

Luo Zhiyuan stopped fighting during the final days of the Preliminary Elimination and still finished first in the Xuanyi Universe Kingdom, advancing directly to the Peak Finals. The ruler rewarded him with Qingyu Planet and a nearby star system, while the Seventh Elder secretly arranged guards to protect him.

• Luo Zhiyuan hypnotized a Qingyu native who challenged him, then waited on a rooftop as the Preliminary Elimination ended with sleeping contestants behind him.
• The Virtual Universe Company announced Luo Zhiyuan had placed first in the Xuanyi Universe Kingdom and advanced directly to the Peak Finals; he told Ai Chen he had ranked first while she had ranked fourth.
• The Seventh Elder told Luo Zhiyuan that the ruler had watched his fights, praised his talent, awarded him Qingyu Planet and a nearby star system, and named Bolan as a rival for the tournament's overall first place.
• Luo Zhiyuan explained that he had stopped earning points because he had already secured first place and did not want to kill people who provoked him.
• After Luo Zhiyuan left, the Seventh Elder ordered ten Peak World Lord clan members to protect him near his estate and capture a person whose image he provided.

Luo Zhiyuan reviewed the training of Luo Feng, Hong, and Thunder God, then spent four years training in seclusion while surviving repeated assassination attempts from the Machine Race and other foreign enemies. As he prepared to assemble for the Genius Tournament finals, Bulieni advised him to conceal some of his abilities and save his Innate Secret Technique as a trump card.

• Luo Zhiyuan had Bulieni analyze Luo Feng, Hong, and Thunder God's training videos and passed along advice to improve their fighting techniques.
• Luo Zhiyuan became a hands-off lord of his star system and studied videos of the Genius Tournament's strongest contestants with Bulieni.
• Bulieni discovered that the Machine Race was trying to infiltrate Luo Zhiyuan's manor, and warned him that foreign races might assassinate him.
• Luo Zhiyuan stayed inside and trained for four years as repeated attacks killed guards and a Machine Race Spaceship destroyed the mountain above his residence.
• The Seventh Elder revealed that the country lord had secretly sent guards to protect Luo Zhiyuan from assassination attempts, including attacks by powerful Illusionists.
• Before the finals assembly, Bulieni advised Luo Zhiyuan to rely on his Illusionist methods first, reveal stronger abilities only as needed, and keep his Innate Secret Technique hidden.

Luo Zhiyuan told Luo Feng that foreign races had repeatedly tried to assassinate him, and they agreed to keep their relationship secret to protect Earth. At the Peak Finals gathering, Luo Zhiyuan met geniuses from across the universe and ended up facing off verbally with Bolan.

• Luo Zhiyuan told Luo Feng that his performance had put him on foreign-race assassination lists and that he had survived more than ten attempts.
• Luo Feng urged his son to stay safe, and they agreed to pretend not to know each other until Luo Zhiyuan reached the Virtual Universe Company's core disciple ranks.
• Luo Zhiyuan joined Ai Chen and the Xuanyi Universe Kingdom's geniuses for the Peak Finals gathering, where Lord Ronghuo led them to the contestants' residence.
• Ai Chen pulled Luo Zhiyuan around the plaza to meet other contestants, including Rong Jun, Jiang Mo, Qianshui, Wuka, and Galesi.
• Bolan challenged Luo Zhiyuan to a future fight, and Luo Zhiyuan replied that Bolan had stolen his line.

Luo Zhiyuan and Bolan emerged as the tournament’s two standout talents before Nine Swords Venerable announced the elimination rules for the Peak Genius Competition. The trials began, and Luo Zhiyuan entered the first Trial Tower intending to pace himself like Luo Feng.

• Luo Zhiyuan dismissed Bolan’s arrogance, while Ai Chen admitted that the Clan Ancestor had named them the tournament’s two greatest talents and vowed to surpass Luo Zhiyuan.
• Nine Swords Venerable assembled the million-plus participants and announced that the top 100 would enter the Virtual Universe Company’s core ranks, while others would compete for a limited number of remaining places or be eliminated.
• The next day, Luo Zhiyuan and Ai Chen wished each other luck before the Virtual Universe Company transported the participants to separate trial planes.
• Luo Zhiyuan reviewed the seven towers’ scoring and survival rules and decided to prolong his trial rather than finish early and wait.
• Luo Zhiyuan equipped his Light Wings, Telekinetic Weapon, and battle armor, then entered the first Trial Tower.