Fierce Battle

Lin Yuan could finish ten matches each day in a short amount of time, so he spent most of his time cultivating.

He had yet to be matched against Brian, the number-one-ranked student.

But fighting the top students in the Holy Land had still inspired Lin Yuan, helping him improve his secret technique applications and practical combat skills.

In his 192nd match, Lin Yuan encountered a somewhat troublesome opponent: Ling, the Spirit Reader Controller ranked fourth among the Holy Land's Universe Level students.

She had a deep understanding of the Law of Light Origin and had also grasped a trace of the Law of Time Origin, making her extremely fast. The attacks formed by her Telepathic Weapon were highly unpredictable, even more troublesome than Resk, who was a martial artist.

Relying on his astonishing defensive strength, Lin Yuan had to work hard before he finally won.

After that battle, Lin Yuan gained a rough understanding of the strength levels among the Nine Flame Sacred Land's Universe Level students.

Excluding Lin Yuan himself, at least four people had grasped a trace of a Higher Origin Law: Brian, Resk, Ling, and Cohen.

Barry hadn't grasped a Higher Origin Law, but thanks to his powerful illusion techniques, his true strength was surpassed only by Brian and Lin Yuan.

The students ranked below them had grasped two Lower Origin Laws. There were about two of them, but they had only just begun and hadn't gained much insight.

Below them were the students who had grasped one Lower Origin Law.

The strength of these students showed just how successful the Nine Flames Universe Kingdom was at cultivating geniuses.

Lin Yuan remembered that among the Star Level geniuses who entered the Genius Battle from the Ganwu Universe Kingdom, perhaps only one in each generation could make it into the top thousand in the universe—and sometimes, not even one.

But among the next generation of geniuses from the Nine Flame Sacred Land who would enter the Warrior Battle, at least seven or eight had a chance of making it into the top thousand in the universe. Even if they failed this time, they could try again a few times and still have a chance.

It was clear that the Nine Flame Kingdom Lord placed great importance on cultivating geniuses. The many Law Towers in the Holy Land were the strongest proof.

In his 209th match, Lin Yuan ran into the chubby Cohen. As they had agreed, he let the little chubby boy lose the match with dignity.

Finally, in his 223rd match, Lin Yuan was matched against Brian, the number-one student at the Holy Land in Universe Level.

Lin Yuan had started preparing for this battle well in advance. He had watched the recordings of Brian's battles against the top-ranked students over and over.

Brian used a silver longsword and had a deep understanding of the Law of Space Origin, seemingly having touched upon a trace of its essence. As for the Lower Origin Laws, he had grasped two: the Law of Water Origin and the Law of Wind Origin.

Brian's fighting style was fierce and efficient. In every match, hundreds of Phantom Bodies appeared at once, and a single strike from his silver longsword instantly finished off his opponent.

Virtual Universe, Spectator Hall.

The match between Lin Yuan and Brian was the focus of attention among the Immortals.

The hall was filled with chatter.

"This is the most exciting match in this Holy Land Ranking Tournament."

"Right! After so many tournaments, we've finally got a second person who can beat Barry."

"But if you ask me, Lin Yuan probably can't win. We'll just have to see how long he can last. If he avoids getting instantly killed like the other students, that'll already be impressive."

"Brian is a member of the Desolate God Race. His clan even has a King-level Immortal personally guiding him. I wonder why he didn't stay in the Wild Universe Kingdom to receive their training and instead came to our Nine Flames Universe Kingdom."

"Who knows? Maybe it has something to do with the Lord of the Kingdom."

Nearby, Marquis Yuankun listened to their discussion without paying it any mind.

Although Marquis Yuankun also didn't believe Lin Yuan could defeat Brian this time, he was confident that, given his young apprentice's talent and rate of progress, Lin Yuan would eventually achieve as much as Brian, if not more.

"Teacher, Junior Brother is already very strong. If Brian hadn't come from the Wild Universe Kingdom to our Nine Flames Universe Kingdom, Junior Brother would already be the Holy Land's number one," Marquis Golden Sword said from the side.

"Being number one in the Holy Land doesn't mean anything. Of all those who've ranked first at the Holy Land over the years, how many have become Immortals like you?" Marquis Yuankun said.

"You can't judge the path of cultivation by a single moment. Talent, hard work, and opportunity are all essential. When you teach your own disciples, don't make snap judgments based only on their performance at a given moment."

"Yes, Teacher," Marquis Golden Sword replied respectfully.

In a corner of the Spectator Hall sat an ordinary, burly Military Lord Immortal with fiery red hair. It was none other than Immortal Mentor Moke.

Mentor Moke kept a low profile and didn't join the others' discussion. He sat alone on a couch in the corner, watching the Battle Space where Lin Yuan was.

Of all the Immortals present, Mentor Moke was probably the only one who knew Lin Yuan's true strength.

This match... should be a real fight. Brian doesn't know what Lin Yuan can do, so he might still get caught off guard.

Mentor Moke thought to himself.

Virtual Universe, Battle Space.

On a desolate planet.

Lin Yuan gazed at the figure that had appeared in the distance.

He was a silver-haired young man, about the same height as Lin Yuan. He wore silver armor and held a silver longsword. His skin was dark, his gaze sharp as a blade, and he stared back at Lin Yuan with a calm expression.

The silver-haired young man was Brian, the Holy Land's number-one student at Universe Level.

Neither of them spoke.

The countdown began automatically.

"Three, two, one!"

The battle erupted in an instant!

Brian's figure flickered, splitting into hundreds of Phantom Bodies. Each silver-haired figure looked completely real, silver longsword in hand, as they lunged at Lin Yuan from every direction. They moved so quickly that Lin Yuan could barely make them out.

At the same time, Lin Yuan unleashed his Domain and activated the Earth Tremor secret technique to protect himself, sending out several tightly concentrated, ochre shock waves.

But each shock wave could block only a few Phantom Bodies at most. They couldn't stop Brian's surging attacks.

"Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!"

Hundreds of sword images struck at Lin Yuan at once. The Mountain Phantom protecting him gradually crumbled, on the verge of breaking apart completely.

These attacks are too strong! I can't hold them off!

Lin Yuan was shocked.

"Burning Universe Flame Wild Axe! Appear!"

"Whoosh!"

A dark red giant axe suddenly appeared in Lin Yuan's hand. The moment he gripped it, fierce white flames erupted along its blade.

Students were allowed to bring multiple weapons to the Holy Land Ranking Tournament, but very few did. After all, mastering even one weapon was already difficult.

The silver-haired young man's brows twitched at the sight.

"Scorching Flow!"

Lin Yuan roared and swung the dark red giant axe again and again, sending out wave after wave of blazing flames.

Each flame contained profound insights into the Law of Fire Origin and carried astonishing power. The Phantom Bodies struck by the flames shattered and vanished one after another.

In the blink of an eye, more than half of the hundreds of Phantom Bodies had been destroyed.