Nine Flame Kingdom Lord

Virtual Universe, Nine Flame Sacred Land region.

Inside an exquisitely decorated luxury restaurant.

"Time flies so fast; the Peak Warrior Tournament starts in just one year," the chubby Cohen said while picking up a massive piece of roasted meat from his plate and taking a bite.

"And in a month, the Nine Flame Kingdom Lord himself will be visiting our Sacred Land."

"Hmph, to battle against geniuses from the entire universe!"

Resk, sitting next to him, had a frame like a wall. He pinched a delicate wine glass between two fingers of his massive hand and downed it in one gulp.

"Indeed, time is limited. If I had another thousand years, I should be able to pass the C-Rank Assessment."

The dignified blue-haired girl sitting across from Cohen spoke with a hint of regret, then looked at the figure beside her and said, "I really envy you, getting the chance to receive personal guidance from the Kingdom Lord."

Lin Yuan smiled at the three of them without a word, poured himself a glass of wine, and took a slow sip.

Over the past two hundred years, Lin Yuan had occasionally shared drinks with the chubby Cohen.

As for Resk, he frequently sought out Lin Yuan to spar in the Arena, and despite being beaten over and over, he remained tireless. Seeing his perseverance, and although he was a bit simple-minded, Lin Yuan realized he wasn't a bad person and gradually came to regard him as a friend.

Ling, currently ranked fourth among the Universe Level students in the Sacred Land, had known Cohen for a while. After the last Ranking Tournament, the group had eaten together a few times, and their relationship had gradually grown closer.

This meal had originally included an invitation for Brian, but he had politely declined. The chubby Cohen had spat at the time, "That Brian really has a huge ego!"

Usually, the group never saw a shadow of Brian in the Sacred Land. He was, after all, a genius with a King level immortal personally guiding him within his family; he rarely even attended the standard courses of the Sacred Land.

"By the way, I heard something from my ancestor," the chubby Cohen suddenly put down his food, his expression turning serious.

"That remote Nanhu Universe Kingdom hasn't had a single person enter the top 1,000 in the Genius Tournament or the Warrior Tournament for several epochs. But this time, a genius with extremely high talent has emerged."

"Oh? How strong is this 'extremely high' talent?" Ling became interested the moment she heard this.

"It is said that this genius has an incredibly high affinity for the Law of Time Origin and a very deep understanding of it. Even at the Star Level, he had already touched upon a trace of the essence of the law," the chubby Cohen said.

"According to my ancestor, this person's comprehension of the Law of Time Origin is even a notch higher than Brian's comprehension of the Law of Space Origin!"

"That powerful? I've only managed to comprehend a trace of the Law of Space Origin," Ling said.

"Well, you're still better than me. With your strength, making it into the top 100 should be no problem, and the same goes for Barry. As for me, it'll depend on luck," the chubby Cohen said, feeling a bit discouraged.

Deeper comprehension than Brian? Lin Yuan pondered to himself.

In the few years since I obtained the Storm Ruins Spirit Clone, my comprehension of the Law of Space Origin has been steadily improving. It has now reached the level of comprehension Brian had when I first participated in the Ranking Tournament.

The current Lin Yuan could also manifest hundreds of Phantom Body images and had mastered the "Hundred Shadow Steps" in terms of movement techniques.

However, the depth of his comprehension certainly couldn't compare to the current Brian, let alone that genius from the Nanhu Universe Kingdom.

Still, there is one year left until the Warrior Tournament, and the tournament will likely last for four or five years. I still have time to continue improving!

At this moment, Lin Yuan spoke up, breaking the slightly dull atmosphere: "Don't think too much. Let's be optimistic. We will definitely all make it into the top 1,000 in the universe. Once we enter the core layer, there will be more opportunities to climb higher."

"There's no point in worrying so much right now. All we need to do is cultivate with everything we've got."

The three of them nodded in agreement.

After a few more drinks, the three of them logged off and left the Virtual Universe.

Lin Yuan, however, headed alone toward a quiet manor in the Sacred Land region.

The gate opened automatically, and Lin Yuan stepped inside.

"Mentor!" Lin Yuan bowed respectfully.

"You're here." Mentor Moke's expression was as stern as ever.

"As we agreed, you can start your demonstration in my training ground."

"Yes, sir. Sorry for the trouble." With that, Lin Yuan took out the Burning Universe Flame Wild Axe.

The Burning Universe Flame Wild Axe had nine stages: "Star Fire," "Scorching Flow," "Burning Sky," "Long Rainbow Rending Sky," "Space Compression," "Flame World," "One Axe Slashes Heaven and Earth," "Ash Extinguishing Void," and "Immortal Can Also Be Defeated."

Lin Yuan had not yet fully mastered the fourth stage, "Long Rainbow Rending Sky." He decided to first have Mentor Moke clarify the mysteries of the Law of Fire Origin contained in this move, and then he would ask the Kingdom Lord about issues regarding the Law of Space Origin.

Lin Yuan had been struggling to decide which move to ask the Nine Flame Kingdom Lord about. After much thought, he decided it was better to ask about the strongest move he had a chance of mastering in the short term.

Lin Yuan gripped the Giant Axe with both hands, his gaze calm, and took a deep breath.

"Hah!"

Suddenly, flames erupted across Lin Yuan's entire body. He exerted force and slashed forward at an incredible speed. In an instant, Lin Yuan's figure appeared in the distance, leaving a long rainbow trail behind him that lingered for several seconds before slowly dissipating.

"Hmm, not bad. Your application of the Law of Fire Origin is already very proficient, but you are still some distance away from fully mastering this move. Watch closely..."

Mentor Moke carefully explained the mysteries of the Law of Fire Origin related to the "Long Rainbow Rending Sky" move that Lin Yuan had just performed. Lin Yuan firmly etched Mentor Moke's explanation and demonstration into his mind.

One month later.

On the massive plaza of the Nine Flame Sacred Land, 100,000 Universe Level students were waiting quietly.

Beside the students, more than a dozen immortals, including Marquis Yuankun and Moke, stood respectfully.

The entire plaza was deathly silent; no one dared to speak casually.

Suddenly, a red-robed figure appeared directly above the plaza.

Lin Yuan looked up to see a middle-aged man who appeared extremely dignified; he had two horns on his head and a handsome face, his gaze sharp as a blade, piercing straight into the soul.

The figure in the red robe was clearly hovering above the plaza, yet he seemed to exist in a different space-time than everyone else present.

Boom!

The Universe Level students on the plaza knelt to the ground one after another, while the Immortals nearby all bowed in unison.

"Kingdom Lord!" more than a dozen Immortals said while bowing.

"Over these long years, you have all cultivated many geniuses for my Nine Flames Universe Kingdom; you have worked hard," the red-robed man said in a majestic voice.

"This is our duty, Lord Kingdom Lord," the Immortals replied respectfully.

The red-robed man nodded slightly, then turned his gaze toward the Universe Level students kneeling on the ground: "Everyone, raise your heads."

The students lifted their heads one after another, gazing up at the figure in mid-air.

"You are the future of my Nine Flames Universe Kingdom, and the future of our human race."

This opening line was something he said to the geniuses of every generation.

"In this year's Peak Warrior Tournament, my Nine Flames Universe Kingdom has been allotted one hundred thousand slots, and I hope you can secure seventy percent of them!"

The voice of the Nine Flame Kingdom Lord was deep and resonant, echoing throughout the entire Nine Flame Sacred Land.