Time flew by as Qin Zhao made these extensive preparations. On the Virtual Universe Company's official website, the registration numbers for the various Universe Countries surged like astronomical figures. As an established Universe Country with vast territory and countless geniuses, Noah Universe Country had easily surpassed hundreds of billions of registrants, and the number was still climbing. Nearly every confident Star Level genius in the Cosmic Human race had joined this grand event, held once every ten thousand years.
Qin Zhao occasionally checked the website. As he watched the numbers soar, his gaze grew sharper. The pressure was certainly there, but more than anything, he yearned to cross swords with these geniuses.
The month-long registration period passed in the blink of an eye.
That day, Qin Zhao received an official email from the Virtual Universe Company.
"Master, the Virtual Universe Company has sent the detailed rules for the first stage of the Genius Tournament!" Auxiliary Light Computer "Dabai" promptly notified him.
Qin Zhao connected his consciousness and quickly began reading.
The email clearly explained the rules for the first stage—the "Preliminary Elimination."
All registrants would be assigned to the World Zone belonging to the Universe Country they had listed as their nationality. For example, everyone registered under Noah Universe Country would enter the "Noah World Sector." All 1,008 Universe Countries in the Cosmic Human race would compete simultaneously.
The Preliminary Elimination would take place within each Universe Country's World Zone. Everyone would fight one another, accumulating points by killing their opponents. The higher their score, the higher their ranking. Each World Zone would also display the latest rankings in real time.
The Preliminary Elimination would last a full year!
In the end, the top 1,001 contestants in each Universe Country's World Zone would qualify for the next stage.
"The rules haven't changed," Qin Zhao mused. "I just wonder whether this year's Peak Genius Battle will have any opponents worth fighting."
Though the elimination rate was suffocatingly high, Qin Zhao wasn't particularly worried. After all, the preliminary round couldn't possibly eliminate the true geniuses. What concerned him was that this year's geniuses might not be all that exceptional. Everyone knew that geniuses could serve as yardsticks for one another. But if the Genius Tournament produced only mediocre talents, they would be at an inherent disadvantage in the competition.
At the very moment Qin Zhao received the Virtual Universe Company's email about the Preliminary Elimination rules, another email arrived in his Virtual Universe inbox. It bore the emblem of the Noah Holy Land and radiated an air of authority.
"Master, the Noah Holy Land has issued an urgent summons. All Star Level geniuses in the Virtual Universe Company's Noah Secret Realm, as well as those directly affiliated with the Noah Holy Land, are required to log into the Virtual Universe immediately and gather at 'Noah Sacred Mountain'!" Auxiliary Light Computer "Dabai" said, its voice unusually solemn.
"Finally." Qin Zhao's eyes flashed. He had expected a mobilization meeting like this. As one of the established and powerful Universe Countries in Human Territory, Noah Universe Country couldn't possibly remain silent about an event that concerned its national prestige and future potential.
He connected his consciousness to the Virtual Universe.
The Virtual Universe, a vast plane reserved for Noah Universe Country—Noah Sacred Mountain.
This was a towering mountain suspended amid an endless sea of stars, its immense scale impossible to measure. Its entire body seemed forged from some kind of dark golden divine metal, and vast Law Secret Patterns flowed across its surface, radiating an ancient, desolate aura. On its summit, a gigantic plaza large enough to hold stars was already packed with people.
Young figures appeared across the plaza in dense crowds. A cursory glance put their number at over a million! They were all Star Level elites from the Noah Secret Realm or the various starfields and secret realms under its jurisdiction, trained directly or indirectly by the Holy Land. Each had an extraordinary bearing and keen eyes, their expressions brimming with the pride and confidence unique to geniuses. Now, they stood in silence, gazes fixed fervently on the front of the plaza.
Qin Zhao appeared among them, in a section near the front reserved for members of the "Noah Secret Realm." He could feel countless gazes on him—curious, appraising, combative, and awed. Clearly, word of his undefeated first-place finish in the Noah Secret Realm's Peak Ranking Battle had already spread, making him one of the most closely watched seeded contestants in this year's Genius Tournament.
Dozens of thrones hovered at the front of the plaza, each radiating terrifying pressure. Imposing figures sat upon them, laws swirling around their bodies. Some resembled blazing stars, others unfathomable black holes, and still others ethereal breezes... Even the unconscious aura they emitted made the souls of the hundreds of millions of geniuses below tremble, as if they were facing towering divine mountains they could never surmount.
These were the pillars of Noah Universe Country—Marquis-level Immortals! A few of them even exerted pressure only slightly weaker than that of Qin Zhao's teacher, King Lanchen. They were clearly mighty beings at the King Level!
At the very center of the thrones, on the highest and most magnificent one, sat not a physical body but a hazy mass of light that constantly shifted, as if it contained the birth and destruction of the universe and the turning of time and space. Its appearance was impossible to make out, and even its energy fluctuations were imperceptible. Yet simply by sitting there, he became the absolute center of all Noah Sacred Mountain—and indeed the entire virtual plane.
Everyone gazed at that mass of light with utmost reverence, including the Marquis-level and King-level Immortals. It was the supreme ruler of Noah Universe Country—the Noah Kingdom Lord, a Universe Venerable who had transcended immortality! Even though only a wisp of his consciousness had descended, his power remained unfathomable.
The entire plaza fell silent. Not a sound could be heard.
After a brief pause, the hazy light on the central throne spoke. His calm voice seemed to ring directly in everyone's soul, free of any ostentation yet filled with unquestionable authority:
"The grand event, held once every five thousand years, has begun."
His voice echoed across the vast plaza and in the hearts of hundreds of millions of geniuses.
"You are the finest Star Level elites of this generation in Noah Universe Country. You carry the hopes and honor of our nation."
"The Peak Genius Battle hosted by the Virtual Universe Company is both an opportunity and a battlefield. Countless geniuses will compete. Only the strongest will reach the summit and make their names known throughout the universe."
"I, and Noah Universe Country, have high hopes for you."
There was no stirring exhortation, no lengthy lecture. The Noah Kingdom Lord's voice was as calm as still water, yet it seemed to possess a strange magic that made every genius below feel their heartbeats quicken. Their blood surged through their chests. To be summoned in person by the Noah Kingdom Lord and given his high hopes—what an honor!
"The Preliminary Elimination is only the beginning. I hope that you... can claim more than half of Noah Universe Country's one thousand qualifying spots."
More than half! That meant at least five hundred spots! The Noah Kingdom Lord expected these directly affiliated elites to overwhelm the other geniuses from the countless star systems and ordinary factions across the Universe Country!
"Do not disappoint our nation, and do not... fail to live up to your own potential."
As his words faded, the hazy light on the throne rippled faintly. He said no more, and the next moment, he vanished from the throne like a phantom. The Noah Kingdom Lord had descended simply to make his stance clear and to show these geniuses the highest regard—and apply the greatest pressure.
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