Crowned as a Deity

Just as King Lanchen analyzed, this was precisely Qin Zhao's intention. He knew well that with his current strength, passing the preliminary round was effortless. Since that was the case, why not utilize this long competition format to maximize his gains? He could efficiently accumulate points without delaying his own cultivation. Holding the core area would deter the weak while preventing boring disturbances from interrupting his training.

As Qin Zhao stopped moving and the news gradually spread that he had solidified his desperate Death Domain in the center of the desert, the surviving contestants in World Zone 39, after their initial suspicion and uncertainty, breathed a sigh of relief, followed by ecstasy.

"That Black Prison Reaper has stopped!"

"He has occupied the Sky-Propping Rock Mountain in the center and is no longer hunting!"

"Quick! Stay away from that area! We are safe!"

"The opportunity is here! While he isn't moving, let's hurry and hunt others to accumulate points!"

For a time, World Zone 39, which had seemed deathly silent and oppressive due to Qin Zhao's terrifying deterrence, felt as if it had been injected with a stimulant. Countless geniuses who had been cowering and hiding, afraid to show their faces, began to stir. They carefully bypassed the Death Domain marked as an "absolute forbidden zone" and launched more intense and frequent battles in other parts of the desert and across the various terrains of the world zone.

Various terrifying rumors about Qin Zhao also became increasingly legendary as they were passed down by the survivors.

"Have you heard? In the center of the desert, once that domain opens, not a blade of grass grows for a thousand miles!"

"That's not even the half of it! I saw with my own eyes that several experts who had grasped a trace of the laws joined forces to charge, but they were crushed by an invisible force before they even got within a hundred miles of that rock mountain!"

"It's too terrifying; in his domain, even the soul trembles!"

"That is simply not power a Star Level can possess! He must be a secret weapon of some major power!"

"He sits there like a Deity, looking down at the struggles of us ants..."

Unknowingly, the title of "Black Prison Reaper" was gradually replaced by another, even more awe-inspiring name—"Deity"!

With his peerless, absolute strength and his mysterious behavior of holding the core, Qin Zhao had erected an insurmountable idol in the hearts of all survivors in World Zone 39. Though he did not move, his prestige shrouded the entire competition zone, influencing everyone's actions and mindset.

Yet, the person crowned with the name of "Deity" remained deaf to everything outside. He was completely immersed in a deep realization of the Ten Thousand Line Flow, his consciousness seemingly transforming into thousands of phantoms, weaving through the veins of space, steadily advancing toward a higher realm of the "Ten Thousand Line Flow."

At the summit of the rock mountain, sand and wind howled, yet they could not come within three feet of him. He sat there quietly, waiting for the moment the "fat sheep" were fattened, and waiting for the opportunity for his own strength to take another leap.

Soon, ten days passed.

At the summit of the rock mountain, Qin Zhao opened his eyes right on time. After ten days of silent meditation, the spatial ripples that had previously fluctuated around him had completely retracted, yet his eyes were increasingly profound, as if they contained the overlapping shadows of countless spaces. His understanding of the Ten Thousand Line Flow movement technique had progressed further; although he was still a long way from the "Ten Thousand Line Flow," he had become more proficient and refined in his use of the "Hundred Line Flow," with his instantaneous bursts and trajectory changes both elevated to a new level.

The data on his panel had also updated along with Qin Zhao's progress.

[Secret Technique: 128 Martial Arts Secret Techniques (Perfected), Shockwave (Perfected), Earth Pulse Guard (Perfected), Ten Thousand Line Flow (Minor Success 75%), Black Stone Prison (Major Success 65%)]

[Insights: Earth-style Laws (Earth Element 100%, Pulse of the Earth 100%, Gravity Space 100%, Force of Life 25%), Law of Space (Teleportation 5.0%)]

"I've waited ten days; it's time to move a little."

Qin Zhao's gaze swept over the screen on his arm. Due to his ten days of quiet cultivation, his ranking had slipped to 87th in World Zone 39. Although his points were still considerable, it was clear that the fighting in other areas was exceptionally intense, and the top geniuses' points were growing rapidly.

He did not care about the temporary drop in ranking; instead, a cold arc curled at the corner of his mouth. The "fat sheep" he had been raising for ten days were ready for harvest. He could feel that on the edge of the Black Stone Prison solidified below, there were occasionally figures with not-so-weak auras tentatively approaching, only to quickly retreat. Clearly, not everyone had been content to stay away during these ten days; there were always some who relied on their own strength or held onto wishful thinking, wanting to try their luck.

With a thought, the Nine Black Stone Cores embedded in the rock mountain that maintained the solidified domain trembled slightly. The Black Stone Prison, which had been stably covering a radius of a thousand kilometers, began to slowly shrink like a receding tide. This was not withdrawing the domain, but further concentrating its power. The coverage area shrank to a radius of about three hundred kilometers, but the gravity chaos and soul pressure within that range increased several times over! This made the core forbidden zone even more dangerous and lethal!

At the same time, Qin Zhao's figure vanished from the summit of the rock mountain.

The next moment, he appeared like a ghost above a sand valley on the edge of the shrunken Black Stone Prison. Below, seven contestants had formed a temporary squad. They emitted strong energy fluctuations, and at least all of them had touched the threshold of the laws. The burly man leading them even faintly exuded the aura of a domain. They seemed to have just joined forces to wipe out a small faction and were resting, while also staring intently in the direction of the solidified Death Domain in the distance, discussing something in low voices.

"...The news is correct; that "Deity" hasn't moved for ten days, and his points haven't risen much either."

"Hmph, putting on a show! Maybe he consumed too much before and is recovering!"

"That's right, the seven of us joined together, three have grasped the laws, and Boss, you even have a domain; we might not be unable to rush in and see!"

"If we can catch him off guard and kill him... those massive points will be ours!"

Just as they were discussing, their hearts occupied by greed and wishful thinking—

"Oh? You want to kill me?"

A flat voice sounded abruptly above their heads.

The seven looked up in horror to see Qin Zhao already suspended in the air, his black robe fluttering slightly in the dry wind, his eyes looking down at them indifferently, as if watching a few ants.

"He's out! Form up!" The burly man reacted the fastest, roaring as an earthy-yellow domain instantly expanded. Although it was far less vast than the Black Stone Prison, it barely covered a hundred meters, attempting to resist any incoming attack. The other six also used their own methods, drawing weapons and channeling mental power, instantly forming an offensive and defensive battle formation. Their reaction was not slow.

However, facing their readiness, Qin Zhao only slowly raised his right hand and pressed it gently downward toward the area where they stood.

"Hum--!"

There was no earth-shattering roar, only a dull groan of space. Centered on the seven-man squad, the space within a radius of several thousand meters seemed to suddenly solidify and then collapse inward violently! It was not a simple increase in gravity, but a compression and distortion at the level of space itself!

The seven men's faces turned pale instantly. The burly man's earthy-yellow domain shattered like fragile glass, and he himself spat out a mouthful of blood. The other six couldn't even scream; under that irresistible spatial crushing, their bodies were like clay figurines squeezed by an invisible giant hand, instantly turning into seven clouds of blood mist. Along with their weapons and everything else, they were completely annihilated!

The points on Qin Zhao's arm screen jumped instantly, increasing by seven significant figures. These seven had clearly gained quite a bit over the last ten days, but now they had made a wedding dress for Qin Zhao.

He didn't even glance at the dissipating blood mist; his figure blurred again, as if merging into the wind, and the next moment he appeared tens of kilometers away, at another location where the aura of strong individuals fluctuated.