The Prize in the Wager

"Heh, these little ones are learning quite diligently!"

In the control room, the four-horned man grinned, causing the black demonic patterns on his face to wrinkle into a chaotic mess.

Seeing their earnest study, the four-horned man was reminded of his own past. He, too, had been unwilling to bow to fate, desiring to become a powerhouse and possess supreme status and vast wealth.

Alas...

"The Prison Clan trials are still too cruel. Having strength alone doesn't guarantee a breakthrough, let alone for these little ones who lack even that." The four-horned man shook his head, sighed, and turned to ask the black-robed woman with three furry tails beside him, "How are the bets for this trial going?"

"Currently, within the Blood Sun Tribe, the total stakes for the Blood Trial have already exceeded 500 trillion Cosmic Coins."

"The three largest betting pools are set on MX31-003, CKHX-3819, and EBD2-5724, with approximately 420 trillion, 20 trillion, and 15 trillion Cosmic Coins respectively."

"It is estimated that the total stakes for this trial will exceed 1,000 trillion Cosmic Coins, and the funds within those three pools will skyrocket accordingly."

The black-robed woman thought for a moment before speaking directly.

"How could it be so high? For those Domain Lords and Realm Lords, a typical Earth Grade trial usually totals around 100 trillion Cosmic Coins at most—that would already be heaven-defying."

The four-horned man was shocked. The Blood Sun Tribe currently had two Immortals, Lord Blood Sun and Lord Thunder Star, presiding over it. Each Immortal had dozens of Realm Lords assisting them, and there were also three major organizations, each with dozens of Realm Lords, not to mention several large families that possessed Realm Lords.

Yet even so, whenever a trial began, it was considered quite good if everyone's combined bets reached 100 trillion Cosmic Coins.

Why had it increased tenfold this time?

Unless...

"It is because the two Immortals have directly participated in the betting. The Nine Spirits Society, one of the three major organizations, obtained a living second-tier Star Beast, 'Cang', through outside channels. The news leaked, and the Imperial Clans to which those two Immortals belong both found the Nine Spirits Society almost simultaneously, demanding that they sell the Star Beast to one of them."

"To avoid offending either Imperial Clan, the Nine Spirits Society took the Star Beast out after receiving sufficient benefits and placed it as the prize for this Blood Trial. Since the two Immortal Imperial Clans have long-standing grievances and both want to use this betting pool to make the other suffer a heavy loss, the stakes have grown larger and larger."

The black-robed woman answered honestly.

As expected, the four-horned man showed a look of realization.

The higher-ups of the Prison Clan would never allow the Blood Sun Tribe to be dominated by a single faction. Although Lord Blood Sun was powerful and a local force, he was still three parts wary of Lord Thunder Star, who had been appointed by the Prison Clan's higher-ups.

It was said that Lord Thunder Star's true form was a Thunder Wing Giant. Not to mention other aspects, his divine body alone, which stood over a hundred kilometers tall, was incomparable to Lord Blood Sun, whose divine body was less than ten meters tall.

Under the arrangements of the Prison Clan's higher-ups, these two Immortals were locked in open and secret struggles, each wanting to suppress the other in everything.

It was no surprise that the betting pool had become so large.

"A Star Beast... the weakest Star Beast is dozens of kilometers long when fully grown, second-tier ones are hundreds of kilometers, and the strongest can reach over a thousand kilometers. Their Life Gene is ten times that of ordinary life forms. Such a powerful existence, just standing there, would make one feel despair."

The four-horned man was deeply moved. The innate talents of peak-blooded Star Beasts were truly too heaven-defying, enough to surpass 99.9% of all reproductive life forms in the Primordial Universe.

Even a second-tier Star Beast was an excellent choice, whether for Soul Slavery or for Body Possession.

"What are the prizes for the other two pools?" the four-horned man asked curiously.

"The prize for second place is a human woman. She was an incidental item during our Prison Clan's trade with the Bug Clan and passed through several hands before finally arriving at our Blood Sun Tribe. She is only at the third stage of the Sky Grade, yet she already possesses a domain and has made initial contact with the laws. She is a rare human genius, but the human body is too poor. It isn't obvious before reaching the Immortal level, but once she breaks through to Immortal, that bit of divine power will be far from enough."

"The third prize is a seventh-stage Nirvana adult Monster Clan member. Although it is not from an Imperial or Royal clan, it has a huge advantage in terms of its body, standing over ten kilometers tall. In terms of physical advantage alone, it ranks among the top of all Monster Clan tribes, no worse than those Royal or Imperial clans."

The four-horned man nodded in agreement upon hearing the black-robed woman's words.

In the Primordial Universe, life forms with souls are generally stronger than those without, which has indirectly led to many cruel methods such as Soul Slavery and Body Possession.

Among them, humans and the Monster Clan are the two most popular targets.

Because humans possess the Virtual Universe, which covers the entire Primordial Universe, even the most ordinary human runs the risk of being captured. Once enslaved, they are often used as spies or for information exchange among alien races.

Not to mention those human geniuses!

As for the Monster Clan, their massive bodies are perfectly suited for possession by life forms with smaller bodies. However, the more powerful the Monster Clan member, the lower their fertility rate. Furthermore, as a peak race, the Monster Clan protects their weaker members very well, making it difficult for outsiders to perform Body Possession or Soul Slavery.

"Unfortunately, the trial ground we are heading to, CKHX-3819, has been confirmed as the battleground for that human woman. There are too many uncontrollable factors inside."

"If Lord Beiming wishes to participate in the betting, try to avoid this one and the other two. After all, the reason you have been able to walk safely all this way is due to your superior wisdom in not offending either side."

The four-horned man did not speak, merely nodding steadily once more.

Money is not always better the more you earn; sometimes, earning too much money also means offending people.

Although he was a Nirvana-level powerhouse under Lord Blood Sun, with Realm Lords and even Immortals clearly involved in these three trials, he would certainly not risk adding to his bets.

"Consciousness can be divided into will and soul power. My current soul power depends on my Psychic Amplification and the level of my spiritual consciousness. Among the three Soul Arts I have chosen, Soul Confusion is the most suitable for me. If I combine it with my Innate Secret Art..."

Still in that ten-meter-wide hall, Wu Sheng spent his spare time constantly contemplating his current strengths and weaknesses.

Time passed bit by bit as each of them considered how to make themselves stronger.

Those with strong Genetic Primal Force studied how to increase their power output, deciding to follow the path of a warrior.

Those with strong spiritual consciousness studied how to improve it, deciding to follow the path of a controller or illusionist.

Some felt they could not have any shortcomings, so they tried their best to make up for their deficiencies.

Others felt they could still break through to a small realm and were training hard.

Everyone was preparing for the upcoming bloody trial... they all wanted to be among those who survived.

"Hurry up! Everyone who hasn't applied for the Blood Trial, come here to draw lots. Don't dawdle; our equipment can handle 10,000 people drawing lots simultaneously. Once the quota for the Blood Trial is filled, we will restart the lottery for the Cyan Trial."

"Exactly! Anyone who dares to delay further will be directly assigned to the Blood Trial."

"Haha, Kake, that's too harsh! Look at how you've scared these little ones!"

Having just stepped off the circular spacecraft, Wu Sheng saw many Star Grade Prison Clan Members maintaining order, though the vast majority were Planet Grade Prison Clan Members.

This trial ground, designated CKHX-3819, would simultaneously host one Blood Trial, ten Cyan Trials, and at least one hundred Purple Trials.

According to the trial regulations, there would be at least three million Planet Grade Prison Clan Members here, all of whom would participate in a brutal and bloody elimination slaughter.

There were 100 such trial grounds within the Blood Sun Tribe alone.

In other words, within just one tribe governed by an Immortal God, the Prison Clan eliminated 300 million Planet Grade members every century through these trials.

And that didn't even account for the Prison Clan members lost in inter-tribal wars!

When factoring in the subsequent elimination trials for the Star Grade and Cosmic Level, even someone like Wu Sheng, who considered himself a cold-blooded killer, couldn't help but feel his scalp tingle.

Yet, faced with such circumstances, those weaker branches still had to desperately replenish their populations. Once they gave up and failed to provide fresh blood, they would face the risk of total extinction.