Ming Yu

The Killing Field's main hall.

Yin Congyang was resting alone in a corner. "It's been half a month. I started at Planetary Level Two, and I've already fought my way up to Planetary Level Nine. Isn't that enough to get his attention? This is getting tricky..."

Every day for the past half month, he had spent half his time challenging all kinds of opponents in Battle Space. Whenever he had an insight, he would head to Killing Space to test it against a customized opponent. He spent the rest of his time cultivating. With the help of Green Wave Marrow, his progress had been swift. In just half a month, he was close to reaching the peak of Planetary Level Two.

His use of Gold-Water Mutual Generation had grown increasingly skillful. The two elements were almost perfectly integrated.

"Beep." A challenge request appeared on the screen in front of him. It was from a Planetary Level Nine fighter, but the fighter had only a five-star rating. The note said that he possessed a Domain.

Yin Congyang was about to decline when a thought struck him. Could this be a test arranged by Ming Yu? He reached out and accepted.

"Whoosh!"

Yin Congyang was transported straight into Battle Space. A young swordsman in white robes stood with his hands behind his back. When Yin Congyang appeared, the swordsman studied him carefully, then thrust out his sword and shot toward him.

Yin Congyang immediately sensed that this opponent was unlike the ones he had faced before. He was far more imposing. Although the swordsman hadn't unleashed his Domain, Yin Congyang was certain he possessed one.

Yin Congyang brought out his axe techniques and fought back. His axe skills were certainly profound, but his opponent's swordplay was just as exquisite. Backed by the strength of Planetary Level Nine, the swordsman alternated between broad, forceful strikes and strange, tricky attacks. Their mastery of their respective weapons was about even, but the opponent's basic strength was far greater. After dozens of exchanges, Yin Congyang had no choice but to unleash his Domain of Gold. Only then did he escape his disadvantage and begin to suppress his opponent.

The young swordsman in white immediately unleashed his own Domain. It was a Domain of Thunder. This Domain greatly increased the speed of his footwork and swordplay, and he gradually began suppressing Yin Congyang again.

Yin Congyang grew more spirited as the fight went on. He unleashed both his Domain of Gold and his Domain of Water, then laughed. "Now this is a good fight! I've fought over a thousand battles in Battle Space, and no one's been as strong as you. This is great! Come again..."

The young swordsman shouted back, "I never expected to meet an opponent like you in the Killing Field either. If you were Planetary Level Nine, I'd have lost already. Too bad you're not. To comprehend dual-law Domains at Planetary Level Two is truly extraordinary..."

They had fought back and forth for so long, yet neither had gained the upper hand. Their mastery was comparable, but Yin Congyang's Domain was more profound while his opponent's basic strength was greater.

"Lumberjack, it looks like neither of us can win today. How about we call this a draw?"

Yin Congyang's fighting spirit soared. "I've just comprehended a new move. If you can block it, I'll concede!"

The gold-and-blue Domain around him suddenly contracted, drawing close to his body. A faint gold-and-blue light shimmered across the Heaven-Opening Axe in his hands. He unleashed Wu Gang Cuts the Laurel, a swift, peerless strike that followed an enigmatic trajectory toward the young swordsman.

The young swordsman did everything he could to block the Heaven-Opening Axe with his sword. But the axe blade knocked it aside with a slight deflection, and the sword flew away as if it had been struck by lightning. He was stunned. He tried to retreat, but he couldn't escape the reach of the axe technique.

Gritting his teeth, he abandoned his sword and thrust both palms toward Yin Congyang's chest, hoping to trade injury for injury. But his hands struck Yin Congyang's chest as if it were a bottomless lake. Nine-tenths of the force was dissipated, while the remaining tenth hit him like a steel plate, leaving both his hands numb from the impact.

Yin Congyang used his Domain to withstand the two blows. His Heaven-Opening Axe swept from the opponent's left shoulder to his right abdomen, cutting him in half like a tree...

Lumberjack, 1,678 wins, 0 losses.

After leaving Battle Space, Yin Congyang felt he had gained a great deal. His understanding of how to use his Domain had deepened, and he had even gained a hazy sense of the Laws of Gold and Water.

Then he received calls from Luo Feng and Thunder God.

The Killing Field's main hall.

Beneath the blood-red ceiling, Luo Feng and Thunder God sat facing each other in a corner, their expressions bitter.

Yin Congyang and Hong, dressed in black and brimming with confidence, walked over. Seeing the two of them, Yin Congyang couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong? You two look a little down."

"I lost," Luo Feng said with a shake of his head.

"Me too." Thunder God rallied his spirits. "You two look like you're in a great mood."

"Haha, I ran into a really strong opponent," Hong said happily. "Of the several hundred battles I've fought, that was the strongest one. What a great fight!"

Yin Congyang nodded. "Same here. Looks like some faction may have sent them to test us after seeing what we can do..."

The others immediately realized he could be right.

Just then, a staff member from the Killing Field came over and said, "Gentlemen, the owner of one of the Meditation Rooms upstairs would like you to come up for a chat."

The four exchanged glances. They all understood that their earlier guess had probably been right. Now that the test was over, they were being recruited.

"Please lead the way."

The four followed the staff member up the stairs to the second floor. It resembled a beautiful, quiet maze, with Meditation Rooms scattered throughout.

They soon reached the door of one of the rooms, and the staff member raised a hand to knock.

"Come in," a deep voice called.

The staff member gently pushed open the door and bowed respectfully to the person inside. "Sir, they're here." Then he withdrew.

The four stepped into the Meditation Room. A burly man of immense stature stood inside. On the left breast of his battle robe was a medal, its emblem depicting two planets floating above a surging Blood Sea.

A Universe Two-Star Mercenary! The four were stunned. What did that represent? At the very least, this man was a Domain Lord. He might even be a World Lord!

They respectfully bowed. "Greetings, sir!"

The burly man waved a hand to tell them not to stand on ceremony. "You four have been at the Killing Field for half a month. Since you arrived, you've fought at least a hundred battles every day. Am I right?"

The four dutifully nodded.

"But I don't understand. You're all highly talented. Why are you wasting time in the Killing Field? Coming here occasionally can provide training, verification, and the benefits of having a teacher. But it can't reproduce the effect of fighting for your life. In Killing Space and Battle Space, you can die and be revived in an instant. This is the Virtual Universe. Your lives can't sense the threat of death, so it can't promote your evolution."

"There's tremendous terror in life-and-death struggles, but also boundless motivation. That's why countless strong fighters take risks and fight for their lives. When faced with true death, life unleashes a struggle from its deepest core!"

"The Giant Axe Dojo is a brutal place. In every life-or-death battle, one side must die. And yet it remains incredibly popular, because taking risks and fighting for your life is one of the fastest ways to evolve. How many strong fighters have never been through a life-or-death battle? Some even seek out such fights specifically to temper themselves!"

He looked at them. "So I'm puzzled. Why are you wasting your time at the Killing Field?"

Hong, Thunder God, and Luo Feng all understood. Hong murmured to himself, "No wonder I still haven't managed to break through, even after all those battles..."

Thunder God and Luo Feng's eyes lit up as well. Luo Feng even questioned Babata in his mind...

Yin Congyang rolled his eyes inwardly. He had known all of this, of course, but hadn't told his three brothers. It was the same old principle: unless you experienced something for yourself, no matter how much someone told you, it would be like scratching an itch through a boot. You wouldn't truly understand. There was no need to rush to spell out something so harmless.

Besides, he had urged them to enter the Killing Field to attract attention. That was the only way to bring Ming Yu out early and give himself a chance to join the Virtual Universe Company.

He had calculated that the Genius Tournament was only a few years away. At his current cultivation speed, it would be difficult to break through to Star Level before it began. Even if he got lucky and broke through, he wouldn't have enough time to build a solid foundation, making it unlikely he'd go all the way in the tournament.

Just look at Luo Feng, Hong, and Thunder God's performances in the Genius Tournament a few years later. Hong and Thunder God were undeniably talented, but they had only recently broken through to Star Level. Without time to build a foundation, they hadn't even made it into the top thousand in the Ganwu Universe Kingdom.

Luo Feng had made the top thousand for one reason: he had bought a Yan Shen Armament at an auction and trained with it for several years before the tournament began. More importantly, his consciousness was at Universe Level. The Golden Horned Behemoth only began to show its strength after reaching Universe Level. It naturally possessed a Domain and had gained some comprehension of the Laws of Gold, as well as a rudimentary understanding of the Law of Space. It had crossed the threshold of the Laws.

Even so, Luo Feng was far from invincible in the Ganwu Universe Kingdom qualifiers. Only after three years of fighting in the losers' bracket, and after his second Mo Sha Race body had been successfully nurtured, did his deeper understanding of the Law of Space bring him to roughly the top hundred among the universe's geniuses. It was only after he broke through to Nine-Line Flow in the final selection tournament that he reached the top ten and became strong enough to enter the Primordial Secret Realm.

So Yin Congyang's plan was to display his talent at the Killing Field after entering the universe and catch Man Luo's attention. That way, Man Luo could arrange for Ming Yu to send someone to test him, allowing him to join the Virtual Universe Company as an internal member. Once he was strong enough, he could rise through the internal promotion channels. As long as he was powerful enough, he could still enter the Virtual Universe Company's Core Layer and climb higher step by step.

And in a few months, when Earth faced a crisis, he wanted to see if his status as an internal member of the Virtual Universe Company would let him ask Ming Yu to step in and scare off Nuolanshan.

That was Yin Congyang's plan. At last, he had reached its final step.

The burly man standing before them smiled. "Life-and-death adventures are something every strong fighter must experience. Break through life-and-death trials again and again, surpass yourself again and again—that's the path to becoming strong."

"But before that, I need to remind you of something: the importance of a strong physical foundation!"

"Different bloodlines evolve at different rates. Some people evolve easily when faced with life and death, while others have a much harder time. Some races can reach Star Level, even Universe Level or Domain Lord, simply by reaching adulthood. That's the difference bloodlines make!"

As he spoke, he displayed a table of bloodline grades and asked them what grade their bloodline was.

The four exchanged glances. Hong answered, "Ninth grade."

The burly man looked astonished, unable to believe it. "It's remarkable that a race with a ninth-grade bloodline could produce geniuses like you. I admire you, and I congratulate you."

"Congratulate us?" The four were puzzled.

The burly man laughed. "Haha, I haven't introduced myself yet, have I? I'm an external executive of the Virtual Universe Company's Black Dragon Mountain Branch in the Black Dragon Mountain Empire. My name is Ming Yu. You can call me Mr. Ming Yu or Sir Ming Yu."