End-of-the-World Secret Realm

Standing outside the Heaven-Reaching Tower, Yin Congyang looked up at its towering frame, a smile spreading across his face.

After clearing the 61st level, he had fought a fierce battle against the opponent on the 62nd. In the end, he had won by using a Soul Secret Technique to affect the opponent's consciousness before closing in for the kill. But he had still failed on the 63rd level.

It didn't matter, though. By clearing the 61st level, he could enter the Virtual Universe Company's End-of-the-World Secret Realm directly.

After he left the Heaven-Reaching Tower, the Training Camp's intelligent system had already sent him an email confirming that he had cleared the 61st level and qualified to enter the End-of-the-World Secret Realm. A spaceship dispatched by the Virtual Universe Company would arrive at the Training Camp in three days, and he was told to get ready.

Once his consciousness returned to reality, he received a call from Chief Instructor Feilaoshen, who told him to come see him immediately.

With the strength of his soul now, it was easy for him to send a sliver of consciousness into the Virtual Universe while remaining alert in reality. But he had been at a critical point in his climb through the Heaven-Reaching Tower, so he had devoted his full attention to it.

They were in the same spacious office. Feilaoshen looked at him with a complicated expression.

"From your very first day at the Training Camp, I knew you had extraordinary talent. But even so, your rate of progress has surpassed my expectations. I thought you would win the centennial tournament decades from now and enter the Core Layer. I never imagined you'd clear the 61st level of the Heaven-Reaching Tower. That proves you already rank among the top hundred Star Level geniuses in Cosmic Humanity. Congratulations, kid!"

He paused, then continued, "The Virtual Universe Company will send an F-Grade Spaceship to take you to the End-of-the-World Secret Realm in three days. The journey is long and will take more than five years, so it would be best if you reached Universe Level within that time. Once you arrive, you can apply for a Nutrition Chamber and raise your body to the ninth rank of Universe Level.

"But there's a problem. Every Core Member gets one chance to study in the Initial Universe. The last Genius Tournament was less than fifty years ago, though, and those geniuses are still in the Initial Universe. The next opportunity won't come for another fifty or sixty years. That means you may have to stay in the End-of-the-World Secret Realm for decades, until you can enter the Initial Universe alongside the elite geniuses from the Virtual Universe Company and the Giant Axe Dojo who win the tournament decades from now."

Feilaoshen watched Yin Congyang listen attentively, then picked up the cup on his desk and took a sip. With some regret, he said, "The Qingnang Training Camp is very far from the End-of-the-World Secret Realm, so the trip will take a long time. That's bad news. But there's worse: the End-of-the-World Secret Realm is even farther from the Virtual Headquarters—that is, the entrance to the Initial Universe—than the Qingnang Secret Realm is from the End-of-the-World Secret Realm. So both trips will take a very long time..."

He suddenly smiled again. "I've given you plenty of bad news, so let me share some good news. You had just under ten thousand Student Points, and with the points you earned for clearing the Heaven-Reaching Tower, you now have just under twenty thousand. Student Points can be converted into Core Member Points at a rate of ten to one. So even though you haven't reached the End-of-the-World Secret Realm yet, you already have 1,970 points. Those points can buy far more than Student Points can.

"The Virtual Universe Company's treasury has just about everything you could want—but you need points to get it!

"On your way to the End-of-the-World Secret Realm, you can enter the End-of-the-World Region in the Virtual Universe and spend your points on secret techniques and manuals to study. That way, you won't waste your time..."

He let out a soft breath and spoke with earnest care. "Core Members of the Virtual Universe Company are highly esteemed, but the ones who are truly distinguished are the members of the Primal Beginning District and the Primordial Beginning District. Remember, all four Secret Realms are about the same size. Yet the Primal Beginning District has only a little over a hundred people, and the Primordial Beginning District has just over a thousand. The Heaven and Earth Region has tens of thousands, while the End-of-the-World Region..." He chuckled. "It has tens of millions.

"Among those tens of millions, World Lords are the most numerous, Domain Lords are next, and Universe Level members are the fewest. Everyone eliminated from the first three districts gets swept into the End-of-the-World Region..."

"So, kid!" Feilaoshen fixed him with a piercing gaze. "As an elite who came out of the Qingnang Training Camp, I hope the End-of-the-World Region is only your starting point. Don't ever slack off. There's a harder road ahead for you to climb. Only when you reach the summit will you see how boundless the view is up there..."

Yin Congyang stood straight and bowed respectfully. "Thank you for your heartfelt guidance, Chief Instructor. I'll remember it and climb step by step without ever slacking off. If one day I can stand atop the summit and look down on the mountains below, I'll come back and share a drink with you, Senior, to thank you for your kindness!"

Feilaoshen nodded in satisfaction and waved a hand. "Go on. There are plenty of dangers on the road to strength, so be careful. Don't die on your way to becoming stronger..."

Yin Congyang bowed once more, then turned and left.

Afterward, he said goodbye to the friends he had made over the past few decades. He also went to the Planetary Level Training Camp to say farewell to the four instructors, Zi, Bai, Jin, and Qing. When the four instructors heard that he had cleared the 61st level of the Heaven-Reaching Tower and been promoted directly to Core Member, they were all thrilled for him. Instructor Golden Lion even clapped him on the shoulder and loudly cheered.

In the vast, boundless Dark Universe, a butterfly-shaped spaceship sped forward at dozens of times the speed of light, surrounded by scattered pinpricks of light.

In the largest cabin, a powerfully built middle-aged human with a single horn on his head was chatting with Yin Congyang, a smile on his face.

"My name is Steven. I'm a Domain Lord in the End-of-the-World Secret Realm. Just call me Mr. Steven. We're both members of the End-of-the-World Secret Realm, so there's no need for formalities between us." Steven gave a self-mocking smile. "If we meet members of the Heaven and Earth Region, the Primordial Beginning District, or the Primal Beginning District, those of us from the End-of-the-World Secret Realm have to address them as Your Highness..."

Yin Congyang smiled back. "I'm grateful to you, Mr. Steven, for letting me travel to the End-of-the-World Secret Realm on your spaceship. It's F-class, so it's very fast in the Dark Universe. If I'd taken my own spaceship, who knows how long it would've taken me to get there?"

Steven looked a little pleased with himself. "My spaceship is fast, all right. I just exchanged points for it recently, after completing a series of missions as a Domain Lord. As it happens, I was near the Qingnang Secret Realm, and I was heading back to the End-of-the-World Secret Realm after finishing a mission. I took on this escort assignment along the way and made a bit of extra money. Ha ha..."

"By the way, would you like to rest, or should we go into the Virtual Universe now?" Steven asked. "The escort mission also includes an orientation. I'll go over everything you need to know about the End-of-the-World Region, then take you to meet Mr. Moore, its steward. He'll assign you a place to live and a training area."

Yin Congyang nodded. "I don't need to rest. I'll trouble you, Mr. Steven."

He sent a sliver of consciousness into the Virtual Universe. His Optical Computer had already been authorized, so it sent him directly to the Virtual Headquarters of the Virtual Universe Company.

A gigantic mountain peak floated in the air, wrapped in layers of mist.

A figure appeared on a blue-stone path along the mountainside. It was Yin Congyang.

"Yin Congyang, over here!" a voice called from a distance. It was Steven.

Yin Congyang ran over to him. When he reached Steven, he couldn't help exclaiming, "What a huge mountain! It must be bigger than most planets in reality."

"Ha ha, it is," Steven said proudly. "This mountain floating in the clouds is called Yuxiang Mountain. It's nearly ninety thousand kilometers across, so it really is larger than some planets in the universe."

"This entire pocket dimension is the Virtual Universe Company's headquarters in the Virtual Universe. Compared with its real-world headquarters, the Virtual Headquarters is actually livelier. Yuxiang Mountain is divided into five districts: the Primal Beginning District, the Primordial Beginning District, the Heaven and Earth Region, the End-of-the-World Region, and the Public Region. The five districts are about the same size and correspond to their respective members. The Public Region is for trade, entertainment, and so on. Members of all four districts can enter it, but members of each district can't enter any of the others."

Standing on a steep outcrop, they gazed toward a vast island in the distant clouds, surrounded by lightning.

"That's Thunder Island, where beings at the Immortal level and above live. It's also called Immortal Island, and it's a hundred or even a thousand times larger than Yuxiang Mountain... I wonder if I'll ever get to enter Thunder Island..." Steven first explained it to Yin Congyang, then muttered the last part to himself.

Yin Congyang secretly shook his head. Some members of the End-of-the-World Region had never risen beyond it, while most had been eliminated from the Heaven and Earth Region. Compared with those in the Primal Beginning District and Primordial Beginning District, their potential and talent were considerably lower. Many had already lost all confidence in their futures.

Steven was one such example. After completing a series of missions as a Domain Lord, he had spent his precious points on an F-class spaceship rather than on something that would help him cultivate. To Yin Congyang, that was a sign that he had no ambition.

But everyone had their own aspirations. Yin Congyang wasn't the sort to offer unsolicited advice to someone he had just met. There was no need.

After showing him around, Steven led Yin Congyang to meet Moore, the supervisor of the End-of-the-World Region. Moore was a powerful World Lord acknowledged by the laws, with a lightning mark between his brows.

After checking Yin Congyang's authorization, Moore assigned him a place to live. It wasn't as spacious as the villa at the Qingnang Training Camp, but it was much better than Yin Congyang had expected.

His assigned residence was in Building 237, Room 1501. Each floor had no separate units, just four apartments, one at each corner. Every building had over a thousand floors.

There were tens of thousands of these residential buildings in the End-of-the-World Region.

Each apartment was nearly a thousand square meters, with a living room, a reception room, and other spaces. The largest room was naturally the training room, which was over 800 square meters. Each floor was ten meters high, so he felt it would be spacious enough for his usual axe training.

Yin Congyang didn't have high expectations for his lodgings in the End-of-the-World Region, since he didn't plan to stay there long. In a few decades, he would go to Chaos City with the next batch of elite geniuses. His plan was to advance to the Heaven and Earth Secret Realm in the next Secret Realm Qualification Battle. If his strength wasn't enough, then he was sure to advance in the Qualification Battle after returning from Chaos City.