Zhaoyun

"Yin Congyang, Your Highness, wins!"

The clear voice rang out across the arena.

Yin Congyang looked at the Mysterious God Weapon scattered on the ground and felt a stir in his heart. His clone still lacked a good weapon, and this Mysterious God Weapon wasn't cheap in the universe either. With a wave of his hand, he collected it.

The owner of that clear voice twitched the corner of his mouth. He'd missed by just a second, his psychic force grasping at nothing, but he couldn't very well tell Yin Congyang to spit it back out—killing an opponent and taking their spoils was universal across all races in the cosmos.

He grumbled inwardly that this Virtual Universe Company prince was a real piece of work. He'd ignored opponents' weapons before, but now that he saw something good, he pocketed it immediately...

"The 128-to-64 matches are all complete. Continue with the draw. In half an hour, all arenas will merge into thirty-two. Contestants may rest for half an hour," another authoritative voice announced. "In the previous sixty-four matches, two ended in mutual destruction, and one had one dead and one severely injured, unable to continue. Therefore, the next round will have three byes. Let's see which three are lucky."

Yin Congyang felt a faint pressure in his soul. Though it lasted only an instant, he was certain a World Lord's soul force had just swept through. He wondered—was there something special about this Warrior Battle? Two World Lords overseeing the final top-hundred matches?

"The draw is complete!"

A massive screen appeared in the air, displaying the results.

"Hmm, I actually got a bye. Is it real luck or rigged?"

In the 64-to-32 matches, Yin Congyang was fortunate to draw a bye, though he couldn't tell if the two World Lords had interfered with the result.

It wasn't a bad thing, so he stopped thinking about it. He took the chance to see if any of the contestants were worth noting.

He swept his gaze across all the live screens and suddenly fixed his eyes on Arena 17. Two Universe Level Nine warriors were fighting.

His focus locked onto a youth in white combat gear wielding a silver spear. His spear technique was ferocious. When his opponent unleashed all nine layers of his domain, the youth's first spear shattered the domain, his second sent the opponent's blade flying, and his third pierced straight through the opponent's skull.

With Yin Congyang's eye, he could tell at once this was a spear master. The technique was almost supernatural, and he must have grasped part of the Law of Space—otherwise, his first spear couldn't have broken the nine-layer domain.

Moreover, this person gave Yin Congyang a feeling that he wasn't a native of Gaishi Star. His spear style and skill were clearly different from the other Universe Level fighters he'd encountered on Gaishi Star. They leaned more toward the style of geniuses and elites from the Training Camp or Core Layer.

He grew interested. In this Warrior Battle, it seemed he was the only one from the Virtual Universe Company. If this expert was also from the Virtual Universe Company, there was no reason to hide his identity.

But these secret realms were open to all Universe Level core members of the five major powers. This person was likely a core member from another power. The Virtual Universe Company tempered its core members and didn't hide their identities in the competition, but core members from other powers wouldn't voluntarily reveal themselves either.

The Virtual Universe Company was confident its people wouldn't be targeted by beings above Universe Level on Gaishi Star—that was their pride. But core members from other powers weren't under that protection. Maybe this mission was hard for Virtual Universe Company members but dangerous or even deadly for others.

If this guess was close to the truth, then this spear expert—which power did he belong to, and what rank? If he was equivalent to a Primitive Secret Realm member of the Virtual Universe Company, that would be a huge challenge for Yin Congyang.

Of course, he was still quite confident in his own strength. Not to mention his Law comprehension, his physical body alone far exceeded normal Universe Level Nine, let alone his World Lord-level soul and will—an ability beyond the limits for Universe Level.

In the subsequent 32-to-16 matches, Yin Congyang didn't meet the white-clad youth and advanced to the top sixteen without incident.

The 16-to-8 and 8-to-4 matches were also easily resolved.

At this point, the mission could be considered complete. Fourth place already earned 640 points. With his existing points, that was enough to exchange for growth treasures for his two clones.

But how could he be satisfied with just completing the mission? More points were always better. Why give up the chance to earn more, right? Besides, there was still that expert waiting for him.

He looked at the white-clad youth. His intuition told him that person was also looking forward to their duel.

They didn't meet in the semifinals. After each defeating their opponent, they would face off in the final arena.

"May I ask your name, sir? Which power's prince are you? I am Yin Congyang, End-of-the-World Region member of the Virtual Universe Company."

The final arena was a hundred kilometers long and wide. The two stood at opposite ends, and Yin Congyang transmitted his voice with his original force.

"Haha... you guessed right," the white-clad youth laughed heartily. "My name is Zhao Yun, from the Radiance Secret Realm of the Universe Mercenary Alliance. Equivalent to your Primordial Secret Realm!"

"Brother Zhao Yun is from the Radiance Secret Realm? My apologies for not recognizing you sooner. Your spear technique is extremely refined, quite similar to an old acquaintance of mine, though he prefers black clothes..."

Yin Congyang's old acquaintance was Hong. Hong's spear technique was also formidable. He wondered what realm Hong had reached now—whether he'd made it to Universe Level.

"Is that so? Then I'd like to test your friend's spear technique sometime. My first love is the spear, my second is white clothes, and my third is the war beast Purple Dragon. That's why some call me White-Clad Silver Spear Zhao Zilong!"

"...That name sounds very familiar to me. No wonder Brother Zhao Yun gives me a sense of déjà vu," Yin Congyang said, half-amused. "In my homeland's history, there was a War God called 'White Horse Silver Spear Zhao Zilong'—a true fierce general. Today, I'm honored to test your spear technique..."

"Hold on!" Just as the countdown on the projection hit zero and Yin Congyang was about to attack, Zhao Yun swung his spear horizontally. "Though we're from different powers, the five peak human powers have always stood together. This duel isn't in the virtual universe—we don't need to fight to the death. As far as I know, your Virtual Universe Company's Peerless Powerhouse mission only requires top ten. You've already completed it. Points are good, but you need to live to spend them... You understand what I mean?"

Zhao Yun's words were blunt, but Yin Congyang could hear sincerity in his voice. Clearly, Zhao Yun considered himself a Radiance Secret Realm member of the Universe Mercenary Alliance, comparable to the Virtual Universe Company's Primordial Secret Realm. He thought Yin Congyang, from the End-of-the-World Region, was no match for him. He feared Yin Congyang's eagerness to win might lead to mutual destruction, and if he had to kill Yin Congyang in self-defense, it would make Gaishi Star's people laugh.

If Yin Congyang had only felt a slight liking for Zhao Yun due to the familiar name before, now his goodwill surged.

"Thank you for your kindness, Brother Zhao Yun!" Yin Congyang halted his charge and spoke solemnly. "But to become a peerless powerhouse and dominate the universe, one must face countless difficult challenges. If I shrink back from fear of death, how could I ever stand at the pinnacle of the strong? Please don't hold back, Brother Zhao Yun. Though I'm from the End-of-the-World Region, I believe I'm not inferior to anyone!"

Zhao Yun's face showed appreciation, and he laughed loudly. "Well said. I was being petty. Today, let's fight without restraint. Afterward, we'll drink and talk... Come!"

With a fierce shout, both shot toward each other like lightning.

The two Gaishi Star World Lords overseeing the match exchanged glances and sighed inwardly: Truly, core members of the great powers. Not only were their talents and potential immense, but their breadth of mind and vision were equally vast. When would Gaishi Star produce such a genius?

Both were close-combat warriors—one with supreme spear technique, the other with exquisite axe art. They were evenly matched.

In Law comprehension, Zhao Yun had laid his foundation in Chaos City for a hundred years and cultivated for centuries more. His grasp of the Law of Space and Law of Water far exceeded Yin Congyang's. But Yin Congyang's comprehension of the other four elements compensated for this. His Five Elements Domain was overwhelmingly powerful, and his physical body surpassed Zhao Yun's by an unknown margin. Thus, in the early exchanges, Yin Congyang was pressing Zhao Yun hard.

Yet Zhao Yun, as a Radiance Secret Realm member, was no pushover. His spear technique was sometimes grand and sweeping, sometimes elusive and unpredictable. On offense, it was heavy and forceful; on defense, it was watertight. Yin Congyang found it hard to find an opening.

"Haha, exhilarating!" Yin Congyang let out a long cry, his Heaven-Opening Axe growing sharper.

Since comprehending the essence of the Law of Space, he hadn't met such a powerful opponent. Zhao Yun's spear, whether attacking or defending, put immense pressure on him. When attacking, the spear tip pointed like scattered stars, its trajectory mysterious and hard to predict, forcing Yin Congyang onto the defensive.

Under this pressure, Yin Congyang's understanding of the Law of Space's essence gradually merged into his axe technique. What he'd previously worked out in isolation now revealed its flaws in real combat. But those flaws were being mended bit by bit, his axe technique becoming more seamless and its power steadily increasing.

Zhao Yun felt the pressure mount. He finally set aside his last shred of restraint and treated Yin Congyang as a life-or-death enemy.

They exchanged over a hundred rounds. Yin Congyang had used almost everything except his soul attack secret techniques—the Five Elements Domain, the Law of Five Elements, the Law of Space, and his physical body pushed to the limit.

The more Zhao Yun fought, the more alarmed he became. Yin Congyang's axe felt heavier and heavier. Where there had once been gaps in his moves, those gaps were shrinking, like a great net closing in around him. His spear struggled within that net, unable to tear through, and instead sinking deeper.

He knew that if this continued, he would lose for sure. He took a deep breath, changed his spear technique, slowing the speed but imbuing each strike with earth-shattering force, trying to break through Yin Congyang's axe domain.

Feeling the growing weight in Zhao Yun's spear, Yin Congyang's eyes lit up. He changed his axe technique as well, meeting force with force, simplicity with simplicity.

In this life-or-death clash, the fusion of the Law of Space and his axe technique accelerated. When Yin Congyang fully integrated the essence of the Law of Space he'd comprehended into his axe, quantity finally sparked a qualitative change.

One move—"Dragon Conquest of Ten Thousand Miles"—sent Zhao Yun's spear tip flying. The axe blade followed a mysterious trajectory, cleaving toward Zhao Yun's brow...