Chaman King

"Speaking of which, this treasure land has been livelier than usual lately."

Gazing at the 108 towering peaks in the distance, Chaman King sighed and couldn't help remarking, "Ever since the 'Land of Divine Gift' appeared, many venerables have followed the Divine Lord to explore it. Most of us King-Ranks just get our fill here and do some auxiliary work on the side. Still, without those venerables around, we're freer too. By the way, we have our own dedicated plane in the Hong Alliance—why didn't I find you there earlier?"

"King-Rank is recognized internally by the clan through the Virtual Universe, but the Hong Alliance requires battle achievements. I don't have any combat record worth showing off, but there's no rush on that."

Chen Qing wore a helpless expression, spreading his hands. "Haha, it's fine. One step at a time."

Watching Chaman King's beaming face, Chen Qing mused inwardly. Chaman King probably didn't come through the Genius War; he must have advanced step by step on his own. It seemed he had a favorable impression of someone like Chen Qing, who had taken nearly ten million eras to break through to King-Rank. No wonder he'd appeared right when Chen Qing came out—likely intentional.

"By the way, it's a bit far from here. Did Green Jade King take the Space path or the Time path?"

"For a life-saving skill, teleportation takes priority. Otherwise, how would I have survived this long?"

"Good, then let's teleport over. It'll be faster."

At that moment, on an outer peak, a Fanchui Race venerable sensed a ripple in space and turned his head outward. "Hmph! Humans again, trash like garbage!"

Just as he was about to look away, he paused, squinting his single eye at the two figures at the mountain's foot. He'd been humiliated in the Land of Divine Gift recently and was itching for an outlet. "Heh, so-called peak race—nothing but bandits!"

The moment the words left his mouth, his immense aura wrapped around his body as he charged toward the foot of the mountain.

"Heh, Venerable Beishan is bullying the weak again. Who is it this time? Oh, it's Chaman King. Since when did Venerable Beishan get so bold?"

"Chaman King isn't exactly core yet. There's another one beside him—seems to be Green Jade King, appeared a thousand years ago, no notable achievements."

"Just a lucky old scholar from within the human race, a self-proclaimed King-Rank. Disgusting to look at!"

Several Demon Race King-Ranks stood nearby watching the show, not bothering to use telepathy. Their mocking gazes were unconcealed, deliberately spoken loud enough for everyone to hear.

As the crowd gossiped, Chaman King also noticed the anomaly atop the peak. But the venerable's speed was too fast; he'd barely taken half a step forward in front of Chen Qing when the aura surged past him like a flood, stopping not far behind the two.

Damn it!

Chen Qing helped Chaman King, who was sprawled on the ground with chaotic breath, back to his feet. He knew of Venerable Beishan's reputation, but what rotten luck—getting the Luo Feng treatment. "What mangy mutt is this? Can't even see straight and still runs wild everywhere, spreading bad luck!"

"Haha, Green Jade King's right! What rotten luck!"

Chaman King dusted himself off. The human race wasn't afraid of minor clans, especially a notoriously disreputable one like Venerable Beishan.

Venerable Beishan, hearing this, didn't move again. Instead, his eyes widened. After a moment, he retracted his aura, glanced at Chen Qing, then turned and left the treasure site directly.

"Something's off! Green Jade King, don't go out alone lately."

Chaman King explained Venerable Beishan's temperament via telepathy, then said seriously to Chen Qing, "It seems he's truly set on killing. Otherwise, he wouldn't be this quiet."

Chen Qing nodded, his smile turning a bit grim. "Probably never been cursed out by a King-Rank before. After all, he's still a 'venerable.' If this gets out, forget face—even other venerables would be ashamed of him."

"You human brats really don't know your place. Go back and suckle for a few more ten-thousand eras, or you'll die without knowing why!"

As Chen Qing's words faded, laughter rang out from a distance—the same Demon Race King-Ranks watching the show.

"The one talking is Blade King of the Sky Wolf Race, one of the Demon Race's eighteen royal clans!"

Sky Wolf Race? The Lord of Sky Wolf seems to handle intelligence. Since I've already offended a venerable, what's one more King-Rank?

Chen Qing sneered inwardly, took a step forward, and instantly appeared right before Blade King's large eye. Staring into the dilated pupil, he said softly, "Your mouth really stinks!"

Then he turned and returned to Chaman King's side, as if he'd never left. Only then did Blade King's aura explode, shoving the Demon Race members beside him off balance.

"Deep teleportation!"

"No, there's time acceleration too!"

Blade King said nothing more. Instead, he retracted the blades on his claws slightly, gave Chen Qing one last look, then turned and led his team away.

"Haha, excellent! Just as I thought, Green Jade King. Everyone thinks you're lucky, but I don't see it that way. We've never given up!"

Chaman King had never been this elated. He'd had teammates before, brothers too, but never such a kindred spirit. "Let's go—maybe this time we'll find something different. There's plenty of good stuff here, at least top-tier treasure materials."

In the Demon Race territory, a majestic palace. The Lord of Sky Wolf, clad in white fur, was reading an intelligence report. "Green Jade King? Took this long to become a King-Rank—probably a strong-willed lucky one. Even if he's stronger, he's still trash. At most, he'll reach venerable level. Shouldn't be a problem. Still, since he insulted my people, let Tianhua go take a look. If that Fanchui Race waste can't stop him, we can deal with it."

With that, he casually tossed the report aside and continued searching for other abnormally rising powerhouses.

In another location, within the Mechanical Fortress, the returning Mechanical Father God flickered with countless beams of light. Suddenly, he stopped. "Great Father God, an anomalous King-Rank has appeared in the Ancestral God Religion. Probability: 79.7% normal, 2.5% a hidden human genius, 17% gained a special opportunity, 0.8% possibly abnormal."

"Green Jade King?"

The Mechanical Father God seemed to perform an extremely complex calculation. The fortress fell silent for a quarter of an hour before he spoke. "Even a one-in-a-thousand chance can't be ignored. That Green Lotus affects even us, who have no souls. No one understands its wonder better than we do. Send a venerable. Also, gather all related data. Since we have no direction now, let's test it first. Even if he's normal, it'll divert the attention of other races!"

"Yes, Great Father God!"

In the Bug Race territory, Lord of Minglian arrived at a massive Mother Nest. Inside, the Empress reclined sideways, her graceful figure draped in light gauze that floated like wind-silk, radiating boundless allure. "Sister Empress, there's a newly discovered King-Rank powerhouse here, likely reaching King-Rank Invincible level."

"Oh, is that so?"

The Empress's elegant voice drifted out as the intelligence in Lord of Minglian's hand flew to her. "Green Jade King, green like jade—intentional or coincidental? My soul seems to stir. A strange feeling. Sister Minglian, keep a close eye on him. Don't rush to harm him. Some opportunities aren't meant to be taken easily, especially those beyond cognition. We only need to grasp those with potential."

"Yes, Sister Empress!"