Inside the enormous palace, Bai Yuan walked straight in without a single obstacle.
Along the way, countless Planet Realm and even Star Realm powerhouses bowed to him.
This palace was none other than the residence of his second uncle, Bai Tianning.
Bai Tianning was a Universe Level 9 powerhouse. That strength might not amount to much across the entire Blade Clan, but he had another identity as well.
He was the commander of the Blade Legion's Seventh Division, holding great power. Under his command were more than ten thousand elite Star Ninth Rank soldiers, along with ten Universe Realm captains!
On top of that, he controlled more than a thousand life-bearing planets, which provided him with a steady stream of resources.
It was this position that gave Bai Tianning an exceptionally special status. Even some Domain Lords were willing to show him respect.
"Second Uncle, I'm here to see you. Aren't you going to invite me to dinner?"
"Dinner? How about trying a taste of my whip instead?"
Hearing Bai Yuan's voice, Bai Tianning came out, looking thoroughly displeased.
Bai Yuan smiled awkwardly.
He knew exactly why his second uncle was angry. He'd agreed to go to the training grounds, then gone back to his room and stayed there all day. It was like slapping his second uncle in the face.
"Second Uncle, I really came to ask for your guidance this time. The clan competition is about to begin, and I want to place well, so I came to ask you to train me."
"You want me to train you?"
Bai Tianning furrowed his brows. What was his own cultivation level? He was a Universe Realm powerhouse!
Even if he wanted to teach his nephew something profound, the boy might not understand it.
"Fine. Since you've finally got the right attitude, let me see how capable you are now."
"Good!"
A gleam flashed in Bai Yuan's eyes, and his War Blade appeared in his hand.
In the next instant, he became a streak of fierce Golden Flowing Light and slashed straight at Bai Tianning, moving too fast for the naked eye to follow!
Buzz, buzz, buzz...
His body vibrated twelve times in an instant, and twelve layers of hidden force erupted. His blade moved like lightning, astonishingly fast!
But before a Universe Realm powerhouse, every one of those movements was clear as day.
Shock. Utter shock!
Bai Tianning could hardly believe his eyes.
He knew his nephew all too well. Before, the boy had only mastered the fifth move. Even if he'd made progress in a single day, reaching the sixth would have been impressive.
But the power of this slash was unmistakably that of the eleventh move!
To confirm his suspicions, Bai Tianning even deliberately spread his arms and let the blow strike his Force Battle Suit.
Bang!
With a whoosh, Bai Yuan was sent staggering back three steps by the tremendous rebounding force. His palm tingled slightly.
Bai Tianning, by contrast, stood as steady as a mountain, without moving an inch.
"Hahahaha! It really is the eleventh move! I never thought you'd be so good at hiding your skill. You even fooled me!"
Bai Tianning burst into laughter. In his eyes, Bai Yuan had definitely been hiding his abilities all along.
As for mastering the eleventh move in a single day after only knowing the fifth, he considered that absolutely impossible.
If someone really had that kind of comprehension, wouldn't grasping a domain and mastering the Origin Law be as easy as reaching into a bag to fetch something?
A genius like that might not appear even once in tens of millions of eras.
Bai Yuan smiled faintly at Bai Tianning's misunderstanding. He couldn't go around telling people about the system.
Swish, swish, swish, swish!
Bai Tianning suddenly attacked, moving so quickly that afterimages remained where he had stood.
This completely took Bai Yuan by surprise.
He hadn't expected his second uncle, who'd been smiling the moment before, to suddenly turn serious and attack him.
Clang!
At the critical moment, Bai Yuan raised his blade to block. An irresistible force surged along the blade and into his arm.
The force wasn't overwhelming, but it was incredibly concentrated. Even with his skills, he couldn't dispel it.
"As expected of a Universe Level 9 powerhouse! Even a casual strike is terrifying!"
Bai Tianning pressed his advantage, lightning-fast, and seized Bai Yuan's blade arm. At the same time, he struck toward Bai Yuan's wrist, intending to knock the War Blade from his hand.
Bai Yuan's arm had gone numb and weak from the force of the previous blow. Seeing that he could hardly hold on, he simply let go of the blade and let it fall, hoping to distract his opponent.
Then he lifted his foot and kicked at Bai Tianning's shin!
Unfortunately, before a "veteran" who had lived for tens of thousands of years, such a little trick was impossible to hide. Bai Tianning saw through it completely in an instant.
Bai Tianning raised his leg to suppress the attack, while his other hand caught the falling War Blade in midair.
"Heh, your little tricks are all things your second uncle had already tried back in the day."
"Remember this: a true powerhouse must have a heart that presses forward without hesitation, rather than relying on those underhanded tricks to win."
After speaking, he handed the War Blade back to Bai Yuan, then beckoned for him to continue.
Bai Yuan shook out his still-numb arm, his expression growing more focused.
His talent might not be outstanding, but his comprehension was above average among his peers.
Besides, the blood of the Blade Clan flowed through his veins. His will was every bit as unyielding as anyone's.
The lessons learned through actual combat far surpassed those gained from training alone.
Two short days of nearly demonic training had greatly improved Bai Yuan's ability to respond in battle and wield his strength.
Rumble!
The clan competition began right on schedule. War drums thundered, and the crowd roared like a rising tide.
Although the Blade Clan had long since entered the age of interstellar civilization and possessed advanced technologies like virtual spaces, it still upheld tradition and insisted on real combat, testing martial skill with flesh and blood.
"Bai Yuan, are you planning to compete too?" A young man in a black robe slowly approached.
Seeing him, Bai Yuan greeted him with a smile.
The young man was Bai Guanren. He was sixteen years old, at Apprentice Level 9, and just one step away from the Planet Realm. He was one of the few friends Bai Yuan had.
"Yeah. What about you? You should be ready to break through to the Planet Realm, right?"
In the Blade Clan, sixteen was adulthood. By rights, Bai Guanren should have broken through long ago.
With diligent cultivation, reaching the Planet Realm at fifteen was considered normal, and plenty broke through at thirteen or fourteen.
Bai Yuan himself had merely average talent and usually didn't ask his second uncle for resources.
Even so, he had reached the peak of Apprentice Level 8 and had a chance to break through to the Planet Realm before adulthood.
Hearing Bai Yuan's question, Bai Guanren nodded, his tone tinged with helplessness.
"I could break through... but I'm not satisfied with that. If I can make a name for myself in the clan competition, perhaps some great powerhouse will take notice of me and accept me as a disciple. Then I'll have more to rely on when I venture into the universe."
In truth, Bai Guanren wasn't the only one who thought this way.
The Blade Clan were straightforward, but they weren't foolish. Winning the favor of a powerful expert would be a tremendous help to their future cultivation.
So many would rather postpone breaking through and keep honing themselves in the Apprentice Realm, all in the hope of placing higher in the competition and forging a brighter future.
"My expectations aren't high. If I can make the top hundred and catch the eye of a Universe Realm powerhouse, I'll be satisfied. What about you?" Bai Guanren asked.
Bai Yuan answered calmly, "About the same as you. I'll be happy as long as I take first place."
Bai Guanren nodded instinctively, then suddenly opened his eyes wide and stared at Bai Yuan in disbelief.
First place and the top hundred... and he called that about the same!
Most importantly, Bai Yuan was only at Apprentice Level 8, with a lower cultivation level than his.
There had never been a precedent, in all of history, of someone at Apprentice Level 8 winning first place in the clan competition.
Even the most dazzling prodigy of the past had only made it into the top ten.
And that prodigy had been an unrivaled genius across the ages.
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