The Fifth Fourth Appears

Within the Demon Ancestor Secret Realm, a flicker of complexity flashed through the serpent-like pupils of Dream Demon Ancestor.

The Starry Sky Behemoth Alliance was an eternal thorn in the side of her Demon Race.

Back then, the Old Beast God had led the Starry Sky Behemoth lineage to break away from the Demon Race and become independent, leaving a rift in her heart that had never truly healed.

Now, even a junior from the Starry Sky Behemoth Alliance had ranked fifth, a full four spots higher than Frost Parasite, and she could not suppress the burning anger in her heart.

Tremor Demon Ancestor noticed her silence and spoke slowly: "Starry Sky Behemoths are born with high genetic levels, and their royal bloodlines are comparable to treasures of the same tier. He Qiu ranking fifth is largely due to the advantage of his bloodline."

He did not finish his sentence, but Meng Cha understood.

Bloodline is innate; in this regard, the Demon Race would always be inferior to the Starry Sky Behemoths.

Rather than envying their bloodline, it was better to focus on areas that could be honed, such as innate comprehension and mental willpower.

For Frost Parasite to rank ninth was already the limit of a desperate comeback; anything higher required the foundation of one's race.

Inside the Zerg Queen Palace, the Zerg Queen gently set down the Eternal Pearl, her beautiful face devoid of expression.

She was not surprised that the Starry Sky Behemoth Alliance could enter the top five. In terms of raw physical strength and affinity for laws, the Hill-Ravine Behemoth to which He Qiu belonged had almost no natural enemies among its peers.

But she was concerned about something else: of the four spots ranked ahead of He Qiu, at least two were likely human.

Meanwhile, at the main hall of the Demon Beast Alliance, Lie Tianzun raised his massive head, staring fixedly at the name on the Sky Screen that he knew all too well. "He Qiu is fifth."

His voice was low, as if ground out from the depths of his chest.

He had fought He Qiu before. During a trial in the Ancestral God Secret Realm, he had used the physical strength of his ancestral bloodline to clash head-on with He Qiu, only to be swatted away for hundreds of kilometers by a single strike.

That was the first time in his life he had been crushed by pure physical power in front of an opponent of the same tier.

Lie Tianzun remained silent for a long time, eventually just scraping the ground with his hooves, saying nothing more.

Back in Chaos City, when Luo Feng saw He Qiu's name, a faint, imperceptible light flashed in his eyes.

His Golden Horned Beast clone was also a Starry Sky Behemoth, and in terms of physical strength and genetic level, it was also top-tier among its peers.

The Golden Horned Beast excelled at devouring and strengthening, while the Hill-Ravine Behemoth was superior in law affinity and physical suppression.

The two followed different paths, yet both stood at the pinnacle of flesh-and-blood life forms.

If he were to face He Qiu in the future, he truly wanted to test whether the Xueluo Power and the genetic enhancement from the first volume of the Nine Tribulations Manual could hold their own against the innate advantages of a royal bloodline.

On the Sky Screen, the combat projection of He Qiu began to slowly unfold.

It was a star region composed entirely of chaotic air currents.

In the background, countless unformed primordial celestial bodies rotated slowly, carried by the currents; each was as large as a star, radiating primitive and violent energy fluctuations.

He Qiu's winding body was coiled in the starry sky, using one of the primordial celestial bodies as a throne, his five sharp horns shimmering in the chaotic light.

He had more than one opponent.

Three Immortal Kings from different races, all of whom were well-known powerhouses.

But in front of He Qiu, these three had been in a state of absolute passivity from the very beginning of the battle.

Because He Qiu had not given them any chance to utilize their respective advantages.

He immediately transformed into his maximum form, his body stretching out to a length of one hundred thousand kilometers. The golden secret patterns on every scale lit up simultaneously, and the chaotic air currents within millions of kilometers were suddenly drained, the golden patterns spreading out like an ancient formation with his body as the core.

"Innate Ability—Earth-Space Domain." The City Lord of Chaos nodded gently in the inner hall of the City Lord's Mansion.

The Earth-Space Domain was not a simple domain suppression, but a dual resonance of laws and physical body based on the Hill-Ravine Behemoth bloodline.

Within the domain, He Qiu's physical strength surged once more, while his opponents' application of laws was suppressed to the limit.

The attacks from the three landed on his scales, only to spark and dissipate without a trace.

And He Qiu's counterattack was extremely simple: a slap.

No complex secret techniques, no dazzling fusion of laws—just a slap.

His sharp claws carried space and earth laws compressed to the limit, crushing down with pure power.

The first opponent was swatted away, smashing through two primordial celestial bodies before barely coming to a stop.

The second opponent attempted a sneak attack from the side, only to be swept by the dragon tail, his entire arm and half his shoulder instantly pulverized.

The third opponent was suppressed alive within the Earth-Space Domain for half an incense stick of time, eventually having his weapon knocked away by He Qiu's dragon horns, left to be slaughtered.

There was no trickery in this kind of battle.

Pure physical crushing, supplemented by the amplification of an innate law domain—it was a head-on collision where life and death were disregarded.

Anyone with a discerning eye could see that the only ones capable of going toe-to-toe with He Qiu were those special life forms who also stood at the pinnacle of life levels, or lucky individuals possessing heaven-defying legacies.

As the combat projection slowly dissipated, viewers across the entire Primal Universe gained a more intuitive understanding of the terror of the Starry Sky Behemoth royal bloodline.

[Starry Sky Behemoth Alliance: 'He Qiu'. World Lord Level 9.]
[Law Comprehension: Immortal King High-tier.]
[Willpower: Peak Immortal Marquis.]
[Comprehensive Evaluation: Innate Comprehension S-grade, Willpower SS-grade, Temperament A-grade.]
[His comprehension, willpower, and growth potential are worthy of the fifth spot among the top ten geniuses below the Immortal level in the Third Reincarnation Era of the Primal Universe.]

[Ranking concluded.]

[Reward: Divine Power Burning Secret Technique (First Level).]

[Reward: Soul-type Supreme Treasure 'Heart-Piercing Mirror'. (Can enhance soul attacks by one tier and guard the soul.)]

[Reward: One scroll of True God-level Willpower Secret Technique.]

When the seven characters "Soul-type Supreme Treasure" appeared on the Sky Screen, the entire Primal Universe fell silent.

A soul-type Supreme Treasure! That is the most valuable and rarest existence among all categories of treasures.

While offensive, armor, domain, and palace-type treasures are equally precious, the scarcity of soul-type Supreme Treasures far exceeds them.

The Zerg Queen's Eternal Pearl is a soul-type Supreme Treasure, and its value is enough to drive any Universe Supreme Master to madness.

Yet now, a Sector Lord-level Starry Sky Behemoth has obtained one.

For the Starry Sky Behemoth Alliance, which already possesses an invincible physical body, this is equivalent to filling in their only shortcoming.

At the ancestral grounds of the Starry Sky Behemoth Alliance, the Old Beast God looked at the reward entry on the Sky Screen, his dragon pupils shimmering with satisfaction.

This treasure will certainly be used by him for now; after all, the Sector Lord-level He Qiu is still far from being able to wield it.

With the Heart-Piercing Mirror to guard the soul and enhance soul attacks, combined with a True God-level Willpower Secret Technique, from this day forward, the Starry Sky Behemoth Progenitor has finally stood up!

Inside the Zerg Queen Palace, the Queen remained silent for a long time.

Her Eternal Pearl and the Heart-Piercing Mirror are both soul-type Supreme Treasures; she knows the weight of such items better than anyone.

An Old Beast God with an invincible physical body, now equipped with a soul treasure.

In her long life, she has seen such a combination only a handful of times, and every one of them eventually became a hegemon in the Universe Ocean.

In the Demon Ancestor Secret Realm, the Tremor Demon Ancestor and the Dream Demon Ancestor looked at each other in silence.

Neither of them possesses a soul-type treasure; the gap in this single aspect alone is enough for a top-tier opponent of the same rank to seize the flaw and ravage them repeatedly.

On a nameless planet, Yang Yu continued to drink while watching the Sky Screen.

Giving a soul-type Supreme Treasure to the fifth place—the reward intensity is decent.

"The fourth one," he whispered to himself, his gaze piercing through layers of space-time. "Four spots remaining. Hong being in second place is a certainty, and Luo Feng at first is a given; it just depends on which two factions are sandwiched in between."

He set down his wine pot, a glimmer of anticipation flashing in his eyes.

Above the Sky Screen, text continued to emerge.

[TOP 4: Snow Border Alliance 'Bing Yan']

In the main hall of the Snow Border Alliance, located within the Extreme Cold Palace deep in the icy star region, the Snow Border True God slowly rose from his throne.

His massive body, covered in snow-white fur, cast a long shadow under the palace dome, and his aged beast pupils churned with complex emotions that were difficult to describe.

Among all the super-factions in the Primal Universe, the Snow Border Alliance is the most unique.

It was originally an independent secondary alliance, personally overseen by the Snow Border True God, and before the appearance of the Sky Screen's powerhouse rankings, it was no different from other secondary alliances.

But after the Sky Screen's powerhouse rankings concluded, a drastic change occurred within the Snow Border Alliance.

Nine Universe Masters collectively defected to join the humans, and the alliance was once on the verge of disintegration.

The Snow Border True God sat alone in the empty hall, feeling for the first time that the freezing temperature was not as cold as his own heart.

However, later on, three of those nine defecting Universe Masters quietly returned after establishing themselves in the human Hong Alliance, and two other idle clans that had remained neutral also took the initiative to seek refuge.

The number of Universe Masters in the Snow Border Alliance slowly climbed back to over a dozen.

Although far from its peak, it managed to preserve the foundation of a secondary alliance.

Bing Yan was a genius discovered from the bloodline of the returning clans, and the Snow Border True God poured all his remaining resources into her.

The reason was simple: he needed someone who could secure a spot for the Snow Border Alliance on the Sky Screen's Genius Ranking.

"Bing Yan. Fourth place."

The Snow Border True God's voice was hoarse and low, carrying a stubbornness that refused to be extinguished even after being struck countless times.

He looked at the slender, ice-white figure standing in the center of the hall, a pride he hadn't even noticed himself flashing in his eyes. "One rank higher than the Starry Sky Behemoth royal family; you have vindicated my Snow Border Alliance."

Bing Yan knelt on one knee, her long ice-crystal hair draping over her armor, emitting a faint clinking sound.

Her appearance was extremely similar to that of a human; her figure was slender and graceful, and her skin was a translucent pale blue, as if carved from the purest ten-thousand-year-old ice.

Her face was beautiful yet cold, and no emotional fluctuations could be seen in her ice-blue eyes—it was not calmness, but a frozen state.

"This disciple has not failed the mission," her voice was crisp like ice shards hitting the ground, brief and powerful.

The Snow Border True God nodded, saying nothing more.

He sat back down on his throne, his snow-white chest rising and falling slightly.

Fourth place—this had already far exceeded his expectations.

He had thought that Bing Yan squeezing into the top ten would be the limit, but he never expected her to reach fifth, surpassing the Starry Sky Behemoth royal family.

In the Demon Ancestor Secret Realm, the Dream Demon Ancestor's snake pupils contracted slightly.

Another one ranked higher than Frost Parasite.

The Snow Border Alliance, a secondary alliance that didn't even qualify as a peak race, had actually produced a genius in the top five.

Although Snow Border True God had indeed staked all his bets on Bing Yan this reincarnation cycle, the fourth-place ranking was still high enough to make her struggle to accept it.

Tremor Demon Ancestor remained silent on the side; he had accepted reality earlier than Meng Cha.

The Demon Race only had Frost Parasite on the list, and the remaining spots had nothing to do with them.

Rather than wasting their will in jealousy, it was better to think about how to cultivate the next Frost Parasite in the future.

In the main hall of the Beast Ancestor Alliance, the rhythm of the Beast Ancestor tapping his armrest accelerated significantly.

The Snow Border Alliance had once been a potential ally he had tried to win over, but unfortunately, Snow Border True God had ultimately chosen to maintain an independent path.

Now that Bing Yan was ranked fourth, a full three spots higher than Blood Fang, he felt some regret that he hadn't spent more effort to win over the Snow Border Alliance back then.

Meanwhile, in Chaos City, Luo Feng and Hong sat side by side on the cultivation platform.

For a million years, this Snow Border Alliance had almost no presence, yet it had managed to produce such a dark horse on the Genius Ranking.

Bing Yan, a special life form who had entered the top four of the Genius Ranking, had carved out a new path in the fusion of the Law of Wind and the Law of Water that even Luo Feng had never envisioned.

He realized that the Primal Universe was far larger than he had imagined, and every corner might hide underestimated opponents.

Above the Sky Screen, the combat projection of Bing Yan began to slowly unfold.

It was an extremely magnificent galaxy of ice and snow.

In the background, the light of countless stars was repeatedly refracted by ice crystal prisms woven from the Law of Extreme Cold and the Law of Wind, transforming into a sky full of brilliant auroras.

Bing Yan's slender figure flickered in and out of the auroras, her method of movement extremely bizarre.

It was not flight, nor was it teleportation; instead, she transformed her entire body into a cold wind laden with ice crystals, merging from one aurora into another, her trajectory completely impossible to track.

Her opponent was a special life form at the Immortal level, small in size but extremely fast, skilled in the Law of Space and mental attacks, having once hunted several high-level King-class powerhouses alone.

But facing Bing Yan, this experienced hunter fell into a passive position from the very beginning.

It could not find its target.

Bing Yan's figure constantly split and recombined within the ice crystal storm, and every time she disappeared and reappeared, she left behind an ice sculpture clone in her place, about thirty percent of which carried her own soul fluctuations, while the other seventy percent were pure ice-wind decoys.

Every time the opponent's attack shattered an ice sculpture, the ice crystal fragments bursting from the shattered sculpture would curl back along the trajectory of the attack, automatically forming the next round of deception.

When the opponent's patience and origin energy reserves were worn down bit by bit by this method, Bing Yan finally revealed herself.

She formed seals with both hands, the Law of Wind and the Law of Water converging at her fingertips, and an ice-blue spiral storm swept the opponent into its center.

Inside the storm, countless ice crystals rotated and rubbed against each other at high speed, emitting a teeth-grinding screech; every ice crystal was a micro-blade cutting at high speed.

The opponent attempted to teleport away, but the storm itself distorted the surrounding Law of Space, disrupting the trajectory of the teleportation; for every extra breath it remained trapped inside, the cutting force doubled.

Finally, the storm suddenly collapsed, completely freezing the opponent and turning it into a lifelike ice sculpture suspended in the void.

This was an extremely unique combat style.

It integrated the speed and change of the Law of Wind with the sluggishness and freezing of the Law of Water, occupying an absolute advantage in a war of attrition while being able to instantly release an extreme cold domain to achieve a one-hit kill at the critical moment.

Back in the day, Bing Yan had been ambushed on the outer battlefield by a defecting Snow Border Marquis-class; an ice sculpture clone had taken the fatal blow for her, and her true body had slid silently out of the deathly blizzard, counterattacking with only a single move to freeze the Marquis's head into a block of ice.