Inside the Demon Beast Alliance Main Hall, the Beast Ancestor's fingers tapped the armrest more and more slowly and steadily, as though he were using the rhythm to suppress something.
Hong was in second place.
This was the prelude to the last time a human genius would appear on the ranking.
Blood Fang was in seventh place, and he was already satisfied.
But watching the human names repeatedly reshuffle across the Sky Screen, he couldn't suppress the resentment welling up inside him.
"Only one spot remains," he said in a low voice. "If the top spot goes to a human too... after this Genius Ranking, the humans will be the undisputed number-one faction."
At the ancestral land of the Starry Sky Behemoth Alliance, the Old Beast God remained silent for a long time.
His disciple, He Qiu, had placed fifth, and he had already been satisfied.
But humans occupied second place, and the one above him was almost certainly human as well. How could he not know how Luo Feng had performed over the years?
He suddenly realized that the genius he had painstakingly honed during this Reincarnation Era was little more than a supporting player beside the two human prodigies.
Far away, in Chaos City, Hong sat on the cultivation terrace, looking up at his name on the Sky Screen.
His expression was as calm as ever, even more composed than usual.
A million years ago, he had passed the twentieth island of the Illusion Sea. Founder Giant Axe had personally taken him as a direct disciple, and Void Gold Master had imparted everything he knew. Hong had cultivated for ten billion years under Ten Thousand Times Time Acceleration in Giant Axe's miniature universe.
Now, his Law Comprehension had reached Peak Marquis, and his will had reached the Venerable Limit.
"Second," Hong murmured, a faint smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.
He wasn't surprised by his ranking. He knew his own talent and comprehension better than anyone.
His second-place ranking didn't come from his talent for the laws, but from his character, will, and heaven-defying comprehension.
He turned his head and glanced at Luo Feng beside him, a complicated smile flickering in his eyes.
Luo Feng turned to look at him, and the two brothers exchanged a smile without saying a word.
It was the understanding they had forged since their days on Earth, after enduring countless brushes with death together.
Above them, Hong's battle projection slowly unfolded across the Sky Screen.
It showed an extremely simple starry battlefield.
There were no complicated stellar ruins, no chaotic currents, no auroras, and no sandstorms.
Only pure void and two figures facing each other from a distance.
Hong's opponent was a Peak World Lord Special Lifeform. Its strength was enough to face Blood Fang or He Qiu head-on without losing, and it was famous throughout the Primal Universe.
The fight was one-sided from the very beginning.
Hong's fighting style was just like his expression: simple and direct.
He used no dazzling Law Attacks, no overwhelming Domain suppression, and no flashy clones or illusions.
He simply used the Illusion he excelled at to support himself, then swung his blade again and again.
Every strike went straight for the opponent's most critical weakness, as though countless meticulous calculations had gone into it. Not a single stroke missed.
His blade light wasn't dazzling. There were hardly any visible fluctuations of law around it.
That was because his character and will had already suppressed every trace of unnecessary energy fluctuation, leaving his opponent no clues to anticipate his attacks.
His opponent fought back desperately, each strike powerful enough to tear a planet apart.
Hong's dodges were almost imperceptible. Often, he only had to shift a few inches to avoid a vital blow. He wasn't dodging through speed, but by precisely predicting the opponent's intentions.
It was as if he always knew where an attack would land before his opponent even made a move, then used the smallest possible movement to deflect it.
Midway through the fight, Hong suddenly paused.
He stood there, his eyes reflecting the opponent's frenzied fluctuations of law, as if he were waiting for something.
When his furious opponent launched another full-power attack, Hong didn't dodge.
Two beams of silver light, almost tangible, suddenly flared in his eyes.
It wasn't law or Origin Force, but pure will brought to the extreme.
The Special Lifeform's full-power attack crumbled inch by inch before Hong. It wasn't because its energy had run out, but because its will had collapsed. Its body no longer obeyed the commands of its consciousness.
Hong brought his blade down, and the fight was over.
This was Hong's will.
He could use his will in combat to suppress an opponent's attacks directly, even forcibly halting their instinct to survive.
His Law Comprehension might not be as profound as Luo Feng's, but when it came to character and will, no one below the Undying level in the entire Primal Universe could match him.
As the battle projection slowly faded, the entire Primal Universe sank into profound silence.
A thought arose in the minds of the geniuses who had suffered through the trials: When fighting someone like this, you don't fear that he's stronger than you. You fear that he understands you better than you understand yourself. Before you even move, every one of his strikes is already aimed at the direction you're going to dodge.
[Human 'Hong.' World Lord, ninth rank.] [Law Comprehension: Peak Marquis.] [Will: Venerable Limit.] [Overall Evaluation: Talent and Comprehension: S rank; Will: SSS+ rank; Character: SSS+ rank.] [His comprehension, will, and growth potential make him worthy of second place among the top ten geniuses below the Undying level in the Third Reincarnation Era of the Primal Universe.] [Ranking complete.] [Reward: Divine Power Burning Secret Technique (Second Stage).] [Reward: Soul-type supreme treasure, Heaven Soul Mirror. (Can strengthen Soul Attacks by one level and guard the soul.)] [Reward: One True God-level Will Secret Technique.] [Reward: One True God-level inheritance.]
When the words "True God-level inheritance" appeared on the Sky Screen again, the entire Human Race's Hong Alliance erupted.
Hong, in second place, had received rewards on par with—or even better than—those of Bei Shang, who had placed third.
The Palace Supreme Treasure had been replaced by an even rarer soul-type supreme treasure. He had also received the second stage of the Divine Power Burning Secret Technique, a Will Secret Technique, and, just like before, a True God-level inheritance.
In the Demon Ancestor Secret Realm, Tremor Demon Ancestor and Dream Demon Ancestor exchanged silent glances.
The Monster Race had poured everything into its efforts, yet only Frost Parasite had made the ranking, receiving the first stage of the Divine Power Burning Secret Technique and the Mist Veil Armor.
Humans, meanwhile, had already secured a place on the ranking—and in second place, no less.
Inside the Zerg Queen's palace, the Queen gripped the Eternal Pearl so tightly that her knuckles turned faintly white.
In Chaos City, Hong accepted the four clusters of light descending from the Sky Screen. He smiled and turned to Luo Feng beside him. "Third Brother, it's your turn."
Above them, the final line of text began to slowly take shape.
Each character appeared with agonizing slowness, as though the Sky Screen itself were preparing for some grand ceremony.
The countless gazes of the entire Primal Universe focused on those words. After waiting a million years, the ranking was finally about to reveal its last—and most important—position.
[TOP 1: Human 'Luo Feng'!]
The instant that line appeared, the entire Primal Universe fell into absolute silence for several seconds.
Then an unprecedented shock wave erupted!
In the Virtual Universe's great hall, Founder Giant Axe's boisterous laughter made the ceiling ring. "I knew it! The top spot would go to a human too! Luo Feng! Chaos has taken a fine disciple!"
The human Universe Masters behind him cheered as one.
Peng Gong Lord pounded the table, Darkness Master rarely showed a hint of a smile, and Dragon Walk Master swished his massive tail, laughing heartily.
In the inner hall of Chaos City Lord's Mansion, City Lord of Chaos stood before a stone wall engraved with names, his hands behind his back as he gazed at the name on the Sky Screen.
Luo Feng.
His direct disciple, the most talented genius the Human Race had spent a million years and countless resources cultivating—and the most gifted and steady-minded among all the disciples he had ever taken.
In the Demon Ancestor Secret Realm, Dream Demon Ancestor's silver serpentine body went completely rigid.
When Frost Parasite had placed ninth, she could still console herself with "at least he made the ranking." When Hong had placed second, she could still numb herself with "the humans were just lucky."
But Luo Feng had placed first.
That human Domain Lord she had once glimpsed from afar near the edge of the Ancestral God Secret Realm. The human genius who had hunted down sixty-three World Lord-level members of the Monster Race alone in the Blood Stone Galaxy. The black-haired young man who had already become a thorn in the Monster Race's side when Chaos took him as a direct disciple.
Now the Sky Screen had declared him the most talented and promising being below the Undying level in the Primal Universe.
Tremor Demon Ancestor remained silent for a full ten seconds before finally murmuring the words he had spoken a million years ago: "The Monster Race ultimately failed to keep pace during this Reincarnation Era."
Inside the Zerg Queen's palace, the Queen set the Eternal Pearl on the armrest of her throne.
There was no anger or resentment on her lovely face, only an emotion rarely seen in her long life: helplessness.
Inside the Demon Beast Alliance Main Hall, the Beast Ancestor's fingers stopped tapping the armrest.
Blood Fang, in seventh place, had received a True God-level Will Secret Technique and a Domain Supreme Treasure. He had already been satisfied.
But Luo Feng had taken first place.
The one who had outranked his disciple by six places was the one who truly made him realize that the unease he had felt years ago, when he saw that human fight the monsters alone in the Blood Stone Galaxy, had not been misplaced.
At the ancestral land of the Starry Sky Behemoth Alliance, the Old Beast God remained silent for a long time.
His carefully trained royal disciple, He Qiu, had placed fifth, a considerable distance behind Hong and Luo Feng.
On the cultivation terrace in Chaos City, Hong turned to Luo Feng, a faint smile on his face. "Third Brother, I knew it would be you."
Luo Feng nodded and looked up at his name on the Sky Screen, just as he had years ago when he first watched the Sky Screen Ranking of the top ten powerhouses on Earth.
Above them, Luo Feng's battle projection began to slowly unfold.
Unlike all the previous projections, the Sky Screen didn't show just one battle this time. Instead, it displayed highlights from several of the most representative battles Luo Feng had fought over the past million years.
The scenes shifted seamlessly like flowing water.
The final strike of his battle against sixty-three World Lord-level demon beasts in the Blood Stone Galaxy, his blade light cleaving a demon beast's skull as his Space Law comprehension suddenly advanced from the eighth essence of the Rainstorm Diagram to the seventeenth.
His challenge to the Thirteenth Floor of the Chaos City Heavenly Bridge, where he cleaved through the law barrier formed by the fusion of space and time, followed by countless battles against aliens during missions arranged by the Virtual Universe Company.
His blade light shifted from its original blood-red hue, gradually blending with golden scales and ripples in space, until it finally became a seamless stream of dark-golden light.
His eyes, once sharp and bold in his youth, gradually became as calm as an abyss.
Then one scene came to a halt: Luo Feng hovered beneath the vault of the Primal Secret Realm, his body manifesting the complete fourth transformation of the Seven Changes of Yan God.
Golden scales covered his entire body. Behind him, a pair of faint wings took shape, woven from the laws of space and metal. Crimson waves parted on either side beneath his feet, while the fluctuations of law from his four bodies resonated within him with unprecedented intensity.
He opened his eyes, and his pupils reflected the star map of the entire Primal Universe.
[Human 'Luo Feng.' World Lord, ninth rank.] [Law Comprehension: Junior Venerable.] [Will: Venerable Limit.] [Overall Evaluation: Talent and Comprehension: SSS+ rank; Will: SSS+ rank; Character: SSS+ rank.] [His comprehension, will, and growth potential make him worthy of first place among the top ten geniuses below the Undying level in the Third Reincarnation Era of the Primal Universe!] [Ranking complete.] [Reward: Divine Power Burning Secret Technique (Second Stage).] [Reward: Soul-type supreme treasure, Heaven Soul Mirror. (Can strengthen Soul Attacks by one level and guard the soul.)] [Reward: One Void True God-level inheritance. (Note: Void True God is the level of strength required to pass through the cycle of reincarnation!)] [Reward: One Void True God-level Will Secret Technique.] [Reward: Hunyuan Gold Spirit Fruit (Can greatly enhance comprehension!)]
The abundance of the first-place rewards left even those who had anticipated them astonished.
Especially when the words "Void True God-level inheritance" appeared, the entire Primal Universe fell silent.
A Void True God-level inheritance.
An inheritance a full major realm above a True God-level inheritance!
A True God-level inheritance could only guide a cultivator to the True God Limit, while a Void True God-level inheritance showed the path beyond True God, the road through the cycle of reincarnation.
Throughout the three Reincarnation Eras of the Primal Universe, every Universe Strongest had searched desperately for a way to transcend reincarnation. Countless True Gods had risked their lives in the three great perilous lands of the Universe Ocean, all for a fleeting chance to transcend.
And now, the Sky Screen had bestowed a Void True God-level inheritance upon a World Lord.
In a sense, it was announcing something to the entire Primal Universe: You've gone to such lengths to learn how to transcend reincarnation? The answer lies with him.
In the Demon Ancestor Secret Realm, Tremor Demon Ancestor's pupils contracted sharply.
A Void True God-level inheritance. Not a True God-level one, but a Void True God-level one.
He and Meng Cha had spent countless eras wandering the Universe Ocean. Wasn't this the very hope they had been seeking?
Now that hope was in the hands of a human World Lord.
Dream Demon Ancestor's serpentine eyes churned with an extremely complicated mix of emotions: greed, resentment, jealousy, and a trace of fear she refused to acknowledge even to herself.
Back then, she had sent people to probe Luo Feng's whereabouts and the strength of his guards time and again. If City Lord of Chaos hadn't arranged his protection so flawlessly, Luo Feng might have perished on the Outer Domain Battlefield long ago.
And now this human junior, whom she and Zhen Jiao had once considered a potential threat, had grown beyond even her ability to touch.
After this, Luo Feng and Hong would surely break through to the Undying level at the first opportunity. With their Law Comprehension and will, they would become true powerhouses in an extremely short time.
The Zerg Queen gripped the Eternal Pearl, her face pale.
Her reaction was no different from Zhen Jiao's. Transcending reincarnation was her only obsession in life.
Now the Sky Screen had put a Void True God-level inheritance right above the head of a human World Lord. There was no way she wouldn't be tempted.
But she also knew that from now on, Luo Feng would receive the highest level of protection the entire Human Race's Hong Alliance could provide.
The only chance to strike would be if he were alone in the Universe Ocean. The Outer Domain Battlefield and the Primal Secret Realm were out of the question, and Chaos City was absolutely impossible.
Inside the Demon Beast Alliance Main Hall, the Beast Ancestor's fingers stopped tapping altogether.
Blood Fang had placed seventh, and receiving a True God-level Will Secret Technique was already a great achievement.
But Luo Feng had placed first and received a Void True God-level inheritance.
He understood the weight of that inheritance. It was enough to let the Universe Masters of the entire Human Race produce wave after wave of True God-level powerhouses over the next era.
At the ancestral land of the Starry Sky Behemoth Alliance, the Old Beast God drew a deep breath.
A Void True God-level inheritance.
Even he had to admit that the human geniuses of this Reincarnation Era had far surpassed the limits of the Starry Sky Behemoth royal bloodline.
On the cultivation terrace in Chaos City, Luo Feng received the clusters of light descending from the Sky Screen.
He felt a vast flood of information pour into his sea of consciousness.
Luo Feng raised his head and looked toward the Milky Way Galaxy.
There was a water-blue planet there, the place where his dream had begun.
On an unnamed planet, Yang Yu sat cross-legged atop the peak of a mountain formed from Jin King Palace. After watching the Sky Screen Ranking, which had lasted for ten full rounds from beginning to end, he slowly lowered the wine jug in his hand.
"First on the Genius Ranking. Junior Venerable in Law Comprehension, Venerable Limit in will."
Yang Yu murmured softly, a faint smile curling his lips as he drained the last drop of wine from the jug.
He rose to his feet, his towering body, over ninety thousand kilometers tall, casting a long shadow through the void.
He was very pleased with Luo Feng's performance!
"With the Hunyuan Gold Spirit Fruit, my disciple's future should be even more extraordinary."
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