The Grand Finals Arrived

Time continued to pass, and another year and more went by.

Having nurtured a Mosha Clan clone, Luo Feng crossed the threshold of the Space Origin Law almost instantly.

Afterward, with Babata's help, he continued to improve.

As for Chen Ao, he still sat on his rock, playing dead.

September 5, 2070.

Today, the grand finals of the universe-wide Genius Battle would begin.

Across the continents and islands of the Virtual Universe, over a million peerless geniuses from 1,008 Universe Countries teleported to their respective gathering places.

On a floating island above Ganwu Continent.

Whoosh!

Luo Feng appeared at the floating island's teleportation point.

"Mr. Luo Feng, this way, please." A Universe Level warrior in a work uniform stood beside the teleportation point and smiled as he pointed toward a nearby path.

"Thank you." Luo Feng smiled and nodded... then headed straight down the path.

A short while later.

Luo Feng saw a large crowd gathered in a plaza surrounded by beautiful flowers and plants not far away. At a glance, there were several hundred men and women of various appearances. At least a third looked fairly similar to Earthlings, however. The Earthling appearance was also a common one throughout the universe.

"Luo Feng's here."

"That madman!"

Quite a few young men and women looked over.

These hundreds of people had all secured places. After all, Qianwu Universe Country would be sending a thousand geniuses this time.

"Luo Feng."

"Hey, Madman."

Quite a few of them smiled and greeted Luo Feng. Having participated in the Reincarnation Battle... Luo Feng had fought more than two hundred of them one-on-one.

"Feng Lun!"

"Patro." Luo Feng also greeted several people he was on good terms with.

Luo Feng was extremely well liked.

In complete contrast to Luo Feng's popularity, Chen Ao entered the place like an invisible nobody.

Almost no one recognized him. Only a handful of those he had eliminated back then had made the top thousand, and by now, they barely remembered Chen Ao.

Besides, Chen Ao had worn a mask at the time precisely to avoid being recognized.

Compared with top geniuses of the universe like Luo Feng and Rong Jun, what the hell was Chen Ao?

Who would pay any attention to him?

As time passed, geniuses arrived one after another, and the crowd grew.

Savage Rong Jun arrived relatively late. Eventually, all one thousand genius experts had gathered. They stood together in a bustling crowd, and many who knew each other in reality or had become acquainted through battle chatted and caught up.

"Luo Feng, your strength must have improved quite a bit over the past year or so, right? I know you improve very quickly." The young Savage, Rong Jun, looked down at Luo Feng.

Luo Feng turned and glanced at the Savage, who stood over three meters tall. "You'll find out when you test me in the final showdown."

"That confident?" The Savage's eyes lit up.

However, Rong Jun instinctively glanced toward Chen Ao at the edge.

He was as detached as ever, completely invisible. Even the people closest to Chen Ao hadn't noticed him.

Facing Luo Feng, Rong Jun's eyes brimmed with fighting spirit.

Facing Chen Ao, however, Rong Jun was filled with wariness.

"Madman, are you not on good terms with the Sword God?" Rong Jun suddenly asked.

Luo Feng stood in the middle of the crowd, while Chen Ao stood at its edge.

Logically, given Luo Feng's and Chen Ao's strength, and the mutual appreciation geniuses tended to share, they ought to have been close.

Upon hearing Rong Jun's question, Luo Feng suddenly gave an awkward smile. "Well, that senior told me that if we ran into each other, I had to pretend I didn't know him, and I absolutely had to stay away from him!"

Huh?

Rong Jun was baffled. Why did he have to pretend not to know him?

Chen Ao felt his scalp prickle under Luo Feng's and Rong Jun's gazes. Don't look at me for no reason! With two great experts like you staring at me, won't that expose me?

Other people would most likely notice Chen Ao because of Luo Feng's and Rong Jun's gazes.

Chen Ao immediately glared at them.

Luo Feng and Rong Jun, who had been discussing Chen Ao, promptly looked away sheepishly.

They stopped discussing him.

Suddenly.

Boom! An invisible pressure enveloped the entire plaza. All one thousand peerless geniuses went pale, their bodies trembling involuntarily.

Then, accompanied by the sound of footsteps, a giant wearing scaled battle robes and a helmet walked over. The aura he naturally exuded was like the descent of death itself.

That aura, thick with the scent of blood, inspired involuntary terror!

The giant stood over eight meters tall! He was the same being as last time.

"By the ruler's command, I will lead the thousand geniuses of Qianwu Universe Country." The giant's voice rumbled, and the eyes beneath his helmet exerted boundless pressure. "You may address me as Lord Thirteen. Understood?"

"Understood!"

All one thousand peerless geniuses involuntarily answered in unison.

What terrifying pressure. Cold sweat drenched Chen Ao's forehead. In reality, the pressure of his will could definitely shatter my soul in an instant.

Terrifying!

Once again, Chen Ao felt that he wasn't worth a damn. Keeping a low profile was the right choice!

Before this giant in scaled battle robes, the thousand geniuses were as weak as ants. Fear naturally arose within them. It was pure instinct, something even the strongest will could not suppress.

"Luo Feng, Rong Jun!" The giant in scaled battle robes fixed his gaze on the two.

"Lord Thirteen." Rong Jun and Luo Feng both bowed slightly.

"You are the only two among this group from our Qianwu Universe Country who can be counted on not to be eliminated. The ruler has great expectations for you. You... must not disappoint him. Understood?" the giant in scaled battle robes said.

"Yes," Luo Feng and Rong Jun answered respectfully.

The giant in scaled battle robes swept his gaze over the other young people and said coldly, "As for the rest of you, there's little hope!"

Quite a few young people immediately clenched their fists. Amid the crowd, Luo Feng frowned slightly.

Chen Ao is so strong, and you can't even see it?

Are you blind?

Savage Rong Jun also felt that this man had poor judgment.

At the very least, he had absolutely no confidence in defeating even the Chen Ao of five years ago.

Chen Ao, on the other hand, was delighted. Sure enough, no one had noticed him.

It wasn't that this "Thirteen" lacked sufficient access privileges. He simply hadn't cared about the Preliminary Competition back then.

Those who had cared lacked the necessary access privileges.

As a result, he had slipped through the net.

"Hmph! Don't resent it. Strength isn't something you talk about. It's something you demonstrate through battle!" the giant in scaled battle robes said coldly.

"Of course!"

"You might also create a miracle! Throughout history, there have been peerless geniuses who seemed ordinary at first, only to suddenly erupt during the final showdown." The giant in scaled battle robes swept his gaze over the crowd, then changed the subject. "All right, follow me."

These peerless geniuses from the various star regions of Qianwu Universe Country could only endure it.

Then, led by the giant in scaled battle robes, Chen Ao and the other thousand geniuses teleported together into a brand-new plane created within the Virtual Universe.

It was a vast continent.

Chen Ao and the others, including the giant in scaled battle robes leading them, appeared on this continent simultaneously, 1,001 people in total.

"Qianwu Universe Country's delegation, there are 1,008 buildings ahead. Your delegation has been assigned to Building 0825." A middle-aged man in white robes respectfully bowed to the giant in scaled battle robes.

"Mm!"

The giant in scaled battle robes grunted, then led the delegation straight into the distance.

"Wow!"

There were 1,008 buildings, with one building for each Universe Country's delegation?

Looking into the distance, the buildings formed a ring. At the center of the 1,008 buildings was a beautiful plaza filled with birdsong and fragrant flowers. Many young men and women from the various Universe Countries were strolling and chatting there. At a glance, there were at least a hundred thousand of them.

"Land!" The giant's voice thundered.

The Qianwu Universe Country genius delegation quickly descended to the edge of the plaza, then followed a road straight toward Building 0825. The plaza had a dedicated path leading to each building.

"Look, Building 0825 belongs to Qianwu Universe Country. That must be their genius delegation."

"Rong Jun! That tall Savage is Rong Jun. The one beside him is Luo Feng!"

"Mm! They're very strong."

"Where are Rong Jun and Luo Feng?"

"Luo Feng? Rong Jun?"

Many geniuses from other Universe Countries watched the Qianwu Universe Country delegation from afar and began discussing them.

By then, the Qianwu Universe Country genius delegation had followed the giant in scaled battle robes into Building 0825. The building's first floor was spacious enough to hold over a thousand people.

Boom!

That mighty pressure appeared again, bearing down on the thousand geniuses and making Luo Feng and everyone else turn to look at the towering giant in scaled battle robes.

The giant withdrew his pressure... and said indifferently, "I have numbered plates from 1 to 1,000 here. Each of you will take one and use it to enter your assigned room. That will be where you rest and stay!"

Then the giant in scaled battle robes waved his hand!

Numbered plates floated down, one before each person.

Savage Rong Jun reached out and caught his plate. It bore only a single number: "1."

Luo Feng also reached out and caught his plate. It bore only a single number: "2."

All one thousand genius experts caught their numbered plates.

"You are free to disperse!"

"You may sleep and rest in your rooms, or go to the plaza and interact with geniuses from other Universe Countries." The giant in scaled battle robes swept his gaze over the thousand geniuses... and continued coldly,

"When it is nearly dark, the organizers from the Virtual Universe Company will summon all of you. Wherever you are within this plane, you will hear the announcement."

With that, the giant in scaled battle robes strode straight out.

Only then did the thousand geniuses of Qianwu Universe Country breathe a sigh of relief. Holding their numbered plates, they gathered in small groups, either chatting or going to find their rooms.

The Central Plaza encircled by the 1,008 buildings was enormous. Even a million people would not make it feel crowded. Flowers, plants, and small ornamental animals could be seen everywhere around it.

Large restaurants were also scattered throughout the plaza.

There were ninety-nine restaurants in all. The geniuses from the various Universe Countries could enter any of the others, but Restaurant No. 1 was off-limits.

"Hm?" Luo Feng frowned.

Silence!

The entire plaza fell quiet.

Hundreds of thousands of geniuses from the various Universe Countries nearly all turned in one direction. Luo Feng also looked over and saw a young man dressed in white emerge from a distant building. He was handsome, but his face was utterly expressionless. His whole presence was like an iceberg, and a blood-red longsword hung on his back.

As he walked toward the plaza... his cold eyes swept over the hundreds of thousands of peerless geniuses without the slightest flicker.

"Death God!"

"Death God Bolan!"

"It's him!"

"The undisputed number one in the overall rankings this time."

At last, murmurs rose from all over the plaza. At the same time, the young man of the Howling God Race shrouded in black robes, the breathtakingly beautiful girl of the Mengluo Wing Race, the Prince of Manka Star brimming with fighting spirit, the Savage who seemed as though even the heavens could not crush him, the burly, heavyset man standing six meters tall with a blood-red giant axe on his back who narrowed his eyes, and the green-haired young man with strange green markings on his face...

Throughout the plaza, the true supreme experts who ranked at the forefront of over a million geniuses all stared at the young man in white carrying a blood-red longsword.

Of course, Luo Feng was among these experts!

Chen Ao, however, was not!

"Bolan." Luo Feng silently watched the distant figure and murmured, "Death God Bolan?"

Chen Ao also glanced at Bolan. "So this is my shield for the next thirty-odd years? Not bad, not bad!"