Qian Wu Country Lord

In the Virtual Universe, 1,008 Immortals sat casually in the plaza of Plane Space.

The elimination trials were not broadcast publicly. Only changes to the rankings were released.

Only the final arena battles would be broadcast to the public.

However, the Immortals from the various Universe Countries had permission to watch each contestant's trials.

"This Bolan really deserves to be called the best of this year's competitors. He shot straight into first place right from the start."

"Mm."

"Bolan's points are rising fast. He's already left second place far behind."

"Thirteen, Rong Jun from your Ganwu Universe Country is pretty good too. He's currently ranked twelfth in points."

All 1,008 Immortals could easily see the rankings and watch the trials in real time.

They were representing their respective Universe Countries, so naturally, they all wanted their countries' geniuses to shine brighter. It would bring them prestige.

For beings who lived through endless ages, prestige and dignity mattered greatly.

"He's doing all right." Thirteen, the Scale-Armored Giant, nodded slightly. Seated in a broad chair, he watched the screen before him.

"Rong Jun." He opened the footage of Rong Jun's ongoing trial.

Savage Rong Jun moved on bare feet with uncanny steps and astonishing speed. With a battle saber in hand, he freely slaughtered the winged, furry, three-eyed lion-like monsters: the Ferocious Beasts known as Flying Hou.

A rare smile appeared on Thirteen's face.

"Thirteen, this Yun He from your Ganwu Universe Country is pretty good too."

"Yes, he's catching up. He's now ranked fifteenth in points."

"Yun He? Let me see."

"Oh, he really is. Thirteen, your Ganwu Universe Country actually had another genius hidden away."

"This Yun He has a deep comprehension of the Law of Light. More importantly, he's even crossed the threshold of the Time Law!"

"There really are hidden talents everywhere this year! This Yun He doesn't seem to be going all out. He's another one with the strength to contend for the top ten!"

"Thirteen, your Ganwu Universe Country has actually produced two geniuses capable of contending for the top ten this time. What a windfall!"

The Immortals exclaimed in admiration.

"Yun He?" Thirteen, the Scale-Armored Giant, paused in surprise. Only after thinking for a moment did he recall that there seemed to be someone by that name on the team he led.

"Let me see." He immediately opened his Ganwu Universe Country's roster and found Yun He's name.

Yun He (Ganwu Universe Country)

Rank: 15.

"He really is..." Thirteen, the Scale-Armored Giant, hurriedly opened the footage of Yun He's trial.

Within the trial space, Yun He was on the same floor as Rong Jun, facing the same Ferocious Beasts, the Flying Hou. His killing speed was merely a little slower than Rong Jun's.

On the screen, Yun He moved like a streak of light, weaving swiftly through the Flying Hou horde. No matter how the Ferocious Beasts attacked, they could not touch him.

Whenever a Flying Hou, a Ferocious Beast, was about to reach him, time seemed to pause for an instant. Its attack would miss by a hair, allowing Yun He to evade it safely. And with every thrust of his sword, a transparent streak of sword light pierced a Flying Hou between the brows.

Thirteen, the Scale-Armored Giant, suddenly lit up, and delighted surprise appeared on his face.

"This is... the time stop law! It's only a trace, still incomplete, but it's definitely time stop!"

"That's right, it's the time stop law! This young fellow named Yun He is something else!" an Immortal exclaimed.

"Indeed. With time stop, hardly anyone in this year's Genius Battle will even be able to touch him, apart from Bolan and a handful of others." Another Immortal shook his head and looked at Thirteen with undisguised envy.

With this dark horse suddenly emerging alongside Rong Jun, they could almost claim that two places in the top ten of this Genius Battle were already secured. The Ganwu Universe Country had truly hit the jackpot this time!

"Haha, he is quite good!" Thirteen, the Scale-Armored Giant, laughed as well.

How discerning were these Immortals? In their eyes, apart from Bolan and a select few, the contestants charging ahead were all desperately unleashing their full strength, pursuing speed alone.

It was of little use. If they already had to strain every ounce of strength on the first Trial Tower, they would run out of steam at the harder second tower. What did it matter how fast they surged ahead now?

Instead, they favored contestants like Rong Jun and Yun He, who, though temporarily a little behind, remained unhurried and maintained their own pace.

Because comprehension of the laws was what mattered most.

The Immortals could tell at a glance that Rong Jun's and Yun He's law comprehension had definitely given them the strength to contend for the top ten.

Thirteen, the Scale-Armored Giant, had already privately sent an email to the Qian Wu Country Lord.

With a dark horse like Yun He suddenly emerging in the finals, he believed the Qian Wu Country Lord would be delighted too.

Within a secret region of the Ganwu Universe Country.

Inside a towering temple.

A giant sat high upon an enormous seat. The space around him was completely distorted, making it impossible to discern his appearance.

Below him, several Immortals bowed respectfully.

"I had you nurture the younger generation in the Qian Wu Secret Region, selecting over a hundred million geniuses from throughout the Universe Country and training them in the finest location, under the finest conditions. Yet the most outstanding talents ultimately selected from my Universe Country were Rong Jun and Luo Feng, neither of whom was raised in my Qian Wu Secret Region!"

The giant's voice thundered. Within the temple, which rose an untold number of tens of thousands of miles high, space itself trembled as though it were about to shatter.

The Immortals remained bowed, cold sweat seeping from their foreheads.

"What use do I have for you?"

The booming voice bore down upon their souls like an enormous mountain. Their faces turned deathly pale, and they all fell to their knees.

"That they surpassed the geniuses raised in my Qian Wu Secret Region also proves their excellence. Rong Jun, in particular, has the strength to rank among the top ten in the Universe Overall Ranking. That is a good thing, at least. I hope he can enter the Primal Secret Region. That way... he will be of great benefit to my Ganwu Universe Country in the future!"

The anger within his booming voice had noticeably subsided.

"You may leave! I will assign others to nurture the younger generation from now on. Go back and focus on your cultivation and improving your own strength." The giant waved his hand.

"Yes, Country Lord!"

The Immortals breathed sighs of relief and respectfully departed.

The towering giant gazed into the distance, as though his eyes had crossed space and time, passed beyond the entire Qian Wu Secret Region, and reached deep into the starry universe.

As humanity's greatest debtor, the Qian Wu Country Lord had remained in the Ganwu Universe Country for endless ages, diligently nurturing geniuses for humanity to earn contribution points and pay off his debts to the race.

Life was difficult, and he had no idea when he would finally turn things around.

"Hmm?"

The Qian Wu Country Lord drew his thoughts back, noticing an email from his subordinate.

"It's from Thirteen."

The Qian Wu Country Lord sent a sliver of his consciousness into the Virtual Universe and opened the email.

It contained information about Yun He sent by Thirteen, the Scale-Armored Giant, along with a video of Yun He challenging the Trial Tower.

The Qian Wu Country Lord opened the email and read it carefully.

"He has a deep comprehension of the Law of Light and has crossed the threshold of the Time Law, following the path of time stop."

The Qian Wu Country Lord murmured to himself in a low voice.

"He's no worse than Rong Jun."

"Good. Very good!"

A faint smile appeared on the Qian Wu Country Lord's lips, and a trace of delight entered his voice.

Yun He's sudden display of strength had given the Qian Wu Country Lord a pleasant little surprise.

With both Rong Jun and Yun He in this year's Peak Genius Tournament, the Ganwu Universe Country could count its gains as plentiful.

"Yun He, quite a mysterious young fellow..."

The Qian Wu Country Lord gazed toward Qiu Long Star in the Black Dragon Mountain Empire.

That was where Yun He currently lived.