The choice

"Rumble..."

Shortly after the words fell, the enormous oval spacecraft hovered over an open area above Chaos City.

Its massive hatch opened.

More than a thousand figures flew out of the cabin.

Hu Yanbo, clad in black armor, was among them.

The moment everyone landed-

Whoosh!

A concentrated streak of black light shot out from the city and landed before the group in an instant, revealing a man in an ancient-looking black robe.

Fine blue-green scales covered his head, and his face bore inhuman features. He grinned, exposing sharp, pointed teeth.

"Everyone!" The black-robed man's voice rang out like clashing metal, carrying clearly across the gathering. "I am the Chaos City Guide. First-time arrivals, follow me! The rest of you may go about your business!"

Along with several hundred gifted elites of various races setting foot in Chaos City for the first time, Hu Yanbo silently followed the black-robed guide.

Even the core World Lord geniuses of the five great powers, including the Virtual Universe Company and the Giant Axe Arena, were only eligible to apply for a single visit to the sacred grounds of Chaos City after a breakthrough in their cultivation!

Thus, most of those who came to Chaos City were first-time visitors!

The group made its way along Chaos City's grand, broad streets.

The paving stones beneath their feet were mottled, etched with the weathering of countless years.

Buildings of wildly different styles lined both sides of the street, some resembling carved divine mountains, others like enormous beasts lying at rest.

"Chaos City is a sacred place for comprehending the laws, and a retreat for countless powerful beings! Any corner of the city-rooftops, courtyards, or anywhere else you can sense-may be occupied by a supreme being beyond your imagination!"

As he spoke, his gaze swept across the crowd again. This time, it deliberately lingered on the faces of several Immortal Gods, including Hu Yanbo, and his tone abruptly turned cold and severe:

"Remember! During your time studying in Chaos City, if anyone relies on their strength to trespass into another's territory and disrupt their cultivation... whether you are a World Lord or an Immortal!"

"Once discovered, you will immediately lose your right to study here! You will be expelled from the Initial Universe! There will be no leniency!"

The icy warning struck everyone's heart like a heavy hammer.

Several Immortal Gods from the great Universe Countries, each a mighty lord in his own domain, wore solemn expressions and bowed slightly to show that they understood.

Once he saw that everyone had taken his words to heart, the black-robed guide led them to the center of a spacious plaza.

Ahead, an enormous building rose from the ground like a primordial divine beast lying prone, radiating an indescribable weight and majesty.

It stood more than three hundred meters tall, built entirely from an unidentifiable kind of chaos stone.

The Black-Robed Envoy stopped and looked toward the magnificent building. His earlier sternness faded, replaced by profound solemnity and a trace of heartfelt awe.

He bowed slightly and lowered his voice. "Everyone, look over there-the Chaos City Lord's Mansion!"

Hu Yanbo and the others looked up as instructed.

At the highest point above the building's main entrance, three enormous, forceful characters in the universal language, seemingly etched by the laws of heaven and earth themselves, burst into everyone's sight-"City Lord's Mansion"!

The instant his gaze touched those three characters!

Hu Yanbo, a soul master and a Marquis Level Immortal God, felt an unimaginably vast will crash down upon the core of his soul!

It was as though an invisible giant hand was trying to wrench his soul straight out of his divine body!

Many of the other geniuses seeing this for the first time let out muffled groans, their faces turning deathly pale. Some even staggered back several steps, their eyes filled with horror.

"Ha!"

Only then did the Black-Robed Envoy give a short laugh, as though he had expected this all along.

"Those three characters were personally inscribed by a true pillar of our human race! Even King-level Immortals would not dare stare at that plaque without restraint!"

After a brief silence, the Black-Robed Envoy set aside his awed expression toward the mansion and resumed his demeanor as a guide.

"All right. Now that you've seen the City Lord's Mansion, it's time to see the treasures that will benefit you most on this visit!" His voice became clear and strong again as he turned and headed toward a central district of the city.

The varied Cultivation Residences lining the streets gradually grew sparse, and the atmosphere became increasingly solemn.

Regardless of which power they came from or which being had recommended them.

Everyone who entered the Initial Universe to study had one opportunity to freely choose a Chaos Stele that suited their own path!

Laying their foundations and guiding their way forward-this was one of the major reasons every place in the Initial Universe was so precious.

As he spoke, the Black-Robed Envoy soon led Hu Yanbo and the others to the entrance of a dreamlike corridor.

"Go inside! Sense them carefully, and choose the Chaos Stele that belongs to you with care! After choosing, each of you will have only seven days to study it!" the Black-Robed Envoy said.

The group showed little dissatisfaction upon hearing that they would have only seven days to study.

Although they were "newcomers" setting foot in Chaos City for the first time, they were by no means without backing.

Behind them stood Marquis and King Rank Immortals whose influence spanned the stars!

Their places in Chaos City had either been allocated within their respective powers or purchased by their elders at enormous expense through auctions and other means!

With their families' rules, their sect leaders' teachings, and their seniors' experience, why would they make a fuss over this pitifully short study period?

"Remember!" The Black-Robed Envoy watched the backs of those filing into the dreamlike corridor. "Everyone-gather in front of this entrance in half an hour! Report your chosen Chaos Stele to me!"

Enormous pictures hung along both sides of the corridor!

A single sweep of his gaze told Hu Yanbo that there were fifty-two pictures in total.

Each picture conveyed the aura of a Chaos Stele, providing the crucial means for those choosing to sense how well it suited them!

Hu Yanbo quickly scanned every picture on the walls.

Many of the 52 Chaos Tablets began with a lower origin law before gradually progressing toward comprehension of a higher origin law!

Hu Yanbo could set those aside for the time being!

The "Myriad Transformations Chaos Stele" depicted a mass of chaos, its colors and forms constantly shifting, arising, and vanishing!

When Hu Yanbo glanced at the "Myriad Spirits Stele Rubbing," he felt as though he were about to plunge into a boundless dream!

His mind shook violently, and he nearly stopped there!

Yet a vague sense of unease urged him to venture farther.

An enormous rubbing on the left wall toward the rear of the corridor captured his full attention!

It was the "Nine Universes Chaos Stele"!

The raindrops appeared to be scattered at random, yet their arrangement secretly accorded with the harmonies of the universe.

It seemed to be a concrete diagram of the fundamental principles of spatial stability, extension, cutting, and structure!

Space! Utter purity! Utter depth! Utter structure!

This was exactly what he needed!

This is the one! Hu Yanbo thought!

Law comprehension was the true foundation of the universe's powerful beings!

Even with the advance system, he could never use it as an excuse to squander the precious opportunity Chaos City offered!

He had to strive for perfection in everything!

Whether struggling to survive when he was weak or cultivating as a Marquis Immortal now, the same held true!

The half-hour allotted for choosing passed in a flash.

The Black-Robed Envoy raised his arm and quickly entered each visitor's final choice of Chaos Stele into the light screen on his bracer.