From the Metropolis to the Strongest in the Cosmos

Chapter 217: Chapter 217: Ranking Battle

Each of the geniuses was lost in their own thoughts, and Li Yang was also watching Hunxu and Lan Yu.

’The power of a Star Lord...’

He shook his head internally. Even if he completely mastered the third form of the Hexagram Spear, he would only be invincible within the Longevity Realm.

Only by completely mastering the fourth form of the Hexagram Spear would he have the strength to contend with a Star Lord!

Despite constant enlightenment from the numerous law imprints on the Path of Deities, and the continuous comprehension from his Sky-Fierce Flood Dragon and Thunder Star Beast avatars, he still hadn’t mastered the third form of the Hexagram Spear in over five years.

One could only imagine how long it would take him to master the fourth form.

The difficulty of mastering each form of the Hexagram Spear was dozens of times greater than the last!

Dozens of times longer than five years... just how long would that be?

And only after mastering the fourth form would he be able to reach the same level of strength as Lan Yu and Hunxu.

Just as everyone was discussing, even in the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall genius selection, it was uncertain how many competitions it would take for another talent like Lan Yu or Hunxu to appear.

...

As the crowd in the plaza discussed amongst themselves, powerful consciousnesses began to descend upon the vast area above.

"Haha, the selection for our Human Race’s geniuses has begun again!"

"Profound Fox, you came as well? Are you also looking to take on a disciple?"

"What? Only you are allowed to be here, Zhu Xi, and I’m not?"

"It seems everyone is here to find a disciple."

"Of course. This cohort has over a dozen geniuses who could have taken first place in the last competition. What’s more, we also have Lan Yu and Hunxu, two peerless talents our Human Race might not see even once in a hundred million years."

"The quality of this generation of geniuses is so high, it will surely rank among the very best of all the selections our Saint Hall has ever held."

"Let’s see if there are any promising prospects."

...

The powerful consciousnesses all conversed among themselves.

These... were all experts from within the Human Race Saint Hall.

If they saw a genius they took a liking to, they would naturally accept them as a disciple.

Any genius needed proper nurturing to reach their full potential. Thus, the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall encouraged its powerful members to accept disciples.

Moreover, once a disciple became powerful, it was of great benefit to their master as well.

Before them stood the strongest group of geniuses in the entire Human Race. If they weren’t going to choose from them, where would they go? To some remote corner of the universe?

These conversing entities were, in fact, all powerful Deities.

Consider the difference between the Early Law Realm and the Peak of Law Realm—how vast was the gap in their strength? A full thousand-fold!

And the disparities within the Divine Realm were even greater than those within the Law Realm!

The mightiest of those in the Divine Realm could annihilate countless weaker Deities with a mere wave of the hand!

Even if they were eternally undying, that only referred to their lifespan. If another Deity extinguished their life imprint, they would still die.

These observers were Deities from within the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall, which naturally meant they were among the most powerful of their kind!

And beyond their consciousnesses, even more powerful existences were paying attention.

Lan Yu and Hunxu were two peerless geniuses the likes of which the Human Race hadn’t seen in a hundred million years. Once they were recruited by the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall, there would be no shortage of people interested in them. It was only natural for some to come and take a look in advance.

And it wasn’t only Deities who had taken an interest in these two geniuses.

...

The many geniuses had no idea they were being watched. They remained in the vast area as more and more people arrived.

At last, all thirty million geniuses from the Human Race’s Three Thousand Star Continents had arrived!

WHOOSH!

Once everyone had arrived, a figure suddenly descended into the space above the vast area.

This was a middle-aged man with a single horn. He had a gentle face and smiled as he looked down at the crowd below.

The Deities below, who were leading the teams from each Star Continent, saw this man, and expressions of utmost reverence immediately appeared on their faces.

"We pay our respects to Emperor Longyan."

The three thousand Deities spoke with the utmost reverence.

’An Emperor!’

Li Yang looked up, and his heart skipped a beat when he saw how respectful all the Deities were.

’Is this horned man a terrifying existence beyond the Divine Realm?’

His home, the Yangyuan Star Continent, had only one Emperor-level expert: the Yangyuan Emperor.

It was nearly impossible to get an audience with the Yangyuan Emperor.

But here, at the genius selection for the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall, he had met one with ease.

Emperor Longyan gave a slight nod to the many Deities below. "You may all withdraw," he said.

"Yes."

All the Deities nodded respectfully and withdrew from the area, leaving only the thirty million geniuses behind.

Then, Emperor Longyan looked at the assembled geniuses and smiled. "Welcome, everyone, to the genius selection for our Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall."

"I will now announce the rules of the selection," he said, getting straight to the point without any preamble.

The crowd below didn’t dare to make a sound, listening intently to the rules.

"This selection is divided into two rounds. The first is the Ranking Battle."

"All thirty million of you will enter thirty million individual battle spaces. Inside, opponents will appear. As soon as you kill these opponents, they will instantly revive."

"After reviving, their strength will be greater. They will appear a total of nine times, with the final opponents possessing the strength of the Early Star Lord Realm."

"Your rank in this battle will be determined by how many opponents you defeat."

"Out of thirty million, only one hundred thousand will be selected. All others will be eliminated!"

Hearing this, the faces of many geniuses present changed.

Thirty million people, and twenty-nine million nine hundred thousand would be cut. The elimination rule was incredibly cruel.

Compared to the first two stages, this stage would be a true test of everyone’s strength.

For example, geniuses like Yun Rou, Mute, and Dilunxi could all instantly kill experts at the Peak of Longevity Realm, but who among them was actually stronger? No one knew.

But the impending trial in the battle spaces would make it clear.

Emperor Longyan continued, "The second round is a Melee Battle. Having great talent does not mean you are suited for a life-or-death struggle! Every genius must face many crises as they grow, and this stage will test your reactions when faced with danger."

No matter how talented a genius is, if they are unable to bear any risks, they are like a hothouse flower. Such a genius will very likely perish on their path to power.

Over countless years, how many talented geniuses have failed to reach their potential, perishing along the way?

"For the Melee Battle, one hundred thousand of you will enter a battle space. You will fight among yourselves, doing your best to showcase your combat abilities. Besides fighting each other, the battle space will contain numerous other crises... This stage will test your survival skills when facing other, more powerful geniuses and various dangers. Many experts will be watching your performance and will grade you accordingly."

"Based on the combined results of the first round’s Ranking Battle and the second round’s Melee Battle, the final three thousand participants will be decided."

And so, Emperor Longyan finished explaining the complete rules.

These first two rounds would decide the final candidates to enter the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall!