From the Metropolis to the Strongest in the Cosmos

Chapter 218: Chapter 218: Cleared

In reality, the first round, the ranking battle, would largely determine which geniuses were selected. The second round of combat was mainly for those who were further behind in the rankings.

For example, for those ranked around three thousandth place, you couldn’t say the 3,000th-ranked genius was much stronger than the 3,001st. The difference in their strength was minuscule.

In that situation, if the 3,001st-ranked genius performed exceptionally well in the combat battle, they could absolutely knock the 3,000th-ranked genius out of their spot.

Even geniuses ranked past four thousand could soar through the ranks if they performed well enough in the combat battle.

Talented individuals with a low probability of perishing on their path to power—those were the geniuses the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall wanted to cultivate.

The crowd of geniuses listened intently, and the eyes of some with lower rankings lit up.

"So those are the rules."

"That means even though I didn’t make the top three thousand in the first round, I still have a chance to overtake the others in the second round."

Those ranked lower still had a chance.

"Alright, those are the rules. The competition will begin in one minute."

Longyan Emperor’s gaze swept across the many geniuses present.

WHOOSH!

With that, his figure vanished completely.

Hearing that only a minute remained, many of the geniuses’ faces grew tense once more.

"The competition starts in just one minute."

"This part of the competition will probably be over quickly. Most of the people in this square will be eliminated soon."

"Let’s give it our all. We’ve already succeeded just by making it this far."

As Longyan Emperor disappeared, a palpable tension spread across the faces of the geniuses.

’A ranking battle and a combat battle? Is the ranking battle against those virtual humans?’

Li Yang wondered silently from within the crowd.

He pondered for a moment. ’Longyan Emperor just said that if you kill the virtual humans, they will revive even stronger. What happens if you don’t kill them?’

As he was lost in thought, the minute passed in a flash.

Longyan Emperor reappeared in the void above.

"Alright, one minute has passed. The ranking battle will now begin."

He waved his right hand, and a vortex materialized before the eyes of every single genius.

"Enter these vortexes to access the battle spaces! If you are defeated, you will be eliminated."

Longyan Emperor said coolly, "Everyone, enter."

As his words faded, the geniuses stepped into the vortexes one after another.

Li Yang took a deep breath and stepped inside as well.

Across the entire area, thirty million geniuses vanished, leaving behind only thirty million strange vortexes.

"The battle is finally about to begin!"

"Haha, I hope these little ones have some surprises for us."

The powerful entities watched with great interest.

The previous two selection rounds—the first being the Stairway of the Deities’ Path, the second a free-for-all battle among a hundred thousand geniuses in a battle space—couldn’t truly reflect a genius’s actual combat prowess, so the observers didn’t have a clear picture.

But now, with thirty million geniuses in thirty million battle spaces, each one’s specific combat abilities would surely be on full display.

A mere sliver of their consciousness could easily enter the many vortexes, allowing them to watch the geniuses fight.

"That Mixed Void and Lan Yu are as strong as expected. With a single attack, all one hundred virtual humans in the battle space were killed instantly."

"It’s only been a few seconds, and the virtual humans have already revived for the fourth time."

Everyone was watching.

No matter how they were killed, even if it was an instant kill, the virtual humans would immediately revive.

Therefore, as long as one could kill them fast enough, it was normal to end a battle in a very short amount of time.

"Level five... six... eight... nine... He’s at the final level, the tenth! The hundred virtual humans there have a combined strength equivalent to the Star Lord Realm! Mixed Void... he cleared it!"

The powerful Deities of the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall were all watching, joy blooming on their faces.

"Haha, passing the 2,600th step of the Stairway of the Deities’ Path means he has the power of a Star Lord, but actually killing an Early Stage Star Lord is incredibly difficult. This Mixed Void has truly given us a massive surprise!"

"The last person from our Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall to clear this was three hundred million years ago, wasn’t it?"

"Correct. That was Xuanmo Emperor."

The many Deities were overjoyed.

WHOOSH!

In the vast area, one of the vortexes vanished, and in its place, Mixed Void’s figure appeared.

He glanced at the massive leaderboard floating in the void. His name was at the very top.

However, there was no trace of arrogance on his face.

At that moment, Mixed Void stood alone on the vast square. He still had that same ordinary, unremarkable face, yet he had unknowingly captured the attention of countless powerful experts.

"Do you all think Mixed Void can become an Emperor in the future?"

"It’s difficult. Mixed Void has the potential to become an Emperor, just like Xuanmo Emperor did. But the path of cultivation is fraught with danger. Out of ten with such potential, at least five will perish. Of the remaining five, four will fail to break through. Only one can truly rise to the top!"

"Exactly. To become an Emperor, Talent is just one piece of the puzzle. Serendipity, luck, and more are all indispensable."

"It takes ten talents like Mixed Void for just one to have a chance of truly reaching the Emperor Level!"

The observers murmured amongst themselves.

Suddenly, their gazes shifted.

"Lan Yu cleared it, too!"

Before their very eyes, Lan Yu had also killed all the virtual humans in the tenth level—the ones with the combined strength of a Star Lord—and cleared the trial!

Another wave of delighted surprise washed over the observers.

"Haha, that kid Mixed Void was a pleasant surprise, but who would have thought Lan Yu was also hiding his strength!"

"Two people who cleared the trial, just like that!"

The powerful Deities were thrilled. Naturally, the more geniuses the Human Race produced, the happier they were.

WHOOSH!

Within the vast area, Lan Yu’s figure appeared as well.

"Hm? Mixed Void?"

The moment he appeared, he saw Mixed Void standing off to the side.

He then looked up at the massive leaderboard in the sky.

1. Mixed Void (Cold Moon Star Continent): Cleared

2. Lan Yu (Yuenuo Star Continent): Cleared

3. Dilunxi (Wuxu Star Continent): Level 6

...

’Mixed Void cleared it too? And he was faster than me!’

Lan Yu stared at Mixed Void, his eyes radiating a wild, unconcealed battle lust.

He was the very picture of youthful vigor, his sharp aura on full display. No matter where he stood, he immediately drew everyone’s attention.

But Mixed Void was the opposite—incredibly low-key and completely unremarkable no matter where he went.

If someone were to walk onto the square where the two of them stood, they would undoubtedly look at Lan Yu first and wouldn’t give Mixed Void a second glance.

And yet, at that moment, Mixed Void was the only person Lan Yu considered his rival.

There’s no true first in scholarship, but there’s no second in combat. He and Mixed Void had both cleared the trial, but they had yet to fight. Who was stronger?

In the coming matches, a battle between him and Mixed Void was inevitable!

Would their strengths be about the same, making them evenly matched? Or would one of them completely crush the other?