From the Metropolis to the Strongest in the Cosmos

Chapter 222: Chapter 222: Breakthrough! Massive Increase in Strength

Many of the geniuses had some understanding of Li Yang’s strength. After all, he was ranked third on the Yangyuan Star Continent.

Most geniuses made it a point to learn about the top three contenders from each major Star Continent, which meant many people present recognized Li Yang.

"Look! Li Yang just conjured ten more phantoms!"

"How is that possible? Isn’t he ranked third on the Yangyuan Star Continent? The power he’s showing now isn’t just stronger than the first-place Jin Xu—it’s much stronger."

"With this kind of strength, he might be able to enter the eighth level of the battle space. Could Li Yang actually make it into the top three thousand?"

...

The disdain in some people’s eyes faded considerably.

No one would dare underestimate someone who could enter the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall.

’Li Yang was hiding his strength before?’

Back in the Yangyuan Star Continent’s designated area, Jin Xu and Lamoqi watched Li Yang suddenly reveal his true power, their expressions shifting slightly.

They were ranked first and second on the Yangyuan Star Continent, but the strength Li Yang was displaying now had already surpassed theirs!

While they were shocked, Celestial Net, who had been feeling quite pleased just a moment ago, saw his expression change drastically.

It wasn’t that Li Yang was stronger than he’d previously shown that made him pale, but the discussions happening around him.

With such power, there was a very real chance he could rank among the top three thousand and enter the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall.

"How is this possible?" Celestial Net’s eyes were filled with gloom.

’If Li Yang really gets into the Eternal Saint Hall, then what awaits me is...’

Celestial Net didn’t dare to think about it any further.

Putting everything else aside, if Li Yang entered the Eternal Saint Hall, he would never have another chance to deal with him!

’Damn it, what the hell is going on? How long has Li Yang even been cultivating?’

Celestial Net began to panic.

...

It wasn’t just the geniuses; even the top-tier Deities watching the event revealed a hint of surprise when Li Yang suddenly unleashed his full power.

"This Li Yang has been hiding his strength all this time."

"The Hexagram Spear and the Illusion Body Skill... this little fellow has nearly mastered the third form of both Cultivation Techniques. He’s just one step away."

"With this level of strength, he can probably rank around 2,900th among all the geniuses."

...

While everyone watched, Li Yang, having finally revealed his true power, felt his own eyes grow brighter and brighter!

Over half a month ago, he had been just a hair’s breadth away from mastering the third form of the Hexagram Spear, and he had been training relentlessly ever since!

His two great avatars were of such a high life-level, his soul was the strongest in the Law Realm, and his comprehension was astonishingly high!

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have gone from knowing nothing to catching up with one top genius after another in just five years!

Even the youngest, Dilunxi, had actually been cultivating for longer than he had.

Considering all these factors, while the third form of the Hexagram Spear was difficult for Li Yang, it couldn’t have been *that* difficult!

At this moment, Li Yang felt that final sliver of the bottleneck finally disappear.

’This is it!’ Li Yang’s heart surged with excitement.

BOOM!

The long spear in his hand instantly erupted with a terrifying might!

Terrifying fluctuations of the Space Law and Thunder Law radiated outwards. The moment this ripple touched them, the auras of several nearby virtual opponents dissipated like a receding tide. They didn’t have a shred of power to resist.

"Haha, I did it!"

Inside the battle space, an ecstatic expression appeared on Li Yang’s face.

The third form of the Hexagram Spear—he had finally mastered it completely!

His plan had succeeded. At the final moment, he had seized this sliver of an opportunity!

’This is what cultivation is all about. You can never give up until the very last moment!’

And by grasping this opportunity, his ranking was about to skyrocket!

His gaze swept over the other virtual opponents in the battle space.

"Since I’ve mastered it, let the slaughter begin!" A smile touched the corner of Li Yang’s lips.

SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!

His phantoms erupted into action, swinging their long spears. The virtual opponents had no power to resist whatsoever and were all slain.

"Next level!"

After all the virtual opponents were killed, they revived once more.

This time, the one hundred revived virtual opponents all possessed the strength of the Peak of Longevity Realm!

Level nine!

Not many geniuses had reached this level, and only a dozen or so had passed it! Every single one of them was an invincible existence in the Longevity Realm who could have taken first place in any previous selection for the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall!

"One hundred at the Peak of Longevity Realm?"

A smile appeared on Li Yang’s lips.

WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!

His figure flickered, and at the same time, streams of phantoms appeared!

This time, a hundred phantoms appeared!

As the phantoms’ attacks struck out, the one hundred virtual opponents were completely unable to resist and were all killed.

The first form of the Illusion Body Skill can create one phantom.

The second form of the Illusion Body Skill can create ten phantoms.

The third form of the Illusion Body Skill can create one hundred phantoms.

The moment he fully mastered the third form of the Hexagram Spear, Li Yang also fully mastered the third form of the Illusion Body Skill!

On level nine, Li Yang instantly killed all the virtual opponents at the Peak of Longevity Realm!

"Next level!" Li Yang’s expression was calm as he waited for the virtual opponents to revive again!

This time, their revival would bring them to the level of a Starry Sky Lord!

...

In the plaza, the many geniuses were still discussing.

"Even if Li Yang can get into the top three thousand, he’ll just be at the very bottom of the rankings."

"Right. That level of strength is nothing special. He’ll most likely still be eliminated in the deathmatches later on!"

"The deathmatches are really designed for the geniuses ranked around the three-thousand mark. Their strengths are all similar; the strongest isn’t that much more powerful than the weakest. In a true life-or-death battle, you never know who will be the final victor."

The geniuses continued their discussion. Although Li Yang’s sudden display of power had shocked some people, that was all it was.

Barely scraping into the top three thousand at the tail end of the first ranking round wasn’t a very secure position.

But even as they were speaking, Li Yang’s power suddenly exploded, and all the virtual opponents within the battle space were subsequently annihilated!

Even the one hundred virtual opponents at the Peak of Longevity Realm were slain—and they were killed instantly!

...

"Li Yang passed level eight... no, he passed level nine?"

"H-How is that possible? His strength already surged once, how did it just surge by so much more?"

"Level nine! Only thirteen geniuses have passed it: Mixed Void, Lan Yu, Dilunxi, Huo Lie, Yun Rou, Mute, and the others! Any one of them could have taken first place in the previous genius selection held by the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall!"

"Li Yang... he’s the fourteenth one to pass!"

Watching the video in the sky, the entire massive area suddenly fell silent. The eyes of the countless geniuses were filled with utter shock, stunned by the power Li Yang had just unleashed.

(Thank you to BanShengLiangLiangLiangDaoShang for the 1500 tip, and thank you to 08a and JiYuanXiaoTian for the 100 tip. Thanks.)