Chaos City.
As one of the sacred places for the human race throughout the entire universe, Chaos City had existed for hundreds of millions of years. In the short span of ten years, almost no changes had occurred.
It remained shrouded in chaotic energy flows, and countless cultivators still stood upon its terraces. If a camera had recorded the city ten years prior and compared it to the present, one might find that more than half of the cultivators in Chaos City hadn’t moved at all over the past decade!
“He’s coming.”
“Hmm.”
Above Chaos City stood two mighty and imposing figures. One was an ape-like humanoid clad in golden battle armor, his eyes seeming to pierce through the void itself. Beside him stood another figure, clad in white battle robes, slightly thin, pale-skinned, with two black horns protruding from his head. The space around him seemed distorted and twisted, and most unusually, his eyes remained perpetually closed.
“Boom~~” From the distance appeared a curved, sapphire-blue spaceship.
“Zhenyan, Tonnan!” a crisp voice rang out. A beautiful woman, wearing sapphire-blue battle armor and flowing purple hair, stepped out from the spaceship’s hatch before the vessel vanished entirely.
“Lonyu!” King Zhenyan laughed heartily.
The thin, white-robed man with closed eyes also smiled and said, “Lonyu, it’s been a long time.”
“You two have remained in Chaos City in seclusion, rarely even entering the virtual universe. I, however, have remained in the Primordial Universe. How could we meet?” Lonyu smiled. Her entire being seemed carved from jade, exuding a translucent aura, as if she didn’t truly exist within this space-time.
“Come, to my place,” the thin white-robed man smiled.
…
Moments later.
Inside an oddly styled building where light and darkness harmonized perfectly.
King Zhenyan, King Tonnan, and King Lonyu—three supreme beings who held extremely high status within the Virtual Universe Company—sat together.
“Tsk tsk, this is delicious,” Lonyu held a crystal goblet, sipping from its contents. The liquid within seemed to swirl with stars, a breathtaking sight.
“Haha, I’m lucky to share this ‘Five-Colored Star Beverage’ with you,” King Zhenyan took a large gulp from his own goblet before smacking his lips in satisfaction, stroking the fur around his mouth. “This blind fool, Tonnan, is stingy. We’ve been together for over a hundred million years, and he’s only shared this drink once before.”
“It’s expensive!” King Tonnan muttered in a low voice. “You just drank 30,000 Primordial Units!”
“Don’t be stingy, don’t be stingy. Pour me another. You made a fortune back then in that cosmic secret realm. Are you really going to get upset over a little drink?” King Zhenyan chuckled, reaching for the bottle.
The bottle, jet-black and cylindrical, sat on the table. Tonnan made no move to stop him, allowing Zhenyan to take it freely.
“Tsk tsk!” Zhenyan shot a glance at Lonyu. “Lonyu, you really have clout.”
Lonyu smiled slightly, glancing at Tonnan.
As beings with immeasurable lifespans, even if they could extend their loved ones’ lives for a thousand eons, those loved ones had long since perished in the river of time. Thus, neither Zhenyan, Lonyu, nor Tonnan had any remaining family. To them, friends who had shared countless battles and near-death experiences were as close as kin.
Zhenyan, Tonnan, and Lonyu had once been part of the same team—comrades bound by life and death!
They had weathered countless calamities together!
Their bond was deep, especially between Tonnan and Lonyu, who had even developed a subtle romantic connection. Yet, despite understanding each other’s feelings, neither had ever crossed that final threshold. They had grown accustomed to this unspoken closeness, a relationship that felt both like friends and lovers.
“Why have you come this time?” King Tonnan asked.
“On the orders of the Venerable,” King Lonyu replied with a smile.
“The Nine-Sword Venerable?” King Zhenyan asked in surprise. “What does the Venerable need you for?”
“The Venerable holds this batch of newcomers in high regard. They will remain in Chaos City for over thirty years, and a third of that time has already passed. Their potential can already be somewhat assessed,” King Lonyu smiled. “The Venerable will only come personally on the final day to retrieve them. For regular observation, naturally, he sends his subordinates. Hence, I am here.”
“Oh,” King Tonnan, the blind one, nodded. “That makes sense. These newcomers were brought in by the Nine-Sword Venerable. If any of them become powerful, they will serve under him.”
“Exactly,” King Lonyu smiled. “Though the chances of these geniuses becoming Immortals are low, I estimate a few will succeed! With their talents and the long-term focused cultivation from our Virtual Universe Company, once they become Immortals, they won’t be ordinary ones. Naturally, the Venerable is interested in his future subordinates.”
Each time the Genius Battle or the Stronghold Battle occurred, the Virtual Universe Company would assign a Venerable to oversee it!
Whoever oversaw the event would receive the geniuses who eventually became ‘Immortals’ into their ranks. Without this reason, would a Venerable of such stature personally escort a group of newcomers to Chaos City and even personally retrieve them in the end?
“This batch of newcomers is quite impressive, especially Bolan. He passed the fourth level of the Heaven-Connecting Bridge half a year ago!” King Tonnan raised his goblet and took a sip. “Among the other geniuses, seven have broken through to the second level of the Heaven-Connecting Bridge, while the rest remain at the first level. These seven are: Gusiluo, Longyun, Galesi, Tao, Qianshui, Wuka, and Ronjun.”
“Ronjun broke through to the second level in the fourth year,” King Zhenyan added with a smile. “Tao passed the second level in the seventh year. Gusiluo, Longyun, and Galesi all passed the second level in the eighth year. Wuka and Qianshui broke through in the ninth year.”
King Lonyu smiled, “I know. In terms of strength, Bolan is first, followed by Ronjun. The next six—Tao, Gusiluo, Longyun, Galesi, Wuka, and Qianshui—are fairly close. Tao, the one wielding the blood axe, is slightly ahead. By the way… what about Luo Feng? He used to perform quite well.”
“Not sure,” King Tonnan shook his head. “Zhenyan must know—he’s been watching the kid closely.”
“Zhenyan,” King Lonyu turned to the ape-like warrior before him.
“This Luo Feng…” King Zhenyan scratched his chin and then his head, frowning. “How should I put it? He showed great promise when he first arrived, but over the past ten years, he’s been strange. He’s only gone outside the city a few times to hunt Chaos Beasts. Otherwise, he’s just sat on that terrace, meditating. And he hasn’t even attempted the Heaven-Connecting Bridge once.”
“Oh?”
King Lonyu nodded slightly and smiled, “I came here personally to observe them. My first target is Bolan.”
“The Venerable himself praised Bolan. Each level of the Heaven-Connecting Bridge is exponentially harder than the last. I originally thought it would take him twenty years to pass the fourth level. I never expected him to do it in ten,” King Lonyu said with admiration. “The second is Ronjun. He’s ranked second among this batch. I estimate he should pass the third level within the next few years.”
“Right.”
“Exactly.”
Kings Tonnan and Zhenyan both nodded.
“He passed the second level in his fourth year here. And this year, he’s already tried twice… He’s very close to passing the third level!” King Zhenyan laughed heartily. “Plus, with Master Yuanchen personally guiding him, how could his progress not be fast?” Though he praised Ronjun, a hint of displeasure lingered in his heart.
Because both Ronjun and Bolan were not disciples of the Nine-Lines Ryu.
“I recommended that Luo Feng study the ‘Drifting Blood’ technique. Could I have been wrong? Understanding the fundamental essence of space laws is extremely difficult. Could it have delayed him?” King Zhenyan worried. Taking the wrong path meant wasting time. If that path led nowhere, then Luo Feng would have wasted ten precious years.
…
King Lonyu, under the command of the Nine-Sword Venerable, had come to personally observe this batch of newcomers.
With King Lonyu’s power, he could observe from afar without any of the newcomers even noticing.
“This Bolan is truly impressive. No wonder he’s considered the top genius in millennia,” King Lonyu hovered within the chaotic currents, watching Bolan in the distance, practicing sword techniques on the wasteland. Bolan’s gaze was firm and unwavering, seemingly unaffected by anything around him.
…
“This Ronjun is a born warrior, but what exactly caught the attention of two Cosmic Sovereigns?” Lonyu stood in the void, gazing at another terrace far away, where the wild-haired, barefoot Ronjun slowly practiced his techniques, occasionally glancing up at the sky, observing the flow of cosmic laws.
…
“Longyun, yes, very steady. If he can maintain his strengths, his future is boundless.”
…
“Wuka, indeed the genius of Banka Star. His combat talent seems barely inferior to Ronjun’s.”
…
King Lonyu silently observed each of the newcomers, making mental evaluations, preparing to report back to the Nine-Sword Venerable.
“This is Luo Feng?” King Lonyu walked through a narrow alley in Chaos City, looking toward a terrace not far away. There, a black-haired youth in deep red battle armor sat motionless with his eyes closed. Ten years had passed, and his short hair had grown long, cascading freely.
“Could it be that his path of cultivation has gone astray?” Lonyu mused.
When cosmic overlords grasp the primal laws of the cosmos, they occasionally tread upon errant paths—unaware of their missteps until eons later. Such phenomena were exceedingly prevalent among the mighty of myriad races across the boundless firmament.
It’s not the end of the world to take the wrong path.
The real danger lies in taking the wrong path and not realizing it.
“These thirty years are the most crucial foundational years. Good luck, young one,” King Lonyu turned and departed.
…
On the terrace of a cultivation dwelling.
Luo Feng sat cross-legged in meditation. No one knew that within his inner world,
His Mosha Clan clone was undergoing an extremely intense and relentless training. For ten straight years, the Mosha clone had barely stopped, immersed in the ecstasy of dissecting the essence of cosmic laws… losing all sense of time.
“Boom!”
On the terrace, Luo Feng’s body trembled as a shockwave rippled outward, scattering dust into the air. Then, he opened his eyes.
Whoosh!
He stood up, gazing into the distance. Chaos City remained unchanged, untouched by the passage of time.
“How long have I been meditating this time?” Luo Feng asked.
“This time was longer than the previous sessions. Three years and nine months,” Babata answered.
“Hmm.”
Luo Feng waved his hand, leaving a trail of hand illusions in the air. He smiled slightly, “If I couldn’t break through in twenty years, I would have given up? Good… In ten years, I’ve fully grasped the first sword technique. At least now I’m qualified to cultivate ‘Drifting Blood.’ Well then, it’s time to attempt the Heaven-Connecting Bridge.”
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