Chapter 550: Provocation

In the Taichu Region, Lecture Hall No.2.

It stretched 80 kilometers long and 60 kilometers wide—vast enough to dwarf an average city on Earth, yet it was merely a lecture venue for the Immortals. At the very back of this hall were over a thousand casually arranged seats, and now and then, some members of the Taichu Region transformed into streaks of light, dashing dozens of kilometers in an instant to reach their seats.

Hssss!

Luo Feng also appeared before those thousand seats and casually selected one near the front-left.

“Look, it’s Luo Feng.”

“He’s the new genius from the latest Genius Competition? He looks pretty handsome.”

“He just joined the Virtual Universe Company not long ago, yet he’s already cleared the seventh level of the Heaven Bridge. That’s really strong. We ourselves barely made it to the eighth level, and even then, we’re Domain Lords already.” Two women in a corner whispered. One had beautiful glowing wings, while the other’s eyes brimmed with endless allure. They weren’t shy at all, watching Luo Feng with open interest and murmuring to each other.

Other members in the hall were also whispering.

“That’s Luo Feng?”

“Yeah, that’s him.”

“He’s quite impressive. Back when we were Cosmic-level, we barely reached the seventh level, and even that was after being in the company for more than 3,000 years.”

“With his progress speed, he might not make it to the Primordial Secret Realm in this Qualification War, but maybe in the next one… If he gets a few thousand years, he definitely has a chance to break into the Primordial Secret Realm.”

Two Monarchs were also sitting in a corner, discussing.

The murmurs spread like wildfire!

Almost the moment Luo Feng sat down, nearly all the hundred or so attendees in the hall were talking about him. He had become the center of attention. To clear the seventh level of the Heaven Bridge in such a short time—even before the first Qualification War—was something only the most outstanding prodigies could achieve.

Luo Feng sat silently, ears twitching slightly.

He could clearly hear their whispers.

“Turned into an animal in a zoo,” Luo Feng thought wryly.

“Hello, Luo Feng.” A rough voice suddenly called out.

Luo Feng turned his head and saw a rather ugly man with six bumps on his forehead and black fur on his face. The burly man sat a few meters away and grinned, “I’m Suolong, a Domain Lord. I heard a lot about you today… but you really are impressive.”

“Thanks.” Luo Feng replied.

He couldn’t help but feel amused inside. According to population distribution, the Taichu Region had 1,000 Monarchs, 100 Domain Lords, and 30 Cosmic-level warriors. The eight new recruits, including Luo Feng, had increased the total to 1,138.

After the next Qualification War, the number would return to 1,130.

From the proportions, it was clear that Monarchs were the most numerous, which meant that the majority in this hall were Monarchs, with only a few Domain Lords and even fewer Cosmic-level warriors. Including Luo Feng, there were only four Cosmic-level warriors in total, which surprised him because usually only two Cosmic-level warriors attended such lectures.

“There are two extra Cosmic-level members here today,” Luo Feng mused.

“Breaking into the Primordial Secret Realm from the Taichu Secret Realm? The odds are really low!” Suolong muttered, “I was talking with my friends, and we all believe that in a few hundred years, you’ll have a real shot at the Primordial Secret Realm! In our Taichu Secret Realm… it’s rare to have someone break through. Whenever it happens, it stirs up huge excitement.”

“One step ahead, steps ahead all the way.”

“The earlier you enter the Primordial Secret Realm, the faster you progress.” Suolong seemed quite emotional as he spoke.

Luo Feng glanced at Suolong, “You can also have a chance to enter the Primordial Secret Realm if you work hard.”

“Haha…”

“Don’t mock me. If I can stay in the Taichu Secret Realm in the next Qualification War, that’ll be good enough,” Suolong shook his head, his eyes showing a hint of helplessness. “If I’m demoted to the Tian-Di Secret Realm in the next Qualification War, my rank and authority outside will also be reduced. It’s really troubling!”

Core Domain Lords were assigned important external positions!

To put it simply, they were like feudal lords ruling distant territories.

However—

The treatment of members from the Primordial, Taichu, Tian-Di, and End-Time Secret Realms when assigned externally was completely different. Primordial Secret Realm members, for example, were escorted by armies commanded by Immortal Generals! The official titles they received matched their noble status!

Imagine if you were originally a Primordial member but were demoted to Taichu.

Then your official title would be quickly adjusted, and your Immortal-commanded personal guard would be replaced by a guard unit led by a Monarch.

“This guy’s really unlucky.”

“He must have been quite powerful as a feudal lord before, but now he’s likely to be demoted to the Tian-Di Secret Realm in the upcoming Qualification War… His rank will drop, and his status will plummet.” Luo Feng chuckled inwardly while chatting casually with the big guy, learning about some of the typical issues faced by these ‘feudal lords.’

Moments later—

The Immortal teacher arrived and began the lecture, instantly silencing the entire hall. Even whispering was done via secret transmissions, as no one dared disturb the teacher.

…

There were only four Cosmic-level members in this hall. Two of them had distinct appearances—one covered in silver scales on his face, and the other with a bronze complexion and a single black horn on his forehead.

“Ashi, look, Luo Feng is listening quite attentively,” the silver-scaled man transmitted mentally.

“Hmm.”

The black-horned man also glanced at Luo Feng in the front-left corner, “Moilin, Ninan told us to find a reason to fight Luo Feng and test his strength. How should we challenge him? If we just go up and provoke him, and he ignores us and leaves the Virtual Universe, we’ll just be left looking foolish.”

“Don’t worry, I have a plan.” The silver-scaled man narrowed his eyes like a venomous snake, “We’ll do it like this…”

“Hmph, it’s not a great plan.” The black-horned man frowned after hearing it.

“What else can we do? There’s no way to be 100% sure.” The silver-scaled man replied.

“Fine, we’ll do it after the lecture ends.” The black-horned man nodded.

…

The Monarch-level Immortal lectured for a long time, then vanished into thin air under the burning gazes of the gathered prodigies.

Luo Feng closed his eyes, savoring the profound teachings, before opening them again—and immediately spotting two men standing in front of him. One had a face covered in silver scales, the other was more muscular with a black horn on his forehead. Both were Cosmic-level warriors.

They stared at Luo Feng.

“Can I help you?” Luo Feng sat there, looking up at them.

“Hello, Luo Feng, I’m Moilin.” The silver-scaled man smiled.

“Luo Feng, I’m Ashi.” The black-horned man grinned. “We’re also Cosmic-level members, just joined the Virtual Universe Company a little earlier than you.”

“What do you want?” Luo Feng slightly furrowed his brow.

He didn’t hold much goodwill toward the older Cosmic-level members. Earlier today, when he spoke with Wuka, he had learned some things—though Wuka didn’t name names, most of the older Cosmic-level members seemed to have conflicts with him.

“We heard you cleared the seventh level of the Heaven Bridge. We’re really impressed.” The silver-scaled man’s eyes gleamed, “I, Moilin, love fighting. So I’d like to invite you to the Battle Arena for a friendly match.”

“I’d also like to test myself against you, Luo Feng.” The black-horned man added, looking at him.

Luo Feng frowned.

A fight?

If it were for training, one could simulate powerful opponents in the training grounds. But a direct challenge usually meant either testing strength or probing for hidden abilities.

Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated.

“They probably never fought me before and don’t know my fighting style or my hidden cards. Although there were videos from the Genius Competition, I was still weak back then. Now I’m countless times stronger. Those old videos can’t reflect my current strength, so they came to challenge me,” Luo Feng instantly realized.

“Sorry, not interested.” Luo Feng stood up and left directly.

The black-horned and silver-scaled men exchanged glances, then silently agreed to proceed with their alternate plan.

“Haha, Luo Feng, you’re supposed to be the top among the new recruits, yet you’re so cowardly.” The silver-scaled man said loudly.

“You won’t even accept a challenge from the two of us. Looks like none of you newbies have any hope in this Qualification War.”

“That Wuka was a fool—weak and still dared to fight us. Luo Feng, you have strength but still refuse to fight. In this Qualification War, you newbies might as well give up.”

The hall was filled with Monarchs and Domain Lords who had been listening to the lecture. They all turned their heads with interest. Most of them respected Luo Feng because of his astonishing achievements—but that was because they were of different ranks. They were Monarchs and Domain Lords, with no conflicts of interest with Luo Feng, so they could remain calm.

“Their provocation is so low-class.”

“Yeah, if it were me, I wouldn’t even bother.”

“Just two clowns.”

The Monarchs and Domain Lords murmured among themselves, especially some Monarchs who spoke loudly, making the silver-scaled and black-horned men’s expressions even darker.

Luo Feng suddenly stopped in his tracks.

The gathered Monarchs and Domain Lords were surprised—could it be that Luo Feng was going to accept the challenge?

So easily provoked?

Luo Feng turned to face the silver-scaled and black-horned men.

“Hmm?” The two also noticed the sudden shift in Luo Feng’s gaze.

“You fought with Wuka?” Luo Feng looked at them.

“The so-called Prince of Banka Star?” The silver-scaled man sneered, while the black-horned man added, “What a fool. He dared to fight us and ended up getting crushed by our group.”

“Congratulations.” Luo Feng said.

The two men were momentarily stunned.

Congratulations?

“I didn’t want to fight before because I didn’t want to waste my time on you two.” Luo Feng stared at them coldly. “But now, you’ve annoyed me. I’ve decided… to crush you both.”