Genius Battle Plane Space — Building 0825
Inside Scale-Armor Giant Thirteen's room.
"You three—go all out tomorrow. Fight for a qualification spot."
Thirteen looked at the three young geniuses from the Qianwu Universe Kingdom who had ranked within the top 7,300.
"Yes, Lord Thirteen!"
The three quickly responded, their expressions tense.
"Mm. You may go."
They bowed and left.
Thirteen did not hold high expectations for them. Reaching the top 7,300 was already respectable—but advancing further would require both strength and luck.
His gaze shifted to the remaining five.
Jiang Yan.
Luo Feng.
Rong Jun.
Thor.
Hong.
"The five of you are ranked within the top 100," Thirteen said calmly. "Tomorrow you may rest. The day after tomorrow will be the final arena decisive battle."
"Although you're already confirmed as core members of the Virtual Universe Company, the treatment among core members differs greatly."
He paused briefly.
"Jiang Yan—your place in the Primordial Secret Realm is all but guaranteed."
"Luo Feng and Rong Jun—if you perform well in the arena battles, you also have hope of entering the Primordial Secret Realm."
"As for Thor and Hong—most likely the Heaven and Earth Secret Realm, or at worst, the End Secret Realm."
"Prepare well."
The group exited the room together.
At this point, all other eliminated contestants in Building 0825 had already been teleported away.
Across the entire plane space, only 7,300 geniuses, the 1,008 Immortal leaders, and the Nine Swords Venerable remained.
Rong Jun suddenly stopped and looked at Jiang Yan seriously.
"Great Demon King. Even though I know I'm no match for you… I still hope that one day in the arena, I can face you head-on—just to see how far the gap really is."
Thor snorted.
"Savage, if you meet Third Brother, you won't even have time to feel the gap before you're taken out."
Rong Jun twitched at the corner of his mouth and shot Thor a glare.
"You'd better pray you don't run into me."
Then he looked at Luo Feng.
"And you, Madman—if I meet you, I'll defeat you too."
Thor sneered. "Still talking tough? If we meet, I'll beat you until you cry."
Luo Feng smiled faintly.
"I lost to you in the qualifiers. But now…"
"I'm confident I can beat you."
Jiang Yan glanced back lazily.
"Whoever meets me—kneel once, and I'll be merciful and let you die a little slower."
He turned and walked away.
Rong Jun and the others fell silent, expressions stiff.
The Next Day
The 7,300 geniuses gathered once more in the central square.
Today was the qualification arena battle.
From 7,200 contestants, only 900 would survive.
Tension filled the air.
Unlike Jiang Yan and the top 100, everyone else felt immense pressure.
No one knew whether they would make it through today.
Suddenly—
Boom!
A terrifying aura descended upon the square.
Every genius felt their heart tremble.
A figure clad in a blue robe, with scale-like markings on his head, appeared in midair.
"I pay my respects to the Venerable!"
The Immortals immediately bowed.
Before most geniuses could even process what was happening, the Nine Swords Venerable spoke.
"The trials have concluded."
"First, congratulations to those ranked 1st through 100th in points. You are directly granted core membership in the Virtual Universe Company."
His voice was calm, yet it echoed clearly in every ear.
"If anyone among you is unwilling to join the Virtual Universe Company—speak now. We do not force anyone."
Silence.
Absolute silence.
Not a single person spoke.
Who would refuse becoming a core member of the Virtual Universe Company?
"Very well."
The Nine Swords Venerable nodded.
"Next—contestants ranked 101st through 7,300th will compete for the final 900 slots."
"The Virtual Universe Network has matched opponents based on trial performance."
"Rules are simple."
"Win three consecutive arena battles—and you advance."
"Lose once—elimination."
Gasps rippled through the crowd.
Three straight wins.
One loss—and you're out.
Cruel.
Decisive.
Half would fall in the first round alone.
Some geniuses turned pale.
Others—burned with excitement.
For example—
Galesi, the Phantom Demon.
He had failed to enter the top 100 in trials because illusion and soul attacks were useless against mechanical puppets.
But here?
His opponents were living humans.
Illusionists thrived in arena battles.
"Won't this cause strong contestants to eliminate each other?" Luo Feng frowned. "Like Galesi meeting Rong Jun?"
Thor and the others shared the concern.
Jiang Yan smiled calmly.
"That won't happen. The system's arrangement is optimal."
After all, the Virtual Universe Network was overseen by a Mechanical Race Universe Master.
The final 900 would inevitably be the strongest overall.
Boom!
All 7,200 contestants were teleported into arena spaces.
Only the top 100 and the Immortals remained.
Above the square, 3,600 battle screens appeared.
"You may sit and watch," an Immortal said kindly. "Tomorrow, the strongest hundred will face you."
Luxurious seats appeared, complete with tables and refreshments.
Jiang Yan led Luo Feng and the others over.
Ai Chen and Wuka joined them naturally.
"It's started!"
Thor pointed excitedly.
"Those three screens—our Qianwu Universe Kingdom contestants!"
Uka shook her head.
"One of them is facing Lancelot from Noah Universe Kingdom. He's done for."
Rong Jun nodded grimly.
"The other two aren't any better. First-round exits, most likely."
Luo Feng sighed.
"Looks like we five are the only ones left from Qianwu."
"That's already impressive," Ai Chen said lightly. "My Dream Snail Wing Clan only has me left."
Everyone laughed.
As predicted, all three Qianwu contestants were eliminated in the first round.
The battles were fast.
Some ended in seconds.
Others dragged on for ten minutes.
After two rounds—
Only 1,800 remained.
By the third round, desperation filled every arena.
Galesi stood out.
Three rounds.
Three victories.
He barely moved.
A glance—
An illusion—
A soul collapse.
Instant defeat.
"Galesi's terrifying," Rong Jun said quietly. "Illusion and soul attacks—no room to resist."
Uka shivered. "I hope I don't meet him tomorrow."
Ai Chen smiled mischievously and pointed at Jiang Yan.
"There's someone even scarier sitting right here."
Thor burst out laughing.
"Galesi is called Phantom Demon. But demons have masters."
"Our Third Brother is the Great Demon King."
Remembering Jiang Yan's illusions in the trial tower, everyone felt a chill.
Jiang Yan only smiled faintly.
"If we meet tomorrow," Uka said seriously, "please go easy."
"We'll talk if it happens," Jiang Yan replied.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Figures appeared one after another in the square.
Nine hundred survivors.
Relief.
Joy.
Exhaustion.
They had made it.
"Congratulations," the Nine Swords Venerable's voice rang out.
"You are the strongest 1,000 of this Genius Battle."
"You will all enter the core of the Virtual Universe Company."
"No one wishes to withdraw?"
Silence again.
"Very good."
"In the primordial universe, competition exists everywhere."
"Ranks 101–1,000:
Ten Chaos Units, qualification to enter the primordial universe, assigned to the End Secret Realm."
"Ranks 11–100:
One hundred Chaos Units, assigned to the Heaven and Earth Secret Realm."
"Ranks 4–10:
One thousand Chaos Units, assigned to the Primordial Secret Realm."
"Ranks 1–3:
Ten thousand Chaos Units—and entry into the Original Secret Realm."
He paused, glancing briefly at Bolan and Rong Jun.
"Normally, there is only one Original Secret Realm slot."
"But due to this session's exceptional performance…"
"The company has approved two additional slots."
The square went silent.
Three Original Secret Realm slots.
Bolan.
Rong Jun.
Ai Chen.
Wuka.
Eyes blazed.
Originally, Jiang Yan had already taken the single slot.
Now—
There was hope.
Then—
A message appeared in every participant's interface.
Final Battle Rules Issued
"What?!"
"From the remaining 900—100 will be directly selected to challenge the top 100?!"
"This is too system-dependent!"
"This isn't fair!"
The square erupted.
And the true storm of the arena battle—
Had only just begun.