Molten Rock Secret Realm.
When the Geniuses nurtured by the Royce Family and the Molten Rock Empire all returned to their residences to connect to the Virtual Universe and participate in the Genius Battle World Preliminaries.
Third Uncle Ivan Royce stood in the sky, exuding the aura of a World Master Level Five.
The founder of the Royce Family, Royce, also stood in the air nearby, but his aura was only World Master Level Two.
After accumulating massive resources, and even visiting Primal Chaos City thousands of years ago, they barely managed to Breakthrough to become World Masters. If there were no accidents, they would have no hope of becoming Immortal in this life!
"Father."
Ivan softly said, "This batch of Geniuses has a chance to enter the top 1000 of the Ganwu Universe Country, and even the top 1000 of the Universe."
"You mean..."
Royce instantly thought of a young fellow, "Lan Ke's junior, Zhiton."
"It's that little fellow."
Ivan nodded slightly, "He comprehended the Law of Thunder and Lightning. Mister Mullie believes he has a chance to reach the top 1000 of the Universe."
"As long as there's hope..."
Royce sighed lightly, "Since Eleven and the others passed the Genius Battle and entered the Huge Axe Dojo and the Core Region of the Virtual Universe Company, the Royce Family hasn't had a Genius capable of reaching the top 7000 of the Universe."
"Father, it's been less than 100,000 years since Eleven entered the Virtual Universe Company."
Ivan softly said, "100,000 years is not long for a powerful Family."
"Yes, for Families with Immortals, 100,000 years is very short..."
Royce looked up at the starry sky, "But for our Royce Family, 100,000 years is too long!"
Ivan remained silent upon hearing this. In his personal opinion, 100,000 years was indeed a very long time.
Because he was not yet 91,000 years old, 100,000 years had already exceeded his age, so it naturally felt very long.
"For us, 100,000 years is a long time, but after hundreds of thousands or millions of years, and even endless years in the future..."
Ivan said in a deep voice, "These 100,000 years will be nothing. As long as Eleven is still here, the Royce Family will surely prosper and be strong forever."
"Third Brother, don't you understand yet?"
Royce sighed, "Eleven, Nineteen, Little One, their feelings for the Family will fade."
"Eleven is already a great existence like a Universe Venerable. What he sees is different from what we see, and it's not something we can understand."
"As for Little One and Nineteen... you saw them when they came back."
Royce closed his eyes and said, "Rivers of blood!"
"That's something the Family must experience."
Ivan softly said, "Father, for a Family to prosper and be strong, besides having a strong individual as a pillar, it also needs sufficient vitality."
"Just as Eleven once said, a Family can raise some useless people, but it cannot raise parasites!"
"I'm preparing to learn from Eleven and the others, and conduct purges within the Family every once in a while..."
As he spoke, a fierce glint appeared in Ivan's eyes, "Even if it means rivers of blood, we must maintain the Family's vitality!"
"Third Brother, you!" Royce's expression was shocked.
He looked at his son, feeling so unfamiliar!
"Father, just as you said, Eleven, Little One, Nineteen, they are or will be eternal Immortal existences, and their feelings for the Family will eventually fade."
Ivan looked down at the ground, "Tens of millions of years, and even endless years later, even their own descendants, the Bloodline kinship will become very, very faint."
"We have seen that for many Immortals who have lived for countless years, Personal Disciples who can inherit secret techniques are far more intimate than so-called Family juniors."
"Similarly, we all understand Eleven very well. He values us, his Family members, very much."
Ivan turned his head to look at his father, Royce, "But do you think he would care about those juniors who are separated by countless generations?"
"Not just Eleven, would Little One, Nineteen, and Thirteen care?"
"I think the answer is obvious. Not only does Eleven not care, Nineteen and the others also don't care!"
Ivan looked up at the sky, speaking to himself, "Sixth Brother and Seventh Brother understand it very well. One only manages Family wealth, and the other accompanies his wife to travel in the Virtual Universe."
Royce heard this and remained silent for a long time.
"Alas..."
After a long while, Royce sighed, "Third Brother, do whatever you want to do..."
"Father, this is something the Family must bear, and it will also become the Family's Legacy..."
Ivan watched his father leave, silently thinking, "Even if our lifespans run out in the future, this will be the Foundation for the Family to continuously produce Genius powerhouses!"
Ivan had no confidence at all in whether he could become Immortal in the future!
His talent was too poor. After Cultivating for more than ten years in Primal Chaos City, he only comprehended a trace of Law and became a World Master.
Just comprehending that trace of Law was so difficult. Even if his Law affinity was higher during the World Master period, comprehending a complete lower Law to become Immortal was an unattainable dream for him!
...
Virtual Universe, Ganwu Universe Country World Preliminaries.
On a spaceship sailing in the outer space of the preliminary world, Ender sat with his parents.
"Eleven, why did you think of looking for us to watch the Genius Battle Preliminaries?" His mother, Wendy, asked curiously.
"I heard that a Genius junior has appeared in the Family, and he has a chance to reach the top 1000 of the Universe."
Ender smiled, "It just so happens that this Genius Battle is related to me, so I thought of coming to watch."
"What's so good about the Genius Battle? We don't manage Family matters anyway."
Wendy shook her head slightly, "With this time, it's better to play virtual games."
"Mm."
His father, Derrick, nodded from the side. He had long since handed over the Family's work to others. Now, he was just an idle person accompanying his wife to play in the Virtual Universe.
"Is that so..."
Ender nodded thoughtfully. He understood his parents' recent affairs very well, but he didn't quite understand their views on the Family.
However, from the current perspective, his parents still had feelings for the Family, but their feelings for the Family juniors were very faint.
So, he sent an email in the Virtual Universe with his mind, and then chatted with his parents, occasionally paying attention to the World Preliminaries.
...
Time flowed, and the Pinnacle Genius Battle Universe Country Preliminaries ended.
Under the anticipation of citizens from various Universe Countries, the Genius Battle All-Universe Grand Finals officially began!
Genius Battle Space.
1008 buildings surrounded a huge and beautiful Central Square, and many Geniuses were already conversing in the square.
From time to time, Immortals would also bring 1000 Geniuses and teleport to this Special Space.
When Marquis Rong Dian brought the Geniuses of the Ganwu Universe Country and teleported to the sky above the beautiful square, it immediately attracted the attention of many Geniuses present.
"It's the Ganwu Universe Country team."
"The Ganwu Universe Country team is finally here. Which one is Zhiton Royce?"
"The one with the vertical pupil, similar in appearance to Ti Ke from the Yuan Chen Universe Country."
"He indeed looks very much like Ti Ke. It's really strange, one is from the Ganwu Universe Country, and one is from the Yuan Chen Universe Country, how can their appearances be so similar?"
"Zhiton Royce, is he the junior of that super existence?"
"Legend has it that, that super existence participated in the Genius Battle more than 90,000 years ago, and has now become a great existence surpassing a Universe Venerable."
Seeing the Ganwu Universe Country team, many Geniuses discussed animatedly, with the main topic of discussion being Zhiton, who was walking in the team.
"Hey, Zhiton."
A Genius transmitted his voice, "Did you hear that? Many people are talking about you." Zhiton was tall and slender, dressed in a white battle robe, with a handsome appearance and the Royce Family's iconic vertical pupils.
"They're not talking about me, but about my Family's greatest Eleventh Ancestor."
When he heard the voice transmission, he sighed, "I'm just an afterthought."
"You at least have the strength to challenge for the top 1000 in the Universe, so you shouldn't be just an afterthought, right?" That Genius transmitted his confusion.
"Heh, you don't understand..."
Zhiton shook his head slightly, silently thinking, "As an excellent junior of the Royce Family, one can never escape being discussed about their Family ancestors in front of them."
Excellent juniors of the Royce Family always live in the shadow of their ancestors!
Among them, the most discussed was the Eleventh Ancestor, who had the highest achievements and had now surpassed a Universe Venerable.
Next was the Nineteenth Ancestor, who had a remarkable performance in the Core Region of the Huge Axe Dojo.
"Being born into the Royce Family is fortunate, but also unfortunate."
Zhiton secretly thought, "The Cultivation I received in the Family is better than that of many Immortal Disciples. Similarly, I will also endure the discussions of others and constantly strive under the shadow of my ancestors."
"But the achievements of my ancestors are too high. Even if I try my best, I can still only see the tip of the iceberg."
"According to Teacher Mullie, only when I enter the Core Region of the Virtual Universe Company will I be qualified to look up at the back of the Nineteenth Ancestor!"
Zhiton sighed in his heart, "As for the Eleventh Ancestor, with my talent... I will never be able to see his back."
Under the leadership of Marquis Rong Dian, the Ganwu Universe Country's participating team quickly arrived at their residential building.
"These are your number plates. Enter the corresponding rooms according to your number plates..."
Marquis Rong Dian distributed the number plates, then gave a few more instructions, and left the building towards the Immortal's exclusive Restaurant No. 1.
Since it was his first time leading a team to participate in the Genius Battle, he planned to make more connections with the Immortal Leaders of other teams.
The Immortal who could lead Universe Country Genius teams to participate were all trusted confidants of the various Universe Venerables, and had extremely high value for making connections.
...
Beautiful Central Square, Restaurant No. 1.
As a restaurant exclusive to Immortals, it was filled with various Immortal aura pressures, such as the scorching heat of a star, the vastness of the starry sky, the Nirvana of a black hole...
If a Stellar Rank Genius were to break in, they would be annihilated by the complex and powerful aura pressure.
When Marquis Rong Dian entered Restaurant No. 1, he only heard Immortals inside discussing the special nature of this Genius Battle.
"This Genius Battle is strange, I heard that two Primal Secret Realm slots were confirmed to be released even before the competition started."
"Yes, it's indeed very strange. How precious are Primal Secret Realm slots? Each one requires a large amount of resources for Cultivation, yet an extra one is being released."
"You don't know this, but this Genius Battle is said to be presided over by a Universe Venerable with formidable strength, which is why it appears so special."
"Even a powerful Universe Venerable shouldn't break the rules, right? The last time two slots were opened was 90,000 years ago when that great existence participated..."
Marquis Rong Dian listened, and he also felt that this Genius Battle was very special.
Moreover, he had heard King Sealing Mace mention that the Universe Venerable responsible for this Genius Battle was very strong.
Marquis Rong Dian recalled the inexplicable expression King Sealing Mace showed when they talked, a mix of emotion, regret, or melancholy, which left him puzzled.
"You are?" An Immortal noticed Marquis Rong Dian.
"I am the Immortal Leaders of the Ganwu Universe Country."
Marquis Rong Dian smiled, "You can call me Rong Dian."
"So it's Marquis Rong Dian of the Ganwu Universe Country." The Immortal immediately brought up the corresponding information in his mind upon hearing this.
"You're too kind."
Marquis Rong Dian smiled, "If I'm not mistaken, Your Excellency is Li Yi Hou of the Nine Flame Universe Country."
"Haha, I didn't expect Rong Dian to know me."
Li Yi Hou smiled, "Come, let me introduce you to the other Immortal Leaders."
"Thank you."
Marquis Rong Dian went and sat down, and under Li Yi Hou's introduction, he began to converse with the other Immortal Leaders.
...
Time flowed, and this Special Space of the Genius Battle was now approaching dusk.
Restaurant No. 1, a group of Immortal felt a little strange.
"By my calculations, the Venerable presiding over the Genius Battle should be summoning the Geniuses, but there's no news yet..."
"It is a bit strange. That Universe Venerable hasn't shown his face yet."
"Let's wait a bit longer, they should be summoning the Geniuses soon."
Just as the Immortal were conversing, they all received an email from the Virtual Universe Company.
"Hmm? This is..."
"Let us rest, and the competition starts directly tomorrow?!"
"And the competition rules have been issued in advance. This doesn't conform to the previous procedures of the Genius Battle held by the Virtual Universe Company."
"Strange, too strange!"
"Everyone, I need to go back and encourage the participating young ones, so I won't be accompanying you any longer."
"Let's go together, I also need to go back and say something."
Including Marquis Rong Dian, one after another Immortal Leaders left Restaurant No. 1 and returned to the buildings where their respective Universe Country teams were located.
When those Immortal Leaders returned to the buildings, they gathered the Geniuses for a motivational speech, and some buildings even echoed with passionate roars.
...
The next day, early morning.
Under the leadership of the Immortal, 1,008,000 Geniuses from 1008 Universes gathered in the immensely vast Central Square.
Just as they were waiting for the Universe Venerable presiding over the Genius Battle to arrive, they saw a werewolf Immortal, whose aura was not particularly strong, appear before the Immortal.
That werewolf Immortal was dressed in a dark blue battle suit with white mane around his neck. As soon as he arrived, he said, "The Trial Tower assessment begins!"
Swish, swish, swish...
A million Geniuses uniformly transformed into white light and entered the Trial Space.
"Next, I will receive all of you Immortal."
That werewolf Immortal smiled, "The Venerable will descend after the Trial Tower ends."
The Immortal Leaders looked at each other, while secretly transmitting their voices and discussing.
"What's going on?"
"It's fine that he didn't show up yesterday, but even the Trial Tower opening..."
"Who exactly is that Venerable? It feels like he doesn't care about the Genius Battle procedures at all."
"Doesn't he follow the procedures? Is he not afraid of being blamed by the highest level of the Virtual Universe Company?"
Although they were discussing secretly, they didn't dare to go too far. After all, that was a Universe Venerable.
Seeing that the Universe Venerable presiding over the Genius Battle didn't show up, they could only go to the table and chair area in the corner of the square to watch the competition, while silently waiting for the Venerable to arrive.
...
Soon, after more than two years, the Trial Space preliminaries ended.
The top 7300 Geniuses in the Trial ranking were officially selected, and a group of Immortal also gathered to await the Venerable's arrival...