Devouring the Stars: The Lord of the Sky

Chapter 121 Peak Showdown
While the immortal leaders from various cosmic nations were discussing, Lu Jin and the others looked down at the screens on their wrist guards.

At this moment, the screen has received the final battle rules sent by the virtual universe system.

—【The rules are as follows:】
Of the 900 geniuses selected in the previous three rounds of elimination, the virtual universe system will choose the top 100 based on their performance in the trial space and the three rounds of elimination. These 100 are Galesi and Carpenter.
These 100 people will engage in one-on-one battles with the top 100 people in the trial space, totaling 200 people.

The 100 winners are qualified to enter the 'Secret Realm of Heaven and Earth', while the remaining 900 will all enter the 'Secret Realm of Doomsday'.

Of the 100 winners, the top 20 are selected based on the virtual universe system's assessment. These 20 will then compete in one-on-one battles to determine the top ten.

The top ten are qualified to enter the 'Primordial Secret Realm', and the first, second and third place winners will be selected to enter the 'Original Secret Realm'.

A detailed match list is attached.

"Brother Jin, don't you think this is a bit too decisive? Not even giving them a chance to fight?"

After frowning and carefully reviewing the rules of the decisive battle, Luo Feng spoke to Lu Jin beside him.

Lu Jin shook his head slightly and said, "Unless someone has retained a large part of their strength during the trial stage and the three rounds of elimination, the outcome will be the same regardless of whether they are eligible to fight or not."

As long as you don't hold back your strength, the virtual universe system can be said to have a complete understanding of your strength level.

Moreover, there is no substantial difference between the 101st and 1000th places, except for the specific ranking.

The virtual universe system is doing this simply to save time.

"That's true~"

Luo Feng nodded.

As the saying goes, "A large forest has all kinds of birds." Among the 1000 geniuses, including Lu Jin and Luo Feng, some accepted the rules of this decisive battle, while others did not, especially the 800 geniuses who were excluded by the virtual universe system.

Sure enough, a genius with three eyes soon shouted that he was not convinced, and then many other geniuses who did not even have the qualifications to fight and felt aggrieved began to jeer.

However, it's not easy to be the first to stick your neck out. Including the three-eyed genius, the 800 geniuses who were excluded were immediately suppressed by the terrifying mental pressure released by the immortals leading the team.

Immediately afterwards, a majestic and ethereal voice rang out: "If you have any objections to the final battle rules of the Virtual Universe System, you may choose not to join my Virtual Universe Company. My Virtual Universe Company will not force anyone to join."

Upon hearing this, Luo Feng was greatly surprised.

"Is Virtual Universe Company really that domineering?"

Luo Feng whispered to Lu Jin.

"They are indeed domineering, but let alone them, including you and me, we shouldn't take ourselves too seriously now."

Virtual Universe Company holds a Genius Battle every ten thousand years.

Even if we only consider the first place winner of each session, over a hundred million epochs, that's still hundreds of millions of top-ranked geniuses, not to mention those just ranked in the top thousand.

As he spoke, Lu Jin gave Luo Feng a look that said, "You'll understand."

As the saying goes, in the universe, genius is worthless until one's talent is converted into strength.

Instantly, Luo Feng, who had been slightly smug after ranking second in the trial, became as steady as a mountain.

Just like Lu Jin said, there is one first in one era, and there are hundreds of millions of firsts in one hundred million eras. How can he, who is temporarily ranked second, be so arrogant?

Moreover, it wasn't just Luo Feng. Although Lu Jin didn't shout loudly, which of the geniuses present wasn't at the peak of the ninth level of the Stellar Realm?
There are no deaf people in the virtual universe; everyone can hear Lu Jin's words, and they all fell silent.

They are indeed geniuses, but there are too many geniuses, and they clearly do not have the right to be arrogant or have an inflated ego.

Besides, the immortals leading the team in the distance also heard it and couldn't help but secretly admire it.

Barn, in particular, showed no shortage of admiration in his eyes.

If he were Lu Jin, having cleared the seventh level of the Trial Tower and taken a powerful cosmic overlord as his teacher, he would probably be eager to take a super megaphone and fly his spaceship all over the star system to show off.

The next morning, 1000 exceptional geniuses gathered in the central square.

"Sir!"

In the distance, 1008 immortal leaders respectfully bowed towards the sky.

"Ah."

Standing in mid-air, the Nine Swords Venerable nodded slightly, turned his head and looked down at Lu Jin and the others, and said: "Today is a good day. My Virtual Universe Company will select the top 100, the top 10, the first, the second and the third from among you 1000 people within one day."

Are you all ready? The final battle begins now!

As he spoke, the Nine Swords Venerable waved his hand, and 100 huge arenas slowly appeared in the central square.

Each arena was identical, silver-white in color, and approximately ten kilometers in circumference, with black netting covering the edges and top.

Meanwhile, apart from the 800 excluded geniuses, 200 geniuses, including Lu Jin, Luo Feng, and Wu Ka, were directly teleported into the arena.

‘Shua——’

Lu Jin's figure appeared on one of the arena.

Several kilometers away on the opposite side, a burly young man with dark skin and a height of over three meters appeared.

At this moment, the burly young man was on the verge of tears.

If he's matched with other opponents, he might have a chance to get into the top 100, but what if he's matched with Lu Jin?
Uh... should I choose a way to die that looks cool?
"Lu Jin, come on!"

The burly young man raised his arms and shouted, then closed his eyes.

Lu Jin: "."

After thinking for a moment, the illusory bell formed by the secret technique of the Soul-Suppressing Bell in Lu Jin's sea of ​​consciousness trembled slightly, and an invisible and intangible soul power surged out, enveloping the burly young man.

Since this guy is so sensible, I'll give you a small perk.

In the illusion, the burly young man encountered a Zerg queen who was an unparalleled beauty.

However, just as the burly young man was preparing to go and have some fun...
'Puff--'

The Zerg Queen directly attacked him with a "Black Tiger Gouges Out His Heart" move.

It went right through his chest, like a real rip.

The next moment, the burly young man on the stage lost his life force, and his figure vanished into nothingness, reappearing in the central square outside the stage.

Lu Jin recognized the look in the young man's eyes; they were filled with resentment.

I almost got A, couldn't you have waited until I was done before killing him?

That's the Zerg Queen, hailed as a cosmic marvel! He hasn't even tried her yet!
Lu Jin pursed her lips and turned her head away.

You want to have your fun first, then kill me? You gave me a membership? Dream on!

Before long, the battles on all 100 arenas had all been decided.

Nine Swords Venerable stood in mid-air, looking down at Lu Jin and the others on the arena, and said: "Little guys on the arena, congratulations on entering the top 100. You can enter the 'Secret Realm of Heaven and Earth' of my Virtual Universe Company. Next, we will select the 20 best among you."

Based on the selection criteria of the virtual universe system, I submitted a list of 20 people.

Immediately, most of the hundred geniuses standing on the arena began to tense up.

After all, only 20 people are qualified to enter the next round of the competition, while there are a total of 100 people.

Moreover, it's no exaggeration to say that what appears to be a 100-choose-20 selection is actually just a 97-choose-17 selection.

No one expected that Lu Jin, Luo Feng, and Bo Lan, who had reached the seventh trial tower during the trial phase, would be eliminated.

Soon, the Nine Swords Venerable began to read out the names.

"Lu Jin!" "Luo Feng!" "Bo Lan!" "Gu Si Luo!" "Ai Chen!" "Wu Ka!" "Yi Feng!" "Galesi!" "Rong Jun!" "Opatra!" "Qian Shui!" "Jiang Mo!" "Long Yun!" "Lancelot!" "Tao!"

Then, the Nine Swords Venerable smiled and said, "The 20 people selected by the virtual universe system are the same 20 people I announced."

These 20 people should rest first to recover from the previous battle. The next round of battle will begin in half an hour.

As for who your opponents are, you'll find out during the battle.

Soon, half an hour passed.

"Rumble--"

The entire central square trembled, and ten giant arenas slowly rose up in the center of the square.

Similar to the previous arenas, the edges and tops of these ten giant arenas were also covered with black netting.

At the same time, Lu Jin and the others, who were resting, were instantly teleported to these ten giant arenas.

Upon seeing the two sides battling on the ten arenas, the many geniuses watching from the distant plaza couldn't help but laugh.

"Tsk tsk~, poor fat guy, no, poor 'Tao'!"

"Everyone was guessing who would be so unlucky as to run into Lu Jin, but it turns out it was Tao. Poor guy."

"Not only Tao, but Galesi and Yifeng are also unlucky, running into Luo Feng and Bolan respectively, so they definitely have no chance."

Since Lu Jin, Luo Feng, and Bo Lan didn't directly encounter each other, the results of the three matches out of the ten were predictable.

In the previous Trial Tower, the other seventeen people were at least three people behind by a whole Trial Tower. The gap was not small, and a miracle was simply impossible, unless the three of them released the sea.

But right now it's a battle for the secret realm, and unless Lu Jin and the other two have lost their minds, they're not going to let Hai go.

At this moment, on one of the arenas, the obese giant 'Tao', carrying a blood-red axe on his back, stared at Lu Jin, who was riding the Water Cloud Shuttle in mid-air, with an ugly expression, as if he had swallowed a dead fly.

The gap is too big, we can't win, we simply can't win!

Shortly after, the Nine Swords Venerable in the distance announced, "The winners will advance to the top ten. The battle begins!"

Almost simultaneously, battles erupted on ten arenas.

"Sky-Piercing Style, Condense!"

Standing in mid-air atop the Water Cloud Shuttle, Lu Jin raised a hand and pointed, causing the Heavenly Frost Divine Weapon on his back to shoot out a string of blue light.

A burst of brilliant blue light erupted, and the threads connected, instantly gathering and solidifying 729 tiny blue triangular cones into nine foot-long blue ice cones.

“Swoosh!” “Swoosh!” “Swoosh!” “Swoosh!” “Swoosh!”

As the biting cold air was exhaled, nine foot-long blue ice cones transformed into nine streams of light, shooting out towards 'Tao' on the opposite side of the arena like nine ice dragons.

"Humph!"

Tao did not admit defeat directly. He snorted coldly and instead of retreating, he advanced, rushing towards Lu Jin like a streak of blood.

As a martial artist, when dealing with a mentalist, you can't keep your distance; you have to fight in close combat.

"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!"

Nine streaks of blue light attacked. Tao, charging at breakneck speed, twisted and turned multiple times in mid-air, conjuring eight spatial illusions to confuse Lu Jin. "Whoosh!" "Whoosh!" "Whoosh!"

Eight foot-long blue ice spikes pierced through eight spatial illusions. Just as the last one was about to hit him, 'Tao' cleaved out his blood-red great axe.

"clang--"

With a loud bang, the foot-long blue ice spike was blasted away.

However, Tao's blood-red axe was also knocked away, spinning as it hurtled towards the arena floor.

And under this enormous impact, his entire body was numbed, and 'Tao,' with blood oozing from the tiger's mouth of his right hand and the corner of his mouth, was sent flying backward in mid-air.

"Bam—"

The next moment, Tao felt a jolt in his back and saw a blue stream of light emerge from his chest.

Then everything went black, and they found themselves in the plaza outside the arena.

It was a foot-long ice spike that had pierced through one of the spatial illusions. After turning its head, it accurately struck his back, pierced through his chest, and instantly killed him.

"Oh~!"

Shaking his head, Tao sighed helplessly as he looked at Lu Jin, whose body hadn't moved an inch in mid-air.

They suffered a crushing defeat.

However, from another perspective, losing to such a genius is not an unjust defeat.

At least it's better than losing to an opponent whose strength is far inferior to Lu Jin's.

Before long, the winners of the ten matches emerged one after another.

Without a doubt, Lu Jin was the first of the ten winners to defeat his opponent.

Following closely behind Lu Jin, Luo Feng defeated the illusionist Galesi.

Then came Bolan, Aichen, Qianshui, Jiangmo, Wuka, Gusiluo, Rongjun, and finally Longyun.

With a smile, the Nine Swords Venerable said, "Congratulations to the ten victors! You have entered the top ten of this year's Peak Genius Battle. Your reward has been increased to 1000 Hunyuan Units, and you can enter the 'Primordial Secret Realm'."

The battle for the top ten was very exciting, and the outstanding performances of several young players were a pleasant surprise to me.

Lu Jin, Luo Feng, Bo Lan, Ai Chen, Qian Shui, Jiang Mo, Wu Ka, Gu Si Luo, Rong Jun, and Long Yun, congratulations to the ten of you.

Later, the top five will be selected from among the ten of you, and then the first, second and third place will be decided.

According to the rules previously established by the virtual universe system, the ten of you won your battles at varying times. The fastest and slowest will face off, the second fastest and the second slowest, and so on!

As soon as the Nine Swords Venerable finished speaking, everyone present, including Luo Feng and others, was taken aback, except for Lu Jin, who already knew.

The previous winning order was: Lu Jin, Luo Feng, Bo Lan, Ai Chen, Qian Shui, Jiang Mo, Wu Ka, Gu Si Luo, Rong Jun, and Long Yun.

If we consider the fastest and slowest encounters, and so on...
'Lu Jin' vs. 'Long Yun'!
'Luo Feng' versus 'Rong Jun'!
'Berlan' vs. 'Guthro'!
'Aichen' vs. 'Uka'!
'Qianshui' versus 'Jiangmo'!
Immediately, the Mo Qianshui siblings from Planet Augustus turned pale.

It was a joyous occasion that the brother and sister both made it into the top ten, but they were both quite frustrated when they met each other in the "top ten to top five" round.

However, if you don't get into the top three, whether you get fourth or tenth, there's really no real difference.

After half an hour.

"Rumble--"

The original ten arenas in the central square have disappeared, and now five more exquisite and luxurious arenas have reappeared.

Moreover, what surrounds and covers the arena is no longer an unsightly black net, but an inverted, huge, semi-transparent light membrane.

Under the light, the translucent film reflects a rainbow of colors, which is quite beautiful.

*Swish!* *Swish!* *Swish!* *Swish!*

Ten figures appeared on five huge arenas.

On one of the arena platforms, adorned with beautiful borders, Lu Jin and Long Yun faced each other from afar.

Compared to the extraterrestrial humans, Lu Jin, who was born on Earth, was not particularly tall. He wore a Force battle armor with a blue background and cloud patterns, rode the Water Cloud Shuttle, and carried the Heavenly Frost Divine Weapon on his back.

On the other side of the arena, Long Yun, dressed in heavy battle armor and wearing a bull-horned helmet, was carrying a terrifying giant axe. He was clearly a power-type fighter and was staring at Lu Jin with a serious expression.

"Lu Jin, you are undoubtedly the number one in this year's Genius Battle. Would you like to show me your true strength?"

Long Yun's deep, resonant voice rang out, sounding like the roar of a wild bull.

Long Yun knew that he could not possibly be a match for Lu Jin.

But he wanted to see just how strong Lu Jin was, who had managed to clear the seventh trial tower.

"it is good!"

Lu Jin nodded.

In Swallowed Star, the gap between the strong and the weak is vast. Knowing your opponent's information does not guarantee that you can defeat an opponent whose strength far surpasses yours.

If you can't beat them, you still can't beat them.

Moreover, he is a mentalist who uses the Heavenly Frost Divine Weapon, so his trump card is actually quite easy to guess.

Even if the opponent is unsure of which level he can unleash, a little research will allow them to prepare for all possibilities.

Of course, being prepared is one thing, but whether you can actually cope with it is another matter entirely.

"Thank you!"

Long Yun cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Lu Jin.

The next moment, a surge of yellow light erupted from Long Yun's body, emanating an earthy yellow aura.

By fully integrating his understanding of the fundamental laws of earth and space into his domain, the earth-yellow air currents rippled, and within a radius of fifty meters centered on Long Yun, the space seemed to freeze.

A strange sense of suffocation spread, as if a majestic sacred mountain was pressing down on the space within this area.

To be honest, in Lu Jin's opinion, integrating one's own understanding of the fundamental laws into one's domain is nothing special; any genius could do it.

For example, when he was challenging the fifth level of the seventh trial tower, he incorporated his understanding of the laws of space into the water domain, which severely slowed down the movements of many mechanical puppets.

However, Long Yun's ability to almost perfectly integrate the two fundamental laws into his domain demonstrates his talent in the law of earth-space fusion.

It's a pity that the Fusion Law is too advanced; mastering the complete Fusion Law can make one the master of the universe.

But with Long Yun's talent, let alone mastering the Fusion Law to become a Universe Lord and achieve the Path of the Beast God, he probably doesn't even have the slightest hope of mastering the Space Law and becoming a Space Venerable.

It's no exaggeration to say that, apart from the protagonist Luo Feng, no one else in the original novel's Genius Battle would have been able to become a Universe Venerable if the human race hadn't obtained the inheritance of the ancient civilization.

Berlan?

There's only a sliver of hope left; that's all there is.

"The arena battle begins!"

"Nine Swords Venerable announced."

In an instant, five matches began.

"Fifth move: Space Shattering, Condensation!"

With a thought, Lu Jin unleashed a burst of blue light from the Heavenly Frost Divine Weapon he carried on his back.

A burst of brilliant blue light erupted, and through the connection of countless blue threads, more than 2,900 tiny blue cones converged and solidified into a six-foot-long, crystal-clear ice cone with a blue-gold hue throughout.

"go with!"

Standing in mid-air on the Water Cloud Shuttle, Lu Jin raised his hand and pointed to Long Yun on the arena below.

"call out--"

In an instant, driven by telekinesis, a six-foot-long blue-gold crystal ice cone burst forth as a stream of light.

"Block them for me!"

With a loud shout, Long Yun, who was standing on the arena, bent his knees slightly and raised the terrifying giant axe that he had been holding in his right hand to his chest with both hands.

A flash of blue light appeared, and a blue-gold crystal ice cone carrying the power to shatter space shattered the earth domain emanating from Long Yun's body with overwhelming force.

Even when the blue-gold crystal ice cone broke through this domain that incorporated the insights of two fundamental laws, Long Yun's domain showed faint signs of collapse.

Immediately, the blue-gold crystal ice spike that pierced through the thick barrier landed directly on the giant axe that Long Yun was holding in front of his chest.

"boom--"

A deafening roar, like a meteor falling from the sky, resounded.

Surrounded by a thick earth domain, with a terrifying giant axe held horizontally in front of his chest, Long Yun was instantly frozen by the biting cold air. At the same time, the turbulent spatial currents formed by the attack of blue-gold crystalline ice cones directly trapped him in the ice, turning Long Yun into a handful of crystalline ice powder.

Immediately afterwards, Long Yun's figure reappeared in the square outside the arena.

'As expected of a super genius who cleared the Trial Tower.'

Recalling that previous attack, Long Yun felt a bitter taste in his mouth.

Their proud defenses were no different from paper in the face of the opponent's terrifying attacks.

It's not that our army is ineffective, but that the enemy's firepower is too strong!
Before long, the duels on the other four arenas also came to a conclusion.

Luo Feng wins against Rong Jun!
'Berlan' vs. 'Guthro', Berlan wins!
Aichen wins against Uka!
In the battle between 'Qian Shui' and 'Jiang Mo', Qian Shui emerges victorious in this sibling rivalry!
Thus, the top five in this year's Peak Genius Battle have been determined: Lu Jin, Luo Feng, Bo Lan, Ai Chen, and Qian Shui, three men and two women.

"Excellent! Your performance surprised and delighted me."

The Nine Swords Venerable scanned the crowd in the square, then looked at Lu Jin and his group of five and said, "You should rest first. The first five rounds of battles will follow."

The rules are that each of the top five players must fight one battle against the other four. The winner receives one point, and the final rankings are based on the total points to determine first, second, and third place.

Half an hour later, the cycle battle began.

In the central square, the original five huge arenas disappeared, and a new arena rose up.

This arena is where Lu Jin and his four companions engage in a battle of reincarnation.

Since there are only five participants, each person fights against the other four in one match. The cycle of battles will end completely after only ten matches.

Thank you to LiuLiuD, LiShuangJian, Huan, WuLiangYanTou, BookFriend20190113171117206, XiaoYaoShiKongTianZun, BookFriend20241202754, BookFriend20230119180578, and BookFriend20210301106459298578 for the monthly tickets!!!
Thank you so much, Young and Reckless, for the 100 reading coins!



(End of this chapter)