Swallowing the Stars: Starting with the Battle of Geniuses

Chapter 114 Will we solve our problems, or will we only rely on the struggle for royal blood?

The abyssal nobles are arrogant and look down on people of lower races.

Their hatred for Hunzhen, to the point of wanting nothing more than to kill him, was entirely genuine.

But if one had to say which of the inferior races they rejected most, it would be someone like Hunzhen—unruly, disregarding them, and possessing a rebellious spirit.

Dislike and affection coexist; this is the duality of the Abyss Royal Family's feelings towards Hunzhen, a feeling that is utterly genuine.

But those who fawn and flatter, like Valente, are the ones they despise the most among the inferior races they look down upon.

"Our hatred for him, our anger towards him, stems from the fact that, in a sense, we have come to regard him as a worthy adversary! A mortal enemy, a foe we wish to exterminate!"

Because of importance, there is hatred.

"But what are you anyway, trash like you?"

A sixth-level combatant, a legendary figure in the eyes of inferior races?

They just thought Valente was a ridiculous clown.

I'm more curious about how Hunzhen will react.

Could it be a combat power of level six or higher... or even level seven?

At this moment, regardless of status or rank, whether they are members of the Abyss Royal Family or lower races, everyone's attention is focused on Hunzhen.

"What? Unable to refute? Speechless?"

Faced with Valente's condemnation, Hunzhen was speechless for a moment.

As the saying goes, the emperor isn't worried, but the eunuch is. Before the Abyss royal family has even spoken, this comrade who is supposedly on the same level as him has already jumped out to try and embarrass him by currying favor with his royal father.

This scene... feels strangely familiar.

Everything in the universe goes through cycles of reincarnation, and even as the world changes, it seems that nothing has changed.

Hunzhen sighed softly, his gaze cold and indifferent, and asked, "Are these your last words?"

These words immediately caused an uproar in the audience.

"What did he just say?"

"No wonder he is a traitor; it's no wonder he spouts such nonsense."

"Who does he think he is? He's all smug about winning a minor martial arts festival? Lord Valent was his so-called champion tens of thousands of years ago!"

Among the many contestants, Hunzhen was undoubtedly the one with the humblest background.

Valente had long been confirmed to be a level six fighter. Not counting the Abyss royal family, he was a top-tier contestant among all the participants and was regarded as the representative of countless inferior races, a celebrity with his own built-in fanbase.

Yet it was mocked like this?

The audience doesn't care whether Valente's slander of Hunzhen is true or false; they only think Hunzhen is being shameless.

Valente's many fans in the stands were in high spirits. If it weren't for the existence of the defensive field, they would have already taken out eggs and smashed them on Hunzhen's head.

Valente himself was also ashen-faced.

Given his background, he must have heard of Hunzhen's feat of killing a level six combat power expert.

Valente would not completely underestimate Hunzhen because of this, but... he wouldn't take it too seriously either.

After all, he was already a top-tier expert at level six, and he was confident that he could also defeat that show-off who was killed by Hunzhen.

Hunzhen might have some strength, but is he more powerful than this genius who reached the sixth level of combat power tens of thousands of years ago?

Impossible.

Although he grovels before the Abyss royal family, he still possesses the confidence of a powerful individual.

He was confident that he had already reached the top tier among the lower races.

Therefore, he was extremely angry at Hunzhen's verbal rebuttal, which was as if he had pronounced his death sentence.

Valent sneered, "I've changed my mind. To simply kill you, such a brazen traitor, is too lenient. I'll tear your mouth apart, shatter your knees, and force you to apologize before the whole world before being slowly sliced ​​to death! This will be to atone for your heinous sin of blasphemy!"

Looking at Valente, who was putting hats on his head and instantly turning him into a heinous criminal, he couldn't help but sigh. If he had just transmigrated, his blood pressure would probably have skyrocketed.

When recalling their past lives, they were often burdened with fabricated charges and asked to defend themselves, and most felt deeply exhausted.

How do you prove that you never did something?

Most people can't do it.

The lack of evidence to prove that they did not do it only emboldened the other party, making them even more righteous and assertive.

The best way to prove that the sole surviving soldier in an army is not a traitor is for him to die on the battlefield and never return.

As for the story of a "general" and a "soldier" having a conflict, resulting in the "soldier" killing him... even if such a thing were true, it would only give others ammunition for gossip.

Hunzhen was always "not good at speaking".

It's not that he can't speak; when it comes to making witty and funny remarks, he always comes out on top.

I simply despise the traps of social jargon, the underhanded talk used to gain benefits and status, and the subjective, distorted essays written to satisfy distorted personal desires.

So he was very fortunate to have come to such a world.

It has given me, who is not good at expressing myself, a way to handle things in a pleasant way.

"Your time has come."

With a soft "pfft".

Time stands still, space collapses.

With a casual pinch, Hunzhen turned the bio-machine named Valent, which had just been active, into minced meat.

If you don't want to waste time explaining things, then just deal with the person who asks the question and spouts nonsense.

In a world where power resides within oneself, things are that simple and brutal.

The crowd, which had been cheering and cursing just moments before, fell silent instantly, as if a pause button had been pressed.

A second later, a deafening roar of cheers echoed throughout the entire arena.

The guy who was surrounded by crowds just a second ago is now ignored, and the person who was despised as trash just a second ago has become their new hero.

Inside the crystal chamber, the voices of the nobles, who were communicating in a large, resonant chorus, unconsciously took on a solemn tone.

"Level 8 combat power."

"Definitely at least level eight combat power!"

Amidst the murmurs of discussion, a nobleman known for his far-sighted vision suddenly interrupted: "Even... higher."

The nobles fell silent.

Perhaps only someone at the level of Wang Xue can truly see the true level of Hunzhen.

However, the so-called Grand Martial Arts Festival is ultimately just a "small event" held in the shallow layers of the abyss to promote the connection between the abyss royal family and lower races.

The number of royal blood is extremely rare. In the same era, the number of Silver Demons who existed at the same time was barely over a hundred, and most of them were active in the deep layers.

A royal bloodline like Milirat, who lingers in the shallows for so long, is truly an anomaly.

Regardless of whether they were present or not, even if they were, they wouldn't be on the same level as the other nobles; at least for now, they wouldn't be on the same "communication channel."

After a brief silence, the nobleman who appeared in the opening match, Ronaldo, slowly said, "According to the rules of the game, I will be the first one to face him."

Are you confident?

"no."

During the match, Ronaldo gave this answer without hesitation, but despite his lack of confidence, the nobles could detect a hint of excitement in his voice.

Everyone felt the same way.

……

Valente was killed in one blow, a result that almost guaranteed that Hunzhen would have a smooth path to the finals.

Without a doubt, given Valente's level, to achieve an instant kill, Hunzhen had already simultaneously utilized the power of time and space.

He hadn't intended to hide it for long anyway.

The latest novel is first published here!

Most of these contestants are old guys who have been at the peak of the Domain Lord level for dozens of epochs. Perhaps their talents are not as good as the most outstanding geniuses in the universe, but they are still outstanding. With the accumulation of time, their strength is no worse than that of geniuses who have been cultivating for a short time.

To survive in the Abyss of Purgatory, even the weakest must possess the strength of a Star-level being. The world's ranking determines that those who manage to rise to the top are not too bad.

This is a group of lower races that can be considered the strongest, aside from the royal guards and knights, in the ninth level, which is close to the deep elite and can be called the stronghold of countless lower races.

While experts at the Breakthrough Level are rare, it's only natural that tens of thousands of them would appear in a place that encompasses half of the Abyss's settlement and more than 90% of the entire Abyss's population.

Those who can at least advance past the fourth round of elimination are all top-tier players who have broken through the limits.

Faced with such a powerful figure, although Hunzhen absorbed the origin of spacetime and improved his compatibility with the laws of spacetime over the past hundred years, and his cultivation efficiency was no longer as poor as before, almost non-existent, it is more accurate to say that he has reached the level of a normal spatial genius. However, his spatial comprehension of reaching the eighth level of the Tongtian Bridge through painstaking effort is still somewhat lacking.

Take Valent for example. This guy came from an extraordinary background and had extremely high talent. If it weren't for Hunzhen's appearance, he would definitely be the number one genius among the lower-class races in the abyss for hundreds of eras.

It's a pity he had such a bad temper; otherwise, he might have been able to reach level seven combat power before his time was up, without relying on the "Knight's Power" bonus.

However... it's not surprising.

No matter how hard he tries, even with the power of a knight, he can only reach the eighth level of combat strength at most.

Any noble with a first-class bloodline could potentially possess level eight combat power.

Regardless of the probability, the number and lifespan of first-class nobles are undeniable, while it would take hundreds of epochs for a lower-class race to produce such a genius. There's simply no comparison.

No matter how hard you try, you're still just someone else's starting point.

Perhaps it was precisely because of his superior talent and clearer vision than others that Valente felt despair about breaking through his current situation and became the number one sycophant of the royal family.

Hunzhen has always upheld the humanitarian spirit of respecting the dead and has no intention of commenting on or speculating about such a sycophant who can't get a house.

Getting back to the main point, not all contestants are as talented as Valente, but their advantage lies in their age and experience.

With the tempering of time and rich combat experience, it won't be too bad.

In addition, the next match will soon see them clash with a high-ranking nobleman.

Simply put, it can't be hidden anymore.

The laws of time, innate talent, gene multiplier, law compatibility, and the power of blood—at least one of these must be revealed.

The natural selection is the one that is easiest to explain once it is exposed.

The simultaneous application of the laws of time and space results in a burst of power that is undoubtedly at the ninth level of combat strength.

His comprehension of the laws of the thirteenth level of the Heavenly Bridge is probably at the very top level even among royal bloodlines, and it's possible that no one has reached it.

Such a performance could not possibly fail to attract the attention of those in power within the Abyss royal family.

As soon as Hunzhen stepped out of the arena, two terrifying auras clashed violently before him.

Space distorted, the wind and clouds changed color, and the audience who had left their seats shrank back into the arena like chicks.

"Mirirate, it's such a waste to have such a talent in the hands of a good-for-nothing like you."

To the right, a handsome man with long, silver-gold hair, resembling a god, smiled and offered words of comfort.

To the left, Milirat, seated in a wheelchair, wore an unusually cold expression: "Laurgials, continue. Are you planning to unleash your true form and ruin this Grand Martial Arts Festival? Don't forget, the Grand Martial Arts Festival is an event to select bodyguards for Lord Silver God!"

Upon hearing this, Laujars' breathing finally subsided slightly, and the celestial phenomena suddenly returned to normal.

He ignored Milirat's icy gaze, turned to Hunzhen, and flashed a bright, sunny smile: "Your name is Hunzhen, right? Don't follow this brainless girl, how about you come with me? Foolish Milirat tolerates the offenses of those 'servants,' but I'm different. If you agree to come with me, I'll take care of those guys for you right now, how about that?"

Laujars's gaze and mental energy quietly fell upon the nobles who remained in the arena.

All the nobles felt a deep chill.

Without a doubt, if Hunzhen were to agree at this moment, the heads of these high-ranking so-called nobles would instantly explode.

Even though Hunzhen's match had already ended, everyone's attention couldn't help but be focused on him again.

Even those who were slow to get the news clearly realized at this moment how extraordinary this new legend, the center of the storm, was, that it could arouse the hostility and covetousness of so many nobles.

The fact that this god-like man could decide the life and death of so many nobles and high-ranking nobles with such casual tone speaks volumes about his identity!

As for the other one, his status and position are naturally beyond question, as he was able to stand up to him!

Even so, his expression remained as indifferent and natural as ever.

If they were in each other's shoes, and if they were to be fought over by two supreme royal bloodlines, they would absolutely not be able to remain so calm.

They were eager to know how Hunzhen would respond to such a difficult choice.

Compared to Laujars, Milirat, who has lived in the Axis City on the ninth level of the Abyss for many years, is not too unfamiliar to a very few superiors.

Knowing Milirat's temperament, they were more inclined to believe that Hunzhen would choose another royal bloodline.

As everyone knows, Milirat's gentle nature is unlike that of the Abyss royal family, while the other one is willing to wipe out the nobles with a single word, which shows her violent nature.

Therefore, the princess is unlikely to retaliate after rejecting Milirat, but it's hard to say whether she will retaliate against another prince named Laujars.

Moreover, if what this prince said is true, he will shoulder the troubles that Hunzhen will face.

Those in positions of power among these spectators felt it was obvious which option to choose.

However, the next moment, they saw Hunzhen calmly meet Laujars's gaze and say in an undeniable tone, "I refuse."

Unlike the silence in the arena, this time, fear of a massacre by Laujars gripped the hearts of many spectators, plunging the scene into a deathly stillness.

Many people secretly cursed Hunzhen in their hearts.

Even if you're going to refuse, why be so forceful and tactless? You want to die, but we want to live!

"Yeah?"

To everyone's surprise, Laugels merely narrowed his eyes, nodded, and said, "What a pity."

Then it vanished without a trace.

(End of this chapter)