Swallowing the Stars: Starting with the Battle of Geniuses

Chapter 173 Breakthrough, Lord of the Universe!

"King Shiyuan".

King Tianzhen's expression was solemn. The scene of the other party killing King Longyue just now flashed through his mind. At the same time, he combined the intelligence he had collected in the past and quickly carried out data analysis.

"Even though King Longyue's divine body is the most fragile and his defense is extremely weak among the six of us, he is still wearing high-grade treasure armor."

"But it seems to have no effect at all?"

"More importantly, the illusionary attacks of the Moon King can even affect the universe's overlord... The soul defense of the Time Abyss King must be so strong that it has no loopholes at all, so soul attacks are completely useless against him."

The information stream swept past Tianzhen Wang's eyes.

The strength that Hunzhen displayed was several times stronger than he had initially anticipated, and even more troublesome than the most difficult situation he had mentally rehearsed.

"Don't panic, don't waver."

"If this battle goes well, I will have a chance to truly join the Machine Race's honorary foreign citizenship, to truly become a member of the Machine Race, and no longer have to be inferior to others!"

"We must seize this opportunity."

"Analyze carefully."

"Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated. Before identifying the characteristics and weaknesses of King Shiyuan, you must clearly define your own strengths."

"What are my strengths?"

King Tianzhen's eyes were deep and profound.

"That King Oborozuki only has illusion magic. No matter how strong his equipment is, if he encounters someone with a strong will and whose illusion magic fails, he'll be completely at their mercy. But I'm different."

"Aside from the 'methods' Lord Tianheng gave me, based on my six-dimensional assessment of combat strength—attack, defense, control, spirit, endurance, and burst damage—I've reached the pinnacle in attack, defense, and burst damage!"

"No matter what, I am still very capable. I have a 'trump card' in my hand, and even if my opponent is King Shiyuan, I have a chance to win as long as I can find a weakness in her."

According to the information known to Tianzhen Wang, Hunzhen is a pure spiritual mind controller.

To increase his chances of winning, he naturally chose to take the initiative and launch a close-quarters attack.

"Close combat is to my advantage!"

In Tianzhen Wang's eyes, countless images of sword blades flashed by.

That was his prediction of the Hunzhen offensive based on the available information.

"The combat technique of King Shiyuan, 'Time-Space Cutting,' is exceptionally powerful and fast, and its execution and recovery are completely unpredictable."

Compared to the Moon King, who specializes in illusions, the Heavenly Tremor King is far superior in direct combat.

Facing the attacks of the Hunzhen Shishang Demon Blade, it seemed to be completely at a disadvantage. Every attack ultimately landed on its body, but it was already the ultimate dodging and defense, cutting off all the attack power that could theoretically be weakened.

He possessed a high-grade treasure armor, coupled with a naturally enormous divine body as a special life form.

Unlike King Oborozuki, who seemed to have encountered a natural enemy and was defeated and killed before he could even admit defeat.

but……

It was precisely because of this that King Tianzhen became increasingly aware of the terrifying nature of Hunzhen.

As the dash distance increases, it also means that the area he can dodge and avoid damage shrinks, making Hunzhen's attacks appear increasingly fierce and swift.

If things continue like this, he will never be able to advance to a point where he can utilize his "trump cards," and he will be eliminated by his opponent just like the previous lucky one, Oborozuki-no-Kō.

"No, don't panic. In that case, let's focus our attention on King Shiyuan himself!"

"So, what is King Shiyuan's weakness?"

"Attack, defense, control, soul, adaptability, burst... hmm... no weaknesses."

Just as Tianzhen King finished collecting data and made the correct judgment, and showed a look of despair, he saw Hunzhen in the distance give a sly smile.

That malice-laced smile seemed to have seen through his plans long ago.

"King Tianzhen, you're trying so hard to get close to me, you must be holding a deadly weapon that can defeat me in one strike, right?"

Upon hearing Hunzhen's words, Tianzhen Wang froze, feeling as if he had become a clown in front of everyone.

"You...you already found out?" King Tianzhen's voice was stiff.

Hunzhen rolled her eyes: "With such an obvious intention, why do you think I wouldn't notice? Although there's nothing wrong with trying to engage in close combat against the Controller, do you think you can hide your emotional fluctuations from the moment you thought victory was within reach?"

Those silver eyes, which seemed to see through everything, sent a chill down Tianzhen Wang's spine.

The results confirm that it wasn't entirely unexpected that the other party was able to perceive one's emotional fluctuations.

Given the opponent's exceptional talent, which allowed them to perfectly resist the Moon King's illusions and launch a fatal attack, it's reasonable that they would also know some illusion techniques and soul secrets.

But even in such a battle, he was still able to handle it with such ease...

"Unlike me, she recognized the gap between us from the very beginning. Everything is under her control," King Tianzhen thought to himself.

He stopped moving and lowered his head: "I surrender."

At this moment, the audience clearly realized that this King Shiyuan was not only invincible in soul defense, but also had no weaknesses in direct confrontation.

The difference in strength is too great. King Shiyuan has not just stepped into the realm of overlords, but has truly established himself at the overlord level. If he takes another step, he will reach the top overlord level.

This gap is like the gap between the former geniuses Zhan Bolan and Rong Jun; they are not even in the same league.

Even if the remaining four people joined forces, they might not be able to defeat King Shiyuan, let alone if they went up one by one.

The bet, which was a foregone conclusion, instantly turned into a joke.

"Should we continue?"

The voice of the Chaos City Lord rang out at just the right moment.

At this moment, the exit was not aggressive at all; instead, it provided a suitable way out, so that the other three races would not look too bad.

Continuing down this path will only result in King Shiyuan sweeping through three clans single-handedly.

As the strongest representative of the three races, the Lord of the Yellow Dragons had a somewhat unpleasant expression, but he understood the reasoning behind it. He sighed inwardly, realizing that the Chaos City Lord had initially failed to understand why he wanted the Time Abyss King, who could be used as a trump card, to appear first. It turned out that this was the reason behind it.

Although they didn't win the entire battle, it still dealt a heavy blow to the morale of the three races.

The Lord of Huanglong nodded in affirmation: "We have lost."

However, just when everyone thought the duel was about to end, the Lord of Heavenly Cycles made his move unexpectedly.

"This woman must not be allowed to live."

Having witnessed Hunzhen's talent, and seeing this scene today, the Lord of Tianheng could no longer sit still, thinking that the Hong Alliance would one day have another universe lord comparable to the Lord of Chaos City.

Compared to the losses in several overseas battlefields, eliminating such monsters is of paramount importance.

Tianzhen King has not yet left the continent where the battle takes place.

That enormous hand, which blotted out the sky and seemed to have evolved from space and time, pressed down on him, giving him a sense of immense terror that the world was about to collapse and the Great Dao was about to be obliterated.

"No!!!"

He suddenly noticed that his divine body was rapidly turning into ashes, and he let out a terrified roar, but the sound did not travel far before it became a final echo.

This sudden turn of events shocked everyone.

Even the Lord of Chaos City seemed to have failed to anticipate this and was unable to protect King Shiyuan in time.

But when he was about to make a move to help, he was blocked by the bloody swarm of insects transformed from the Blood Lord of the Zerg.

The difference between the Lord of Blood and the Lord of Chaos City was vast, but it was more than enough to hold them off for a short time.

The Lord of the Yellow Dragon watched this scene, hesitated for a moment, and finally chose to sit idly by.

"W-this!?"

"The outcome is already decided, yet they actually attacked King Shiyuan directly? How utterly despicable and shameless!"

While Tianzhen King appeared to be completely overwhelmed by Shiyuan King, he also displayed combat power at the level of a top-tier high-level Venerable.

Despite possessing the power of a supreme treasure, he was still on equal footing with all the venerable ones present.

Even the Heavenly King Zhen was reduced to dust by the aftershocks, let alone the Time Abyss King, who was directly in the center of the Lord of Heavenly Heng's attack.

Everyone felt that King Shiyuan was doomed.

Even a being like the Lord of Heavenly Cycles would disregard the agreement and take action, which would be an absolute kill, leaving no possibility for King Shiyuan to be resurrected through time reversal.

Just moments ago, King Shiyuan represented their Hong Alliance in battle and achieved outstanding merit. In the blink of an eye, such a dazzling genius will become history.

"Truly... it vanished as quickly as a shooting star."

The cosmic venerables felt a pang of sorrow, and couldn't help but feel a sense of shared grief.

They knew that a slight clash between the rulers of the universe would be fine, and once the death of the Abyss King was confirmed, they would return to the negotiating table to continue the political "verbal battle," but it was impossible for them to actually fight.

hum--.

However, right beneath that colossal hand that blotted out the sky, terrifying spatial and temporal fluctuations suddenly spread.

"She's still alive!?"

The assembled venerable ones exclaimed in surprise.

But the most shocking thing was that the Lord of Heavenly Eternity personally took action against Hunzhen.

In his perception, Hunzhen's aura was rising rapidly.

Hundred times, ten thousand times...

"you!?"

He knew perfectly well what this meant.

"This is impossible!!!"

But it is precisely because we know this that it is all the more unbelievable.

"How could you possibly break through to the level of a Universe Master in an instant!?"

The manifestation of the universe's origin after the breakthrough is a gift to life in the universe, a brief period during which one can absorb energy!

This period of time is extremely short, but the amount of divine power generated is equivalent to thousands or tens of thousands of years of normal cultivation.

Normally, even if this time is short, it should last at least ten minutes!

The latest novel is first published here!

But at this moment, the Abyss King had just broken through, and the manifestation of the origin of the universe and the fluctuations of the ocean of divine power were only momentary!

In the blink of an eye, she had completed her breakthrough and become the true ruler of the universe!

How is that possible?!

How could the Lord of Heaven know that for Hunzhen, who possesses the ability to simulate, a single thought is enough to allow him to pass the time required for a breakthrough through simulated inheritance?

As the Lord of Heaven's mind trembled, the enormous hand formed from divine power dissipated.

Below, a peerless figure, capable of both joy and anger, was revealed.

But at this moment, that face was devoid of any otherworldly or ethereal aura; instead, it was filled with malice and evil.

It's as if what's being revealed now is his true nature.

Hunzhen tilted his head slightly, grinning wickedly at the Lord of Tianheng: "Tianheng, I told you, I respect you, but that doesn't mean I'm afraid of you!"

After that soft shout, the cosmos was tinged with a hazy gray.

The deathly color of the domain instantly enveloped the four cosmic lords and thousands of Venerables.

Time for everyone froze.

"Inherent time domain".

After breaking through to the level of the Lord of the Universe, Hunzhen can no longer only use the automatically activated Lost Color Domain by directly activating the Lost Color Core, but can actively control it.

From the perspective of omniscience, overlooking the river of time, activating the colorless core reveals the "inherent time domain," which can freeze even the time of the Lord of the Universe.

Hunzhen lightly clenched his right hand, as if deliberately imitating the action of the Lord of Heavenly Eternity just now. The gray mixed air currents condensed into a huge palm, which grasped the Time-Sorrow Demon Blade, which was magnified a billion times.

With the breakthrough in his cultivation level, the Time-Shattering Demon Blade had now reached the level of a high-grade treasure.

In addition to its characteristics similar to the natal magic weapon in cultivation novels, in Hunzhen's hands, it is no less than a top-tier treasure.

The giant hand grasped the Time-Scarring Demon Blade. At this moment, the world in Hunzhen's eyes was no longer the universe and spacetime as seen from a normal perspective.

Life, stardust... these material things are nowhere to be found.

What was revealed before Hunzhen was a pure torrent of time and space, nothing else.

"Space is the harp, time is the string..."

Hunzhen murmured softly, a hint of understanding flashing in his eyes.

He achieved minor success in comprehending the laws of spacetime fusion, reaching the life level of a cosmic master, and possessing an omniscient perspective.

He truly grasped the essence of time and space from that explanation that had once served as a "beacon of the way".

The chaotic and unnecessary torrent of time and space had become clearly orderly in his eyes. What appeared to be disorder was actually in accordance with the order of heaven and earth and the universe.

If space is a musical instrument, then time is its strings.

"If we take time and space as a musical instrument, then Yin and Yang and the Five Elements are the strings."

"Space and time are the foundation of the universe, and Yin and Yang and the Five Elements are the evolution of all things in the world within space and time."

At this moment, "Time and Space Strings" has surpassed the peak secret technique level of the universe master and directly reached the ultimate secret technique level of the universe master, and has the potential to continue to develop upwards.

Hunzhen suddenly swung the Time-Scarring Demon Blade, as if plucking the zither of heaven and earth with a zither bow.

From that chaotic torrent of time and space, he accurately grasped the string.

The bow plucks the strings.

"~——"

The melodious music transformed into a deadly sharp edge, cutting into the anchor of the Lord of Heaven in time and space.

Splash—

The gray world shattered under the blow of the Time-Scarring Demon Blade.

In the opera house where this grand musical performance was taking place, the audience members sitting in their seats gradually came to their senses.

The first thing they saw when they awoke was countless bright red lines of blood slicing through the body of the Lord of Heaven.

That was a tragedy for the universe.

For everyone who was frozen in time, it was only a blink of an eye. The life force of the Lord of Heaven, which was originally at its peak, plummeted to the bottom and then completely evaporated.

"The Lord of Heaven has fallen...!?"

Upon witnessing this horrific scene, the Lord of Blood immediately abandoned his efforts to obstruct the Lord of Chaos City.

She looked at Hunzhen from afar as if she were looking at an indescribable monster.

The Lord of Heavenly Eternity is even stronger than her, doesn't that mean... if this evil god in front of her has just one thought, she will follow in his footsteps?

Thinking of his actions in obstructing the Chaos City Lord from rescuing the other party, the Blood Lord, a dignified universe lord, trembled with fear.

"King Shiyuan...killed the Lord of Tianheng?"

"What happened in that brief moment?"

Even the Lord of the Universe is filled with fear and unease, let alone the Venerable Ones of the Universe.

Upon hearing his companions' discussion of the "King of Time Abyss," a cosmic venerable being's expression changed drastically, and he immediately shouted, "What King of Time Abyss? That's the Lord of Time Abyss!"

"Ah? Ah! Yes, it's the great Lord of Time!"

"The Lord of Heavenly Eternity attacked the Lord of Time Abyss without provocation, and his current predicament is entirely his own fault!"

The cosmic venerable one realized what was happening and shouted repeatedly.

"The Lord of Time Abyss?"

As if noticing the title, Hunzhen, who was still immersed in his contemplation, suddenly turned his head to look.

This immediately silenced all the venerable beings of the universe.

Seeing their cautious demeanor, Hunzhen's lips curled into a smile: "I shall become the Lord of Time and Space!"

As he spoke, his gaze turned to the Lord of Chaos City, meeting his eyes. Under the solemn gazes and witnesses of the Lord of Yellow Dragons and the trembling Lord of Blood Dove, he slowly said, "Lord of Chaos City, today I have shielded your human race's prodigy from a scheme. The debt between us is now settled!"

After speaking, he transformed into a streak of silver light and disappeared into the horizon.

The Lord of Chaos City was left alone, staring with a complicated expression at the fading exhaust fumes of Hunzhen.

A poem says, "A golden carp is no ordinary fish in a pond; it transforms into a dragon once it encounters wind and clouds."

—Bullshit!

The whole thing was just a show of severing ties between master and disciple, all to get King Shiyuan out of the Hong Alliance and free him from human relationships, so he wouldn't be targeted by the three races.

No way, no way, no one actually believed Hunzhen and the Lord of Chaos's acting skills?

But then, the Lord of Blood and Souls, seeing that Hunzhen had already gone far away, turned to the Lord of Chaos City and revealed a mocking smile: "This Lord of Time and Space has such power after breaking through. With such assistance, your human race must be even more powerful, right? Oh dear, I almost forgot... Didn't the Lord of Time and Space just sever ties with you just now?"

The Lord of Chaos City had a gloomy expression, as if he was deeply regretting his misjudgment of King Shiyuan's potential.

"snort!"

He snorted coldly and waved his hand, using his divine power to bind his subordinates.

"Walk!"

After a low shout, he strode away.

Despite his serious and composed expression, he couldn't help but shudder.

"My disciple..."

"Let's not even mention the special way he instantly broke through to the level of the Lord of the Universe, since he informed me in advance."

"But this breakthrough, which even froze me in place, demonstrated the power to instantly kill the Lord of Heavenly Eternity..."

"Is it possible that he just broke through, and his strength has already surpassed mine as his teacher?"

The Lord of Chaos City had mixed feelings.

(End of this chapter)