Swallowing the Stars: Starting with the Battle of Geniuses

Chapter 20 Advance Consumption

Seeing Hunzhen nod vigorously, extremely satisfied with the list of benefits, Roger thought Hunzhen was about to agree immediately.

Unexpectedly, Hunzhen suddenly changed his tune and pulled this stunt on him.

Roger was, after all, a manager of the Giant Axe Arena branch. He was kind to Hunzhen because he thought highly of him, but that didn't mean he would still be gentle after being tricked.

Even a mere glimpse of the killing intent of a Domain Lord-level expert is enough to cause the mental breakdown of an ordinary Star-level being.

In fact, the other gladiators who passed by the lounge felt the aftershocks of this oppressive will and trembled with fear, almost prostrating themselves on the spot.

But Hunzhen knew that he couldn't show weakness at times like these, and with his cosmic-level consciousness strength, he managed to hold on and not break down.

He curled his lips into a smile, and an invisible wind domain spread out, the free breeze seemingly sweeping away the oppressive atmosphere.

"what?"

Roger's murderous aura vanished instantly, and he looked at Hunzhen, who was smiling, with a mixture of surprise and delight.

"The Law of Wind? You've actually grasped a trace of a fundamental law!?"

He had already imagined Hunzhen to be a genius enough, but he never expected that Hunzhen would be several times more talented than he had imagined!

It has to be said that top students do have special privileges.

A typical top student might get a scolding for throwing a bottle cap and hitting a teacher on the head, but if the top student in the city does the same thing, the teacher might just stare helplessly and not dare to yell at them.

The same applies to the space age.

If Hunzhen's level before revealing his understanding of the Law of Wind was only among the top 1,000 to 10,000 stars in the Noah Universe Kingdom, his current genius level in the theory of Hunzhen is probably among the top 1,000.

But that's only at the level of genius.

After all, Hunzhen's domain level is only three. Although he has comprehended a trace of the fundamental laws, he is at most comparable to someone at the seventh level of the domain who has not comprehended a trace of the fundamental laws.

If we're only comparing talent, Hunzhen is more than qualified for the preliminary rounds of the Genius Battle. After all, it's common knowledge that comprehending the laws is far more difficult than breaking through a domain. With Hunzhen's aptitude, reaching the ninth level of the domain is only a matter of time.

However, this very time constraint means that, in terms of actual strength, he is probably still somewhat lacking.

"But that's exactly what's good!"

Roger felt a surge of excitement; the organizer of this year's Genius Battle was Virtual Universe Company.

"Hunzhen couldn't even qualify for the preliminary rounds, but that actually makes it easier for our Giant Axe Arena to recruit him!"

A genius who ranks in the top 1,000 in the Universe Kingdom would undoubtedly be in the top 10 in their Morning Star Empire!

Discovering and recruiting such a genius is an achievement that should elevate his status to a higher level!

Roger's gaze toward Hunzhen grew increasingly fervent, and the anger he had felt earlier due to Hunzhen's disrespect had long since vanished.

And this is exactly what Hunzhen is happy to see.

If Roger hadn't been given a heads-up beforehand, his next goal might not have been achieved.

But a genius's eccentricity is only to this extent; continuing to joke about it would be impolite.

Seeing Roger's astonishment, Hunzhen smiled kindly and said, "Just lucky, just lucky."

"Just lucky?"

Roger smirked. He had walked this path himself, so he knew perfectly well that Hun Zhen was just being modest.

Little did they know that Hunzhen's words were half true and half false.

His ability to break free from constraints and touch the threshold of the laws with his sense of freedom is indeed somewhat due to a stroke of good fortune and divine assistance; otherwise, he would probably have had to wait for more than half a year.

Roger snorted and said, "Alright, geniuses do have the right to bargain. Is there anything I'm not satisfied with? The treatment, the terms—feel free to bring them up if you're unhappy."

Hunzhen sighed softly, "Lord Roger, it's not that I'm arrogant, it's just... I, Hunzhen, have never liked fighting and killing; I only want to be kind to others. Of course, this isn't because I have a problem with the arena, it's just that there's something wrong with my personality!"

Dislike fighting and killing? Only want to be kind to others?

Roger's lips twitched: "Tell the truth."

Hunzhen's brow twitched, and he finally spread his hands, saying, "Alright, I think that even if I don't become a gladiator and risk my life, with my talent, it's only a matter of time before I rise to prominence. Just recently... wasn't there a perfect opportunity?"

Roger was about to say that the universe is vast and that entering the sights of powerful forces requires not only talent but also a stroke of luck, but Hunzhen's thinking was too narrow.

But before he could finish speaking, he heard the second half of Hunzhen's sentence.

He frowned immediately: "Are you referring to the Genius Battle?"

But deep down, I understood.

The latest novel is first published here!

That's right. With Hunzhen's level, breaking through to the cosmic level would be a piece of cake. Moreover, his realm is not bad even among cosmic-level gladiators. Making money would be much easier than it is now.

The only reason for suppressing the breakthrough is the Genius Battle.

Seeing Hunzhen's resolute expression, Roger shook his head and said, "With your current strength, even breaking through the preliminaries won't be easy. And wanting to become famous without breaking through the preliminaries? Heh, I can only say that the probability is lower than the probability of you meeting me!"

The probability is actually not lower, but since Roger wanted to invite Hunzhen, it can't be said that way.

Hunzhen chuckled, offering no rebuttal, and instead said, "In that case, Lord Roger, how about we make a bet?"

"bet?"

Roger became interested upon hearing this.

Hunzhen said calmly, "Let's forget about breaking through the preliminary rounds. To be honest, my goal is to break through the top 1000 in the Genius Battle!"

Seeing Hunzhen's matter-of-fact expression as he spoke of breaking into the top 1,000, Roger was taken aback. He quickly shook his head and chuckled, "Breaking into the top 1,000? Kid, I've seen arrogant people, but I've never seen anyone as reckless as you. I don't know what you mean by 'gambling,' but if you can achieve this goal, I'll take the liberty of giving you a portion of the rewards for free. Breaking into the top 1,000 would be a huge honor for our Morning Star Empire. Even just for that, giving you advance funding isn't a big deal! But—"

Roger's tone shifted, and he sneered, "So what if we don't achieve it?"

"Didn't you meet the requirements?" Hunzhen patted his chest. "I'll agree to all the previous terms. Apart from that, for the next era, except for those that lead to my death, I, Hunzhen, will be at your beck and call! If you, Lord Roger, tell me to go east, I'll go west; if you tell me to pet a dog, I'll never slaughter a chicken!"

"good!"

Roger's eyes lit up, and he slapped his thigh.

Hunzhen abruptly changed the subject: "However—"

Roger frowned: "But what?"

Hunzhen blinked and said, "Let's set a time, starting ten years after the Genius Battle ends."

(End of this chapter)