Swallowing the Stars: Starting with the Battle of Geniuses

Chapter 204 Fair Trade, A Cosmic Shock

"Hehe, God of Time and Space is joking. We have only come to thank you for your previous mercy in sparing the geniuses of our respective clans."

The Golden Demon God appeared first, smiling broadly as he explained, while glancing at the other strongest beings in the universe who were watching.

"Hahaha, Jin Huang is right! Even if you, the Venerable God of Time and Space, don't care, how could we dare not repay this immense favor!? We have come uninvited, please forgive us!"

"Yes, yes, unlike Jin Huang and the others, I was released by Your Excellency, the Venerable God! It wasn't the juniors of the clan who were grateful, but I myself who was grateful!"

One by one, the strongest beings in the universe appeared.

Not only did they speak with reverence, but they also very astutely followed the term "venerable god" used by the Golden Demon God.

The Cosmic Sea originally did not have this name.

But its significance is not difficult to understand.

Generally, once someone becomes the strongest, their title changes accordingly. Needless to say, titles like "True God" or "Demon God" are used. Information unearthed from "ancient civilizations" often refers to the strongest beings in the universe in this realm as being in this way, with only slight differences depending on the faction. Therefore, it is reasonable to assume that these two titles are the most likely to be the true titles of the strongest beings in the universe.

As for the likes of Allah, God, Creator, and Founder, they are either mavericks like the arrogant God-Eye Clan who would call themselves that, or they are like the Giant Axe Creator who pioneered a path that differs greatly from the strongest beings and established themselves as masters of their own school.

However, overall, the title of "true god" still accounts for more than 90%.

The term "venerable god" refers to a "true god worthy of respect and veneration," or "a supreme being among the true gods." Undoubtedly, this is a flattering term used to express reverence and to imply that the other party is superior to oneself.

It was Jinhuang Demon God who, seeing the situation was not good, or rather, after witnessing Hunzhen's terrifying power and hearing Hunzhen's affirmative answer to the First True Lord's question about "surpassing the True God," came up with this idea on a whim.

Hunzhen's life force is still at the level of a universe master, but based on the strength he has displayed, there is no problem in regarding him as the strongest being in the universe. In addition, his performance can be described as invincible even in the realm of the strongest, so the Golden Emperor Demon God feels no psychological pressure in calling him "Venerable God".

The other strongest individuals, while inwardly despising the shameless behavior of the Golden Emperor Demon God, subtly chose to imitate him.

There's no other reason than that, among the strongest individuals present, those of us who are relatively normal are ultimately more important than face; life is more important than reputation.

They assumed that Hunzhen would pretend not to see them and chose to relentlessly pursue the remaining three True Lords of the Divine Eye Clan.

However, in reality, after Hunzhen defeated the four True Lords of the Divine Eye Clan in one fell swoop, he directly used his aura to lock onto all the onlookers.

They looked like they were about to settle scores later.

Of course, no one was foolish enough to jump out and say, "I'm just here to watch, Lord of Time and Space, what do you mean by this? Are you going against the will of the masses?"

The bodies of the four true gods were barely cold when the Lord of Time and Space before them—oh, now the Venerable God of Time—was revealed to be anything but "benevolent" as he appeared; he was a veritable god of slaughter.

Trying to reason with such a guy is most likely to end up like the true gods of the Divine Eye Clan.

Moreover, the other party didn't even pursue the Divine Eye Clan, but deliberately used their aura to lock onto them, clearly indicating that they wanted an explanation.

Those present were not fools, and they certainly did not regard Hunzhen as a fool, thinking that Hunzhen had not seen through their intention to become the predator.

The other side saw through the Divine Eye Clan's intention to intimidate them, and turned the tables on them, using swift and decisive means to wipe out the Divine Eye Clan's top-tier combat power, causing the Divine Eye Clan's strength to weaken by one level, falling from the undisputed "strongest" to the "super" category. Naturally, they could not ignore the existence of these "tigers".

Most importantly, it's clear to anyone with eyes that all these people combined are probably no match for Hunzhen.

The strongest individuals present were not as wealthy and powerful as the Divine Eye Clan, with almost everyone possessing a supreme treasure armor.

Even a supreme treasure armor would be no match for Hunzhen's attack.

Even if a battle were to break out now, among the many strongest individuals, fewer than five would be able to escape from Hunzhen's clutches.

Even the strongest lone traveler, without the worry of a clan, would live in constant fear if targeted by such a malevolent god.

Therefore, yielding is the wisest choice.

Looking at these seemingly obedient strongest beings in the universe, Hunzhen chuckled and replied, "Gentlemen, I'm not lying to you. What I said to those ill-tempered customers from the Divine Eye Clan earlier wasn't a lie either."

Amidst the astonished and uncertain gazes of the crowd, Hunzhen raised his index finger and said, "I've said it from the beginning: all I care about is cultivation. I have no intention of starting a conflict or causing trouble. As for the content of the inheritance, as long as it doesn't involve the core and I would be in danger of dying if I revealed it, it can be obtained through trade."

Everyone looked at each other.

I get it, they're demanding compensation, right?

Seeing everyone's expressions, Hunzhen naturally knew what they were thinking, but he didn't intend to expose them.

As the strongest among them listened in silence, he continued, "Trade will be conducted on a force-by-force basis, including the strongest lone individual. Ten thousand years from now, at the same time, I will conduct trade with all interested parties. Those who reveal they possess inherited information but do not engage in trade will be blacklisted and subjected to my relentless pursuit. I hope everyone here will help spread this message. I will await good news in the Black Patterned Stone Pillar space."

Seeing Hunzhen's smiling face as he spoke of "a relentless pursuit to the death," a chill ran through everyone.

But after hearing Hunzhen's story, a surge of joy suddenly welled up in their hearts.

Judging from Hunzhen's current situation, it seems that his previous statement was not meant to deceive them, but rather that he genuinely intended to make a deal.

"Lord God of Time and Space, I have a question," a supreme being in the universe asked in a soft voice.

Hunzhen smiled and nodded: "Speak."

Although the image of Hunzhen as a "smiling tiger" has gradually become deeply rooted in people's hearts, even with such a gentle and soft-spoken manner, one still gets the feeling that he might suddenly burst out and kill the questioner with a casual gesture.

But the man finally mustered the courage to ask, "May I ask... just how rich is this externally transmitted knowledge? Does it contain any information related to 'how to transcend reincarnation'?"

Hunzhen stared at the person until the other felt a chill run down their spine and their heels felt oily, before finally nodding slightly: "Yes. The key point of the knowledge I'm willing to pass on lies in how to transcend reincarnation."

Upon hearing this, the man's fear vanished, and he even revealed a look of wild joy.

Seeing that the questions were being asked without hindrance, another person stepped forward and asked, "Your Excellency, my question is, what... what do we need to give up in this transaction?"

Hunzhen did not give a clear answer to this, but glanced at everyone with a half-smile and said meaningfully, "The items that each trading partner has to give up will be negotiated by me one-on-one. In other words, the price that each person has to pay will be different."

coming!

The powerful figures' pupils constricted, and those two words naturally popped into their minds.

They realized that Hunzhen had not given up on settling scores, but rather planned to collect compensation in a way that would save face for everyone.

After a brief moment of fear, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

If Hun Zhenzhen doesn't intend to pursue the matter, they will worry that she will secretly settle scores later, making them uneasy.

This method is now the punishment they can most accept.

Some eager individuals had already secretly communicated with Hunzhen to discuss the details of the transaction, while others had their thoughts scattered, allowing their energy avatars, located countless light-years away, to discuss the matter with other powerful members of the clan.

Before long, the group of powerful figures, each with their own thoughts, returned to their respective homes.

Hunzhen did not intend to go to the small universes of the four True Lords of the Divine Eye Clan to collect treasures. After all, as a strong person, he carried the majority of the treasures with him. He didn't care much for the remaining resources at the moment. Moreover, the distance was too far, and by the time he arrived, they would probably have already been divided up by the wandering universe lords or the strongest beings in the universe.

He could certainly have human forces collect these resources, but compared to this "small amount" of resources, concealing his relationship with humanity is more important at this stage.

Within the virtual universe of the primordial universe, Hunzhen and the energy avatars of the Chaos City Lord faced each other, having already reported their safety.

The fact that they were surrounded by so many of the strongest beings in the universe was something that not only Chaos City Lord, their teacher, could not have been ignored by any of the higher-ups in humanity.

The founder of Giant Axe directly suggested that he be entrusted with protecting Hunzhen.

However, Hunzhen naturally refused all of them, claiming that he had obtained a secret treasure from the Duan Donghe lineage and that he was 100% certain of escaping, which finally made everyone give up.

After all, before this battle, if Hunzhen had claimed that he now possessed combat power surpassing that of his former progenitor, the human leadership would never have believed him.

But now that things have come to an end, Hunzhen knew that the details of this battle could not be hidden for long, so he naturally relayed the facts to the Lord of Chaos City.

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"You said... you single-handedly defeated four True Lords of the Divine Eye Clan, including the First True Lord, and then intimidated the remaining strongest among them who were standing by, causing them to hesitate and retreat?"

The Lord of Chaos City summarized what Hunzhen had said, and he seemed somewhat dazed when he uttered these words.

Hunzhen nodded slightly, a matter-of-fact expression on his face.

"In the primordial universe, I traversed eight stages over ten thousand years, from apprentice to planet, star, universe, domain lord, realm lord, immortal, and venerable one, to finally become the lord of the universe."

"Right now, in the Cosmic Sea, I've spent most of my time accelerating my cultivation within the Black-Patterned Stone Pillar space. Several thousand years have passed, which roughly equates to ten thousand years. Even if the rate of strength change slows down considerably after reaching the level of a Cosmic Lord, it's still reasonable that I've cultivated from a Cosmic Lord to an invincible True God over such a long period, isn't it?"

The Chaos City Lord nodded: "That makes sense."

He abruptly stopped nodding, glared, and exclaimed, "How is this reasonable?!"

Even the usually composed Lord of Chaos City was shocked by the truth revealed by Hunzhen and became the one who made sarcastic remarks.

"Well, actually... I really couldn't have killed those four Divine Eye Clan True Lords."

Hunzhen sighed softly, as if he was about to reveal the truth.

The Lord of Chaos City raised an eyebrow.

Sure enough, there's more to the story?

Was it the "secret treasure" that the disciple mentioned earlier, which he inherited from the Duan Dong River, that enabled the achievement?

Thinking of this, the Lord of Chaos City couldn't help but shake his head and chuckle to himself.

His disciple is good in every way, except that he likes to startle and frighten the old folks. I wonder when he will stop being so unruly.

Thinking this, the Lord of Chaos City almost broke down again because of Hunzhen's words.

Then Hunzhen spoke.

"Actually, if I had revealed my eleventh-tier combat power from the beginning, how would those Divine Eye Clan members have dared to covet the Broken East River inheritance in my possession?"

"The True Lords of the Divine Eye Clan are incredibly wealthy; many possess supreme treasure armor. If I intimidate them, and they really try to escape, I'd be lucky to keep two alive. The First True Lord certainly won't be spared."

"So, in order to kill their leader while I had the moral high ground, so that they wouldn't bother me later and cause trouble for our Hong Alliance after I revealed my true identity, I simply pretended to be weak, helpless, and indignant, and created a flaw."

"Look, those Celestial Dragons with their eyes on their foreheads, *snap* they're all dead! Well, because four of the Celestial Dragon Clan's True Lords died, so it's four lights."

Seeing Hunzhen's helpless expression and gesture, the Chaos City Lord's lips twitched involuntarily.

Good grief, is this the "original" you're talking about?

Who asked you how you schemed against the Divine Eye Clan!

The Lord of Chaos City had never felt such emotions before.

I felt both heartbroken and speechless, yet also relieved and joyful.

"Finally, our human race has produced another powerful being who can dominate the cosmic sea like our teacher!"

To have reached this point in such a short time is truly incredible, even with the legacy of Duan Donghe.

Hunzhen must possess an even greater secret than the Duan Donghe inheritance.

In the end, however, the Lord of Chaos chose not to ask anything.

Changing the subject, he asked, "So when do you plan to come back? With your strength, you are the strongest among our human race. Continuing to act under a false identity... is too much of a waste for you."

Strong people are always proud.

The Lord of Chaos City knew that not everyone regarded the interests of their race as paramount as he did.

To be honest, if the original ancestor hadn't been suppressed halfway through, and the responsibility and pressure hadn't been transferred to him all at once, the Chaos City Lord felt that he himself couldn't have been so "selfless and loving".

Putting yourself in their shoes, if someone else were in the position of Hunzhen, possessing such great power yet having to wear a false cloak, they would inevitably feel dissatisfied.

"Sigh~"

Seeing the Chaos City Lord's sentimental display, Hunzhen waved his hand and said, "Teacher, you know me. What's all this talk about identity? I'm overjoyed to see so many people can't see through my disguise!"

After explaining his current strength to the Lord of Chaos City, the Lord of Chaos City frowned slightly and had to admit that Hunzhen's words made more sense, so he chose to drop the matter.

While the master and disciple were chatting and reminiscing, rumors about Hunzhen's battle and the matter of the transaction ten thousand years later spread far and wide.

The vast universe was utterly devastated.

Countless forces and powerful figures are now focused on Hunzhen alone, revolving around him.

(End of this chapter)