Swallow the starry sky, grind to become the strongest in the universe

Chapter 52 The Real Finals

The following morning, in the central square of the virtual universe.

The top 7300 geniuses, selected from millions of talents across various cosmic nations, have gathered to await the new competition schedule. Among them are geniuses like Yu Duan, who are ranked in the top 100 on the leaderboard.

"boom!"

At this moment, the entire space-time was shaking, accompanied by a magnificent aura that rippled outwards, and time itself seemed to freeze for a moment.

The Jade City Venerable, clad in black scale armor, appeared out of thin air, his gaze sweeping over the many young people.

"Sir!"

The numerous immortal gods hurriedly bowed, and the thousands of geniuses following behind them also bowed.

"The trial is over. First of all, congratulations to the top 100 contestants on the leaderboard. You will be directly added to the core layer of Virtual Universe Company! If anyone does not wish to join Virtual Universe Company, please feel free to say so."

The voice of Venerable Jade City echoed throughout the entire plane of space, lasting for a long time.

However, no one responded. Clearly, none of the top 100 super geniuses were unwilling to join the core of the Virtual Universe Company, nor were they elite seeds cultivated by the other four top forces.

Generally speaking, the star-level geniuses cultivated by various forces also have their own promotion channels. As long as they are strong enough, they will be directly promoted to the core level.

Only those who are slightly weaker will participate in the Genius Battle to prove their strength. If they can achieve excellent results in the trial space, they will receive huge rewards and be promoted directly to the core level.

But this is actually more difficult, and most people come here to gain experience.

Venerable Jade City nodded slightly, a smile appearing on his face: "Very good. Now, apart from the top 100 on the leaderboard, the remaining 7200 participants will compete in the arena."

"Opponents are directly assigned by the virtual universe system. The player who wins three consecutive matches will receive a core-level spot."

"Now, the battle begins!"

With a wave of his hand, Venerable Jade City instantly teleported away 7200 geniuses, leaving only the top 100 selected from the trial space.

Facing the remaining little ones, Venerable Yucheng's smile deepened slightly: "There are no matches for you today. There is a rest area nearby where you can watch other people's live streams."

After Venerable Jade City finished speaking, a rest area suddenly appeared in the previously empty central square.

The rest area has hundreds of tables and chairs, as well as some popular foods and drinks from the virtual universe.

Soon after, Yu Duan and the other hundred people took their seats. Most of them did not interact much, because no one knew each other.

Only the Northern Ming Universe Kingdom had four people among the top 100, so they naturally sat together, forming a small group that was quite eye-catching.

"I thought we'd have a match today." Aarons said with some disappointment, then looked at Yu Duan beside him.

A fighting spirit gleamed in Aarons' eyes: "Haven't we sparred in a long time?"

In the trial space, Aarons, a mentalist, was instantly killed on the first floor of the seventh trial tower, while Yu Duan made it through.

This means that Yu Duan has surpassed him by more than a little bit.

Aarons had known this day would come, but he hadn't expected it to come so soon.

"There will be opportunities," Yu Duan said with a smile, raising his wine glass.

Peng Nuolai sighed, "I don't know if I have any hope of joining the Primordial Mystic Realm."

Delis, standing beside him, put his hand on Penorai's shoulder and chuckled, "It's alright, we're inseparable."

"Go away, go away! I won't depend on you for survival!" Peng Nuolai feigned disgust, and the air suddenly became tense.

The four chatted for only a few minutes before the first round of the arena battle ended, instantly eliminating 3600 people.

Then, according to the rules, the remaining 3600 people rested for half an hour before the second round of the arena battle began, leaving 1800 people.

One-on-one battles are actually very efficient, with the outcome usually decided in just a few minutes.

Finally, these 1800 people will compete against each other in pairs, and the winners will take the remaining 900 spots.

The total time required for all three rounds of the competition is less than two hours.

As the final 900 winners were teleported out, the top 1,000 contestants for the Genius Battle were also selected.

……

In the central square, Yu Duan and thousands of other geniuses gathered again, and Venerable Yu Cheng and many immortal gods appeared before them.

"Congratulations on joining the core of my Virtual Universe Company! We at Virtual Universe Company will do our utmost to nurture you and help you become powerful!"

Venerable Jade City paused, his originally gentle voice becoming serious: "But even within the core layer, there is competition. Only geniuses with greater potential can obtain more resources."

"Among you, those ranked 101st to 1000th will receive a bonus of 10 Primordial Units, entry into the Initial Universe for comprehension, and entry into the core of my Virtual Universe Company, the 'Apocalyptic Secret Realm'."

"Rankings from 11th to 100th will receive a bonus of 100 Hunyuan Units... and join the core of my Virtual Universe Company, 'Heaven and Earth Secret Realm'."

"Those who rank 4th to 10th will receive a prize of 1000 Hunyuan Units... and join the core of my Virtual Universe Company, 'Primordial Secret Realm'."

"The top 3 will receive a prize of 1 Mixed Yuan Units... to join the core of my Virtual Universe Company, the 'Primal Secret Realm'."

“Normally, only the first place winner of each Genius Battle can become a member of the ‘Primal Secret Realm’. However, your level this year is exceptionally outstanding, so Virtual Universe Company will grant you three spots to enter the ‘Primal Secret Realm’.”

"Tomorrow will be the real finals, which will determine your future treatment within the company's core leadership. The relevant rules have been sent to you via email. Dismissed!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Venerable Jade City disappeared into the air, leaving only thousands of immortal gods and the newly selected geniuses in the square.

At the same time, Yu Duan also received an email notification from Virtual Universe Company.

As expected, the email contained a list of 100 people, selected by the virtual universe system from the 900 newly promoted geniuses—the 100 most talented individuals.

Tomorrow's showdown will be a decisive battle between these 100 players and the top 100 players on the leaderboard.

"Let's go back to the lounge first."

Yu Duan stood up and looked at Aarons, Pennolai, and Delis. He was sure there was going to be a good show. However, Yu Duan had no interest in watching it.

“Okay.” Aarons naturally had no objection.

Just as the four of them were returning to Building 0087, an angry shout echoed across the central square.

"Why!"

"Exactly! Why won't Virtual Universe Company give us a chance!"

"..."

A cacophony of noise, fervor, and anger spread through the central square, creating a chaotic scene.

As expected, these troublemaking geniuses were subdued by the pressure exerted by their respective immortal leaders.

There is no need to explain the reasons behind this.

Among the 800 who were not selected, the top few might indeed be able to compete for the top 100, and they would be considered to be on the same level. The outcome would depend entirely on their performance on the day.

The Virtual Universe Company holds the Genius Battle to discover geniuses with even greater potential.

There are many factors that determine the extent of potential, including talent, temperament, willpower, and many other aspects.

These factors, which are not immediately apparent, are clearly revealed in their data and during their attempts to conquer the Trial Tower, and are used as factors in comprehensively assessing their potential.

For example, if two geniuses have the same understanding of the laws and strength, but the first comes from a powerful family with a high bloodline, while the second comes from a humble family with a low bloodline, then the second person would generally be considered to have greater potential.

Of course, the actual potential assessment is not so hasty; it is carefully calculated by the virtual universe system.

This also includes their past performance in places like the killing field and dueling space during their training.

In a sense, there are no secrets in the virtual universe network.

With sufficient access, one could even see a replay of Yu Duan's journey through the tenth level of the Eighteen Illusions of Life and Death.

The fact that a star-level being possesses the will of an immortal god is an achievement far more valuable than the so-called first place winner of the genius battle.

……

The following morning, thousands of quasi-core members of the Virtual Universe Company gathered.

Despite yesterday's farce, no one chose to leave Virtual Universe Company. Even if they felt it was unfair, they dared not resist.

The five-year-long Battle of the Geniuses has officially entered its final stage today!
Swish!
As time and space rippled, Venerable Jade City, clad in black armor, appeared.

"Sir!"

Many immortal team leaders and geniuses such as Yu Duan bowed in greeting.

Venerable Jade City nodded, his gaze sweeping over the assembled geniuses: "Not bad, it seems you've all adjusted your mindset. So... let the competition begin!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Venerable Jade City waved his hand.

Instantly, 100 wide arenas appeared directly in the very center of the square.

At the edge of each arena, there is a protective shield made of countless interwoven black lines.

Meanwhile, 200 geniuses, including Yu Duan and Ke Di, were directly teleported to the arena.

They paired off and fought each other.

Immediately, the gazes of many immortal gods were focused on the arena between Yu Duan and Ke Di.

Regarding these two, some people believe that Yu Duan has greater potential, after all, he has cultivated for a shorter time and is following the path of analyzing the essence of the laws of time.

Although Yu Duan has only just embarked on this path and has not yet grasped the essence of any law, it is a miracle in itself that a star-level being can achieve this, and his comprehension has been proven.

Some people think that Kodi has greater potential. In any case, Kodi only took five years to go from crossing the threshold of the law to his current level of mastery of the law!

Regardless of how Koti achieved it, such a rate of progress at the stellar level is an absolute miracle!
At this moment, on a silver arena with a diameter of about ten kilometers.

Opposite Yu Duan, a woman who looked like a fish-man stared blankly at Yu Duan, completely dumbfounded.

"Why is it you...?"

The mermaid girl immediately looked miserable. She was holding a huge black hammer in her arms, the head of which was at least three times the size of her body.

Yu Duan waved his right hand, and the Time Sword appeared from his spatial ring: "You make the first move. I will go all out to show my respect!"

"it is good!"

The mermaid girl, who had just been crying, instantly changed her expression, switching from pitiful to murderous, creating a striking contrast!

Layers of tidal domains spread out from her center, merging with the power of the fundamental laws of water, ultimately driving the terrifying giant hammer.

Boom!

Like layers upon layers of crashing waves, the giant hammer seemed to transform into a towering glacier, slamming fiercely towards Yu Duan.

Swish!
Countless showers of light fell, and Yu Duan, who was locked onto by the black hammer, vanished from his spot in an instant.

The whole process was incredibly fast, almost like teleportation for a star-level object. Yu Duan, enveloped in a misty aura of light, appeared directly behind the mermaid girl.

"Pfft!"

The Sword of Time instantly bloomed, piercing through the mermaid girl's back, passing through her heart, and emerging from her full chest.

The power of the two laws of light and time combined perfectly, transforming into a force of annihilation and purification that instantly spread from the blade, completely obliterating the mermaid girl into dust.

(End of this chapter)