Swallowing the Stars, Hu Yanbo's Pre-Godhood

While Hu Yanbo was in seclusion cultivating, news of the birth of great treasures spread from the distant Seventh Domain Battlefield, the Twin Spiral Domain!

The news spread rapidly through the virtual universe network, causing a huge sensation.

Even for a cosmic sovereign, such a treasure is an aid; for a king-level immortal, it is an ultimate treasure capable of changing one's destiny and greatly enhancing one's strength!

In an instant, many powerful figures from the four major factions who had been granted the title of King were mobilized and rushed to the Twin Spiral Domain, hoping to get a share of the spoils in the fierce competition.

This trend naturally also affected Chaos City.

Some powerful figures who had been cultivating in seclusion within the city, confident in their strength or forming small teams with friends, couldn't resist the urge to temporarily leave their seclusion and travel to the Seventh Domain Outer Battlefield via the Divine Kingdom's teleportation system, joining the battle for this precious treasure.

Within Chaos City, news of the emergence of a treasure from the Twin Spiral Domains, and the fall or acquisition of treasures by powerful figures from all sides, became a topic of conversation among many immortal gods.

However, all of this turmoil had nothing to do with Huyanbo.

Aside from some conversations with the Radiant Marquis and the other man who had come to Chaos City to cultivate in seclusion, he spent most of his time either studying the Chaos Stele regularly, digesting and reflecting on his knowledge in his own mansion, or occasionally going to the lecture hall of the City Lord's mansion to publicly teach his insights and understanding of spatial laws, especially the profound mysteries of strangulation.

Unfortunately, the human race is currently in a 'low period' of geniuses emerging. Although there are occasionally decent individuals who come to listen to his lectures, there are none who truly impress him.

Hu Yanbo estimated that this year's Genius Battle would probably produce one or two Marquis Immortals, but as for Kings, without a great opportunity, probably none of them would emerge.

Furthermore, Huyanbo was also unaware of the situation.

He is a core member of the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance. Most of the geniuses gathered in Chaos City belong to either the Virtual Universe Company or the Giant Axe Arena.

Although the five major human powers in the universe are closely connected and work together to resist external enemies, they also have a tacit competitive relationship among themselves in the struggle for resources and talent.

Recruiting core disciples from other factions involves many unspoken rules and potential troubles, making it no simple matter.

Therefore, after several lectures, although many people wanted to become his disciples, Huyanbo did not accept any of them.

On this day, Hu Yanbo had just finished a public lecture and was walking out of the lecture hall, preparing to return to his residence, when a hearty and loud voice came from behind him.

"Soul Destroyer King! Wait!"

Hu Yanbo turned around and saw a burly man with a strong build, wearing simple golden armor, with a rugged face but a hearty smile, striding towards him.

He naturally exuded a powerful aura as heavy as a mountain range, yet full of vibrant life force. He was none other than the renowned and invincible King Zhenyan!

"True Yan King." Hu Yanbo stopped and nodded slightly in acknowledgment. This was not the first time he had met the True Yan King.

It wasn't that Hu Yanbo took the initiative to befriend him; rather, this person came to listen after Hu Yanbo's first public lecture.

After class, King Zhenyan took the initiative to communicate with him.

King Zhenyan was straightforward and had no airs of a top expert when talking to him. His words often hit the nail on the head, which greatly benefited Huyanbo.

Over time, they found they were compatible and gradually became acquainted.

"Haha, Soul Extinction King, your insights on 'the power of strangulation being contained and gathered, from surface to point' were truly insightful!" True Evolution King walked up and patted Huyan Bo's shoulder forcefully.

"You've grasped this even more thoroughly than I did when I was figuring out this path! It seems you're not far from completely understanding the mysteries of strangulation!"

Hu Yanbo smiled slightly, already used to Zhenyan King's straightforward praise: "Zhenyan King, you flatter me. These are just some shallow opinions, far from sufficient."

"Hey! No need to be so modest!" King Zhenyan waved his hand. "Come on, let's go to my residence for a visit. I just acquired some 'Fire Marrow Elixir,' and I'll invite Wuni over to try it out! We can also chat; the Seventh Battlefield has been quite lively lately!"

Hu Yanbo's heart stirred. He had naturally heard the news of the treasure's birth, so he nodded in agreement: "Okay."

The two immediately transformed into streaks of light and flew towards the True King's residence in Chaos City.

Upon entering the mansion, the guests and hosts took their seats. King Zhenyan then took out the "Fire Marrow Essence," which had an appearance like lava and a fragrant aroma.

The light inside the mansion dimmed slightly, as if a faint chill had appeared out of nowhere, and then coalesced into a slender figure.

It is the Black Mist King!

The Black Mist King swayed its tail lightly, silently approaching. Its vertical pupils first glanced at the True King, then its gaze fell on Huyan Bo, and it lazily said, "Soul Annihilation King!"

Hu Yanbo nodded in response.

"Hahaha!" King Zhenyan laughed heartily upon seeing this, winked at Huyan Bo, and teased, "King Hunmie, you've got quite the nerve! If I hadn't known you were coming today, dragging Wu Ni out of her shady corner of the Nine Universe Tower wouldn't have been so easy!"

"She's going to stay in seclusion in her Nine-Yu Tower forever!"

"snort!"

No sooner had King Zhenyan finished speaking than a cold snort suddenly rang out, carrying a hint of obvious annoyance.

The Black Mist King's narrow, vertical pupils suddenly narrowed, and his icy gaze, like two tangible blades, glared fiercely at the True Evolution King.

It turns out that when Hu Yanbo first publicly lectured on the profound mysteries of spatial strangulation in Chaos City, not only did the True King go to listen, but the Black Mist King, who also had extremely high attainments in the Way of the Soul but was more reclusive and preferred quiet, also went.

After class, Black Mist King also had an in-depth exchange with Hu Yanbo.

Both were masters of the soul, though their paths differed slightly, their great principles were the same. After their conversation, the Black Mist King benefited greatly.

According to King Zhenyan's later private revelation, after that conversation, King Heiwu even faintly touched upon a long-standing bottleneck in his own secret technique and gained some insights.

For this reason, the Black Mist King became less distant from Hu Yanbo and more accepting of him.

After that, whenever King Zhenyan invited Huyanbo to a small gathering, King Heiwu would usually show up to join the conversation, provided he was in Chaos City and had nothing to do.

King Zhenyan shrank back when glared at, but still had a playful smile on his face. He quickly waved his hand and said, "Alright, alright, I won't say anymore! Wuni, you are so generous. I will punish myself with a cup, punish myself with a cup!" With that, he picked up his cup of Fire Marrow Elixir, drank it all in one gulp, and made an exaggerated expression of enjoyment.

The Black Mist King then withdrew his intimidating gaze, impatiently slapping the ground with his snake tail. He ignored the True Evolution King and turned to Huyan Bo, his tone softening slightly: "Soul Annihilation King, with your strength, why don't you go and see what's going on regarding the Twin Whirlpool Domains?"

The Black Mist King's question stemmed from genuine bewilderment.

The two people present were completely different from those outside who speculated about the title of king based solely on rumors; they knew very well what Huyanbo's true combat strength was!

The Black Mist King, extremely curious about Hu Yanbo's soul attack methods, took the initiative to challenge him.

As a result, without using any external treasures and purely competing in soul mastery and secret techniques, the Black Mist King, a renowned soul master, was completely defeated by Hu Yanbo in less than ten moves!

That battle made both of them realize that Huyan Bo, the newly crowned king, was not, as outsiders claimed, someone who couldn't protect the treasure and had fled to Chaos City. His true strength was probably greater than that of the Seven Swords King, the number one genius of the current human race.

Of course, at this time, the Seven Sword Kings' combat power had not reached the level of being invincible and near-kinghood like Luo Feng in later generations.

Hu Yanbo grinned: "After some time, once I have received the divine general's inheritance, I will set off to investigate."

"So, Zhenyan, you'd better work harder and break through quickly. Otherwise, once I return from the Twin Spiral Domain and my strength has improved by two or three steps, I'll be on par with you, or even surpass you!"

The content of these words was so astonishing that King Zhenyan was stunned for a full two seconds. For the first time, an almost blank expression appeared on his rugged face. He blinked his large, bell-like eyes and blurted out instinctively:

"ha--?!"