Chapter 511 - Prelude to the World War (Part 3)

[Round 1]

[Defender #1: Battle God.]

[Challenger #1: Pedestrian A.]

[Battle Rules: 3v3]

[Countdown: 10... 9...]

During the countdown, Lu Ran started talking to Battle God. “Hey, you.”

“What?” Battle God scowled.

“I’ve never heard of you before. You became a hybrid through a Legendary Divine Beast’s help, right?” Lu Ran smiled.

“So what?”

“Just think you’re lucky.”

“What do you mean?” Battle God’s expression darkened.

Their dialogue reached every spectator. It confirmed that Battle God received a blessing from a Divine Beast, leaving many envious.

Lu Ran chuckled. “The Battle God must’ve given you tasks. Coincidentally, I know your target. Beat me, and I’ll tell you.”

With Sudden Death King, Six-Path Flower, and Captain Doofus likely to be exposed soon, Lu Ran saw no point in hiding. Battle God’s pupils shrank.

How does he know I’m the Battle God’s messenger? And that I’m searching for someone?

“You...!” Battle God’s aura exploded, a primal force forming a giant tiger head behind him.

As the countdown hit zero, he summoned three familiars. They were a quasi-Legendary level 76 giant tiger, a Superior-Overlord level 70+ giant eagle, and a Superior Overlord level 70+ giant crocodile. They were a terrifying trio of the land, air, and sea.

Although they weren’t level 80, their combined might dwarfed ordinary level 6 beastmasters. They then instantly dissolved into shadows, their traits merging into Battle God. His body morphed into that of a monster. He had wings, scales, and overwhelming power nearing Legendary levels.

Stellar Moon’s audience gasped. This form surpassed his body when he made the feat of killing a Superior Overlord barehanded.

“Holy shit. What did Pedestrian A say to him?”

“No clue, but Battle God’s pissed.”

Both worlds’ elites tensed up. The fusion wasn’t perfect, but it was formidable nonetheless.

“You’re finished!” Battle God roared.

Stellar Moon’s hype around Lu Ran meant nothing to him now. With the Battle God’s blessing, a mere level 6 was insignificant. Meanwhile, Lu Ran had also summoned a familiar, but it was far less flashy. There was just one way to describe it, which was a sword-shaped leaf.

Those with Eyes of Detection saw it as a Superior-Overlord swordgrass. Others recognized it as a variant of the Longleaf Swordgrass.

What’s going on? Why did Lu Ran only summon one familiar?

“Isn’t that... Lu Ran’s husky’s sword kin?” Blue Planet’s spectators gaped.

Lu Ran’s doofus had two kin, and this was a fact known to the Stellar Moon side as well. However, no one expected that during the challenge phase, Lu Ran wouldn’t summon any familiars at all. Instead, he only sent out one of his contracted familiars’ kin.

What the hell is he trying to do?

Although the World War scoring system indicated that defeating many with few would grant extra points, shouldn’t he at least show some respect to his opponent? Even sending out one familiar would’ve been better. Sending out a familiar’s kin was ridiculous.

Even if this kin had already reached level 70 Superior Overlord, the gap between it and the opponent was still glaringly obvious. Most people couldn’t fathom what Lu Ran was thinking. They simply felt he had gone mad.

Yet, what happened next ruthlessly slapped everyone in the face. Little did they know, this swordgrass was anything but ordinary. Not only had it inherited the strongest sword intent in the world in terms of lethality, but it had also reached level 70 by fusing with a dragon god’s blood through Sudden Death King.

In fact, the swordgrass had long honed all its attributes to quasi-Legendary levels, lacking only an evolution opportunity. Six-Path Flower hesitated to bestow its blessing, believing its own power unsuitable for the swordgrass.

It felt the Void Grass’ descendant should evolve on its own. It was proof of how highly Six-Path Flower regarded the swordgrass’ potential. This was precisely why Lu Ran thought of the swordgrass first when he obtained the evolution crystal.

Facing Lu Ran, who held the swordgrass, Battle God leaped into the air, his massive tiger paw striking down with an eightyfold energy compression technique. The overwhelming pressure surged forth like a tidal wave.

However, unfortunately, the combination of Lu Ran and the swordgrass wasn’t simple. Confronted with the assault, Lu Ran merely waved the swordgrass, lifting his head with an air of calm.

“Is this all you’ve got?”

Their eyes met.

The moment Battle God locked gazes with Lu Ran’s Evil God’s Eye, he froze.

While Battle God’s combat power was quasi-Legendary, so was Lu Ran’s. Even without the Transformation Bracelet, his illusory pupils, enhanced by malice, were terrifying. It was similar to Six-Path Flower’s Hell Path. In less than a second, Lu Ran had already raised the swordgrass, overlaying it with his sword intent. The unimaginable sword intent sublimated into a sword domain.

With a

hum,

the massive fluctuations of the sword domain instantly expanded. Above the arena, the sky seemed to connect with the cosmos. Countless spectators looked up to see the firmament densely packed with visible giant stars. It was an awe-inspiring sight.

These stars trembled incessantly, and cracks spread across their surfaces. The crackling sounds instantly plunged the attacking Battle God into an icy abyss, a chilling sense of danger overwhelming him. He wanted to move but felt trapped in an illusory world.

Death.

For some reason, these two words inexplicably flashed through his mind. In that instant, Battle God saw the scythe of the God of Death.

“What is this?”

Battle God had encountered domain techniques before, but never one that made him feel such a vivid premonition of death. Beneath the starry sky, the atmosphere grew unbearably oppressive. Just as everyone watched in shock, unable to comprehend what kind of domain technique this was, the stars suddenly split in two.

In the blink of an eye, as Battle God swung his fist toward Lu Ran, several arc-shaped lines appeared on his body. Blood sprayed everywhere. Battle God’s two arms, two legs, and even his torso were cleanly severed by several eerie fluctuations, despite his astonishing physique. His pupils dilated, filled with disbelief and bloodshot rage.

Outside, the scene was even more shocking. In the spectators’ eyes, the stars formed by the domain were all split apart, each cleaved in two before being shredded into countless fragments that scattered like dust.

However, what made the audience’s hearts nearly leap out of their chests was the sight of Battle God, who was once deemed invincible, now bisected into several pieces without even a chance to counterattack.

Although regeneration was trivial for a beast of this level, witnessing a being dismembered so effortlessly sent the entire stadium into an uproar, many screaming in shock.

“What the hell was that?”

In the Stellar Moon competitors’ seats, a burly man with spiky hair, whose ID was Longqi, widened his eyes in disbelief. He couldn’t comprehend how Battle God, in his monstrous form, had been instantly defeated by a single domain technique.

On Blue Planet’s side, Lin Nian and the others, including the ancient Legendary beastmasters, were equally stunned. They knew Lu Ran’s familiars were strong, but the key point was that Lu Ran hadn’t even summoned a familiar this time. He’d only sent out a kin of one.

But what is this situation?

“You’ve got to be kidding me...”

Even the Sprite Queen, the Mechanical Leader, and the Divine Throne, all Epic-Legendary beastmasters, were left speechless. Although Battle God was nothing special in their eyes, they still couldn’t grasp how Lu Ran had defeated him so effortlessly.

“That intent fluctuation... was terrifying...”

Even Ice Emperor, an ancient Legendary beastmaster who had recently revived, couldn’t help but frown.

“What kind of intent fluctuation was that?”

Experts quickly realized that the deciding factor had been the intent fluctuation that formed the domain.

Among the crowd, perhaps only one girl truly understood what had happened. Her eyes flickered as she prepared to explain, but before she could speak, a massive screen appeared above the arena.

Accompanied by the visuals, Limitless City displayed the battle rating.

[Battle Concluded.]

[Winner: Pedestrian A.]

[Battle Score: S. (Highest is SSS)]

[Score Reason 1: Did not deploy a familiar, instead defeating the enemy with a familiar’s contracted kin.]

[Score Reason 2: As a human, unleashed a domain, executing a Fusion Domain with the familiar’s kin.]

[Score Reason 3: The familiar’s kin, Star-Splitting Swordgrass, inherited the Star-Splitting Sword Intent of the Superior-Legendary Divine Spirit, the Void Grass, mastering the highest-level lethal intent technique! Victory achieved by surpassing levels with divine-level skill!]

The three scoring reasons sent many Stellar Moon beastmasters leaping to their feet. The Sprite Queen, an Epic-Legendary Plantmaster, and Surpassing the Master, a Legendary Plantmaster, started yelling in shock.

“Impossible! The Star-Splitting Sword Intent of the Void Grass? How? The Void Grass perished long ago in the wars of the Plant Era!”

It wasn’t just them. Many beastmasters who recognized the name Void Grass stood up in shock, unable to believe that Lu Ran’s familiar’s kin carried its legacy.

Could it be from an ascension realm...?

“What the hell?”

Even Death Gun, the Underworld God’s messenger, turned to Bai Lu in surprise, but she shook her head, indicating she had no idea either. However, though unaware, Bai Lu adapted quickly.

If Lu Ran could contract Six-Path Flower, what was so surprising about inheriting the Void Grass’ power?

“You’re still keeping secrets from me at a time like this!” Death Gun fumed.

“I really have no fucking clue,” Bai Lu snapped.

The entire World Arena fell silent as Lu Ran recalled the swordgrass.

“

Tch,

only an S? Should’ve just gone myself. I was too cautious.”

Without the swordgrass, which had reached level 70 by slashing at Sudden Death King, it would have been harder to finish the fight quickly. Still, Lu Ran had soul techniques, though he wasn’t sure how the system would rate those.

Everyone was baffled.

Damn, is this guy serious? He wanted to fight alone without even using a kin? Is he bragging?

“Hey, you dead yet? If not, pass a message to the Battle God.” Lu Ran walked toward the bisected Battle God.

Where’s the reward? Why hasn’t it dropped yet?

At this moment, the Blue Planet beastmasters were still baffled, unsure how Lu Ran had become so overpowered. Although he’d always been strong on Blue Planet, he’d never been strong enough to slay a divine messenger with a kin.

Isn’t his ace supposed to be the Mechanical Elemental familiar? Why does this familiar’s kin seem even stronger?

Meanwhile, the Stellar Moon beastmasters felt an inexplicable chill run down their spines. Although Lu Ran was only level 6, this opening battle felt eerily ominous. They couldn’t shake the feeling that something even more terrifying was coming.