Chapter 409: Chen Chu Arrives, Shocking Everyone (I)

"Hahaha..."

Hearing the distant sounds of people gasping, Li Daoyi couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Finally, it was his turn.

However, he remembered the way of the formless, so he maintained a calm demeanor, standing with his hands clasped behind his back and his breath harmonizing with the heavens and earth, as he exuded an air of effortless grace.

Of course, the people gathered here were top-level geniuses from their respective schools. While they were surprised by Li Daoyi’s status as an Innate Awakener, they kept their reactions restrained, not showing any exaggerated expressions.

Just as Li Daoyi's pretense was beginning to wear thin, a group of young men and women in military uniforms appeared in the distance. Among them was a burly youth with steel-needle short hair, making his way toward them.

When he saw this person, Li Daoyi subtly turned his face away, pretending not to notice. The others from the northern battlefield also displayed odd expressions.

The burly youth was dressed in a white long robe, attempting to project an ethereal, floating appearance, but his imposing presence didn’t quite match the effect he sought.

Before the youth even got close, he let out a hearty laugh. "Hahaha... Li Daoyi, I hear you’ve broken through to the Seventh Heavenly Realm. Not bad. To do so as a second-year is indeed worthy of an Innate Awakener.

"But, you were still a month behind me. You can’t quite catch up to me, haha!" The white-clad youth's voice was loud enough to be heard several hundred meters away, and everyone’s eyes widened in astonishment.

While they could understand the abnormality of an Innate Awakener—an existence reputed to be a near-certain candidate for the Ninth Heavenly Realm and possibly a future king—this person didn’t seem to be one.

Despite that, he had still achieved the Seventh Heavenly Realm as a sophomore. Such a freakish talent was even more exaggerated than Li Daoyi's.

Li Hao couldn’t help but ask, "Who is that guy? He’s so abnormal!"

Zhang Tianlong’s expression grew serious. "That person is Ji Wuji from the Military Secret Martial Arts Academy. He’s even more of a monstrous freak than an Innate Awakener.

"I’ve heard that he broke through to the Fifth Heavenly Realm during his first year, and at the time, he fought a level 6 mutated beast. His combat power is terrifying.

"Oh, and he’s also Ji Changkong’s cousin."

"His cousin?"

Xia Youhui looked surprised and turned to the handsome, gentle youth beside him, asking curiously, "Ji Changkong, why don’t you go over and greet him?"

Ji Changkong glanced at Ji Wuji, who was trying so hard to show off, and turned his head away. "Sorry, I don’t know him."

Lin Xue, with her shoulder-length purple hair, sighed. "I originally thought our talents were quite impressive. But coming here, I realize that geniuses are everywhere."

Among the two or three hundred people here, the first years started at the Fifth Heavenly Realm, while the third years were all above the Sixth.

Even the second years were at the late stage or peak of the Fifth Realm, to say nothing of the two second years who had already broken through to the Seventh.

This wasn’t even all of them; top-level geniuses from other countries were also on their way.

Lin Yu smiled and said, "Sis, it’s like when you enter a top national university from high school. You suddenly find that everyone around you is a genius with scores of 700, and it makes you feel like geniuses are everywhere and freaks are as common as dogs."

Xia Youhui grinned and added, "Lin Xue, don’t worry. Our Nantian also has its own freaks. Like An Fuqing, she’s just as impressive as them. Her talent might be even stronger."

Many turned their attention to the cool, aloof girl with the long ponytail.

The Innate Awakener and Ji Wuji were powerful, but their southern battlefield wasn’t weak either. A first year at the Sixth Heavenly Realm, who had comprehended four sword wills, was even more extraordinary in terms of freakishness.

"And don’t forget Ah Chu. He was already at the Sixth Realm when he left the southern battlefield. With his cultivation speed, he’s probably at the late stage or even the peak of the Sixth by now."

"Right, and Chen Chu, that monster. With his talent, he must be incredibly powerful now. But he seems to be on a mission somewhere. There hasn’t been any news from him for months, and he hasn’t arrived yet."

With Xia Youhui’s reminder, everyone realized their own strength and regained their confidence. Their southern battlefield also had its share of monstrous geniuses, not any worse than those from the northern battlefield or the secret martial arts academy.

Li Daoyi couldn’t help but speak up. "Ji Wuji, must you always brag about breaking through to the Seventh Heavenly Realm as a second year? I’ve heard it so many times I’m sick of it.

"It’s been a year, and you still haven’t broken through to the Eighth Realm. What’s there to show off about?"

Ji Wuji laughed heartily. "I haven’t been cultivating for over half a year; I’ve been busy reconstructing a secret scripture.

"Being able to reconstruct a top-level secret scripture after reaching the Seventh Heavenly Realm is a rarity in the entire Federation. Isn’t that right, everyone? Hahaha..."

Watching Ji Wuji laugh alone, the people from the northern battlefield couldn’t help but turn their heads away from his awkward display. Even the geniuses from the Military Academy in the distance showed embarrassed expressions and took a few steps back.

Li Daoyi couldn’t stand it any longer. "Ji Wuji, your talent is indeed impressive, but you don’t need to flaunt it all the time. Remember, there are always greater talents and realms beyond.

"For instance, I know someone who’s a first year at the Seventh Heavenly Realm and has created their own top-level secret scripture. With a monster like that, how can you remain so confident?"

He then smiled and looked at Ji Wuji, as if saying,

How will you deal with this?

Ji Wuji’s eyes widened in disbelief. "Impossible!?"

He could accept a first year at the Seventh Heavenly Realm, but creating a secret scripture was nearly inconceivable.

Ji Wuji knew more than anyone else how difficult it was to create a secret scripture. Last year, due to the perfect compatibility with his True Martial Art, he continued with its top-level secret scripture, rather than create a new one.

However, after breaking through to the Seventh Heavenly Realm, he felt some limitations and had to reconstruct the scripture. Even with his talent, reconstructing a scripture on a pre-existing foundation took him over half a year. Creating a top-level secret scripture from scratch in the Sixth Heavenly Realm would take years.

Even the monster who reached the Ninth Realm in a year took three months in the Sixth Realm to create a top-level secret scripture.

Suddenly, Ji Wuji asked in astonishment, "Li Daoyi, is this person the one who teamed up with you?"

He recalled the monster who worked with Li Daoyi, a late-stage Sixth Heavenly Realm expert who fought against an Eighth Heavenly Realm nine-headed blood python.

Li Daoyi nodded casually. "Yes, that’s him. Aren’t you always comparing cultivation talents? This person, who has created a secret scripture and already surpassed the Seventh Heavenly Realm, is in a different league."

"That person’s information says he’s eighteen, doesn’t it?" Ji Wuji stubbornly insisted.

Li Daoyi stood with his hands behind his back, smiling casually. "Age is just a cover, a deception to confuse the enemy."

This time, the sound of gasps filled the area.

A first year at the Seventh Heavenly Realm, who created a top-level secret scripture while in the Sixth Realm—such terrifying talent shocked everyone and made them unable to believe it, including the third-year students.

As geniuses themselves, they understood the difficulty of cultivation. After reaching the Fourth Heavenly Realm, each step was a challenge. They had pushed themselves to the limit just to break through to the Sixth Realm in three years.

After that point, progress felt increasingly slow, and they didn’t know how long it would take to break through to the Seventh.

Even the geniuses from the northern battlefield surrounding Li Daoyi were stunned, as it was their first time hearing of such a monster. The geniuses from the Military Academy were equally astonished.

In a battlefield full of mutated beasts, only a freak like Ji Wuji would have the luxury to surf the web and access such secretive information.

A third-year genius from the northern battlefield couldn’t help but ask, "... Daoyi, why haven’t you mentioned this Chu guy before?"

Li Daoyi glanced at him and replied coolly, "We are cultivators, not gossip journalists. Our focus is on cultivation. Why would I bring up Brother Chu otherwise?"

Indeed.

Zhang Feng nodded in agreement.

However, seeing the shocked and suspicious faces around him, Li Daoyi felt a bit frustrated.

Damn, he had finally managed to flaunt his superiority subtly, only to have it interrupted by the foolish Ji Wuji, forcing him to reveal the card of Chu Batian to turn the situation around.

Gulp!

Zhang Tianlong swallowed hard. "The first year isn’t even over yet, and he’s already at the Seventh Heavenly Realm, with a self-created top-level secret scripture. What kind of monster is this!?"

An Fuqing raised an eyebrow, while Lin Xue, Lin Yu, and Lin Mei showed astonished expressions.

"Wow, there’s even a monster like this. It feels even more powerful than Ah Chu. Or is it...?" Xia Youhui, while still in shock, looked uncertain.

Is the Brother Chu mentioned by that guy actually Ah Chu?

"Calling Celestial Central Control Tower, Qingming No. 1 requests permission to pass through the barrier."

"Roger, enter through Passage One..."

"Calling Celestial Central Control Tower, X50 Cario requests permission to pass through the barrier..."

The sky above the plains suddenly began to split open, and one by one, special warplanes and massive multinational aircraft flew in, buzzing as they circled the base.

"Geniuses from other countries have arrived. The cultivation system in North Lin is a special martial art that integrates mutated beast genes and allows them to shift between human and beast forms. Prepare to be amazed."

A girl coughed and said, "Ji Wuji, it’s more like a fusion of human and beast, not just a combination of the two."

"Almost the same," Ji Wuji replied dismissively. "Compared to North Lin, West Meng’s differences are even more pronounced. Those who pilot mechs have firepower that surpasses our cultivators in sheer coverage.

"But, those guys are like mages; their martial art requires mechs to unleash their full power, unlike our comprehensive abilities. That over-reliance on mechs means that once their ammunition is depleted, their strength plummets."

Many people emerged from the nearby base airport as the curious East Xia geniuses looked on.

Ji Wuji crossed his arms and pointed with his chin at the group who had arrived first. "See those with some scale and horn markings? They’re geniuses from North Lin."

A girl asked curiously, "Ji Wuji, how can you tell they’re from North Lin and not from other countries with different gene martial arts?"

"Because I’ve seen a picture of their leader, Bardas, North Lin's King Beast. He’s a late-stage Seventh Heavenly Realm monster at nineteen, with strength comparable to the Eighth Realm."

"Truly a monster!"

Seeing the youth with white tiger stripes on his cheeks and an imposing aura, who towered over the others at 2.7 meters tall, everyone looked on in awe.

As the East Xia people observed them, the North Lin gene martial artists stood not far off, their attention fixed on the dark fault and the nearby piece of land with ruins on top.

"So that’s the ancient ruins?"

"An entire land, that’s incredible."

Ji Wuji seemed annoyed. "These guys are truly beasts; they don’t even have the courtesy to greet the host."

Li Daoyi couldn’t stand his pretentiousness. "Indeed, quite rude. Why don’t you go over and give them a thrashing?"

"Li Daoyi, do you think I’m dumb?" Ji Wuji looked at him in confusion, then stroked his chin, scanning the more than two hundred people from North Lin. "Strange, where is Bredos? Did he not come? Or maybe he did come in his true form, but no one knows what he really looks like?"

"Someone else is coming out. They should be from West Meng. These people look quite orderly."

From the distant airport, a large group emerged, all with solemn expressions. Regardless of gender, they were uniformly dressed in stylish military outfits with a white base and blue trim.

"Why aren’t they piloting mechs?"

"Mechs require energy, and since there isn’t a battle now, they probably have them stored in spatial equipment. That kind of equipment is relatively cheap and convenient, but also fragile."

Ji Wuji spoke again. "Everyone see that woman in the silver uniform? She’s Gabriella from West Meng’s Holy Academy, this year’s monster.

"She’s in her second year, seventeen years old, at the peak of the Sixth Heavenly Realm, and personally designed a high-level mech loadout. She’s even killed a level 7 colossal beast by the sea."

As they looked at the beautiful girl in a silver military uniform with golden hair, many people’s eyes were filled with admiration and awe.

𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

So beautiful.

Li Daoyi looked from afar at the golden-haired girl and the many exotic beauties from West Meng, suppressing the urge to add them as friends.

Everyone here was a genius, after all. He needed to maintain the image of an Innate Awakener.