Chapter 846: Surrender

As Divine Emperor Yuan Jie handed down ruling after ruling on the disputed matters, the expressions of the Divine Race's Heavenly Emperor Ashura and Wu Chang darkened with fury.

It was one thing for top races like the Human Race, Chaos Clan, Intelligent Lifeforms, and Astral Beast Ruler Race to gain the upper hand. But their own races hadn't even qualified for the elimination round. Even worse, some of the subordinate forces belonging to the other Sovereign Races seized the opportunity to encroach on their interests.

They had no grounds to protest. After all, they hadn't even secured a spot in the elimination round. When it came to settling disputes, all they could do was silently accept defeat.

This outcome left not only the Divine Race but even the Sky Clan feeling deeply wronged. Their subordinate forces were no better off, growing restless and increasingly dissatisfied.

If their parent race couldn't even protect its own interests, what reason did they have to stay loyal? Might as well switch sides while the chance still existed. If they had to pay protection fees all the same, what difference did it make who they paid?

With one dispute settled after another, the commanders from the Human Race overseeing the process glanced at Li Pin with mixed emotions.

They had won. Their opponents had forfeited, allowing their three-member teams to advance without risking their lives in battle.

Though confident in their own strength, none of them dared claim they would all return alive once the fighting began.

In a way, Li Pin had just saved them from a life-or-death crisis.

***

Across the countless races of the universe, there were hundreds, if not thousands, of unresolved disputes.

Roughly half stemmed from conflicts between the Sovereign Races and various other factions, while the rest were disputes among top-tier and first-rate races.

Of those involving the Human Race, aside from those already settled during the Prodigy Competition, thirteen had been assigned for the Overlord Competition. Most of these thirteen disputes were tied to the Sky Clan and the Divine Race, or factions supported by them.

The only other race entangled in a dispute with the Human Race was the Star Spirit Clan. However, that matter had already been resolved when the Star Spirit Clan chose to forfeit in order to rescue a participant who had become "prey" during the Overlord Competition.

As a result, apart from the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations disputed category, the Human Race secured victory in the remaining twelve disputes without having to make a move, achieving a complete sweep.

***

As one of the most powerful elite races, the Skyblaze Tribe naturally wouldn't pass up the chance to make their presence known on such a prestigious stage. Not only had their clan leader, Emperor Tian Yan, arrived in person, but Heavenly Emperor Ju Xuan had also made an appearance, along with another Heavenly Emperor they had brought along.

With three Heavenly Emperors gathered, the Skyblaze Tribe's lineup was nothing short of imposing.

Yet at this moment, not a single one of them spoke. After all, they had unresolved conflicts with both the Human Race and the Star Spirit Clan.

Of these, two were with the Human Race, one with the Star Spirit Clan, and four with various other races.

Excluding those already in the Prodigy Competition, there were still four disputes left to be settled in the Overlord Competition.

To handle this, they had sent twelve participants. Some were hidden aces nurtured in secret, each equipped with Pinnacle Cosmic Radiance Divine Weapons, strong enough to climb all the way to the eighty-ninth step of the Supreme Ladder.

If fortune smiled upon them, even the ninetieth step wasn't entirely out of reach.

However... When facing the Sovereign Races, the difference in power was staggering, especially when it came to the Human Race's supreme prodigy—Li Pin.

A bitter taste settled in the hearts of all three Heavenly Emperors. Ju Xuan, in particular, found himself questioning whether he could have performed any better than Li Pin had he personally entered the Overlord Competition

In other words, at this point... Li Pin's strength had likely already brushed the threshold of a Heavenly Emperor.

"The Star Spirit Clan has chosen to back down."

Emperor Tian Yan took one last glance at how the Star Spirit Clan had avoided direct confrontation. He thought of Li Pin's breakthrough during the battle, and the immense fortune he had gathered by sweeping through the myriad races.

That fortune... is immeasurable. This human's future... is boundless.

Becoming a Heavenly Emperor might not even be his limit. There was a real chance he could rise to become the new Supreme of the Human Race, standing at the very peak of the cosmos and reshaping the order of the universe itself.

With that thought in mind, Emperor Tian Yan took a deep breath and turned to Heavenly Emperor Ju Xuan. "After the Ten Thousand Tribes Dominion War is over, find time to visit the Human Race.

"Let the Divine Martial Emperor know that the Skyblaze Tribe, as their neighbor, wants to build lasting goodwill. And try to meet Li Pin. Make it clear to the Sacred Monarch Origin that the incident back then... was a misunderstanding."

Heavenly Emperor Ju Xuan understood that once this tournament ended, the Human Race would naturally become a powerful deterrent against the restless foreign races nearby. But when it came to the feud with Li Pin and the Skyblaze Tribe, Li Pin was clearly at fault.

Why does it feel like we were the ones being forced to apologize?

"Is this really necessary?" Ju Xuan asked. "If word gets out, it could cause unrest within the clan and weaken their loyalty. Besides, Li Pin didn't suffer any loss in this. If anything, he gained a huge advantage. I doubt he'll hold onto this issue."

Emperor Tian Yan let out a slow breath. "Whether he holds onto it or not is one thing. But the real issue is that we secretly reached an agreement with the Divine Race and even secured a Sovereign Divine Weapon. That's the real problem.

"Circumstances outweigh individual strength. Unless we're willing to bow down to the Star Spirit Clan and become their puppets, the weak have no say against the strong."

Besides, the Star Spirit Clan might not even be sincere with the Skyblaze Tribe.

Compared to siding with the Star Spirit Clan, which belonged to the lower five Sovereign Races, siding with the Human Race, counted among the top four, clearly held far greater potential.

***

Though there were hundreds of disputed issues, the conflicts remained minimal, thanks to the large number of factions that had forfeited and the fact that most of the thirty-three races ascending the Supreme Pillars leaned toward the Human Race.

With the Human Race playing the role of the big brother and mediating between sides, tensions quickly subsided.

Under such circumstances, what would normally drag on for ten, twenty, or even hundreds of years in a grand multi-race tournament was already approaching its end less than three days after the preliminary rounds.

Aside from two minor battles, most disputes were swiftly handled. Before long, Divine Emperor Yuan Jie finished reporting the routine matters.

"Next, the core issue," he paused briefly, then continued. "The order of implementation for the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations."

With a wave of his hand, a starmap of the entire universe appeared, filled with countless galaxies and stars. Different colors marked the spheres of influence of various factions.

The deeper the shade, the stronger the race.

Naturally, the brightest ones belonged to the Nine Sovereign Races.

Among the Nine Sovereign Races, the Astral Beast Ruler Race held the largest territory, followed by the Divine Race, then the Human Race, and the Intelligent Lifeform Race.

Although the Astral Beast Ruler Race's holdings were relatively scattered, the extent of their controlled regions still reflected the strength ranking among the Nine Sovereign Races.

Each race occupied a different part of the map, with smaller groups scattered around their borders. Some served as buffer zones, while others were secretly backed by the Sovereign Races, used as pawns to counterbalance their rivals.

"Next is the arrangement of the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations," said Divine Emperor Yuan Jie. "Based on the current distribution of the major clans, four plans have been proposed. To put it simply, it comes down to choosing a starting point, and then deciding the direction, whether it shall be up, down, left, or right."

He continued, "Since all Nine Sovereign Races submitted a plan, we'll proceed based on the order of submission. The first proposal came from the Intelligent Lifeform Race, opposed by the Divine Race, the Sky Clan, and the Demon Race. The Divine Race and Sky Clan failed the preliminaries and have forfeited... As for the Demon Race..."

His gaze turned to the Demon Race's Heavenly Emperor Huang Sha. "If you still insist on objecting, then send someone to fight the Intelligent Lifeform's representative right now."

Huang Sha thought of Tian Sha, their trump card, who had already been eliminated. The others had little chance of defeating You Lan from the Intelligent Lifeform Race. Without hesitation, he said, "We forfeit."

Divine Emperor Yuan Jie remained unfazed and continued, "The second proposal came from the Divine Race, opposed by the Human Race, the Intelligent Lifeform Race, and the Astral Beast Ruler Race. Since the Divine Race failed the preliminaries, their forfeit stands. With three objections, this proposal is invalid."

Heavenly Emperor Wu Chang and Ashura were once again filled with frustration, but under the rules set by the Nine Sovereign Races and the leading races, there was nothing they could do. At best, they could only look for ways to sabotage things later, once the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations were set into motion.

"Next up is the Human Race's proposal, opposed by the Divine Race, Sky Clan, Demon Race, and the Unique Lifeform Alliance..."

This time, Divine Emperor Yuan Jie skipped over the Divine Race and Sky Clan. Instead, he fixed his gaze on the Demon Race's Heavenly Emperor and Great Emperor Jin Jiao from the Unique Lifeform Alliance. "If you insist on opposing, then we'll settle this through battle. The Demon Race's objection comes first. Send out three representatives."

Before he could finish speaking, Li Pin's eyes shifted to the Demon Race's Heavenly Emperor, Huang Sha. More precisely, his gaze swept over the dozens of Demon Race Tyrants standing behind him, scrutinizing each one carefully.

One by one, the Tyrants felt a chill settle deep in their hearts. Some even dared not meet Li Pin's gaze, looking away instead.

Seeing his own fighters falter, Heavenly Emperor Huang Sha could do nothing but admit defeat. "The Demon Race... forfeits."

His decision immediately put pressure on the Unique Lifeform Alliance.

Li Pin then turned his attention to Shimo.

"What about you, Shimo?" Great Emperor Jin Jiao asked.

He needed to know Shimo's stance. If Shimo saw no hope, Great Emperor Jin Jiao wouldn't risk sending this future Heavenly Emperor prodigy to die for nothing. But if there was a chance...

Shimo's expression remained calm on the surface, but inside, a fierce battle raged.

The image of Li Pin slaying You Xu and Scorching Flame played repeatedly in his mind.

He admitted to himself.

If Li Pin had only killed You Xu, I wouldn't fear facing him. For the Alliance's honor, I'd gladly fight. But Scorching Flame... he even killed Scorching Flame...

After a long while, Shimo finally made up his mind. "I haven't yet comprehended space, nor reached the Sacred Monarch Realm. If we were equals, I'd fight him to the death to see who's stronger. But... we're not on the same level. That fight wouldn't be fair."

Great Emperor Jin Jiao understood immediately. He sighed, then glanced at Divine Emperor Yuan Jie before replying, "The Unique Lifeform Alliance... forfeits."