Chapter 204: Repeatedly Emerging Powerhouses

The Ten Arbiters Council was one of the most powerful organizations in the entire universe. No matter who they were, or what power or what region they were from, every member of the younger generation was within the Ten Arbiters Council’s scope of influence. Not only did the council have the authority to judge and evaluate them all, but it even had its own subordinate army. The council was the greatest change to the human race since it had been founded with the advent of the formcast model.

Many people dreamed of joining the Ten Arbiters Council and writing a new chapter of the human race with those ten great characters. Right below the Ten Arbiters Council was the Council of Astral Academy, which was very close to the Ten Arbiters.

There were nearly ten thousand students spread out among the ten branches of the Astral Combat Academy, and among them were innumerable hidden powerhouses. Each one of them had been patiently waiting for this moment, where they would defeat the academy leaders before the universe’s eyes. They wanted to enter the sights of the Ten Arbiters and become a young powerhouse famed throughout the universe.

Under everyone’s watchful gazes, there was a constantly changing number in front of each competitor. After a bit, each flashing image eventually stopped onto a single number.

“Place your hands on your number,” a loud voice rumbled from the sky.

All of the competitors raised their hands and touched the number in front of them. The scene before them changed, and all 434 of them suddenly appeared within the arenas. Each arena held two people, evenly dividing all of the competitors up into pairs. With the exception of the academy leaders who remained seated atop the highest peak, every competitor was facing off against an opponent.

The loud voice came out again. “The one who kills their opponent first is the victor.”

All of the spectators stared excitedly at the array of arenas strewn across the plains. There were unparalleled Area Masters, soul hunter team members, hidden experts, and ancient geniuses here, but everything would be completely exposed in these arenas. At this point, no one could hide their strength anymore. This was the most dazzling stage in the entire universe.

With a loud bang, 217 arenas shook as the battles commenced. On the screens, everyone could see any arena they wished.

The battles started quickly, and some ended just as quickly, as the disparity between some of the competitors was too great.

In the trial zones, every student had the number of their academy marked on the back of their hands.

Ma Ruo felt that her luck was great because she had actually run into an Astral-10 Melder for her first round. He was obviously a fresh recruit of the academy, but his appearance was a little scary. There were many strange people in the universe, but that did not necessarily mean that they were strong. From Astral-10, the only strong students should be the ones who had been highlighted in that newspaper article that came out awhile ago. The rest should only be participating to make up the numbers.

The person facing Ma Ruo was actually Darkvoid, who was very calm. His hair that was so black that it seemed to swallow the light around him was indeed scary. His demeanor and unique appearance had initially drawn a great deal of attention to him, but the crowds’ attention had quickly shifted elsewhere. The eyes of many observers had been attracted by a scene that was unfolding not far from their arena.

In that arena, the Daynight youth who had been Astral-4’s participant for Tribute to the Ancestors was facing off against a very normal-looking youth. However, contrary to expectations, this seemingly average person had actually avoided multiple attacks from the Daynight youth.

The male from the Daynight clan was called Tiankong Daynight, and he was one of the top five strongest students in Astral-4 as well as one of the Dao of Slaughter’s Area Masters. Unless an Area Master met another powerhouse of the same power level, they would be able to instantly defeat any other opponent that they faced. But Tiankong was currently stuck in a deadlock against this unknown opponent. He was not a seasoned student of the Astral Combat Academy, but rather someone who had only just recently joined Astral-3.

News that the Astral Combat Tournament would be broadcast to the entire universe had attracted countless freakish talents, and this youth was one of these hidden geniuses whose interest had been piqued, as no one recognized him.

Bang!

𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

There was a fearsome shock wave as Tiankong Daynight’s attack enveloped the entire arena. It even ruptured the sky above him, distorting the space to the point where the invisible air barrier had to actively block it. This attack would definitely hit the youth.

But when the smoke cleared, the youth was still standing properly with a stiff expression, as if the attack had not affected him in the slightest.

Tiankong Daynight’s pupils shrank to pinpoints. Impossible!

At the same time, in another arena some distance away, Frankfurt gripped his spear and looked at the vortex facing him. All of his attacks had been rendered useless, and his battle force had been easily shattered by the beautiful Yue Xianzi who was standing in the middle of the approaching vortex.

“This is the battle technique that you inherited from Blackwater Lake?” Frankfurt’s voice was hoarse, and there was a hint of disbelief within it.

Yue Xianzi’s expression remained cold as she looked at Frankfurt with her beautiful eyes. “Disappear.” The vague image of a cold moon appeared above her head, causing an icy chill to rush through Frankfurt’s body before the vortex swallowed him.

The first Area Master had been defeated, shocking all of the other students.

An Area Master was only second in strength to a Realm Master, and there were several in each academy. No matter how weak they were, they always ranked within the top ten of each academy. Despite their impressive strength and standing, one had nonetheless just been easily eliminated from the tournament.

Everyone had known from the outset that this Astral Combat Tournament would not be normal, but no one had imagined that an Area Master would be defeated right from the start. This Yue Xianzi from the Frostmoon Sect was yet another student who had recently joined the Astral Combat Academy.

Ma Ruo was also defeated without much commotion, and in an inexplicable manner that shocked her as well; she had been blown to shreds by a void explosion. That Astral-10 male could actually tear the void apart with ease, which was inconceivable. Astral-10 had concealed its strength too much.

Darkvoid had won his first battle, but Schutz had lost. Despite the grueling hard work that he had put into comprehending battle force, Schutz had failed this time. He had sufficient battle experience, but he could only accept his bad luck of being easily squashed when he was matched up against an Area Master.

It was not only Schutz who suffered this fate; Zora and Zhao Yilong were also defeated without much suspense. Although they had been personally guided by their respective mentors for a few months, all of the students who had reached this stage were powerful in their own right. They, on the other hand, had only been truly cultivating for a few months, and it was not enough to make up for the disparity that existed between them and genius Limiteers. Sometimes, 99% of hard work just could not make up for what 1% talent gave.

In another arena, Coco was running away nonstop while a blade-wielding man chased after her. Their game of cat and mouse had gone on for a while, and this scene also attracted many people’s attention. They were enraptured by Coco’s cuteness. Did this child come even here to compete?

“You, you, stop running! This is a fight, not a race,” the man shouted while panting heavily as he gave Coco a helpless look.

She adamantly pursed her lips. “I won’t fight.”

“Then admit defeat.”

“That’s not an option. There is only victory or death.”

“Then die. You can’t beat me anyway.”

“I can’t. I’m scared of pain.”

“I’ll be gentle.”

“I’m scared.”

“Just behave, it’ll only be a single stab.”

“It’ll be painful.”

…

The people in the nearby arenas had originally been focusing on their own battles, but they all ended up staring at this strange fight. Are these suitable words to be exchanged in this scenario?

On the highest peak, Liu Xiaoyun looked at Lu Yin strangely. “Your fellow students from Astral-10 sure have some unique personalities.”

Lu Yin was embarrassed. “Coco’s still young, very young. But she’s terrifying.”

“Terrifying?” Kuang Wang was incredulous. “How so?”

Lu Yin pointed downwards. “She has a terrifying innate gift.”

Kuang Wang peered downwards and his eyes widened in shock. “What’s that toy? A syringe?!”

It wasn’t just him—Liu Xiaoyun and the other student leaders were all intrigued, and even more of them looked at Coco. This cute child was hugging a giant syringe and aiming its tip directly at the attacking man. A smile blossomed on her small face. “Come on. Let’s stab each other.”

The man was similarly astounded. What is this toy?

There was a large commotion, and the man did not even react when the needle tip pierced his body. Coco’s eyes grew large, and she quickly apologized. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know that you were so slow. You were even chasing me before thus! I’m sorry. I’m sorry!”

Her opponent’s face twisted indignantly as he watched Coco helplessly. He felt that his reputation had been ruined by this brat; he had been stabbed to death by a needle! He was probably the first in history to be stabbed to death like this, and he could already hear the jeers from the entire universe. He really wanted to die right now.

As the man’s body vanished, Coco patted her chest, released a pent up breath, and then smiled sweetly towards the highest peak.

Lu Yin grinned. This kid was just too adorable.

Coco’s victory was unexpected. By the time her battle concluded, most of the first round battles had already finished. The most shocking battle was Tiankong Daynight’s, as his opponent had easily avoided all his attacks. To some extent, his reactions even seemed to be inhuman. Some observers felt that something was off the longer they continued to watch.

“How strange! The Daynight clan’s battle techniques are very powerful, but that person has dodged everything so far very smoothly. It’s almost as if his body is instinctively avoiding the attacks.”

“Why do his movements and reactions seem so familiar? I feel like I’ve heard of a similar skill before.”

…

Suddenly, someone shouted out, “Chaosgod Mountain! It’s Chaosgod Mountain.”

Many were horrified when they heard this exclamation, and they all took a closer look at the youth. At that moment, he was easily avoiding Tiankong Daynight’s finger attack when he suddenly raised a hand. He made a grabbing motion towards Tiankong Daynight, and although his hand wasn’t very fast, Tiankong Daynight couldn’t avoid it and was easily grabbed by the man. An instant later, Tiankong Daynight’s entire body was hurled so deep within the ground that nobody could tell where he was, causing the arena to shatter into pieces as a side effect. His pupils alternated between dilating and contracting as he spat out mouthfuls of blood. A massive force followed up with another attack and nearly pierced through his body, but that still wasn’t the end. The impression of a black shadow appeared before his eyes, and then all of his strength drained away in the next moment. He was surrounded by darkness, and when he reopened his eyes, he had already appeared at Astral-4’s trial zone mountain.

Tiankong Daynight growled angrily, as he had been defeated due to his own mistake. His opponent was from Chaosgod Mountain, and the disciples of that place specialized in disrupting their opponent’s breathing rhythm. Only the lunatics from Chaosgod Mountain could have such insane evasive instincts.

Outside the valley, Wu Da was so excited that he found it somewhat difficult to breathe. Chaosgod Mountain! Great, another hot headliner! Chaosgod Mountain was one of the Innerverse’s dark powers.

At Astral-10’s space station, within her spacecraft, Madam Nalan’s gaze flickered. This Astral Combat Tournament had indeed attracted a bunch of freaks, and even someone from Chaosgod Mountain had shown up.

Many in the universe were confused by the result, and they could not understand how Tiankong Daynight had been grabbed or why he had been defeated so easily. It almost seemed as if it were staged.

Atop the high peak, Lu Yin’s expression was solemn. Chaosgod Mountain? He had heard of them and their terrifying methods. Their disciples cultivated bizarre techniques that gave them nigh-superhuman reaction times, and they also had the ability to disrupt the opponent’s breathing rhythm. Finally, they taught their disciples to pour all of their strength into a single attack. This was a Chaosgod Mountain disciple, someone who had an unimaginable ability to dodge attacks. To defeat them, one would have to completely crush them and not get grabbed. Once a Chaosgod Mountain disciple grabbed their opponent, it was the end for them.

Among the eight largest Flowzones in the Innerverse, there was one called the Chaos Flowzone, which was home to the universe’s dark forces. Chaosgod Mountain was one of the masters of the Chaos Flowzone.

Astral-3’s leader, Nightqueen Yanqing, had a terrible expression on her face. Even though Tiankong Daynight was from Astral-4, he was first and foremost someone from the Daynight clan. However, he had been strung along in a string of missed attacks before being defeated in one move by that Chaosgod Mountain disciple, essentially reducing him to a mere stepping stone. This could not be forgiven.

Astral-4’s leader, Xue Liuyun, remained as indifferent as before as he stared at the Chaosgod Mountain disciple, who’s name was Cang Shi.

Even before the shock from this upset had dispersed, another Area Master was killed. This again incited cries all around, as Hart Phoenix was the one who had killed the Area Master. He was still at the Melder realm—just a Melder! Thus, his victory over a powerful Area Master jolted the entire Astral Combat Academy.

“Phoenix? If I remember correctly, there’s a powerful member of that clan among the Ten Arbiters,” someone cried out.

He was immediately silenced by someone beside him. “Do you want to die?! The Ten Arbiters’ names cannot be casually spoken. They are one of the peak powers in the universe.”