Chapter 101: The Auction Comes to an End (Third Update)

As the most dazzling finale auction of this generation, and indeed of the past ten thousand years, the chance to gain insight within the Primordial Universe drove countless powerhouses into a frenzy.

But none of it had anything to do with Jiang Chen or Luo Feng anymore.

With their wealth, they were nowhere near able to join the competition.

After leaving the auction, their consciousness returned to the real world.

On the way to White Orchid Star, the two were still discussing the Primordial Universe.

“According to Babata, the Primordial Universe has an extremely special environment that can greatly accelerate comprehension of the laws of origin. If one could cultivate there for a long time, fully understanding a single law would be no difficult matter,” Luo Feng said with a sigh. “Even my teacher never had the chance to enter the Primordial Universe. I wonder whether, in the future, I’ll ever get to see the scenery there.”

“You will,” Jiang Chen said with a smile. “For others, entering the Primordial Universe means competing at auction for a spot, and spending tens of thousands of Hunyuan units to do it. But for us, there’s a chance to go for free.”

“Hm?” Luo Feng blinked, staring at Jiang Chen in confusion. “You... don’t tell me you know some other secret again?”

“The Cosmic Genius Battle gathers the stellar-ranked geniuses from across the universe inside the Virtual Universe, where they compete for the strongest among them. The Virtual Universe absorbs those talents into its core ranks. Those geniuses receive extremely generous rewards from the Virtual Universe, including free access to the Primordial Universe.”

Jiang Chen smiled, speaking with a hint of mystery. “The Genius Battle is held once every ten thousand years, and the next one will begin next year.”

“The Genius Battle? Once every ten thousand years?” Luo Feng’s head was suddenly full of question marks.

Babata could not help but pop up, exclaiming in surprise, “Kid Jiang Chen, how do you know about the Genius Battle? And how do you even know the exact starting time?”

“Although the Genius Battle is generally held once every ten thousand years or so, the exact date can vary. It might be brought forward or delayed by several years. How do you know it starts next year?”

“I’ve long suspected there was something odd about you, kid. You know far too many things! What exactly is your background?”

Babata fired off question after question, his mouth moving like a machine gun.

“Hold on, Babata!” Luo Feng cut him off, asking loudly, “Can someone explain to me what this Genius Battle actually is?”

“The Genius Battle, in full, is called the Cosmic Peak Genius Battle. As the name suggests, it is a selection contest for geniuses. Once every ten thousand years, it is organized by the Virtual Universe Company, which gathers the stellar-ranked geniuses of the entire universe into the Virtual Universe to slaughter one another and select the greatest among them for focused cultivation in the core ranks. The corresponding event held by the Great Axe Combat Arena is the Cosmic Peak Expert Battle, which is aimed at universe-ranked geniuses.”

Babata gave a rough explanation, then continued, “Although you’re at the stellar level, Luo Feng, you’ve been cultivating for far too short a time. There’s no way you’ll fight your way into the top of the universe-wide rankings and enter the Virtual Universe Company. But if you can achieve a good ranking in the Ganwu Universe Nation, you’ll probably be absorbed into the Ganwu Secret Realm and cultivated with special attention. For you, that would already be an extraordinary opportunity.”

Luo Feng’s talent was naturally not poor. In particular, after seizing the Golden Horned Beast, his affinity with the law of metal had risen sharply, and he had already stepped across the threshold of the laws.

Even Babata had to admit that such talent was already monstrously gifted by the standards of the universe.

But Luo Feng’s weakness was that he had cultivated for too short a time.

From becoming a formal martial artist to now, barely ten years had passed.

In ten years, the Golden Horned Beast’s true body had reached the universe level, the Earthling clone had reached the stellar level, and he had even crossed the threshold of the laws. Such achievements were already outrageous beyond reason.

If Luo Feng were given enough time, Babata had no doubt he could pass the Genius Battle selection and enter the core ranks of the Virtual Universe Company.

But Babata believed that no matter how monstrous Luo Feng’s talent was, it still needed time to mature.

Among the other stellar-ranked geniuses in the universe, there was no shortage of people whose talent and opportunities could match Luo Feng’s, or even surpass him, and some of them might have cultivated for decades or even centuries.

With the same talent, the same heaven-defying opportunities, and dozens of times more cultivation time than you, how could that possibly compare?

For precisely that reason, Babata did not hold especially high hopes for Luo Feng.

Still, such a universe-spanning event was a different matter. Even if he could not reach the front ranks, so long as he performed brilliantly during the selection process, he could still attract the attention of major powers.

Babata remained very enthusiastic about letting Luo Feng take part in the Genius Battle.

“The Genius Battle...” Listening to Babata’s explanation, Luo Feng could not help feeling his heart swell with anticipation.

Countless geniuses from across the universe would gather there. With everyone having the same physical foundation and the same mental strength, what would matter was law comprehension, domain, secret techniques, and combat skill.

An endless sea of geniuses would slaughter and eliminate one another, competing for the strongest monsters among them.

Merely hearing Babata describe the process was enough to make Luo Feng burn with excitement, almost to the point that he wanted to rush in immediately.

Suddenly, Luo Feng came back to himself and looked at Jiang Chen in confusion. “Ah Chen, how do you know about the Genius Battle?”

“I have a clone roaming the universe, don’t I?” Jiang Chen asked in return.

Luo Feng nodded.

Jiang Chen having a clone was not something he had hidden from his friends.

Babata had even mocked him before, thinking Jiang Chen had wasted a precious clone opportunity on a Black Mong Tribe slave.

It could never imagine that Jiang Chen’s clone slot could be changed at will.

“I originally obtained three clones. One of them has been traveling through the universe and also ran into some opportunities,” Jiang Chen said softly. “The details aren’t convenient for me to tell you. I can only say that that clone joined a major power and also took a formidable expert as a teacher. The time of the Genius Battle was told to me by my teacher.”

“So that’s how it is...” Luo Feng and Babata both realized what was going on and did not press further.

Luo Feng did not understand this very well, but Babata knew perfectly well that being able to know the opening time of the Genius Battle with such precision a full year in advance meant Jiang Chen’s so-called teacher was probably no ordinary immortal.

At the very least, it had to be the leader of some legion, or a high-ranking figure in an important division.

However, all that had little to do with Luo Feng and Babata.

Their attention was focused more on the coming Genius Battle.

“Luo Feng, before the Genius Battle begins, you need to redouble your training! If you can put on a dazzling performance in the battle and catch the eye of a major power, your path in the future will become much smoother,” Babata reminded him.

Luo Feng understood this as well, and nodded. “Competing with the many geniuses in the universe... just thinking about it makes my blood boil!”

Watching Luo Feng and Babata’s reactions, Jiang Chen could not help but laugh inwardly.

The present Luo Feng was not yet truly beyond reason.

Once the Shaman Killer Tribe clone was nurtured and inherited the tribe’s talent for the law of space, Luo Feng would truly soar into the sky and rise at a breathtaking pace.

As for the current Luo Feng, even without relying on outside help, Jiang Chen was confident he could hang him up and beat him with one hand, simply by suppressing him through the laws alone.

Still, the Genius Battle was a long process.

So long as Luo Feng was not eliminated at the very beginning, his talent would eventually carry him to the end.

—

White Orchid Star.

This already desolate life planet grew even lonelier after Jiang Chen moved the residents away.

Snow and ice covered the land, lending the world a bleak beauty.

Jiang Chen and Luo Feng walked toward a ship bearing the insignia of the Virtual Universe Company.

The crew aboard had already been waiting there. They raised a device and scanned the two of them.

“Guest identity confirmed. Transaction permitted.”

At the electronic prompt, the staff brought out a series of large crates and placed them before the two men.

The crate in front of Jiang Chen was especially enormous, large enough to hold several stadiums.

After the inspection was complete, the two of them directly stored the crates into their world rings.

“Honored guests, thank you for your support of the Virtual Universe Company. Thank you.”

The staff shook hands with Jiang Chen and Luo Feng separately, then immediately boarded the ship and departed.

Jiang Chen, however, did not return to his own ship. Instead, he walked toward another vessel marked with the insignia of Cosmic Star River Bank.

“Sir.” The bank staff had already verified Jiang Chen’s identity and bowed slightly.

“These are the latest energy blocks for sale. Same as always, transfer the payment directly to my account.” With a wave of his hand, countless energy blocks piled up on the ground.

The energy blocks were not particularly large, slightly smaller than cigarette packs, and a translucent purple color. Within them surged an astonishing amount of energy.

If one of these blocks were to detonate, the force unleashed would be far more terrifying than a nuclear explosion.

Yet this energy was remarkably stable. Unless activated with special equipment, it was very difficult to trigger.

The most important quality of such a high-density energy aggregate was stability.

Otherwise, if it were to explode by accident, that would be no laughing matter.

The energy blocks piled up like a mountain.

This was no figure of speech, but a fact.

The “mountain” formed by the blocks truly looked, from the outside, like an actual great mountain.

The bank staff brought out a scanner and swept it across the pile. The number on the device flashed rapidly: 11 trillion blocks.

“11 trillion high-grade energy blocks. At the agreed price, our Cosmic Star River Bank will purchase them for 10 trillion universe coins,” the staff member said quickly. “The goods have been received. The payment will be transferred to your account within ten minutes.”

All the energy blocks produced by the Space Furnace had been sold by Jiang Chen to Cosmic Star River Bank.

After discussion, Cosmic Star River Bank agreed to exchange Jiang Chen’s blocks at a ratio of 11 to 10 in universe coins.

That was to say, 11 energy blocks for 10 universe coins.

If he established his own sales channels, the price could be made slightly higher.

But this involved wealth measured in Hunyuan units, and it was also a long-term trade. Jiang Chen did not believe his own strength was enough to protect it.

It was better to earn a little less and sell through Cosmic Star River Bank instead, which would be safer.

Besides, a ratio of 11 to 10 was already quite good.

Even if Jiang Chen sold it himself, there was no way he could force the ratio down to 1 to 1, and he would not be able to make much more profit.

Add to that the time, effort, and the risk of attracting covetous eyes, and dealing through Cosmic Star River Bank was, in fact, the more worthwhile choice.

For Cosmic Star River Bank as well, the trade would yield considerable profit. It was a win-win arrangement.

“This transaction is complete. Thank you for your support of our Cosmic Star River Bank. Then I shall take my leave first.”

The staff shook Jiang Chen’s hand, loaded the vast quantity of energy blocks aboard, and departed by ship.

Watching the ship leave, Jiang Chen greeted Luo Feng, and the two of them also boarded their own ship, leaving White Orchid Star behind as they crossed into the dark universe and headed toward Earth.

—

Once the ship entered the dark universe, Luo Feng and Jiang Chen both found themselves eager to inspect their harvest.

However, there was not enough space aboard the ship, so Jiang Chen’s purchase of the Void Dragon Bone could not be taken out yet. They could only examine the other spoils first.

“A Berna Tribe metal life-form? That appearance is really quite unusual,” Jiang Chen said as he took out a crate. Inside was a mass of metal that flowed like liquid.

Upon careful sensing, one could tell that the lump of metal was actually alive, carrying a distinct aura of life.

Its aura was not particularly strong, only just barely at the stellar level.

And it was obvious that this Berna Tribe metal life-form did not seem to possess much intelligence.

“The records say that Berna Tribe metal life-forms all have very low intelligence at first, and their wisdom grows as their strength increases. By the time they reach the domain lord or sector lord stage, they’re basically no different from ordinary humans,” Luo Feng said curiously, gazing at the metal in the crate as if it were flowing like liquid. “Ah Chen, Berna Tribe metal life-forms are best suited for fusion with a ship. Are you planning to fuse it with your ship?”

“No, it’s mainly for research,” Jiang Chen replied, shaking his head. “As for fusion... if it’s still alive after I finish researching it, we’ll see.”

Jiang Chen’s current ride was only a C-rank ship, so fusing it with a metal life-form would be a bit of a waste.

Among all the metal life-forms that could merge with a ship, the Berna Tribe metal life-form was not especially outstanding. At the very least, it deserved a D-rank or E-rank ship.

“Research...” Luo Feng was at a loss for words.

The way he looked at Jiang Chen was practically as though he were looking at a perverse scientist.

Luo Feng had also been to Jiang Chen’s laboratory and had seen how Jiang Chen conducted his “research” on certain special extraordinary life-forms.

Dissection and separation were only the most basic operations.

Jiang Chen’s “research” often went down to the level of genes, and even the soul.

When conditions allowed, Jiang Chen would always perform live research to maximize the value of the “materials,” making the process all the more bloody and horrifying.

“It has no soul, yet it possesses self-awareness. This structure of life really is rather peculiar,” Jiang Chen said after studying it for a while, then closed the crate.

Research into the Berna Tribe metal life-form would still require the use of laboratory equipment.

Jiang Chen’s attention quickly shifted elsewhere. He greeted Luo Feng. “I’m going into the world inside the ring for a moment to take a look at the Void Dragon Bone. If anything comes up, contact me through Jarvis.”