Chapter 92: Invitation from the Interstellar Mercenary Alliance

Listening to Xinia, Jiang Chen fell into a slight dilemma.

The Virtual Universe Company and the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance were both among the five great powers of the human race, yet there was still a clear difference between them.

Among the five giants, the Virtual Universe Company and the Giant Axe Battle Arena were plainly a tier stronger than the other three, whether in the number of powerhouses they possessed or in the resources they could marshal.

But that had little to do with Jiang Chen, a mere stellar-level youngster.

Let alone the five giants; even the secret lands among the 1,008 universe nations, such as the Ganwu Secret Land, would offer enough resources for Jiang Chen to cultivate with.

Even if one considered future development, at least before stepping into immortality, the five giants made no real difference to the geniuses of the cosmos.

The Genius Battle would not begin for several more years, and it would take even longer to reach its end.

If, during these years, he could slip into the core ranks of the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance a little earlier, Jiang Chen could also accelerate his own growth.

After all, this was only an avatar; it was not so important which faction it joined.

What made Jiang Chen hesitate was whether he could become a core genius of the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance in a short time.

Even if he could, would the benefits of receiving focused cultivation a few years earlier be enough to outweigh the rewards of the Genius Battle?

The Cosmic Genius Battle was a grand event watched by the entire human race, and the prizes bestowed upon the geniuses who rose to prominence were exceedingly generous.

Just the chance to directly obtain a spot in the Primal Chaos Secret Land or the Original Secret Land was enough for Jiang Chen to suspect that those who entered the five giants through other channels and passed layer after layer of screening to become core geniuses would most likely not enjoy such treatment.

If he joined the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance, he would probably still have to begin as an ordinary genius, advancing step by step through rounds of assessment and elimination before entering the ranks of the core geniuses.

And at the start, he would very likely be placed on the same level as the Virtual Universe Company's Doomsday Secret Land.

If the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance and the Virtual Universe Company used the same rules for core geniuses, then even promotion to the Heaven and Earth Secret Land would have to wait for the Qualification Battle, meaning a delay of at least several decades, perhaps even a century.

For core geniuses among the five giants, the difference in treatment between the various secret lands was enormous.

After hesitating for quite a while, Jiang Chen still decided to ask clearly.

"Lord Xinia..." Jiang Chen raised his head and looked at the silver-haired woman opposite him, then asked seriously, "I have heard that among the five giants there is the idea of so-called core geniuses. If one wants to become a core genius of the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance, what conditions are required?"

"You know quite a lot," Xinia said, glancing at Jiang Chen. "To become a core genius, first of all, you must be an internal member of the alliance! Peripheral members have absolutely no chance! Secondly, only the most outstanding and monstrous geniuses in the universe, after passing extremely difficult assessments, can become core geniuses of the alliance. Hmm... I joined the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance when I was at stellar level, but it was only at universe level that I barely passed the assessment and became a core genius."

After a pause, Xinia continued, "As for my strength at that time, telling you anything too detailed would probably be meaningless. So I'll put it simply: at universe level, I was already able to kill an ordinary domain lord head-on!"

Universe level, able to kill a domain lord head-on.

That was indeed formidable.

To kill an enemy by crossing a major realm was perhaps still simple at the beginning, but the farther one advanced, the greater the difficulty became.

The gap between universe level and domain lord was far greater than the gap between apprentice level and planetary level.

"You should not aim too high. The core geniuses of the five giants value comprehension of the laws above all else. As a mere mercenary born a slave, you probably haven't even seen a secret technique capable of comprehending the laws, have you?" Xinia advised. "It would be more prudent to join our Cosmic Mercenary Alliance first, obtain powerful secret techniques, strengthen your weaknesses, and then rise step by step through internal selection..."

Halfway through, Xinia suddenly widened her eyes.

In Jiang Chen's palm, a mass of azure light was flowing continuously, changing into countless different forms.

Though it was only a sphere of force without much offensive power, Xinia's experience allowed her to see at once that to shape force into such a degree of "mimicry," he need not even have truly crossed the threshold of the wind law, but he was certainly not far from it!

"Lord Xinia, is this the law you were speaking of? By chance, I understand a little." Jiang Chen revealed an enigmatic smile.

"A stellar level three cultivator, comprehending the law?! What kind of heaven-defying monster is this?! When I was at stellar level, I couldn't comprehend the law at all!"

"If we can bring such a genius into the alliance, I will absolutely receive a huge contribution!"

"And with this connection, perhaps I can gain assistance in the future as well!"

Xinia roared inwardly. At the same time, she quickly adjusted her state of mind and forcibly suppressed her shock.

"This is, after all, the reception room, so you cannot fully display your strength. Could you go to the martial arena and demonstrate there? Once I confirm your abilities, I can apply for better resources and treatment for you."

Chapter 1 of 3

"Everything shall follow Lord Xinia's instructions." Jiang Chen bowed respectfully.

Xinia looked at Jiang Chen with complicated emotions and said, "My estate in the virtual universe has a martial arena. I will send you an invitation."

No sooner had she spoken than Jiang Chen received an invitation.

After confirming and accepting it, Jiang Chen immediately appeared within a luxurious estate.

Even just one courtyard seemed vast beyond sight.

Before he had time to observe the surroundings carefully, Jiang Chen discovered that his force and spiritual power had already recovered to the level of stellar tier three.

"You may use your full freedom and display your strongest move to attack me. If you have talents in other areas, you may show those as well."

Standing in the center of the courtyard, Xinia addressed Jiang Chen.

Jiang Chen glanced around. It was just an ordinary-looking martial arena, except that it was larger than usual; nothing especially remarkable could be seen.

However, the material of the ground was exceedingly hard. Though Jiang Chen could not identify it, the feel beneath his feet was enough for him to judge that it was certainly a material of E-class hardness, one that would be difficult for even an ordinary boundary lord to damage.

"Lord Xinia, I am skilled in the wind field, and the weapon I use is the Heaven Piercing Shuttle."

As Jiang Chen spoke softly, a spiritual weapon composed of three hundred and sixty-five blades appeared beside him.

The blades separated from one another, then rapidly reassembled in midair, taking the shape of a great saber.

Countless filaments strung the three hundred and sixty-five blades together, forming a single whole.

"Lord Xinia, please be careful."

Jiang Chen offered the warning, and spiritual power surged forth, driving the Heaven Piercing Shuttle toward Xinia.

At the same time, he secretly stirred the power of the law.

The field tightly circled his body without spreading outward.

Yet upon the surface of the Heaven Piercing Shuttle, a trace of azure radiance appeared. Its speed suddenly surged by dozens of times, and in the blink of an eye it crossed more than ten kilometers to slash fiercely toward Xinia's neck.

"Such speed!"

Xinia was slightly startled and swiftly swung her spear to block Jiang Chen's attack.

After all, she was a domain lord, and not merely that, but a domain lord genius from the core ranks of one of the five giants. If Jiang Chen's attack could truly injure her, that would be the strange thing.

However, in that fleeting exchange, Jiang Chen's performance already filled Xinia with delight.

With just a single attack, Xinia was completely certain that Jiang Chen had indeed crossed the threshold of the law and grasped a hint of the profundity of the wind law.

Although his application was somewhat rough, and the spiritual weapon he used was also a little lacking.

Still, she guessed that this was only because Jiang Chen's background was insufficient, and he lacked powerful secret techniques and good resources.

Xinia had long since investigated Jiang Chen, or rather Esuo: he was merely a slave whose entire race had already been annihilated.

By some stroke of fortune, he had rendered merit and had his slave status removed by his former master, who also granted him a sum of property and allowed him to regain his freedom.

That so-called "sum of wealth" was only a few million Ganwu dollars.

To an ordinary stellar-level cultivator, it was indeed a fortune, but in Xinia's eyes, it meant nothing at all.

With such an origin and such experience, it was naturally impossible for him to obtain any decent resources.

And yet, even so, Esuo still relied on his own talent to cross the threshold of the law at stellar level.

Xinia dared not imagine what level his talent could reach if he were given a better cultivation environment, powerful secret techniques, and other cultivation resources.

At this moment, Xinia made up her mind that no matter what, she had to bring Esuo into the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance.

Contribution points were secondary; building a good relationship with such a genius would also greatly benefit her future development.

Chapter 2 of 3

However, Xinia did not immediately call a halt to the battle. Instead, she continued to act as a sparring partner, allowing the other side to display his talent to the fullest.

Xinia was very curious: besides the wind law, were there any other places on this person that could surprise her?

Unfortunately, Xinia was destined to be disappointed.

Jiang Chen had no intention of revealing all his trump cards.

For this avatar named Esuo, Jiang Chen had set him up as a genius skilled in the wind law.

As for other laws, Jiang Chen had mastered quite a few, but he had no intention of displaying them.

From the memories Jiang Chen possessed, and from the relevant descriptions in the original work, at the stellar level, once a single law had crossed the threshold, one could almost certainly pass the initial selection of the Genius Battle and enter the cosmic finals.

Not to mention that the level of law comprehension Jiang Chen displayed was not merely a matter of barely stepping over the threshold; he had already achieved some measure of understanding in the wind law.

At this level, he would already be enough to enter the top thousand of the cosmic rankings in the Genius Battle.

Even if the screening standards of the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance were different, they would not be so strict as to reject a stellar-level genius who had already attained a considerable degree of comprehension of the laws.

The battle did not last long.

Merely by displaying the wind law, Jiang Chen had limited means to show.

After just over ten minutes, he had used every technique he possessed that leaned toward the wind, and then he voluntarily stopped attacking.

"Your comprehension of the laws is good, very good! But your secret techniques and weapon are a little lacking, and your combat skill is somewhat crude."

Xinia gave him a few comments, then hesitated for a moment before continuing, "With your talent, joining my Cosmic Mercenary Alliance and becoming a core genius is absolutely no problem. However, it is not currently the time for core genius selection, and my authority is not sufficient. At most, I can help you apply for a special assessment."

After a pause, as though fearing that she might discourage Jiang Chen, Xinia hurriedly explained, "Esuo, your talent is definitely enough! As long as you perform normally in the special assessment, you will surely pass! Once you do, you will become a core genius of my Cosmic Mercenary Alliance and obtain resources you could never even have dreamed of before! With your talent, combined with the full cultivation of my Cosmic Mercenary Alliance, you may even have the hope of becoming an undying god!"

An undying god was only "have the hope of."

It sounded rather underwhelming, but that was reality.

The five giants continuously drew geniuses from the various universe nations and star domains of the human race, investing enormous resources into their cultivation.

Yet the purpose of that cultivation was merely to hope that among generation after generation of geniuses, a few would stand out and achieve immortality.

For example, the Genius Battle of the Virtual Universe Company was held once every ten thousand years. Over successive generations, each edition took in a thousand geniuses, but on average only a little over ten of them would achieve immortality.

The rest would perish in the course of growth, or have their potential exhausted so that they could no longer advance, until their allotted lifespan came to an end.

Only rarely would there be an edition in which the quality of the geniuses was especially high, giving birth to a great number of immortals, or even to even more magnificent powerhouses.

Even Xinia herself did not dare claim that she would certainly cross the threshold of immortality and obtain the ticket to eternal life.

"Lord Xinia..."

Jiang Chen had already made his decision in his heart, but he still intended to confirm one thing first.

"May I ask what treatment core geniuses of the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance receive?"

"Of course you may. Come to the reception room, and I will explain it to you slowly."

Seeing Jiang Chen's attitude, Xinia's own attitude softened considerably. With a smile, she led Jiang Chen to the reception room and instructed the servants to bring tea and refreshments.

Only then did she explain in detail: "In our Cosmic Mercenary Alliance, core geniuses are divided into four major ranks. But regardless of which rank one belongs to, the basic treatment is more or less the same."

"First, you will obtain a quota to enter the Primal Universe and comprehend its mysteries. I cannot tell you the exact details of this quota right now. I can only say that it is unimaginably precious. Even undying gods are willing to pay a great price to obtain one, yet most of them would bankrupt themselves and still be unable to buy a single quota."

"Second, depending on your performance in the assessment, you can receive a sum of funds of varying size..."

Xinia spoke at length, carefully explaining the treatment afforded to core geniuses of the Cosmic Mercenary Alliance, hoping to move Jiang Chen and make him join voluntarily.

End of chapter.