As the teleportation array lit up, the final round of the Primordial Realm assessment began!
Zhao Xing participated in the Self School Combat Division, where out of 150,000 contestants, only 2,000 would make it through. These 150,000 individuals were already the crème de la crème of geniuses, yet the elimination rate at this stage remained staggering!
There were 2,000 battle arenas, with 75 participants assigned to each. Only the final victor of each arena would earn the right to enter the Primordial Realm! Each contestant had to eliminate the remaining 74 competitors to claim victory.
"Whoosh—"
The white light before his eyes rapidly faded. Zhao Xing scanned his surroundings and discovered that he was standing on a small satellite.
A total of 75 satellites orbited a mid-tier star. Each satellite carried a single contestant, and they were all descending toward the star at a constant speed.
"The mid-tier star—that must be the battlefield for the Shennongs."
"The 75 satellites each contain a full array of plant-based soldier species, available for selection."
"Judging by the current descent speed, they will crash into the mid-tier star in one month."
"That means one month is the time limit for selecting plant-based soldiers."
"The Spirit Qi is also extremely scarce!"
"Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh—"
Zhao Xing immediately activated Origin Projection and Heavenly Sight of the Soul, quickly scanning for suitable plant soldiers.
"Boom, boom, boom—"
The satellites continued their descent, and Zhao Xing felt a slight sense of weightlessness.
If the mid-tier star was considered a traditional square battle arena, then the satellites were akin to weapon racks positioned beside it. The only difference was that, for the Shennongs of the Self School, their weapons were plants.
The available plant-based soldiers spanned all categories, covering the First Realm to Third Realm, allowing contestants to choose freely.
However, they only had one month, and capturing these plant soldiers was no easy task.
Moreover, Spirit Qi was extremely scarce—almost impossible to absorb from the satellites.
"The fourth round combines elements from the previous stages. Contestants must quickly subdue and train their battle soldiers while simultaneously preparing to eliminate their rivals."
This was a comprehensive test—a challenge of mental strength, willpower, magical abilities, domain control, world projection, precise Spirit Qi calculations, rapid adaptation to extreme environments, and strategic selection of plant soldiers.
And all of it had to be accomplished within one month!
"Soul Tree!"
As a mass-production strategist, Zhao Xing immediately locked onto his first battle plant.
With time being short, he forcibly shattered the life consciousness of a Third Realm plant.
"Clang! Clang!"
Slaughter Mind Blade and Bell of the Soul activated simultaneously, fusing with his Origin Projection and his Lunar Ninth-Rank Dao Field.
The Soul Tree had minimal attack power, so Zhao Xing subdued it almost instantly.
"Whoosh!"
After subjugating it, he immediately entered the Soul Tree.
By securing the Soul Tree, he amplified his own soul and willpower-based divine abilities, making it much easier to capture the remaining battle plants.
"Go!"
With the Soul Tree's augmentation, Zhao Xing swiftly proceeded with his soldier selection strategy.
One by one, various plant species were uprooted and absorbed into his Origin Projection.
"Rustle—"
Leaves scattered, bark peeled away, and vines twisted wildly.
Zhao Xing rapidly began constructing Straw Puppet clones.
Chopping down trees and grasses to create Straw Puppets was his second action.
The commotion was immense, and across the 75 satellites, a thick layer of dust was soon kicked up.
Clearly, many others were also skilled in Straw Puppet techniques.
"Hurry, hurry, hurry!"
The geniuses on every satellite were racing against time.
Meanwhile, Spirit Qi was being depleted at a rapid pace.
Each of the 75 contestants quickly diverged into different strategies based on their preferred combat styles.
After seven days, Zhao Xing was still capturing plant soldiers, expanding the variety of his army.
However, some competitors had already stopped capturing new soldiers and had begun focusing on training their selected plants instead.
"Life Devour!"
"Extreme Dao Divine Radiance!"
"Grow, grow, grow!"
During the satellite descent, Zhao Xing heard a furious roar from a nearby satellite.
Moments later, a colossal tree at the Dao Domain Realm erupted from the ground.
"Impressive!"
Zhao Xing's expression hardened.
The competition's plant soldiers were all capped at the Third Realm, yet by Day Seven, someone had already cultivated a Dao Domain Realm tree?!
The commotion was too massive to ignore.
"Life Devour and Extreme Dao Divine Radiance… that's an Extreme Dao Strategist! So many powerful opponents—"
Among the Self School Combat Shennongs, there were many distinct strategic paths.
Opposite Zhao Xing's mass-production strategy was the Extreme Dao strategy.
Shennongs following this path specialized in Life Dao techniques, including Life Devour and Life Plunder, which were precursors to Life Dao manifestations.
Their most proficient spells were Spirit Foundation Techniques and Segmenting Techniques.
Where mass-production strategists captured and commanded many battle plants, Extreme Dao strategists trained only a few, sometimes even just one!
"That's Ruan Xingluo. He's in the same arena as Zhao Xing."
Qiao Song watched the battle from the Northern River Star System.
"His strategy is the complete opposite of Zhao Xing's."
"While Zhao Xing expands the number of plant soldiers, Ruan Xingluo focuses on maximizing their combat potential."
"Ruan Xingluo has chosen a Nine Infant Tree as his Mother Tree of Ten Thousand Laws. He is continuously absorbing the life energy of other battle plants while grafting their talents onto the Mother Tree using Extreme Dao Divine Radiance."
"In just seven days, his Mother Tree, originally a Grand Divine Ability Realm entity, has evolved to the Five Elements Dao Domain Realm, now boasting twelve temporary innate abilities!"
Qiao Song, Yang Zhuo, and even the Lord of Northern River were visibly tense.
Ruan Xingluo had ranked 590th in the previous round.
After a hundred years of cultivation, he had clearly become even stronger.
By the fifteenth day, Ruan Xingluo's Mother Tree had already advanced to the Yin-Yang Dao Domain Realm, now possessing twenty-four innate abilities!
"The Nine Infant Tree isn't even the best candidate for a Mother Tree of Ten Thousand Laws, yet his specimen can hold twenty-four plant soldier talents… This year's Primordial Tournament is absolutely insane."
Yang Zhuo couldn't help but sigh in amazement.
He was also a Combat Shennong of the Self School, now at the Yin-Yang Dao Domain Realm, yet he wasn't confident in his ability to defeat Ruan Xingluo.
Ruan Xingluo's Mother Tree had grown to cover nearly half of the satellite, with a total of twenty-five distinct plant species fused together, forming an enormous entity!
On Zhao Xing's battlefield, Ruan Xingluo stood out like a lone giant!
"Only one person can advance from each arena. Ruan Xingluo was ranked 590th in the last round, while Zhao Xing was over 5,000th—" Qiao Song sighed inwardly.
He ran multiple simulations in his mind and concluded that Zhao Xing's chances of winning were extremely low.
"Such bad luck... to be placed in the same group as a monster like Ruan Xingluo."
Out of 150,000 contestants assigned randomly, Ruan Xingluo was undoubtedly among the absolute elite.
Primordial Realm, Five Venom Emperor's Estate.
"Ruan Xingluo? He's got some skills."
The Five Venom Emperor, however, wasn't concerned. He had personally witnessed Zhao Xing's century-long training.
Only he knew just how much Zhao Xing had improved.
"Extreme Dao strategists using the Nine Infant Tree as their Mother Tree of Ten Thousand Laws instead of a Star Surge Tree or a Primal Chaos Tree... Ruan Xingluo's weakness is obvious."
The Five Venom Emperor's keen gaze instantly recognized that Ruan Xingluo wouldn't be the final victor in this match.
"The Nine Infant Tree is strong in offense but weak in defense. It relies on temporary grafting. Unless he can swiftly eliminate all 74 opponents in one go, the longer he drags it out, the weaker he'll become."
A month passed, and the 75 satellites all crashed into the mid-tier realm star's interior.
"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The extremely sturdy realm star was struck by 75 satellites, piercing through its protective layer!
Spirit Qi from the entire realm star instantly dispersed, leaving all contestants unable to absorb an adequate amount.
Chaos surged, Spirit Qi levels plummeted. Zhao Xing quickly assessed the situation—
The Spirit Qi Index had dropped below 10.
With 75 Combat Shennongs fighting over it, there was no way the limited energy could sustain them all for long!
"Rumble—"
The earth veins trembled. Zhao Xing prepared to root himself into the ground to absorb as much Spirit Qi as possible for later use.
But just before landing, a sharp premonition of danger erupted in his soul!
"Bigger! Bigger! Bigger! Bigger!"
In a split second, Zhao Xing activated Treasure Mountain Divine Ability, enlarging his physical size to the limit.
For a Third Realm cultivator, without reaching Grand Divine Ability Realm, the maximum size limit was "One Extremity."
Combat Shennongs could typically reach only half of a warrior's limit, given their focus on spellcasting rather than physical power.
But Zhao Xing's Treasure Mountain Divine Ability, combined with Five Finger Mountain, allowed him to achieve the absolute limit—Five Extremities!
At that moment, he pushed his size to the maximum!
"Boom—"
Zhao Xing's legs unleashed Sky-Supporting Pillars, intending to root himself into the Void River beneath.
Yet instead of landing, he suddenly ascended even higher!
"So sinister!"
Zhao Xing immediately exerted force, smashing through a patch of fresh green sprouts beneath him.
Through the dust of dissipating Spirit Qi, he spotted a distant mountain peak—
There, a green-skinned young man was performing hand seals, casting a massive net that spread through the void, enveloping the entire realm star!
"No!"
Nearby, a Combat Shennong could only watch in horror as he was flung away.
In an instant, he found himself billions of miles away from the mid-tier realm star.
The moment a contestant left the designated battle zone—they were eliminated!
"What... this—"
Northern River Lord's Mansion.
Qiao Song and Yang Zhuo's eyes widened in shock.
"It's a Life Formation Strategist!"
"Star-Shifting Formation!"
"My god, in an instant, 69 people were eliminated—even Ruan Xingluo was taken out!"
"Who is this guy?!"
"It's him—Lu Nansong of the Agu Star System!"
"He was only ranked 90,000th in the last round... He was hiding his strength this whole time!"
Qiao Song and Yang Zhuo were completely dumbfounded.
Just before the satellites landed, they were certain that Ruan Xingluo would dominate this arena.
Yet, the moment the match started—he was eliminated!
Ruan Xingluo was directly teleported out of the battlefield. He had crossed the boundary of the battle zone, which meant automatic disqualification.
Even his Yin-Yang Dao Domain Realm Mother Tree of Ten Thousand Laws never had the chance to unleash its power!
"Mr. Qiao, what kind of plant soldiers could create a Star-Shifting Formation?" Yang Zhuo asked, his voice trembling.
"I... I don't know."
Qiao Song let out a bitter laugh.
For someone as well-versed in plant-based combat as himself, not knowing the spell being used was unbelievable!
They only knew that Lu Nansong was a Life Formation Strategist, and his spell was unimaginably powerful—
The moment the battle began, he had instantly created a Void Prairie beneath the feet of the 74 other contestants.
In a single moment—he forcibly teleported them!
69 contestants were instantly eliminated!
Now, on the battlefield, only six people remained.
Lu Nansong's move had completely shocked the audience.
At the same time, the surviving contestants felt incredibly lucky.
"Good thing I instantly activated my full-size transformation." Zhao Xing shuddered.
"Sky-Supporting Pillars—unyielding as a mountain! By embedding myself into the void, I barely avoided being sent flying."
The Treasure Mountain Divine Ability and Five Finger Mountain, created by Wu Tian, were combat techniques specialized for Combat Shennongs using Earth Dao principles.
The Star-Shifting Formation could move others—but it couldn't move Zhao Xing.
He was still half a distance away from being teleported out of bounds.
Of course, if he hadn't reacted fast enough, he would've been eliminated too.
"Only six people left."
Zhao Xing immediately planted his feet firmly on the ground, expanding his Dao Field and unfolding his Origin Projection.
"Kill!"
The remaining five contestants all charged straight at Lu Nansong!
The Life Formation Strategy was too terrifying—without anyone realizing it, he had silently eliminated nearly everyone.
This meant that Lu Nansong possessed incredibly high mastery over both Dao Fields and World Laws.
Zhao Xing had also studied the World Law, specifically "Three Realms Void", which combined Dao Field and Origin Projection into a Self School spell.
The "Three Realms Void" technique allowed projections to root into the void, expanding in a way that was nearly imperceptible. It could even rise from deep void currents or earth veins, enveloping an enemy's Origin Projection from within.
The void had multiple layers, and after mastering "Three Realms Void", one's projection could even unfold within chaotic void currents.
Having suffered losses in the previous rounds, Zhao Xing had developed a sharp sense for World Laws.
Lu Nansong had used an even more advanced World Law, silently placing plant soldiers beneath everyone's feet before activating the Star-Shifting Formation.
Not eliminating him first? No one would dare to fight freely!
This reaction was instinctive—
"Only five left."
Lu Nansong stood at the mountain peak, his expression calm.
As the attacks from five different directions surged toward him, a green prairie appeared beneath his feet—
Then, his figure vanished instantly.
Life Formation could teleport enemies—but it could also teleport oneself.
The five simultaneous attacks all missed completely!
"He's on the other side of the realm star."
One of Zhao Xing's clones appeared where Lu Nansong had stood, squatting down to examine the ground.
He felt the traces of scorched grass and a faint void fluctuation.
If not for his breakthrough in Hundred-Fathom Void, he might not have even noticed it.
"Change of plans!"
Zhao Xing immediately abandoned the pursuit of Lu Nansong.
A Life Formation Strategist, especially one who had mastered Star-Shifting Formation, was one of the hardest opponents to kill.
His spell was too elusive—chasing after Lu Nansong was a waste of effort. It was better to fortify his position instead.
"The realm star's Spirit Qi is constantly leaking, its Spirit Qi Index is dropping, and the combat area is shrinking."
"I don't need to chase him. Once the battlefield shrinks enough, he won't be able to run forever."
Zhao Xing's true body immediately rooted itself and started expanding his Dao Field.
Although the mid-tier realm star serving as the arena was large, it wasn't massive—placing 75 people together made it feel cramped.
As the Chaos Index continued to rise, the Spirit Qi Index kept falling, further restricting everyone's movement.
Eventually, Lu Nansong would have no choice but to face them.
"Boom!"
One after another, plant soldiers burst from the ground, securing an entire state-sized territory for Zhao Xing.
As a Mass Soldier Strategist, he had an unparalleled advantage—sheer numbers.
Each plant soldier contained some Spirit Qi—and with more troops, Zhao Xing became the most resource-rich competitor in the arena!
"Hmph—"
Zhao Xing's territory expanded further, starting from the eastern hemisphere, as a wave of green rapidly invaded the battlefield.
"Among all competitors on the realm star arena, only Zhao Xing and two others are Mass Soldier Strategists—but the other two are far weaker than him."
The Five Venom Emperor watched with a smile.
From a bird's-eye view, it was clear that Zhao Xing's territory was the largest in the eastern hemisphere!
Even if the other two Mass Soldier Strategists combined their domains, they still couldn't match him.
Aside from Lu Nansong, the two remaining contestants ran out of resources within three days!
Their plant soldiers kept fighting, but they couldn't break through Zhao Xing's territory.
With no Spirit Qi left to absorb, they became sitting ducks, ultimately absorbed into the ecosystem of the three Mass Soldier Strategists.
Meanwhile, Lu Nansong was still nowhere to be seen.
"Still not coming out?" Zhao Xing sneered.
He didn't even consider the other two Mass Soldier Strategists a threat.
His troop count and quality vastly exceeded theirs.
On the realm star arena, he controlled over half the land!
With this power imbalance, the other two had no chance of resisting.
"Looks like you're waiting for me to eliminate the other two before showing yourself."
"Firefly Trees—deploy!"
Through his Soul Tree, Zhao Xing arranged his troops, advancing further into the other two Mass Soldier Strategists' territories.
"Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!"
At the same time, over ten thousand Giant Sun Straw Puppets and Explosive Mushrooms surged to the battlefront, providing cover for the invasion.
"We can't hold out any longer."
The Mass Soldier Strategist "Hong Ye" sighed as he watched his defensive line collapse under Zhao Xing's relentless assault.
"I've made it this far... but this is the end of the road."
He felt deeply unwilling.
There were only four people left—just one more elimination would secure him a place in the Primordial Realm.
But Zhao Xing's Mass Soldier Strategy was simply on another level.
Whether in World Laws, Straw Puppet Techniques, or Mutant Plants, Zhao Xing overwhelmed Hong Ye in every aspect.
His Mutant Plant Spells couldn't even generate Void-Type soldiers—he could only switch between Five Elements, Wind, and Thunder attributes.
But Zhao Xing?
He could mutate Void-attributed plant soldiers.
"Stabilize the field—then advance. Just bulldoze everything."
"No tricks needed."
Mass Soldier Strategy duels were brutal and straightforward.
A small advantage in one aspect, when scaled across thousands of plant soldiers, became a horrifying power gap!
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
The two Mass Soldier Strategists were knocked out of bounds—eliminated!
Now, only Zhao Xing and the unseen Lu Nansong remained in the realm star arena.
"Come out. It's just you and me now!"
Activating Heavenly Sight of the Soul, Zhao Xing scanned the battlefield while calling out.
He could faintly sense Lu Nansong's movements, yet at the same time, the man seemed omnipresent.
"If you don't make a move now, once the Spirit Qi completely dissipates, you'll lose anyway!"
Zhao Xing's voice thundered across the entire realm star, like a rolling storm.
"Buzz—"
Lu Nansong's silhouette suddenly appeared in the sky, his altitude equal to the boundary of the arena.
That meant he had been circling the very edge of the battlefield this entire time.
"Swoosh—"
Zhao Xing's gaze was locked on the figure hovering in the sky.
Lu Nansong also silently watched Zhao Xing.
"You actually have Mountain Law Divine Ability? No wonder I couldn't shift you away."
"This next move… is my final trump card."
"If you can withstand this, then you win."
Lu Nansong stood with his hands behind his back, his expression calm.
He knew he couldn't afford to wait any longer. The longer he stalled, the slimmer his chances of defeating Zhao Xing.
Zhao Xing had already burned through resources while defeating the other two Mass Soldier Strategists. This was the perfect moment to strike!
"Hooo—"
A vast prairie unfolded beneath Lu Nansong's feet—far larger than before, spanning nearly the size of an entire province.
The prairie rotated in the void for a single second before it materialized within Zhao Xing's Soul Tree domain.
Lu Nansong had the upper hand in World Law. The Life Formation flow was designed to invade enemy territory—an unstoppable force.
In the blink of an eye, he materialized in the very heart of Zhao Xing's territory!
"Life Formation—Void Exchange!"
The moment Lu Nansong landed, the prairie vanished.
Yet, the grassland in the sky remained.
Suddenly, half of Zhao Xing's plant soldiers detached from his control—
And reappeared high above!
The fusion of Void Dao and Life Dao had formed a terrifying formation that reversed positions!
Lu Nansong would take Zhao Xing's place… and Zhao Xing would be teleported out of the battlefield!
"Die!"
Zhao Xing's eyes were cold and unwavering.
Suddenly, eighteen thick tendrils emerged from the void, completely enclosing himself and Lu Nansong, forming a hemispherical void barrier.
Mo Yun Vine!
The eighteen Mo Yun Vines were a deep purple-black, tinged with faint traces of crimson—
A result of Zhao Xing's Four-Type Mutation Technique, rapidly modifying the plants in real time.
They were vastly different from ordinary Mo Yun Vines.
With the added support of Baoshan Divine Ability, Lu Nansong's exchange technique was significantly slowed.
By the third breath, his Void Exchange was completely stalled!
"Boom!"
At that moment—
Five-Finger Mountain descended from the heavens.
Lu Nansong—defeated!
Zhao Xing—victorious!
Watching as Lu Nansong's golden protective light whisked him away, Zhao Xing nodded slightly.
Lu Nansong definitely had the skill to reach the semifinals—his Life Formation mastery was at a divine ability level.
But Zhao Xing had also mastered Void Dao—on top of that, he possessed Five-Finger Mountain.
No need for extra tricks—just sheer force was enough to crush Lu Nansong!
"His weakness was his lack of offensive power. Since he couldn't shift me, he had no choice but to lose."
"But against others, on a battlefield with a wider activity range… his technique is practically a life-saving divine ability."
"The talent level of this Primordial Tournament is just too high."
If Lu Nansong had competed in any previous tournament, he would have easily advanced—but here, he was eliminated.
The first round of the chaotic battle had ended.
Zhao Xing secured his place among the top 2,000!
Among the 150,000 Martial Shennongs who entered this battle bracket, only 2,000 advanced—a staggering 148,000 talents eliminated!
Zhao Xing's group was one of the first to conclude their match.
By the time he exited the arena, over 800 other battlefields were still locked in fierce combat.
"I've secured a spot in the Primordial Realm."
Having met his initial goal, Zhao Xing now had time to observe the remaining battles.
He was particularly interested in Torres, Ji Xingchen, Han Qiye, and other high-ranking geniuses.
Understanding their relative strengths was crucial.
"Torres—victory!"
"Han Qiye—victory!"
"Pang Lan—victory!"
"Wait… Ji Xingchen was eliminated?"
"Second place from the last round… actually eliminated?"
Zhao Xing watched the battle reports, noticing that certain arenas had an unusually high concentration of top-tier talents.
"So many geniuses… all eliminated just like that?"
"A lot of them seem to be reincarnations of Reincarnation Realm experts."
"Including Lu Nansong from my battlefield."
Zhao Xing couldn't shake the feeling that something suspicious was happening.
"A conspiracy?"
At Er Liang Slope, Wu Tian's expression was gentle as he spoke—
"All of you accumulated countless sins in your past lives. The empire has already shown mercy by letting you live—do you still expect fairness?"
"Where was your concern for fairness when you acted recklessly in your past lives?"
"When you slaughtered innocents, did you ever think about their fairness?"
"The empire is now giving you a chance—to abandon your past sins and wash away your guilt. Do not stray from this path."
"Listen as I recite a scripture, cleanse your hearts, and quell your wicked desires—"
Wu Tian sat upon a high platform, reciting ancient scriptures. A radiant glow emanated from his body.
Below him, countless figures knelt, their faces twisted in agony.
But soon, their expressions softened, their eyes becoming calm and vacant.
Meng Wu glanced at the scene, nodded in satisfaction, and left.
"Wu Tian truly has his uses. I almost don't want to let him go." Meng Wu muttered.
Wu Tian was far too valuable—losing him would be a waste.
But since it was his teacher's decision, Meng Wu couldn't disobey.
"The elimination of the Reincarnation Group should be nearly complete."
Meng Wu turned his gaze back to the final trials of the Primordial Tournament.
A massive number of Reincarnation Realm cultivators had been gathered into a single battlefield, forced into a chaotic melee.
Meng Wu was beginning to understand the reason behind this decision.
"Many of them refuse to submit because of their arrogance—they believe themselves superior."
"In their past lives, they were emperors, rulers of entire star systems, and now, they look down on others."
"But here, with so many reincarnated geniuses packed into one battlefield, all experiencing utter defeat… they'll finally learn humility."
Without experiencing severe setbacks, how could they possibly lower their pride?
Breaking their arrogance now ensured they could serve the empire in the future.
"I wonder how Zhao Xing's battlefield played out."
Flipping through the reports, Meng Wu's eyes widened in surprise.
"He eliminated both Ruan Xingluo and Lu Nansong?"
"Those two were both elite Reincarnation Realm geniuses!"
"Eliminated... I, a dignified Reincarnation Realm cultivator, who has experienced dozens of reincarnations, actually failed to pass the Primordial Realm's trials?"
Ruan Xingluo sat silently in his room.
He had thought victory was assured, yet he was eliminated as soon as the competition began!
"The Red Star Empire... has this many geniuses?!"
Ruan Xingluo had aimed for the position of Holy Son, but he hadn't even managed to pass the preliminary rounds. The gap between expectations and reality was too vast.
"Zhao Xing... I lost to this Shennong from the Northern River Star System."
After being eliminated, Lu Nansong also reflected on his defeat.
"How can the empire have so many geniuses?"
"No… Something's not right. Many battle arenas had traces of reincarnated cultivators—
"But isn't this number... far too high?"
"What's really going on?"
Lu Nansong sensed something was off, but he couldn't pinpoint exactly what. After all, his memories had been altered.
There was no way he could have imagined that tens of thousands of Reincarnation Realm cultivators had reincarnated into the empire simultaneously.
Meanwhile, Zhao Xing merely glanced at the results before entering a meditative state, preparing for the next round.
The battle royale had ended, and the rest period was brief.
The 2,000 remaining participants would soon face off in the next round.
From this point forward, the battles would determine ranking and treatment.
For now, they had only obtained the lowest-tier resource allocation.
"The second round consists of 400 arenas. The 2,000 contestants will be randomly assigned, five per arena. The format is a round-robin, where each contestant battles the other four. Rankings will be determined based on victory counts and accumulated points. The top two from each arena will advance to the semifinals."
Zhao Xing remained calm, neither arrogant nor anxious, quietly waiting for the next battle to begin.
Three days later, the second round commenced.
Zhao Xing had to fight four matches, and to guarantee advancement, he needed to win at least three.
As for the battlefield, it remained the same Void Star Arena, but the format had changed to one-on-one duels.
Despite this, Zhao Xing once again emerged victorious in all his matches, securing his place among the top 800 competitors.
The semifinals were structured as follows:
80 arenas
800 contestants randomly assigned, 10 per arena
A round-robin format, where each contestant fights the other nine in their group
After nine matches, Zhao Xing once again secured victory in every battle, advancing to the finals.
The final round consisted of only 160 contestants.
From here, the battles would be single-elimination duels—winning meant advancing immediately to the next match.
"I've made it to the finals." Zhao Xing exhaled deeply. "The hidden manipulations of the Primordial Realm should be over by now."
The preliminary round was chaotic and unpredictable, but the second and semifinal rounds had been effortless for him.
It was the initial battle royale that had been troublesome—if not for a stroke of luck, he might have been eliminated by Lu Nansong.
Zhao Xing couldn't shake the feeling that his survival had been partly due to luck.
With so many reincarnated Reincarnation Realm cultivators, how had he managed to make it to the very end?
"Did I overestimate my opponents, or is there another reason?"
Somewhere within the Primordial Realm, atop a towering structure...
A wisp of Qing Yuzi's incarnation penetrated the endless void, locking onto Zhao Xing.
Beside him stood a middle-aged man in white robes and a figure whose entire body exuded a metallic, mechanical brilliance.
These two were Red Star Emperor and the Demi-God Gu Luohe.
"Qing Yuzi, congratulations on refining your divine power." The fire-silver mechanical being nodded toward Qing Yuzi's incarnation.
Qing Yuzi responded with a slight nod. "Thank you, Emperor."
The Red Star Emperor observed him and asked, "The empire has upheld its end of the bargain. Are you satisfied?"
Qing Yuzi replied calmly, "Do not misunderstand, Your Majesty. I am simply here to witness the conclusion—I do not distrust the empire."
The deal between Qing Yuzi and the empire largely revolved around Zhao Xing.
Zhao Xing had wanted to enter the empire and access the Primordial Realm, and Qing Yuzi was not about to abandon him.
Since he had already acted as Zhao Xing's benefactor, he would see things through to the end.
From the preliminary round to the semifinals, the entire Primordial Tournament had been part of the deal.
As long as Zhao Xing passed the third round, his entry into the Primordial Realm was guaranteed—and he would receive top-tier resources.
The Primordial Realm's administrators had ensured Zhao Xing's advancement by adjusting the rules accordingly—
Setting up the target after firing the arrow.
They had effectively ensured Zhao Xing's qualification for the finals.
Otherwise, had Zhao Xing encountered even a slightly stronger reincarnated opponent, he would have already been eliminated.
Of course, Qing Yuzi was well aware that Zhao Xing had an intense sense of pride and would never accept being manipulated or favored.
Thus, he had never explicitly revealed the deal to Zhao Xing.
Seeing Zhao Xing's progress with his own eyes, Qing Yuzi finally felt at ease.
"To be honest, even without my intervention, Zhao Xing likely would have reached this stage on his own." Gu Luohe suddenly remarked.
Qing Yuzi nodded slightly but chose not to continue discussing the topic.
Instead, he produced a crystalline stone from his mouth—
The stone radiated an aura of primal chaos, as if it contained an entire embryonic world.
"I entrust this to you, Brother Gu. If Zhao Xing reaches the Life-and-Death Dao Domain Realm, please pass it on to him."
Gu Luohe extended his hand, accepting the artifact. "I will not fail your request."
Qing Yuzi's divine power incarnation gradually dimmed as he spoke his final words.
"Emperor, the Divine Hall asked me to relay this message: The Desolate Domain transformation is accelerating. The boundary passages are becoming increasingly unstable. If you intend to act, it would be best to do so before the Ice Age begins."
The Red Star Emperor's gaze turned contemplative. "I understand."
Inside the contestants' waiting chamber, within a teleportation formation—
The matchups for the final 160 contestants had been determined.
"My first opponent… Wu Chuanlan of the Heya Star System?"
Zhao Xing's expression grew serious.
"Wu Chuanlan's record is no joke."