After everyone had entered the blue light gate, the progress indicator displayed behind each participant's name read "1".
But very soon, one name stood out from the rest. Dilius! He broke through to "2" at the fastest speed, and his name rapidly climbed upward. He claimed the top spot. And from then on, he held onto that position firmly.
"2"
"3"
"4"
"5"
The progress indicator behind Dilius' name kept jumping at a jaw-dropping pace. While all the other participants were still stuck at the first stage, he had already reached the 3rd stage. By the time someone else broke through to stage 3, Dilius was already at stage 6. With the bearing of an absolute overlord, he maintained a massive lead, crushing everyone else beneath him.
"Truly worthy of a Sovereign-class Blood."
An old man with a head of fiery red hair—each strand seeming to dance as if alive—stared at the leaderboard and remarked with deep emotion.
"I had thought the Monarch-class Blood Okulando was already unmatched in power, but compared to Dilius, the gap is still enormous."
"Hmph."
As the red-haired elder spoke, a faint, cold snort came from his side, followed by a derisive laugh: "Do you think the words 'Sovereign level' mean nothing? A future Galaxy Lord, with even a sliver of potential to challenge the Domain Lord tier—how could that possibly be compared to a mere Monarch-level Blood?"
The red-haired elder turned his expressionless gaze toward the source of the voice. He saw a man and a woman, both possessing extraordinary presence, standing not far from him. The man was the one who had just scoffed. The red-haired elder wasn't angered by the man's sarcasm; it seemed he was already accustomed to it. In fact, the three of them were indeed old acquaintances.
At that moment, on the rankings displayed before them, directly below the name of the top-ranked figure, Dilius, three names were listed in a row, all tied for second place with a progress level of 3. These three were the most gifted prodigies of their respective clans—all possessors of Monarch-class Blood.
At that moment, the progress indicator next to the name "Okulando" on the leaderboard suddenly flickered, changing from 3 to 4. Okulando surpassed the other two, climbing the ranks to become the undisputed and sole second-place holder.
Seeing this change, the expressions of the man and woman who had arrived later immediately turned cold. The red-haired elder, however, wore a smile. With the air of a victor, he cast a casual glance at the pair and spoke calmly: "Even among Monarch-level beings, there are ranks."
"Hmph!"
And just as Okulando's name rose to second place, the progress indicator next to the name of the first-ranked—Dilius—suddenly jumped from "6" to "7."
"The seventh stage!"
"Whoa!"
The three red-haired elders, witnessing this scene, couldn't help but gasp in astonishment. Even for them—rulers of their own domains in the cosmos who had weathered countless storms over tens of thousands of years—their hearts trembled slightly at that very moment.
"Sovereign-level! Sovereign-level!"
The three of them murmured these words repeatedly, their faces etched with genuine awe and disbelief. And following the shock came an even deeper sense of helplessness welling up from the depths of their hearts. Even for them, veteran martial arts masters, Dilius' terrifying natural talent was enough to make them feel a sense of despair. It was hard to imagine just how difficult it would be to coexist in the same era as such a figure.
"A Sovereign-level talent is so overwhelming that it almost saps one's will to even try to catch up." "Dilius already possesses Ruler-level strength."
"Perhaps Okulando and the others can only strive to compete for the title of the top contender beneath the Sovereign."
As the three of them mused on this, someone suddenly frowned and spoke up.
"Rumor has it that before the selection began, a newcomer participating in this very competition clashed with Dilius in the starry void—and even managed to slightly outmatch him…"
The moment these words were uttered, they were immediately met with derisive snorts from those nearby.
"Impossible. This is a Celestial Throne selection. Aside from Dilius, the three from our clans possess the most formidable talent and strength. Even they couldn't achieve that, so who could?"
The other two nodded in agreement, convinced that this rumor—which had previously caused quite a stir and seemed so detailed and credible—was nothing but utter nonsense. Perhaps someone was simply using the opportunity to stir up a fuss.
Just as the three were pondering this, one of them suddenly widened his eyes, as if witnessing a scene so shocking and unbelievable that he couldn't help but cry out in astonishment.
"This can't be possible?!"
"What do you mean, it can't be possible?"
The other two, confused, instinctively followed his gaze. It landed on the leaderboard. And the moment their eyes fell on the leaderboard... Instantly, their expressions froze. Both stood motionless, their faces blank, their eyes staring straight ahead in a daze, as if their very souls had flown out of their bodies.
Shadostar stood on a small flying craft, his hands behind his back, gazing intently at the massive blue portal in the distance. At this very moment. Whether it was Zi Yanxin or Shadostar, their attention was almost entirely focused on a single name.
"Lu Sheng".
That name was currently ranked well over twenty places down the list. And that was only because the progress indicator behind his name had recently changed from "2" to "3". He had advanced to the third stage of the selection. Otherwise, his ranking would have been even lower.
Ahead of him, aside from the geniuses tied with him in the third stage, there were three genius talents with Monarch-level Blood who had advanced to the fourth stage, as well as Dilius, who had soared to the pinnacle early on, reaching the seventh stage.
The status following Lu Sheng's progress had remained unchanged for a long time.
Elder Shadostar's brow furrowed slightly, then quickly smoothed out again, as if he had let out a small sigh of relief. He turned his head slightly and said to Yanxin behind him, "Perhaps it was just a fluke earlier."
"What do you mean, Elder?" Yanxin asked in a low voice.
Elder Shadostar explained calmly, "What I mean is that the dazzling brilliance Lu Sheng displayed earlier was due to Dilius going easy on him. It's also possible he used some secret technique or method capable of temporarily and drastically boosting his combat power. In reality, he doesn't possess the true strength to stand up to Dilius. Now that we've entered the selection stage, his true colors are beginning to show…"
"That's impossible!" Zi Yanxin instinctively retorted.
"Hmph." A cold smile flashed across Shadostar's face as he spoke icily, "Why is it impossible? That might very well be the case. Otherwise, how do you explain his current speed in clearing the stages? I admit he might have some talent. But that bit of talent—comparing it to Dilius is nothing short of a fairy tale. In fact, he doesn't even measure up to the three Monarch-level geniuses of this generation…"
Shadostar pointed at the leaderboard and said with absolute certainty, "If that weren't the case, his current progress shouldn't be stuck at "3". His name shouldn't be at number twenty-seven—it should be at the very top. Even if he can't stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Dilius, there's no way the gap could be this wide!"
Yanxin's heart was choked by Shadostar's words; she wanted to retort but couldn't force a single word out. She looked at him, who had gradually recovered from the shock Lu Sheng had caused earlier and was beginning to regain his usual composure and sharpness. He was trying to save face by dismissing her once again, proving that he was the one who was right.
Feeling resentful, she gritted her teeth and said, "Maybe Lu Sheng is just…"
"Just what?"
Shadostar looked at Yanxin and sneered.
She tried to come up with a more plausible excuse to turn the tables on Shadostar.
Just then, she suddenly saw Sheng's name on the leaderboard flicker. It had jumped from the twenties to fifth place in an instant. The progress indicator after his name had also changed to "4."
"Maybe he's just researching faster ways to clear the levels!" Yanxin's eyes lit up instantly. A flash of insight crossed her mind, and she blurted out quickly, "Elder, haven't you heard the old saying that's been circulating in the cosmos for ages—the vessel that crosses the starry sea is always the sharpest and best-prepared, not the one that sets out first."
"Hah—" Shadostar snorted derisively.
He cast a casual glance at the ranking that belonged to Lu Sheng, who had just climbed up. He was about to casually refute Yanxin's ridiculous claim. But just then, Lu Sheng—who had just moved up once to fifth place—suddenly shifted again.
This time, his ranking jumped straight to second place on the leaderboard. Second only to the top-ranked Dilius, his progress through the trials also changed from "4" to "5".
Shadostar's expression froze instantly, as if taken aback. He stared blankly at that name for quite a while before finally coming to his senses. Just as he was about to speak, as he had only just regained his composure, he saw the progress indicator next to Sheng's name change once again. It jumped from "5" to "6".
Then, within the span of a few breaths, it swiftly shifted from "6" to "7". His ranking also climbed one spot from its original second-place position. He reached the level of tying with Dilius for first place.
Shadostar's eyes widened in disbelief. His expression was as if he had seen a ghost. After a brief moment of silence, he could no longer contain himself, and a voice, almost distorted, burst from his mouth.
"This can't be?!"
Shock. An expression of utter, indescribable shock. It had already spread across his entire face.
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Translation notes by dhoo
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Okulando, aka Mysterious Warehouse of the Many Orchids
Probably one of the three aforementioned "monsters" with Monarch-level Blood.
奧庫蘭多, ào kù lán duō: mysterious, warehouse, orchid, many