"Ugh…"
"Ahhh!!"
"Hisss—"
At the city gates, the air was filled with painful groans.
Crater after crater scarred the ground.
Inside each one lay a genius from some nation, curled up, writhing in pain, wailing miserably.
Pain. Fear. Panic. Confusion. Disbelief. Incomprehension…
These emotions flooded their minds.
"Impossible! Impossible! Impossible!"
"How can this be?! How is this possible?!"
"Why? Why has Zhao Xuan become this strong? He's only a Sixth-Rank Grandmaster! He just graduated from high school!"
"This must be fake! This has to be fake!"
This was what all thirty-seven of them were thinking.
They could not accept it.
They could not believe it.
But the agony and weakness in their bodies told them—
This was real.
They had truly been defeated.
Defeated in less than fifteen seconds.
And what they found hardest to accept—
Zhao Xuan, after crushing all thirty-seven of them in such a short time, showed no sign of fatigue whatsoever.
He looked lively and energetic.
As if the battle had been nothing more than a warm-up.
That was what broke them.
Meanwhile, Zhao Xuan was enjoying the fruits of victory.
"Ding! You experienced a cross-rank battle. In this battle, you skillfully utilized all your abilities (except swordsmanship). Your understanding of your abilities has deepened. Proficiency of all abilities +100!"
The moment the system notification sounded—
A warm current surged from his heart and flowed through his entire body.
Every cell seemed to cheer.
His organs and tissues greedily absorbed the energy.
Three seconds later, the warmth faded.
Zhao Xuan felt the overflowing power inside him and smiled.
He immediately opened his status panel.
Heaven Rewards Diligence System
Name: Zhao Xuan
Age: 18
Spirit: 546.53 / 646.53
Physique: 9856.23 / 10434.23
Abilities:
(Summary omitted here for flow—same as original)
Azure Dragon Fruit — Master Level
"One thousand five hundred points!!!"
"My physique increased by 1500 points in one go!"
"This is insane!"
Reforging his organs once only gave him 200 physique.
This breakthrough was equivalent to seven free reforgings.
And—
His base physique had now exceeded 10,000 without any transformation.
Ecstasy flooded him.
He threw his head back and laughed wildly.
His laughter was arrogant, uninhibited, filled with dominance.
As he laughed, his Conqueror's Haki churned violently.
He checked—
Its proficiency had surged by 20,000 points.
His laughter echoed across the gates.
Arrogant—
But he had the right to be.
Soon, Zhao Xuan calmed down.
Five minutes remained before the gates opened.
"It's time to harvest."
He walked toward Neps and the others.
"I can give you a chance to live."
Hope appeared in many eyes.
"Five seconds."
Zhao Xuan raised his hand.
"You have five seconds to hand over all the Life Stones you obtained these three days."
Silence fell.
These were enormous resources.
Even after paying the 80% tribute, each person would get 60–70 billion.
Their first instinct was refusal.
"5!"
"4!"
"3!"
Neps coughed blood and spoke weakly.
"If… if we hand them over… you'll let us go?"
"Of course," Zhao Xuan replied calmly.
"Because you have no other choice."
He laid it out plainly:
Hand them over and gamble on survival.
Or refuse—and die.
Before the countdown ended, many trembling hands took out Relic Hearts and placed them on the ground.
Zhao Xuan smiled and bent down to collect them.
And then—
His Observation Haki screamed in warning.
A chill ran through his body.
Without hesitation—
ROAR!!!
He instantly entered dragon-man form.
His physique surged past 100,000.
He threw himself sideways.
At that exact moment—
A terrifying sword qi burst from Neps's chest.
The pressure alone made everyone freeze.
A vision appeared in their minds—
A golden-haired, sword-wielding old man.
A Ninth-Rank Emperor.
The sword qi struck Zhao Xuan.
Blood splattered.
Five seconds passed before the pressure dissipated.
Everyone looked up—
And their pupils shrank.
Zhao Xuan was still standing.
A massive bloody wound ran from his left cheek to his right abdomen.
Blood poured out.
But the flow slowed visibly.
The wound healed before their eyes.
Three seconds later—
He was completely restored.
"Ding! Life-and-death trial experienced. All abilities proficiency +20000!"
"Ding! Struck by a Ninth-Rank sword qi. Swordsmanship proficiency +10000!"
Normally, Zhao Xuan would be ecstatic.
But not now.
Because—
He had just nearly died.
If his Observation Haki hadn't warned him—
That sword would have pierced his throat.
And now—
Zhao Xuan was furious.
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