Chapter 366 - 362: 100-Win Streak, Hidden Realm

Someone like Wu, for example, was once courted by all the major powers. He went on to build his own network, obtain a wealth of resources, and, after a period of secluded cultivation, broke through to the Unity Realm. He became one of the most renowned top-tier experts in the Primordial Great Realm.

And a record like that hadn’t been broken in ten thousand years.

In any case, You Qian didn’t believe Jiang Qiu could actually get Zhu Weiyi out. ’Saving people offers no real benefit. It’s not worth it—in fact, it’s rather naive.’

’And breaking the record? Absolutely impossible.’

’Unless he was a peerless, once-in-ten-thousand-years prodigy!’

But disbelief aside, he was more than happy to help process the Celestial Star Arena membership and registration for the challenge matches. After all, there was a commission to be made. ’If the guy can win a few rounds and earn me a meager profit, why wouldn’t I help?’

With this in mind, You Qian helped Jiang Qiu sort out all the tedious paperwork, submitted it directly to the Celestial Star Arena’s internal system, and began the matchmaking process.

His debut would be tomorrow morning.

Jiang Qiu winced. "The registration fee is a little steep..." He glanced at his balance, which had just decreased by one million Primordial Basic Coins. According to You Qian, the registration fee itself wasn’t that expensive—one hundred thousand was enough for a basic membership. However, to make a name for himself quickly, he had to pay an extra nine hundred thousand for publicity fees. ’Ah, whatever. The sooner I can rescue Grandmaster Zhu, the better.’

According to You Qian, he had been set up with the highest-frequency matchmaking schedule available: two matches in the morning and two in the afternoon, every single day. In theory, this would continue indefinitely... until he died or lost.

Such a frequency was unheard of. In reality, no one ever did this. The challenge matches were no joke. After fighting an opponent of equal strength, a minimum of three days’ rest was standard; many even needed a full week.

Only someone who treated people like pack mules would dare to fight four matches a day!

You Qian didn’t understand it, but he respected the decision. So, he led Jiang Qiu to have his Realm tested to avoid any mismatches in combat power.

And so...

"Jiang Qiu, First-Layer Spirit Body Realm. Are you sure about this?"

You Qian glanced at the data in his hand, then studied the man before him, who was wearing a distinctive mask characteristic of the Yin Yang Great Realm. His brow furrowed in confusion.

’Seriously? First-Layer Spirit Body Realm?’

The realm name was a translation; for different races, the system automatically translated it into an equivalent, understandable term. So, the name "Spirit Body Realm" appearing wasn’t strange.

What was strange was the Realm itself. It wasn’t that it was completely worthless, but displaying it in the Celestial Star Arena... it was just pathetic. After all, many powerful races were born at this level!

But You Qian couldn’t really say anything. He couldn’t see through Jiang Qiu’s Realm himself, and he couldn’t doubt the Celestial Star Arena’s top-of-the-line realm detector. That could only mean one thing: the man was genuinely weak, but possessed a unique method for concealing his aura.

Plenty of people like that showed up every year. In the end, they’d manage to take advantage of one small opening, only to be instantly killed in the second round. The number of such cases was countless.

According to the challenge match rules, a challenger’s next opponent would be automatically matched based on the strength they displayed in battle, either at the same level or even higher.

Even if someone had excellent control and managed not to expose their true power for a few matches, the difficulty would rapidly escalate to their actual level, and they would soon find themselves overwhelmed.

If he really was at the Spirit Body Realm—even if he were invincible within it and could kill those in higher realms—he could rest assured that after ten consecutive wins, his next opponent would be at the first layer of the Bright Soul Realm. Could he win another ten after that?

Then it would be a third-layer Bright Soul Realm opponent!

Every ten consecutive victories, the difficulty would jump a noticeable tier. This leap was especially pronounced in the low Realms. As for the higher Realms, they had their own methods of suppression...

"Yes, I only started my Cultivation recently and have just reached the Spirit Body Realm. So, I’ll be matched with a first-layer Spirit Body Realm opponent tomorrow, correct?" Jiang Qiu asked, his expression unchanging. "I hope he isn’t too strong."

"Generally, you’ll be matched with an opponent of the same Realm as detected. As for whether they’re strong or not, you’ll only know once you fight. Some of our esteemed members love to play the ’hide your Realm’ game."

You Qian sighed. "Well, I wish you luck in winning a few rounds. There’s certainly no shortage of opponents at the first layer of the Spirit Body Realm."

"I will. Thank you."

After receiving a Celestial Star Consecutive Victory Token, Jiang Qiu left the Celestial Star Arena’s main hall and found a hotel to stay in.

He studied the Celestial Star Consecutive Victory Token in his hand. It was a bronze-colored metal plaque engraved with the number zero and his personal information.

This was the token that tracked a regular member’s win streak. The number on it would change after every victory. It was said that as one’s win streak grew, the token would change color to silver, Gold, Platinum, and so on.

Upon reaching fifty consecutive wins, it would turn a majestic red—the symbol of a King. It was an incredibly noble status, and those who could achieve such a streak could truly be called Kings. All of them were geniuses at the Fusion Realm.

The participants here were all relatively young geniuses. It was rare to see old-timers show up and embarrass themselves; after all, being old with a low Realm just made one look inferior.

As for how he hid his Realm and fooled the Celestial Star Arena’s top-tier testing device, it couldn’t have been simpler. The Dragon Spirit Secret Realm Space could conceal his aura. Its very nature was so transcendent that the device couldn’t detect it.

Of course, if he exposed his true strength during a battle, his hidden Realm would still be discovered.

However, this wasn’t a crime, nor was it against the rules. Isn’t hiding one’s Realm a part of one’s strength, too?

’I just need to wait quietly for tomorrow morning’s challenge.’

...

In a luxurious hotel, Fishman Sansan was sprawled on a sofa. The corners of his mouth were hooked upwards like fishhooks, and he exuded an air of extreme arrogance, as if there was nothing in the world he couldn’t accomplish.

At that moment, with an armful of company on either side, he was examining the Celestial Star Arena matchmaking information projected in mid-air. He was surprised to see his opponent was a member of the Human Race named Jiang Qiu.

"Heh, the Human Race?" He laughed, his voice dripping with arrogance. "What a trash race. They were eliminated by the river of history long ago, and now one dares to show its face and embarrass itself?"

This wasn’t an empty boast. Although information from some ruins suggested that the Human Race had reached a peak in the previous epoch, even surpassing the ancient Ten Great Demon Clans, they had ultimately fallen into decline.

It wasn’t clear how they had fallen, much like no one knew why the Dragon Race had vanished without a trace. This once-extraordinary race had simply declined, leaving behind only a few scattered descendants in a handful of worlds.

Take the Desolate Realm, for example. The native humans were all descendants from the previous epoch, but it seemed they hadn’t inherited any remarkable Talents. They were all trash, and their sovereignty had been easily stripped away by races from the Outer Realms.

From this, one could infer that the information from the ruins was false and that history had been fabricated. The Human Race was, in fact, a trash race. The race that had once reached the peak must have been some other.

The current Peak Races were the various Demon and Spirit Races, as well as the reclusive clans from the Ancient Great Realm. They had nothing to do with the Human Race.

So, upon seeing that his opponent was from the Human Race, this Fishman, Sansan, laughed. "For a human, reaching even this pathetic Realm must have been difficult. He would have been better off picking ore in the Desert Sea. I’m almost embarrassed to admit that I’m actually a peerless genius at the Ninth-Layer of the Spirit Body Realm."

His life was the stuff of legends. Born as a piece of trash in the Merfolk Clan, unable to cultivate, a chance opportunity half a year ago led him to find a seashell in his native Fishman Realm. He then absorbed the Soul of a great Fusion Realm expert from within it and, under their guidance, his Cultivation skyrocketed.

Now, he was already an incredible genius at the Ninth Layer of the Spirit Body Realm!

Moreover, he had even mastered a special ability to deceive the Celestial Star Arena’s detectors. He was truly a prodigy reborn. In just a few years, he might even be able to skip right past the Bright Soul, Dharma Aspect, Peeping Dao, and Dao Entry realms to ascend directly to the Fusion Realm!

"For my debut tomorrow, I’ll give that Jiang Qiu a quick and painless end. It won’t be a waste for him to serve as my stepping stone."