“The second round of the Devata Realms’ Battle of Geniuses begins now!”
Before Xu Kong Hai announced the start of the second round, most of the young geniuses in the ring were tense as they looked at their opponents warily with grim expressions on their faces.
A few people like Duan Ling Tian and most of the people in his group remained indifferent. Only Zhang Tian You and Wang Ting who were in Duan Ling Tian’s group were slightly tense. Duan Ling Tian, Su Li, Ling Jue Yun, and even Tang San Pao remained calm.
However, as soon as Xu Kong Hai’s voice fell, chaos broke out immediately. Energies with a variety of colors sailed in the battle ring immediately.
With this, the battle royale had begun.
Duan Ling Tian’s group stood at a corner of the battle ring. They did not make a move and observed the fights around them as though they were above the fights.
It did not take long for the fights to turn violent. Many had already crushed their jade token to escape from life-threatening attacks. In just a short while, there were no less than twenty participants who had given up.
Miserable cries could also be heard intermittently from those who did not crush their jade tokens in time. Perhaps, it was due to their drive to advance to the next round, they were slow to crush their jade tokens and were killed as a result.
For a time, there was only one death in the second round. However, as time passed, the death toll began to rise. This served as a warning to the others so most people would crush their jade tokens to surrender rather than take the risk.
At this moment, Zhang Tian You, who was standing behind Duan Ling Tian, looked warily ahead, slightly to the right, before he suddenly said, “Someone is heading in our direction.”
Although Zhang Tian You and Wang Ting did not formally ask to team up with Duan Ling Tian, Duan Ling Tian did not say anything when the duo followed him. Seeing this, both of them were relieved and were determined to pull their weight in the team. Therefore, Zhang Tian You was quick to alert the others when he saw someone approaching them.
When Duan Ling Tian and the others looked up, they saw a group of seven participants approaching them. The leader of the group was the first to kill a person in the battle ring. Based on his performance, his strength should be comparable to a Two Star God of War at least. He was a young man with an average appearance and an average build. Lightning bolts flashed around him, making him look like the god of thunder. His aura was fierce as well, capable of striking fear into the hearts of weaker opponents.
“That’s the only true disciple of the Heavenly Emperor of the Solitary Destructive Heaven… If I can eliminate him, I’ll be able to boast about it for the rest of my life!” the leader of the group of seven said. Clearly, he intended to eliminate Duan Ling Tian.
As for the remaining six people, all of them possessed strength comparable to a titled Celestial Emperor. Out of the six, two of them seemed rather strong.
“Not only are you the true disciple of a Heavenly Emperor, but I heard you possess the strength of a strong titled Celestial Emperor despite only being a little over 600 years old. Please show me, Lin Wei, how powerful you are!” The young man, who called himself Lin Wei, brought a gigantic hammer that was flashing lightning bolts. Without any more words, he brought the hammer down toward Duan Ling Tian and the others. The sky seemed to change color as the hammer fell with a huge destructive force.
Meanwhile, when Duan Ling Tian saw Lin Wei’s profundities that flashed brightly, he could tell Lin Wei had strength comparable to a top Two Star God of War; he also determined Lin Wei should be the strongest in the group.
Duan Ling Tian had heard Lin Wei’s words earlier so he knew Lin Wei had intentionally targeted him to make a name for himself. A small smile appeared on his face as he thought to himself, “Since when did I, Duan Ling Tian, become an easy target in people’s eyes?’
As Lin Wei drew closer, a cold scoff rang in the air.
Ling Jue Yun, who was standing next to Duan Ling Tian, sneered. At the same time, a clone of him with blood-red eyes from the law of death appeared. As soon as the clone appeared, it shot toward Lin Wei like a streak of red light.
“You’re seeking death!” Lin Wei smiled mockingly. Duan Ling Tian was his target; he would mercilessly kill and destroy everyone and everything that stood in his path.
“So what if you have a clone from the law of death? I will crush it with my hammer!” Lin Wei’s hammer continued to fall like a meteor. The lightning bolts flashed in a frenzy as the hammer drew closer and closer to its target before they struck Ling Jue Yun’s clone as though it was undergoing a heavenly tribulation.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A series of explosions rang in the air as the hammer was about to land on Ling Jue Yun’s clone.
At the same time, the energy of Ling Jue Yun’s clone skyrocketed suddenly. Its speed increased twice, and it easily dodged the hammer. It moved with the agility of a monkey as it reached out and grabbed Lin Wei’s neck in just a blink of an eye.
Lin Wei’s expression changed drastically when he felt the hand closing in on his throat. He struggled and cried out, “No!”
Just as Lin Wei was about to crush his jade token, with one hand tightly gripping Lin Wei’s neck, the clone reached out and pressed its other hand down on Lin Wei’s shoulder. In just a split second, it separated Lin Wei’s head from its body with its bare hands.
Blood splattered everywhere, creating a horrifying sight.
At this moment, those who were fighting nearby froze for a moment, looking at Ling Jue Yun warily.
“W-we’re sorry…. We’ll leave immediately!”
The six participants who came with Lin Wei wore terrified expressions on their faces as they watched the strongest person in their group being torn into two. They hurriedly apologized and tried to scurry away.
Ling Jue Yun ignored their words. His clone continued to move, and in just a moment, it ripped another two people apart. Blood splattered everywhere as severed limbs flew in the air.
The remaining four participants were seized by terror as they watched the gory scene. They no longer dared to hesitate and crushed their jade tokens immediately despite feeling unresigned. How could they not feel unresigned? They had strength comparable to titled Celestial Emperors, and yet, they could only flee with their tails between their legs. Nevertheless, the lingering fear they felt when they saw their teammates being ripped apart tamped down their resentment and unwillingness. If it could have easily been them who were ripped apart, after all.
After they were transported out of the battle ring, they looked at the grey-clad Ling Jue Yun who was standing next to Duan Ling Tian warily.
“I didn’t expect Duan Ling Tian’s friend to be so strong. Based on his performance so far, he has to be as strong as a top Three Star God of War at least. In fact, there’s a high possibility he’s comparable to a Four Star God of War!”
Up until now, Ling Jue Yun’s attacks could be considered the most fearsome and violent among all the participants. Even if there were those who were stronger than him, their attacks were not so gory and violent, and they would not go for the kill as soon as they attacked. It did not seem like he was in competition; it seemed more like he was killing his enemies.
‘Wow, he is so powerful!’ Zhang Tian You and Wang Ting, who were standing behind Ling Jue Yun, shared the same thought. Chills ran up their spines as they watched him kill the three young geniuses, whose strength was similar to theirs, with just one move. When they shifted their eyes back to him, their eyes were filled with wariness. They could not help but wonder to themselves, ‘Who’s Duan Ling Tian’s friend? He has to be as strong as a top Three Star God of War at least, if not a Four Star God of War. Ordinary Three Star Gods of War won’t be a match for him at all…’
Apart from Duan Ling Tian, Su Li, and the participants from the Wind Prop Heaven’s Title Temple who were aware of Ling Jue Yun’s strength, the others were shocked and grew wary of Ling Jue Yun.
“Who’s he?”
“I don’t think I’ve heard of him before. His mastery of the law of death is flawless!”
“His comprehension of the law of death is extraordinary, and he’s decisive. It’s not too bad if he’s merely a Three or Four Star God of War. It’d be troublesome if he were a Five Star God of War…”
Many people thought Ling Jue Yun was bloodthirsty and cruel. He did not even give his opponents a chance before he killed them.
Naturally, in a competition like this, one could only oneself for one’s death. The rules had been set, and one could leave with the jade token at any given time. If one persisted and refused to crush one’s jade token, no one would feel sorry for one’s death.
Meanwhile, the Heavenly Emperors on the floating islands only glanced at Ling Jue Yun for a moment. Based on the current strength he displayed, he was still not worthy of their attention. There were also quite a number of Heavenly Emperors who disliked Ling Jue Yun’s cruelty.
Currently, those who died or surrendered totaled up to more than 200 people. This meant there were still more than 700 participants in the ring.
The battles continued in the ring. However, since Ling Jue Yun’s display of strength, no one else dared to challenge Duan Ling Tian and the others. They fought and killed among themselves but treated Duan Ling Tian’s group as though they did not exist.
At this time, the sound of flesh being torn rang in the air.
The crowd had another person to fear as they watched a young man dressed in bloodstained robes kill indiscriminately with his saber. The young man had a medium build, and his expression was a mix of iciness and determination. His gaze was piercing and fierce as he fought. If one were to look closely, one would see that his bloodstained robe used to be dark grey. The young man did not avoid the blood splattered everywhere when he killed his opponents. It was as though the blood that dyed his robes a red was a badge of honor.