"Bolan?"
Everyone on the square looked at the young man who appeared. As an absolute powerhouse among the geniuses of various Cosmic Countries, Bolan was one of the favorites to win the championship. Reaching the Myriad Thread Current level of a hundred threads is something most World Lords cannot achieve, but the young man before them did.
His talent in Space Law was that of an absolute genius, a being on a different level from other geniuses.
"God-Demon Qin Hao"
While everyone's gaze was on Bolan, Bolan's gaze was fixed on Qin Hao's location. He walked over, his eyes firmly on Qin Hao, filled with battle intent.
His biggest opponent in this Genius Battle was a being who had slaughtered an entire world, a genius whose Myriad Thread Current was rumored to be capable of nearly 9,000 avatars.
"Thirteen, your Gan Wu Cosmic Country's God-Demon Qin Hao and Death God Bolan have met."
In Restaurant No. 1, the Undying leaders from various Cosmic Countries gathered, watching the scene on the square, and Thirteen couldn't help but be teased.
"If it weren't for Qin Hao, Bolan's position this time would be unshakeable. It's a pity Qin Hao appeared," Thirteen said without showing any weakness. He was even clearer about Qin Hao's power. Especially Qin Hao's performance in the Virtual Universe in recent years, even the Gan Wu Country Lord sighed at Qin Hao's talent.
Looking at Bolan standing before him, Qin Hao didn't pay much attention. Bolan's talent was indeed excellent, at the level of tens of thousands of epochs. His Space Law talent was even at the level of hundreds of thousands of epochs. Unfortunately, he had been messed with by Qin Hao. His talent was strong, but his personality was too arrogant and overly confident.
Qin Hao's reaction caused a hint of anger to flash in Bolan's eyes. He couldn't believe Qin Hao disregarded him so much. This made Bolan, who had always been very proud of his strength, feel a bit indignant. Nine thousand avatars were much stronger than himself, but Bolan didn't believe such a powerful being existed.
Seeing the indignation in Bolan's eyes, Qin Hao originally didn't want to bother, but after all, Bolan was a genius of the human race. If he walked the right path, he could very likely become a Space Venerable in the future. After a slight thought, a hazy light flickered in Qin Hao's eyes.
Bolan instantly felt a powerful mental pressure sweep towards him, and the surrounding space seemed to freeze.
"Let's go, go back and rest," Qin Hao said, seeing Bolan in a daze. He didn't stay on the square any longer and walked towards Building 0825. Luo Feng and the others followed closely, returning to Building 0825.
"What a terrifying genius, he even comprehended Space Lockdown!"
"And a powerful soul and will!"
"A genius with no weaknesses!"
The Undying in Restaurant No. 1 couldn't help but exclaim as they saw the situation on the square. Although there was no direct confrontation, Qin Hao's mere glance, the will and temperament he displayed, and his comprehension of Space Law, were all beyond what an Astral Rank could achieve.
At least among the Astral Rank geniuses they had seen, there were basically none.
"Could it be that another genius of ten million epochs is about to emerge?" A thought popped into the minds of all the Undying, but they were quickly startled by their own idea.
A genius of ten million epochs, Kedi from back then, is still a name mentioned when humans measure talent even now.
"Haha, what are you discussing? So lively."
A voice echoed through the restaurant, waking all the Undying from their inner shock. Everyone turned their heads and looked towards the main entrance of the restaurant. A man whose head was covered in purple scales appeared in the restaurant. He seemed to not exist within space itself.
"Venerable."
All the Undying stood up and bowed respectfully.
"This time, my Virtual Universe Corporation has held the Genius Battle, and your various Cosmic Countries have given strong support. On behalf of our Virtual Universe Corporation, I express my gratitude," the purple-scaled man in green robes said with a smile.
"It's what we should do," the voices of all the Undying rang out.
"The events on the square just now are to be completely Locked down. No one is to reveal anything outside."
"Yes."
"You all continue chatting. All participants will be summoned shortly," the purple-scaled man in green robes said, then turned and left.
"Thirteen, where in the Gan Wu Cosmic Country is Qin Hao currently?" As he turned to leave, a voice appeared in Thirteen's ear.
"Black Dragon Mountain Empire, Silverblue Empire, Milky Way Galaxy, Earth," Thirteen quickly provided Qin Hao's location and cosmic coordinates to the purple-scaled man in green robes, not daring to hesitate in the slightest.
After Ninesword Exalt left Restaurant No. 1, he summoned Longyu Wang, his subordinate, and instructed her, "Longyu, go to this location and ensure Qin Hao's safety. Bring Qin Hao to the headquarters after the Genius Battle ends."
"Yes, Exalt."
At this moment, Bolan on the square had already woken up. He looked at the vanished Qin Hao and his group, his eyes filled with a trace of fear and a sense of defeat. Just a single glance had made him fall into an illusion. The powerful spiritual power, willpower, and mysterious methods all made him feel a chill in his heart.
"I won't give up that easily," Bolan murmured, then left the square.
Evening
"All participants from the 1008 Cosmic Countries, proceed to the Central Plaza."
The announcement sounded, and the geniuses in various locations invariably stood up from their residential buildings and restaurants, gathering towards the Central Plaza.
Upon hearing the sound, Qin Hao's mind jolted, and he quickly woke up from his meditation. He walked out of his room and followed the crowd to the Gan Wu Cosmic Country's designated area in the plaza.
"What happened?" Luo Feng and the others asked in confusion after being startled awake.
"Nothing, the final stage of the Genius Battle is about to begin," Qin Hao said. At the same time, the Undying at the front of each formation released their pressure, and everyone quieted down.
"Welcome, all of you, to the Peak Genius Battle hosted by our Virtual Universe Corporation," Ninesword Exalt said gently after appearing.
"From the more than one million geniuses across 1008 Cosmic Countries, our Virtual Universe Corporation will select the strongest one thousand to be absorbed into the core of the Virtual Universe Corporation. The rules are as follows:"
With that, Ninesword Exalt paused, then continued.
"We have prepared a Trial Space for each of you. The Trial Space has a total of seven Trial Towers, and each Trial Tower has seven levels. You will start challenging from the first Trial Tower until you die or are kicked out of the Trial Tower location. Based on your points, the top 100 in points will not need to be screened and can directly join the Virtual Universe Corporation. Those from 101st to 7300th place will participate in a Ring Match to compete for the remaining 900 spots. Those ranked after 7300th will all be eliminated."
After the rules were announced, Ninesword Exalt didn't pay attention to the reactions of the geniuses present and simply disappeared from the spot. With Ninesword Exalt gone, the Undying team leaders led their respective teams back to their buildings, and all the geniuses began to feel extremely nervous.
One million geniuses competing for 1,000 spots, with the weakest having comprehended laws, meant unprecedented competitive pressure. Only a few who had comprehended superior laws could relax slightly. However, they were still very nervous. After all, differences in rankings also meant differences in resources.