Unbelievably, more than halfway through the twenty thousand li journey, Lu Yuan was still ranked forty-first.

Those who had come from other nations to witness the miracle felt a sense of disappointment. Naturally, mixed in with that disappointment was a degree of satisfaction; if Lu Yuan did not perform as a true peerless genius, then the super-geniuses from their own countries would face one less formidable opponent in the Hundred Kingdoms Assessment. Thus, while somewhat disheartening, it was ultimately a favorable turn of events.

The Water Mirror technique flashed repeatedly, with most observers now focusing on who held the first, second, and third positions.

For the top three spots, the most intense competition was among Venerable Yuanyang, Venerable Zixia, Venerable Huifeng, Yu Qingzhou, and Yu Qingdai—these five vying for the lead.

There was no grand spectacle to behold, but watching the contest for first, second, and third place was enough to pass the time.

Understandably, the envoys from the Great Yue, Great Wu, Great Ye, Murong, and Hundred Poverty Kingdoms were on the verge of dozing off. For these five nations, without a miracle unfolding, they found the outcome of any single assessment, regardless of who took first or second, utterly tedious.

In fact, the people from the five nations had already noted that Lu Yuan’s magical power seemed relatively low, though his potential was likely decent.

It was a pity; it seemed he wouldn't achieve much in this Hundred Kingdoms Assessment.

In the next Hundred Gardens Assessment, this youth might very well make it to the Central Celestial Dynasty, but that meant waiting another two hundred years.

As the majority watched with a feeling of "better than nothing," and the envoys from the five nations were about to drift off to sleep, a flash appeared on the Water Mirror focused on the finish line. It was Lu Yuan, reaching the end of the Thorny Path and claiming a token forged from extraterrestrial meteorite, inscribed with the word 'Central.'

Lu Yuan was the thirty-fifth person to secure the token made of extraterrestrial meteorite.

Others might have been irrelevant, but for him to be the thirty-fifth to claim such a token was genuinely disappointing.

“He’s accelerating! Senior Brother Lu is starting to accelerate!” Ye Fang was the first to cry out.

Initially, few people from Mount Hua had come to watch, but as Lu Yuan drew closer to creating a miracle, more and more people from Mount Hua arrived. All the core disciples of Mount Hua were now present. As Ye Fang shouted this initial cheer, it failed to draw anyone’s attention.

What time was it now?

They were already more than halfway through the journey; what was the use of accelerating now?

At most, he could climb from thirty-fifth to somewhere in the twenties.

Indeed, Venerable Yuanyang, currently in first place, was only twenty-five li from the finish line. Yu Qingdai, temporarily in third, was only thirty li away from the Five Wheels Palace—not that far at all. As for Lu Yuan, he still had a full hundred thousand li to go, not a single li less. The gap between them was immense.

The envoys from the Great Yue, Great Wu, Great Ye, Murong, and Hundred Poverty Kingdoms continued to doze.

They planned to return immediately after this segment concluded.

The only reason they hadn't left earlier was to offer the Jin Kingdom some face; otherwise, it would look bad politically.

“He’s accelerating, so fast,” Dugu Ye praised him. However, she was merely a Sword Immortal, and whose attention would her words draw from the other five nations? A while later, Sun Qingchi’s voice was heard: “He’s accelerating, so fast, how can he be this quick?” But Sun Qingchi also held little sway with the other five nations, so they mostly ignored her as well.

“So fast!” This exclamation came from Zu Qianqiu, the leader of the Five Immortals Alliance, seated nearby.

Zu Qianqiu was a Master of the Universe (Yu Shi). He was widely renowned in the surrounding kingdoms.

Zu Qianqiu’s remark caused everyone from the Great Yue, Great Wu, Great Ye, Murong, and Hundred Poverty Kingdoms to turn their gaze toward the Water Mirror. On its surface, Lu Yuan was indeed moving astonishingly fast. The Purple Robe Vice-Angel, constantly shifting the display of the Water Mirror technique, could barely keep up with Lu Yuan’s pace.

If this were normal flight, such speed would be unremarkable.

But this was not normal flight; this was the Thorny Path, swarming with demonic beasts.

The five nations secretly thought that Lu Yuan could not sustain such speed for long.

Just as they were thinking this, a Crimson Weaver emerged ahead of Lu Yuan. The Crimson Weaver was a monstrous hybrid born from the union of the Thousand-Year Venomous Scorpion and the Ancient Fire Spider—exceptionally venomous. Even the Six-Winged Golden Silkworm Gu, the king of Gu worms, would retreat three she upon encountering such a creature. When this Crimson Weaver appeared, everyone expected Lu Yuan’s speed to drop. Instead, the Weaver frantically retreated, and Lu Yuan, his sword light unbroken, pierced right through.

What was happening? A creature capable of subjugating the king of Gu worms was actually scared into retreat by Lu Yuan? What in the world was going on? A Fierce Condor appeared next. The Fierce Condor was renowned for its ferocity and its appetite for cultivators; it showed no fear even when encountering cultivators of the Great Dao Realm. Those watching the Water Mirror before the Five Wheels Palace thought there might be a fight. But then, the Fierce Condor retreated to an immeasurable distance, as if seeing some terrifying entity.

...The Fierce Condor fled too?

Following these were not just the Crimson Weaver and the Fierce Condor, but also Poison Locusts, Evil Whales, Cold Borers, Tiger-Faced Owls, Seven-Step Rattlesnake Dragons, Snow Hedgehogs, Elephant Dragons, and countless others. Most of these demonic beasts were extremely vicious, terrifyingly cruel, each possessing unique skills and abilities—the very elite among the southern nations' demonic fauna, true apex predators.

Yet, for some unknown reason, all these apex beasts retreated when encountering Lu Yuan, as if he were some horrifying spectacle.

This allowed Lu Yuan’s sword light to flash through unimpeded, at an unbelievable speed.

This left the people of the various nations perplexed. Even the people of the Jin Kingdom generally didn't understand what was happening—why were so many demonic beasts fleeing from Lu Yuan? After all, few people from the North Peak of Mount Hua had mastered the Eighth Transformation of the Cloud Dragon—the Jiaotu Transformation—over the years, and many were unaware of what the Jiaotu Transformation accomplished.

As for Lu Yuan himself, soaring on his sword, the White Emperor Sword Dao cutting a path without pause, utilizing the activated Eighth Transformation of the Cloud Dragon, the might of the dragon manifested. Even the peerless demonic beasts gave way, a sensation that filled Lu Yuan with exhilarating pleasure.

Joyful!

Before the Five Wheels Palace, most gazes returned to Lu Yuan.

“What a Lu Yuan, so fast.”

“Indeed, he’s already thirty-first.”

“He passed another one—thirtieth—no, another one! Twenty-ninth!”

“So fast, even the beasts don’t dare attack him. Twenty-fifth!”

“Now, he’s twenty-third. So fast.”

“Lu Yuan is making his move in the second half of the race.”

“Too fast!”

“Let’s check Lu Yuan’s opponent now. Venerable Yuanyang, the current first place, is only eleven thousand li from the finish line. Lu Yuan is still sixty-two thousand li away. It seems Lu Yuan’s burst came too late. Although his current speed is peak and the beasts dare not block him, he probably won’t be faster than Venerable Yuanyang.” This was the general consensus: Lu Yuan's surge, ultimately, was too late; he was only ranked twenty-third for now.

“Nineteenth place!”

“Incredible—he’s passing them so fast.”

“Lu Yuan is too fast.”

“Eighteenth... Seventeenth...” “Fifteenth...” “Eleventh... Tenth place!”

“Tenth place! In such a short time, he has surged from thirty-fifth to tenth, such incredible speed, casting competitors aside one after another!”

“Now he’s tenth. At this point, Venerable Yuanyang is only about six thousand li from the finish line, while Lu Yuan is thirty-five thousand li away. Although Lu Yuan is rushing incredibly fast, catching up to Venerable Yuanyang won’t be easy. Is it possible for Lu Yuan to create a miracle?” On the Water Mirror display, everyone else had already vanished; the focus was entirely on two figures now.

Lu Yuan and Venerable Yuanyang.

The fight for the top three positions had long ceased to matter. What everyone cared about now was whether Lu Yuan could create a miracle.

At this juncture, it had to be admitted that Lu Yuan indeed possessed a possibility of achieving the miraculous.

And now, the envoys from the Great Wu, Great Yue, Great Ye, Murong, and Hundred Poverty Kingdoms were observing intently. Their previous drowsiness had long evaporated. This truly was a peerless genius. The two peerless geniuses, Murong Huangfu and Xiao Fengxiong, had likely encountered a formidable opponent.

The Hundred Kingdoms Assessment would undoubtedly be thrilling.

“Lu Yuan is still overtaking competitors, now ninth place.”

“Eighth place has been passed.”

“Fifth place—Venerable Huifeng in fifth place has been overtaken!” At this moment on the Thorny Path, Venerable Huifeng was stunned. He had thought he had a chance to break into the top four or three, only to be cast down to sixth by Lu Yuan’s late surge. Venerable Huifeng couldn't help but accelerate; in terms of speed, he was no match for Lu Yuan, but a massive Golden Spider immediately blocked his path, whereas another Crimson Weaver dared not obstruct Lu Yuan and could only tremble nearby.

“Fourth place! Yu Qingzhou in fourth place has been surpassed.” Yu Qingzhou had been advancing using the Sky-Treading Ladder movement technique when he saw a white light sweep past—it was Lu Yuan. Had this fellow only exerted himself in the latter half? Yu Qingzhou was unwilling to be overtaken and began to accelerate, but such acceleration made him abandon his burst when he encountered a certain demonic beast that he had to deal with first.

“Third place! Venerable Zixia in third place has been surpassed.” As the white sword light sliced across the sky, Venerable Zixia was locked in combat with an Elephant Dragon-type demonic beast.

“Second place! Yu Qingdai in second place has been surpassed.” Yu Qingdai was deeply displeased when he saw the white sword light sweep past. He had intended to contend for first place, and being overtaken by someone from the Mount Hua Immortal Sect had already soured his mood, only for a second person from Mount Hua to pass him.

“Alright, the first place, Venerable Yuanyang, is one thousand li from the finish line.”

“Second place, Lu Yuan, is three thousand li away from the finish line.”

“In this final confrontation, who will emerge victorious?”

Before the Five Wheels Hall, all the Water Mirrors were temporarily turned off. Everyone stopped watching the displays and instead focused on the very front of the Thorny Path. Who would be the first to appear? Would it be Venerable Yuanyang or Lu Yuan?

And at the starting point of the Thorny Path, figures finally began to emerge.

It was...