Ye Chen looked at the content.

Challenge Letter: Newcomer, I challenge you, do you dare accept? Sender: Dinosaur Civilization, Tian Long!

Ye Chen's eyebrows twitched. He hadn't expected to run into a challenge match immediately upon arrival. He pondered for a moment, then a cold arc curved around his lips. He reached out and tapped to accept the challenge!

Soon, the other party sent a reply: "Good, you have courage, haha. The time is set for two o’clock tomorrow afternoon. See you at Combat Arena No. 8!"

Ye Chen didn't look further, casually closing the message, and immediately began browsing other information.

Throughout the Second-Rank Genius Hall District, there were many structures, divided into four main areas: the Residence Quarters, the Recreation Quarters, the Combat Quarters, and the Slaughter Quarters!

The Residence Quarters were where Ye Chen currently was.

The Recreation Quarters housed places like bars and entertainment clubs. Since the virtual world was an obscure plane transformed through some method, it was equivalent to a second world, where tactile sensations were 100% real. Therefore, the entertainment clubs inside provided experiences identical to reality.

In fact, within the virtual world, some people became so engrossed in the virtual gaming zones that they could no longer distinguish between reality and simulation. In essence, both were real worlds; one was unknown and self-creating, while the other was created by others, requiring adherence to pre-established rules.

The Combat Quarters contained the various martial stages, typically used by people for sparring and battles.

The Slaughter Quarters housed dark creatures, specifically designed to train one’s methods of massacre, combat techniques, and crucially, to temper one’s mettle and courage!

Mettle was vital. An ordinary person, when attacked, would instinctively flinch and close their eyes while raising their hands to block. The Slaughter Quarters served to hone this courage; even if an enemy launched a terrifying attack that pierced the heart, one could maintain calm and clear thought. This composed tenacity often dramatically increased the probability of victory in combat.

Ye Chen glanced around. Seeing nothing else of note, he left the Genius Hall District and headed to the War God Tower in the Arena District, directly ascending to the 21st floor!

"The gap between the 20th and 21st floors is like a chasm. The 20th floor holds the combat power of peak Pseudo-Gods; the 21st floor begins with the initial strength of true Gods!" Ye Chen's heart settled, becoming utterly calm. He then selected his opponent.

"Hell Civilization!"

Ye Chen casually chose the enemy’s place of origin. Each civilization possessed distinct traits and differing combat capabilities. Among the numerous civilizations, those from Hell Civilization were generally adept at combat, whereas some civilizations specialized in support roles, such as healing.

As for the Fire Civilization, they specialized in auxiliary functions related to sustenance, capable of creating elixirs that could elevate a pig to godhood merely by consumption.

For the combat setting, Ye Chen chose Mars.

Whoosh~~

A flash of light appeared before him, placing him on a crimson planet. The surface was uneven, riddled with craters, stretching into boundless desert, and marked by the impacts of celestial bodies. Many civilizations on the Ancient Continent originated from Earth, thus they possessed intimate knowledge of surrounding planets like Mars and the Moon.

A cool wind swept down from the sky. There was no oxygen here, but for someone of Ye Chen's physique, temporarily foregoing breath was not an issue. Moreover, the gravity here differed significantly from the Ancient World, being quite close to that of Earth.

Swipe!

A figure materialized before Ye Chen, entirely shrouded in black mist. The interior was pitch-dark, with pupils glowing an ominous crimson, resembling a ferocious, terrifying demonic beast. A pair of enormous, bony wings sprouted from its back, stirring up surrounding sand and dust with every flap.

"Hell Civilization, the Sen Bone Clan!"

Ye Chen’s gaze sharpened. Based on his knowledge of the Ancient Continent over these past few days, coupled with his elevated clearance level, he had gained some insight into the Hell Civilization, knowing it comprised various distinct races—much like the Mental Civilization had Yellow and White races.

"Countdown commencing…" the intelligent system announced.

"Begin!"

Swipe!

As the sound faded, the Sen Bone Clan male abruptly raised his hand and pointed. The entire world seemed to freeze; even the blowing wind was suspended in mid-air, and the dust particles swirling below solidified.

Ye Chen was also immobilized. His body felt bound by an invisible force, utterly unable to move, unable even to turn his eyes. The blood in his veins seemed congealed, and the speed of his cognitive thought slowed a hundredfold!

Ye Chen was inwardly stunned. He hadn't expected a true God-level expert to be this terrifying, capable of achieving absolute suppression with a mere domain manifestation, rendering all secret arts completely ineffective! This was the power of a God!

While Ye Chen was reeling from the shock, he sensed the surrounding space rapidly constricting, as if hard walls were crushing his body. This compression wasn't just external; even his internal bones were being squeezed, emitting a crunching sound.

Boom!

Ye Chen’s entire body exploded, scattering into chunks of pulverized flesh.

"Challenge failed!" the intelligent system stated coldly.

Ye Chen reappeared outside the War God Tower, gazing at the towering structure before him. He couldn't help but offer a bitter smile. Without the Cosmic Disc replication device or the Rune Spaceship, his intrinsic power proved utterly fragile against a true God-level adversary!

Ye Chen shook his head, sighed inwardly, and walked back into the tower. He bypassed the 21st floor and directly entered the 20th, again selecting a member of the Hell Civilization, a Sen Bone Clan individual.

Swish~

The two combatants materialized on Mars. As the battle countdown began, Ye Chen immediately enacted the Nine Palaces Secret Art, retreating rapidly while summoning three Nine Palaces Guardians to charge towards the Sen Bone Clan member.

"Explode!" Ye Chen uttered a single word.

The three Nine Palaces Guardians detonated simultaneously. Fierce energy fluctuations surged outwards, creating a mushroom cloud across the Martian surface, akin to an atomic blast.

Whoosh!

From the heart of the mushroom cloud, a figure shot out like lightning, hurtling towards Ye Chen.

A flash of blade light!

Bang!

Ye Chen’s entire body shattered.

"Challenge failed!" the system stated icily.

Ye Chen returned once more before the War God Tower. Reflecting on the previous battles, he plunged into the tower again to undertake challenges. With every fight, he gained some comprehension. Relying on the inherent 100x amplification from the Heavenly Dao Scripture, stacked with the 30x boost from the Nine Palaces Secret Art, yielded a total amplification of 3,000 times! If he activated Blood God Mode, burning 100,000 years of lifespan while in that state would provide a 1,000x power amplification, barely enough to instantly kill a peak Pseudo-God.

...

In the Yan God Empire, Headquarters of the Second-Rank Genius Hall.

Within the vast main hall of the crimson world.

"Is it done?" The figure, ethereal and exuding an air of profound mystery, was lounging upon the throne in the great hall. Before him stood three figures, including Mi Xiuke.

"Reporting to the Hall Master, they have joined us," Mi Xiuke responded respectfully.

"Very good!" This figure’s aura seemed to emanate from eons past, bearing a touch of ancient vastness. "Our Genius Hall gains another genius. I hope this person can comprehend the laws of heaven and earth and ascend to become a true God!"

"If he strives diligently, earns enough Divine Points, and observes the Heavenly Dao Stele several more times, he should be able to grasp the superficial aspects of the laws. Whether he can comprehend the Origin Laws remains uncertain," Mi Xiuke replied deferentially.

"Everything is left to fate..." the figure sighed faintly. If a genius within the Second-Rank Genius Hall achieved a breakthrough leap in strength, he, too, would receive substantial rewards from higher authorities.

"Oh, right," Mi Xiuke suddenly recalled. "The current number one on the Heavenly List, Zhong Renming, has headed to Demon Mountain. Rumor has it he accepted a mission there. I wonder if he can succeed?"

"With his capabilities, he should be sufficient."

"The mission on Demon Mountain is classified as a perilous zone. The Demon race inhabitants there are individually powerful, and their Clan Leader is a true God-level expert. Can he manage it?"

"If we had the Celestial Calculation Secret Art from the Mayan Civilization, we would know. Or perhaps the Three Lives Stone from the Hell Civilization could reveal his next life, showing us the cause of death," the figure’s voice held a note of helplessness.

Across the entire Ancient Continent, artifacts from these two civilizations were legendary and impossible to obtain on a whim. Although the overall power of the Hell Civilization and the Mayan Civilization was not immense, their network of connections was vast, compelling even the Yan God Empire to avoid provoking them unless absolutely necessary.

...

Time flowed, and the next day quickly arrived.

Following the invitation in the email, Ye Chen was instantly pulled by the World Power of the virtual world, teleporting directly to Combat Arena No. 8. Looking around, he saw a vast expanse of land. Towering mountains surrounded the area, rising like bamboo shoots, abruptly sliced flat at the mid-section to reveal smooth, level ground paved with solid flooring. The entire mountain peak served as the battle stage.

Around this Combat Stage on Mountain Peak No. 8, there were no spectators, only Ye Chen’s opponent, Tian Long from the Dinosaur Civilization!

Tian Long was a burly brute, standing six zhang tall—roughly 20 meters—like a giant. His skin was covered in azure scales, and he wore exquisitely styled armor that offered no discernible defense. On his back rested a battle saber forged from a uniform material.

Ye Chen watched him silently. Although there were no visible audiences, he knew that the scene was being broadcast across the video screens in the recreational plaza of the Genius Hall. He had checked upon arrival; at this very moment, only his battle against Tian Long was being shown. Ye Chen gave this coincidence no further thought. He slowly gripped the battle saber in his hand—a randomly selected style he had customized.

"Didn't expect you’d actually dare to show up!" Tian Long looked down upon Ye Chen, his expression cold, his canine teeth bared in a ferocious, crocodile-like grin.

Ye Chen stood before him, appearing like an ant. With a look of contempt, he stated indifferently, "Less nonsense. Let's begin!"

"Heh!" Tian Long sneered. "If you have the guts, bet higher. How about we wager two Divine Points?" Standard challenge matches were usually wagered at one Divine Point per bout!

Ye Chen observed him quietly for a moment, then replied, "If we're betting, let's wager nine Divine Points!"