“Do you choose to enter the Game Zone, the Competition Zone, or the subsidiary system, the ‘Second-Rank Genius Hall’?” the system prompt sounded.

“Second-Rank Genius Hall,” Ye Chen stated directly.

Swish!

Ye Chen returned to the leisure area of the Second-Rank Genius Hall and immediately noticed the streets were sparsely populated. Most people were gathered in buildings like bars, while others were in seclusion cultivating in their residences or vigorously training in the arena.

“Look, it’s him!” “Ye Chen of the Spiritual Civilization!” “He’s actually still alive!”

The people on the surrounding streets, who normally paid no mind to others, stiffened instantly and cried out in shock when some of them inadvertently glanced at Ye Chen.

“He isn't dead!”

“Could the rumors be wrong?”

Everyone stared at Ye Chen as if they had seen a ghost. After confirming their eyes were not deceiving them, a lively discussion immediately erupted among them.

The news of Ye Chen’s reappearance swept through the entire Second-Rank Genius Hall like a hurricane, with everyone discussing it animatedly with their friends.

Ye Chen felt the strange gazes surrounding him and frowned slightly, but he said nothing more, proceeding directly to the Heaven's Dao Stele. Based on his accumulated observation opportunities, he could still view it five more times!

Now, his state of mind and cultivation had greatly increased, allowing him to maximize the effect of these five viewings. Thus, he arrived directly before the Heaven's Dao Stele, paid the Divine Points, and was transported before the towering stone monument.

This stele seemed to have existed since the beginning of heaven and earth, exuding an ancient and weathered aura, with swirling mists obscuring its surface, making it hard to discern clearly.

Ye Chen looked up and walked to his previous spot, taking about four steps before stopping. He felt the mists swirling around the Heaven's Dao Stele he was gazing at slowly drifting and transforming into various shapes, giving him an utterly profound and mystical sensation.

Ye Chen’s pupils took on a trace of obsession, completely sinking into the vision. His body involuntarily moved forward, walking for nearly a hundred steps before gradually halting.

In the world Ye Chen perceived, there seemed to be a vast, dim expanse of starry sky, shrouded by thin clouds. These clouds became clearer and clearer, and something within seemed to whisper softly.

The two dim points of starlight previously suspended in this void also grew sharper, and then a third and a fourth appeared…

One by one, points of starlight emerged, intertwining with each other, sketching out a marvelous pattern, as if recounting some ancient tale.

A wave of confusion washed over Ye Chen; he felt as though he had seen something, comprehended something, yet he could not grasp what exactly it was.

Ding!

The system prompt sounded, jolting Ye Chen out of that wondrous state. He regained his senses, paused for a moment, and looked down in contemplation. After a brief period of deep thought, he carefully imprinted the successive patterns he had witnessed into his mind. After about two hours, he submitted another viewing application to the system.

After deducting 10 Divine Points, Ye Chen was instantly teleported by the system to the exact spot where his previous enlightenment had concluded. Ye Chen quickly cast aside all distractions and stared intently. On the Heaven's Dao Stele before him, a mysterious energy seemed to envelop him, guiding his thoughts into a magnificent and mystical world.

Enlightenment! Enlightenment!

Ye Chen was completely immersed within it.

Almost everyone in the Genius Hall knew that once one stood before the Heaven's Dao Stele, making zero-distance contact, it signified grasping the true meaning of the Laws and stepping into the Divine Realm, gaining the ability to control a domain of time and space!

To possess one's own domain!

Although the ancient world was filled with numerous deities, achieving the rank of a Divine powerhouse was extraordinarily difficult. Many spent their entire lives without even glimpsing the threshold of godhood!

Others remained stuck at the True Void God realm, hopelessly unable to push open the door to the Divine Realm.

In the blink of an eye, nine hours passed. Ye Chen gazed at the Heaven's Dao Stele in a state of obsession, his consciousness entirely submerged in a profound mystery. Only when the system prompt sounded was he teleported out from before the stele, and his consciousness fully snapped back to alertness.

“So fast.” Ye Chen couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. Every time he observed the Heaven's Dao Stele, it felt as though he had just entered a profound state when the prompt signaled his teleportation out—as sickening as suddenly finding a fly in one’s food while eating.

Ye Chen shook his head, suppressing any further complaint, and moved his body, choosing to teleport to his residential room.

System Prompt: "Esteemed Mr. Ye Chen, greetings. You have successfully become a member of the First-Rank Genius Hall. Your residential room in the Second-Rank Genius Hall has been cancelled, and you no longer have the right to return there." Ye Chen frowned slightly, pondered for a moment, and then headed to the leisure area. He walked into a rather lively bar, pushed open the metal-framed wooden door, and immediately saw the entire noisy atmosphere of the bar freeze instantly, falling into absolute silence.

The previously fiery ambiance evaporated in a flash, becoming dead quiet.

Everyone turned to look over, their gazes landing on Ye Chen, their eyes filled with inexpressible shock.

Ye Chen frowned, ignored the stares of the crowd, walked straight to the counter, ordered a glass of KS Blazing Fire, and began sipping it slowly while contemplating the insights gained from observing the Heaven's Dao Stele earlier.

Through the previous five consecutive viewings, Ye Chen had gained profound feelings, a sense of sudden enlightenment, and his mental state had greatly advanced. He had reached a bottleneck at the late stage of the first tier of the Saint realm, with a subtle tendency to break through to the second tier.

“This Heaven’s Dao Stele is manifested from the power of Laws; to see through the illusory things surrounding it is to see through the Laws themselves, touching the very door of the Divine Realm!” Ye Chen pondered internally. “From the beginning, when I took two steps, I saw a Star Chart—the entire illusory spacetime contained only one point of starlight, eternal and unchanging, neither weak nor strong, neither moving nor shaking.”

“Later, the Two-Star Chart appeared in succession, two stars intertwining and converging, mutually harmonizing.”

“Then came the Three-Star Chart, the tripod standing firm, each occupying a position…”

“Followed by…”

“Finally, the Five-Star Chart!”

Ye Chen’s brow furrowed. “This Five-Star Chart has four stars occupying the four cardinal directions, with one centered and constantly shifting. What does this mean?” With his access, he already knew that some Law patterns were specifically inscribed by many previous Divine seniors and passed down for later generations to observe, allowing them to glimpse the Laws of the universe through these Law patterns.

For example, the Myriad Rain Diagram, the Myriad Mountains Diagram, the Fierce Wind Diagram, the Hundred Schools of Thought Diagram, and so on. According to the system data, the pattern in the Second-Rank Genius Hall was the Myriad Stars Diagram.

Using the myriad stars of heaven and earth to deduce the Laws of the cosmos!

Different degrees of Law formations yielded different levels of enlightenment after observation. Some Law formations, even if completely comprehended, might only grant insight into one-tenth or one-third of the Law.

However, if the Myriad Stars Diagram was completely comprehended, one could control the Law and become a Divine powerhouse!

Ye Chen understood that the Myriad Stars Diagram was divided into 98 points of starlight. Completely grasping the 98 formation diagrams deduced from these 98 points of starlight would allow one to glimpse the door of the Law and hold the potential to step into the Divine Realm!

Given Ye Chen’s current cultivation, he had only observed the five-star chart pattern, meaning he still had a long journey ahead before becoming a deity.

Below the Divine Realm, all were but ants.

The Divine Realm was a crucial watershed. Since ancient times, many peerless prodigies had collapsed before this realm, and the masses were unable to pass through.

“Ye Chen?”

Just as Ye Chen was deep in thought, a voice of astonishment, carrying a hint of familiarity, rang out from beside him.

Ye Chen snapped back to attention, turned his head, and immediately saw Huangpu Tian standing behind him, his face full of shock, seemingly finding it incredible.

Ye Chen’s eyes flickered. He snapped his fingers at the attendant behind the counter, then gestured for Huangpu Tian to sit beside him.

“You, you’re actually alive?” Huangpu Tian sat down, scrutinized Ye Chen from head to toe, and then asked with wonder.

Ye Chen rolled his eyes without much pretense. “Am I a ghost you’re seeing now? Why do you ask? Did someone spread the rumor that I died?” Huangpu Tian shook his head. “It wasn't a rumor; the upper echelon of the Blazing God Empire announced it. Apparently, when you went to the Dark Great World for the trial mission, the signal from your virtual helmet, which could still be tracked previously, was completely lost afterward. Therefore, after waiting for a while, the high command announced your death.”

Ye Chen was momentarily stunned, then frowned. “How could the high command of the Blazing God Empire be so reckless? To declare death just because the signal from my virtual helmet was lost—that’s too arbitrary!”

Huangpu Tian shook his head. “It wasn't arbitrary. Do you know what the Virtual World is? It's an independent universe, whose area and scope far exceed the Ancient World, even covering the Dark Great World and the Initial World. Any place between heaven and earth can connect to the Virtual World!”

“Even if you entered the deepest parts of the Dark Great World, or found yourself in some desperate dead end, you could still connect to the Virtual World.” Huangpu Tian glanced at Ye Chen. “The virtual helmets worn by members of our Genius Hall are equipped with the highest-grade signal sensors. As long as there is time and space nearby, they automatically weave a signal to connect to the Virtual World.” Huangpu Tian looked at Ye Chen. “If the sensor on the virtual helmet is lost, there are only two outcomes: First, you entered a secret realm universe created by a Divine Emperor powerhouse. Second, you died!”

Saying this, he couldn't help but give Ye Chen a look. “Judging by your appearance, were you captured by some Divine Emperor powerhouse? Or did you enter the territory of a Divine Emperor’s world? How did you escape? You must know that Divine Emperor powerhouses in the Dark Great World will absolutely kill any human on sight if they find one! If you were inside a Divine Emperor's universe, they certainly would have found you. The fact that you are alive is truly a miracle!”

Ye Chen realized the situation, his eyes flickering, and he smiled faintly. “It was sheer luck. That Divine Emperor was not within his universe; I seized the opportunity to escape.”

Huangpu Tian’s mouth dropped open. “No way, you stumbled upon such good luck? You must know that if a Divine Emperor powerhouse is not in his own universe, there must be a special situation, otherwise, they usually never leave their universe unguarded.”

Ye Chen smiled faintly and said no more.