Grinding to Become the Master of the Universe

Seeing Qin Feng nod, Qian Duoduo’s expression grew serious as well.

"Then you’ll need to be careful. Starting from our Seventh-level Martial Artist division, the competition format is basically fixed. It’s all 1v1 arena matches. One loss and you’re eliminated. Simple and brutal.

For official selection tournaments like this that are held frequently, they almost always use this system for the sake of efficiency. It’s pretty similar to the inter-school league we played in back on Morningstar."

He paused for a moment before continuing his analysis. "The ninth-level division is the real Dragon’s Pool and Tiger’s Den. No one who makes it here is a pushover.

According to the intel I’ve gathered, there are two hard requirements if you want to consistently break into the top one thousand."

"First, you need to have cultivated at least one Level 6 Killing Technique to the Control Realm. That’s the most basic threshold. Otherwise, your attacks won’t even be able to break through your opponents’ defenses."

"Second, and more importantly, you must have an enormous amount of real combat experience.

Because your opponents could come from any star system, cultivating bizarre Killing Techniques you’ve never even heard of.

Without enough experience to handle them, it’s easy to get tripped up by an unexpected trick."

Qin Feng listened quietly, understanding completely.

His five years of arduous training in the Imperial Arena had been precisely to shore up this second weakness.

"Among the powerhouses I know of, there are a few you need to pay special attention to..."

Qian Duoduo opened his personal terminal and began introducing Qin Feng to the top contenders for the championship.

The two of them chatted while they waited for the competition to officially begin.

「...」

「Meanwhile.」

In a room on the highest floor of the main arena venue, decorated in a minimalist, almost spartan style.

The walls here were made of a special material that could absorb all light and Energy Fluctuations. From this vantage point, one could look down upon the tens of millions of participants below, while the outside world couldn’t peer inside in the slightest.

Inside the room, a dozen or so burly Martial Artists stood silently before the massive floor-to-ceiling window. Their gazes pierced through layers of space to fall upon the vast waiting area below.

They all wore the standard-issue blue power armor of the Ultramarines Chapter but had not donned their helmets, revealing faces that were weather-beaten and etched with resolve and ruthlessness.

Their most striking common feature was that, above their brow ridges, at least three alloy nails, either bronze or rust-colored, had been hammered in with what could only be described as a barbaric method.

—The Ten Thousand Battle Nail.

Each one represented a glorious victory worthy of being recorded in the annals of history—a symbol of both honor and seniority.

And among them was a figure Qin Feng knew all too well.

It was none other than Zhou Xiong, the commander of the Seventh Combat Company of the seventh sub-Chapter of the Ultramarines Chapter, a Black Hole Level Powerhouse.

"I’m telling you, Zhou Xiong, you really know how to keep a secret!"

A brawny man with a prosthetic left eye and four Ten Thousand Battle Nails hammered above his brow nudged Zhou Xiong with his elbow, his tone full of banter. "For a prodigy like this to come out of the Canaan Star System, and you didn’t say a word? If our Marshal hadn’t mentioned it offhand a couple of days ago, would your seventh sub-Chapter have just spirited this genius away in secret?"

"Exactly!"

Another man chimed in, "You’re just a company commander, and you want to hoard a genius of this caliber all to yourself? Aren’t you getting a little greedy!"

Listening to the overt and subtle "accusations" from his colleagues, Zhou Xiong could only shake his head with a wry smile.

"Everyone, it’s not that I was trying to keep him to myself. This is a matter of great importance."

He said in a low voice, "You all know the developmental principles of our Warband. We can’t exert too much influence or interfere with these kids before they graduate from university. We only provide the necessary ’ideological and political education’ to prevent them from straying onto the wrong path."

"Of course, we know that! That’s why we’re only here now that he’s about to graduate!"

The one-eyed man from before laughed heartily. "You think you hid him well? I’ve known for ages!"

A round of good-natured laughter filled the room.

"Speaking of which, the kid’s about to graduate, isn’t he?"

Someone brought the conversation back on topic. "I wonder which sub-Chapter he’ll choose, or if he’ll be recruited directly by the main Chapter?"

"Why the hell is he even bothering with the Cosmic Genius Battle?!"

An impatient company commander said, "The minor league has no real resources. There’s no room for improvement for a genius of his caliber, so there’s no point in competing.

I say we just make an exception and recruit him directly! He’s about to graduate anyway, so we can give him the green light.

Whatever top-tier resources the major league can offer, our sub-Chapters can provide if we grit our teeth! We, the twelfth sub-Chapter, want this Qin Feng!"

"Get lost! Your twelfth sub-Chapter just snatched a good prospect last time. It’s our third sub-Chapter’s turn!"

"Everyone, stop fighting. It depends on the kid’s own wishes."

As they all chimed in, the center of their conversation remained the black-clothed young man sitting quietly in a corner below.

Eventually, everyone’s gazes fell back upon Zhou Xiong.

The one-eyed brawny man asked the question that was on everyone’s mind, his voice turning a few degrees more serious.

"Zhou Xiong, be honest with us. This Qin Feng... is he a one-nail, or a two-nail?"

The clamor in the room instantly vanished. You could have heard a pin drop.

Zhou Xiong was silent for a moment before slowly uttering two words.

"One nail."

Hearing this answer, the atmosphere in the room instantly relaxed.

"One nail, huh... If he’s a one-nail, then we can definitely give him the green light."

Someone said with a sigh of relief, "Let him join a sub-Chapter right after graduation. There’s no need for him to compete in that minor league Cosmic Genius Battle."

"Yeah. We don’t know who he’ll ultimately choose, but at least he’ll be staying in the family. He’s one of ours."

"It’s a shame he’s not a two-nail."

Someone sighed with regret.

"A shame, my ass!"

The one-eyed man immediately retorted, "If he were rated a two-nail, there’d be no way to keep it a secret!

By then, those hungry wolves from the other Warbands would smell blood and come flocking. It’s not even certain the Ultramarines Chapter would get a turn!

Besides, with a one-nail’s potential, it’s not like he can’t become a two-nail in the future!

As long as he can survive and grow, he’s bound to take off sooner or later!"

These words earned the agreement of everyone present.

Just then, a sharp-eyed company commander locked onto an ornament hanging from Qin Feng’s waist and let out a cry of surprised admiration.

"Holy shit, look at this kid! He’s already wearing a demon’s skull as a trophy! So arrogant! So wild! I love it!"

"Hahaha, my kind of guy!"

"You’ve gotta be wild!"

"..."