"It is because of Teacher's excellent guidance, pointing me in the right direction. I merely tried my best to move forward." Qing Yu stood up, his tone steady and filled with respect for Marquis Tianyi. He knew his rapid progress over the past three years was inseparable from Marquis Tianyi's guidance.
"With your current performance, this trip to the Primal Universe… I'm afraid it will make many people look sideways, and even greatly surprise them," Marquis Tianyi said, a hint of imperceptible satisfaction flashing in his eyes.
Marquis Tianyi then changed the subject and continued:
"However, do not become complacent. The difficulty of comprehending the last six of the 18 secret techniques in the first level of the Myriad Tribulations secret technique far exceeds the total of the previous 12!"
"But you don't need to rush now. You can wait until you reach the Primal Universe, and with the help of the chaos tablet, then go to comprehend those last six secret techniques. It will be twice as effective."
Qing Yu listened attentively. He bowed again: "This disciple understands. Please rest assured, Teacher, this achievement is not enough to satisfy this disciple."
"Go," Marquis Tianyi waved his hand, a gentle smile on his face. "You should be arriving at the Corporation Headquarters soon."
"Yes, Teacher." Qing Yu then exited the Virtual Universe.
Three days later, inside the large spaceship, Qing Yu lay comfortably, chatting with Lou Jing, an Immortal.
"Your Highness Qing Yu, we are about to arrive at the Corporation's all-universe Headquarters."
"Finally, we're almost there." Qing Yu felt a touch of anticipation.
In fact, with the flight speed of an F-class spaceship, it wouldn't take three years to get from the Jinlan Universe Kingdom to the Corporation Headquarters. However, the Virtual Universe Corporation adjusted the navigation speed to ensure that all 1,000 geniuses arrived at the Headquarters at roughly the same time.
At this moment, the intelligent assistant on the spaceship had already begun to prompt.
"Initiating cosmic shuttle, entering the Primal Universe."
"Countdown starting: 10. 9. 8… 2. 1!" The entire spaceship vibrated slightly, returning to normal after more than ten seconds.
"External view simulation 100%." Lou Jing called out to the intelligent assistant.
Qing Yu immediately looked outside, and a shocking scene entered his eyes: not far from the spaceship, a vast supercontinent floated in the void!
Although he was mentally prepared, Qing Yu was still stunned; this continent was too big! Qing Yu noticed the light dots, smaller than dust, orbiting the continent—those were stars!
"Your Highness Qing Yu, you must be awestruck by the Corporation Headquarters!" Lou Jing said with a smile from the side.
"Mr. Lou Jing, the Corporation Headquarters is too big, it must be over ten light-years across!" Although Qing Yu's brain and soul had been strengthened by the primal force in this life, this did not allow him to recall everything he had seen in his previous life.
"That's right, the Headquarters continent is several tens of light-years in diameter!"
Qing Yu admired the magnificent Headquarters continent built by the Corporation. The spaceship continued to fly for about half a day before finally reaching one of the Headquarters' docking ports.
The spaceship landed, and Qing Yu and Lou Jing were the first to fly out, followed closely by the other guards.
At the docking port, several reception envoys in standard silver battle armor were already standing by. The leader, seeing Qing Yu, immediately stepped forward and bowed:
"Your Highness Qing Yu, I am here by the Venerable's command. Your Highness, please follow me."
Qing Yu nodded slightly, then turned to Lou Jing and said solemnly:
"Mr. Lou Jing, thank you for the trouble of escorting Qing Yu here these past three years. Qing Yu is immensely grateful."
"It is my duty, Your Highness, no need for politeness. The road ahead is long, please take care!" Lou Jing's stony, stern face showed a hint of a smile as he nodded slightly.
"Thank you for your kind words, Mr. Lou Jing." Qing Yu nodded in thanks again, then turned his gaze to the waiting reception envoy:
"Please lead the way."
Under the guidance of the reception envoy, Qing Yu left the bustling docking port area and was soon led into a huge circular hall.
At this moment, hundreds of young people with various temperaments had already gathered in the hall. They were conversing in groups of three or five—they were the other geniuses who had arrived at the Headquarters at the same time as Qing Yu and were about to enter Primordial Chaos City.
The moment Qing Yu stepped into the hall, his distinctive silver hair and profound, tranquil demeanor immediately drew attention.
"Qing Yu!" A familiar voice rang out, accompanied by hearty laughter. The burly Moka strode over and clapped Qing Yu on the shoulder with force.
"You finally made it, you rascal!" Huang Li also walked over to greet Qing Yu.
Qing Yu's lips curved into a faint smile as he greeted them one by one:
"Moka, Huang Li." He also nodded in acknowledgment to Xing Hen and others who were looking their way.
"Qing Yu." You Meng lagged half a step behind, walking closer to Qing Yu, her gaze resting calmly on his face, her voice like a clear mountain spring.
"You Meng, long time no see." Qing Yu looked at You Meng and smiled slightly.
You Meng was a member of the Blue Wave Race, with faint blue-green patterns on her face. However, these patterns did not make her appear fierce; instead, they accentuated her fair skin and exquisite, beautiful features.
Originally, Qing Yu and You Meng were not very familiar. And because Qing Yu had defeated her using her most proficient illusion technique in the arena back then, he had thought You Meng wouldn't be very fond of him.
However, over the past three years, whenever Qing Yu had free time, You Meng would come to him to discuss illusion techniques, and the two had grown increasingly familiar.
"Last time in the Virtual Universe, you mentioned the overlapping of multiple illusions. I did some deductions, and I think it could…" You Meng went straight to the point, her cool tone carrying a hint of seriousness.
After speaking, You Meng stared at Qing Yu with star-filled eyes, a hint of elusive inquiry and expectation in them.
Qing Yu nodded slightly, a thoughtful light in his eyes. "A good idea, that is indeed… an ingenious angle. Perhaps we can try next to…"
A unique atmosphere, difficult for outsiders to intrude upon, instantly formed between the two.
"Hey, hey, hey!" Moka scratched his head exaggeratedly, looking at the two who had started discussing illusion techniques the moment they met, and couldn't help but interject.
"I say, you two, can you consider the feelings of us 'mortals'? We've only been cultivating for three years, finally getting a break, and you're already discussing these headache-inducing things again?"
Huang Li also chuckled from the side, winking:
"Exactly, exactly, Qing Yu, You Meng, your 'academic exchanges' are a bit too frequent, aren't they? Every time we meet, it's like this, putting a lot of pressure on us!" He deliberately emphasized the words "academic exchanges," looking back and forth between Qing Yu and You Meng with a mischievous glint in his eyes.
You Meng seemed not to hear Huang Li's teasing, but a faint, fleeting blush seemed to appear on her fair earlobes.
Qing Yu ignored their teasing and instead said to You Meng: "Let's rest for a bit first. Once we're settled, we can verify it in detail."
"Mm." You Meng softly assented.
The four sat together and began chatting, the content revolving around their cultivation experiences over the past three years and their expectations for comprehending in the Primal Universe, among other things.
After waiting for about another half a day, all one thousand geniuses finally arrived.