The next day, early morning.
Pinnacle Genius Battle competition space.
The 1,000 Geniuses who had entered the Core Region of the Virtual Universe Company gathered in the Central Square.
Venerable Gu Lun, clad in fiery red Force Armor, appeared in the sky. The 1,004 Immortals who had not yet left bowed respectfully in the distance and said in unison, "Venerable!"
"Mm." Venerable Gu Lun nodded slightly, then looked down at the 1,000 Geniuses below and said, "Today is the day of the decisive battle. From among you, the top one hundred, top ten, and top two will be decided."
"First, based on yesterday's match list, the top one hundred will be determined."
As Venerable Gu Lun, looking down at everyone, spoke, he gently waved his hand, and 100 enormous arenas immediately appeared in the Central Square. Each arena's edge and top were covered by a black mesh.
As the arenas appeared, Ender and 200 other Geniuses were teleported into them.
One hundred arenas, two people per arena. Only the victor could enter the Heaven and Earth Secret Realm.
Immediately, the Immortals and the 800 Geniuses who were not participating in the arena battles all focused their attention on the arenas of the three widely recognized top contenders: Kedi, Ender, and Fei.
On the arena, which was ten kilometers in diameter and covered by a black mesh, several kilometers away from Ender, stood a golden-haired youth holding a saber and shield.
"Minor! Ranked 163 in points in the Trial Tower."
Looking at the golden-haired youth, Ender calmly recited his name and Trial Tower point ranking.
Minor in the distance had a grim expression. From the moment he saw that his opponent was Ender yesterday, he felt despair!
In the Trial Tower preliminary selection, he only reached the fourth floor of the fifth Trial Tower. Compared to Ender, who reached the fifth floor of the sixth Trial Tower, the gap in strength was huge!
Minor thought to himself, "'Green Demon' Ender! Even if I'm not his opponent, I'll make you understand that winning against me isn't that easy!"
Crack!
Lightning flashed, and Minor transformed into a blue lightning bolt, moving rapidly across the arena, attacking with an unpredictable trajectory.
"This Minor comprehends the Law of Thunder and Lightning." As Ender recalled Minor's information, he saw him transform into lightning and attack, and couldn't help but think, "His speed is indeed fast enough."
Clang, clang, clang...
As Ender's thought moved, a Fourth-Order Spirit Weapon radiating a yellowish-brown light quickly assembled into three shields.
At the same time, a fluctuation of Wood Origin appeared from the Green Vine Pillar behind him, and nine streams of green light flew out with it.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...
Nine Azure Wood Thorns transformed into nine streams of green light and flew out, attacking the incoming blue lightning bolt.
"Compared to Endless Vine, Azure Wood Thorn is more suitable for dealing with fast opponents like you!"
Under Ender's control, the nine streams of green light moved up and down, sometimes separating, sometimes merging, closely chasing the blue lightning bolt.
Whoosh!
A stream of green light attacked from the side. Minor had nowhere to dodge and could only raise his left hand shield. With a "clang," he blocked the stream of green light.
The price was that he was pushed back by the powerful energy contained in that stream of green light, and his speed also slowed down, allowing the other chasing streams of green light to get closer and closer.
"Damn it!" Chased in such a sorry state, Minor roared in his heart, "Isn't this 'Green Demon' arrogant? Why isn't he using the second form of Green Vine Pillar, Endless Vine, to fight me?"
...
Outside the arena, the 800 Geniuses who were not participating in the arena battles observed the fight and discussed in low voices.
"It's too brutal!"
"Yes, the gap in Law comprehension is too great."
"Minor is at least a strong contender ranked in the top two hundred in points, yet he's being completely suppressed by 'Green Demon' Ender with no ability to retaliate."
"This is still good. Kedi and Fei's matches have already ended."
"What! That fast?"
"Of course. Kedi's Law comprehension is much higher than Ender's, and Fei is an Illusionist, so their battles naturally ended quickly." "Hmm? Minor is about to lose too."
...
On the arena.
Continuous metallic "clang, clang" sounds rang out. After Minor painstakingly blocked four streams of green light with his battle shield and battle sword, three more streams of green light attacked.
Clang!
Struggling to raise his shield, Minor only managed to block one of the streams of green light.
Pfft!
The Second-Order Force Armor was too weak. It simply couldn't withstand the attack of the Fifth-Order Spirit Weapon, Green Vine Pillar. Minor's body was pierced by two Azure Wood Thorns, and he died!
With the first victory, Ender entered the top 100. His prize money increased to 100 Mixed Yuan units, and he could enter the Virtual Universe Company's "Heaven and Earth Secret Realm."
"It's over."
After defeating Minor, who was ranked 163 in points, Ender scanned the surrounding arenas and thought, "My winning speed was still a bit slow."
He could understand why Kedi and Fei were fast. The former had extremely strong Law comprehension, and the latter was a very powerful Illusionist, both able to end battles quickly.
However, several other battles ended before his, which was somewhat unexpected.
"After the two hundred into one hundred round ends, it will be the twenty into ten round. In that battle, I must end it as quickly as possible."
Ender thought to himself, "If I remember correctly, the match arrangements for the top ten into top five are allocated based on the speed at which battles end: the fastest winner against the slowest winner, the second fastest against the second slowest, and so on."
If his winning speed in the twenty into ten match was too slow, then according to the rules, he might encounter Kedi. This would undoubtedly stop him at the Absolute Beginning Secret Realm, preventing him from competing for the second Primal Secret Realm spot.
"I hope my next opponent isn't someone skilled in speed and movement techniques," Ender prayed in his heart.
...
"First, congratulations to you all for entering the top 100. You can now enter my Virtual Universe Company's 'Heaven and Earth Secret Realm.'"
Venerable Gu Lun, clad in fiery red Force Armor, stood in the air, looking down at the 100 Geniuses on the arena, and then announced, "According to the rules, the Virtual Universe System has selected the 20 most outstanding among you. I will now announce the list of these 20 people."
Upon hearing this, most of the 100 Geniuses who had just won and were standing on the arena showed some nervousness.
Although they had already won, only 20 of them were qualified to participate in the next round of competition, and winning the next round meant entering the top ten, which would grant them entry into the Virtual Universe Company's 'Absolute Beginning Secret Realm'!
Ender's expression was calm. With his Law comprehension second only to Kedi's, and his performance of reaching the fifth floor of the sixth Trial Tower, he was certain to be on the list of 20.
"Kedi!"
Venerable Gu Lun began to announce the list of 20 people.
"Ender!"
"Fei!"
"Chen Yi!"
...
"Philip!"
"Manle!"
As names were called out one by one, those whose names were not announced could not hide their anxious expressions. They were all victors, yet only 20 could participate in the next battle!
"Hokuri!"
"Nuno!"
"The 20 people selected by the Virtual Universe System are the 20 people I just announced." Venerable Gu Lun smiled, "Please, these 20 people should rest and recover from the consumption of their previous battles. The next battle will begin in a while. As for who your opponents will be, you will know when the battle starts!"
Hearing the last name announced, Ender's lips curved slightly upward, and he thought, "I hope he isn't eliminated before he meets me."