Yuan's Ascension

Chapter 504: Talent Is Not Just About Dao Comprehension (1)

In the hall of the tower, nearly a thousand Origin Eldritch Field geniuses fixed their gazes on Wu Yuan.

The echoes of challenges and invitations to spar reverberated through Wu Yuan's ears.

Just as Cen Jiang said, the cultivators of the eldritch lineage are under constant pressure to battle. Thus they are generally more hotheaded and aggressive.

For glory, they will fight the heavens and the earth, not stopping until death. They only recognize strength, nothing else. Wu Yuan recalled his exchanges with Cen Jiang.

Cen Jiang, once an immortal cultivator of the Voltari Temple, was captured and chose to become a servant to survive. However, she had studied the eldritch lineage deeply.

The Cang Feng Eldritch World was different from the Eternal Sun Immortal World. The Eternal Sun Immortal World was relatively peaceful overall, with less external pressure but fierce internal strife, so not all peerless geniuses received the best training.

The Cang Feng Eldritch World wasn’t the same. Eons of unending war and immense casualties led to the establishment of a talent selection system that was entrenched into the deepest levels of society.

For this group of geniuses from the Fifth Origin Eldritch Field, the concept of morality instilled in them from childhood was—fairness! Fairness! Absolute fairness!

From a noble bloodline? Offspring of a powerhouse? Come from a great background?

It didn’t matter if Wu Yuan was a disciple of an Eldritch Sovereign or even a direct descendant of an Eldritch Progenitor. Being given the rank of an earth-tier member without displaying his strength would still earn him scorn. Origin Eldritch Field geniuses only recognized strength.

Normally, geniuses from the Fifth Origin Eldritch Field can go on to become High Eldritches or High Immortals, and logically speaking, by the time their numbers accumulate in the First Origin Eldritch Field, the number of geniuses should reach a billion. Wu Yuan mused inwardly. So why are there only a little over ten million in the First Origin Eldritch Field?

This was because more than ninety-nine percent would perish along the way. Most died while embarking on a series of life-or-death trials or on the Eldritch-Immortal Battlefield.

One had to understand that any genius from the Origin Eldritch Field was, on average, the top genius from dozens of eldritch continents. Yet the probability of dying before maturity was still terrifyingly high.

This was something they learned to accept from childhood.

The extremely high possibility of their future demise led the geniuses from the Origin Eldritch Field to care little about lineage, only acknowledging the strong.

If Wu Yuan showed the strength of an earth-tier member upon entering the Origin Eldritch Field, the discussions would be much quieter.

But he spent nearly a month in quiet cultivation. In the culture of the Cang Feng Eldritch World, this only marked him as a weakling and a coward.

And cowards did not deserve resources.

Back at the Dragon Star Immortal Sect, the other hereditary disciples only provoked me due to interests, and only a few hereditary disciples challenged me. Ordinary disciples fear the hereditary disciples, so none dared to provoke me directly. Wu Yuan mused inwardly.

But these geniuses from the Origin Eldritch Field challenge me not just for their own benefit, but the thirst for glory – the glory of defeating an earth-tier member!

Over a hundred thousand geniuses. Only once every twenty years were they given the chance to compete for a hundred earth-tier member slots, how difficult is that?

And normally, among the five Origin Eldritch fields, competition for earth-tier member status in the Fifth Origin Eldritch Field was the least fierce.

"Wu Yuan, are you serious?"

"You will accept challenges from all of us?"

"Really?" Among the nearly one thousand geniuses of the Origin Eldritch Field, only a few vocalized their challenges, but Wu Yuan's response still gave them a slight surprise.

They too were skeptical, was Wu Yuan bluffing, or did he truly have the strength?

"Of course." Wu Yuan grinned, "Previously, I didn't enter the Origin Eldritch Field because I was at a critical moment of cultivation. Now that I'm out, if you wish to challenge me, I will naturally accept."

"However. I have one condition; I will not engage in voidrealm battles." Wu Yuan shook his head, "I will only accept real-world combat."

Real-world battle? The elites of the Origin Eldritch Field exchanged uncertain glances. Usually, their spars and duels took place within the Cang Feng Eldritch Voidrealm as they were located on different void continents.

Real-world battles took place occasionally, but were not a daily affair for these prodigies.

"Wu Yuan, you want to use us to sharpen yourself. Clever plan," a sharp voice suddenly cut through the air.

"Exactly. But battling me is also a chance for you to improve. It's mutual," Wu Yuan grinned. "Besides, most of you are ordinary disciples; losing to an earth-tier member like me isn't shameful."

"On the contrary, if you win, you’ll have defeated an earth-tier member. What an honor."

These words sent a flicker through the eyes of the previously indifferent geniuses, as if deep in thought.

Indeed, fighting Wu Yuan would only benefit them, there were no drawbacks.

"Wu Yuan, you want real-world battles, but with so many of us, how do we fight?" a woman asked coldly.

"One battle a day," Wu Yuan smiled. "I plan to accept a total of one thousand challenges."

One battle a day allowed for sufficient rest and reflection. And a thousand battles would last nearly three years.

This was the idea Wu Yuan had after his discussions with Cen Jiang, leveraging the glory-driven nature of the Origin Eldritch Field prodigies.

He would sharpen himself through combat.

"One battle a day?"

"A thousand battles?"

“Does this Wu Yuan intend to hone his skills through real combat until the Heaven and Earth Tournament?” These former geniuses of the Origin Eldritch Field might be impulsive, but that stemmed from their nature and Dao Heart, not from a lack of intelligence.

After a brief moment of thought, they grasped Wu Yuan's plan.

“Everyone, you may also share this news with other disciples of the Fifth Origin Eldritch Field. Feel free to challenge me,” Wu Yuan said with a smile. “Just send a formal request for a duel.”

“The location is the Eldritch Battle Platform on the Origin Eldritch Continent.”

“Remember, I will only accept one thousand challenges.” With a grin, Wu Yuan transformed into a streak of light, shooting out from the tower.

He began roaming around the Fifth Origin Eldritch Plane. After all, this was his first visit to this voidrealm plane.

...

Wu Yuan's announcement to accept all duel invitations spread like wildfire among the tens of thousands of geniuses in the Fifth Origin Eldritch Field.

“A duel invitation?”

“He wants to use me as his whetstone? Dream on!”

“So confident—did he truly grasp a Dao Field? Or has he reached the True Intent stage of the Intermediate Law?”

“Who cares about his level?”

“Haha, the sharpening is mutual. Battling an earth-tier member benefits me too.”

“I’ll challenge him and crush him without mercy.” The geniuses discussed fervently, and the chatter about Wu Yuan being a coward quickly diminished.

To the powerhouses of the eldritch lineage, defeat was just a temporary disgrace; they could always come back stronger. Cowardice was the only thing truly despised.

The Fifth Origin Eldritch Field was teeming with geniuses; even if only a tenth of them heard the news, it would still number in the thousands.

...

In the Cang Feng Eldritch Voidrealm, within his personal hall.

Treasure rewards. Wu Yuan scanned the myriad of information displayed on the light screen before him, all detailing the benefits for the Fifth Origin Eldritch Field’s heaven-tier and earth-tier members.

For instance, a one-time reward of Earth Immortal and Void Refiner servants.

For instance, a reward of one thousand divine crystals.

For instance, Faith (to be harvested in the future) from ten worldlets (ten thousand li in width each).

But all these rewards were mere add-ons. Even a thousand divine crystals, a significant sum for ordinary High Immortals, meant little to earth-tier members of the Origin Eldritch Field.

What really caught Wu Yuan's attention was the final reward:

Heaven-tier members of the Fifth Origin Eldritch Field may select one suitable Semi-Legendary root establishment treasure, limited to one time.

Earth-tier members of the Fifth Origin Eldritch Field may select one suitable True Mystic root establishment treasure, limited to one time.

These root establishment treasures would form the foundation of one’s Shambhala or Amethyst Cradle.

Semi-legendary root establishment treasures, though not as amazing as the Boundary Tree, are still extremely high tier, impossible for ordinary Amethyst Cradle cultivators to obtain.

Such treasures could easily elevate a third-degree immortal root to a second-degree immortal root, and push a second-degree immortal root closer to the realm of a non-innate first-degree immortal root. Wu Yuan murmured to himself.

He wasn't surprised by the Cang Feng Eldritch World’s generous rewards.

Even the top-tier Golden Core cultivators in the Bloodforge Devil Hall had a good chance of obtaining a Mystic opportunity within the Bloodforge Spacetime.

How much more powerful was the Cang Feng Eldritch World?

This explained why some top-tier geniuses in the Fifth Origin Eldritch Field were willing to delay their breakthroughs for decades.

Still, it is clear that even in the Cang Feng Eldritch World, obtaining a True Legendary opportunity is exceedingly difficult. Wu Yuan shook his head slightly. Unfortunately, I could only identify the Boundary Tree.

The other silver crystal prism remained inscrutable.

Fight! Let's see if I can seize this Semi-Legendary treasure. Wu Yuan thought.

With a mental command, he turned the light screen off.

Typically, after reaching the peak of each cultivation phase, one would need to spend some time consolidating their insights. Wu Yuan had only been at the ninth-stage Spiritual Body phase for two years and thus needed a few more years before he could break through.

But, what if he failed to take first place?

Then it proves that I’m not destined to acquire the treasure. Wu Yuan shook his head slightly. And I'll break through right away.

Wait another twenty years? Wu Yuan was unwilling to delay that long.

"Cen Jiang." Wu Yuan gave another mental command, and the light screen projection dissipated.

A red-robed figure appeared in the hall.

"Master, in one day, you have already received 3,600 challenge requests," Cen Jiang reported respectfully. "All challengers are ordinary disciples, with no earth-tier members."

"Hmm." Wu Yuan nodded slightly. It was within his expectations.

The eldritch lineage enjoyed fighting, but only a few were willing to spar with him for mutual improvement.

As for the earth-tier members? Their Dao comprehension had all reached the Dao Field stage.

The fact that they still lingered in the fifth eldritch realm usually meant they had only one goal—heaven-tier!

They had to win the Heaven and Earth Tournament to earn the heaven-tier title and acquire the Semi-Legendary treasure. Otherwise, if the title was handed to them just because they were next in rank, they didn’t feel qualified to deserve it.

Therefore, genuine earth-tier members wouldn't pay much attention to Wu Yuan.

"Following your instructions, I have gathered reports from the past decade," Cen Jiang said. "From there, I have identified the top one thousand individuals in strength."

"Here's the list." With a flick of her wrist, a massive light screen appeared, displaying exactly one thousand names.

"Excellent," Wu Yuan smiled.

Without hesitation, he swiftly selected the challenge requests from these one thousand names, all in an instant.

"Master, although these challengers are ordinary disciples, those confident enough to challenge you are strong," Cen Jiang couldn't help but say. "I suspect some have even comprehended an Intermediate Law to the True Intent stage."

She had a rough idea of Wu Yuan's Dao comprehension level through their exchanges.

"What, afraid I'll lose?" Wu Yuan smiled.

"Master, you are an earth-tier member. Losing to ordinary disciples would harm your reputation," Cen Jiang remarked.

"Reputation? It can't feed me." Wu Yuan smiled. "But more importantly, if I don't discard this laughable need to save face now, there's a chance I won't even retain my earth-tier status during the Heaven and Earth Tournament three years from now."

"Now that would be truly disgraceful."

Cen Jiang was momentarily stunned.

"I'm going to train now," Wu Yuan said, and with a thought, he left the Cang Feng Eldritch Voidrealm.

To Wu Yuan, being an Eldritch Sovereign’s disciple or an earth-tier member was just an additional identity of his.

In comparison, he valued the improvement of his strength more.