Chapter 457: Rankings! The Confusion of the Heavenly God

Chapter 457: Rankings! The Confusion of the Heavenly God



Within the Ancestral Realm, amidst a continuous mountain range, a powerful slap was unleashed, causing a creature resembling a giant turtle, native to the Ancestral Realm, to shatter into pieces within a canyon lake. It then transformed into several beams of divine light and dissipated.

"Killing a Demigod-ranked Ancestral Realm creature indeed requires much more effort." Li Yuan slowly descended beside the lake, "However, with its defeat, I can gain 100 points."

"There's no need to be too hasty."

"I've already climbed to the 16th rank." Li Yuan muttered to himself, "The rankings were quite chaotic in the past few months. I'll maintain my position for now and not let the gap widen too much. Later on, when there are fewer people left, their points will definitely be higher. That's when I'll defeat them and boost my points significantly."

At the beginning of the Ancestral Realm battle, Li Yuan was still dedicated to fighting and pursuing his opponents.

But soon, he realized the inefficiency of this approach... It was too tiring to search for opponents in the void, defeat them, and only gain 1 point.

So, after just a few days, Li Yuan stopped actively seeking opponents and instead turned to hunting Ancestral Realm creatures... Although these creatures were all formidable, most of them were Demigod-ranked.

The points gained were substantial, and over half a month, his ranking continued to rise.

During this time, Li Yuan spent most of his time pondering spear techniques and quietly cultivating the True Deity chapter of the 'Mind Illusion Six Realms' within his heart.

The deeper one ventured into the comprehension of laws and combat secrets, the more challenging the cultivation became.

Although Li Yuan's will had already transcended ordinary limits, his soul had not yet broken through. Therefore, even after cultivating the Demigod-ranked secrets of the 'Mind Illusion Six Realms' to perfection, and with the assistance of the Dream Realm Stone and other treasures, comprehending the True Deity-ranked soul secrets was still incredibly difficult.

At the very least, it was still a challenge for Li Yuan at his current stage, but after years of diligent cultivation, he had made significant progress.

"There are 9,834 difficulties in creating an illusionary world using the True Deity-ranked secrets of the 'Mind Illusion Six Realms'." Li Yuan sat on the lake, deep in thought, "I've only comprehended over three thousand of these difficulties."

Several hours later, suddenly, six streams of light swiftly streaked across the sky and descended upon the lake, immediately spotting Li Yuan, who was at the lake's edge, deep in contemplation of his secrets.

"Is there someone by the lake?"

"We didn't sense anyone here just now." The five Demigods were somewhat taken aback but didn't pay it much mind.

Divine Sense could be evaded by cultivating breath-concealing secrets or space-distorting secrets.

Of course, the prerequisite for this was suppressing one's own breath fluctuations.

"Are they coming for me?"

"I was immersed in comprehending secrets, and I don't want my thoughts to be interrupted by a battle." Li Yuan sighed inwardly, standing up and speaking aloud, "If you leave now, I'll pretend I didn't see you. How about that?"

"What nonsense are you spouting, black-robed boy?" A young man in purple armor among the six spoke harshly, "Meeting us is your misfortune! Attack and kill him!"

Boom!

The young man in purple armor took a step forward, transforming into a purple lightning bolt as he charged towards Li Yuan. His momentum was overwhelming, causing the previously calm lake to stir once more with terrifying waves.

"Suppress him!" A white-robed woman among them unleashed countless silver chains that flew out from her surroundings, the divine artifact chains glowing with light. Their speed was astonishing, like giant snakes enveloping their target.

"Sleep!" A young man with enchanting eyes directly launched a soul attack, attempting to make Li Yuan succumb.

In an instant, all six Demigods burst into action. Three of them fought in close combat with their weapons, two attacked from a distance with binding techniques, and one launched a soul attack. Their coordination was flawless.

Moreover, their strengths were formidable, each possessing Demigod-level combat power. The young man in purple armor, their leader, even displayed power close to the middle stage of the Demigod realm.

This team's combined might was enough to challenge even a middle-stage Demigod cultivator.

Despite facing Li Yuan, a half-god whose strength they couldn't gauge, they still gave it their all, demonstrating their caution.

Boom!

The two sides clashed, their surging domains colliding. The lake rippled, and the mountains on both sides crumbled instantly.

Roar!

Roar! Roar!

From the collapsed mountains, yellow dragons emerged, each exuding a formidable aura. Every dragon unleashed terrifying power.

The yellow dragons roared towards the sky, their combined attack sending sharp dragon claws that seemed to tear through space, forcing the young man in purple armor to fly backward and spit blood. Enraged, he instantly disappeared into the void.

Another yellow dragon opened its massive jaws, biting down on an unprepared elder, tearing his body apart.

Die!

A vast domain of yellowish-brown color appeared, heavily injuring another middle-aged man holding an axe. In his fury, he activated his Ancestral Realm Token and fled.

"What?"

"What's going on?"

"Rank 16?" The remaining three Demigod men and women, located over a hundred kilometers away, stared at the black-robed figure surrounded by giant yellow dragons in the void.

Their hearts trembled with fear.

Too powerful!

They were all genius Demigods from Evergreen Ancient City, and by coincidence, they had formed a team. Their combined strength was formidable.

But after a single clash...

One of their members died, and two fled. Such terrifying strength naturally made their hearts tremble.

"You should have sensed my aura by now."

Li Yuan smiled, "So, let's be straightforward. I don't want to kill you, so just activate your Ancestral Realm Tokens and leave. Save me the trouble."

Within the Ancestral Realm, when Demigods encounter each other, it's actually difficult to judge an enemy's identity based on appearance alone, as disguises are easily changed.

However, once they engage in combat, a unique aura will manifest in the attacks of the top 100 strong Demigods, a special rule unique to the Ancestral Realm.

This allows others to immediately discern the identity of the attacker.

Li Yuan had lost count of how many times he had exposed himself in the past ten days.

But Li Yuan didn't mind.

Exposed? How many could stop him? Just like now, six powerful Demigods, each comparable to Ethereal Divine beings, had joined forces, only to be defeated by him.

"Surrender?" The three Evergreen Ancient City Demigods exchanged glances.

"Scatter!" The three retreated simultaneously, transforming into three streaks of light and fleeing in different directions, attempting to escape.

After all, using the Realm Token would result in losing half their points and one less chance to retry, something no one was willing to do.

"Oh, running again?" Li Yuan sighed and took action.

Whoosh!

Like a gust of wind, Li Yuan rushed towards the white-robed woman, his body instantly towering to a height of ten meters. With a palm strike like a heavenly blade, he slashed down, tearing the woman's body in two and annihilating her soul.

Dead!

"Don't blame me, I gave you two chances to live." Li Yuan didn't want to cause unnecessary bloodshed, but that didn't mean he would always hold back.

Immediately, Li Yuan glanced at the woman's remains and then looked towards the other two figures over a hundred kilometers away.

This glance terrified the two.

How terrifying!

With just a flash, Li Yuan had traversed over a hundred kilometers of void. What kind of movement speed was this? Perhaps even an Ethereal Divine at their peak couldn't match this.

"Whoosh!"

"Whoosh!" Without hesitation, the two activated their Realm Tokens and disappeared into the void.

The void quieted once more.

"You're really making it easy for me to earn points." Li Yuan thought to himself as he received the message from the Realm Token: "Oh, the points from six people are quite a lot, allowing me to jump directly to 14th place?"

Whoosh!

Li Yuan waved his hand, collecting the treasures left behind by the two slain Demigods, and then gently landed on a cliff.

"Continue cultivating, and then leave this place."

So far, Li Yuan had encountered numerous opponents, but none had forced him to exert his full strength.

Not even those who could push him to use the 'Primal Divine Armament'.

Usually, as long as Li Yuan unleashed his Star Techniques, he could sweep away all enemies.

Some time later...

After a period of cultivation and insight, Li Yuan found his ranking had dropped to 15th place. He transformed into a streak of light and departed, continuing his search for targets to kill.

Battle and slaughter!

Annihilate!

With each strike, Li Yuan's ranking continued to rise.

...

In the capital of the Yuan Kingdom, the Jiu Yin Tower.

As the pinnacle of luxury in the royal capital, in the past, many Demigods wouldn't casually come to spend their money, as it was too expensive.

But these days, the Jiu Yin Tower was bustling with activity, even more so than when the 'Jiu Yin Realm' was open, attracting countless Flying Heaven Demigods from the capital.

The reason was simple.

Recently, the Jiu Yin Tower had waived the entry fee, and all drinks, delicacies, and other items were offered at a 50% discount. The once-expensive dance performances were now completely free.

Such low prices were unprecedented in the thousands of years of the Jiu Yin Tower's history, attracting countless Flying Heaven Demigods from the capital.

And everyone knew the reason.

Celebration!!

"The Ancestral Realm Rankings! Our Yuan Kingdom's peerless genius, Xu Yuan, is actually ranked sixth."

"Unbelievable."

"Xu Yuan, a Demigod for just over a decade, is already this powerful?"

"In the Ancestral Realm Battle, not only do Demigods from the three thousand Divine Kingdoms participate, but countless powerful lifeforms and Demigods from the stars beyond also join the fight."

"In such a situation, Xu Yuan managed to break into the top ten. How strong must he be?"

"Xu Yuan, a Demigod, is the pride of our Yuan Kingdom." Not only in the Jiu Yin Tower, but in the city, countless Flying Heaven Demigods could look up and see the massive 'Ancestral Realm Rankings' in the void.

The list had a full ten thousand names, and the higher the ranking, the more attention it drew.

---

1. Ning Chi

2. Perception Star Jing Kui

3. Celestial Serpent Liu Bing

4. Eastern Abyss Lian Yun

5. Moon Saber

6. Perception Star Xu Yuan

7. Divine Dragon Ao Feng

8. Kong Yin

9. Hua Zhong Yun

10. Yu Ting

...

19. Perception Star Dong Pan

...

88. Perception Star Yue Shan

...

Above the Jiu Yin Tower, there was a massive void palace that ordinary Demigods couldn't perceive, the best place to view the 'Ancestral Realm Rankings'.

Currently, within the palace, hundreds of Ethereal Divines from the Yuan Kingdom's capital had gathered, and as time passed, more Ethereal Divines arrived upon hearing the news.

"Is it really Xu Yuan? When he went to Perception Star Ancient City over ten years ago, he was only at the Flying Heaven level, right?"

"I can hardly believe it myself."

"Yue Shan, the Demigod hailed as our Yuan Kingdom's first genius in thousands of years, became a Demigod a few hundred years ago and is only ranked 88th." Many newly arrived Ethereal Divines sighed.

Most of them knew of Xu Yuan.

After all, Xu Yuan had once caused a huge stir in the Yuan Kingdom's capital.

"Yes, it's Xu Yuan."

The Ethereal Divine of Thousand Illusions smiled, "I personally visited the master, and he said that Xu Yuan, a Demigod, has been a Demigod Son of Perception Star Ancient City for several years."

"Moreover, the master also said..."

"The Ancestral Realm Battle has been going on for almost a month, and he's still able to break into the top ten. This alone is enough to prove Xu Yuan's terrifying strength. His understanding of the Law is so profound that he's probably already stepped into the True Deity realm." The Ethereal Divine, Qian Huan, spoke with gravity.

Understanding the Law on par with a True Deity?

Many of the Ethereal Divinities present were somewhat bewildered.

If it were anyone else speaking, they wouldn't dare believe it. After all, how long has Xu Yuan been cultivating? Even if he's ranked in the top ten of the Ancestral Realm Battle, it's still hard to believe.

But the one who spoke these words was the Nine Sounds True God!!

...

In the depths of the royal capital's void, the Nine Sounds Divine Mountain was shrouded in endless clouds and mist.

A charming woman, dressed in a light purple silk robe that seemed to blend with the clouds, had two fluffy long ears. She was lounging leisurely on a chair, with a clear view of the 'Ancestral Realm Rankings' at the edge of the void.

"Sixth?"

"It's truly unbelievable. He's only been cultivating for so long?" The Nine Sounds True God murmured to herself, "The Divine Kingdom's master has already become a Heaven God."

"Could it be that Xu Yuan will also become a Heaven God in the future?" The Nine Sounds True God sighed.

...

The Ancestral Realm Battle had been going on for nearly a month.

The ranking Li Yuan had achieved caused a stir in the Yuan Kingdom.

However, looking at the various powers across the world, the True Divinities who knew of Li Yuan's past information didn't doubt him too much.

"Xu Yuan's Soul Attack is terrifying. In the past, even the Demigod from Perception Star City, Dong Pan, couldn't withstand it."

"Relying on his Soul Attack, he can easily sweep through many Demigods in the battle, and it's normal for him to be ranked sixth in points."

"Soul Attacks are powerful in such large-scale melees, but when it comes to the final battle for the Ancestral Realm, he'll be at a disadvantage." This was the consensus among the True Divinities of the various major powers.

They all believed that Xu Yuan had relied on Soul Attacks to surge to the sixth place on the Ancestral Realm Rankings.

...

However, the consensus among the True Divinities of the various powers was different from the scene in the void above the Ancestral Realm.

"Tai You, Jiang Yuan, the Xu Yuan you've cultivated is indeed formidable."

"With just over forty years of cultivation, relying solely on physical attacks, he's killed his way into the top ten of the Ancestral Realm Rankings. It's truly impressive." Qing Hong Heaven God and Long Chuan Heaven God couldn't help but express their awe.

Unlike the True Divinities, who could only speculate based on the rankings, the Heaven Gods had a direct perception of the entire Ancestral Realm.

Therefore, as the Ancestral Realm Battle continued and time passed, one formidable Demigod after another revealed their brilliance, and they had long noticed them.

Undoubtedly.

Li Yuan was one of the most dazzling talents in the Ancestral Realm Battle.

Without relying on the Soul Attack, his specialty according to the intelligence, his physical attacks alone allowed him to sweep through many Demigods, including some formidable ones.

Not a single Demigod could withstand him.

"Haha, he's still a bit lacking." Tai You Heaven God laughed, "Xu Yuan is only ranked sixth now, not as good as Liu Bing and the others."

"Tai You, don't joke around."

Qing Hong Heaven God shook his head, "We've all been observing, and it's clear that Xu Yuan is being kind-hearted... Most of the time, he only defeats his opponents without going on a killing spree for points."

"Also, he spends a lot of time in secluded cultivation instead of fighting."

"If he were to use both physical attacks and Soul Attacks, and go all out in killing, he might already be able to challenge for the top spot on the Ancestral Realm Rankings." Qing Hong Heaven God sighed.

Defeating an opponent only earned half the points.

Killing granted full points.

Over these days, the Heaven Gods had observed for a long time and discovered that Li Yuan could have directly killed many Demigods but chose to spare them, allowing them a chance to teleport away.

This resulted in Li Yuan losing out on many points.

The conversation between Tai You Heaven God and Qing Hong Heaven God made Dong Jun, who was standing nearby, increasingly displeased.

The more dazzling Li Yuan became, the more dissatisfied Dong Jun felt.

"Hmph!"

"Just wait. His current brilliance and rapid killing are only due to his astonishing speed and domain. He must have condensed the True Intent of Space and cultivated the Ninefold Escape Star Technique." Dong Jun's eyes grew colder, "When it comes to the battle for the Ancestral Realm Token, where direct confrontation and killing are required, he'll naturally lose."

"Yes, Lian Yun's mastery of the True Mystery Art has indeed made his frontal combat prowess terrifying." Dong Jun was quite satisfied with his disciple, Lian Yun Demigod's achievement.

Fourth place on the Ancestral Realm Rankings was already an excellent ranking.

Suddenly—

"Everyone, that Ning Chi is about to clash with Xia Ju from Perception Star City." Si Kun Heaven God spoke up.

In fact, the other Heaven Gods had also noticed this battle.

With the strength of Heaven Gods, their consciousness could cover the entire Ancestral Realm, and it was effortless for them to observe tens of thousands of people simultaneously.

Any Demigod who displayed slightly stronger strength was within their observation range.

Ning Chi and Xia Ju's battle was something they wouldn't miss.

Ning Chi, ranked first on the Ancestral Realm Rankings, was suspected to have the strength of an Ethereal Divinity Apex, and his origins were shrouded in mystery, unknown to these Heaven Gods.

Xia Ju, ranked twenty-sixth on the Ancestral Realm Rankings, was also incredibly powerful.

Such a top-tier genius battle had only occurred twice since the start of the Ancestral Realm Battle a month ago.

...

Within the Ancestral Realm, above a vast mountain range, Xia Ju Demigod and Ning Chi Demigod had already engaged in fierce combat.

"Are you Ning Chi?"

Xia Ju, clad in black armor, stood ten meters tall, exuding a domineering aura. He held a massive battle blade, his eyes fixed on the distant seemingly lazy figure.

He never expected that the Demigod he encountered by chance would be the terrifying existence ranked first on the Ancestral Realm Rankings.

Ning Chi!

This name was unfamiliar, not even in Xia Ju's Demi-God intelligence... But the points ranking first place was already proof enough, after all, Jing Kui was only ranked second.

"Xia Ju?"

"Ranking within the top thirty, his strength is indeed impressive." Ning Chi's Demi-God was somewhat lazy, but his eyes were sharp: "Show me your full strength, or you'll lose miserably."

Before the fight, neither party knew the other's identity.

Once they clashed, guided by the rules of the Ancestral Realm, their auras were revealed, and they both became aware of each other.

"Kill!"

"Nine Blades! Annihilate!" Xia Ju's Demi-God eyes flashed with a hint of coldness, and he went all out, releasing terrifying green lights that made his figure instantly blur.

Terrifying sword lights howled towards Ning Chi's Demi-God.

As an Eight-Star Vein Demi-God, Xia Ju's Star Technique was undoubtedly formidable.

"Well played."

"A Heavenly Mystery Technique?" Ning Chi's Demi-God eyes shone like a vast ocean, and he too moved swiftly. His double-sword emitted profound ripples, and a large amount of mist was also born.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!" Layer upon layer of sword lights were born, and the sword lights were like electricity and mist, elusive and unpredictable, easily blocking Xia Ju's Demi-God's ferocious sword lights.

One was fierce, with an overwhelmingly powerful blade technique.

The other was gentle, with sword lights like flowing water, using softness to overcome hardness.

The fight was extremely intense.

Suddenly—

"Whoosh!"

Ning Chi's Demi-God right-hand longsword suddenly turned, and this sword move was stunningly exquisite, leaving a trail in the void that shook the space for a long time, directly severing Xia Ju's Demi-God's arm.

Pfft!

Xia Ju's Demi-God was filled with rage, but it was too late to retreat, and his arm was instantly severed. The battle spear was thrown away, and blood splattered.

Whoosh, whoosh! More sword lights rushed in to attack.

"Not good."

"Retreat!" Xia Ju's Demi-God quickly activated his Realm Token, and his entire person disappeared into the void, causing the sword lights to miss.

This battle—

Ning Chi's Demi-God won, and he remained in first place.

...

Above a mountain peak.

"Hmm?" Li Yuan sensed the changes in the Ancestral Realm rankings, and a hint of confusion flashed in his eyes: "Xia Ju's ranking suddenly plummeted? He's almost dropped out of the top 100, was he defeated?"

With Li Yuan's powerful soul, it was easy for him to spare a bit of his mind to sense the changes in the rankings.

"But in that instant, aside from Xia Ju, no one else's ranking changed drastically? It shouldn't be the work of a strong person outside the top ten." Li Yuan thought to himself: "Who defeated Xia Ju? Was it someone from the top ten?"

Obtaining half of Xia Ju's points, even the top ten experts would likely see a change in their rankings.

"Could it be Ning Chi, the first-ranked?" Li Yuan wondered: "Where did this Ning Chi come from? And Moon Saber, Yu Ting, Kong Yin, and Hua Zhong Yun, who are these people?"

Li Yuan had been keeping a close eye on the rankings.

Among the top ten, there were five names that were not mentioned in the Perception Star City's intelligence.

And in the top fifty rankings, there were over twenty names that Li Yuan was completely unfamiliar with.

Given the Perception Star City's intelligence-gathering capabilities, it was normal to have a few unknown Demi-God geniuses in the top hundred rankings, after all, the vast heavens and earth may have some hidden talents... But several dozen? That was strange.

Especially in the top ten, with five unfamiliar names? It was even more bizarre!

"Other geniuses using aliases? That doesn't seem right either." Li Yuan frowned: "Ao Feng, Liu Bing, Lian Yun, Dong Pan, and other geniuses with the potential to break into the top ten have mostly appeared... There's no one missing."

Everything could only indicate one thing.

These unfamiliar Demi-Gods were powerful, but in the past, they seemed to have never appeared in the Perception Star City's intelligence.

...

Not only was Li Yuan puzzled, but so were many other top geniuses like Jing Kui, Liu Bing, Lian Yun, Dong Pan, and others. Almost all of them had sensed the anomaly in the rankings and became cautious.

Everyone realized that this Ancestral Realm Battle seemed more complex than they initially thought.

...

In the skies above the Ancestral Realm.

Eleven Gods had descended their consciousness to witness the battle between Ning Chi and Xia Ju.

"That sword technique."

"It's a True Deity level technique! Without a doubt, being able to defeat Xia Ju so easily, this Ning Chi must be at the Void Deity Limit." The Gods had seen it all.

Before this, Ning Chi hadn't encountered an opponent as strong as Xia Ju, so the Gods couldn't confirm his strength. But now, they finally could.

"Where did he come from?"

"Such powerful, he's almost on par with Jing Kui, yet he never appeared before." The Gods were perplexed.

It was known that all known regions in this heaven and earth were already occupied by the three Perception Star Realms and six Sacred Lands.

Various forces were diligently discovering and nurturing talents... It was normal to overlook some Demi-Gods with initial Void Deity strength.

But a Demi-God with Void Deity Limit strength? Such a peerless genius would, at the very least, grow to reach the True Deity Limit in the future, and it was almost impossible for them to be overlooked.

Even if Xu Yuan exceeded their expectations, there were still traces to follow, after all, he had gained fame and was cultivated by the Perception Star City.

But Ning Chi? There were no traces of him before.

"I suspect."

"This Ning Chi, along with Moon Saber, Yu Ting, and the others, they aren't geniuses from our heaven and earth." A deep voice suddenly sounded: "It's possible for a genius to suddenly appear."

"But for a group of peerless geniuses to appear out of nowhere, that's not normal."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end