Chapter 239: The Talent Selection Concludes

"It’s over."

"Hmph! My rank might be low in this selection, but we’re still young. We can definitely catch up in the future."

"That’s right! Our path to becoming powerhouses has just begun!"

The other geniuses also sighed with emotion, a blazing fighting spirit in many of their eyes.

Although they had been accepted into the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall, their results weren’t that great.

But they were not disheartened. Their cultivation had only just begun!

One law, four mysteries. Even the most powerful genius, Mixed Void, hadn’t fully grasped a single one!

There was still plenty of time. What the future held... no one knew.

"Li Yang, we’re off. See you again at the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall." Mute and the others departed, waving at Li Yang.

Li Yang smiled and said goodbye as well.

One by one, the geniuses logged out.

"Haha, Li Yang."

Not far away, a man in golden armor appeared. Covered in golden fur and standing more than ten meters tall, it was none other than Lu Kaluo, the Divine Realm expert who had brought Li Yang and the others to the competition.

Lu Kaluo had been very serious before, but now his face was all smiles.

"Let’s exit the selection space as well," Lu Kaluo said.

The two of them exited, reappearing in the grand plaza of the Yangyuan Empire.

"Li Yang is out."

"This time, Li Yang really made a splash. To think his rank would be so high!"

"Tenth place in the entire Three Thousand Star Continent."

There were still some geniuses in the plaza. When they saw Li Yang, their eyes were clearly filled with envy and awe.

With such a rank, on top of being accepted into the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall, Li Yang’s future status and position would be completely beyond comparison to their own.

"Li Yang, your competition is finally over. How did it go? What were your results?"

After Li Yang came out, Soul Ink’s voice echoed directly in his mind.

Soul Ink couldn’t enter the Virtual World, so he was still unaware of Li Yang’s specific situation.

Li Yang replied via mental transmission, "I mastered the third form of the Hexagram Spear during the competition. My final rank was tenth place."

"Tenth place? Not bad."

Hearing this, Soul Ink’s eyes lit up.

’The better Li Yang performs, the more the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall will value him. That means Li Yang’s growth will be even faster!’

’Once Li Yang truly becomes powerful, won’t I be able to be resurrected?’

As the two were conversing via mental transmission, Lu Kaluo said from the side, "Li Yang, while you were competing, we investigated a few things."

"During the previous genius selection held by the Emperor, you had the strength to join our Yangyuan Empire’s Martial Hall, Li Yang. However, Celestial Net of the Yuanlan Clan and Lentz of the Golden Moon Empire colluded to break the rules and have you eliminated. The Emperor has learned of this. He has already arrested both Celestial Net and Lentz and imprisoned them on the third level of the Death Prison."

Lu Kaluo quickly summarized the situation.

Hearing this, Li Yang’s heart stirred. ’Oh? The Yangyuan Emperor already knows about this?’

’Now that I’ve been accepted into the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall, I was planning to report my unfair elimination when I got out.’

’Even though I’ve been accepted by the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall, I’m still very weak. The Yuanlan Clan, on the other hand, is a Divine Clan.’

’But with this matter exposed, Celestial Net is sure to be punished.’

’I can’t believe the Yangyuan Emperor knew and handed out a punishment before I even said anything.’

’I’m not bothered that the Yangyuan Emperor didn’t kill them. I’m too weak right now; the Emperor isn’t going to bend over backward for me.’

’Besides, once I’m truly powerful, wouldn’t it be better to kill Celestial Net and Lentz with my own hands?’

At this moment, the killing intent Li Yang felt toward Celestial Net had not diminished in the slightest!

"My thanks to the Emperor," Li Yang said gratefully.

Lu Kaluo shook his head and said, "Li Yang, as compensation for the unfair treatment you received during the previous genius selection, the Emperor has prepared something for you. He’s given you one million contribution points, which you can use to purchase items from our Yangyuan Empire’s resource repository."

The Yangyuan Emperor had become a laughingstock because of the Sword Mark incident. Now, after recruiting one hundred thousand geniuses, he had still managed to miss Li Yang.

Although Li Yang was currently very weak and would have a difficult path ahead, the most likely outcome was that he would become a relatively powerful Deity.

Still, the Yangyuan Emperor chose to offer Li Yang a small token of goodwill.

At the very least, if Li Yang did manage to become powerful in the future, he might not be as estranged from the empire as Sword Mark.

After Sword Mark became truly powerful, he held no affection for the Yangyuan Empire and showed the Yangyuan Emperor no respect.

Li Yang’s heart skipped a beat. ’One million contribution points?’

’Haha, Li Yang, since the Yangyuan Emperor is giving you contribution points to choose some treasures, just take them. It’s free, after all. He probably saw your immense potential but knows you aren’t part of the Yangyuan Empire’s Martial Hall, so he wants to build a better relationship.’

’Whether or not you’ve joined a faction makes a huge difference.’

’For instance, if you had been accepted into the Yangyuan Empire’s Martial Hall before, even for a single day, you would be considered one of its people. You would carry its brand, and that can never be changed.’

’Even if you become powerful in the future, in the eyes of others, you would still be a man of the Yangyuan Empire’s Martial Hall.’

’If you were to deny it, others would look down on you. You can never escape the brand of a faction that once nurtured you, not for your entire life.’

’Of course, right now, you have no connection to the Yangyuan Empire’s Martial Hall.’

Li Yang nodded and said, "Then I thank the Emperor."

’Soul Ink is right. I’m weak right now, and what I need to do is increase my strength as much as possible.’

’Besides, it’s a gift from the Yangyuan Emperor himself. How could I just refuse it and cause him to lose face?’

"Li Yang, I’ll take you to the resource repository to have a look." Seeing Li Yang nod without hesitation, Lu Kaluo smiled and said, "After you’ve picked your items, you can stay here or choose to return to Earth. For the next two months, I will remain by your side until the envoy from the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall arrives."

"Always by my side?" Hearing this, Li Yang paused, stunned.

Soul Ink’s voice sounded in his mind again. ’Don’t be surprised, Li Yang. The Cosmos isn’t just home to the Human Race; there are other major races. When a powerful genius like you emerges among the humans, your leaders are overjoyed, but the other races are not. In fact, they will try to find ways to kill you to prevent you from growing powerful.’

’So, the moment you took tenth place across the entire Human Race’s Three Thousand Star Continent, you likely caught the attention of those other races.’

A result like Li Yang’s would have been good enough for first place in the previous selection for the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall.

"I see," Li Yang nodded.

He didn’t need to think twice to understand. ’There must be competition and bloodshed between the Human Race and other races. To those other races, a human genius is a threat.’