Chapter 302: The Level 9 Bet

Being surpassed by a genius one considered inferior is something almost any prodigy would find difficult to accept.

It was a common flaw among nearly all geniuses.

"Master, I..."

Lan Yu fell silent for a moment before nodding. "I do feel the pressure."

When Mixed Void first emerged, his strength completely eclipsed his. And after revealing that strength, Mixed Void was immediately recognized as having enough Talent to rank in the top one hundred in the history of the Human Race!

All he felt when he wanted to surpass Mixed Void was a burning fighting spirit!

In fact, even as the gap between him and Mixed Void widened, his fighting spirit only grew stronger. He felt nothing else.

After all, Mixed Void’s Talent was just too immense. Being unable to match him was normal; it would have been abnormal if he *could*.

But Li Yang now gave him a completely different feeling—panic, anxiety, and the fear that he would be pushed out of his second-place spot.

’Will I become a laughingstock then?’

"Hmph! I and the other powerful experts used to think Dilunxi’s mentality was a huge problem, but now it looks like yours is, too. You’ve always been number one—no, that’s not right—you’ve been number two for a while now. Does it feel good? Are you afraid another genius is going to knock you out of your second-place spot?"

Dulun Emperor snorted coldly. "On the path of cultivation, one faces countless crises, and a flawed mentality is one of them. I can tell you right now, if the thought of Li Yang catching up makes you this uncomfortable and anxious, your future achievements will be limited. Forget surpassing Mixed Void—even geniuses currently ranked below you might eventually surpass you in the future."

This disciple of his didn’t have a mentality like Dilunxi’s, who believed all other geniuses were inferior, but he was still extremely arrogant.

Aside from Mixed Void, he paid no other genius any mind.

Little did he know, no one can say for sure who will become a supreme being until the very end.

Of the top one hundred talents in the history of the Human Race, nearly half have perished. Of those who survived, only two ultimately reached the Sovereign Realm!

And yet, the Human Race clearly has more than two experts at the Sovereign Realm.

The other supreme beings at the Sovereign Realm certainly did not rank among that top one hundred in terms of Talent.

Dulun Emperor looked at Lan Yu and said coldly, "You should be grateful for Li Yang’s rise. Be grateful that it has served to temper your mentality, teaching you that a rival can emerge from anywhere at any time."

"What’s more, Li Yang is still not as strong as you are now. What you need to do is use your utmost effort to pass the ninth step."

Hearing what Dulun Emperor said, Lan Yu fell silent for a moment.

Dulun Emperor said no more, waiting for his disciple to think things through properly.

After a long moment, Lan Yu nodded and said, "Master, I understand. There was indeed a problem with my mentality, but not anymore. My rivals, besides Mixed Void, now include Li Yang!"

At that moment, he finally began to see Li Yang as a true rival.

"Mm, it’s good that you’ve figured it out."

Dulun Emperor nodded. Looking at Lan Yu, he was actually sighing to himself.

’This... Li Yang is truly incredible.’

How powerful was his disciple Lan Yu’s Talent? A peerless genius who appeared once every few billion years. In any other era, he would have stood unrivaled, and any other genius would have paled in comparison.

Previously, Li Yang’s Talent hadn’t been obvious. While it was decent, it certainly hadn’t been anything that amazed them.

But now, in a mere eleven years, he had actually reached this level!

It was simply incredible!

Just as Dulun Emperor was marveling, countless experts within the Human Race’s Eternal Saint Hall were discussing Li Yang.

"That Li Yang actually passed the eighth step."

"Incredible. It only took him one year to get from the seventh step to the eighth."

"It took Lan Yu five years."

"This Talent... is he a once-in-ten-billion-years prodigy?"

"Looking at Li Yang’s current rate of progress, if he maintains it, surpassing Lan Yu is probably just a matter of time."

"If he surpasses him, Li Yang will be in second place, with only Mixed Void ahead of him."

"Do you guys think Li Yang could surpass Mixed Void in the future?"

"Impossible! What level of genius is Mixed Void? He’s in the top one hundred in our Human Race’s history! A genius like that, once they appear, is an insurmountable existence! At the very least, Mixed Void will rapidly become a powerful Deity, and he might even reach the Emperor Level in just a few tens of thousands of years!"

"That’s right. Whether it’s Lan Yu or Li Yang—who is now progressing faster than Lan Yu—their current rate of progress is still a notch below Mixed Void’s. It only took Mixed Void one year to go from the eighth step to the ninth as well."

"In the future, Mixed Void’s strength should become even greater, and he’ll most likely become an Emperor. As for Li Yang and Lan Yu, they’ll most likely become powerful Deities."

The many experts were discussing this endlessly.

The rate of progress Li Yang had shown this time had truly startled countless people.

Many of the experts were comparing Li Yang, Lan Yu, and Mixed Void.

In this round of the genius selection, these three were undoubtedly the most dazzling figures.

"Who do you guys think will pass the ninth step first, Li Yang or Lan Yu?"

"I think it’ll be Li Yang! His rate of progress is too fast, especially this past year. You could say he’s been advancing by leaps and bounds."

"A fast rate of progress might just mean Li Yang stumbled upon a huge fortuitous opportunity. Many of these opportunities have short-term effects. Once it’s over, his cultivation speed will return to normal. I think Lan Yu will be the first to pass."

"I agree it’ll be Lan Yu. His strength is still greater than Li Yang’s right now."

"Haha, I think it’s Li Yang, and you think it’s Lan Yu. Want to make a bet?"

"You’re on! Who’s afraid of a bet?"

These top-tier experts of the Human Race had actually grown interested.

Li Yang and Lan Yu were two of the Human Race’s true top-tier geniuses. To the upper echelons of the Human Race, the more geniuses, the better. They were also eagerly anticipating the growth of both Li Yang and Lan Yu.

One was Lan Yu, who had consistently held second place and was currently stronger.

The other was Li Yang, who was rapidly catching up from behind with a faster rate of progress.

Between the two of them, who would be the first to pass the ninth step of the Godly Path? Some of these experts favored Li Yang, while others favored Lan Yu. Naturally, neither side was willing to concede to the other.

...

While Lan Yu was being affected, and while the many upper echelons of the Human Race were starting to place bets on who would pass the ninth step first... Li Yang was completely unaware of it all. At that moment, his mood was clearly excellent.

’One year. My results are finally on par with Lan Yu’s. The next step is to surpass him!’ Li Yang thought with delight.

Others might think he had stumbled upon a short-lived opportunity, but his Fire Nether Divine Beast avatar could remain in the Fire Nether Divine Beast clan’s Inheritance Tower indefinitely. This opportunity could last for as long as he wanted.

He could maintain his current rate of progress!

’In that case, surpassing Lan Yu will be a piece of cake.’

"Hm? We’re here?" Li Yang looked at the Blade Slaughter Sect before him.

"Haha, Blade Slaughter, your disciple has come to see you."

"We’ll be heading back now."

"I’m envious you took on such a good disciple."

At that moment, several other Deities stood beside Sect Master Blade Slaughter, all of them there to congratulate him. The Flame Wave Sect Master was also present.

Their eyes also held a hint of envy. The crucial point was that the Talent Li Yang was displaying was growing stronger and stronger, and he was now on the verge of surpassing Lan Yu.

Previously, Li Yang had come so close to becoming one of their disciples.

They had thought they were over it, but now, seeing Li Yang shine more and more brightly, they couldn’t help but feel a little down.