Star Odyssey

The western region of Chaos Flowzone had long since been completely sealed off by the Hall of Honor, as it had been given over to the Sixth Mainland. The Sixth Mainland continued to send their youths through the small gap in the barrier, and those who had arrived were currently living on a floating mainland.

This drifting mainland bordered the Starfall Sea to the west of Chaos Flowzone. When the Ghost Monkey had dragged Lu Yin into the Technocracy to escape, they had actually passed by this drifting mainland.

The Sixth Mainland continued to send their youths to the floating mainland in the Fifth Mainland. At this moment, the drifting continent had already been renamed to the Upper Realm.

The Upper Realm was not very large, and it had been under Chaos Flowzone's control for a long time. But when the Sixth Mainland had invaded, the casualties had been catastrophic and incalculable. Now though, the Sixth Mainland's most talented youths had already arrived at the Upper Realm after several months had passed.

The Hall of Honor had only sealed off the region where the Upper Realm sat, and nothing had been revealed to the outside world. The people from the Sixth Mainland were also aware that they were hated by those from the Fifth Mainland.

In the Upper Realm, in a region that was covered with yellow sand and scorched by a blazing hot sun, more than a dozen figures walked across the sand while searching for something.

"Where did the young master go?"

"I don't know, but continue looking for him. We can't allow the young master to miss this opportunity."

"I don't know what the Fifth Mainland's Hall of Honor is thinking. They're actually hosting this ZENITH, and they are even inviting people from the Sixth Mainland to participate. With our Daosource Three Skies, does the Fifth Mainland even stand a chance?"

"I've heard that the Fifth Mainland is far more complicated than what we witnessed during the attack. I hope that the young master will be more careful."

Just as these few people were talking, a pair of eyes opened beneath the sand. The strangest thing was that these eyes had no pupils and were solid black. This person was White Silkworm, the inheritor of the Sightless Clan and the person known throughout the Blackblood Realm as being second only to Realmling Shang Rong.

White Silkworm jumped up out of the sand and stood in front of everyone, and they were all overjoyed. "Young Master, you can now register for ZENITH, which will be held in the Fifth Mainland."

White Silkworm nodded. "I know."

White Silkworm had once been arrogant. Even when confronted with Shang Rong, White Silkworm had possessed the courage to challenge the Realmling with the confidence that he wouldn't lose to Shang Rong. However, at this moment, White Silkworm's face looked worn down and tired, seemingly carrying a deep sadness.

The sudden arrival of those monsters had left the Sixth Mainland with no time to react. One realm after another had collapsed, and even the Daosource Sect had fallen. Only the appearance of their three Progenitors had allowed the Sixth Mainland to barely beat the monsters back.

The loss of the Blackblood Realm had truly been tragic. More than half of the Sightless Clan's direct descendants had died, and almost all cultivators relying upon the Sightless Clan had been eliminated. The worst of all was that nearly all of their Blackblood Realm's super powerhouses had died.

And this was just what the Blackblood Realm had suffered. The Sixth Mainland consisted of nine realms as well as the countless Imprinters who had been a part of the Daosource Sect.

They had never expected their invasion of the Fifth Mainland to fail, but they had been forced to return to the Fifth Mainland so soon. This time, they had not come as invaders, but rather as refugees.

The once-arrogant invaders had failed and then been summarily driven from their homes like a beaten dog. This complete 180 had drained White Silkworm of his previous arrogance, and it had also silenced his peers from the Sixth Mainland.

On another planet, the Bloodburn Realm's Realmling, Di Fa, met with Bai Ling, the Grand Martial Realm's Realmling. Both remained silent.

Some distance away, someone whispered, "Another group's already arrived. I heard that this group is from the Sage Martial Realm."

"Sage Martial Realm? Didn't they want to stay in the Sixth Mainland until the very end? Why did they escape?"

"Shh! Don't talk about that. It won't be good if someone from the Sage Martial Realm overhears you."

Bai Ling had already heard their conversation, but his face did not even twitch. Their pride, their everything, had been destroyed by those monsters, so what was the point in dwelling on such matters?

"Have you heard? ZENITH, the competition being held by the Fifth Mainland's Hall of Honor, has opened up for registration."

"ZENITH? What an arrogant name. Is the Fifth Mainland worthy of using such a title? My Sixth Mainland's Daosource Three Skies are enough to wipe out everyone from the Fifth Mainland."

"I don't know where the Fifth Mainland got the confidence to call their contest ZENITH, but aren't they afraid that their peak youths will be beaten like dogs by our Daosource Three Skies?"

"Actually, the Fifth Mainland has quite a few powerhouses themselves, and their strongest youths are very impressive. What about the Ten Arbiters or the Neoverse's top youths? Without them, we'll take everything."

"By the way, I heard that there's another Arbiter named Lu Yin who injured one of the Daosource Three Skies and that he's the person Zhi Yi issued a special reward for. She even said that she would introduce his captor to the Progenitor of Bloodlines. Even if the Progenitor of Bloodlines doesn't take that person as a disciple, they would still be able to have an Empyrean Imprinter as their master."

"So? What happened?"

"It was all useless. The East Realm's Realmling, Little Arrow Saint, chased Lu Yin for many days trying to capture or kill him, but Lu Yin ultimately managed to run away. It's such a pity."

"There really are some people from the Fifth Mainland who aren't weak, so be careful."

"What's the use of so much talk? I'm guessing that no one from the Sixth Mainland will even be able to participate in their competition. There's no guarantee that we'll be safe, and even if we win, then so what? The Fifth Mainland's people are so short-sighted. They only see the Astral Beast Domain and the Technocracy as their nearby enemies while they think of us as their greatest enemy. They don't even know that the real enemy is those monsters. They're just a group of short-sighted people. Even if they win, they have nothing to be proud of."

This person's words resonated with many others, as they all still looked down on the Fifth Mainland.

…

Listening to the people's conversations, Di Fa shook his head, "They're the ones who are truly short-sighted. If the Fifth Mainland was really as weak as they claim, then why would the three Progenitors need to wait outside? They would have simply seized control of the Fifth Mainland long ago, and at worst, they would have brought those monsters in as well and allowed the Fifth Mainland to be consumed. Instead, those monsters are destroying my Sixth Mainland, which is enough to prove that the three Progenitors actually fear this Fifth Mainland."

Bai Ling's eyes had long since lost the arrogance and sharpness that they had once possessed, though this was not because of the Fifth Mainland. Just like White Silkworm and many of the Sixth Mainland's other geniuses, she had lost her confidence after being beaten by those monsters.

Even just thinking about those monsters gave Bai Ling shivers of fear. She had no thoughts whatsoever about participating in ZENITH.

After Zenith Mountain appeared, registration for ZENITH had opened up. No fewer than 10,000 people from the Fifth Mainland had immediately signed up, and they came from the Innerverse, the Cosmic Sea, and the Neoverse. The Outerverse received the news a bit later, but the people from there also signed up as soon as possible. At the same time, the youths of the Astral Beast Domain also started entering, their names being engraved on Zenith Mountain.

After registering, a person's name would appear on Zenith Mountain. Such a massive mountain could have countless names engraved upon it, and the names of the losers would disappear once they were eliminated until only ten names remained.

No one from the Sixth Mainland had signed up yet, and none of them had any knowledge about the tournament at all. They were all focused on growing stronger so that they could drive out those monsters one day and return to their Sixth Mainland. Everyone had a blood feud with those monsters.

The three Progenitors had not told anyone that the monsters had only appeared in the Sixth Mainland because of Progenitor Hui's plan and predictions. If these people knew, then they would never feel safe again.

The grudges that lay between the Fifth and Sixth Mainland were so deep that they could never be resolved.

The people of the Sixth Mainland passed through the hole in the barrier formed from the black hole. After entering the Fifth Mainland, they made their way to the Upper Realm.

Sword Scholar looked both sad and angry as he looked back at the Sixth Mainland. His eyes were bloodshot, as were the eyes of everyone else from the Sage Martial Realm.

At this time, Sword Scholar and all of the others heard a voice, and this same voice was simultaneously heard by the people in the Upper Realm along with all of the Sixth Mainland's cultivators.

"I am the Progenitor of Bloodlines."

As soon as these words were heard, everyone looked up at the sky, horrified. The Progenitor of Bloodlines? This was a Progenitor's voice?

"I know that you are unwilling, and I know that you are unafraid of death. But what is the value of unnecessary sacrifice? The Fifth Mainland's ZENITH is about to start, so sharpen your skills. Fight, steal, and win the championship of ZENITH. Anyone who manages to take one of the ten final places of ZENITH will be accepted as my disciple, and I will teach them everything that I have learned so that the Sixth Mainland can be reclaimed in the future and become invincible."

Progenitor of Bloodlines's words shocked everyone from the Sixth Mainland.

Bai Ling and Di Fa stood up and looked at each other; each seeing the shock in the other's eyes.

Out in the desert, White Silkworm was stunned that the Progenitor of Bloodlines had actually spoken.

In yet another part of the Upper Realm, a fat man who had been frantically eating lifted his head and muttered to himself for a moment before swallowing his food. "Bloodlines? The Progenitor of Bloodlines actually spoke?" He was Nan Yanfei.

In another part of the Upper Realm, a white sun shone down on the ground. Beneath this sun, several cultivators cried out in fear. However, no matter how they shouted, they could not evade their fate of being burned.

"You people from the Sixth Mainland will pay the price sooner or later! This is the Fifth Mainland, and you will definitely be forced out!" one cultivator shouted.

High in the sky, just beneath the sun, Shang Rong's eyes remained indifferent. The blood, cruelty, and ruthlessness that he had experienced had changed him. After living through the monsters' invasion, many of the people from the Sixth Mainland had changed.

"Your master was the one to ask us to come, and the weak can only accept their fate when they are not even qualified to resist." As his words faded, the few cultivators were completely wiped away.

Shang Rong then landed on the ground. "ZENITH?"

In yet another region of the Upper Realm, the rulers of the War Martial Realm continued to forge their weapons. During the battle in the Cosmic Sea, their ancestor had perished, which had caused the Toolwielder clan's status to plummet. They still had some power, but it was nowhere close to what it had once been.

After hearing the Progenitor's words, Toolwielder stopped his task and lifted his head, excitement burning in his eyes. If he could become a Progenitor's disciple, then his clan's former glory would be completely restored. This was the path he should take. Become one of the ten finalists? It was practically guaranteed.

Countless people from the Sixth Mainland were roused by the Progenitor of Bloodlines's words, but the matter was still not over yet.

"I am the Progenitor of Combat."

As soon as these words were heard, everyone from the Mainland was stunned once again.

"The Fifth Mainland ZENITH has begun. All of my Sixth Mainland's Realmlings will compete for the position of champion and ascend to the stars, hailed as invincible throughout the universe. Those who reach the top ten can become my disciples. The Progenitor of Bloodlines and I will teach these disciples together, and the day will come when we wade through blood as we fight to retake our Sixth Mainland."

The Progenitor of Combat's words were very similar to what the Progenitor of Bloodlines had just said. While the Progenitor of Bloodlines' words had already ignited the ambitions of countless Sixth Mainland cultivators, the Progenitor of Combat's words sparked those flames into fierce roaring fires.

The Sixth Mainland's youths had all become eager and excited at the prospect of becoming a Progenitor's disciple. This temptation was too strong.

Generally speaking, no matter how badly one wished to become the disciple of one of the three Progenitors, it was an opportunity reserved for only the Daosource Three Skies. At this moment, as long as anyone made it to the final ten in ZENITH, they would become the disciple of not only the Progenitor of Bloodlines, but also of the Progenitor of Combat. Such a thing had never occurred before.

In the Upper Realm, a woman in green clothes raised her head and said, "ZENITH? I should try it. Maybe I can get into the top ten."

Her name was Xiao Qing.