Chapter 89: A Once-in-a-Generation Genius
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!...
A muffled sound echoed as the long spears of the six terracotta soldiers struck with precision, piercing straight through the skulls of their enemies.
“Roar!!”
A berserk ape charged forward, smashing two terracotta soldiers to powder with a single punch.
But before it could revel in its triumph...
Thud!
The remaining four spears thrust forward without hesitation, stabbing the berserk ape that had approached, chilling it to its very core.
Yet the dwindling number of terracotta soldiers seemed to provoke the berserk apes, giving them hope of vanquishing these strange foes.
Suddenly, many berserk apes broke from Lu Bu’s encirclement, roaring as they lunged at the terracotta soldiers.
However...
“Rise...”
Standing at a distance, Ying Zheng calmly raised his finger.
The terracotta soldiers that had just been destroyed began to coalesce once more, their numbers restored to six.
Facing the overwhelming tide of berserk apes, the six terracotta soldiers simply continued to thrust their spears!
Thud, thud, thud!
Another six berserk apes fell dead.
But at the same time, the apes’ attacks rained down, countless fists—each as large as half a grown man—hammering the six terracotta soldiers into dust in an instant!
“Ooh ooh ooh!”
“Roar howl howl!”
Seeing their enemies finally destroyed, the apes were ecstatic, beating their chests and roaring triumphantly!
Yet their joy was short-lived.
Thud, thud, thud!
The familiar muffled sound returned. Several berserk apes felt a sudden pain in their heads—and then lost consciousness altogether.
Only now did the remaining apes realize, belatedly, that the six terracotta soldiers they had just smashed to pieces had somehow once again returned to their original form!
The battlefield was instantly divided into two fronts.
On one side, dust billowed as the six terracotta soldiers were repeatedly shattered and then restored, again and again.
On the other, Lu Bu unleashed a near one-sided massacre!
Countless experience points flowed ceaselessly into Song Qi’s body.
Perhaps driven by their berserk state, all reason abandoned, not a single ape fled despite the horrific casualties.
In less than ten minutes, over two hundred berserk apes were utterly wiped out.
Scarlet blood soaked a vast stretch of the forest, splattering even the century-old giant trees, staining them from top to bottom with a dark red hue.
The death of two hundred berserk apes brought Song Qi more than nine million experience points!
The once-empty experience bar was now more than halfway full!
Looking up, he saw his score had reached 1,032 points—ranking first!
“No wonder I’m myself,” Song Qi said, smugly.
Though he didn’t know how strong Li Zong, who was level 25, truly was, in terms of killing efficiency? As a summoner with both Lu Bu and Ying Zheng at his command, Song Qi felt he had nothing to fear.
Continuing to check, he noticed the second place contestant also had over 800 points—and the score was still rising.
Song Qi was momentarily surprised, but upon seeing the name, instantly felt it was only natural.
Second place was Li Zong—the very one the city lord had mentioned before the competition, a formidable contestant who had intentionally suppressed his own strength.
“He must have encountered another monster horde and is fighting them now.”
“At this rate, he’ll catch up to me in another minute.”
“No, I can’t let him overtake me!”
“I still want to drink more bottles of Origin Water.”
Song Qi glanced around, casually collected the equipment and items dropped by the berserk apes, then pressed onward toward the central region...
...
A few minutes earlier...
Above the forest...
Several powerful figures hovered in midair, seated in a circle. Their forms, appearances, and even apparent ages varied greatly. Some looked rather peculiar.
One sipped tea calmly, radiating the aura of a master. Another reclined in the air, his clothes supporting a pile of chips, sweets, and spicy snacks, a half-drunk bottle of large-capacity soda in his hand. At first glance, he seemed no different from an ordinary homebody.
But those who knew him would never mistake him for such, for everyone gathered here was a city lord-level powerhouse—among the strongest of the human race!
City Lord Fu was among them, though at that moment he sat in meditation with his eyes closed.
In the center of the group was a broad, antique bronze mirror. Its frame was slightly yellowed, hinting at its age.
Yet the mirror’s surface displayed dozens of contestants’ scenes with perfect clarity, complete with names, city districts, and current scores.
Occasionally, a strong hand would move and the images would shift automatically.
Suddenly, the homebody-like man perked up, as if he had discovered something interesting.
“Huh?!”
“Hey, you old fellows, stop daydreaming and look—a guy named Song Qi has overtaken Li Zong and snatched first place?”
“He’s killing enemies even faster than Li Zong!”
At that moment, the bronze mirror was showing the scene of Lu Bu and Ying Zheng battling the berserk ape horde.
On another screen, Li Zong was cutting through a group of rainbow-scaled pythons.
Both their scores were rising rapidly!
Yet Song Qi’s score remained steadily ahead.
“Song Qi is from... the Seventh District?”
“Is he one of yours, Old Fu?”
“To surpass our Human Saint? That’s impressive.”
On hearing this, City Lord Fu opened his eyes and glanced at the bronze mirror, unable to hide the pride on his face.
“This kid Song Qi has remarkable talent.”
“Don’t let his profession as a summoner fool you—his actual combat ability is not inferior to most frontline fighters.”
He waved his hand humbly, adding, “But... this survival contest happens to play to his strengths as a summoner. With two powerful warriors acting in concert, he’s lucky to be temporarily in the lead.”
The others offered their congratulations.
“Ah, you’re too modest, Old Fu.”
“With that kid, your talent competition is guaranteed at least a top five spot. This year, your Seventh District won’t have to worry about resources.”
“Indeed, to surpass Li Zong, there’s no ‘luck’ involved—his talent must be among the very best!”
“Isn’t that so, Elder Mu?”
One suddenly turned to the white-haired old man seated at the center. He was the only one among them who appeared elderly, and the only one who had ever briefly kept pace with Emperor Li Er, the strongest of the human race. Unfortunately, lacking the strength, he was eventually gravely wounded and retired to a secondary position.
Of course, ‘secondary’ simply meant wherever the rest of humanity was—the so-called ‘frontline’ had once consisted of two. After his decline, only Emperor Li Er remained.
Thus, he became the city lord of the First District and Li Zong’s guardian.
Seated in the center, his heart swelled with joy for City Lord Fu—or rather, for the human race.
He bore no hostility toward other human geniuses because of Li Zong’s status.
On the contrary, he was a staunch humanist!
Anything that benefited humanity, he was eager to see.
“Little Fu, this child’s performance is indeed outstanding. You Seventh District folks must nurture him well.”
“As for resources... with the talent he’s already shown, he deserves frontline treatment.”
“As for the final outcome, we’ll have to see how he does.”
At his words, the others were taken aback, and City Lord Fu could not conceal his delight!