95: Chapter 95 The Winner's Passage

High above the Tianyuan Arena, the voice of the eye of destiny echoed across sixty-seven star sectors.

[Match Nine, the outcome has been decided.]

[Red Side: Su Bai (Tianxuan Star Sector, Qinglin Province) wins]

[Blue Side: Shen Zhao (Kaiyang Star Region, Dayan Province) loses]

[Advancement Status: Su Bai has advanced to the second round of the elimination matches]

[Shen Zhao has entered the Losers' Bracket]

In the void, the golden bridge connecting the two worlds began to disintegrate. Golden fragments peeled off the bridge and scattered into the void like silent fireworks. Every fragment reflected a scene: the fall of the War God, the capture of the God of Plague, the Main God being slain by a single sword strike, and three million followers fleeing like a tide.

Those images were captured by the eye of destiny and simultaneously projected onto the light screens of sixty-seven star sectors, twelve thousand four hundred provinces, and thirty-two trillion viewers.

In an instant, the public opinion across the entire Great Xia Kingdom was like a star being thrown into it.

Kaiyang Star Region, Dayan Province.

On the observation deck of the Shen Family's ancestral land, there was a deathly silence.

Shen Wanjun sat in the front row, his finger hovering over the armrest in a tapping gesture, but it delayed in falling. His expression remained calm, but those eyes, which had experienced countless world wars, were now slightly narrowing.

Behind him, dozens of direct descendants, collateral branches, and guest elders of the Shen Family were all silent.

No one dared to speak.

Because just fifteen minutes ago, they were still discussing who Shen Zhao would face in the next round. Some said Di Wudao of the Tianshu Star Sector, some said Ye Qingxue of the Tianquan Star Sector, and some even joked, "It would be great if he ran into that kid from Qinglin Province; it’s a freebie."

Now, the freebie had become a death sentence.

“Family Head...” an elder behind him spoke cautiously, “Zhao'er, he...”

“Shut up.”

Shen Wanjun's voice was very calm, but that calmness was more terrifying than a roar. The elder's lips moved a few times, but he ultimately made no further sound.

On the light screen above the observation deck, Shen Zhao's figure was being teleported out of the world pod. His face was deathly pale, his lips were purple, and his knuckles were white from clenching his hands. His world projection had completely collapsed; all five deities had fallen, fewer than five hundred thousand of the three million followers remained, and that Incense Divine Kingdom, passed down through eleven generations, was now nothing but broken walls and ruins.

Shen Wanjun looked at his son's appearance and finally withdrew his gaze.

“Let him fight well in the Losers' Bracket,” he said, his voice as calm as if he were talking about the weather. “If he wins all the remaining matches, he can still get fifteen hundredth place.”

Everyone could hear the words he didn't say.

For the Shen Family, fifteen hundredth place was no different from being last.

Meanwhile, in Qinglin Province, at the Chu Family Main City.

After three seconds of silence, the entire city erupted in cheers loud enough to shatter the clouds.

“We won! Su Bai won!”

“A total crush! It was a complete crushing!”

“Did you see that? That Ghost King killed the Main God with one sword strike! One strike!”

On the streets, the homeless people who had been crouching in front of the light screens jumped up, hugging strangers and shouting. In the bars, the owners opened all their best stock, treating everyone for free. In the schools, students rushed onto the playgrounds, throwing their uniforms into the sky and shouting the same name.

Su Bai.

Su Bai!

Su Bai!!

On the provincial observation deck, Chu Zhentian's finger finally landed on the armrest.

It wasn't a tap; it was a heavy slap.

“Good.”

Just one word, but the emotion contained within it made Chu Kuangren's nose sting. From childhood to adulthood, he had never heard his father say “good” in such a tone.

It wasn't relief, and it wasn't satisfaction; it was a pride that had been suppressed for too long and could finally be released.

Chu Kuangren took a deep breath and looked down at the communication terminal in his hand. On the screen was the message he had sent to Su Bai.

[Brother, I sent you the data on Shen Zhao. Did you look at it?]

The status was still “Read,” with no reply.

Chu Kuangren gave a bitter smile and put away the terminal.

“If you didn't look, you didn't look,” he muttered softly. “You won anyway.”

In a corner of the observation deck, Lin Canglan remained sitting in the shadows.

Her fingers were clutching her skirt, her nails almost piercing the fabric. On the light screen, Su Bai's figure was walking out of the world pod, his expression as calm as if he had just finished a class.

In her eyes, there was envy and a sense of being unwilling to lose, but more than that, there was something she couldn't even explain to herself.

“Is this your true strength...” she light said softly. “Then back on the heavenly pride list, you didn't even show half of your strength?”

On the other side of the observation deck, the Old Principal still had his eyes closed.

But the corners of his mouth were slightly raised.

“Give it a try,” he softly repeated the three words Su Bai had said back then. “You've proven it.”

Tianyuan Arena, the exit of the void passage.

Su Bai stepped out of the world pod and onto a circular platform floating in the void.

The platform was about ten zhang in diameter, constructed entirely of transparent Void Crystal Steel, through which the endless void beneath the Tianyuan Arena could be seen. Above the platform, a golden pillar of light descended from the dome, enveloping his figure.

That was the Winner's Passage, leading to the rest area for the second round of the elimination matches.

He raised his head and looked across.

At the other end of the void passage, Shen Zhao was enveloped in a grayish-white pillar of light.

That was the Loser's Passage, leading to the purgatory of the Losers' Bracket.

Their gazes met in the void.

Shen Zhao's lips were trembling; he wanted to say something, but his throat felt like it was blocked by something. His eyes were red, and his hands clenched and unclenched repeatedly.

He remembered how, fifteen minutes ago, he was still standing in the world pod, looking at Su Bai's data with a contemptuous smile on his face.

“A Yin Qi World? A world like that can reach Rank 6?”

“Let that kid from Qinglin Province see what a real Rank 6 looks like.”

Now, his Incense Divine Kingdom had collapsed, all five deities had fallen, and fewer than five hundred thousand of his three million followers remained. His world core was covered in cracks and would take at least half a year to repair.

While the youth opposite him hadn't even moved a finger from beginning to end.

He had just stood there, watching his hero tear his world to pieces.

Su Bai looked at Shen Zhao, the corners of his mouth slightly turning up.

He raised his hand and mouthed some words.

Four words.

“You're bad, practice more.”

Shen Zhao's pupils contracted sharply.

His lips trembled violently, and the tears in his eyes finally poured out uncontrollably. He wanted to retort, to roar, to say “You just got lucky,” “Your world counters mine,” or “I'll definitely beat you next time.”

But he couldn't say a word.

Because he knew it wasn't luck.

It was a crushing defeat.

A total, absolute crush with no suspense whatsoever.

His five deities, before the Ghost King, were like ants facing a dragon.

His three million followers, before the Black and White Impermanence, were like lambs facing a butcher.

His Incense Divine Kingdom, before the five great races, was like a sandcastle facing a tsunami.

He was utterly defeated and knew it.

But knowing it didn't mean it didn't hurt.

The grayish-white pillar of light began to sink, swallowing Shen Zhao's figure. The gate to the Losers' Bracket slowly opened behind him, leading to a massive space composed of gloomy tones.

There, the fifteen hundred Creators who had been eliminated in the first round were gathered.

Most of them would struggle for a few rounds in the Losers' Bracket before being completely eliminated.

Even if he won all his remaining matches, Shen Zhao's highest possible rank would be no more than fifteen hundred and first in the country.

And fifteen hundred and first place wasn't even worth a single stroke in the Shen Family's genealogy.

Shen Zhao's figure disappeared into the gate of the Losers' Bracket.

The pillar of light for the Winner's Passage grew brighter, lifting Su Bai and ascending toward the rest area above the Tianyuan Arena.

In the golden pillar of light, Su Bai's expression remained calm.

Tianyuan Arena, the core control room.

Tian Heng stood before the eye of destiny, looking at the light screen displaying the match results.

The result of Match Nine had already been marked as “Finished” by the eye of destiny. Next to it was a line of small text.

[Battle Duration: Twenty-seven minutes]

[Red Side Unit Losses: Approximately twenty-three thousand (Already resurrected by the eye of destiny)]

[Blue Side Unit Losses: Approximately 2.8 million (Already resurrected by the eye of destiny, but the world core is severely damaged)]

[Evaluation: A crushing victory. The Red Side completely crushed the Blue Side in terms of Hero Unit quality, unit coordination, and tactical execution. The Red Side's strongest Hero Unit, “Ghost King,” displayed combat power far exceeding a conventional Rank 6 peak during the battle. It is recommended to appropriately increase the strength of the Red Side's opponents in subsequent matchups.]

After Tian Heng finished reading that line, the corners of his mouth slightly turned up.

“Increase the opponent's strength?” he said softly. “Then let's see the matching results for the second round.”

He raised his hand and made a light swipe in the void.

The matching algorithm of the eye of destiny began to recalculate, and the remaining fifteen hundred names flickered wildly on the light screen.