69: Chapter 69 A jaw-dropping achievement

The three-day deadline had arrived. Deep within the Eternal Illusion God Realm, the tolling of a bell rang out. It was ancient and distant.

All the contestants who were still fighting, fleeing, or hiding within the illusionary realm felt their bodies suddenly turn ethereal. A massive force enveloped them. Whoosh. They were all tossed back to the real world.

Tianjiao City. The central plaza. Lights flashed chaotically as figures were spat out, none of them in good shape.

"Hoo... finally survived!"

"It was fucking terrifying! That demonic ape in Black Wind Valley is a monster; my squad was almost wiped out!"

"That's nothing. I saw the Chaos Holy Son with my own eyes punch a Venerable Realm illusion beast to death. That was truly absurd!"

The returning Prodigies were all in a sorry state. Some had clothes shredded into rags and were covered in blood. Others were listless, clearly suffering from heavy injuries. Some had dull, vacant eyes, looking like fools—their Dao Heart had likely collapsed. The plaza was a scene of noise and chaos.

Amidst this commotion, the appearance of Li Changsheng seemed completely out of place.

He had been teleported right next to the Yaochi Holy Land team. Yao Xi spotted him at first glance. That cute little child. He was clean, without a single injury, his little face rosy and full of energy.

In one hand, he clutched a peach wood sword skewering meat, and in the other, he held a large fruit emitting divine light, munching away with a crunching sound. He had no interest in anything around him, focused only on smacking his lips. It seemed he hadn't had his fill yet.

The Myriad Poison Crocodile Emperor certainly couldn't have been brought out. Yet, this little guy looked even more pampered than he had been in the illusionary realm. Yao Xi watched him, then felt the condition of her own body—completely healed thanks to a single Vermilion Bird fruit, with her cultivation even having progressed slightly—and her heart was filled with mixed emotions.

"Little brother, are you okay?" she couldn't help asking softly.

Li Changsheng looked up, saw the pretty big sister, shook the half-eaten fruit in his hand, and said indistinctly, "Big sister, this fruit isn't as tasty as the meat."

Yao Xi: "..." She was stunned. This conversation was impossible.

Just then, celestial light gathered above the plaza. A massive golden scroll unfurled in the sky.

"The leaderboard is being announced!"

"Look! I wonder who is first!"

Everyone's gaze turned to the golden list. On the list, names appeared one by one from the bottom up.

"10,000th place, Hundred Beast Mountain, Zhang Mang, points 130..."

"9,000th place..."

Those on the list were extremely excited, proving they had advanced. Those who didn't see their names had ugly expressions.

The higher the list went, the fewer names there were, but the exclamations grew louder.

"It's the top 100! Look! Saintess Yao Xi, 93rd place! Wasn't she injured? How could she still fight her way into the top 100?"

"That's nothing! Look at that, the 13th Prince of the Yuhua Dynasty, Ji Haoyue, 85th place!"

The crowd's discussion brought glory to the Yaochi Disciples behind Yao Xi. Yao Xi herself, however, smiled bitterly and shook her head. If not for that Vermilion Bird fruit, she would have been kicked out long ago. She glanced again at Li Changsheng, who was focused on munching his fruit, and felt more and more that this child was unfathomable.

The list rose rapidly. Soon, the top ten were about to be revealed!

"10th place, Purple Mansion Holy Land, Ziyang! Points 98,000!"

"9th place..."

Each announcement was met with cheers. These ten were all true Disciples of the major Holy Lands and Imperial Dynasties, the recognized favorites to win the championship.

When the list rolled to the top three, the field suddenly fell silent.

"3rd place... Li... Changsheng?" The Elder reading the list stammered, doubting his own eyes.

The plaza became deathly silent. Everyone was stunned. Li Changsheng? Who is that? Hardly anyone had heard of this name.

"Must be a mistake, right? Who is this? Never heard of him!"

"Is the list wrong? How could someone unknown rush into the top three?"

"Exactly! The top two must be the Chaos Holy Son and the Ji family's divine physique. Where did this Li Changsheng pop out from?"

Questioning, ridicule, and confusion—the crowd erupted into a commotion. On the viewing stands, the big shots from all sides also felt puzzled. They knew every famous young Prodigy in the Eastern Wasteland like the back of their hand, but this "Li Changsheng" was truly unheard of.

To quell the discussion and to verify, the presiding Elder waved his hand. On the golden list, the detailed data of the top ten was clearly displayed.

When everyone looked at the area for 3rd place, the entire Tianjiao City, with millions of people inside and out, fell silent instantly. Everyone was frozen in place.

[3rd Place: Li Changsheng]

[Bone Age: Three and a half years old]

[Points: 296,000]

[Eliminated Opponents: 158]

[Effective Attacks: 37]

[Injury Record: None]

Countless people were astonished, staring intently at those few lines of text. They were dumbfounded. Bone age... three and a half years old? A three-and-a-half-year-old toddler fought his way into the top three of the Heavenly Pride Battle?

If this information was already unbelievable, the data that followed left them gaping in shock.

"I... I'm not seeing things, am I? Injury record... None?"

"158 kills! My god! Many teams at the Peak of the Marquis Realm couldn't even get that many kills, right?"

"That's not the point! Look at his number of attacks! 37 times!" A Disciple pointed at the golden list in the sky with a trembling hand, his voice hoarse from shouting.

"He only attacked 37 times and eliminated 158 people?"

"That's, what the fuck, an average of more than four people per move?"

His shout caused an uproar throughout the plaza! Everyone was completely stunned. A monster! This could no longer be described as just a "Prodigy"! This was a pure monster that shouldn't exist in this world!

At this moment, everyone understood. The legend of the "Three-Year-Old Great Demon King" was not baseless. The so-called "Demon-Slaying Alliance" and the so-called "Twin Prodigies of Purple Lightning," in front of that person, were truly just a joke!

"Impossible! This child must have used a forbidden technique, or it's an old monster's Possession! Investigate! You must investigate this clearly for this old man!" On the viewing platform, an Elder of the Purple Mansion Holy Land shouted angrily.

His words immediately caused the factions behind all the eliminated Prodigies to join in the clamor. "Right! It must be thoroughly investigated! All of his battle footage must be made public!"

The Grand Elder of the Great Saint Realm, who was presiding over the Heavenly Pride Battle, sank his expression. He raised his hand, and his voice clearly spread across the entire venue. "Silence!" An aura of pressure descended, and the plaza immediately fell quiet.

"Regarding this matter, we will naturally investigate it in detail."

After speaking, he exchanged glances with several other Saint Elders and together they activated the "All-Heavens Treasure Mirror" in the center of Tianjiao City. The ancient bronze mirror lit up with dazzling light; within the mirror, countless images flashed by, finally being forcibly locked by the Saints onto fragments related to Li Changsheng.

The first scene. In a swamp, five Marquis Prodigies launched a lethal siege. Li Changsheng, who was roasting meat, impatiently waved the peach wood skewer behind him. Those five Prodigies, along with their Divine Abilities, were instantly annihilated.

The second scene. Li Changsheng yawned, casually picked a fruit, and threw it at a Prodigy who had activated a divine physique. When the fruit touched that person, the divine physique shattered on the spot, and they turned into light, eliminated.

The third scene. The "Demon-Slaying Alliance," composed of over a dozen Prodigies, unleashed a powerful attack. Li Changsheng blew a puff of air at the attack. Then, it was gone.

The scenes finished playing. On the viewing stands, those Saints and Saint King Elders had expressions that grew uglier by the second. From serious, to surprised, to fearful. In the end, only bewilderment remained.

They had watched all the replays. A total of 37 "attacks." Each one was so casual, so understated. Each time, the consequences were so terrifying, so incomprehensible.

They couldn't understand. They couldn't understand the principles or the Law behind those attacks at all. It was simply unreasonable. It was a pure dimensionality-reduction strike.

A long time passed. The Grand Elder presiding over the battle closed his eyes before slowly speaking. The voice was not loud, but it made everyone present feel a chill in their hearts.

"This child..." "Is unfathomable." "His Dao is beyond conventional reason!"