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In the cold expanse of the starry sky, the Star Lord Red Kun's expression revealed surprise.
As a figure of the stellar lord level, surpassing the sixth rank, Star Lord Red Kun rarely experienced such emotions.
"So many geniuses emerged in this tournament?"
The screen in front of Star Lord Red Kun suddenly stopped, then split into over a hundred screens, each playing videos of different matches.
These over a hundred screens corresponded to over a hundred evolver contestants.
These individuals were naturally the "geniuses" mentioned by Star Lord Red Kun.
The Dawn Galaxy is one of the eight major Galaxies in the Red Kun Star Territory, with 120k inhabited planets.
And on these 120k inhabited planets, tournaments are held, and rankings are determined.
From this vast pool of evolvers, Star Lord Red Kun selected just over a hundred, which could be considered a very selective process, given that it took hundreds of millions to produce just one such individual.
Star Lord Red Kun's gaze lingered on the first three screens.
The evolvers on these three screens were a silver-haired woman, a man with a third eye in the center of his forehead, and a burly man wielding a massive hammer.
"Space talent. Quite a good seedling," Star Lord Red Kun commented after watching the combat video of the silver-haired woman for a while, nodding slightly.
"I didn't expect there to be a member of the Tree-Eyed Clan?"
Star Lord Red Kun glanced at the man with three eyes.
The Tree-Eyed Clan is a branch of the human race. Even within the human race, there are different branches, such as the categorization based on skin color: yellow, white, and black.
And the Tree-Eyed Clan is an incredibly rare branch within the human race.
So rare that they cannot even form specific families. The reason for this is that the inheritance of the Tree-Eyed Clan is not passed from father to son, but awakens randomly.
And the terrifyingly low probability means that currently, throughout the entire Human Alliance, the number of Tree-Eyed Clan members does not exceed one hundred thousand, scattered across various regions of human territory.
Of course.
The scarcity of their numbers makes the talents of the Tree-Eyed Clan exceptionally strong. It is said that the third eye on the forehead of a Tree-Eyed Clan member can see the rules of the universe and deliver a blow far beyond their own strength.
"The rudiments of the Rule of Strength are grasped. There shouldn't be much of a problem reaching the sixth rank in the future," Star Lord Red Kun remarked as he looked at the burly man holding the giant hammer.
Based on comparisons with previous tournaments, if one of these three individuals appeared, it would be considered lucky. Yet this time, three had appeared in a row, which was why Star Lord Red Kun was surprised.
After viewing the first three evolvers, Star Lord Red Kun's gaze continued downward.
At the sixty-eighth position, Star Lord Red Kun saw Lin Yuan.
"Two extreme attribute rules. This path won't be easy in the future."
Star Lord Red Kun commented briefly before moving on.
"Not easy" refers only to evolvers below the sixth rank.
In the eyes of the great Star Lord Red Kun, it was just that.
"Since there are so many geniuses in this tournament, let's open the 'Seven-Star Cave' test."
After pondering for a moment, Star Lord Red Kun waved his hand and said, "The top three evolvers are granted Crimson Mark, the next one hundred and fifteen are granted Gold Mark. Additionally, the top ten of each planet's tournament will also be granted Silver Mark."
"Enter the 'Seven-Star Cave' together."
In the Central Mainland Manor.
Lin Yuan had just finished his cultivation and was about to spar with Fang Qing in the virtual world to study the 'Ancient God' evolution path.
Suddenly, a prompt popped up in front of him.
"About to enter the 'Seven-Star Cave' world."
"Please prepare."
"5, 4, 3..."
The countdown began.
Lin Yuan looked bewildered.
It was the first time he had encountered being forcibly pulled into the virtual world without his consent.
There wasn't even an option to refuse.
The next moment.
The countdown ended.
The environment around Lin Yuan changed, and he found himself in a vast white jade plaza.
At this moment, Lin Yuan could only see the scenery within a few meters of him. As for the further surroundings, they were covered in layers of mist.
"Please adjust your facial features and body shape."
A mechanical voice sounded in Lin Yuan's ears.
"Is it to conceal my identity?" Lin Yuan pondered, making slight modifications to his appearance and overall demeanor to give himself a slightly colder aura.
When Lin Yuan finished adjusting, the mist around him suddenly dissipated.
Looking around, Lin Yuan saw millions of evolvers scattered across the plaza.
These evolvers had varying auras, but at least they were all of the third rank or higher, with many being fourth-rank evolvers.
"The markings on their faces?"
Lin Yuan clearly noticed that each evolver had a silver-colored mark on their profile.
"Why is mine golden?"
Lin Yuan touched his own cheek. Although he couldn't see it with his eyes, at his level, he could perceive every detail of himself through his senses.
"And this 'Seven-Star Cave' world..."
Lin Yuan glanced around the plaza and began to speculate.
"They should know something?"
Lin Yuan looked towards three evolvers gathered not far away, whispering to each other.
Lin Yuan walked over.
The three evolvers clearly noticed Lin Yuan, especially when they saw the golden mark on his profile. Fear immediately appeared on their faces.
"Respected Gold Mark, sir."
Even before Lin Yuan reached them, the leader among the three evolvers bowed slightly to Lin Yuan.
"Gold Mark, sir?" Lin Yuan remained unchanged in expression. The "Gold Mark" referred to the golden mark on his profile.
In other words, the Gold Mark was more noble than the Silver Mark? At least, from the expressions of these three evolvers, Lin Yuan could draw such a conclusion.
"Yes," Lin Yuan casually replied.
"We three are from the 'Ice Sea Star.' May I ask which planet the Gold Mark sir is from?"
"Moon Spirit Star," Lin Yuan replied casually.
Moon Spirit Star, an advanced life planet in the Dawn Galaxy, was also the birthplace of the 'Source Force' evolution path that Lin Yuan had purchased.
"Moon Spirit Star, I've heard of it. It's an incredibly powerful planet."
"I didn't expect a Gold Mark sir to emerge from Moon Spirit Star in this tournament."
"In this Seven-Star Cave test, the Gold Mark sir will surely pass the test."
Through the proactive flattery of these three evolvers, Lin Yuan immediately understood the purpose of the Seven-Star Cave world.
"Test by Star Lord Red Kun?"
Lin Yuan thought to himself.
Early in the tournament, Lin Yuan knew that the top ten of the tournament might receive attention from Star Lord Red Kun.
Even the Goddess of Wisdom had hinted to Lin Yuan, intentionally or unintentionally, to seize this opportunity.
During the global top ten competition, Lin Yuan directly erupted with fourth-rank strength, revealing his talent.
Originally, Lin Yuan thought he might receive rewards from Star Lord Red Kun at most.
"The Seven-Star Cave world is a virtual world created by Star Lord Red Kun specifically to test geniuses. As long as you pass through the seven star caves, you will be eligible to join the Red Kun lineage."
"Of course, before entering the Seven-Star Cave world, Star Lord Red Kun will award the 'Crimson Mark,' 'Gold Mark,' and 'Silver Mark' according to the performance of each evolver in the tournament."
"The Crimson Mark has the highest status. The evolvers granted the Crimson Mark are basically seeds with unlimited potential, future sixth-rank candidates."
"As for the Gold Mark, although not as prestigious as the Crimson Mark, they are also unparalleled geniuses. Very few are produced in an entire star domain, and the probability of advancing to the sixth rank in the future is also very high."
As for the Silver Mark, they are the top ten in each planet's tournament.
Although these Silver Mark evolvers are 'star' evolvers on their respective planets and are highly regarded, they appear ordinary here. Everyone who can enter the Seven-Star Cave world is such an existence."
"Red Kun lineage."
Lin Yuan's eyes lit up slightly.
There was no doubt that the Red Kun lineage was the strongest force in the entire Red Kun Star Territory, and Star Lord Red Kun himself surpassed the level of 'Falling Star' (sixth rank).
If Lin Yuan could enter such a force, it would be of great benefit to his own growth.
Not to mention other things, just in terms of safety, Lin Yuan wouldn't have to worry for a long time in the future.
Moreover, if he could have close contact with such an existence as Star Lord Red Kun and receive his guidance.
For Lin Yuan, the effect would be far greater than trying to comprehend alone.
Unrivaled Insight was especially adept in this regard.
"But how to pass through the seven star caves?" Lin Yuan fell into contemplation.
To know how to pass through the seven star caves, he would need to know the specific content.
For example, how to pass each level? Once he knew the content in advance, he could naturally gain an advantage.
Although Lin Yuan currently had fourth-rank strength and had begun to comprehend many rules, he didn't underestimate other evolvers.
Ignoring other evolvers with Gold Marks for now, above the Gold Mark were the Crimson Marks.
Since Star Lord Red Kun, such an existence, designated him as a Gold Mark, he must have thought that he hadn't reached the standard of a Crimson Mark yet.
In other words, Crimson Mark evolvers would be even stronger than Lin Yuan currently.
While Lin Yuan was contemplating.
On the vast white jade plaza.
A towering phantom suddenly appeared.
"Twenty-four hours later, the Seven-Star Cave test will officially begin."
"A friendly reminder: The Seven-Star Cave test consists of seven levels. As long as you pass through the seven star caves, you will pass."
"Lastly, the test process must not be disclosed, otherwise, you will be punished by the Human Alliance and by the Star Lord."
After saying these words, the towering phantom disappeared.
"Must not disclose the test process?" Lin Yuan furrowed his brows slightly.
They were required to do so, and past evolvers who came to the Seven-Star Cave world would definitely be subject to this restriction.
This meant that if he wanted to obtain information about the test, the difficulty would increase significantly.
Because with the increased threshold for information, fewer people would know about it. It would inevitably become a rare commodity. Thus, it would be more difficult for him to obtain relevant information again.
Perhaps those evolvers from major forces or backgrounds knew about the test, but they wouldn't easily tell Lin Yuan for nothing.
"Hello, I'm from the Dawn Star."
A short-haired man walked over, his profile marking, astonishingly like Lin Yuan's, golden in color.
"Dawn Star," Lin Yuan glanced at the other party.
Dawn Star, the main star of the Dawn Galaxy, was the most prosperous area in the entire Galaxy.
It also had the highest number of high-level evolvers, with no shortage of sixth-rank Falling Stars.
"Moon Spirit Star," Lin Yuan nodded.
"Do we need to exchange information?" The short-haired man suddenly lowered his voice.
Evolvers recognized and approved by Star Lord Red Kun as Gold Mark must have begun to touch the rules of origin. Such geniuses likely had a powerful force behind them.
Although the test of the Seven-Star Cave world was strictly prohibited from being disclosed, for major forces, there were many ways to avoid this restriction, mostly by paying a price.
"Do you want to go first?" Lin Yuan heard this and immediately had the idea of getting something for nothing.
Anyway, even if he couldn't say it later, the other party wouldn't have any means to deal with him.
"Which of the seven star caves is the most difficult?" The short-haired man wasn't stupid and tested with a question first.
"Which one?" Lin Yuan remained unchanged in expression.
He didn't know which one it was.
"The seventh one" Lin Yuan said calmly.
Based on Lin Yuan's past experience, the last level was most likely the most difficult.
"You lied to me," the short-haired man turned and walked away.
"Hmm?" Lin Yuan wasn't entirely empty-handed.
At the very least, he knew that the most difficult level among the seven star caves was not the seventh.
"Could it be that the first level is the hardest?" Lin Yuan pondered.
This seemed to contradict the logic of passing levels; what if the first level eliminated everyone?
Soon after, another Gold Mark evolver approached.
"The first level is the most difficult," Lin Yuan replied.
"You're not sincere." This Gold Mark evolver shook his head, looked at Lin Yuan strangely, and also walked away.
Next, several Gold Mark evolvers attempted to exchange information with Lin Yuan.
Since evolvers who could appear in the Seven-Star Cave world were at least third-rank, they must have no problem with intelligence. It wouldn't be easy for Lin Yuan to obtain information about the levels.
"Respected Gold Mark."
An evolver with a Silver Mark on his profile approached.
"I know the information about the Seven-Star Cave and am willing to share it with you for free," the Silver Mark evolver said directly.
He had been observing Lin Yuan for a long time and confirmed that Lin Yuan knew very little about the Seven-Star Cave.
"What are your conditions?" Lin Yuan said calmly.
"I hope that when the Gold Mark enters the test site, you can do three things for me," the Silver Mark evolver said.
"What three things?" Lin Yuan looked at him, asking.
"I don't know that myself," the Silver Mark evolver shook his head. The test of the Seven-Star Cave varied, and no one knew what it would be like before it began.
"Then forget it."
Lin Yuan shook his head and refused.
The request was too broad. What if the other party asked Lin Yuan to kill a Crimson Mark evolver? Or hand over the opportunity to pass the level?
Lin Yuan didn't want to take the risk.
"Don't you want to? Information about the Seven-Star Cave test is priceless. If you know it in advance, make preparations accordingly, and your pass rate will greatly increase."
The Silver Mark evolver felt disappointed by Lin Yuan's refusal but didn't give up.
After several evolvers offered information on the terms, Lin Yuan decided to disconnect from the virtual world and return to reality.
In the Central Continent Manor, in the underground training ground of the main building, Lin Yuan rubbed his temples and fell into brief contemplation.
"Information is crucial," Lin Yuan knew very well.
It was like taking an exam; one person got the answers in advance, while another had to take the test blindly. Their situations would naturally be different.
The situation in the Seven-Star Cave test, without or with information, had an even greater gap.
If only the answers were concerned, Lin Yuan's extraordinary insight would still allow him to 'score full marks' even without them.
But in the Seven-Star Cave test, if other evolvers took advantage of the information advantage to set Lin Yuan up or trick him, a slight mistake could lead to his elimination.
"Let me ask the Goddess of Wisdom."
Lin Yuan began to connect with the Goddess of Wisdom.
Considering the status of the Goddess of Wisdom in the Human Alliance, she must know the content of the Seven-Star Cave test.
However, it depended on whether she was willing to reveal it.
"Citizen Lin Yuan's permissions are insufficient."
The solemn and cold voice of the Goddess of Wisdom came.
This wasn't unexpected to Lin Yuan. The rules of the Seven-Star Cave test prohibited the disclosure of the test process. Otherwise, it would incur punishment from the Human Alliance and the Star Lord.
Under such circumstances, the Goddess of Wisdom would definitely not disclose it. After all, one of the foundations of the operation of the Three Goddesses was the laws of the Alliance.
"Forget it."
"Even without the information, I can still pass through the seven star caves."
Lin Yuan sighed and decided to give up.
Although a few evolvers knew the information about the Seven-Star Cave test, Star Lord Red Kun must be aware of it. Even so, it wasn't completely prevented.
It seemed that Star Lord Red Kun believed that even without prior knowledge of the information, there was still a possibility of passing through the seven star caves.
"Strength is the foundation of everything."
Lin Yuan closed his eyes and continued to cultivate.
Meanwhile, outside the No. 66 Manor where Lin Yuan was located, a guest arrived.
The guest was Fang Qing.
At this moment, Fang Qing looked numb.
In his ears echoed the continuous roar of the White-bearded Old Man.
"You useless thing! You are not as good as Lin Yuan in terms of strength, and your talent is even further behind."
"At this point, why aren't you trying to make friends with him? What are you waiting for?"
"About the information on the Seven-Star Cave test, the master prepared it specially while he was alive. Now, why aren't you hurrying to deliver it to Lin Yuan?"
"If you delay any longer and Lin Yuan gets the information, won't it be too late for you to deliver it?"
The urging roar of the White-bearded Old Man continued.
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Well, he is definitively different from Xiao Yan's old man inside the ring :D
15 chapters ahead on patreon: patreon.com/David_Lord
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