Outside the secret realm.

"James, do you have anything else to say before you go?"

Gorby looked at his student, his tone carrying a hint of kindness.

James blinked confidently, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly.

"Teacher... after this fight is over, don’t forget to hand out the reward."

"You little brat!"

Gorby laughed and cursed, but the affection in his eyes could not be hidden.

"At this rate, my entire fortune will be emptied out by you sooner or later."

"How can you call that ’emptying you out’?"

James refuted him with a perfectly serious expression. "A teacher rewarding his student is only right and proper!"

Gorby rolled his eyes, too lazy to argue with him.

On the other side.

"Mosi, are you ready?"

The instructor in hemp robes looked at his student with concern and asked in a low voice, "How confident are you?"

"Mm..."

Mosi fell silent for a moment before slowly spitting out a few words.

"About fifty percent."

"Pretend I never asked."

The instructor in hemp robes smiled awkwardly.

No matter what Mosi did, whenever someone asked about his odds, his answer was always half.

Yet every single time, he would crush his opponents with overwhelming force.

So what was the difference between asking and not asking?

"Fight well."

"Okay."

Mosi was a man of few words, as cold as a block of stone.

It was as if saying even one more word would cost him his life.

But at that very moment!

A vast spatial fluctuation descended without warning, so oppressive that it nearly made everyone unable to breathe.

The expressions of the instructor in hemp robes and Gorby changed at the same time.

A high Oracle-grade.

At least T6!

"A T6 Oracle-grade powerhouse!"

The instructor’s heart trembled.

He himself was only Tier 4. In Luna_Fox, he was already considered a ranked expert, but compared to the newcomer, the gap was far from small.

"Who is it?"

Gorby, however, was a little more curious.

Although he was also Tier 4, he had a T7 Oracle-grade backing him, so he naturally had much more confidence.

Buzz, buzz—!

Space seemed to be torn open from the center by an invisible hand, splitting into a smooth rift.

A powerhouse slowly stepped out from within.

He wore a black robe, and the hem of that robe was embroidered with an incomparably dazzling golden mountain — the emblem of the strongest force in Canaan Starfield.

Golden Mountain’s T6 Oracle-grade — Angel.

"Greetings, envoy of Golden Mountain!"

The instructor in hemp robes hurriedly bowed.

"Greetings, envoy."

Gorby also bent forward.

"Greetings, envoy of Golden Mountain."

James and Mosi saluted at the same time.

Angel smiled and raised his hand slightly, his voice gentle.

"No need for formalities. We are all old acquaintances. There is no need to be so restrained."

Both Frostfall Galaxy and Misty Rain Galaxy belonged to Canaan Starfield, and Golden Mountain was the true overlord of this starfield.

Naturally, the Oracle-grades present all recognized this renowned Angel.

"I imagine you have already guessed a little about why I came this time."

Two invitations glowing with golden light appeared out of thin air in Angel’s hand as he smiled.

"This Starlight Rankings Tournament is completely different from the previous ones. James and Mosi must both participate. Your match ends here. Go back and prepare properly. Then go meet the geniuses from the other starfields together."

The instructor in hemp robes and Gorby exchanged glances, then each revealed a helpless smile.

"Well then... looks like this fight won’t be happening."

James and Mosi, however, remained calm.

"Who I fight makes no difference."

Mosi’s face was expressionless, his voice as cold as iron.

"Fighting geniuses from other starfields?"

James’s eyes suddenly lit up, as if he had seen countless glittering gold coins.

He had to use this chance to properly fleece his teacher and Golden Mountain!

...

God Realm.

A deep spatial passage had already opened.

One end was connected to the towering halls of the God Realm, while the other pointed toward distant Aetheria!

Four legendary-grade Godkin powerhouses were waiting restlessly at the entrance of the passage, each of their expressions uglier than the last.

"Why isn’t Simon here yet? Time is almost up!"

A bearded Godkin man stomped his foot hard, anger suppressed in his voice.

"If we miss this opportunity, the spatial passage will close, and the mission to destroy Aetheria will be completely ruined."

A golden-curled Godkin had a gloomy expression.

"The consequences of mission failure — who can afford to bear them?"

"That damned useless trash. Absolutely hateful!"

A broad and burly Godkin spat fiercely.

"No wonder he’s the son of the Pantheon Summit Hall’s hall master, yet has fallen so low that he has to mix with people like us."

"Enough, enough. Simon is still a descendant of the hall master, after all. What’s wrong with him arriving a little late?"

A Godkin with a scar across his face spoke slowly.

"The Pantheon Summit Hall stands above the temples of the gods. Its status is right there. If those words you just said reach his ears, be careful he doesn’t settle accounts with each of you in the future."

"Him?"

The blond Godkin sneered, his face full of disdain.

"It’s still a question whether that piece of trash can ever return to Pantheon Summit Hall. And you think he can make a comeback?"

"Exactly. Simon was born with weak Divinity. After so many years, he’s still nothing more than a mere legendary-grade. What’s the difference between him and trash?"

"If I had his family background, I would have become a demi-sage long ago."

"A piece of trash wants to turn things around? Hilarious!"

The Godkin powerhouses mocked him one after another, their words full of ridicule.

In their eyes, Simon, who had noble birth but was born defective, was nothing more than a joke to laugh about over tea.

...

Simon flew toward the gathering point at an unhurried pace.

When those so-called "companions" saw him, their eyes were filled with undisguised contempt.

"Look, the God Realm’s number one piece of trash is here."

"That’s him. The son of the Pantheon Summit Hall’s hall master — Trash Simon."

"Shh — don’t let him hear you."

"What are you afraid of? I’m a supreme-grade, and he’s just a god-grade. So what if he hears me?"

Simon’s face remained expressionless, as if he had heard nothing at all, and he continued flying forward.

Yet in his mind, memories from one hundred thousand years ago surged like a rusted knife, carving into his heart again and again.

One hundred thousand years ago.

There was a human powerhouse named Kelly who set foot in the God Realm and entered that forbidden land that even sages paled at the mention of — the Bloodtide Sea.

"Bloodtide Sea..."

The moment Simon thought of that name, his entire body trembled uncontrollably, and a deep fear flashed through his eyes.

Legend had it that in the deepest part of the Bloodtide Sea, there was a "Gate of Truth." By passing through it, one could arrive at another universe at random.

But the price was so great that even Divine-grade powerhouses could not endure it.

Back then, Simon had been a guard of the Bloodtide Sea.

"I was still very weak then. Father God looked down on me. My younger brothers looked down on me. The entire God Realm looked down on me."

"Those younger brothers of mine were terrified that if I remained in Pantheon Summit Hall, I would be an eyesore to them and compete with them for resources. So they joined forces and drove me to the Bloodtide Sea."

The Bloodtide Sea.

The number one forbidden land of the God Realm!

Even Divine-grade powerhouses had a nine-in-ten chance of dying if they entered. Only living beings with unwavering beliefs and wills as firm as steel could survive there.

It was there that Simon first met a human from Aetheria.

It was also the first time he witnessed a kind of Strength he had never seen before.

It was not some extraordinary talent.

It was not some Bloodline Inheritance.

It was belief and will carved deep into the bones.

And the one he could never forget for all eternity was Kelly.

In his long and cold life, Kelly was the only person who had never once looked at him as if he were trash!