Chapter 273: Chapter273-The Five Premier Starfields—Nine Stars!

"There are actually more than three hundred starfields participating in this tournament!"

Daniel was somewhat surprised. That number had already exceeded his initial expectations.

"In other words, there must be at least nine thousand contestants. And among them, the Canaan Starfield is considered a premier-tier starfield!"

The Samuel Starfield, the Aurora Starfield, the Kopper Starfield, the Canaan Starfield, and the Vesta Starfield.

Of the more than three hundred participating starfields, these five possessed the greatest overall strength. They stood at the very pinnacle of all first-rate starfields!

"Each of the five premier starfields has at least two Nine-Star powerhouses."

Daniel frowned slightly as he studied the unfamiliar names on the roster.

Nine Stars was the highest possible rating.

Using James and Mosi as points of reference, Daniel realized that the number of terrifyingly powerful individuals in the Endless Starfield far surpassed his imagination.

"Harris is here as well."

Daniel was rather surprised when he saw that name.

He had already taken notice of the man back at Heavenscar.

At the time, the prodigies from both camps had said that Harris possessed an extraordinary background. He was a descendant of the Starlight Folk, the foremost race of the Endless Starfield.

Back then, Harris had only been legendary-grade!

"So much for being descended from the greatest race beneath the stars..."

Daniel shook his head.

"Harris is certainly an opponent who cannot be ignored."

He continued scrolling through the roster.

"Besides the five premier starfields, there are five other starfields that are only slightly inferior, each of which has a single Nine-Star powerhouse standing guard."

These five starfields were the Lumina Starfield, the Aeterno Starfield, the Maritima Starfield, the Alba Starfield, and the Viridis Starfield.

"The Endless Starfield is boundless and vast. Far too many beings here seem to have been born with the makings of protagonists."

Daniel smiled faintly.

"What an exciting universe!"

Having to face so many Nine-Star powerhouses made even him feel a hint of pressure.

Just then, a soft halo of light suddenly spread across the surface of the table.

The radiance grew brighter and brighter, resembling moonlight spilling across the surface of a still lake.

"What’s going on?"

Daniel looked down in confusion.

Rows of words gradually appeared upon the tabletop, recording the competition format for the upcoming tournament.

"Oh? The rules for the Starlight Rankings have been finalized."

He began reading carefully.

[Starlight Rankings Tournament Format]

Rewards:

First Place: Divine-grade Skill Book, Secret Treasure.

Second Place: Divine-grade Secret Treasure.

Third Place: Divine-grade Skill Book.

[...]

Before the actual tournament format had even appeared, the rewards had already been displayed first.

"A Divine-grade Skill Book!"

Daniel’s eyes instantly grew heated.

Even if a supreme-grade skill underwent Millionfold Boost and reached the Divine-grade, there were certain intrinsic properties of a true Divine-grade skill that it simply would not possess.

It was just like taking a piece of ordinary blank equipment and enhancing it through Millionfold Boost until it became legendary-grade, compared to taking a piece of epic-grade equipment and enhancing it into legendary-grade. Although both items would ultimately be classified as legendary-grade, their characteristics and effects would be worlds apart!

A genuine Divine-grade Skill Book, however, possessed every defining trait of a true Divine-grade skill in its entirety!

Once a secret art created by a demi-sage successfully broke through into the Divine-grade, its creator would be able to step directly into the peak of the Divine-grade.

Even a monster like Mosi, a bitter cultivator who had devoted himself entirely to his path, had only managed to create supreme-grade secret arts of his own.

From this alone, the value of a Divine-grade Skill Book was obvious.

Both the first-place and third-place finishers would obtain a Divine-grade Skill Book!

"A Divine-grade Secret Treasure..."

Although Daniel did not yet know what exactly such a thing was, the fact that it was listed as the reward for second place, even above a Divine-grade Skill Book, meant that it had to be even more precious!

The words Divine-grade alone were already the best explanation.

As long as he took first place, both the Divine-grade Skill Book and the Divine-grade Secret Treasure would become his!

"Champion..."

The fighting spirit in Daniel’s heart burned hotter and hotter.

There was an unquestionable resolve in his voice as he spoke.

"I must take first place."

The rewards had clearly been placed at the very beginning of the announcement in order to ignite the competitive spirit of every contestant.

And evidently, the tournament organizers had struck precisely at the deepest desires of every participant!

The actual rules of the tournament were listed below.

Daniel continued reading.

First Round: [Warm-Up Match].

The top five powerhouses on the battle roster of every starfield would participate in this round and be randomly assigned opponents. Those who lost would fall into the elimination round, while the victors would directly obtain qualification for the advancement round, without needing to pass through the elimination round.

Second Round: [Elimination Round].

All participants who had not yet qualified for advancement would enter this round. Those who lost would be eliminated, while those who won would obtain qualification for the advancement round.

Third Round: [Advancement Round]...

"Oh? There’s actually a warm-up phase?"

Daniel raised an eyebrow.

The participants in this warm-up round were none other than the top five powerhouses listed on the battle roster of each starfield, with the matchups determined through random draws.

"It all comes down to luck."

He summarized it bluntly.

"Whoever you draw is whoever you face. In other words, I might be selected to go up as well."

"The warm-up matches begin tomorrow."

He glanced at the scheduled date.

"But what exactly determines who gets chosen as the top five?"

...

Aurora Starfield Encampment

Harris’s gaze was fixed firmly upon a particular name on the battle roster, as though he wanted to burn it into his eyes forever.

"Faustus... Back at Heavenscar, I already had a vague premonition."

He murmured under his breath, a trace of unwillingness hidden in his voice.

"That you and I would eventually meet again. I simply never imagined that day would come so soon."

Back then, at Heavenscar, Harris had already been a legendary-grade powerhouse, while Faustus had not even touched the threshold of the legendary-grade.

And yet, the supreme glory belonging to the greatest prodigy of the current age—the glory of reaching the summit of Cloudcrest Peak—had been forcibly seized by Faustus!

Every prodigy’s gaze had followed the dazzling light surrounding the one who had claimed first place.

No one knew that on that very day, another prodigy who had once carried boundless expectations, a genius hailed as the "uncrowned king," had also been standing there.

That person was him!

Yet even he had been forced to remain helplessly halfway up the mountain, watching with his own eyes as Faustus stood proudly at the summit above the clouds!

"Then let me see how much you have improved during this time."

A fierce desire for battle rose at the corner of Harris’s mouth as he spoke coldly.

"If you fall to my hands, then you will no longer be worthy of possessing the glory of the prodigy who reached the summit. I will prove that I am still the strongest one!"

...

Viridis Starfield Encampment

A neat row of participating powerhouses stood before an Oracle-grade being, each one holding their breath and concentrating intently.

"Silas."

The Oracle-grade’s gaze swept past the gathered contestants and fell upon a somewhat pale-faced young man standing in the middle of the group.

"Mentor."

Silas bowed slightly, his posture respectful.

"There is one human powerhouse in particular whom you must pay close attention to. His name is Faustus."

The Oracle-grade’s tone grew serious as he emphasized each word.

"Our starfield has always maintained close relations with the Canaan Starfield. I have carefully examined the intelligence regarding every one of their contestants. Faustus is very likely to be the strongest enemy you will encounter in this tournament!"

A confused expression appeared on Silas’s face.

"Mentor, neither James nor Mosi is an ordinary opponent. Why are you specifically warning me about Faustus alone?"

"Because the speed of this man’s growth is so astonishing that it defies all reason."

The Oracle-grade’s gaze softened slightly before he suddenly asked, "How many years has it been since you first began advancing along your path?"

"Mentor, this student has been exploring this path for more than fifty thousand years."

Silas answered truthfully, a nearly imperceptible trace of pride in his voice.

Among certain powerful races, fifty thousand years could not even be considered young adulthood!

"This human named Faustus..."

The Oracle-grade spoke slowly.

"Less than three years have passed since the day he first stepped into the extraordinary realm."

Boom—!

The Oracle-grade’s words crashed into the minds of the many powerhouses like a meteor plunging into the depths of the sea, instantly stirring up towering waves.

"He became a Nine-Star powerhouse of an entire starfield in less than three years? You have to be joking!"

"An existence like that actually exists in this universe?! How is anyone else supposed to live?"

"Compared to Faustus, I feel as though I’ve spent my entire life living like a dog..."