Chapter 134: The Giant Axe Meeting and the Attention of the Clan's Higher-Echelons

In the Virtual Universe, above the endless planes, stands a majestic temple.

All the Masters of the Universe have arrived. This includes the Chaos City Leader and the Darkness Master, who had previously appeared in Chaos City. However, according to the seating order, the Chaos City Leader and the Darkness Master are relegated to the second and third positions.

At the head sits a man who resembles a savage. He is the current supreme leader of the human race, the strongest existing member of the race, and the only "Supreme Master of the Universe"—the Founder of the Giant Axe.

"Giant Axe."
"Chaos."
"Peng Gong."

One by one, the strongest beings of the human race exchange greetings.

"Everyone." Seeing that everyone has arrived, the Founder of the Giant Axe speaks, drawing all attention to himself. The temple falls silent instantly. Everyone looks toward him.

The Giant Axe says in a deep voice, "This Giant Axe Meeting was convened because of a genius who recently emerged from the Virtual Universe Company's Genius Competition."

"A genius?" one Master of the Universe asks, puzzled. "Those coming out of the Genius Competition are just little ones at the Star Level, right? What kind of genius could warrant convening a Giant Axe Meeting?"

The Master of Huang Jian immediately interjects, shouting, "Wait, what do you mean 'emerged from the Genius Competition'? That little guy was discovered by my Space Mercenary Alliance first!"

"Alright, we know it was the Mercenary Alliance that found him first. We will discuss his affiliation later. If he belongs to the Virtual Universe Company lineage, I will naturally provide you with compensation," the Chaos City Leader says, feeling quite helpless regarding the Master of Huang Jian's behavior. A dignified Master of the Universe, a founder of one of the five great giants, acting like this.

"As for this genius, it was Chaos who discovered his uniqueness, so let him explain," the Founder of the Giant Axe says, looking at the Chaos City Leader.

The Chaos City Leader nods. With a wave of his hand, a giant screen appears above the central circular table, displaying a file. He introduces, "Jiang Chen, a native genius from a primitive planet called 'Earth.' He is currently a Domain Lord with three Universe-level clones, all of whom are ordinary humans."

"While the ability to have clones is rare, the clones he chose are merely ordinary humans, which doesn't count as any great stroke of fortune. However, there is one thing about Jiang Chen that is extremely special and has captured my attention."

As he speaks, the Chaos City Leader displays two more files. "These are the identities of two of Jiang Chen’s clones. One clone joined the Space Mercenary Alliance, and another clone passed the Genius Competition to join my Virtual Universe Company, ranking second. Yes, the first place was his main clone, using his original identity."

"Wait!" a Master of the Universe asks suspiciously. "Changing one's appearance and using a new identity to deceive the Virtual Universe system is not hard to do. But joining the core secret realms of the five great giants requires personal vetting by a Master of the Universe. Did you find no issues?"

The five great giants invest massive resources into nurturing core geniuses. Furthermore, since each core secret realm is an incredibly important asset to the human race, the identities of these geniuses are strictly audited. At the very least, a Master of the Universe must personally "review" them to confirm they are not possessed by aliens or under soul control.

"Ahem..." the Master of Huang Jian says, feeling a bit embarrassed. "When he joined my Space Mercenary Alliance under the identity of 'Esuo,' I was the one who reviewed him. I confirmed he was indeed human, but I truly did not detect that his identity was forged."

"He was able to deceive the investigation of a Master of the Universe?" All the Masters of the Universe are astonished.

"Exactly. Based on my speculation, this Jiang Chen possesses the ability to copy and imitate the souls and mental fluctuations of others." The Chaos City Leader displays a file—the resume of 'Esuo.' Everything before was normal: a slave from a primitive planet whose race had been exterminated. But after being bought through the black market and reappearing in the universe, he became an monstrous genius. After wandering in the Black Dragon Mountain Empire for a time, he was recommended to the core secret realm of the Space Mercenary Alliance. The period he disappeared during this time was within the territory of the 'Silver-Blue Empire,' not far from Jiang Chen’s home. Although there is no evidence, once suspicion is raised, many details align.

"Did you not find the identity of the other clone?" the Master of Xu Jin from the Giant Axe Dojo asks curiously. "Copying mental fluctuations—that is a very interesting ability!"

"I did not. However, there are traces of artificial adjustment in that clone's genes. I suspect it is a product of cloning or genetic modification, unlike the clone under the identity of 'Esuo,'" the Chaos City Leader shakes his head.

"Copying souls and mental fluctuations, and being able to deceive a Master of the Universe... If the target for copying is not limited to living people, then..." The Master of Peng Gong, founder of the Universe Galaxy Bank, remembers something. He looks at the Chaos City Leader and immediately asks, "The secret chamber we discovered in the 'Tilt-Peak Mountain'?!"

The Master of Peng Gong’s voice is tense, yet filled with surprise. Upon hearing this, every Master of the Universe immediately looks at the Chaos City Leader.

Countless eons ago, the human race discovered a secret chamber in the Tilt-Peak Mountain. It was almost certain that the chamber contained astonishing treasures, potentially even a great opportunity that could allow the race to transcend reincarnation. But the chamber could not be opened. Even the strongest attack from the Founder of the Giant Axe could not leave a single mark on the door; it could only be "unlocked" according to the chamber's design. The condition to open the door is to possess mental fluctuations identical to those of the chamber's owner.

Over the countless eons, the human race had long since given up on that secret chamber. But the appearance of Jiang Chen has given them hope.

The Chaos City Leader nods and says, "That is what I am thinking as well. But there are two problems. First, is Jiang Chen’s ability to copy mental fluctuations limited only to living people? Second, that is outside the Primitive Universe. Ordinary Universe Venerables struggle to even survive there. Even with our protection along the way, one would need at least the strength of a Universe Overlord to go. Considering safety, it would be best to have the strength of a Master of the Universe. Does Jiang Chen’s talent allow him to reach that level?"

Hearing the Chaos City Leader’s words, all the Masters of the Universe fall silent. The first question could be asked directly to Jiang Chen, but the second is a massive dilemma. Over countless eons, how many Masters of the Universe has the human race produced in total? Including those who have fallen in the past, there are only about twenty. On average, one doesn't necessarily produce a Master of the Universe in a hundred million epochs. Does a genius who emerged from the Genius Competition have such talent?

"However, even if he cannot open that secret chamber, the ability to change mental fluctuations alone is already terrifying. If he acts as a spy, even without great strength, he could steal a vast amount of important intelligence. If operated well, he could even cause major turmoil within enemy races, giving our human race an opening!" a Master of the Universe from the Giant Axe Dojo suddenly interjects.

Among the five great human giants, the Giant Axe Dojo is the absolute "militant faction," spending their days thinking about how to suppress hostile forces in the universe and expand the human race's territory. Even upon hearing of a special "talent," their first thought is how to utilize it in the struggle of the race.

"We will discuss this matter later," the Chaos City Leader says, looking speechlessly at the Master of the Universe who spoke. In the face of an opportunity for the race to transcend reincarnation, what does the strife within the Primitive Universe matter? As long as there is even a glimmer of hope, they must surely strive for the former with all their might!

"If his soul and mental fluctuations were merely special, I would not have convened a Giant Axe Meeting; waiting for Jiang Chen to grow up would have been sufficient." The Chaos City Leader’s words pull everyone's attention back. "This Giant Axe Meeting was convened because Jiang Chen has demonstrated truly terrifying talent."

As he speaks, the Chaos City Leader waves his hand, and another file appears before them:
'Universe Heavenly Bridge'—12th level.
'Nine Universes Heavenly Bridge'—12th level.
'Mixed Hole Heavenly Bridge'—12th level.
...
'Heart Trace Heavenly Bridge'—13th level.
'Darkness Heavenly Bridge'—14th level.
'Heavenly Craft Heavenly Bridge'—15th level.

"These are the achievements Jiang Chen has attained in thirty years of cultivation in Chaos City." The Chaos City Leader sweeps his gaze over the crowd and says in a deep voice, "He has comprehended thirty-one Chaos Tablets. Apart from the 'Ancestor Tree Heavenly Bridge,' where he only passed the 6th level, he has passed at least the 10th level on the other thirty bridges, with the highest being the 15th level. Even taking one of these individually, it is an extremely rare and monstrous talent in the history of our human race. To possess monstrous talent in all cultivation directions—such an existence is unheard of, not just in our human race, but in the entire universe. I believe such a genius is worthy of a 'Giant Axe Meeting'!"

"If a Universe-level passes the 15th level of the Heavenly Bridge, it is indeed monstrous. But his main body is a Domain Lord... the cultivation speed of a Domain Lord is much faster than that of a Universe-level," a Master of the Universe says.

Another Master of the Universe retorts, "The key is not the level, but the time he has spent cultivating. To have such achievements in thirty years since first entering Chaos City—even among us in our weaker days, few have shown such performance."

"Thirty years of cultivation in Chaos City and he passed the 15th level of the Heavenly Bridge?!" A Master of the Universe widens his eyes and looks at another: "You Hou, when you joined the Virtual Universe Company through the Genius Competition back then, your performance wasn't this heaven-defying, was it?"

The 'Master of You Hou,' who has scythe-like horns on his head, snorts and says, "Back then, I passed the 15th level of the 'Darkness Heavenly Bridge' at the Universe level, but that was after thousands of years of cultivation in the Primitive Secret Realm. In my first thirty years in Chaos City, I only reached the 12th level."

"Since the race established the system of Chaos Tablets and Heavenly Bridges to nurture geniuses, the record for the first thirty years in Chaos City was held by Tian Shi." The Master of Long Xing looks at a man wearing silver-bottomed, gold-patterned robes and smiles. "Tian Shi, if I remember correctly, when you first entered Chaos City and challenged the 'Bu Huan Heavenly Bridge,' you passed the 15th level in thirty years, right?"

Palace Master Tian Shi is one of the three top Universe Overlords of humanity. Although not a Master of the Universe, he holds a status comparable to one. After all, in terms of strength, a top Universe Overlord is little different from a weaker Master of the Universe, and they have one advantage: the ability to be resurrected through the reversal of time. This makes the value of a top Universe Overlord higher than a weaker Master of the Universe in some special situations, naturally granting them corresponding status.

The quota for the 'Giant Axe Meeting' has always included spots for three top Universe Overlords.

Palace Master Tian Shi nods and says, "I did indeed pass the 15th level of the Heavenly Bridge back then, but I was only proficient in the Beast God Path of 'Fire and Space.' As for other directions, they were not my specialty. In terms of comprehensiveness, I am far inferior to Jiang Chen."

After a pause, Palace Master Tian Shi adds, "When I joined the Virtual Universe Company, my main body was already a World Lord, and I had been cultivating for thousands of years. I had a great advantage in law comprehension."

The World Lord level is recognized in the universe as the stage best suited for comprehending laws. In terms of law comprehension alone, one day of cultivation as a World Lord is at least equal to one year as a Domain Lord. Having cultivated for thousands of years at the World Lord stage, and being a talent as heaven-defying as Palace Master Tian Shi, his accumulation in the laws was naturally incredibly profound. Yet, even so, he was only on par with Jiang Chen at the Domain Lord level.

The Masters of the Universe look at each other, feeling that Jiang Chen's performance is beyond their scope of understanding.

"This Jiang Chen must have secrets," the Master of Peng Gong says. "I suggest we investigate thoroughly."

The Darkness Master retorts, "Strong people all have secrets. Among us here, who doesn't have their own secrets? As long as it doesn't harm the race, we cannot investigate lightly."

"Jiang Chen's secrets are indeed not worth investigating. As long as he grows up, it will ultimately be beneficial to the race." The Master of Xu Jin nods, then changes the subject. "However, there is another one in this Genius Competition named 'Luo Feng,' who also seems to have come from Jiang Chen's home planet? For two geniuses to appear in one generation on a tiny, primitive planet—that is not normal. This 'Earth' is worth investigating."

"Chaos has already investigated it and found nothing special. But to be safe, I plan to go take a look myself," the Founder of the Giant Axe says. "My main body is in the Universe Ocean; it will take a long time to return to the Primitive Universe—hundreds of years at the fastest, thousands or tens of thousands of years at the slowest."

"Then I have no issues," the Master of Xu Jin wisely shuts his mouth.

"What we are discussing now is this Jiang Chen," the Founder of the Giant Axe takes over the topic. "The talent Jiang Chen has shown has far exceeded what Chaos and I initially expected. But even the best genius needs a teacher’s guidance. There is one problem: regarding Jiang Chen’s talent, none of us are capable of teaching such a student."

"Indeed, the directions this little guy is proficient in are just too comprehensive..."

"What we are good at is generally just one path, or at most a few paths simultaneously, but this little guy seems to know a bit of everything and can learn anything..."

The Masters of the Universe begin to discuss it one after another. Strong people love to take on monstrously talented disciples. But if the talent is too monstrous and the teacher cannot teach them, it becomes very awkward.