Translator: CinderTL
After Tang Huochang finished speaking, she turned and strode away with a sensual gait, leaving the floor.
In the Purification Pool, the 90 candidates who had successfully advanced perked up, quickly adjusting their condition.
Lin Yushu sat up and couldn't help but turn to Jiang Ye beside him. "Brother Jiang, are you truly impervious to pain?"
This Primordial Refinement was a hundred times more agonizing than the cosmic tempering. Yet Jiang Ye had maintained a completely expressionless face throughout the entire ordeal.
"What's the big deal? It was only half an hour," Jiang Ye said, shaking his head with a hint of regret.
"Only?" Lin Yushu stared in disbelief. Did Jiang Ye actually think the time was too short?
Could this guy have awakened some bizarre attribute? Lin Yushu suddenly mused, recalling his own strange pleasure at being scorned by beautiful women.
His expression turned meaningful as he chuckled, "Brother Jiang, I never imagined you were one of us."
"Huh?" Jiang Ye stared back, utterly bewildered.
Five minutes later, the 90 candidates gathered on the third floor.
Here lay an immensely vast hall.
At its center stood over a hundred Virtual Cockpits.
Tang Huochang stepped forward and announced in a clear voice, "Everyone, choose your seats freely."
"You will be divided into three groups of thirty, randomly assigned to your respective arenas by the system."
She reiterated the rules: "By any means necessary, defeat the other 29 members of your group and survive until the end to claim victory!"
As her words echoed through the hall, a brief uproar erupted among the 90 candidates.
"Any means necessary? As long as we survive until the end?"
"Does that mean we can team up and gang up on the strongest?"
Many eyes began to gleam with cunning.
These rules clearly offered numerous loopholes for exploitation.
Tang Huochang observed this with a knowing smile on her delicate face.
This was precisely the reaction they had anticipated.
Want to become a Reserve Star Practitioner?
Then prove you're the strongest among this group—demonstrate the ability to take on 29 opponents alone!
Of course, nothing is absolute.
Even the strongest candidates could team up with their allies to eliminate others first, then turn on each other later.
This rule introduced many variables.
It also made Tang Huochang even more eager to see how the candidates would perform next.
"Everyone, take your positions!" Tang Huochang barked. "Enter the Virtual Cockpits!"
At her command, the ninety candidates surged forward, hurrying toward the Virtual Cockpits ahead.
They scrambled to choose seats at random.
Jiang Ye found an empty seat and sat down.
The Virtual Cockpits looked more advanced than the ones at school, with teardrop-shaped designs and integrated virtual helmets for a more immersive experience.
Just as Jiang Ye settled in, a purple-clad figure sat down beside him.
"I heard the closer you sit, the higher the chance of being matched together," Su Tong'er said, crossing her white-stockinged legs and smiling at Jiang Ye.
Jiang Ye immediately stood up.
He had no intention of being matched with her.
His strategy was to lie low, eliminate the strongest contenders first, and then consider his next move.
But if he were matched with Su Tong'er?
If she targeted him right from the start, things would get tricky.
Jiang Ye moved to the back rows and sat down again.
Seeing this, Su Tong'er's cute little face immediately fell. "So scared of me? I'm not going to eat you!"
"Hmph!"
She snorted coldly but didn't pursue him further.
Meanwhile, Wan Yaoyang, seated on the other side, cast a dark glance toward Jiang Ye and Lin Yushu.
"If I encounter those two, I'll make them pay dearly!"
Wan Yaoyang recalled the moment in Ancheng when Lin Yushu had kicked him in the face, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.
In reality, he couldn't act rashly.
But in the Virtual Cosmos? Even breaking limbs or killing someone wouldn't matter.
A minute later, everyone was seated.
Connecting to the Virtual Cosmos.
Buzz!
Instantly, pale blue light illuminated the Virtual Cockpits housing the ninety examinees.
Entering the Virtual Cosmos.
Whoosh!
In the next moment, Jiang Ye found himself in a dimly lit space.
Before him loomed a massive screen.
Ninety names floated across its surface.
The 90 names were randomly shuffled and then divided into three groups.
Is it truly random? Jiang Ye wondered silently, watching the process unfold.
If the division was truly random, it might not be a good thing. What if all the strongest contenders ended up in the same group, giving the other two groups an unfair advantage?
Jiang Ye quickly realized the situation was more complex than it seemed.
The group assignments appeared on the massive screen, and his figure instantly vanished from his original location.
Boom!
Beneath a Cosmic dome, three colossal arenas materialized with a thunderous roar.
The 90 candidates appeared alongside the arenas, 30 on each platform.
Su Tong'er and Wan Yaoyang aren't in my group? Jiang Ye glanced around, a wave of relief washing over him. His chances of victory against those two would have been slim.
He turned his gaze to the other two arenas. Su Tong'er and Wan Yaoyang were also in separate groups.
Lin Yushu? Jiang Ye's eyes flickered. He's actually in Su Tong'er's group.
While Jiang Ye observed his surroundings, the other candidates were also rapidly assessing their opponents.
Arena 2.
Lin Yushu surveyed his surroundings and sighed, "It's a shame I'm not with Brother Jiang. We could have teamed up."
Nearby, Su Tong'er ground her teeth. "Too bad I didn't get matched against that guy."
Her gaze shifted to Jiang Ye's arena, her expression flickering. "Ye Xiuluo's there too? Looks like that guy's about to get crushed."
Arena 3.
Wan Yaoyang's expression darkened. "Jiang Ye and Lin Yushu aren't in my group?"
What a missed opportunity!
Here, everyone was suppressed to the same level, making it the perfect time to teach Jiang Ye and Lin Yushu a lesson.
In reality, the gap between them was immense, and it would only widen further. They would never again have the chance to face him on equal footing.
The thought filled Wan Yaoyang with regret.
Without giving the participants much time to adjust, a cold, mechanical voice echoed across the arena just ten seconds later: "All cultivation levels have been adjusted to Perfection in the Star Martial Cultivation Method!"
As the words faded, a formless wave swept across the ninety candidates present.
The instant the wave washed over him, Jiang Ye felt his Guanyuan Acupoint completely sealed, rendering him unable to use any stellar energy.
Simultaneously, his physical strength rapidly diminished to the level of someone who had just achieved Perfection in their cultivation method.
Such a phenomenon would be impossible in reality.
But in the Virtual Cosmos? All it took was a simple data adjustment.
"Everyone's physical strength has been adjusted to the same level," Jiang Ye observed, glancing at the other candidates.
Seizing the brief window while the system balanced their realms, he quickly assessed the situation on his arena.
"Ye Xiuluo," Jiang Ye murmured inwardly, his gaze fixed on a burly, bald youth. "A university student from Qingyang University, on the verge of his second breakthrough. He's likely the strongest here."
"There are also several other university students who are close to their second breakthrough—formidable opponents."
"Beyond them, some students from Qingyang High School are also strong contenders."
Suddenly, Jiang Ye's expression shifted to surprise. "Song Wanbai? She's in my arena too."
Not far away, a white-robed swordswoman stood alone. Her three friends were in the other two arenas.
"Jiang Ye?" Song Wanbai noticed him as well, her expression hesitant. She seemed to want to greet him, but the awkwardness of their past encounter held her back.
Reality gave her no chance to speak.
Half a minute later, the cold, mechanical voice echoed once more:
"Cosmic Melee—begin!"
(End of the Chapter)