Battle!

Hong, Luo Feng, and Lei Shen were all very confident, which was why they directly challenged the strongest among their peers.

"It's not surprising. After all, the three of us are newcomers, and our ratings are all 'none'," Lei Shen said helplessly. "If we were already strong, to avoid wasting time, we'd probably choose highly-rated individuals for decisive battles. As it stands, in my opinion, we should start from scratch and make a name for ourselves."

"Starting from nothing."

"First, we'll boost our ratings, and then we can challenge true masters!"

Although Luo Feng, Hong, and Lei Shen were confident they could sweep aside those with one or two stars, they still had to proceed step by step.

"Luo Feng, what name are you going with?" Lei Shen asked. In the combat arena, there was a setting to hide one's identity, allowing participants to choose any name.

"'Madman'," Luo Feng replied. "And you?"

"'War God'," Lei Shen said.

"You're shameless enough," Luo Feng said, speechless. Hong, beside him, couldn't help but chuckle. Luo Feng then looked at Hong, "Big Brother, what about you?"

"'Assassin'," Hong said casually.

Luo Feng had been nicknamed 'Madman' back in the day, and Hong was an assassin before the Great Nirvana period. As for Lei Shen... he was a martial arts fanatic, a martial arts madman, so daring to call himself 'War God' was certainly crazy enough.

"Then let's begin!"

Luo Feng, Hong, and Lei Shen all lowered their heads and sent out invitations to their opponents. Coincidentally, all three invited 'one-star' opponents to battle.

...

"Your challenge has been accepted."

"Transporting to the combat arena." The virtual universe system's notification appeared on Luo Feng's screen. Luo Feng finally breathed a sigh of relief; this was his third attempt at challenging someone before succeeding. He hadn't expected that the 'one-star' warriors of his tier seemed universally arrogant, disdaining to fight a newcomer with a 'none' rating. The opponent he finally managed to challenge was named... 'Blood Blade Hand'.

...

Combat Arena.

On an incredibly vast grassland, there was a black metal arena, approximately ten kilometers long and ten kilometers wide.

A tall, green-skinned man, with a longsword strapped to his back, stood on the arena stage, muttering, "'Madman'? This opponent actually named himself 'Madman'. Seems like he has a crazy streak in him, tsk tsk. Crushing a madman is the most satisfying thing. Newcomer, oh newcomer, let me teach you a good lesson."

Nicknamed 'Blood Blade Hand', with 12 wins and 3 losses.

On the arena stage, a black-haired youth, clad in black combat armor and standing on a Duntiansuo, appeared out of thin air. Both the combat armor and the Duntiansuo were selected from the system. In both the 'combat arena' and 'slaughter arena', weapons could be chosen freely, but combat armor had to be of the participant's current tier.

"Hello," Luo Feng said, smiling at the green-skinned youth before him.

"Quite polite, aren't you? You call yourself 'Madman'? Haha, just because you're so polite, I won't crush you too badly," Blood Blade Hand laughed heartily.

"'Blood Blade Hand'? You're my first opponent in the combat arena. Since you accepted my challenge, I'll make sure your death is painless," Luo Feng said with a smile, yet his eyes held a bloodthirsty madness. Although he had indulged in extensive slaughter in the slaughter arena, releasing the long-suppressed bloodlust within him...

...the unrestrained release had only deepened this bloodlust into his very bones.

"What an arrogant newcomer!" Blood Blade Hand sneered, then with a 'boom', he shot towards Luo Feng at dozens of times the speed of sound, the sonic booms and air explosions trailing far behind him.

Luo Feng calmly floated in mid-air.

"Go!" Luo Feng gently pointed his hand at Blood Blade Hand.

*Whoosh!*

The golden patterns on the 30 blades rapidly emitted golden threads, combining to form a golden swordfish. The swordfish, as if alive, flicked its tail in mid-air, darting with a 'whoosh' and carving a strange arc. It easily bypassed the Blood Blade Hand's panicked attempt to block with his force-imbued divine sword, piercing straight through his brow.

Blood Blade Hand's body flew for a distance due to inertia, then naturally arced downwards, his corpse finally landing on the grass outside the arena.

*Whoosh!*

The golden swordfish swiftly flew back to Luo Feng's feet, merging into the Duntiansuo.

Madman's first battle: Victory!

"After a month of intense practice with the 'Swordfish Array' in the slaughter arena, engaging in over ten thousand battles, I've now reached the fifth level of Duntiansuo control. Using the fourth level of control feels as natural as moving my own arm, incredibly flexible and swift. Killing opponents of the same tier? I can definitely sweep through a large number of them," Luo Feng said with great confidence.

This confidence was not unfounded.

Because... his mental strength amplitude reached 36. Among Star-level First-tier mental-telekinetics, being able to simultaneously control 36 hidden weapons at their limit was considered an absolutely astonishing talent in the cosmos. Luo Feng's strong mental strength was also a result of the Golden Horned Beast's powerful soul.

With such strong mental strength!

And with the foundational training from the Yunmo Star lineage's "Control Chapter," coupled with the fact that the Duntiansuo was created by his teacher Huyan Bo, using the Yunmo Star lineage's control methods was like a fish in water. It's not about how much you learn, but how well you master it! Luo Feng's mastery of the Duntiansuo was indeed exceptional.

...

*Clang!*

The golden swordfish's tail flicked, directly striking the green blade, smashing the psychic weapon so hard it tilted and crashed into the black arena, leaving a small dent and sparking with electricity. The golden swordfish then smoothly circled the head of the opponent shrouded in a black robe, severing it.

Madman's second battle: Victory!

...

*Thwack!*

The golden swordfish pierced directly into the opponent's chest cavity, then instantly exploded, sending 30 blades bursting out from various parts of the opponent's skin, with three even erupting from the top of his skull.

Madman's third battle: Victory!

"Whew, finally got a one-star rating. Let's keep going!" Luo Feng's eyes gleamed.

...

Lei Shen held a lightning battle saber, his domain spreading around him, with streaks of electric snakes coiling about him.

"A Star-level First-tier, possessing his own domain? When I first saw that in the combat arena system's data, I couldn't believe it. But it's true... Come on! Let me see, just how strong are domain masters?" said a tall, thin, one-eyed man with a 'four-star' rating, holding a battle saber.

"You'll find out soon enough," Lei Shen grinned. "Kill you, and I'll be a three-star rating."

...

Hong stood silently on the arena stage, holding a black long spear.

"A Planet-level Ninth-tier domain master? Interesting, it's rare to encounter one like this. Come on," said a short, stout youth, his eyes red with excitement, holding a battle saber in each hand.

"To encounter a six-star rated opponent in my third battle, excellent," Hong nodded slightly.

After displaying his domain in the first two battles, this detail was automatically added to his system profile. He hadn't expected a 'six-star' rated individual to actively challenge him. How could Hong refuse? Naturally, he would fight!

...

In the combat arena, battles were incredibly fast-paced. It was normal to fight hundreds of matches in a single day. Of course, usually, after losing a decisive battle, many would pause to reflect on that fight... 'Battle, lose, reflect, comprehend, battle again' – this was a process many experienced.

However—

Luo Feng, Hong, and Lei Shen, during their initial frenzy of battles, hadn't lost a single match.

Especially Hong and Lei Shen, because they possessed a 'domain', they were challenged by some highly-rated warriors, which caused their ratings to increase very quickly! After all, defeating a 'six-star' warrior of the same tier was far more effective than defeating a hundred 'one-star' warriors of the same tier.

Approximately three hours later, in the slaughter arena's main hall, the three of them sat together.

"Second Brother, I wasn't even done fighting yet, and you called me out?" Luo Feng looked at Lei Shen, displeased.

"Every battle must be taken seriously, especially when each opponent is stronger than the last. I'm a bit mentally exhausted, so let's all take a break," Lei Shen chuckled. Hong, beside him, also nodded slightly, "I'm not too tired."

"I haven't even felt it yet," Luo Feng couldn't help but say. "What are your star ratings?"

"Six stars," Lei Shen replied.

"Seven stars," Hong said.

"I only have three stars," Luo Feng grumbled, annoyed.

"At first, I was actively challenging others, but then some highly-rated individuals started challenging me," Lei Shen chuckled. "Domain masters at the Star-level First-tier are rare, so many strong individuals want to fight me."

"Me too," Hong added.

Luo Feng gave a helpless wry smile, understanding why Hong and Lei Shen's ratings had climbed so high. Although he killed quickly enough, most of his opponents were low-rated. Moreover... he didn't have anything that would attract highly-rated opponents to actively challenge him.

"I'll grab a drink first. After a bit, I'm going back in. I won't stop until I get a six-star rating," Luo Feng declared. Six stars was barely considered a true master among those of the same tier. Even among warriors of the same tier... vast differences in combat power could arise from aspects like strength exertion, mental strength, experience, weapon mastery, and cultivation realm!

...

He was crazy!

Luo Feng was crazy!

Battle after battle, his combat record constantly updated: '121 wins, 0 losses', '183 wins, 0 losses', '218 wins, 0 losses'... This flawless record, with no losses whatsoever, finally attracted the attention of some highly-rated powerhouses, who began to fight Luo Feng. Because a record of hundreds of wins and zero losses often indicated a powerhouse entering the combat arena for the first time.

As the saying goes, spending a long time in the combat arena, with continuous battles, no one could claim to maintain a perfect winning streak indefinitely!

...

The slaughter arena on Black Dragon Mountain Island indeed gathered countless elites from the entire Black Dragon Mountain Empire.

Luo Feng, Hong, and Lei Shen's rapid rise in the combat arena gradually attracted considerable attention.

...

In the combat arena, if one spent money, others could also spectate. Thus, the more spectators there were, the more astonishing the total fees collected. Of course... even if a nine-star rated warrior at the Star-level First-tier engaged in battle, the fees wouldn't be *that* astonishing, as it was only Star-level First-tier after all.

If it were Domain Lords or Sector Lords battling, then there would be many more spectators.

However, some high-ranking officials from various organizations occasionally watched these Star-level battles to see if they could recruit anyone into their ranks. After all, 'geniuses' had to be recruited early; if they waited too long, other organizations would snatch them up.

"Nuolanshan, I heard your Hundred Tiger Tower is looking to recruit some elite disciples, aren't you? Look, this young man just emerged; he's absolutely a top-tier genius seed among mental-telekinetics. If you miss him, he'll be snatched up by others."

"Top-tier?"

"Yes, this young man's mental strength is incredibly high. To have such high mental strength at the Star-level First-tier is simply unbelievable. Moreover... his mastery in controlling psychic weapons is also extremely high. Look! In just two days, he already has 822 wins and 1 loss, and his rating, *hmm*, is already seven stars."

Nuolanshan looked at a battle on the screen before him, just about to watch closely, when he recognized a face.

"Luo Feng?" Nuolanshan's gaze instantly made his initial anticipation vanish, replaced by profound displeasure.