Chapter 271

He and Milo's family were longstanding friends; they had known each other since childhood and were well aware of Milo's character.

Don't be fooled by his current display of regret, as if he had lost a worthy opponent.

But inwardly, he undoubtedly wished Chen Ping would die soon—every achievement Chen Ping made, Milo would only see as his own stroke of fortune.

It was only because he was absent, and to avoid subsequent conscription, that Chen Ping was able to rise to this position.

His outward regret merely masked the killing intent and contempt within.

"With the same development time, he could never have achieved this—those hundred thousand points? He just picked up a dead cat."

"Enough. You gained the most this time—go back and reflect immediately."

"You are the top performer of this trial—your journey has only just begun."

The elder lord's words greatly pleased Milo.

He nodded with a smile, mounted the prepared warhorse, and rode toward his territory.

Soon, news of the nine lords' return spread throughout the Central Region.

In an instant, hundreds of lords in the Central Region all prepared gifts and supplies, each heading to different lords' territories.

These people were effectively their vassals.

The atmosphere across the entire Central Region was utterly unlike the other four major regions—completely out of sync.

And in the Southern Region.

Since the great battle erupted, the Hetao region had remained under lockdown.

The lords of the Southern Region could not enter Hetao, nor even approach it.

Some lords voiced their discontent, claiming that Natasha and her group had no right to block them outside Hetao.

But the Jiuzhou Legion immediately assigned one lord per territory and launched a brutal assault, destroying those rebellious territories.

Such iron-fisted tactics should have sparked unified hatred among the Southern Region's lords.

Yet when they saw Sarduo join the Tianqu Alliance, they all retreated in silence.

Later, after witnessing the Jiuzhou Legion's terrifying combat power, they were even more relieved they hadn't spoken out.

Now, the entire Southern Region was dominated by Huang Qi in public channels and intimidated by the Jiuzhou Legion—utterly lifeless.

Only the Bear Lord, who had previously defected from the Shengling Alliance, rejoiced and openly pledged allegiance to Natasha.

Had he not issued the critical alert at the decisive moment, Natasha would likely have been betrayed by Hill.

Had that happened, there would have been no Starveil Guardian—Sarduo and the others could have crushed the Hetao territory in a single day.

All grand ambitions vanished into thin air because of that one warning from the Bear Lord.

Even Sarduo, upon meeting the Bear Lord, could not help but sigh that fate was not on his side.

If he could go back in time, he would rather die than challenge Chen Ping again.

The reason Hetao was locked down was because Chen Ping was still fusing his two belated world rings.

When Sarduo, Chen Ya, and others first learned of this, it took them a long time to accept this astonishing reality.

Originally, obtaining even one world ring had already broken history.

No one expected this was merely his starting point—now he had received two more world rings.

Though they did not know where Chen Ping obtained these world rings, they were clearly extraordinary fortunes.

Generally, without sufficient strength, one could not acquire such a fortune.

Stories of some fool stumbling upon a world ring in some mysterious place only happened in novels.

In this world, if your strength is insufficient and your talent lacking, even entering a treasure mountain will leave you empty-handed.

When this was said, the others all silently glanced at Chen Ya.

His experience of returning empty-handed from the Zhishidian had long become a popular joke among the Jiuzhou lords.

It was said he had been blacklisted by the Zhishidian and could never enter again in his lifetime.

From that day on, Chen Ping had remained in a state of fusion.

No one had prior experience, so they prevented anyone from approaching the Hetao region to avoid anyone witnessing this scene.

This ability was a secret weapon—the fewer who knew, the better.

Aside from those assigned to maintain the perimeter, everyone else spent their free time sitting around the world rings.

Chen Ping's fusion process offered them certain insights.

They lacked the ability to open world rings themselves, but they could still observe and learn.

Some, like Sarduo, were merely observers—servants had no right to benefit from Heaven's Reward.

Unless Chen Ping granted them access, but the world rings had appeared so suddenly that he had forgotten to open permissions.

But Chen Ya, En En Linna, and others were different.

They stayed close to Chen Ping, constantly under the blessing of Heaven's Reward, and their insights surged rapidly.

They felt new realizations every moment, their strength steadily rising.

Natasha and Huang Qi could only envy them.

Later, those who left Jiuzhou territory went elsewhere to meditate, otherwise the psychological blow was too great.

Inside the world ring.

Around Chen Ping was not the Hetao plain, but a star-filled cosmos.

At this moment, he assumed the classic five-pointed-up posture.

The silver-white Qilin had long departed, exiting beyond the world ring.

Above his head, the primordial sun rested at the center.

The magic Mercury and the mysterious Venus had been arranged according to their original positions and were stabilizing their orbits.

During this process, vast amounts of high-stage magical knowledge and high-stage mystical knowledge flooded into his mind.

【Magic Mercury has been restored to position】

【You have obtained one world ring; your magical ability has improved; your magical studies have advanced to high stage】

Ding.

Mercury suddenly trembled, then broke free from Chen Ping's mental control, naturally orbiting the sun.

【Mysterious Venus has been restored to position】

【You have obtained one world ring; your mystical ability has improved; your mystical studies have advanced to high stage】

Ding...

Mysterious Venus followed closely, entering its orbit as well.

The two stars began slowly revolving around the sun; each full rotation sent corresponding energy into Chen Ping's body.

Each time Chen Ping received the transmitted energy, warmth flowed along his spine.

The sacred primordial force merged his own ascension with the world ring's gift.

After the two stars had rotated countless times, Chen Ping finally gained the corresponding world ring abilities.

【Second Ring (Magic Ring): Area diameter same as first ring; within this area, you may cast spells without relying on the mana network, and you may determine the presence or absence of magical elements】

【Third Ring (Mystic Ring): Area diameter same as first ring; within this area, you may define "rules"; the power of these rules depends on your own strength】

As these two world ring abilities manifested, the distant world ring Chen Ping had extended suddenly shuddered.

Chen Ya and the others noticed two new rings suddenly appearing on the outer edge of the world ring's light halo.

The three rings fused tightly together—indistinguishable unless examined closely.

With this change in the halo, the aura within the world ring also shifted.

A profound, indescribable sensation arose in everyone's hearts.

It was as if another world stood before them.

Chen Ping suddenly stood up, extending one index finger toward the sky, the other resting naturally at his side.

In the sky, the primordial sun began to rotate around his index finger as its pivot!

Magic Mercury and Mysterious Venus broke from their orbits and began circling Chen Ping himself.

At the same moment, Chen Ping opened his eyes.

Hum!

The world ring surged outward violently—finally breaking past the one-kilometer limit!

Three kilometers! Five kilometers! Nine kilometers! Ten kilometers!

Twenty kilometers!

The world ring stabilized at twenty kilometers, instantly encompassing the entire core of the Hetao region.

Natasha, Huang Qi, Sarduo, Chen Ya, and the others saw their surroundings shift—they found themselves standing in the void of the cosmos!