Chapter 43

At the Warrior level, one can directly skip ahead and face Lord‑level opponents.

For Chén Chén's mortal body, since he is not a Spiritual Mind Master, the sole means of boosting his combat power amplitude is Having a Name.

Like all secret manuals, Having a Name is both a Guidance Art, a body technique, and a combat technique.

Of course, there are a few differences: Having a Name begins as fist and spear techniques, also includes gun and sword techniques, and will later encompass combat methods for even more weapons.

Having a Name is Chén Chén's mortal body's greatest reliance, and even the purpose of this body's existence.

In the challenge space, the Lord‑level Silver Moon Wolf King's speed is incredible—it leaves only an afterimage in place before already reaching Chén Chén.

"I've practiced this move for four years, two months, and three days, yet even today I have only mastered half of it."

"Completing a full move is still far away, so I'll first give this half‑move a name—just call it Half Move."

"Sizzle—"

Chén Chén's body didn't move an inch; his long spear traced a half‑moon arc in midair, and the silver gleam that passed over turned crimson.

The tremendous residual force split the air on both sides with a vertical line; the exploding blood mist filled the space within dozens of meters. Only a slit opened along the spear tip, gradually widening to shoulder‑width at Chén Chén's position, keeping the blood mist from touching his body at all.

"It's even easier than I imagined."

The body tested for combat power amplitude is at the limit of a Mid Warrior—about forty thousand kilograms of force—and with the power of Half Move, Chén Chén can already instant‑kill Lord‑level monsters.

With this strike, Chén Chén's combat power amplitude jumped straight to over twelve.

And Chén Chén's own Earth-human body, since he doesn't care about strengthening his body, has only reached high-level War General level; but with the blessing of Having a Name, he faces no pressure against martial artists below planetary level, except Psychics.

Before everyone could use domain rules, Psychics of the same rank completely crushed martial artists, unless one had all-around defensive armor; the famous 'Black God' in Earth's martial artist circle is an example.

The difficulty was directly adjusted to high-level Lord level, which corresponds to the level of an ordinary high-level War God.

The spawned monster is a relatively special spawned monster, named Night Shadow Miao, which is considered a relatively rare monster type on Earth, and also a type that Earth humans will no longer encounter on the battlefield.

Night Shadow Miao is among the few monster types that, after evolution, didn't put many skill points into body size; this evolutionary path isn't the best, but it does have advantages over the body-size-focused path.

The Night Shadow Miao, which retains a small body size, is more agile and faster; although the strength concentrated in its small body is far less than that of large-bodied monsters of the same rank, the destructive force it can exert is much greater.

Just like the principle of the combat power vibration currently being tested, if Night Shadow Miao's body strength is tested among peers, it would be a poor student of its class, but if compared by actual combat power, Night Shadow Miao would be a top student in the class, able to match even the top few monster bloodlines on Earth.

However, the Miao clan's small size also has drawbacks; not all monsters have the discernment to recognize the Miao's strength, so the Miao clan finds it hard to gather low-rank monsters as subordinates, and instead, having gained intelligence, it has become a herd animal.

As for why Chén Chén knows so much about Night Shadow Miao, it's because not long ago, the already-small Night Shadow Miao clan had all turned from wild cats into domestic cats, with the entire clan taking refuge in the World Tree.

And this high-level Lord Night Shadow Miao before us is the only one in the true Miao clan; Chén Chén himself has never actually fought this type of monster.

The simulated Night Shadow Miao lacks the intelligence of its real counterpart, and it launched an attack on Chén Chén right away.

The speed-focused Miao didn't even have time to leave a complete image in place before turning into a high-speed moving black shadow, momentarily seeming as fast as the speed of light and shadow.

Chén Chén merely instinctively used Having a Name to dodge and block, yet an invisible attack still sliced his combat uniform's shoulder, leaving a two- to three-centimeter wound, after all he's only at mid-level War General level.

The black shadow hardly paused, and in the next second it attacked back from the direction it had rushed out.

Chén Chén turned and swept sideways, also tracing a strange-colored blade in the pure white space; the black shadow that had been rushing at him suddenly changed direction, and only in the moment of dodging the attack did it finally reveal its form and true appearance in midair.

Its green eyes were crystal clear like gemstones, its glossy black fur seemed to have some sharpness, and its two pointed little ears resembled half-arc blades.

But after only a brief pause, Night Shadow Miao stepped on the air and turned into an afterimage.

This is also the ability the Miao evolved by sacrificing body size—stepping on air, i. e., sky-walking.

Because its own weight is already light, plus its special muscle structure, a Miao at around high-level War General level can acquire this racial talent.

However, compared to a true racial talent, it's rather weak—it only works in Earth's low-gravity environment, and once everyone reaches planetary level they all fly, so if this talent isn't supplemented with other improvements it becomes completely useless.

But right now it can indeed cause Chén Chén considerable trouble; relying on anticipation, he once again positioned himself in the Miao's attack line.

But this time there was no pause; at the moment the black shadow merged with the silver blade, it traced a Z-shaped thrust straight at Chén Chén's chest, yet his free hand had already drawn a laser pistol and pulled the trigger.

Marksmanship, naturally, is also part of Having a Name.

Miao, the times have changed!

The blue laser was only as wide as a thumb, and it shot out toward the black shadow's direction at a noticeably greater speed.

「Meow—」

The hit Miao's speed hardly slowed at all; the laser pierced the black shadow, adding a trace of blood.

The vivid red color couldn't keep up with the black shadow's speed, leaving a red line; the black line's tip, like a bullet, pierced Chén Chén's left shoulder, which he couldn't dodge in time, leaving a palm-sized blood hole.

Yet Chén Chén turned around as if unharmed; behind him, the Night Shadow Miao that had fallen to the ground directly lost a hind leg, trembling as it stared at Chén Chén.

The challenge room's current simulation ability does not simulate monster emotions, so this trembling is merely a muscle reflex; losing a leg isn't enough to deprive the Miao of walking ability, but it can no longer launch an attack as before.

This is also the drawback of not choosing body-size evolution—thin defenses and low blood; if it were another lord-level monster, losing a leg might still allow a desperate last stand.

But for the Miao, since that strike didn't kill Chén Chén, the outcome is already decided.

Of course, if it were any War God, surviving that strike would be hard; the Miao's attack focuses on a single point, and even an SS-rank combat suit could be easily pierced.

If it weren't for Chén Chén's reaction arc receiving support from his true body, that strike would have destroyed his entire chest; even if he dodged, he would still have lost almost his whole left arm, and the pierced hole would be located three centimeters above his heart.

Chén Chén's final spear thrust ended this challenge.

……

On another side of Earth, Jian Mu was playing with a black kitten that looked roughly like the challenge room.

「A Wu, it's your turn! 」

"Okay, meow~" the black kitten spoke in human words, saying it would just jump, but who knew that stepping empty, it fell hard to the ground.

「Meow~」

"Hey, A Wu, you okay?" Jian Mu's child's body hurriedly flew to A Wu's side.

"I'm fine, meow, just a fall; anyway, I'm basically a War God, meow" the black kitten scratched with its paw and then licked its paw with its tongue.

"But you've already fallen seven times today, hey, are you really okay?"

"emmmm, today seems a bit unlucky, meow; looks like I need to go home to avoid trouble, meow."

Jian Mu felt a bit discouraged, after all there aren't many playmates like A Wu around, but thinking of A Wu's situation, it's indeed not suitable to keep him company: "Well, should I send you off?"

"No need, meow, I can fly myself, meow."

Speaking, the black cat suddenly leapt into the air, its next foot seemed to be about to step on something…… but then it stepped on empty air.

「Meow~」

————

If the morning test was enough to make the whole Dragon Gate take notice, then the afternoon test results came out, and it shocked my mom, boiling the whole world.

Under the deliberate manipulation of some people, the news of the Dragon Gate examination spread to all big and small forces on Earth in just a few hours, and at the same time, news about Chén Chén's true identity and the World Tree's "Child of Prophecy" and "Child of Nature" also began to silently spread slowly across the world.

The two Star Traveler-level powerhouses Tuoba and Jia Yi had just come down from the frontier line. Taking a break from their busy schedule, they had a small drink, and coincidentally received the news from Dragon Gate.

"Although one could expect this person to be extraordinarily gifted, I didn't expect it to be this exaggerated."

"This might be the Child of Heaven's Mandate, right? Isn't it not uncommon in human history for some incomprehensible monsters to appear?"

"Originally I thought that talents like Hong and Leishen, and Xiao Heng like this, were already the peak of our human bloodline, but I didn't expect the true monster to appear here."

"It's just that we've wronged Xiao Heng a bit."

"You don't understand her, after all, and this might not necessarily be a bad thing for her; it's just unknown whether they'd be willing, after all, this is the future……"

"Has the identity been checked?"

"Checked, they are a person from South of the River, a survivor from River-Sea City five years ago, dragged by a little girl to the rescue team, took three days to be rescued, and afterwards the two little ones have been living in Yangzhou City……"

"An orphan……"

"This identity made Tuoba somewhat displeased; it's not that he dislikes the orphan status, but rather if Chén Chén weren't an orphan and had relatives who were Chinese, that would naturally be more advantageous."

"This also sounds like the style of the World Tree; based on the current rough data, he probably joined the World Tree only over two years ago."

"The World Tree gathering worldwide displaced homeless people is no secret, and Chén Chén's identity, at least in essence, does not seem like a piece specially brought out to deceive."

"I'm afraid he might misunderstand us because of the River-Sea incident."

"Don't worry, it's said that this young man often goes out in his free time to do good deeds, cleaning the community hygiene without missing a beat, helping elderly grandmothers cross the road twice a week…… From the opinions of those around him, he is indeed, as the World Tree said, the unequivocal choice of talent, character, and disposition."

……

After hearing the news, each family of the HR Alliance reacted differently.

Some were again urgently discussing countermeasures.

"If we continue like this, waiting to be destroyed, what awaits us will surely be annihilation."

Some were seeking protection from above.

"What does the Great Emperor mean? Why, at this point, still not make a decision; the World Tree will certainly not let us go."

Some families have already started placing bets separately, planning to sit on the fence.

"Why not defect and surrender, laying down arms in courtesy; even without a marquis title, at least the family can be preserved."

……

In a certain place in India, a magnificent temple, an elderly figure resembling a Buddhist monk was sitting in meditation.

A young Indian monk entered the temple and slowly walked to the elder's side.

"High Priest, the news from Dragon Gate."

"Shh, I already knew through divine revelation."

"It's about the news of the Child of Prophecy, right?"

The young monk was somewhat surprised; the High Priest had obviously begun seeking divine revelation years ago, no longer using any communication, so someone needed to regularly relay messages, but the High Priest already knew the news that had just been received today.

The High Priest slowly opened his eyes and spoke in a deep, slightly hoarse voice:

"Don't be jealous, the faith of the Heavenly Emperor knows no borders; don't feel lost, the grace of the Heavenly Emperor has never been biased; don't passively wait for the Heavenly Emperor's grace, but closely follow the Heavenly Emperor's will."

The young monk seemed to understand, palms together, slightly bowed: "Thank you, High Priest, for guiding me."

The High Priest's so-called hearing of divine revelation, if put in the past, would almost certainly be just stirring up mystic hype to maintain stability among the believers below, and generations of High Priests have often done such things.

But this time, it was truly genuine.

Originally a group that used faith as a tool of rule, they have unknowingly become the so-called fanatics of the Heavenly Emperor, and where India is located is also where the World Tree has truly penetrated most thoroughly.

……

Headquarters of the Extreme Martial Hall, the Base City Hongning named after 'Hong' today welcomed an important guest.

"Big Brother, tell me honestly, have you already agreed to them?"

The visitor was none other than the world's second strongest, Leishen.

"The World Tree would be a good ruler." Hong did not directly answer, but it seemed like an answer.

"I certainly know, Big Brother, but the brothers under me have followed us for so long; our estate can't just be handed over like that—at least we need to plan a future for the brothers under me."

Outsiders may not know, but Leishen is famous for his righteousness; earlier, several strongers of the World Tree had come to find Leishen and Hong, openly proposing a plan for global unification and some promises regarding post-unification.

In many aspects it made both of them very satisfied, especially the appearance of the World Tree truly solved the crisis humanity faced, which is something only Thunder God and Hong can truly feel.

Both of them are devoted to martial arts; besides that, their vision is also to eliminate monsters and save human civilization. Yet, precisely these two points, the World Tree has given them conditions that are hard to refuse.

Even so, the two still keep watch: first, they watch whether the World Tree is qualified to take the position they mentioned; second, they study the data and secret manual about the stars and inheritance that the World Tree has advanced to them; third, they seek some benefits for their subordinates.

Thunder God and Hong are both martial artists who rose from the Great Nirvana; besides their own strength, they also have a host of followers behind them.

Together they fought monsters, together they built base cities, finally establishing martial halls; many followers, though subordinates, are also brothers who have gone through life and death.

Nowadays, the Two Great Martial Halls spread across the world; power and wealth are the foundations the brothers have built for themselves. As this boss who has invested in the World Tree, I naturally also hope to secure a future for the brothers.

But the condition the World Tree gave is only four words: treat everyone equally.

They are sincere enough; if the new order is as they say, then indeed they should treat everyone equally.

Hong is a person with a broad perspective; compared to Thunder God, Hong's feelings toward his subordinates are mostly gratitude, not as much as Thunder God thinks.

Furthermore, these subordinates, even if not the best, are all war gods; at the start of the new era they have already surpassed many people, so they should have no complaints.

"I know, I know... sigh." Thunder God repeated twice, yet he didn't know what to say.

"Actually there is also another interpretation; it seems specially prepared for you." Hong's words suddenly shifted.

"He has two people close to him, two equally astonishing geniuses; in name, one is from the Extreme Martial Hall, the other is from the Thunder Martial Hall."

Thunder God's eyes lit up.

"Not bad, big brother."

After Thunder God left, Hong Youcai took out the news that had just been sent from the Dragon Gate side; in the middle was a photo of Chén Chén, and below it were the real-time data and rankings from the Challenge Tower.

First place: Chén Chén, combat power amplitude 26.7