Chapter 241: One Hundred Layer Golden Tower! Qin Feng Comes Out of the Mountain! Great War Zone

Chapter 241: A Hundred-Layer Golden High Tower! Qin Feng Emerges from Seclusion! Number One Combat Power in the Great War Zone! An Absolute and Unrivaled Lead!

For the current tournament format, the shortest path was to take the long way around.

Therefore, after Qin Feng ended his seclusion, he plunged once more into the battle of slaying the Machine Race.

In the cold, deep expanse of the universe, a planet that had been thoroughly metallized was slowly disintegrating.

Its core had long been hollowed out, and upon its surface, hundreds of millions of mechanical constructs lay in ruins, floating like dust to form a bleak, gray planetary ring.

At the center of this field of death and silence, Qin Feng’s figure slowly materialized.

His aura was as deep and steady as an abyss, his gaze calmly fixed upon the final mass of liquid metal writhing with reluctant defiance ahead.

Within that metal, a faint soul-fire flickered unsteadily, the very source of all mechanical creations in this star system—a Stellar-grade Machine.

“It is over.”

Qin Feng uttered three words, speaking them into absolute law.

He raised his palm, and within his grasp, the magnificent, towering phantom of a vast and ancient mountain coalesced into form.

It was no simple manifestation of energy, but a structure woven from a psychic field and a spiritual energy field, radiating a terrifying aura capable of suppressing eternity itself.

The Boundless Mountain.

After thirty years of bitter cultivation and conquest, this rank-eight killing method had long reached mastery in his hands, only a single step away from absolute perfection.

Boom!

The phantom of the mountain came crashing down, bringing no earth-shattering explosion, but only an annihilation akin to a black hole swallowing matter.

That mass of liquid metal, along with the soul-fire contained within, instantly dissolved into a stream of fundamental particles, dissipating completely into the cosmos.

A fist-sized, polyhedral crystal, its interior seemingly holding a brilliant nebula, floated quietly in its place.

The Machine Soul Core.

With a beckoning wave of his hand, Qin Feng claimed it into his possession.

This was already the thirty-fourth Stellar-grade Machine he had hunted down over the past year.

With a slight movement of his divine sense, he swept across the cleared star system.

From the moment of his arrival to the total destruction of all mechanical constructs, exhausting all its backup bodies and ultimately slaying it completely, it had taken him four full days.

This kind of hunting was tedious and intricate.

The combat mode of the Machine Race was exceedingly troublesome to deal with.

To kill them completely, one had to thoroughly destroy the army of mechanical constructs they had manufactured, which spanned across several star systems.

This was a vast enterprise that demanded the utmost patience.

Qin Feng felt no impatience.

Every single purging operation was clearing an obstacle for the Alliance of Six Great Star Systems.

At the same time, every hunt signified the harvest of a precious Machine Soul Core and several Stellar-grade resource nodes.

This was for the alliance, and it was also for himself.

...

Time held no meaning in the universe.

Qin Feng’s figure traversed from one star system corrupted by the Machine Race to another.

In Star System 467, he faced a Creator that had remodeled an entire star into a war fortress.

With the supreme power of the Boundless Mountain, Qin Feng forcefully and completely annihilated that stellar fortress.

Time drifted slowly by.

Within Qin Feng’s personal terminal, the counter icon representing the Machine Soul Cores jumped from thirty-four to fifty, and then to eighty...

One year later.

When Qin Feng completely erased the final powerful Machine entrenched in Star System 458, the number of Machine Soul Cores in his possession had once again accumulated to exactly one hundred.

In addition to this, the three hundred and seventy-two Stellar-grade resource nodes attached to these one hundred star systems were also entirely packed up and taken away by him.

If all these resources were used for seclusion, they would be sufficient for him to push the golden portion of the Imperishable High Tower upward by more than another layer.

Yet Qin Feng was in no hurry to enter seclusion.

The time had not yet come.

Right at that moment, Qin Feng felt the core region surrounding the golden throne in the subspace, where the Imperishable Holy Feather representing Caesar unfolded, successfully reaching a scale of ten million light-years.

That holy feather contained an ultimate pride and sanctity, hundreds of millions of wings unfurling simultaneously, blotting out the light of the universe.

Qin Feng looked up, a trace of a smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.

“Caesar has emerged from seclusion.”

...

In the void outside the Library Planet, two figures stood facing each other.

Qin Feng’s aura was restrained like an abyss, while Caesar’s aura was as unbridled as a blazing sun.

Behind him, the faint phantom of a holy wing composed of hundreds of millions of light-feathers flickered, which was his imperishable projection—the Imperishable Holy Feather.

“Ten million light-years, you succeeded.”

Qin Feng nodded in acknowledgment.

“Finally accomplished.”

A touch of joy flickered in Caesar’s golden eyes, “Achieving the first step of the Foundation of the Eternal Singularity means that when upgrading to the Black Hole grade in the future, the advancement will immediately make me a leader among the Black Hole grade.”

“Next, it is time to accelerate.”

Caesar spoke with concise brevity.

“My thoughts exactly.”

Qin Feng nodded.

Without excessive words, their long-standing tacit understanding allowed them to instantly comprehend each other’s plans.

In the next moment, the two transformed into two streaks of flowing light, hurtling away in completely different directions.

Qin Feng was responsible for Star Systems 450 through 4

Before him floated densely packed 【Machine Soul Cores】, their number shockingly reaching over five thousand three hundred!

Besides these, there were also massive resources from over five thousand stellar-level resource points.

Thirty years of conquest had made his aura of slaughter more condensed, almost turning into substance.

Yet the greatest gain was not these resources.

He slowly raised his hand, and above his palm, the phantom of that 【Vast Mountain Range】 reappeared.

But this time, it was utterly different from before.

Upon the mountain, there seemed to be a trace of "intent."

A kind of profound, boundless, eternal martial truth flowed within it.

As if it were a real, primordial divine mountain that had existed since the dawn of the universe.

When an eighth-level killing technique reached perfection, one could transform mental power into endless martial intent, doubling lethality and destructive power!

In truth, martial intent was a mental-spiritual force field, combining mental-spiritual energy in complex and intricate ways to shape an extremely terrifying field intensity.

Hence it was called intent.

The subsequent galaxy-level ninth-level killing technique built this force field to its extreme, forming a domain that interfered with reality.

"The eighth-level killing technique, 《Vast Mountain Range》, is finally perfected."

A look of satisfaction appeared in Qin Feng's eyes.

"Thirty years of battle, thirty years of accumulation, are enough."

He looked at Caesar beside him, who had also reaped great rewards, and said in a deep voice, "Next, we must completely digest and absorb these resources, temper our mental power. After that, we can go compete for those galaxy-level resource points."

Caesar nodded, golden flames burning in his eyes as well: "I think the same. The obstacles of the alliance have been mostly cleared; the rest, we leave to them."

The two exchanged a smile, all words unspoken.

The next moment, Qin Feng's figure vanished from the spot, entering their own secluded cultivation space.

A long and crucial seclusion officially began.

...

The river of time surged endlessly.

Within the cultivation space, Qin Feng sat cross-legged, surrounded by an energy galaxy formed from over five thousand 【Machine Soul Cores】 and vast resources.

He unified his mind and spirit, activating the supreme nurturing technique 《Ten Complete Hands》.

In an instant, it was as if ten invisible divine hands were operating simultaneously within his body.

One hand guided the torrential energy flood, one purified and compressed it, one precisely infused it into the foundation of the 【Indestructible Tower】, while the other seven hands, in a mysterious and profound rhythm, assisted in tempering his mental power.

Each mental hand was condensed from runes and imprints formed by hundreds of thousands of mental power units.

The efficiency was a hundred, a thousand times that of an ordinary martial artist in seclusion!

At the base of the 【Indestructible Tower】, the golden region originally only ten thousand light-years high began to spread upward at a visible rate.

The second layer, the third layer... the tenth layer...

The originally silver-white tower body was being dyed layer by layer into a brilliant gold, representing highly condensed mental power.

This process was monotonous, yet filled with the ultimate pleasure of power growth.

Outside, time quietly passed.

Another thirty years went by.

Year 862 of the competition.

On the ice planet.

Qin Feng's eyes slowly opened.

Boom!

Two golden divine beams shot from his eyes, piercing through space, extending several light-years before slowly dissipating.

He stood up, feeling the unprecedented power within him, and a genuine smile appeared on his face.

He called up his personal panel.

【《Ten Complete Hands》 (Minor Mastery)】

【Proficiency: 100/1000】

【《Vast Mountain Range》 (Perfection)】

【Indestructible Tower】 Height: Ten million light-years (One million light-years turned golden)

"One hundred layers... fully one million light-years!"

Qin Feng clenched his fist, feeling the terrifying power that seemed capable of crushing stars.

The enhancement of pure golden mental power also fed back into his physical body during cultivation, making it even stronger.

"The 《Ten Complete Hands》 accelerates cultivation so much, especially in tempering mental power—the improvement is immense!"

He was filled with emotion.

Without this heaven-defying nurturing technique, relying solely on his own bitter cultivation, turning a hundred layers of the tower golden would have been impossible without centuries.

"Moreover, tempering mental power is a process that gets faster and faster.

Now that I have a million light-years of golden mental power, it's like a heavy golden 'hammer.' Using it to temper the subsequent silver tower body will only become faster!"

Qin Feng's gaze grew profound as he simulated future cultivation, his face full of confidence.

"With my current strength, if I encounter that Yan Sheng of the Holy Spirit Flame Clan again..."

In his mind, the arrogant, brutal figure who had once driven him into thirty years of life-or-death pursuit appeared.

"Though I still can't kill him, he can no longer kill me either!"

"At worst, I'll fight until the end of time!"

A cold smile curled at the corner of Qin Feng's mouth.

"That guy's goal is to hunt other strong ones for points; he definitely won't waste much time tangling with a 'hard bone' like me.

After all, if his points are insufficient, the Nine Spirit King will really kill him.

Uh... or rather, even if he has enough points, the Nine Spirit King might still kill him."

Regardless, Qin Feng had escaped the fate of being easily manipulated.

"In short, with my current strength, I can now plunder those galaxy-level resources without restraint!"

"Within this great war zone, among those of the same rank, no one can defeat me—my strength is absolutely dominant!

Even if I encounter other myriad-race prodigies, I am unafraid!"

Everything was turning for the better!

In year 852 of the competition, Qin Feng finally ended his over eight hundred years of endurance and accumulation.

It was time to plunder galaxy-level resources!

Qin Feng's heart burned with fervor.

Battle after battle, war after war, countless resources—in the blink of an eye, over eight hundred years of arduous cultivation had passed, and at last he could unleash his full power without restraint, no longer needing to tread with caution!

……

Qin Feng and Caesar jointly posted an announcement on the private forum of the Six Galaxy Alliances.

[Announcement]

"To all alliance warriors:"

"I, together with Caesar, have today completed the cleansing of all stellar-level mechanical races within the alliance's territory (Galaxies 450-500) whose strength matched an undying projection spanning over a million light-years.

At present, only a large number of weaker stellar-level mechanical races remain in the territory, allowing any warrior who has just broken through to the stellar level to independently slay them and thus complete the competition's mandatory elimination task."

"All members who have already broken through to the stellar level are requested to proceed with the cleansing as soon as possible.

Do not be complacent; do not give these mechanical races time to recuperate and manufacture vast mechanical armies, or they will once again become a grave threat."

"From today onward, Caesar and I will leave the alliance's territory to compete for higher-level galactic resources.

The road ahead must be walked by yourselves."

"I wish all warriors in the alliance a smooth completion of the elimination task, and that before the competition ends, you may gather as many resources as possible, making the utmost use of this once-in-a-millennium universal genius war."

"—Qin Feng, Caesar"

As soon as this announcement was made, the entire alliance forum erupted.

Yet, unexpectedly, beneath the announcement there was no flood of comments or discussions, but rather uniform, brief messages.

"Claim the laurel!"

"Victory from the start, ascend to first place!"

"No rivals remain on the road ahead!"

"……"

Every message came from the heart.

The reason was simple.

The warriors within these alliances had long seen, through the public forum of the great war zone, the dire state of other galaxy alliances.

Since the mandatory elimination task was issued eight hundred years into the competition, major alliances had fragmented, and betrayals were endless.

Except for Qin Feng and Caesar, almost all leaders of the galaxy alliances had, the moment the task was issued fifty years ago, abandoned their alliance members and rushed off alone to compete for galactic resources.

Those abandoned alliance members, leaderless and scattered like loose sand, were utterly powerless against the mighty mechanical races.

They could not even complete the elimination task, and ultimately withdrew in despair.

Without the strength of a million-light-year undying projection, completing the elimination task alone was as difficult as reaching the heavens.

And what of Qin Feng and Caesar's alliance?

Their two leaders had spent about fifty years of precious time for the sake of the entire alliance!

One must know that in the last two hundred years of the competition, the rate at which opportunities and resources erupted was a thousand or ten thousand times greater than at the start!

Every second was immeasurably precious.

Yet Qin Feng and Caesar had used a quarter of this final sprint phase to pave the way for their ordinary alliance members, to clear out the most powerful mechanical races, leaving behind a multitude of "weak" mechanical races that could be easily slain to complete the task…

Such breadth of mind, such spirit, such responsibility!

In comparison, the difference was clear.

This debt of gratitude was as heavy as the starry sea!

At this moment, the members of the Six Galaxy Alliances had almost all become the most loyal supporters of Qin Feng and Caesar.

If this were the outside world, involving true life and death, they might have hesitated.

But here, in this great war zone where true death did not occur and the worst outcome was merely elimination, they had long resolved to give everything for the glory of Qin Feng and Caesar!

After all, without Qin Feng and Caesar, they would have been eliminated over eight hundred years ago.

Everything they now possessed was owed to these two.

Gratitude demands requital!

……

In the starry void outside the Library Planet.

Qin Feng and Caesar met again; both were ready to form an alliance and jointly set out to conquer galactic resource points.

Just then, the space around them rippled violently.

One, ten, thousands upon thousands…

Countless figures appeared in this void through spatial teleportation. They were all stellar-level warriors without exception!

After fifty years of development and the pressure of the elimination task, the number of warriors who had successfully advanced to the stellar level in the Six Galaxy Alliances had reached a terrifying figure—over one hundred million!

At this moment, over a hundred million stellar-level warriors floated silently in the deep void of space, gazing at their two leaders in silence.

Their auras converged into a majestic force beyond words.

From the crowd, an aged yet vigorous figure stepped forward—it was Cang, once the martial-obsessed senior, now an elder of the alliance.

Cang took a step forward, bowed deeply to Qin Feng and Caesar, and said in a solemn voice:

"Qin Feng, Caesar."

"We, the one hundred and thirty million stellar-level warriors of the Six Galaxy Alliances, submit wholeheartedly!"

His voice, transmitted through spiritual power, reached every ear clearly, resounding with strength.

"If you ever need our aid, even if it means elimination, we will have no regrets and will surely lend our strength!"

"Here and now, we see you two off!"

As his words fell, the over one hundred million stellar-level warriors behind him simultaneously released their undying projections.

In an instant!

The universe blazed with light!

Over a hundred million "great suns" of various forms, all burning with dazzling radiance, appeared at once in this dark void of space!

Cauldron-shaped projections, bell-shaped projections, tower-shaped projections, wing-shaped projections…

Countless rays of light interwove, illuminating this cold universe as if it were day, dispelling all darkness and solitude!

This was a magnificent tableau worthy of being recorded in history.

This was a heartfelt farewell, born from the depths of the soul.

Qin Feng and Caesar watched this scene in silence, feeling that pure and blazing spiritual will fused into one.

After a moment, they exchanged glances and burst into laughter together.

"Ha ha ha ha—"

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha—"

A hearty laugh, brimming with unparalleled confidence and exhilaration, shook the cosmos, causing countless stars to resonate in harmony!

Though the road ahead is long, my path is not solitary!

...

Within the territories of the Six Galactic Alliances, the brilliant sea of light, formed by hundreds of millions of undying projections, blazed for a long time in the cold void before slowly dissipating as the crowd departed.

Yet that unified, fervent, and pure will seemed to remain etched into this expanse of space, witnessing a silent coronation and a grand departure.

Though the road ahead is long, my path is not solitary.

These eight words echoed in the hearts of Qin Feng and Caesar, transforming into the most steadfast strength on their journey forward.

Having bid farewell to the warriors of the alliance, the two wasted no time.

With a mere thought, subspace teleportation was activated.

A brand-new, unfamiliar star domain unfolded before them.

This was the very heart of the ten thousand galaxies within the entire war zone, the convergence point of all conflicts and opportunities at this stage.

Upon arrival, Qin Feng immediately sensed an atmosphere utterly different from that of the alliance's territories.

The space here was saturated with an inescapable, dense aura of slaughter.

Countless powerful and chaotic residual energy waves, like invisible undercurrents, rampaged and clashed in the void.

Occasionally, distant stars could be seen, scarred with massive claw marks, terrifying wounds piercing their cores, and some planets had long been reduced to dust, forming silent belts of debris.

This was the battlefield.

And it was a battlefield of the highest intensity.

"It seems we've come to the right place," Qin Feng said, scanning his surroundings with a calm gaze.

His formidable mental power, like an invisible net, instantly spread out, sensing the environmental information around him.

Caesar, meanwhile, had already deftly opened his personal terminal and connected to the subspace forum covering the entire war zone.

A torrent of information flashed through his golden eyes at lightning speed. After a moment, he looked up, a hint of emotion in his expression.

"I just took a detailed look at the latest intelligence on the forum. The competition indeed escalates in intensity as it progresses, growing increasingly ferocious."

He pointed a finger at the vast star domain before them and continued, "Take this core region we're in now, roughly a hundred galaxies in scope. Almost every day, a large number of galaxy-level resource points are refreshed.

The organizers' intention is clear: to drive all surviving elites into this 'arena' for the most primal and bloodiest contest."

"I recall that in the first few centuries of the competition, even securing a decent star-level resource required decades of scheming, probing, and negotiation among multiple alliances.

Back then, resource points were often fraught with complex environmental factors, powerful guardians, and even traps set by the organizers—too many variables."

Caesar's tone carried a hint of reminiscence. "Now, it seems the organizers have abandoned those 'twists and turns.'

These newly appearing galaxy-level resource points have been deliberately selected and modified, eliminating most external interference factors.

Like the Celestial Vine fruits or the Beast Graveyard, the resources are laid bare. Whoever has the strongest fist, whoever can carve a bloody path through countless competitors, claims them.

Everything is decided by sheer strength alone."

Qin Feng nodded slightly in understanding.

This was a shift in the screening mechanism.

The early stages tested the contestants' comprehensive abilities, including strategy, patience, and teamwork.

But in the later stages, once everyone's foundational strength had reached a certain level, the organizers cast aside all pretense and returned to the core principle—absolute force.

"In this pure chaos, the combat power rankings shift at an astonishing pace," Caesar said, swiping through the virtual light screen before him, which displayed the real-time ranking list. "Look, in the few minutes we've been talking, the top thousand list has refreshed hundreds of times.

Many names that were famous yesterday may vanish today.

At the same time, those prodigies from myriad races who have been lurking in the shadows have finally bared their fangs.

They act like the most efficient hunters, specifically targeting warriors in the top thousand of the combat power rankings."

"The organizers truly understand human nature and the competition's design," Caesar concluded, a note of admiration in his voice. "They give geniuses enough room to grow and opportunities, yet force them into brutal combat with the harshest rules, balancing the competition's intensity and nurturing effect to near perfection."

"I understand," Qin Feng replied succinctly. His gaze swept over the rapidly changing numbers on Caesar's screen, and he suddenly asked, "How many contestants are left now?"

"Let me check..." Caesar pulled up the macro data of the competition. "Total contestants remaining... 10.3 billion."

"Only ten billion?"

Even with Qin Feng's current composure, he was momentarily taken aback by the number.

The word "only" was no exaggeration.

After all, when the Cosmic Genius Battle first began, the total number of geniuses from the five star regions gathered here was as high as five trillion!

From five trillion to 10.3 billion.

This meant that over the course of 862 years of competition, the elimination rate had reached an astonishing 99.8%!

The vast majority of these warriors were eliminated after the mandatory elimination mission was issued at the 800-year mark.

"If we hadn't chosen to stay with the alliance after the elimination mission was issued, but had left immediately to chase those galaxy-level resources..." Qin Feng's tone was speculative.

Caesar immediately responded, "The outcome would have been inevitable. The hundreds of millions of warriors under our command, who had just broken through to the stellar level, would have had almost no chance of independently completing the mission against those powerful mechanical clans, each possessing the strength of millions of light-years of undying projections.

In the end, at least 80% of them would have been eliminated."

That was the truth.

The snowball effect was vividly demonstrated in such a brutal elimination tournament.

One step behind could mean falling further and further, until utter ruin.

What Qin Feng and Caesar did—the decapitation strike against the mechanical clans—was essentially buying a crucial "buffer period" for all members of the alliance.

First, they provided massive resources, allowing the Boundless Sea-level alliance members to struggle and break through to the stellar level.

Then, they personally intervened, slaying all the most powerful mechanical clans within their territories, reducing the "hell-difficulty" elimination mission to "normal difficulty."

It was this fifty-year protection that allowed those hundreds of millions of alliance warriors to barely survive and have a chance to complete the elimination mission.

This debt of gratitude ultimately earned them a collective farewell from hundreds of millions of stellar-level powerhouses.

After a brief moment of reflection, the two refocused on the situation at hand.

"Let's look at the specific resource distribution," Caesar said, projecting a three-dimensional star map before them. "Currently, in this core region, over 5,300 galaxy-level resource points have been identified, and this number is rapidly increasing by dozens each day."

"All these resource points, as we just said, are open competition zones, similar to the Celestial Vine and the Beast Graveyard.

A wealth of resources is laid out, and whoever has the ability takes them."

A confident smile curled at the corner of Kaishe's mouth. "Still, we'll stick to the original plan and start from the outer perimeter first. Based on the intel from the forums, the most core and fertile top-tier resource points are all being watched by the most elite prodigies from myriad races. Once those guys latch onto you, they're like sticky plasters you can't shake off, and they'll seriously slow down our development pace. It's a real pain."

"Understood."

Qin Feng had no objections. Even a lion uses its full strength when hunting a rabbit. Though confident, they were never arrogant. Before gaining a clearer understanding of this "new hunting ground's" rules and top predators, playing it steady and entering from the periphery was undoubtedly the wisest choice.

The two exchanged a glance, their mental energy sweeping across the star map in an instant, quickly locking onto a shared target. It was a resource point called the "Starry Iron Tree," located at the edge of the core zone, vast in scale with stable yields. Though many contenders were present, none ranked in the top hundred of the combat power list, nor had they drawn the attention of the myriad races' prodigies.

"That's the one."

With the target set, they hesitated no longer. Their figures flickered as they activated subspace teleportation once more, vanishing toward that new realm of opportunity.

...

When Qin Feng and Caesar opened their eyes again, they found themselves in a strange expanse of stars. The sight before them was enough to shake anyone who saw it for the first time to their core.

A colossal tree, too immense for words, stood silently at the center of the cosmos. It was not made of flesh or stone, but of a strange, metallic-lustered substance. Its trunk was so thick it seemed to pierce through the galaxy, each branch stretching like an endless mountain range. The tree's scale nearly encompassed three to four standard star systems, its countless enormous leaves each larger than an ordinary planet.

This was the Starry Iron Tree.

It bloomed once every ten thousand years. And now, it was in the midst of its millennial flowering season.

On its metal-mountain-like branches, dazzling blossoms burst forth one after another. Each flower was unique—some as pure as lotuses, others as regal as peonies—each radiating visible halos of pure life force and mental energy.

At that moment, countless points of light zipped around the colossal tree. Each light represented a powerful star-level martial artist. They charged madly toward the blooming flowers, trying to pluck them first.

Battles erupted without cease. The moment a streak of light neared a flower, several attacks would strike simultaneously, driving it back or even crippling it. Dozens of martial artists clashed over a single high-quality bloom, their undying projections gleaming and intertwining, the shockwaves of energy explosions tearing cracks in the surrounding space.

Chaos was the only theme here.

Qin Feng and Caesar paid it no mind. With a flicker, they transformed into two unremarkable streaks of light, plunging straight into the chaotic battlefield to join the frenzied scramble.

Whoosh—

Qin Feng's movement was blindingly fast. Unlike others who charged at the first flower they saw, he let his mental energy take the lead, instantly enveloping a vast area. While others relied on their eyes and conventional perception to search for targets, he had already calculated dozens of optimal harvesting routes through his powerful mental energy.

His figure traced arcane trajectories through the void, each flicker precisely avoiding the aftermath of several battles while appearing beside an uncontested or least-contested flower. A gentle brush of his mental energy, and the bloom, brimming with immense power, vanished into his storage.

In just a few breaths, while most martial artists were still fighting tooth and nail over their first flower, Qin Feng had silently harvested over a dozen Starry Iron Tree blossoms.

This extraordinary efficiency, in the chaotic "hive," was like a beacon in the dark, instantly drawing the attention of many sharp-eyed observers nearby.

Finally, several streaks of light, radiating ill intent, flashed toward him from different directions. They converged, blocking his path midair.

The light faded, revealing three imposing figures before Qin Feng.

The leader wore a sleek blue power suit etched with intricate lightning patterns, with fine arcs of electricity dancing across its surface. He held a thunder-wreathed spear, his gaze sharp—this was Lei Zhan, whom Qin Feng had briefly encountered at the "Eye of Tzeentch's Chosen" resource point.

The other two were a burly man wielding a massive trident, his faint undying projection a colossal "Sacred Trident" that seemed capable of churning the stars. From his gear and weapon style, he likely hailed from the well-known "Deep Sea War Group" in the major war zone.

The last was a ghostly figure shrouded in a black robe, his aura obscure and murky. His undying projection was the strangest—a pitch-black crown, seemingly made of pure shadow, hovering silently above his head, emitting ripples that twisted light and concealed presence, granting him immense speed and agility.

These two were rogue martial artists who had abandoned their alliances after the elimination mission was issued. Lei Zhan, meanwhile, was a former leader who had founded a sizable galaxy alliance before betraying it.

Now, these three strongmen surrounded Qin Feng, their gazes fixed on the flowers he had just collected, their greed undisguised.

"Hand over all the iron tree flowers you've gathered, then scram, and we might let you live!"

The Deep Sea War Group martial artist spoke first, his voice icy. He pointed his trident at Qin Feng, the tip shimmering with a menacing cold light.

"Why waste words with him? Kill him now! Everything on him will be ours!"

The Shadow Crown martial artist was more direct and brutal. Before he finished speaking, the shadow crown behind him flared with light, and his form dissolved into an almost untraceable black line. Wielding a pitch-black longsword, he struck at Qin Feng's neck from a deviously precise angle, silent and deadly.

The trajectory of his blade was bizarre, as if merging into the shadows of space, so elusive that even Qin Feng's powerful mental energy could only catch a faint blur.

At the same time, the Deep Sea War Group martial artist struck. With a roar, his "Sacred Trident" projection solidified. As he thrust his trident forward, a surging, overwhelming momentum swept forth, as if to drown the entire galaxy. Layers of wave phantoms materialized at the trident's tip, aimed straight at Qin Feng's chest.

Their attacks were perfectly coordinated—one with ghostly footwork, the other with overwhelming force—instantly sealing off all of Qin Feng's escape routes.

Yet, in the moment they launched their thunderous strike, something unexpected happened.

Lei Zhan, the instigator of this interception, without a moment's hesitation, turned around and fled as a blinding bolt of lightning, racing away without looking back!

"Huh?"

A flicker of doubt passed through the minds of the two attackers, but their strikes were already launched, leaving no time for further thought.

Yet Qin Feng, facing the assault directly, showed not a trace of panic on his face.

"This shadowy figure's blade technique must be leveraging the properties of an immortal projection to partially block mental power lock-on.

Interesting."

He even had the leisure to murmur softly to himself, offering a critique of his enemies' attack.

The next moment, he finally moved.

He made no evasive action, merely slowly raising his right hand.

Humm—

A jet-black ancient spear, as if capable of devouring all light, materialized silently in his palm.

Star-Swallower.

With a flick of his wrist, the spear hummed softly, and then he delivered an utterly simple strike.

[Boundless Mountain Range].

Rumble—

No earth-shattering energy explosion occurred, but a sight far more terrifying unfolded.

A colossal pagoda phantom, a million light-years tall, majestic and unimaginably grand, suddenly materialized behind Qin Feng!

[Indestructible Tower]!

The pagoda's entire body gleamed with a crystalline silver-white, yet at its very base, a full hundred layers blazed with a resplendent gold—noble, eternal, and immortal!

Silver and gold interweaved, and a vast, overwhelming mental pressure, enough to make stars tremble, surged forth like a tangible tide.

Under this pressure, the shadowy warrior's proud stealth blade technique instantly melted like snow under the scorching sun, every trajectory laid bare with crystal clarity.

The deep-sea warrior's majestic wave assault, before even drawing near, was shattered and scattered by this mental pressure.

Then, the overflowing torrent of mental power, guided by Qin Feng's will, rapidly condensed at the tip of the Star-Swallower spear into a primordial divine mountain, as if it had existed since the dawn of the cosmos!

This divine mountain was no mere energy phantom; every inch of its "body" flowed with a profound, vast, and unchanging essence of martial truth!

"What?!"

"G-golden mental power!!"

(The End)