Chapter 625: Hot Search Controversy

Chapter 625 Trending Controversy

"We finally won."

The moment he crossed the finish line, Zhang Yu looked at Dao Qiankun, who had come to meet him, and immediately handed the relay orb into his hands.

Zhang Yu said, "Brother Dao, I have finally fulfilled my mission."

Taking the relay orb, Dao Qiankun smiled and said, "You did exceptionally well. You've worked hard."

Meanwhile, just as Zhang Yu and Jiutian Liu crossed the finish line one after the other.

The colossal dragon that had burst through the sea surface crashed down with a deafening boom, slamming heavily onto the water and sending a towering spray of water into the air.

Then the giant dragon floated motionlessly in the sea, making no further movement, just like a lifeless corpse.

Great swathes of blood continuously surged from the blasted wound at the rear of the dragon's body, quickly dyeing the entire stretch of seawater crimson.

Just as the multitude of spectators were wondering if Ying Zhoufan had been blasted into critical condition or even blown to death in that single strike... a fleshy bulge suddenly swelled at the midsection of the dragon's body, then burst open, and a figure shot skyward from within, crossing the finish line in the blink of an eye.

Third place, Ying Zhoufan.

Having crossed the finish line, Ying Zhoufan descended, casting a hateful glance at the corpse-like dragon body and the blood-soaked Zhang Yu not far away.

"That bastard..." Ying Zhoufan's mind replayed the events of the scene that had just unfolded.

Just as Zhang Yu, Jiutian Liu, and he had engaged in their final fierce struggle, vying for the championship of this stage's fastest time in the underwater cavern, Ying Zhoufan had also been secretly circulating the Myriad Transformations of the Heavenly Demon, initiating the transformation of his body to prepare for the final push for victory.

He had reformed his human shape within, gradually turning the dragon's body into a mere outer shell.

Ying Zhoufan had only been waiting for the final sprint, intending to use the dragon's body to entangle Zhang Yu and Jiutian Liu while he broke through the encirclement to seize first place.

He had even envisioned that, amidst the struggle between Zhang Yu and Jiutian Liu, he would break through, overpower the two human prodigies, claim first place in this stage, and then trend on the spiritual net, give interviews, and be worshipped by countless demon descendants...

Until the Radiant Sun God erupted with surging flames inside the dragon's body, blasting a massive hole at its rear.

At the same time, the shell-like dragon body, under Zhang Yu's empowerment, had gradually transformed into a temporary magical treasure.

"That bastard..." Ying Zhoufan thought to himself, "He realized my dragon body was losing its vitality and turning into a dead object, so he used the Formless Mind Weapon of the Heaven and Earth Calamity to temporarily turn it into a magical treasure, both accelerating the final push and hindering my escape from within."

"It shows that even until the final struggle, at the most intense moment of his fight with Jiutian Liu, he never let his guard down against me, and could even spare the mental energy to enact a countermeasure..."

"Just how meticulously calculating is this guy? Even though his overall strength is barely any different from mine, he managed to exert every ounce of his power to achieve this..."

Although he had secured third place, not a single trace of joy or excitement welled up in Ying Zhoufan's heart.

Simply because he felt that ever since being ridden by Zhang Yu, the race had no longer been under his control; it had entirely fallen into Zhang Yu's rhythm, and even his final desperate counterattack had been nipped in the bud.

This made Ying Zhoufan feel like a horse fitted with a bridle, entirely devoid of any shining moments in this great battle.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Zhang Yu waved toward the sea, and the next moment, a dark shadow burst out of the water, flying directly to him.

It was the Azure Water Golden Crystal Armor.

Watching this scene, Jiutian Liu thought to himself, "As expected, the reason he was injured all over was that he took off the Azure Water Golden Crystal Armor, preferring to use his own flesh and blood to withstand the impact of the flying shuttle, just to spare the armor from damage."

"Had this kid already considered the post-race matters before jumping onto the shuttle?"

"Should I call him bold... or resolute?"

As the owner of the Jiutian Divine Shuttle, Jiutian Liu naturally knew very well how terrifying the shuttle's speed and impact force were, especially when burrowing underground, where the pressure and impact between the rock strata and the shuttle increased drastically.

And Zhang Yu's act of taking off his armor before jumping ship, aside from demonstrating absolute confidence in his physical body, was also a kind of persistence in protecting his property, which couldn't help but stir a hint of admiration in his opponent Jiutian Liu's heart.

At the same time, Zhang Yu's whole body trembled, shaking off the blood and grime to reveal a body covered in wounds and bruises.

Then he donned the Azure Water Golden Crystal Armor once more, and under his strenuous control, the wounds across his body temporarily closed, continuously dissolving the congealed blood as he strove to heal himself.

And after putting on the armor, the first thing Zhang Yu checked was whether he could obtain more content of the Myriad Transformations Divine Scripture of the Demon Saint through the Azure Water Golden Crystal Armor.

"It didn't work?"

After all, the massive amount of blood discharged from the dragon's body had dyed the entire sea red, and the Azure Water Golden Crystal Armor situated within had naturally been stained with plenty of demon blood, yet Zhang Yu found that during this process... he hadn't gained any more technique content.

Zhang Yu guessed in his heart, "Is it because it's a single demon descendant lineage, and no amount of quantity will help? Do I need more different species of demon descendants?"

Then Zhang Yu began trying to control the remaining demon beasts in the sea, only to find that he had lost contact with a large number of fish demons.

"Has their lifespan run out?"

Zhang Yu knew that these demon beasts, temporarily bred and forced to grow, were essentially bursting with their life potential in a short time; they not only lacked any culinary value but also didn't live long, often being completely consumed after a single battle. Meanwhile, Li Shiwei, a fellow teammate and student of the Dao Arts Department, was currently watching Zhang Yu, who had taken first place, with a complex expression.

Especially seeing Zhang Yu hand the relay orb to Dao Qiankun, and Dao Qiankun smiling in encouragement, made her feel even more that her position had been stolen.

Clearly, she, the second place in the Dao Arts Department, was the one who had always followed Brother Dao, and was also the one instructed by the leadership before the race to fully assist Dao Qiankun in winning the championship.

She couldn't help but send a message to Dao Qiankun: Brother Dao, Zhang Yu's own speed isn't the fastest. If it weren't for the assistance of that demon descendant, he probably wouldn't have even seen Jiutian Liu's back. Doesn't that count as just being lucky?

Dao Qiankun: Lucky?

Dao Qiankun: You could say that, but what in this world is ever devoid of luck?

Dao Qiankun: If you ask me, at least in this race's performance, Zhang Yu's speed was indeed the fastest.

Li Shiwei: Huh? Why?

Dao Qiankun: If Jiutian Liu's method of advancing is like absconding with the funds, then Zhang Yu is like smuggling his way across.

Dao Qiankun: In this world, just being fast yourself isn't truly the fastest.

Dao Qiankun: The one who can step on the fastest person is the truly fastest. Being able to advance by stepping on others is the fastest path in this world.

Reading the messages sent by Dao Qiankun, a thoughtful glint flashed in Li Shiwei's eyes.

Li Shiwei: Brother! For the upcoming races, please step on me to advance.

Dao Qiankun: Don't overthink it. You are all juniors I appreciate. I will make good use of you, and after ascending the throne, I will share the glory with you.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Kuang Tianqing stared in Zhang Yu's direction, a flash of excitement in his eyes: "Hmph, very good... This Zhang Yu is becoming more and more worth defeating."

"This prey is becoming increasingly delectable."

Standing on the other side of the arena, An Zhen Zhenjun had a massive amount of Spirit Realm information surfacing in his eye sockets, filled with various heated discussions about Zhang Yu, including all sorts of criticism and attacks.

"Zhang Yu's behavior is naked trampling and discrimination against demon descendants. I strongly recommend disqualifying Zhang Yu from the competition."

"In this kind of race, is it really necessary to blow up an opponent's ass? Isn't this really just humiliating demon descendants?"

"A demon descendant's ass is still an ass!"

Xiang Shan, who was working part-time to pay off his debts, glanced at the news and immediately ran to the comment section under Zhang Yu's account to leave a message: This guy is a repeat offender when it comes to demon descendant discrimination. Back when he was in the Civil Engineering Department, he bullied quite a few demon descendants. Later he was whitewashed for a while by the Artifact Refining Department, but recently he couldn't hold it in anymore.

Bei Wufeng, who was using an alt account, sneered and left a comment below: Does the little beast need to be leashed again? [Dog chain] If you're so misanthropic, why is your location still at Wanfa? Can you scram back to Tianyao? [Vomit][Vomit][Vomit]

An Zhen Zhenjun scrolled through various trending words on the social platform, looking at Zhang Yu's comment section which had already become a warzone, and a smile couldn't help but curl at the corners of his mouth.

In his view, where there is controversy, there is heat, there is traffic, and there is higher value.

Besides, discriminating against demon descendants wasn't exactly an unbearable black mark; rather, it showed a distinct personality and unique character.

As for other hotly debated topics, An Zhen Zhenjun had also scanned them all at this moment...

Things like Zhang Yu rejecting Mu Qiansi representing the revival of classical aesthetics, or that the best way to counter Hehuan University is to love the ugly, or that Zhang Yu might like biological males and have a talent for same-sex dual cultivation... these meant even less to An Zhen Zhenjun, and would only continue to increase Zhang Yu's heat.

Suddenly, An Zhen Zhenjun's gaze sharpened as he discovered that a Spirit Transformation cultivator had actually spoken up.

Seven Emotions Divine Lord: Reject tall and muscular, reject the gaze. Cultivators don't have to be very tall and muscular; they can also be small and slender, taking a differentiated route.

The Spirit Transformation Divine Lord's statement immediately sparked widespread discussion in the Spirit Realm.

First, a faction of elder Golden Core and Nascent Soul cultivators stepped forth to voice their staunch support.

Soon after, many surmised that the Divine Lord of Seven Emotions had uttered those words solely to strike at the Hehuan University, an institution that had long championed mainstream aesthetics and birthed countless immortal arts in its name.

Then came the proposition that one might reject mainstream aesthetics altogether, thereby gaining an edge against the prevailing techniques of dual cultivation.

As a venerable Nascent Soul elder, True Lord An Zhen had witnessed the ebb and flow of Kunxu aesthetics and fashions across the ages.

He had watched generation after generation of cultivators, in their relentless pursuit of power, gradually embrace the creed that greatness lay in size, beauty in brawn, and majesty in stature.

Now, watching those same cultivators pivot toward pale, petite, and slender forms just to secure an advantage in the dual cultivation arena, he could not help but sigh, "Aesthetics is a wheel that turns ever onward; one may idolize the tall and mighty for strength, then chase the short and slight for that very same power."

"Zhang Yu may well be the spark that ignites the next revolution in immortal aesthetics."

"And yet..."

Casting a glance at the latest advertising bids, a surge of delight washed over True Lord An Zhen, "Truly, nothing is more beautiful than the gleam of wealth."

In the current rankings for advertising bids, Zhang Yu had spectacularly surged into second place, trailing only the undisputed leader, Kuang Tianqing.

True Lord An Zhen knew that with the relay race underway, the various firms had already begun submitting their bids for the advertising slots in the upcoming grand finale.

The initial state of this new leaderboard naturally differed from the last, shifting and fluctuating in real time according to each contestant's performance in the relay.

Kuang Tianqing, for instance, had vaulted straight to the summit following his dazzling display in the third stage stealth trial.

Meanwhile, Zhang Yu had climbed to the second tier, propelled by his triumph in the fourth stage and a relentless surge in public fervor.

True Lord An Zhen was certain that once Dao Qiankun took the field for the fifth stage, his advertising bids would inevitably skyrocket, making him a formidable contender for the top spot.

(End of Chapter)