Cosmic-Level Demon God
Chapter 285 - 178: Breaking the Hundred-Point Barrier, Advancing Beyond the Specialized Level!_2

Chapter 285: Chapter 178: Breaking the Hundred-Point Barrier, Advancing Beyond the Specialized Level!_2

The denser and purer the activity, the greater the chance of promotion to Specialized Level!"

Zhou Yuanchen was brimming with confidence. With half of the Blood Flower, his promotion to Specialized Level was almost guaranteed.

Thinking about this, his initial pain from using up his health insurance quota lessened considerably.

"Old Zhou, if you eat it, wouldn’t you directly ascend to Specialized Level?"

Qin Shi spoke with a playful tone. If Zhou Yuanchen broke through to Specialized Level, he would essentially secure the top spot in the Top 100 Competition.

"Don’t worry, Little Qin."

Zhou Yuanchen waved his hand and said with a bold air:

"Even though I promised to cooperate with the Ying clan to eliminate you and block you from the Top 100 Championship, we’ve fought side by side and established a bond. Once I break through to Specialized Level, I will sweep away all contestants in the core area to ensure you make it through as the runner-up."

Clearly, Zhou Yuanchen believed that once he fully entered the Specialized Domain, he could dominate the Great Rift Valley and become the undisputed champion of the Top 100 Competition.

As for Qin Shi, from a threat-level perspective, even considering top-tier weapons, Martial God inheritance, and the Old Martial Sect’s frequent breakthroughs in critical moments, the highest he could reach would be a formidable enemy at the fifteen billion level.

"Old Zhou, I knew I could count on you. You’re loyal and thoughtful!"

Qin Shi smiled faintly, indeed acknowledging Zhou Yuanchen’s strength.

However, the Old Martial Sect has always adhered to one principle: you only know who is stronger or weaker after the fight.

Moreover, fighting against such a powerful opponent and then using Combat Retrospect...

It’s like having a half-step Specialized Level training partner out of thin air!

It’s definitely worth it!

...

...

"The Blood Crystal has been taken."

At the end of the Great Rift Valley, Xu Sheng’s eyes revealed a look of surprise. As the Chief Examiner, he had first-hand information, and nothing happened in the trial without his notice.

"Zhou Yuanchen and Qin Shi joined forces... Senior, the heir you chose seems to have a different temperament from other apprentices."

Xu Sheng looked at the white-haired old man in the wheelchair beside him with a look of astonishment.

The Old Martial Sect is typically quite solitary, rarely forming alliances except with fellow disciples.

Back in the day, Shen Changyuan was the same—he fought across Heng Province and made many enemies.

"Little Qin is easygoing and kind-hearted. He has good interpersonal skills."

Old Zhang nodded slightly. He and Old Liang had talked and agreed that Qin Shi was different from the typical Old Martial Sect individual; his fighting spirit was weak, often exuding calmness and serenity like still water flowing deeply.

In summary, he doesn’t love fighting, preferring to develop steadily.

"At this moment, it seems the two contestants who have first ascended Copper Mountain are Zhou Yuanchen and Qin Shi. The first and second places will likely be decided between them."

Xu Sheng laughed and said:

"Senior, does your Nanhuang Daoist School have any secret techniques for defeating the strong with the weak or fighting across levels? Zhou Yuanchen’s foundation has long been enough; he just lacks the opportunity for a breakthrough.

With the Blood Crystal, he now has that opportunity, and his chance of breaking through to Specialized Level exceeds ninety percent."

Old Zhang lowered his eyelids, showing a look of worry.

The inheritance of the Nanhuang Daoist School, the "Cosmic Furnace Secret Manual," was created by him.

Everyone knows their own affairs best.

The Cultivation Furnace’s power can only be truly realized by entering the Specialized Domain.

Especially several killing moves, which have extremely stringent requirements for Life Force.

"Rest assured, I respect the competition rules and will not interfere with the results. As long as Zhou Yuanchen doesn’t go for the kill, even if he cripples Little Qin, I will accept it."

Old Zhang caught the implied meaning behind Xu Sheng’s words—that if Qin Shi couldn’t defeat Zhou Yuanchen, he might break the rules and intervene.

In a way, Xu Sheng, as the Chief Examiner, was stationed beside him to prevent Nanhuang Daoist School from being unable to accept losing.

The Heng Province Martial Arts Association had such considerations naturally because Old Zhang indeed had a history of such actions.

The Nanhuang Daoist School was quite notorious for protecting their own.

...

...

The sun rose, dispelling the cold as the first ray of sunlight penetrated the Great Rift Valley, falling on the Copper Mountain embedded in the ground.

Zhou Yuanchen and Qin Shi stepped over the 999th step, successfully reaching the summit.

The "peak" was a flat plateau large enough to accommodate an entire soccer field.

The fierce wind blew violently, with streams of air like steel knives cutting through, capable of sweeping a person into the sky.

"It wasn’t easy. We didn’t sleep all night but finally climbed here."

Zhou Yuanchen panted heavily, bending over to minimize the impact of the strong wind.

"Another climb down, and it’s the end of the trial."

Qin Shi looked into the distance, the thousand-kilometer-long Great Rift Valley stretching like a thin worm.

"Little Qin, I’m going to consume this half of the Blood Flower."

Zhou Yuanchen regulated his breathing, activated his health insurance quota, and brought his mental and physical state back to its peak.

He was not worried that Qin Shi would attack him; this was a heavy trust.

Besides, he had specially purchased personal safety insurance and emergency rescue services.

With these two protections, he could choose to break through anytime and anywhere.

"Old Zhou, go ahead and make the breakthrough."

Qin Shi made a cheering gesture, genuinely eager to fight a genius in the Specialized Domain.

"It’s a pity, such a pity. Had you not offended the Ying clan, your terrifying potential of fifteen billion would have made us the twin stars of Heng Province’s new generation."

Zhou Yuanchen sighed softly, stopping his stray thoughts and sitting cross-legged with difficulty.

He released his Life Force without reservation; radiant light beams burst through his flesh.

In just a few breaths, Zhou Yuanchen formed a large "Light Cocoon."

He evidently entered the "breakthrough stage!"

"Specialized Domain, the hundred-point threshold..."

Qin Shi observed Old Zhou; he had never seen what a genius’s breakthrough looked like.

"It might take several hours to complete."

As the "Light Cocoon" grew larger, reaching nearly three meters high, it resembled an ancient creature’s egg.

The heavy pulsation from within Copper Mountain also became more distinct.

It was like a giant drum in the heavens and earth being struck by a deity.

Qin Shi’s eardrums throbbed, almost tearing apart.

He began to circulate the Cultivation Furnace and placed his Spirit in the Inner World, activating Resonance.

With a calm mind, he carefully captured the booming rhythm.

"This living Copper Mountain’s pulsation feels like... breathing. It’s as if a giant spirit is personally showing you the process of cultivating a breathing technique.

But I don’t need to learn it. Once I do and become engrossed, I might be assimilated by Gromax’s lingering will."

Through Spiritual Resonance in the Inner Realm, Qin Shi gradually comprehended a unique breathing technique.

He imagined himself as a towering mountain rooted in the earth, drawing in external energy particles through special internal and external breaths, condensing a "core" within his body.

"Like the earth’s pulse vibrating with breath—taking nine long inhales, three short exhales, using the vitality to forge the mortal body and enhance muscle and bone density."

Qin Shi was excited but had to restrain himself.

The Great Demon Gromax of the Netherworld was too insidious, deliberately displaying such a high-level breathing technique in plain sight to provoke greed.

"But my ’Void Meditation Technique’ is superior to yours."

Qin Shi found Spiritual Resonance for about an hour, comprehending Gromax’s "Demon Mountain Breathing Technique."

He synchronized his mind and body, summoning the Void Altar, and refined the breathing technique that harmonized with the Copper Mountain’s pulsations.

"I only need the secret technique to enhance muscle and bone density; the rest of the ’impurities’ are useless."

...

...

Crack, crack, like the sound of an egg shell breaking, echoed on the mountaintop.

Zhou Yuanchen’s short hair stood on end, his gaze sharp as a blade, almost shooting out tangible light.

Sitting cross-legged, his body subtly floated, as if breaking free from the earth’s gravity. With every breath, the void around him surged like a tide, capturing and drawing energy particles.

"So this is the sublime feeling of having one hundred points of Life Force, stepping into the Specialized Domain."

Every pore on Zhou Yuanchen’s body opened, indulging in an ethereal sensation.

He suddenly jolted, shattering the Light Cocoon, the fragments dissipating like feathers.

Then he looked at Qin Shi and said softly:

"Little Qin, the championship of this year’s Top 100 Competition is destined to elude you."

...

...

Observing Zhou Yuanchen’s breakthrough, Qin Shi’s Spiritual Power mirrored cold flames surging to a height of over ten meters, vast and frozen, capable of sealing a thousand miles in ice.

In the state of the Divine Residence Inner World, he saw more details, such as a very familiar symbol.

"I knew it! This guy is so fierce because he’s a loan client of the Entropy Sea Bank!"