When everyone was waiting for someone to make the first move, the ground beneath them shook voilently and the moment the ancient stone altar near the lake collapsed—
the entire secret realm shook violently.
Rumble!
Rumble!
Mountains trembled.
Rivers reversed direction.
Ancient formations hidden for thousands of years began lighting up one after another.
Everyone present immediately sensed it.
Something had awakened.
Something far more valuable than the Spirit Transformation Pool.
Above the mountain peak, countless golden runes illuminated the sky.
A dragon-shaped phantom slowly emerged from the earth.
Its enormous body stretched across half the heavens.
Even the Earth Immortal experts felt insignificant before it.
Silence descended.
Then—
Neo's trembling voice echoed inside Li Tao's mind.
[Ding!]
[Ding!]
[Ding!]
[Final Opportunity Detected.]
[Ancient Dragon Overlord Body Inheritance.]
[World-Level Opportunity.]
[Priority: Absolute.]
Li Tao's pupils contracted.
Neo's voice became increasingly excited.
[Ding! Host!]
[Ding! We hit the jackpot!]
[Ding! Forget the pool!]
[Ding! Forget the spirit stones!]
[Ding! Forget everything else!]
[Ding! This is the real treasure!]
Li Tao immediately became serious.
"What exactly is it?"
Neo swallowed.
Even as a system spirit he sounded shocked.
[Ding!]
[Dragon Overlord Body.]
[A supreme body refinement technique.]
[Allows mortals to break the limitations of low-grade worlds.]
[Only known path toward True Immortality within this world.]
For several seconds—
even Li Tao forgot to breathe.
True Immortal.
Those two words alone were enough to drive cultivators insane.
Even Luo Chen's expression changed dramatically.
His calm facade finally cracked.
His eyes widened.
Then narrowed.
Then widened again.
His breathing became slightly heavier.
Impossible.
How could such an inheritance exist in a low-grade world?
Even in his previous life—
such opportunities were enough to start continent-wide wars.
His gaze immediately locked onto the mountain.
At the same time—
Ye Feng's eyes turned red.
The old memories of his previous life were screaming.
Obtain it.
No matter the cost.
Obtain it.
Divine Doctor Xiao's breathing became rough.
Murong Qing tightened his grip on his sword.
Xuan Lingtian stopped smiling.
Every major faction had reached the same conclusion.
This inheritance...
must belong to them.
Unfortunately—
everyone else thought the same thing.
For a brief second—
complete silence filled the battlefield.
Then—
someone moved.
Boom!
Luo Chen shot forward first.
His speed exploded to the limit.
The surrounding air shattered beneath his feet.
"Stop him!"
Murong Qing immediately roared.
The battle erupted.
Boom!
A terrifying collision shook the mountain.
Murong Qing blocked Ye Feng's path.
The two exchanged dozens of attacks within a breath.
Sword energy and martial qi exploded everywhere.
Neither side retreated.
Meanwhile—
Xuan Lingtian and his family elders directly intercepted Divine Doctor Xiao.
"Hahaha!"
"Old man!"
"Your opponent is me!"
Divine Doctor Xiao's expression darkened.
"Junior!"
"You seek death!"
His sleeve waved.
Thousands of silver needles shot forward.
The sky instantly transformed into a silver storm.
Xuan Lingtian laughed loudly.
A massive bronze shield appeared before him.
Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
The needles exploded against the shield.
Shockwaves spread across the battlefield.
The older generation had finally entered the war.
On the opposite side—
Li Tao met Luo Chen head-on.
The atmosphere became heavy.
Neither spoke.
Neither smiled.
Both understood.
Only one side could obtain the inheritance.
Luo Chen slowly raised his broken blade.
The weapon appeared ordinary.
Yet the moment spiritual energy flowed through it—
ancient runes lit up.
The surrounding space distorted slightly.
Li Tao's eyes narrowed.
Neo immediately screamed.
[Ding!]
[Ding! Host!]
[Ding! That thing is dangerous!]
Li Tao almost rolled his eyes.
"When have you ever said a weapon was safe?"
Neo paused.
"...Fair."
Li Tao immediately drew his own blade.
A cold metallic sound echoed throughout the battlefield.
The moment the weapon appeared—
Luo Chen's eyes narrowed.
This blade...
was not ordinary either.
Neither side wasted words.
The next second—
they collided.
Boom!!
The mountain shook violently.
A massive crater appeared beneath their feet.
The broken blade carried spiritual energy.
Li Tao's saber carried overwhelming force.
Both weapons collided repeatedly.
Sparks filled the sky.
The surrounding spectators retreated rapidly.
Nobody wanted to be caught in this madness.
Meanwhile—
the younger generation had completely lost control.
Tang Jing's whip lashed through the air.
Shen Yao's hidden weapons flew everywhere.
Qin Chanchan was directing family experts.
Nangong Li was coordinating resources and formations.
The Xue Family had become one of the biggest surprises.
After obtaining inheritances from several smaller secret realms—
their overall strength had increased dramatically.
Xue Ningdi herself had already reached the peak of Earth Immortal.
Her combat ability exceeded everyone's expectations.
Even Qin Family experts found themselves suppressed.
Boom!
A Xue Family elder suddenly broke through.
Late-stage Earth Immortal.
The battlefield instantly became even more chaotic.
Nobody expected the Xue Family to hide such strength.
Even Nangong Li frowned.
The balance was becoming increasingly unstable.
Back at the center battlefield—
Luo Chen's eyes became colder.
This was troublesome.
Very troublesome.
Li Tao's growth speed exceeded all expectations.
Every exchange revealed new improvements.
Every collision felt stronger than the previous one.
If this continued—
the situation would become difficult.
A dangerous light flashed through Luo Chen's eyes.
Fine.
Let's stop testing.
Spiritual energy surged.
The broken blade suddenly emitted an ancient glow.
A terrifying aura erupted.
The surrounding temperature instantly dropped.
Even Li Tao felt danger.
Luo Chen swung.
A crescent-shaped blade light tore through the battlefield.
The attack sliced through earth and stone alike.
Everything in its path was destroyed.
Li Tao's expression changed.
He immediately raised his saber.
Boom!
The collision blasted him backward hundreds of meters.
Blood appeared at the corner of his mouth.
The spectators gasped.
Luo Chen pressed forward relentlessly.
Another slash.
Then another.
Then another.
His damaged foundation prevented him from using stronger techniques.
Yet even these weakened attacks were enough to suppress Earth Immortal experts.
For a moment—
Li Tao was pushed into disadvantage.
At the same time—
Ye Feng suddenly laughed.
The black cauldron appeared above his head.
Boom!
The artifact expanded rapidly.
A terrifying pressure descended.
Murong Qing's expression immediately changed.
An artifact?
Where did this bastard get another artifact?
Ye Feng smiled coldly.
"Did you think only Li Tao had opportunities?"
The cauldron descended.
Murong Qing's nameless sword immediately rose.
Sword intent erupted.
For the first time—
an actual sword domain appeared.
Countless sword shadows filled the sky.
The two treasures collided.
The resulting explosion illuminated half the realm.
All over the battlefield—
breakthroughs were occurring.
The pressure.
The inheritance.
The battle.
Everything pushed people toward their limits.
One Qin Family elder broke through.
A Wang Family expert advanced.
Several Xue Family members stabilized new realms.
Even Tang Jing unexpectedly entered the Peak of Dan Forging.
The battlefield had transformed into complete madness.
Everyone was gambling with their lives.
Everyone was risking everything.
Li Tao wiped the blood from his lips.
His eyes gradually brightened.
Excitement.
It had been a long time since someone forced him this far.
Luo Chen was the same.
Both men felt it.
The opponent standing before them was worthy.
For the first time—
neither viewed the other as an obstacle.
They viewed each other as rivals.
Real rivals.
Luo Chen slowly raised his broken blade.
Li Tao tightened his grip on his saber.
The spiritual energy surrounding them became increasingly violent.
Above them—
the dragon phantom continued roaring.
The inheritance was awakening.
The mountain was opening.
Time was running out.
Neo suddenly screamed.
[Ding!]
[Ding! Host!]
[Ding! The inheritance chamber is opening!]
Li Tao immediately looked toward the mountain.
At the exact same moment—
Luo Chen did the same.
Then both men smiled.
A dangerous smile.
Neither wanted to continue wasting time.
The real prize had finally appeared.
Boom!
They exploded backward simultaneously.
Murong Qing.
Ye Feng.
Divine Doctor Xiao.
Xuan Lingtian.
Every major expert noticed it.
The mountain had begun splitting apart.
Golden light poured from the crack.
Ancient dragon roars echoed throughout the realm.
The inheritance chamber was opening.
The final race had begun.
And everyone knew—
the next battle would decide the fate of the entire world.