?2008 Joke

Appearing on the familiar Ancient Battlefield, Dyon didn't take much time to gain his bearings and flash forward toward his destination.

It was then the situation abruptly changed. In the dense forest with trees stretching hundreds of meters into he air, the sound of rushing feet from all directions immediately caught Dyon's attention.

"Haha! We've already found one!"

"Ancestor said that the mortal plane this time around is pitifully weak. To think they'd actually dare to send in their geniuses as though they're actually worthy of such a title."

Half a dozen youths sped toward Dyon from all directions, their gazes lit with a fiery ambition. Not a single one was below the Higher Dao Realm. Of course, considering how difficult cultivation was in the Ancient Battlefield, their strength was actually comparable to Peak Dao Realm experts. Some greater geniuses amongst them might even be as strong as Fallen at that Realm.

They surrounded Dyon with playful expressions on their faces.

"Is there a need for all of us to take action? Just one of me is enough."

"Don't be so cocky, he's a Peak Dao Realm expert. To be able to enter despite the age restriction, he's definitely a big fish. We can't kill him. A genius like him is really valuable to his Clan, we can use him to force them to give us their Faith."

"Are you saying that because it's smart? Or are you saying that because you've taken a liking to his face?"

"So what if it's both? Men that grow up on the Ancient Battlefield are too stocky and rough. Where am I going to find myself a prince consort with a face as delicate as his elsewhere?"

"I have things to do. Can we move this along please?" Dyon cut their conversation short.

..

The so-called "battle" was nothing more than a joke. With a single sweep of his Presence, all six geniuses fell to their knees, their eyes widening in shock and despair.

Dyon took a step forward, grasping the neck of the female genius who wanted to turn him into a prince consort.

In reality, she was quite a beauty. It's just that she was incredibly tall. Growing up in the Ancient Battlefield environment, even women tended to have large bone structures.

Though she didn't have some obscene height, she was still tall enough to be a half a head above Dyon.

Of course, there were still some Clans with compression techniques similar to that of Yadmere. But, it took exceptional geniuses to regain normal human dimensions. The fact this young woman was so close to that goal was a testament to how great her talent was.

"Where are we located exactly? Which Clans do you come from?" Dyon asked.

The female bit her lips firmly, seemingly unwilling to speak to Dyon. To which, Dyon only shrugged. He tried to be nice, it's not his fault she didn't want his kindness.

"[Devour]."

Not just the female genius, but the remaining five geniuses fell. Dead.

"I see." With a nod, Dyon flashed forward, his Hell's Right Eye bringing his speed up to a ridiculous level. Though it was tougher to tear across space in the Ancient Battlefield, it was relatively easier for Dyon that it was for anyone else.

Now being certain of where he was, Dyon could implement the next steps of his plans with little worry.

On the Ancient Battlefield, there were 12 main clans Dyon classified to be the highest risk. Beneath those 12, there were about 50 or so more than posed a secondary level of risk. As for the rest, Dyon believed that even if he didn't take action, the Clans and Sects of the mortal plane would be able to handle them just fine.

This young woman just now was from one of the lesser secondary clans. Dyon had ranked them about 30 in his risk assessment of those secondary clans. Of course, this ranking didn't include the top 12 most dangerous.

The stronghold that Dyon had been nurturing for over a century now was located to the south of the Ancient Battlefield. Currently, his territory was about as large as the top ten of those secondary level risk clans.

However, he had been randomly teleported to the east of the Ancient Battlefield. That meant he had to cross the mountain range that provided his own territory protection to its east before he could get there. Luckily, he wasn't in much of a rush.

No one knew the exact rules of the first phase. It was just known that it was related to the growth of the youths.

During this period, no one above the age of 1000 would be allowed to attack those who entered from the mortal plane. However, even with this protection, surviving was tricky.

Aside from the fact geniuses of the Ancient Battlefield were so much stronger, over the years, they had also created many methods of seeking out and crushing these geniuses well in advance.

The first phase was a game of politics as much as it was a game of strength. Mortal plane geniuses gained benefits from being here, but failed clans also gained benefits for taking them in or taking them out.

This was what made the first phase so complex. There were two paths to take.

One could take the straightforward path and simply kill of the geniuses they came across. In this way, it would be impossible for these individuals to take advantage of the Ancient Battlefield as a resource and there would thus be one less obstruction in the future.

However, on the other hand, it was possible to take this genius in and protect them. That might be of great benefit to them, and it was a risk that could be worth it in the end.

What might the benefit of this be? Well, for one, Faith.

According to Dyon's knowledge, Faith was expunged from the mortal plane when the second phase began. However, this was a sudden rule change that caught everyone off guard.