The first Myriad Species Tournament after more than five million high-dimensional lifeforms descended into the Myriad Species World ended. Thunderhorn Mountain, the Fire Dragonborn powerhouse, won the championship, but Black Eclipse, the one-armed Giant Ape King, perished in the end.
The audience teleported out of the arena, but Xu Jingming remained dazed.
In this Myriad Species World, our bodies are too fragile. It's easy to lose our lives here, Xu Jingming thought. Just like how he almost crushed Badishon, the Mountain Demon's skull—the latter was a hair's breadth from death.
I should avoid such dangerous situations when I'm weak. No point participating unless there's a chance of clinching first place. Xu Jingming decided.
What was the point of participating if there was no hope of winning first place? Just to gauge the other party's prowess? For high-dimensional lifeforms, their clones outside could easily carry out actual combat simulations and never fret over lacking battle experience.
Huh? Xu Jingming walked down the street with his family and spotted Badishon—the Mountain Demon—and a Five-Colored Dragon chatting in the distance.
Badishon, the Mountain Demon, glanced at Xu Jingming.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
After Badishon, the Mountain Demon, parted with the Five-Colored Dragon, he strode toward Xu Jingming.
"That Mountain Demon," his parents and younger siblings cried in surprise. The 65-meter-tall Mountain Demon unsettled them as he marched before them.
"Dad, Mom, you can head back first," Xu Jingming said.
"Alright."
His parents and family left but felt no concern for Xu Jingming. On the one hand, fighting was banned in World Center City. On the other hand, Xu Jingming's might surpassed Badishon, the Mountain Demon.
"Brother Jing Ming." The Mountain Demon, Badishon, sauntered over with a genuine grin. Although they were from different worlds in the Myriad Species World, in the outside world… everyone was a high-dimensional lifeform.
"Badishon." Xu Jingming nodded. "What's up?"
"I was wondering, how long can humans live?" Badishon asked.
Xu Jingming pondered and replied, "The stronger your control over your body, the slower you age. Humans are estimated to have a max lifespan of 20,000 years."
Ordinary humans lived 200 years, but Xu Jingming could now extend his lifespan by about 90 times. He estimated if his strength kept increasing, he had a chance to extend it 100 times.
This was also the limit of the human lifespan.
Unlike powerful species like Mountain Demons who generally lived 10,000 years—just slowing their aging a bit made their lifespans far outlive humans.
Weak species couldn't compare to stronger ones relying on lifespans.
"20,000 years?" Badishon nodded slightly. "I've chatted with contestants from many species, including Five-Colored Dragons, Giant Celestials, and Demon Dragons. I found out that the lifespan limit of this world is 108,000 years."
"108,000 years?" Xu Jingming was stunned. "I heard Five-Colored Dragons usually live 100,000 years."
"I asked around. Five-Colored Dragons can't slow their body aging at all," Badishon said. "For example, as a Mountain Demon, I can only slow my aging ten times at most. That puts me at about 108,000 years."
Sadness filled Badishon's eyes as he sighed. "All high-dimensional lifeforms must compete within 108,000 years. Even if I delay to the end, many competitors will be left."
"Being so mediocre in the first tournament, I have no hope for the first few tournaments, and many competitors from powerful species will come in the future too." Badishon sighed. "I feel this life in the Myriad Species World may be my last."
"It may be very difficult early on, but the difficulty will be lower later," Xu Jingming said.
"No, later on, everyone's strength will reach the limit almost. As for people with super-large bodies like us, we'll be at a disadvantage," Badishon said. Even among the powerful species, Mountain Demons were too large. "Chances of Mountain Demons winning first place later on are very slim."
"You're different; there's still hope for you." Badishon glanced at Xu Jingming with a complicated expression. There was envy and frankness before he strode off.
Xu Jingming surveyed his surroundings. The multitude of higher-dimensional lifeforms that had departed were rather disheartened.
"In the past, we all still held extravagant hopes of emerging victorious." Yu Yangwei, Shadow, and Fengke approached him. "But this inaugural tournament has made everyone realize how vast the gulf is. We are all higher-dimensional lifeforms, so it is easy for us to deduce that… the likelihood of becoming first is nil!"
"Yes, the maximum lifespan of humans is only 10,000 to 20,000 years, insufficient to endure until the latter stages. In the most fervent phases of the tournaments, we have no hope whatsoever," Shadow concurred.
"Lord Jing Ming, I intend to traverse the world." Yu Yangwei grinned. "I will relish what remains of my 10,000 years of life."
"I am also preparing to savor life," Shadow said. "I desire to cherish my final moments."
The portly Fengke did not utter a word.
"Lord Jing Ming, let us bid our farewells here. We will meet again at the next tournament. I will attend every tournament," Yu Yangwei declared.
"See you again." Xu Jingming nodded.
Yu Yangwei, Shadow, and the portly Fengke departed.
…
A torrent of tourists were streaming out of World Center City, yet no attacks had transpired outside its borders.
Powerful creatures rarely accosted weaker species nowadays, as there were increasing instances of underdogs successfully slaughtering their attackers.
"Attack? Which of the juggernauts in the main competition of the inaugural tournament isn't leagues ahead of us?"
"They eclipse us by a long shot."
"Hahaha… we should have realized long ago that we higher-dimensional lifeforms in the Firstborn realm were condemned to death when we were sucked into this Myriad Species World. We just have several millennia left to live."
"I couldn't even refine my clone before being dragged into the Myriad Species World. I didn't even get to say goodbye to my pals outside."
"Just relish life in the Myriad Species World."
Wave after wave of aircraft exited World Center City.
******
The Jing family's medium-sized aircraft left World Center City. As it was a long journey, the return journey took nearly a month.
Five days into the return journey—inside the aircraft—his second brother exclaimed, "Bro, look!"
"You're in charge of the entire Jing family now, yet you can't keep your cool." Xu Jingming shook his head and asked, "What happened?"
His brother ran over and pointed at the projection on his watch. "World Center City's official website just released the body tempering technique of this year's tournament champion, the Fire Dragonborn powerhouse—Thunderhorn Mountain!"
"What?" Xu Jingming was shocked and immediately looked at the projection. As champion, Thunderhorn Mountain must have left the Myriad Species World.
"According to World Center City's official website, Thunderhorn Mountain chose to publish his body tempering technique. Price tag of a hundred million a copy. He put it up for sale three minutes ago, and over 200,000 copies have already sold. Numbers are still rising fast."
"A hundred million is nothing." Xu Jingming instantly tapped open the projection on his watch and logged into World Center City's official website.
The technique's title was simple: Fire Body Tempering Technique.
Thunderhorn Mountain leaves the Myriad Species World after snagging the championship, and his body tempering technique gets publicized days later? Xu Jingming thought. And it's done through World Center City?
World Center City represented the will of the third realm being.
Thoughts raced through Xu Jingming's mind, but he bought without hesitation. A copy of Fire Body Tempering Technique quickly downloaded.
This Fire Body Tempering Technique… Xu Jingming tapped to open it and devoured the contents. Best suited for Fire Dragonborns, yet even at his level, he grasped the profound intricacies of this body tempering technique.
Impressive.
Fire Body Tempering Technique. Psychic fire? Isn't this how one tempers a psychic weapon? Senior Thunderhorn Mountain must have adapted the techniques for tempering psychic weapons to the laws of this world. Coupled with a Fire Dragonborn's gifts… this was how he ultimately forged a physique of that caliber. Xu Jingming nodded.
Physically, Senior Thunderhorn Mountain wasn't too different from the one-armed Giant Ape King.
The one-armed Giant Ape King had a slight edge physically. Only in his eight-armed form did he gain a decisive advantage in actual combat, forcing Thunderhorn Mountain to unleash his ultimate move.
I also aim to fuse body and mind, but I'm far from Senior Thunderhorn Mountain. Xu Jingming instantly grasped the vast gulf separating his body tempering technique from Fire Body Tempering.
Xu Jingming's heart blazed.
I must learn from this and perfect my body tempering technique. Countless ideas raced through Xu Jingming's mind on how to refine his body tempering technique.
On the journey back to the seven human countries, Xu Jingming secluded himself and focused on honing his body tempering technique. Rarely did he accompany his parents and siblings.
His parents and siblings were in high spirits along the way, keeping up with the latest news online.
Xu Jingming's fame had reached unprecedented heights in the seven human nations. Countless people fawned over and praised him.
"Haha, my son. That's my son." Jing Yulong grinned with unparalleled joy.
…
Time slipped by.
Xu Jingming didn't sign up for the subsequent Myriad Species Tournaments. With no shot at clinching first place, he didn't even bother registering. Still, he'd watch the tournament up close every thousand years like clockwork.
Although Jing Yulong and his wife had gotten their hands on a superior body tempering technique courtesy of Xu Jingming, the couple passed away in their 800s. His younger siblings followed suit, dying of old age one by one.
In a cemetery.
Dressed in black, Xu Jingming stood before a grave—his parents' final resting place, flanked on both sides by his siblings' plots.
Xu Jingming gazed at the grave.
What was real? What was an illusion? After all, his parents and siblings had been by his side for centuries, even over a millennium. Even though he knew deep down they were merely beings in a painting, Xu Jingming still harbored feelings for them.
My ninth sister lived the longest—over 1,200 years—but she eventually passed too.
I don't have any kin left in the Myriad Species World.
Xu Jingming stood before the grave for ages before leaving all alone.
