Chapter 822: Chapter 822

Yao Ji tilted her head at Li Pin's words, looking like a bunch of question marks were about to pop out of her little head.

She couldn't help but ask. "What do you mean your first order as lead commander... is to make me the lead commander?"

The Divine Martial Emperor and Ji Shun, who had spent enough time around Li Pin, both twitched at the corners of their mouths. Trust him to make an order like that.... It was just like him.

"It's exactly what it sounds like," Li Pin replied.

"Yao Ji's the lead commander, I'm the main deputy. Wasn't that the original arrangement?" Emperor Ara frowned. "What changed?"

"Nothing," Li Pin said.

He gave a shrug. "Honestly, I thought the original setup was perfectly fine. Whether Yao Ji or you acted as lead commander didn't matter to me, as long as I got to go on first. But then..."

He glanced at Yao Ji.

"You insisted on throwing in that 'the loser must follow the winner' rule, so we ended up having to take the match seriously."

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Yao Ji clenched her jaw as she looked at the somewhat helpless Li Pin. So the whole reason you insisted on taking first place... was just so you could be the first to take the field?

Was I the one making a fuss over nothing? Do you not care at all about the honor of being the lead commander?

That title, being the lead commander in the Ten Thousand Tribes Dominion War, basically makes you the leader of the entire human team. Do you realize how much prestige and weight that carries?

With that status, that glory, how much fortune and luck could you draw in the Ten Thousand Tribes War? And yet... Li Pin didn't want it!?

Wait a minute. Why would he give up being the lead commander just to go out first?

A sudden flash of insight shot through Yao Ji's mind. She stared at Li Pin, stunned. "You?!"

He had absolute confidence in his strength. He believed he could crush all twenty-four opponents from the eight other major alien races, relying solely on his own power.

Even if some races, like the Intelligent Lifeforms, leaned more toward allies than enemies and wouldn't fight him to the death... over a dozen fierce battles were still unavoidable.

And then there were the slightly weaker contestants from the top-tier races—less intense, but still on par with the cannon fodder of the Sovereign Races.

Was his goal to take on all of them alone, without even rotating out once, and sweep the entire Tournament by himself?

There had to be a limit to a person's arrogance, right!?

It wasn't just Yao Ji. Even Emperor Ara was shocked. "So your insistence on going first is because you plan to sweep through the entire tournament single-handedly? You want to build an unmatched fortune from that unprecedented feat, see through the secrets of Supremacy in one go, and lay the foundation for the highest realm?"

When the time was right, all of heaven and earth moved in your favor.

If Li Pin truly managed to pull it off, what mystery would remain unsolved? What bottleneck would still hold him back? Even seeing the path to Supremacy would no longer be a fantasy.

Li Pin said with a wave of his hand, "I don't have any plans to sweep through the tournament just to gather fortune. I just want to fight them. One by one. I want to see... if any of them can actually beat me."

He spoke with sincerity. There was genuine anticipation in his eyes for the upcoming Tournament. "If that happens, it would be an amazing surprise."

Emperor Ara and Yao Ji weren't fully convinced by him.

Maybe Li Pin truly wanted to fight opponents at his level, but in the end, his real goal was obvious. To dominate the tournament, absorb its vast fortune, and uncover the ultimate secrets that would lay the foundation for his future rise to Supremacy.

After all, this Tournament involved the Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations, tied to the fate of the Astral World and possibly the entire universe.

The lead commander might not make the final decisions, but they still played a key role. The fortune they could gain from this was enough to benefit them for a lifetime.

People would always choose to believe what they wanted, taking it for the truth.

Still, neither Yao Ji nor Emperor Ara thought Li Pin could really pull it off.

Even though the strength he had shown so far earned their recognition, sweeping through all the races was impossible. Not just because this Tournament carried such high stakes and its participants were stronger than ever, but even in past tournaments, no one had ever done it.

The foreign Tyrants, even the ones considered cannon fodder, would fight to the death. They'd rather go down with their enemy if it meant forcing him to push past his limits, dragging him a step closer to collapse.

With that kind of wear and tear over time, no one could hold out forever.

Even the Heavenly Emperor himself might not be able to achieve such a feat.

Once Li Pin, Emperor Ara, and Yao Ji had reached an agreement, the Divine Martial Emperor turned to the surrounding Heavenly Emperors. "Any objections to this outcome?"

The process had been a bit bumpy, but in the end, Yao Ji still secured the role of main commander. Naturally, Heavenly Emperor Primordius had no complaints.

He was the first to smile and speak up. "None at all. Since His Excellency Sacred Monarch Origin has the ambition to test his sword against all under heaven and sweep through the myriad clans, we are more than happy to support him."

Even Gu You gave a small nod of agreement. With Li Pin charging at the frontlines, Emperor Ara would be far safer. And if things went well... he might even walk away with the biggest gain.

Another Heavenly Emperor said with a light nod, "Sacred Monarch Origin certainly has boldness. We should do what we can to support him."

The rest of the Heavenly Emperors cast a glance at Li Pin.

Among them, Heavenly Emperor Dong Xu from the Astral World Research Institute couldn't help but speak up, "We won't stop Sacred Monarch Origin from pursuing this goal, but... pulling off something is extraordinarily difficult, especially in a tournament as critical as this one.

"Divine Martial Emperor, I think you should try to talk him down. He should conserve his strength and fight wisely. There's a reason the higher-ups set the rule of three participants per race. Going against that rule often comes at a heavy cost."

"I'll advise him," the Divine Martial Emperor replied with a smile, "but once these supreme prodigies make a decision, no one can shake it. I'm sure all of you have experienced this yourselves."

He laughed and added, "Back when we were young, didn't our elders always warn us? 'If you don't cultivate properly, you'll only get sent on the most dangerous missions when you go out.' But did we ever listen back then?"

None of the Heavenly Emperors said something like, "I did! I always trained diligently." They all understood the Divine Martial Emperor was just making a point.

They remembered well how stubborn they'd been once they set their minds to something.

Heavenly Emperor Dong Xu and the others found it hard to say anything more.

"To sweep through the myriad clans..." muttered Heavenly Emperor Heng He from Endless Divine Mountain. "Given how unique this tournament is, if Sacred Monarch Origin truly manages to achieve that, with all the fortune gathered upon him... it might not be long before he stands on equal footing with us. If I'm not mistaken, he's only cultivating for three hundred years?"

At those words, many of the Heavenly Emperors showed subtle changes in expression. It wasn't the thought of Li Pin ascending to Emperorhood with great fortune that stirred them, but the number: three hundred years.

That's right. Li Pin had only cultivated for three centuries. And in that short time, he had already accomplished so much, breaking record after record.

What if... he really could pull this off?

Though they still thought it was nearly impossible, none of them dared to speak carelessly now, for fear of making fools of themselves once the tournament ended.

"Let's go," said the Divine Martial Emperor.

With that, the Heavenly Emperors and Sacred Monarchs overseeing the tournament led Li Pin, Yao Ji, Emperor Ara, and the others away.

But even after the participants, Sacred Monarchs, and Heavenly Emperors had left, the Astral Gods who had gathered over the past three years showed no sign of leaving.

They clustered in small groups, still animatedly discussing the match among the three invincible Tyrants—Li Pin, Emperor Ara, and Yao Ji.

"What a turn of events. I thought Yao Ji reaching the ninety-third step was already a rare feat, but I didn't expect Li Pin to go even further, straight to the ninety-fourth. Tyrants these days... they're terrifying."

"Haha, that's a good thing. The stronger Li Pin and Yao Ji are, the better their chances in the upcoming Tournament. If they win, not only will humanity gain more benefits, but even the coming Three Calamities and Nine Tribulations will be delayed in our territory. That means more time to prepare, and more chances to learn from how the other races perform."

"There's always someone stronger out there. Even a Tyrant shouldn't be taken lightly."

"Hmm? If I'm not mistaken... you're just a Cosmic Radiance like me, aren't you?"

"So what if I am? I'm not trying to pick a fight with any Tyrant. Just sharing my thoughts. What, that bothers you?"

Meaningful or not, chatter and information continued to flow among the Starshine, Solar Flare, and Cosmic Radiance cultivators.

Just then, Sacred Monarch Zhu Tian said, "Li Pin... must be the undisputed supreme prodigy of this era, right?"

The conversations around them paused for a moment.

The supreme prodigy title had always carried serious weight among the human race, especially within the middle and upper ranks.

"To have climbed to the ninety-fourth step of the Supreme Ladder. If that doesn't qualify as a supreme prodigy, then what does? In past eras, some who held the title didn't even become Tyrants."

"That's true. But beyond sheer strength, a supreme prodigy must also dominate their era. Li Pin, Emperor Ara, and Yao Ji are all outstanding. Each would've ranked among the best in any past era. But they're so exceptional that none of them can truly outshine the others. Li Pin included."

"If even reaching the ninety-fourth step doesn't earn the title, then in the next era, unless someone else can do the same, anyone claiming that title, I'll be the first to reject it."

"Exactly. Honestly, many of the so-called supreme prodigies from previous generations were far from qualified. Some couldn't even reach the ninetieth step. What right did they have to claim the title? Just because they lived in an era with no real competition?"

"I agree with Sacred Monarch Zhu Tian. If someone doesn't have the strength, calling them a supreme prodigy only cheapens the title. Li Pin reached the ninety-fourth step in just a few hundred years and still hasn't been officially named. Meanwhile, others who've cultivated for tens of thousands of years dare to call themselves that? It's laughable."

Voices of discussions surged again.

Many began calling out past so-called supreme prodigies with weak cultivation, criticizing them harshly.

And more began to believe that from now on, anyone bearing the title had to not only dominate their time but also reach at least the ninetieth step of the Supreme Ladder. If no one met that standard, then it was better to leave the title vacant than let it fall into the hands of unworthy pretenders.

Without realizing it, Li Pin had raised the bar for what it meant to be a supreme prodigy, through strength and achievement alone.