Earth's Greatest Magus

“What? Ash Veil was defeated in a single blow!?”

“Such an embarrassment!”

“Is that halfblood really that strong?”

“No, that idiot Ash simply underestimated his opponent!”

“Really? Senior Drifting Snow, you’re also at Stage 5. Why don’t you go teach him a lesson?”

“Well… I…”

Before the man could finish his response, the arena projection shifted and displayed another duel preparing to begin.

“So he accepted more than one challenge. Who is it this time?”

“That’s Senior Spear Current” another spectator uttered with confidence. “He’s a veteran military colonel. He won’t make careless mistakes like Ash Veil.”

Several grand magus leaned closer to watch the arena projection, their interest clearly growing.

However, the excitement did not last long.

The duel had barely reached a dozen exchanges before the outcome became obvious. Emery quickly seized the upper hand, overwhelming Spear Current’s defense before finishing the match with a decisive strike.

Another victory.

The spectators exchanged uneasy looks as the system immediately prepared the next duel.

Emery did not pause.

He continue without hesitation.

The third opponent, another two-cosmos grand magus, entered the arena confidently, only to fall under the same fate after a short and intense exchange. Then came the fourth.

And the fifth.

One after another, Emery continued collecting victories with unsettling consistency.

“”

Drifting Snow’s earlier confidence slowly faded.

“I guess… this newcomer might actually be quite capable,” he admitted reluctantly.

“Look!” someone suddenly shouted. “He’s fighting Senior Sitting Mountain next!”

A wave of anticipation spread through the crowd.

“He’s a three-cosmos grand magus. That halfblood is finished!”

Within the arena, Emery now faced a towering opponent.

Sitting Mountain was a massive man whose physique resembled a living fortress. The moment he raised his weapons-two enormous battle axes- Emery immediately recognized the familiar aura of a Titan bloodline.

The sight reminded him of his former academy companions, Zetoo and Sigurd. The duel began.

The difference in raw physical strength was immediately apparent. Sitting Mountain’s attacks carried terrifying force, each swing of his axes generating shockwaves powerful enough to split the ground beneath their feet.

In terms of brute strength, the three-cosmos titan possessed the advantage even against Emery’s Twilight transformation.

For several minutes Emery was compelled onto the defensive, his sword movements growing sharper as he avoided the crushing strikes.

Then Emery activated his half-primal transformation.

Dark beastly energy surged through his body, amplifying both his strength and speed.

The balance of the fight shifted once again.

What followed was a brutal exchange lasting more than an hour. Both sides endured heavy injuries, their weapons clashing repeatedly while the battlefield cracked beneath the force of their collisions.

Two hours passed. Defeating a three-cosmos opponent in their almost perfect cosmic body was clearly difficult; wounds healed almost as quickly as they were inflicted.

Ultimately, the battle turned on Emery’s greatest advantages-his innate bloodline regeneration. As Sitting Mountain’s stamina waned, Emery’s wounds continued to mend in the heat of combat.

When the titan finally realized the difference, he understood the outcome was inevitable and admitted defeat.

[Victory]

[Reward: 500 Palace Points]

The higher reward came from the opponent’s bold wager, a decision he surely regretted by the end of the duel.

The next battle followed shortly afterward.

Another three-cosmos challenger stepped forward, and although Emery felt the lingering strain from the previous fight, the Virtual Palace system restored his virtual body completely at the start of the duel.

The result was similar.

The battle was difficult and intense, yet Emery eventually secured another

victory.

Between matches, Emery’s mind raced as he analyzed the situation.

There were 7,850 grand magus realm cultivators currently ranked at Stage 5 of

the Cosmic Bridge.

Roughly half of them were two-cosmos geniuses.The other half were

three-cosmos.

Many of these challengers possessed secret techniques, powerful artifacts, or unique cultivation methods. Yet compared to Emery, their advantages remained

limited.

After all, Emery possessed far more unusual foundations.

Two primordial powers.

A split soul.

And an extraordinary bloodline.

The battles were actually easier than facing his own Cosmic Bridge clone, who

could copied all these advantages.

The situation finally became interesting when the tenth opponent entered the

arena.

Her alias was Melody Blade.

She was a two-cosmos genius who cultivated a rare and unusual law: the Law

of Sound.

From the moment the duel began, the difference in her fighting style was immediately obvious. As her twin blades moved through the air, they produced piercing screeches that rippled across the battlefield like invisible waves. Each strike carried both physical force and a powerful sonic vibration that attacked the opponent’s mind as much as their body.

Within moments, Emery found himself trapped inside her battlefield domain.

The arena transformed into a distorted soundscape where vibrations bounced endlessly between invisible barriers. The screeching resonance disrupted his senses, twisting his perception of distance and direction while the pressure of the sound waves constantly assaulted his mind.

Even his divine sense was affected.

Unfortunately for Melody Blade, she had unknowingly chosen the wrong

opponent.

Emery’s cultivation in the soul path far exceeded what most martial cultivators could defend against. The moment her sonic assault reached his consciousness, his soul defenses reacted instinctively, neutralizing the mental pressure before it could truly take hold.

Within minutes, her greatest advantage had been completely dismantled. Once Emery stabilized his perception of the battlefield, the duel ended quickly.

His counterattack shattered her domain and forced her onto the defensive

before Excalibur delivered the final strike.

[Victory]

[Reward: 200 Palace Points]

After leaving the arena, Emery reflected on the fight carefully.

He had realized something important.

If he fully relied on his soul path advantage, most of these martial-path

challengers would fall easily. Their primary strength lay in physical combat, and their mental defenses were often secondary.

But such victories would not truly help him improve.

If he wanted to refine his strength and develop deeper understanding, he

needed to challenge himself properly.

So Emery made a decision.

Unless facing an opponent who specialized in mental combat, he would avoid

using his soul attacks entirely.

Instead, he limited himself further.

Each duel would be fought using only one of his core powers.

Either the destructive energy of Khaos, the balanced vitality of Elysian power,

or the savage force of beast primal energy.

By isolating each source of strength, Emery forced himself to explore their

limits more deeply.

The result was exactly what he wanted.

Each battle became far more challenging.

Outside the arena, the growing crowd of spectators continued watching the

duels with increasing fascination.

“How many battles has this guy fought already?”

“Look at him… he’s getting tired!”

“Are you stupid?” another grand magus snapped immediately. “You can’t get

tired in a virtual duel.”

“Then what is he doing?”

From the outside perspective, Emery often appeared to be on the brink of defeat. His maneuvers slowed at critical moments, and several times it looked as though his opponent had finally gained the upper hand.

Yet every time the situation reached that dangerous edge, Emery suddenly

reversed the momentum and claimed victory.

This type of intense matches attracted even more competitive challengers.

At the same time, those who had already issued challenges found themselves trapped. Because Emery had accepted their invitations, withdrawing now would mean forfeiting their wager entirely.

And so the battles continued. Twenty duels.

Thirty duels.

Every ten matches, Emery stepped away from the arena for several hours-

to rest his mind, to carefully examine and analyze his previous fights. Each

battle became a source of insight, helping him refine the delicate balance

between his different powers.

Forty duels.

Among them were several truly powerful opponents who forced Emery to

unleash nearly everything he had just to secure narrow victories.

Fifty duels.

By this point, the name Twilight Wolf had begun echoing throughout the

Virtual Palace arenas. What started as simple curiosity gradually turned into widespread attention as more and more spectators gathered to watch the ongoing duels. At first, many only saw him as another rising challenger, yet as the victories continued to accumulate, whispers began spreading among the

crowd.

Eventually, someone recognized him.

The realization spread quickly from one spectator to another.

“Wait… that’s him!”

“That’s the Savage Grand Magus!”

The identity behind the alias was finally revealed. The mysterious Twilight Wolf

who dominate the duels was none other than the grand magus who had recently gained fame after the battle against the Astiel faction. His name had already circulated across several factions following that conflict, and now the connection between the two identities were made.

The arena quickly grew even more crowded as news spread across the Virtual

Palace.

More duels ensued, but the stream of challengers gradually slowed. Many who had initially stepped forward out of curiosity now realized that defeating Emery would not be as simple as they had imagined. Even the earlier spectators who had mocked him-including Drifting Snow and his companions -had long since disappeared from the arena halls after witnessing the outcome of battle after battle.

Three days passed

By this time, Emery had defeated over seventy challengers.

In the process, he had accumulated 10,800 Palace Points, a reward that would

have taken most grand magus decades to gather.

He finally finished all challenge request.

As Emery prepared to end his streak and leave the arena, another notification appeared within his interface.

[You have received a new message]

[Cosmic Bridge Duel Invitation] [Wager: 1000 Palace Points]

The number alone was enough to draw attention.

A wager ten times larger than the standard duel.

Emery glanced at the challenger’s name and a surprised smile appeared on his

face.

[Zodiac Prince]

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