# Chapter 966: The Only Choice
The registration conditions for the Xuan Shen Tournament... age under sixty years, which was the same as previous tournaments, surprising no one.
However, the requirement that Profound Strength must not be lower than the Divine Tribulation Realm came as a thunderbolt to countless young Xuan practitioners whose passion had just been ignited.
In previous Xuan Shen Tournaments, the Profound Strength requirement had always been merely the Divine Soul Realm. In those days, each tournament was a grand festival for the youth, and through the competition of these young practitioners, one could easily foresee the comprehensive strength and future of their respective star realms.
But this time, the registration threshold had suddenly been raised by an entire major realm!
Moreover, the age limit of sixty years remained unchanged.
What concept was a Divine Tribulation Realm cultivator under sixty years of age? Yin Xue Realm was ranked among the upper tiers of mid-grade star realms, with the Bing Huang God Sect as its core sect. Here, if one could reach the Divine Tribulation Realm before the age of sixty, they would qualify to enter the Bing Huang God Temple, which was used to train the highest-level disciples!
Even in the powerful upper-grade star realms, those who could achieve the Divine Tribulation Realm before the age of sixty were all geniuses of their domains.
This single "Divine Tribulation Realm" restriction compressed the scale of the Xuan Shen Tournament by more than a thousand times compared to previous years! What was once a grand event for young practitioners had become a stage where only genius-level cultivators were qualified to compete.
Yun Che had never been concerned about the Xuan Shen Tournament's registration restrictions, because he had never planned to participate, nor had he ever thought he would be qualified to do so. However, this "Divine Tribulation Realm" restriction did not only apply to Xuan Shen Tournament participants—it clearly applied to "everyone entering Zhou Tian Realm"!
Those whose Profound Strength did not reach the Divine Tribulation Realm would not only be unqualified to register for the Xuan Shen Tournament, but would also be unable to enter Zhou Tian Realm even as spectators! And when that voice had spoken these words, it had heavily emphasized the phrase "by any means."
This meant that the original plan for the Yinxue Realm King to bring him into the tournament venue had been rendered impossible to achieve!
Unless... he could cultivate to the Divine Tribulation Realm before that time. But if that were the case, he could simply register directly for the Xuan Shen Tournament and wouldn't need the Yinxue Realm King to specially bring him into Zhou Tian Realm.
Thirty months—a mere two and a half years—from the Lord Xuan Realm to the Divine Tribulation Realm...
Even for someone who had already experienced countless miracles, this was nothing but a pipe dream.
"...Those who achieve the top four rankings in the Xuan Shen Tournament will receive supreme rewards bestowed by the four king realms of Fan Di, Zhou Tian, Yue Shen, and Xing Shen. Those who rank in the top one thousand will be specially permitted to cultivate in the Zhou Tian Divine Realm for three thousand years..."
At this moment, the aura that had enveloped the cosmos began to dissipate. The final words before it vanished—that phrase about "special permission to cultivate in the Zhou Tian Divine Realm for three thousand years"—sent shockwaves throughout the Eastern Divine Region that nearly overturned heaven and earth. But Yun Che showed no reaction, still staring blankly at the words "Divine Tribulation Realm."
Just then, a voice as soft as water sounded in his ear and within his soul: "Yun Che, can Xiaolan and I come in?"
It was Mu Bingyun's voice. Yun Che collected his thoughts, quickly stood up, and opened the stone door of the cultivation chamber.
Mu Bingyun and Mu Xiaolan walked in. Mu Bingyun's eyes were like water, while Mu Xiaolan's little face carried a somewhat gloating expression.
Mu Bingyun looked at Yun Che's clearly stiff expression and said softly, "That was the 'Zhou Tian Voice' from the Zhou Tian God Realm. Every corner of the Eastern Divine Region, even independent spaces, could hear it clearly. In previous Xuan Shen Tournaments, all realms were also notified in this manner."
"The preparations for this Xuan Shen Tournament began more than seven years ago, and the date had already been secretly circulated. This public announcement differs little from the rumors. I just didn't expect that not only is the time interval only seven hundred years, but the registration conditions and competition format have changed so drastically—even utilizing the power of the Zhou Tian Pearl. Even the rewards this time are quite shocking... Everywhere, it reeks of the extraordinary."
"..." Yun Che remained silent.
"Master, if the age limit stays the same but the Profound Strength requirement is set at the Divine Tribulation Realm, then this time, the number of people qualified to participate in the Xuan Shen Tournament should be much smaller, right?" Mu Xiaolan asked.
"Not just much smaller," Mu Bingyun said softly. "The scale will shrink by at least several thousand times compared to previous tournaments. For this tournament, the number of people qualified to enter the Xuan Shen Tournament across the entire Eastern Divine Region should be only around twenty to thirty million."
"That's indeed very few," Mu Xiaolan murmured. "I remember in previous Xuan Shen Tournaments, even the preliminary rounds would eliminate over a hundred billion people. This time, only a few tens of millions are even qualified to enter the preliminaries."
Averaged across the nine thousand star realms of the Eastern Divine Region, each star realm would have only a few thousand people qualified to participate. Of course, that was just an average. This number would be overwhelmingly concentrated in the upper-grade star realms, followed by the mid-grade star realms. Although lower-grade star realms were the most numerous, they would have the fewest qualified participants.
From this, one could imagine the level of those qualified to enter the Xuan Shen Tournament among the younger generation of the Eastern Divine Region.
Even the weakest among them was, from the perspective of the Divine Realm, an absolute elite of the younger generation.
"Although the restrictions are unprecedentedly harsh, the temptations are equally great. Even the fact that the preliminary competition venue is set within the Zhou Tian Pearl itself, allowing participants to bathe in the divine power of the Zhou Tian Pearl, is enough to make it irresistible. Those who qualify must already be eagerly anticipating it. Those on the borderline will undoubtedly devote themselves to intense cultivation over the next thirty months, hoping to meet the registration requirements."
Looking at Yun Che, who remained silent, Mu Bingyun's eyes rippled slightly, as if she wanted to speak but hesitated.
The sudden restriction imposed by the Zhou Tian Realm had not only stunned Yun Che but had also caught her off guard. The most direct consequence was that she would have to break her promise to Yun Che.
Mu Xiaolan, however, was full of enthusiasm: "Master, this time, the top one thousand in the Xuan Shen Tournament can enter the Zhou Tian Divine Realm to cultivate for three thousand years. Is that true? I remember Master saying that the Zhou Tian Realm rarely allows outsiders into the Zhou Tian Divine Realm."
"Though extremely difficult to believe, this is the Zhou Tian Voice directed at the entire Eastern Divine Region. How could it be false?" Mu Bingyun said.
"Zhou Tian Divine Realm... what kind of place is it?" Yun Che suddenly asked.
"The Zhou Tian Divine Realm is the core world within the Zhou Tian Pearl. The Zhou Tian Pearl is one of the seven great Mystic Heaven Supreme Treasures from the ancient divine era, and currently the only Mystic Heaven Supreme Treasure manifest in the Divine Realm..." As she spoke, she glanced deeply at Yun Che, because the second manifest Mystic Heaven Supreme Treasure had already appeared—the Heavenly Poison Pearl on Yun Che's body.
She did not know that Yun Che also possessed another Mystic Heaven Supreme Treasure—the Reincarnation Mirror.
In the vast Divine Realm, there was only one Mystic Heaven Supreme Treasure. Yet Yun Che himself carried two!
"Among the seven great Mystic Heaven Supreme Treasures, the Zhou Tian Pearl ranks fourth, after the Ancestral Heaven-Slaying Sword, the Evil Infant Myriad Calamity Wheel, and the Primordial Chaos Life-Death Seal. The Zhou Tian Realm was originally of average strength and lacked the supreme inheritances of the Yue Shen Realm and Xing Shen Realm, but because it obtained the Zhou Tian Pearl, it became one of the four king realms of the Eastern Divine Region, with comprehensive strength and prestige surpassing even the Xing Shen Realm and Yue Shen Realm."
"The power of the Zhou Tian Pearl lies in its ability to create its own time and space, possessing an almost completely independent law of time. The Zhou Tian Divine Realm is its core world, with an independent time law. Cultivating in the Zhou Tian Divine Realm for three years equates to only one day passing in the outside world!"
"What?" Yun Che was deeply shocked. "Three years in the Zhou Tian Divine Realm equals one day outside? The flow of time is a thousand times different? That's too exaggerated... No wonder the Zhou Tian Realm is so powerful. If the people there always cultivate within the Zhou Tian Pearl, then their cultivation time—or rather efficiency—would be a thousand times that of ordinary people!"
"Of course, there are limitations," Mu Bingyun gently shook her head. "The divine power of the Zhou Tian Pearl is not infinite. Maintaining the independent time-space of the Zhou Tian Divine Realm requires tremendous power. And the current Divine Realm is not the Divine Realm of old; its self-recovery ability naturally cannot compare with the ancient divine era. Therefore, the Zhou Tian Realm has always been extremely cautious in using the Zhou Tian Pearl's power, never attempting to overdraw its limits, and rarely allowing outsiders into the Zhou Tian Divine Realm."
"But this time, they have announced to the entire Eastern Divine Region that they will proactively send the top one thousand of the Xuan Shen Tournament into the Zhou Tian Divine Realm to cultivate for three thousand years... This likely approaches the power limit of the Zhou Tian Pearl. Such generosity has never been seen in the entire history of the Zhou Tian Realm."
Mu Bingyun's brow furrowed slightly as she murmured, "Those who can rank in the top one thousand of the Xuan Shen Tournament, covering the entire Eastern Divine Region, are undoubtedly future overlords of the Divine Realm, possessing extremely high talent and limitless futures. Sending them into the Zhou Tian Divine Realm to cultivate for three thousand years will surely produce a thousand peerless powerhouses... And when they emerge from the Zhou Tian Divine Realm, only three years will have passed in the outside world."
Yun Che: "..."
"A Xuan Shen Tournament that is so rushed and abnormal, and such a reckless willingness to cultivate a batch of powerhouses for the Eastern Divine Region..." Mu Bingyun sighed. "It seems that some earth-shattering event is about to occur in the Divine Realm... And it's not related to any single star realm, but something the entire Divine Realm must face together."
"However, the matter of entering the Zhou Tian Divine Realm is certainly unrelated to our Yin Xue Realm." Mu Bingyun's implication was clearly that it was impossible for anyone from Yin Xue Realm to enter the top one thousand... In fact, even the top ten thousand was almost impossible. "But the information released this time by the Zhou Tian Realm forces us to prepare as well. As for the immediate issue... of bringing you into the Zhou Tian Realm, I will try to find another opportunity."
"Palace Master, what if..." Yun Che gritted his teeth slightly. "What if the Great Realm King could personally make a request? Would the Zhou Tian Realm possibly be lenient?"
Mu Bingyun closed her eyes slightly. "Yin Xue Realm is only a mid-grade star realm. Although the Great Realm King's prestige in the Eastern Divine Region rivals that of an upper-grade realm king, before the mighty king realms, it remains insignificant in the end."
Though Mu Bingyun did not shake her head, her meaning was crystal clear.
"The Great Realm King will be going into seclusion soon. I will seek her out as early as possible to discuss this matter." Mu Bingyun turned sideways. "Given the Great Realm King's temperament, since she has already promised you something, she would never want to break her word. But this time, these are restrictions imposed by the four king realms—no one can defy them... I'm afraid it truly will be difficult."
"Rest assured, if it ultimately proves impossible, we will certainly compensate you sufficiently."
With a helpless sigh, Mu Bingyun's fairy-like figure turned to leave. Her words had already told Yun Che that there was no longer any need to hold out hope.
"Wait!"
Yun Che suddenly spoke. His hands clenched, tighter and tighter, the bones in his fingers emitting cracking sounds.
"In other words, to enter the Zhou Tian Realm, there is only one way left." Yun Che slowly raised his head. When his gaze leveled, his eyes had already shifted from the earlier confusion to determination—with even a hint of deep ruthlessness shining within.
"Cultivate to the Divine Tribulation Realm... before the Xuan Shen Tournament!" He gritted his teeth, using almost all his strength and will, speaking each word slowly and deliberately.
Mu Bingyun's figure halted. Her beautiful eyes momentarily froze.
"Ah!?" Mu Xiaolan let out a soft cry. She turned to look at Yun Che, whose face was full of seriousness, not at all like he was joking. Staring wide-eyed, she said, "Have you lost your mind? There's only two and a half years left until the Xuan Shen Tournament—not two hundred years, not twenty years, but two and a half years! And you're only at the mid-stage Lord Xuan Realm right now. Even if you ate legendary divine pills, you couldn't possibly break through to the Divine Tribulation Realm in such a short time... Oh, even reaching the Divine Soul Realm is completely, utterly impossible. Whether you can even reach the Divine Origin Realm is a question!"
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(Chapter End)