Chapter 197: Cang Lan Visitors

Under the shower of stars, Balshus had closed his eyes at some unknown moment.

Flashes of memories from Hill Prison Star passed through his mind.

Those were recollections from his childhood.

His mother had not yet died in the struggle for power, and his father reigned supreme, doting on his mother alone.

They lived in a peaceful and harmonious palace, where servants always greeted them with smiles.

One day, his father was injured, his Origin Source damaged, and his strength plummeted.

His mother was taken hostage and humiliated, ultimately unable to face it and choosing to end her own life.

What followed was too painful to recall.

The memory abruptly stopped at this moment.

Jiang Yan’s Saber had already struck him.

The glaring wound tore the memories apart bit by bit, the devastating blow enough to shake the heavens and earth—just as he had been unable to save his mother’s tragedy in his childhood, today he was equally powerless to resist that person’s Saber strike.

“No!!”

He roared, all his grief and indignation transforming into a towering Aura, and his body gradually began to show strange phenomena.

His Shell Origin glowed with flowing light, filled with a multicolored haze.

His physical form briefly vanished, transforming into wind, fire, thunder, lightning, metal, wood, water, and earth, scattering within the Chaotic Void Domain.

Jiang Yan frowned.

“Disappeared?”

In the midst of the battle, Jiang Yan was unaware of this situation, but the official Live Stream Room had a massive audience.

Someone knowledgeable recognized this phenomenon.

“This is Elemental Transformation! I never expected the Crown Prince of Hill Prison Star to have such profound mastery of the elements. At such a young age, he has already achieved this level of control over the elements.”

“Is Balshus really this incredible? Doesn’t that mean he’s invincible during Elemental Transformation?”

“Not exactly. Elemental Transformation temporarily merges the body with nature. During this time, the Shell Origin hides somewhere within the Elemental Domain.”

“If Jiang Yan can break through and find the Shell Origin, he’ll have a chance to resolve this situation.”

“But he probably doesn’t have the means to do that, right? I can’t think of any way he could locate the Shell Origin unless he waits for Balshus’s elemental power to deplete and for him to reappear naturally.”

“Law of the Jungle.”

Jiang Yan murmured, a different gleam flashing in his eyes. He raised a finger, then brought it down.

Terminus: Unification

A gray-white Saber Qi slashed down, tearing through space and pressing the Elemental Domain into distortion, as if it were about to shatter and collapse in the next moment.

Boom!

A sudden burst of daylight illuminated the entire Starry Sky.

The heavens bled, and the Crown Prince of Hill Prison Star could no longer maintain his Elemental Transformation. His body, like tattered cloth, was sent flying backward.

“Cough… I’ve lost.”

His expression was desolate.

Jiang Yan was speechless; it seemed he had inadvertently hurt someone.

But it didn’t matter.

He retreated despondently.

If there had been foul play, he could have fought desperately.

But the other party had simply crushed him with absolute strength.

There was no room for rebuttal.

The royal family’s revival was hopeless.

From the beginning, the Prince of Hill Prison Star had hoped that by aligning with Lightning Studio, he could buy some time for the royal family.

What he didn’t realize was that regardless of whether he placed first or not, Lightning would not intervene in the affairs of other planets for his sake.

Unless there was sufficient benefit.

But clearly, Balshus was a Genius, yet there were far too many such Geniuses in the Universe.

He couldn’t dominate the cosmos, and thus he couldn’t redeem anything.

The cruel world was simply like this. Before long, Hill Prison Star would undergo a change of dynasty.

With the royal family gone, it was hard to say whether this was good or bad.

But at least for Balshus, it felt like the sky had fallen.

Dejected and departing, the loser had lost the spotlight of the stage, awaiting him was an ultimate battle.

Amidst the gaze of billions, no one cared about Balshus’s fate—they only saw the victor, who now stood upon the vibrant stage.

Champion!

“Let us congratulate Jiang Yan for winning the Rising Tide Prodigy Championship.”

“Next, he will receive a set of Heaven-Tier Armament produced by the Myriad Realms Market.”

“Everyone, give him a round of applause!”

The host leaped out, shouting excitedly, pushing the atmosphere of the entire venue to its peak.

Jiang Yan didn’t care about the championship, nor did he care about Balshus’s future fate, but what he did care about was the Heaven-Tier Armament that was now genuinely within his grasp.

The venue was filled with cheers from the audience, and his live stream room also received a surge of traffic from across the myriad realms, pushing his popularity to new heights.

Countless gifts floated across the screen, and bullet comments flooded the chat.

The official live stream room, however, saw only a slight increase in viewership, with most of the popularity relying on the words “Lightning” and that interstellar superstar, Miss Hua.

“Congratulations to Mr. Jiang Yan for securing first place in the Rising Tide Prodigy Championship. If you enjoyed this match, my dear viewers in the stream, feel free to click the reservation button in the game corner. Little Hua thanks you all here.”

Miss Hua was passionate about her career, enthusiastically interacting with the audience in her live stream room.

After a single stream, she earned far more than Jiang Yan.

Of course, earning more was one thing, but what she could actually keep in hand was another.

In this universe, without strength, one was unworthy of safeguarding their own possessions.

The entertainment company behind Miss Hua would take at least ninety percent of the profits from this live stream.

She worked tirelessly for the company, while the company provided her with channels and security.

Beauty was precious, but untainted beauty was a luxury. Without sufficient power, one could only pay the corresponding price.

“This Rising Tide Championship is so boring. Aside from that Jiang Yan guy at the end who had some skills, everyone else felt pretty mediocre.”

“Exactly. Just when we encountered someone a bit more impressive, the match ended. It wasn’t satisfying at all.”

“I think it’s just that Lightning’s promotional tactics are too outdated. After all these years, there’s no innovation at all.”

Such voices appeared in the bullet comments, and Miss Hua could only follow the instructions from her earpiece to explain on behalf of Jiang Yan and the organizers.

Undoubtedly, the strength Jiang Yan displayed was enough to shock people.

But this shock was too limited—it ended just as it began to feel exciting, and from the perspective of impact, it didn’t seem particularly effective.

However, in truth, Lightning Studio’s cultivation of Jiang Yan was not an overnight endeavor.

This championship was merely a means to build momentum. They had more methods lined up to make Jiang Yan truly popular.

Just as it seemed this ordinary “Rising Tide Prodigy Championship” was about to conclude…

Beyond the starry sky, an incredibly luxurious Stellar-Class Battleship slowly approached Dragon Pot Star.

Its massive size instantly drew the attention of everyone present.

“Another expert?”

Hum—

The hatch opened.

Several figures stepped out.

On the exquisite hull, three large characters stood out prominently: “Azure Orchid Vessel.”

When the audience noticed these three characters, a subtle atmosphere arose both at the venue and in the live stream rooms.

The match was over, and an old rival had arrived. Had they come specifically to offer congratulations?

This kind of thing, frankly, was easy to figure out.

—Impossible!

Indeed.

The first to step off the warship was a male figure in a tailored suit and sunglasses. After scanning the surroundings, he cheerfully spread his arms wide.

“Well, old friend, you’re holding an exchange competition too?”

“What a coincidence! So are we! And on the very same day—isn’t that fate?”