Chapter 553: The Unyielding Rise

“Sir, shall we meet them?”

“There are plenty who want to invest in you, and a few Third-Stage Wanderers eager to form marriage alliances— they’ve even brought their daughters.”

In the candlelit meeting room, the flickering light danced across Yenir’s face, revealing neither joy nor sorrow.

All those transformed into Otherworldly Ghosts, kneeling in a circle, regarded Yenir—the head of the table—with deep awe and fear.

The battle had ended.

With a flawless performance—indeed, no one dared to challenge the top spot—Yenir had already advanced to the second round of selection.

After showcasing utterly overwhelming, almost monstrous, combat prowess, within a single day numerous factions reached out early to invest.

Among the survivors, Yenir’s sudden rise had sparked a flurry of discussion, albeit on a small scale.

And for no other reason.

Compared to everyone else, Yenir’s impact was simply unforgettable.

Gazing at the expressionless youth seated at the head, both Ping Ye and Dongyang were utterly astonished.

Although these individuals had been transformed into Otherworldly Ghosts, aside from their absolute loyalty, their thoughts remained just like ordinary humans.

They knew full well that, despite his unfathomable strength, Yenir could dispatch them in an instant.

Yet, recalling his display on the arena stage today still filled them with genuine awe.

No matter the opponent or the type of Awakener.

These so-called geniuses, touted as elites chosen by major powers, stood no chance under Yenir—one move, and death was assured!

Moreover, they knew full well that Yenir hadn’t even resorted to using any skills or weapons!

It was as if they were unworthy of being graced by Yenir’s peak prowess!

“We can request the resources—any promise will do for them,”

“but there’s no need to meet them,”

“Daughters? What do you mean?”

After calmly sipping his tea, Yenir casually commanded, clearly not interested in wasting time with these so-called major powers.

He knew full well that his performance would attract attention from all quarters; investors and supporters were inevitable.

If he weren’t representing the Dongyang Safe Zone, the zone’s own representatives might well be lining up outside.

But.

They were nothing but a bunch of losers—not worth a meeting.

This was Nagasaki, one of the less fertile areas within the Japanese Battle Zone.

Factions here were equivalent to those ruling a county in the Huaxia Battle Zone.

All he had to do was grab the resources; the conditions didn’t matter. Once he pocketed the First Divine Warrior’s reward, he’d make his getaway.

However, he was particularly curious about the Third-Stage Wanderers mentioned by Ping Ye.

He glanced at the list that Ping Ye had provided. It featured about seven or eight photos of girls, each claimed to be a daughter of a Third-Stage fighter, meant for him to get acquainted with and possibly take under his wing.

In other words, they were essentially proposing a liaison.

That sounded utterly ridiculous.

After all, Third-Stage Awakeners are formidable wherever they appear—it hardly made sense to trade away their daughters.

At Yenir’s puzzled remark, Dongyang—kneeling beside him—offered a suggestive smile and replied respectfully:

“Sir, Third-Stage Wanderers are entirely different from ordinary Third-Stage fighters.”

“Consider them like ronin from the Warring States era.”

“They’re generally on the lower end of Third-Stage; many stumbled into it by chance, barely scraping the level. As a result, they lack backing from any major faction.”

“They secure resources by drifting among major factions, serving as muscle, and collecting rewards.”

“Regarding their daughters, they typically adopt or casually claim a group of survivors as their own. If they encounter a talented Awakener—or someone of higher rank—they’ll take the initiative to propose a marriage alliance.”

“But generally, no one takes them seriously; they’d only entertain the idea as a brief amusement, treating these daughters no more than playthings.”

“That being said, if you’re interested, there’s no need to worry about any complications.”

Listening to Dongyang’s explanation, Yenir broke into a wry laugh.

It was essentially a racket—pimping coupled with drifter thugs…

Using Third-Stage daughters as a gimmick? In that case, it was far more valuable than simply offering women.

Still, Dongyang’s words were subtly delivered, and Yenir caught an additional underlying nuance.

These Third-Stage Wanderers probably resorted to this tactic already during their First and Second stages.

Resource-starved, they’d trade daughters for assets. After all, people weren’t that valuable, and even less so for those at the bottom.

When a gifted Awakener accepted their ‘gift,’ it forged an extra layer of rapport—no matter what followed. For the Third-Stage Wanderers, it was a clear-cut profit.

Perhaps these Third-Stage Wanderers had such mediocre talent that no major faction would have backed them. They reached Third-Stage solely by trading resources to hone their abilities.

“A very typical trait of the Japanese Battle Zone,”

Yenir shook his head and let out a light laugh, showing little concern.

Even in just two days in the Japanese Battle Zone, he had clearly felt its oppressive, rigid atmosphere from every angle.

On the surface, coastal areas might seem like a refuge from monsters, but in reality, the ruling powers here were monsters in their own right.

He dismissed those thoughts.

Yenir then examined his upcoming opponents, scheduled to face him in two days.

The list had shrunk considerably. Clearly, after the first round, there were just over three hundred Third-Stage fighters eligible from the area surrounding Nagasaki.

Across all of Japan, there were approximately three thousand-plus.

Indeed, the sheer number of Third-Stage fighters was impressive.

If the Japanese Battle Zone could muster this many competition-worthy Third-Stage fighters, then the number of homegrown Third-Stages must be even higher.

However, Yenir had also pondered the underlying reasons.

Firstly, the Japanese Battle Zone wasn’t small at all—though many in Huaxia regarded the country as minuscule, like a speck of snot, just a tiny nation.

But on a global scale, when considering both land area and population, the Japanese Battle Zone was nothing to scoff at.

It ranks 62nd in the world, even bigger than the United Kingdom…

Which meant that only within the Asian Monster Zone did it seem so inconspicuous.

Moreover, as Yenir reviewed the documents, he became aware of another crucial factor.

Marriage alliances.

Awakeners and their descendants were more likely to produce prodigious Awakeners.

Due to the nature of the Japanese Battle Zone—where Third-Stage fighters essentially mate with one another amid complex relationships—a significant number of Awakener descendants have indeed emerged.

After the apocalypse, with nothing else to occupy themselves and scarce resources in the Battle Zone, they resorted to any means of procreation.

From what Yenir observed, he was stunned to find that the survivor count in the Japanese Battle Zone had nearly rebounded to pre-apocalypse numbers, surpassing one hundred million.

However, this came with its own drawback.

“Is an A+ enough to be considered a genius?”

“Although Awakener descendants generally have high average levels, their ceiling is constrained by their parents’ innate talent.”

“On the other hand, descendants of ordinary survivors might start low, but sometimes they yield super-talented individuals.”

After reviewing the contenders—who commonly scored an A, yet whose true talent levels were more like a B+ by Huaxia Battle Zone standards—Yenir shook his head, finding no real challenge.

The way talent was measured differed between the two battle zones.

In the Huaxia Battle Zone, they used the strongest singular talent attribute, whereas in the Japanese Battle Zone, they summed up all attributes.

For instance, if strength was an A and agility a B, it would be considered an A+. With such a convoluted, self-deceiving system, Yenir had momentarily believed there were many A+ competitors.

But it wasn’t really worth fretting over.

He was confident that even if an SSS-Level prodigy emerged among the competitors, he could dispatch them singlehandedly.

It was inevitable.

With three techniques activated, Yenir was well aware.

Overpowered.

He was invincible.