Beastmaster King

Simultaneously, tens of thousands of participants entered the Mechanical secret realm—the Ultimate Space. Through the Ultimate Eye's live broadcast, their every move was streamed on the competition's official website, with tens of thousands of channels showing each participant's progress.

Viewers, already waiting outside the streams, wore mechanical glasses, immersing themselves in the Ultimate Space to observe the participants up close.

Popular contestants attracted massive audiences, while obscure participants barely garnered any attention. Lu Ran, having done zero pre-competition promotion, was virtually ignored. However, this didn't matter. The super AI, Ultimate Space, monitored every participant impartially, ranking their inventions fairly.

Even if no one noticed a dark horse initially, a groundbreaking invention would eventually climb the rankings and draw attention. Viewers could then watch the replay to catch up on what they'd missed.

Outside, the competition progressed.

Professors from universities, corporate mechanics, and the expert panel avoided jumping into specific streams initially. Instead, they focused on a real-time ranking board, awaiting the Ultimate Space's evaluations.

The rankings started blank. After a minute or two, the first participants began appearing on the board. Each had 30 minutes to present their inventions, so the initial rankings would finalize after that period.

While two minutes was too early to draw conclusions, university leaders couldn't help but smile when their students cracked the top ten.

[National Mechanical University, Li Xingyao, Invention: Chameleon Battle Suit, Current Rank: 4! Presentation Status: Completed.]

"Fourth place! Can he hold it until the end?"

The National Mechanical University's leaders, like Principal Deng and Vice Principal Fu, cheered.

[Three Stars Mechanical University, Lian Se, Invention: Blue-Eyes Black Dragon Mechanical Evolution Armor. Evolution Failed, Participant Eliminated! Presentation Status: Completed.]

For some, it was joy; for others, despair. Several participants failed to demonstrate their inventions and were eliminated, their names plummeting to the bottom.

As time passed, the top ranks were dominated by elite students from prestigious universities like Stellar Moon University of Science and Technology, National Mechanical University, National Aerospace University, and National Defense Mechanical University.

First place was National Aerospace University's Shi Yuhang, who invented the Void Battle Suit. It allowed mechanics to navigate spatial rifts and escape chaotic space without familiar assistance. Space, rife with spatial rifts and turbulence, posed extreme dangers during cosmic exploration. This suit's value was deemed highest by the Ultimate Space.

Viewers watched Shi Yuhang risk his life, donning the suit to tear through space and swim through spatial currents before returning safely.

Second place was National Defense Mechanical University's Ai Tan, who invented the Crystal Energy Shield. It blocks level 7 energy attacks using only level 6 water energy. This shield was remarkable because a level 60 Water-attribute familiar could defend against any level 70 familiar's attack. Coastal cities might adopt this for arena defenses or shoreline protection.

"Are these really university students' inventions?"

Meanwhile, participants from Blue Planet and Stellar Moon had already exited, their rankings languishing in the hundreds or thousands, far from the top 100 required for the ascension mission.

Seeing the top inventions, they were dumbfounded, awed by the prowess of humanity's strongest era. Past competitions had yielded similarly astounding results, and the Stellar Moon Republic's technological advancements grew exponentially each year. It was no wonder this era's mechanics could rival Legendaries.

For the republic's native mechanics, groundbreaking inventions from the likes of Shi Yuhang and Ai Tan were expected. Many were descendants of Legendary or even Epic-Legendary mechanics, with Legendary mentors and Overlord-level research AIs assisting them. With a year of preparation, failing to produce exceptional inventions would be strange.

In fact, the top ranks were often dominated by the same groups year after year. The expert panel could usually predict the top ten before the competition even began. However, this year held a surprise.

Sixth place was Stellar Moon University of Science and Technology's "I Am Bai Lu's Dog." His invention was the Soul Massage Chamber.

Although the username raised eyebrows, university leaders were stunned. This was an unknown dark horse.

"A Soul Massage Chamber that enhances learning efficiency by massaging the soul? This involves the soul domain? How is this only sixth place?"

"Perhaps the efficiency boost is limited, comparable to rare resources at best. It's still impressive."

"Records show this student was recently taken in by Legendary mechanic Lei Ou from Stellar Moon University of Science and Technology..."

While the native NPCs were amazed, the participants recognized the absurd username as another Limitless City participant.

"Damn, sixth place? Cheating much?"

"Bai Lu—that's Stellar Moon Federation's celebrity beastmaster. This guy's a fan?"

"How did he also get a Legendary mentor?"

"Wait, where's Pedestrian A?"

"Hold on, he's not in the top 10... or even the top 100. Did he flop this time?"

Mark, the user behind "I Am Bai Lu's Dog," exited the Ultimate Space, smug at his ranking. However, before he could celebrate, he and the other participants, who were about to manually search for Lu Ran's name, froze.

Lu Ran's name suddenly appeared in the top ten, saving them the trouble.

[National Mechanical University, Pedestrian A, Invention: Superior-Overlord Elemental Lifeform Free Mechanical Evolution Device. Current Rank: 7. Presentation Status: Incomplete.]

This sudden entry shocked everyone—university faculty, viewers, and participants alike.

"Who's Pedestrian A?"

"Superior-Overlord Elemental Lifeform Free Mechanical Evolution Device? What the hell?"

"Why is the presentation status still incomplete?"

"Pedestrian A... Oh right, the guy who defeated National Mechanical University's Ji Xie and was supposedly taken in by Legendary mechanic Cheng Kong!"

Mark, who had plagiarized Death Gun's work, was terrified by Lu Ran's sudden rise to seventh place. "Holy shit!Phew...What aclose call. I'm still ahead of him, though. I'll make headlines when I return! Maybe even catch Bai Lu's attention!"

However, the "presentation incomplete" status gave Mark a bad feeling. So, he quickly entered Lu Ran's stream.

The National Mechanical University leaders were equally confused.

"Superior-Overlord Elemental Lifeform Free Mechanical Evolution Device? Free mechanical evolution device? Did Dr. Cheng Kong guide him remotely? But what's this about an Overlord elemental lifeform?" Vice Principal Fu muttered.

The faculty flooded Lu Ran's stream, joining Ji Xie, who was bewildered. Most were drawn by the term "Superior-Overlord elemental lifeform," including the ten Legendary mechanics on the expert panel. Even a Superior-Overlord mechanical invention wouldn't have surprised them. But a Superior-Overlord elemental lifeform? That piqued their curiosity.

Upon entering the stream, they replayed Lu Ran's presentation from the beginning.

Lu Ran stood in the experimental field, smiling at the Ultimate Eye in the sky.

"Hello everyone, I'm Pedestrian A from National Mechanical University. Today, I present an invention that could reshape the mechanical field—a groundbreaking, era-defining creation!"

The viewers initially thought Lu Ran was being overly dramatic. As impressive as it was to be ranked seventh, it was far from era-defining.

Lu Ran then activated a summoning array, and a fluffy white cloud appeared on the field.

[Species: Elemental Lifeform]

[Attributes: Water, Ice, Lightning, Wind]

[Species Rank: Superior Overlord]

[Level: 50]

The Ultimate Eye instantly analyzed the Baby Cloud's data, displaying it to the audience.

The viewers were stunned.

"A Superior-Overlord elemental lifeform!"

"Elemental lifeforms have been extinct since the Elemental God Era... Up to now!"

"Well, not entirely extinct. National archaeological digs have uncovered a few sealed elemental lifeforms in ancient ruins. But they're incredibly rare, never contracted, and preserved in the National Paleobiology Research Institute."

"Where did this student contract an elemental lifeform—and a Superior Overlord at that?"

The native mechanics didn't know, but the participants realized Lu Ran must have brought it into the ascension realm.

"Damn, he's showing off again."

They hadn't expected Lu Ran to showcase an elemental lifeform instead of an animal modification. Such a rare creature would undoubtedly steal the spotlight, much like the soul machine.