The Road Ahead

At 2:47 that afternoon, the battle against the Devouring Beast came to an end.

From the perspective of the many councilors in the War God Palace, Councilor Luo Feng had ultimately used a powerful Soul Attack to destroy the infinitely resurrecting Devouring Beast, bringing the battle to a close.

Yet Councilor Luo Feng had likewise fallen into a soul slumber after overextending his spiritual force. He was currently receiving treatment at Limit Martial Hall headquarters and was expected to need a year and a half to recover.

Late that night, at Shen Mu's home.

Inside the incomparably sturdy Ancient Civilization Gravity Chamber, Shen Mu, who had been sitting cross-legged in meditation, suddenly opened his eyes.

The next instant, a watery-blue streak of light flew from between Shen Mu's brows, transforming into a transparent crystal sphere covered in chaotic-colored patterns that hovered in midair.

Splash!

Faintly, it seemed as though the sound of rolling waves echoed out. Streams of watery-blue light spread from the primal nucleus, outlining the form of the East Sea Azure Dragon.

In just a few breaths, the East Sea Azure Dragon, over 160 meters long, appeared within this cramped gravity chamber.

The entire gravity chamber instantly became crowded, and a savage, baleful aura swept outward.

"It took more than half a day to revive. Compared with a Golden Horned Beast, that's far too slow."

Shen Mu let out a long breath. A faint glimmer flashed from the spatial ring on his right index finger, and a drop of golden blood then floated in midair.

"I hope this innate divine ability of mine doesn't let me down."

Shen Mu took a deep breath, using his spiritual force to control the drop of Golden Horned Beast blood and send it into the East Sea Azure Dragon's mouth, where it was absorbed by the primal nucleus.

Buzz!

Within the East Sea Azure Dragon's body, the transparent crystal core trembled faintly. The dense chaotic-colored patterns across it began to writhe and shift, analyzing the Golden Horned Beast's innate secret techniques.

The entire process lasted only around five seconds. Then waves of profound information flooded into Shen Mu's mind.

The Golden Horned Beast's three great secret techniques—Devouring, Strengthening, and Avatar—had all been fully analyzed.

"I never expected this secret technique to possess an automatic evolution effect, allowing it to perfectly fit its user!" Surprise appeared in Shen Mu's eyes. The effects of his innate secret technique far exceeded his expectations.

For instance, the "Devouring" secret technique used the faint spatial control ability granted by the Inner World to devour metal, then break it down into nourishment for the Inner World's evolution.

Without an Inner World, the "Devouring" secret technique could not be used.

It could be said that the Inner World was the very foundation of a Golden Horned Beast. The more metal it devoured and the higher its Inner World evolved, the clearer its perception of the Metal Source Law would become.

As long as it could evolve to the Cosmic-Level, the compatibility between its Inner World and the Metal Source Law would reach a terrifying degree, directly granting it a domain.

If Shen Mu chose the "Devouring" secret technique, the Azure Dragon Avatar would be able to open up an Inner World and gain devouring abilities through it.

However, the Azure Dragon Avatar's Inner World would change from a metal-element world into a water-element world. Its evolution through devouring metal would likewise become evolution through devouring water-element treasures.

Not only that, after gaining an Inner World, Shen Mu's talent would also rise dramatically. Like a Golden Horned Beast, even without comprehending a domain, he would directly possess one upon evolving to the first rank of Cosmic-Level.

Moreover, the Golden Horned Beast Clan needed only to possess a first-level domain to faintly sense the fluctuations of the Source Laws.

In other words, by choosing this secret technique, Shen Mu, with a first-level domain, could now sense the fluctuations of the Water Source Law.

To begin coming into contact with Laws at the Planet-Level—such talent would likely be among the very best in the entire Qianwu Universe Country.

"What a pity. It only raises talent; my genes won't undergo any changes. It's equivalent to taking a Bloodline Evolution Potion. The Avatar Secret Technique is still more competitive."

In the universe, regardless of its grade, a Bloodline Evolution Potion merely raised one's talent to that level. One's genetic level would not evolve.

One had to know that a Domain Lord-Level bloodline race already possessed life genes six times those of ordinary cosmic lifeforms.

This was a genetic level that the vast majority of even Marquis-rank or King-rank Immortals did not possess.

A mere Domain Lord-Level Bloodline Evolution Potion was valuable, but it was nothing much to a Marquis-rank Immortal. Even Huyan Bo, who had barely reached Marquis rank, could afford one.

As for the "Strengthening" secret technique, Shen Mu took one glance at it and directly dismissed it. It was not bad either, but compared to the "Avatar" secret technique, it had no competitiveness at all.

"The Avatar Secret Technique really can grant three avatars. One avatar can be nurtured respectively at the Planet-Level, Cosmic-Level, and World Lord-Level."

The Golden Horned Beast's "Avatar" secret technique likewise required an Inner World to use, so choosing the "Avatar" secret technique would also grant him his own Inner World.

But it would be only a simple Inner World. As Shen Mu evolved, it would expand as well, yet it could not directly devour water-element treasures to strengthen itself, nor could it grant Shen Mu powerful Law talent.

After digesting all the information related to the Avatar Secret Technique, Shen Mu frowned slightly.

"Being unable to raise my Law talent is a fatal flaw. With the Law talent of both myself and the East Sea Azure Dragon, we'd need at least an eighth-level domain, perhaps even a ninth-level one, before we could sense faint Law fluctuations. At the Planet-Level, it's basically impossible."

If he could not comprehend Laws at the Planet-Level, then his plan to rise swiftly in the universe, join some great power, and obtain the genetic information of powerful lifeforms to nurture avatars would come to nothing.

Shen Mu fell into deliberation. Should he directly choose the Avatar Secret Technique, or choose the Devouring Secret Technique?

Possessing a domain at the Planet-Level—such talent, even in the Virtual Universe Company Black Dragon Mountain Branch, would probably only make him a first-class elite, at most a special-class elite.

He would still count as a genius, but the resources he received would likely be limited, and he would have to submit to strict control. Even if he could obtain some genetic material from powerful lifeforms, it probably would not produce an avatar stronger than Luo Feng's Mosha Clan avatar.

In the later stages, Luo Feng's Mosha Clan avatar practically vanished from sight. The only one with any real presence was the Nethersea Clone with its colossal divine body. Shen Mu did not want to waste one of his avatar slots like this.

Besides, even if he received sufficient attention, obtaining the remains of a powerful Planet-Level lifeform would still be difficult.

How many powerful lifeforms were Planet-Level? A universe peak-bloodline race could evolve to the Star-Level within a year of birth, let alone those special lifeforms.

If he delayed nurturing an avatar, then with the Law talent of an Earthling body and the Azure Dragon Avatar, who knew how many years it would take before he could rise to prominence.

But if he approached it from another angle—choosing the Devouring Secret Technique to improve his Law talent, comprehending a trace of the mysteries of the Water Law at the Planet-Level, and stepping across the Law Threshold—then the outcome would be entirely different.

Shen Mu did not expect to be directly taken in as a disciple by a Venerable, but with talent like this, whether he joined the Virtual Universe Company or another faction, the resources and training he received would reach terrifying heights.

By the time he broke through to the Star-Level, it would not be too late to choose an Avatar Secret Technique. If things went well, his very first avatar might even be able to gestate some kind of special lifeform.

"Perhaps... by then, I may even come into contact with more powerful Avatar Secret Techniques. The Golden Horned Beast Clan can only barely hope to gestate an avatar with a thousandfold genetic level. A heaven-defying special lifeform on the level of a World Tree simply cannot be gestated."

"Choose to solidify the 'Devour' secret technique!"

The instant Shen Mu made his decision, one of the chaotic-colored secret patterns on the Primal Nucleus changed. It twisted and surged, evolving anew, while its color transformed into azure blue and spread across the entire transparent crystal nucleus.

Rumble!

A roar inaudible to the outside world erupted within the East Sea Azure Dragon's body as an Inner World over a thousand meters in length and width was carved open.

Some readers had previously wondered that even with avatars, Shen Mu's first choice would probably just be to copy Luo Feng's Mosha Clan avatar. To avoid spoilers, I had never explained it. This chapter should make things fairly clear.