Ku Hai Secret Realm

Two days passed in the blink of an eye.

The Universe First Bank spaceship had arrived at Qiongling Star, and Gu Ce boarded it with the others.

Those participating in the Ku Hai Secret Realm trial were all young people, most of them descendants of great families. After all, buying a ticket required at least two-star client privileges—100 billion Cosmic Coins in deposits.

"An E9-class spaceship! My father's entire fortune wouldn't be enough to buy one of these."

Hearing a familiar voice, Gu Ce opened his eyes and looked over.

Sure enough, Xie Peng had somehow latched onto another cold-faced young man and was chattering away nonstop.

Once all ten thousand seats on the spaceship were filled, it officially departed from Qiongling Star.

The spaceship traveled smoothly onward.

A bald, burly man with dark skin emerged from a cabin door.

He radiated a murderous aura, and his gaze was razor-sharp. A single glance from him silenced the clamoring crowd in the hall.

"A ninth-rank Domain Lord. His comprehension of the Law of Metal is extremely deep, and he isn't far from gaining the law's recognition. He should hold quite a high position within Universe First Bank," Rimuru said quietly.

Gu Ce glanced at him and sensed a sharp aura emanating from his body.

Seeing that everyone had quieted down, the bald Domain Lord nodded in satisfaction and addressed the crowd.

"Let me briefly go over the precautions for entering the Ku Hai Secret Realm."

"First, you are forbidden from killing one another. We have specialized equipment monitoring you inside the secret realm, so you'd best not try any clever tricks."

"Of course, if you encounter mortal danger, you may immediately call for help. You each have one free rescue request. Any further requests will require payment in Cosmic Coins. Rest assured, our rescue services are absolutely worth the price."

"You may bring slaves and plant lifeforms with you, but they must not exceed the ninth rank of the Stellar Level. If you break through within the secret realm, someone will escort you out."

"Technological weapons will be rendered unusable after entering the Ku Hai Secret Realm due to the secret realm's influence. However, things like detectors and auxiliary optical brains may still be used."

"Starting from Qiongling Star, we will reach the Ku Hai Secret Realm in half a month. You may rest in your assigned rooms or socialize in the hall, but remember this: fighting aboard the spaceship is forbidden. Violators will be executed immediately!"

"Finally, Universe First Bank is willing to purchase everything you acquire within the secret realm. Specific prices have already been sent to your optical brains. Naturally, you may choose to keep your gains as well. There is no compulsion."

With that, the bald Domain Lord stepped down.

The people around them gradually dispersed. Gu Ce mingled with the crowd and prepared to return to his room.

"Brother Gu Ce!"

A bad feeling rose in Gu Ce's heart.

Xie Peng strode over enthusiastically. Just as he tried to throw an arm around Gu Ce's shoulder, Gu Ce evaded him without making it obvious.

Hmm?

Xie Peng paused slightly, but he didn't care. He continued with a broad smile.

"Brother Gu Ce, you're done with your business, right? Let me introduce you. This is the second Prince of the Cuimu Empire, Diamant," Xie Peng said enthusiastically.

"Hello." The cold-faced man beside Xie Peng spoke somewhat reluctantly.

"Hello." Gu Ce nodded.

The Cuimu Empire was a medium-level cosmic civilization on the same level as the Black Dragon Mountain Empire, though it was somewhat smaller, governing over six thousand star systems. The Black Dragon Mountain Empire encompassed more than eight thousand star systems in total.

"What do you say? Diamant, Gu Ce, how about the three of us form a team for the trial?" Xie Peng asked excitedly.

"No." Gu Ce refused immediately. "My family told me to undergo the trial alone. They want to test my personal strength."

"I see..." Xie Peng looked somewhat disappointed, then turned to Diamant.

"Same here. My father told me to act alone," Diamant hurriedly said, his eyes lighting up after hearing Gu Ce's excuse.

Xie Peng scratched his head. He seemingly hadn't expected both of his "good brothers" to reject his request, but he could only helplessly accept reality.

"Fine, then. I'll ask some other people."

Watching Xie Peng leave, both Gu Ce and Diamant breathed sighs of relief.

"You already have a domain, don't you? Why did you still come here?" Diamant suddenly asked.

"Aren't you the same?" Gu Ce chuckled.

They both possessed a Water Domain, but Gu Ce's was clearly stronger.

Having already crossed the threshold of the Law of Water, Gu Ce could be said to possess the deepest comprehension of the Law of Water among this batch of ten thousand people entering the secret realm.

Diamant's expression turned solemn. He could only tell that Gu Ce had mastered a Water Domain, but he couldn't see through Gu Ce's true strength.

"Let's get acquainted. My name is Diamant Lori Mohand." Diamant extended his hand.

"Gu Ce." Gu Ce extended his hand as well.

After their friendly handshake, the two returned to their respective rooms.

Soon, fifteen days passed.

He still hadn't managed to master the third move of the Ice Desolation Sword Technique, though he had made some progress in the Origin Laws of Space.

Gu Ce had now completely mastered the first level of Myriad Incarnations and could split off three incarnations.

He estimated that this trip to the Ku Hai Secret Realm should allow him to completely master the second level of Myriad Incarnations, perhaps even the third!

Even if Gu Ce made no further progress, his current comprehension of the Laws of Water and the Origin Laws of Space alone gave him the strength to enter the top hundred and contend for the top fifty, not to mention his astonishing rate of improvement.

A faint smile appeared at the corner of Gu Ce's lips. There were still nearly eight years before the Genius Battle began.

Perhaps he could challenge the level of a Kedi-class genius!

"Master, Luo Feng is looking for you." Rimuru's appearance interrupted Gu Ce's thoughts.

"Put him through," Gu Ce ordered.

"Gu Ce!" The moment the call connected, Luo Feng's excited shout came through.

From the screen, Gu Ce could see that Luo Feng was standing above the sea. He could roughly guess what Luo Feng wanted to say.

Sure enough.

"Gu Ce, I've already taken down the Thunder Dragon Emperor. About that grand gift..." Luo Feng asked tentatively.

"When you killed the Thunder Dragon Emperor, did you see an egg on the floor of the Pacific Ocean?" Gu Ce asked.

"An egg?" Luo Feng froze. "No."

"What is it?" Luo Feng asked curiously.

"A Golden Horn Beast egg." Gu Ce did not hide it from him. Luo Feng would find out sooner or later anyway.

"What is a Golden Horn Beast?" Luo Feng asked again.

This time, Gu Ce did not explain.

"Ask Babata. It knows what it is. As for the gift I gave you, it should have arrived at your home already. You can go back and collect it." With that, Gu Ce cut off the communication.

The gift Gu Ce had given Luo Feng was nothing else but the Black Dragon Mountain X81 Spaceship from before.

In a sense, it was returning to its rightful owner.

And after hearing that there was a Golden Horn Beast egg on Earth, Babata understood what Gu Ce's real grand gift was.

"With Gu Ce's status, it definitely can't be something as simple as a broken spaceship!" Babata declared.

After being disciplined by Rimuru, Babata now had an inexplicable trust in Gu Ce.

"Luo Feng, you should thank Gu Ce for telling you this! If you can possess the Golden Horn Beast, you'll be guaranteed to become a World Lord in the future, and you may even have a chance of becoming Immortal!"

Luo Feng was left dumbfounded and still somewhat hesitant.

"Possess it? Does that mean I'll have to abandon my Earthling body? Xu Xin and I haven't even had children yet."

Babata loudly rebuked Luo Feng for being so immature.

"Do you know how talented a Golden Horn Beast is? Its value is... forget it, you wouldn't understand even if I explained it. How about this? I'll find a way to get Xu Xin pregnant!"

Luo Feng's face immediately reddened.

Xu Xin had only agreed to become his girlfriend not long ago. Wasn't this moving a little too fast?

Meanwhile.

Gu Ce had already entered the Ku Hai Secret Realm aboard the spaceship.