Realm and Choices

The night was deep, and the convoy continued north along the edge of the hills.

Lan Aotian sat on the carriage shaft, calm on the outside as he carefully sorted through the astonishing breakthrough he had just completed.

One Hundred Thousand Years.

A full leap of one hundred thousand years in his true age had been accomplished in a single stroke through the system's reward.

In the world of ordinary Soul Beasts, this was a height that required hundreds of thousands of years of accumulation and countless fortuitous opportunities to reach.

Yet he had easily crossed a threshold that countless Soul Beasts could never touch in their entire lives, merely because of one overwhelming victory.

Lan Aotian looked at the line on the system panel—[Age: Two Hundred Thousand Years (Law Sovereign, Origin Law Venerable)]—and the corner of his mouth curved into a complicated smile.

Of course, he would not be so hypocritical as to refuse this power.

Since the system had given it to him, he dared to take it, and even more so, dared to use it.

However, the source of this power had been far too abrupt, forcing him to reassess his path to godhood.

According to the common sense of Douluo Continent, it was as difficult as ascending to the heavens for a Soul Beast to become a god.

Di Tian had been trapped in the demigod realm for hundreds of thousands of years, while the Silver Dragon King bore a God Position yet lay seriously wounded and sleeping. As for those Ferocious Beasts sleeping in the Small World of the Star Dou Great Forest, which one of them was not stuck at some bottleneck, wasting away for ten thousand years?

What they lacked was not age, but rules, a God Position, and the world's suppression of Soul Beasts.

But he was different.

He had consumed the Perfect Transformation Pill. In essence, he already possessed a human body and was not bound by the worldly shackles that hindered Soul Beasts from becoming gods.

He was following the cultivation system of human Title Douluo. After the ninth ring came godhood at Level 100, and he did not need to struggle to seek that illusory inheritance of a God Position like Soul Beasts did.

Then came the question.

When his true age reached 500,000 Years, 800,000 Years, or even a Million Years, what level would his Soul Power correspond to?

Ninety-Eight?

Ninety-Nine?

Or would he directly break through to Level 100?

Would the rules of this world allow a human possessing the origin of a Million-Year Soul Beast to become a god through the path of a Title Douluo?

Lan Aotian closed his eyes, and that golden figure surfaced in his mind—Qian Daoliu, a Ninety-Nine Rank Peerless Douluo and guardian of the Angel God Position.

That was the benchmark he needed to face squarely at present.

Level Ninety-Five, a Three Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring, Palm World, Holy Emperor of Creation Domain...

With all these trump cards combined, he might be able to fight Qian Daoliu to a draw.

But that was only a possibility.

A true Peerless Douluo possessed not only ultimate Soul Power, but also God-given Power connected to a God Position. That was not something ordinary Soul Power could contend with.

"Still too weak."

Lan Aotian opened his eyes and calmly gazed toward the pitch-black Night Sky to the north.

He needed more.

More years, more Soul Power, and more trump cards.

But he could not rely solely on the system's rewards for all of this.

The system was an aid, not a crutch.

He had to have his own plan and his own path.

He once again sank his mind into the Palm World.

The world within remained full of vitality.

Under the nourishment of the "Creation Spirit Soil," the Blue Silver Forest was expanding far faster than before.

Countless Blue Silver Grass subjects absorbed the world's Spiritual Energy and silently cultivated according to the Blue Silver Creation Technique, feeding wisps of pure Life Energy back into the world.

Lan Xin, Lan Yu, and Lan Ye had completed their mission and were currently meditating at the Giant Tree Summit.

Lan Aotian's will descended.

"My Emperor!"

The Three Women opened their eyes simultaneously and bowed respectfully.

Lan Aotian gave a slight nod, his gaze falling on Lan Xin. "How did the mission go?"

Lan Xin respectfully replied, "Reporting to My Emperor, this servant and the others discovered a Blue Silver Grass colony of more than three thousand plants in that Barren Valley. We have brought them all into the realm. We encountered no one and exposed no trace of our presence."

"Well done."

Lan Aotian was very satisfied with the Three Women's execution.

For their first mission outside, to have been so cautious and efficient was already quite rare.

Lan Yu could not help asking in a small voice, "My Emperor, this servant begs to ask... Is the outside world really that dangerous? Is that human Soul Douluo really so powerful?"

Her eyes held curiosity and eager anticipation.

Lan Aotian glanced at her and said flatly, "Very powerful. If the three of you encountered him head-on, you would not last Three Breaths."

Lan Yu stuck out her tongue and quickly lowered her head.

Lan Xin's expression also turned solemn, and she respectfully said, "This servant will remember My Emperor's teachings."

Lan Aotian paused, then continued, "But you need not fear him."

"Although he is strong, he is merely a false powerhouse built by devouring the lives of others. His foundation is unstable, and his laws are chaotic."

"Our clan's Blue Silver Creation Technique solidifies the foundation at every step and progresses in an orderly manner."

"Once you cultivate to the Reign Stage of the Imperial Descendant Realm, you will be able to kill him as easily as slaughtering a dog against an opponent of the same rank."

At his words, a blazing light ignited in all Three Women's eyes.

Lan Xin solemnly kowtowed. "This servant will not fail My Emperor's cultivation and will break through to the Imperial Descendant Realm as soon as possible!"

Lan Yu and Lan Ye also kowtowed, their voices clear and resolute.

Lan Aotian gave an "Mm," and his will swept across the entire Small World.

Now that he had become a Two-Hundred-Thousand-Year Ferocious Beast, it also proved that a new Blue Silver Emperor could appear.

The new One-Hundred-Thousand-Year Blue Silver Emperor would be born from among the three of them.

At this moment, quite a few Blue Silver Grass plants in the Blue Silver Forest that were more than ten thousand years old were steadily advancing toward the Venerable Lord and Sovereign realms.

The most outstanding among them were also drawing ever closer to the threshold of Transformation.

With the formula for the Grade 7 Transformation Pill, as long as he gathered enough primary materials, he could manufacture Transformation clan members in batches.

At that time, the Blue Silver Grass Clan would truly possess the ability to leave the Small World and carry out missions independently.

Rather than having to personally authorize the Summoning Passage as they did now, allowing only three people to be released for a short time while constantly worrying about their safety.

"The materials for the Transformation Pill must be gathered as soon as possible."

Lan Aotian calculated inwardly.

Jadeite Ganoderma, Earth Vein Blood Ginseng, Ghost Vine Crystals more than 300 Years old... These primary materials could not be found through ordinary channels at all.

He had previously asked Claude to use Spirit Hall's intelligence network to search for them, so there might be some leads.

In addition, the mysterious Stone Box in the Dark Alley also needed further study.

The Ancient Rune on it had a faint connection to certain totems in his bloodline memories. Perhaps it concealed the secrets of an inheritance belonging to some ancient Plant-type Soul Beast.

As he was pondering this, the carriage suddenly stopped.

Ying Shu's lowered report came from ahead: "Cardinal, five li ahead, a convoy is setting up camp. Judging by the banners... it bears the emblem of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect."

Lan Aotian's eyes flickered slightly.

The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?

He raised his eyes. In the night, a few faint sparks from campfires could vaguely be seen in the distance, facing the Spirit Hall convoy from afar.

It seemed that Sect Master Ning Fengzhi had also brought his daughter and Jian Douluo onto this northbound official road.

The corners of Lan Aotian's mouth lifted slightly.

He had been looking for an opportunity to make contact.

And now, the opportunity had come knocking on its own.

He did not act immediately. He merely withdrew his gaze and said calmly to Claude, "Continue forward at the normal speed. When we reach the vicinity of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's camp, stop and rest. Do not make a commotion."

Claude hurriedly agreed, though his heart was filled with uncertainty.

His Majesty Lin Yue seemed to be somewhat interested in the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?

But he did not dare ask or speculate.

He was only a minor Red Robe Cardinal. The thoughts of those great figures above him were not something he could fathom.

The convoy continued forward.

Lan Aotian sat on the carriage shaft, gazing at the few campfires in the distance as they gradually drew nearer.

His expression was calm, and his eyes were deep.

—Ning Fengzhi.

—Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

—Seven Kill Sword, Bone Dragon...

He withdrew his thoughts and did not continue thinking about it.

The time was not yet right.

But it was not far off.

Under the night sky, the distance between the two escort convoys was shortening bit by bit.

Like threads of fate, they were quietly drawing closer on this restless night.

And Lan Aotian had never been someone who waited for fate to make arrangements.

He was the hand that wove fate.