Not Yet

"Why? You don't believe me?"

Seeing the doubt mixed in the old man's eyes, Leian could not help but ask in return.

Hearing this, the old man immediately reined in his emotions and replied apologetically, "My apologies. My strength is insufficient, so I cannot discern yours, sir. I trust you would not mind taking a test?"

As he spoke, he took out a fist-sized crystal ball from beneath the table and placed it before Leian.

Leian recognized the crystal ball on the table at once. It was an alchemical item used to test one's battle qi level. All one had to do was channel battle qi into it, and it was extremely common.

Without another word, he pressed both hands against the sphere and poured a stream of violet-black battle qi into it.

Very quickly, a violet-black ring condensed on the crystal ball's surface. Then, like ripples, the ring began to spread outward until it formed nine rings before stopping.

Nine rings represented level nine!

The old man saw it clearly, and excitement surged through him once more. He carefully scrutinized Leian, and after hesitating repeatedly, he ultimately could not suppress his curiosity and asked:

"May I ask your name, my lord? And how old are you this year?"

From "guest" to "sir," then to "my lord," the old man's manner had grown increasingly deferential.

Leian understood the man's intentions, but if he answered every question, would that not make him seem easy to control? With that thought, his face deliberately turned cold as he snorted.

"What? Does trading at the Youquan Trading Firm require one to provide their name and age?"

"My apologies. I misspoke!"

The old man knew his question had been presumptuous. Seeing Leian's displeasure, he immediately apologized and did not dare mention the matter again. Instead, he said:

"Under normal circumstances, for a level-nine warrior to purchase information on a god-level expert, the price starts at one million gold coins. As for the time when a god-level expert attained godhood, that is considered the most basic information, so I shall charge you one million gold coins. Which god-level expert are you asking about, my lord?"

Leian did not know whether Beirut had become a god by now, or even whether he had been born. To avoid attracting unnecessary trouble, he deliberately said:

"I do not know this god-level expert's name. I merely heard from others that he came from the Dark Forest on the Yulan Continent."

"The Dark Forest?"

The old man raised his brows and answered with certainty, "If he truly came from the Dark Forest, then there is only that one!"

Hearing this, Leian finally could not contain his excitement. Although neither side had explicitly mentioned the name "Beirut," Leian was already ninety percent certain they were speaking of the same person.

No, the same rat!

However, before Leian could ask for confirmation, the old man suddenly frowned and said with some difficulty:

"This god-level expert's origins date back quite far. As for when he attained godhood, we only have a rough record here. Are you certain you wish to continue the transaction, my lord?"

At the word "far," Leian's heart skipped a beat. In his memories, Beirut had said he had lived on the Yulan Plane for several million years. Could the old man's "far" happen to mean that very period?

If that were true, did that not mean the Apocalyptic War was already close at hand?

With that thought, Leian did not hesitate and nodded firmly to confirm the transaction.

As an insider of the Youquan Trading Firm, the old man dealt with such matters regularly and had long since memorized the information on these god-level experts. He immediately said:

"According to our firm's records, this god-level expert attained godhood approximately seven hundred thousand years ago."

"Seven hundred thousand years?"

Leian stared in astonishment, utterly unable to believe it. Only seven hundred thousand years? Did that not mean there were still at least a million years before the Four Divine Beasts' Chief Gods died?

Realizing that so much time remained, Leian could not help but let out a sigh of relief. At that moment, the Sword of Damocles hanging over his head finally vanished, and he felt incomparably relaxed.

On the other side, the old man vaguely noticed Leian's emotional change. Although he found it strange, he held himself back from asking further. He merely looked straight at Leian, indicating that it was time to pay.

Half an hour later, Leian strode out of the Youquan Trading Firm with several items tucked away on his person.

Leian did not have one million gold coins. In the end, he paid for the information by selling a top-grade battle qi cultivation manual.

At the same time, he spent another hundred-odd thousand gold coins to buy a Purification Spell scroll made by a level-eight light archmage, a level-eight light magic healing spell scroll, and three Master-Servant Contract Scrolls for contracting magical beasts.

The Master-Servant Contract Scrolls were for subduing magical beasts in the future. He planned to use the Purification Spell scroll once he returned to the inn, mainly to remove any Heart-Eroding Potion that might still be in his body. The healing spell scroll, naturally, was a life-saving trump card.

Leian did not know, however, that the instant he stepped out of the Youquan Trading Firm, the old man reported his strength to the firm's manager. Before long, a file containing Leian's information was created.

After returning to the inn, Leian did not delay. He collected his parents and Aili, then headed straight for the small courtyard he had rented earlier.

It was a small two-story building made of bluestone, not especially large, but it had five rooms in total—more than enough for Leian's family.

Once they had truly settled down, Barry and Annie finally put their worries to rest. On ordinary days, they either strolled around the imperial capital or cultivated at home, living relaxed yet fulfilling lives.

In the blink of an eye, more than half a month passed. One morning, Leian left Maple Leaf City, the imperial capital, alone with two newly forged longswords strapped to his back.

His destination was clear: the Youquan Mountain Range east of Maple Leaf City.

The entire Youquan Continent had only two mountain ranges, one large and one small. Since the Youquan Mountain Range bore the name "Youquan," it was naturally the larger one, which showed just how vast it was.

The main range stretched from the southwest across the entire continent to the northeast. Shaped like a spindle, it was broad in the middle and tapered at both ends.

Many branches extended outward from this main range, reaching deep into the territories of the three great empires. The branch running through Hashan County, for example, was one of them.

Because the Youquan Mountain Range covered such a vast area and was thickly forested, it was home to a tremendous number of magical beasts.

For that reason, countless powerful individuals headed toward the Youquan Mountain Range from all directions across the continent nearly every day.

Some came to train and strengthen themselves; others came to hunt magical beasts and earn gold coins. Almost every day, magical beast cores were dug out by human experts.

Of course, some human experts also met their deaths in the jaws of magical beasts.

Generally speaking, however, as long as one did not venture deep into the mountains, the danger was not that great.

At present, Leian's target was the main range of the Youquan Mountain Range. Since he was departing from the imperial capital, he needed to cross nearly half of the Byron Empire.

However, the road to the Youquan Mountain Range was a fixed route. Along the way, Leian encountered quite a few fellow adventurers heading there as well, and from them, he learned many training details that were usually easy to overlook.