Stellar Level

After making his grand declaration, Luo Zhiyuan felt something stir within him. An indescribable sensation welled up, and he knew he was about to break through. He hurriedly said, "Bulieni, I'm about to break through. Get me outside the ring!"

Bulieni immediately sent Luo Zhiyuan outside, to the top floor of the Universe First Bank. Luo Zhiyuan closed his eyes and focused completely on the faint sensation.

His Consciousness Ocean suddenly trembled. The nine planets that had formed when he reached Planetary Level Nine had been revolving in an orderly orbit around his Soul Space. Now, a powerful stream of energy surged in from the universe and brought them to a halt.

All nine planets began absorbing cosmic energy. In the blink of an eye, they swelled beyond their limits and exploded one after another. Under the influence of the cosmic energy, they then gathered together into a ball of fire that gave off a milky-white glow.

The fireball revolved beneath his Soul Space, constantly radiating waves of Spiritual Force. It announced that Luo Zhiyuan had become a Stellar Level One Spirit Reader!

His Spiritual Force spread from his Consciousness Ocean throughout his body. His bones, muscles, and even his cells began to evolve, while his Soul Space was continuously tempered. This was a leap in his life genes, a greater evolution than the one he had undergone at the Planetary Level. After all, a Stellar Level powerhouse's body could contain far more energy.

Once the evolution was complete, Luo Zhiyuan opened his eyes. Everything seemed much clearer than before. When he released even a little energy from within, he felt a powerful surge of Spiritual Force well up in his Consciousness Ocean. After examining it carefully, he found that his Mental Power Amplitude had risen to 36.

As the Spiritual Force continued to temper his Soul Space, it seemed to be evolving toward a tangible form. The Soul Space no longer felt like something he could see but not touch. If it really became tangible, he wondered whether it might merge with his Internal World when he reached the Domain Lord Level or even the World Lord Level.

"Not bad. You've reached the Stellar Level. You can use the Evolution Fluid now to advance to Stellar Level Nine. Go ahead. Stellar Level requires relatively little energy, so you can advance one level every two days. In sixteen days, you'll reach Stellar Level Nine.

"I can use these next few days to organize the secret techniques recorded by Old Mystic. He actually compiled more than ten thousand Combat Secret Techniques for you, ranging from close-combat techniques for Martial Artists to attack techniques for Mental Master Controllers, and from Soul Secret Techniques for Illusionists to soul-defense techniques. They cover practically everything.

"He created these little by little over the past several eras. Most are Combat Secret Techniques based on the Law of Light and Law of Time, with some based on the Law of Space as well.

"Old Mystic said he created them to help you comprehend the laws more effectively. They're all fairly basic, with nothing particularly profound. The most advanced only reach the Universe Venerable level. He left his Combat Secret Techniques for Universe Masters in the Memory Stone he prepared for you last time." Bulieni quickly slipped into the role of a mentor and began laying out Luo Zhiyuan's training plan.

Luo Zhiyuan was thrilled. He knew that Combat Secret Techniques were incredibly expensive in the universe, yet his teacher had left him more than ten thousand of them—and they were specifically designed to help him comprehend the laws faster. His teacher had taken such meticulous care of him that Luo Zhiyuan's gratitude only grew stronger.

But then he thought of something. "Bulieni, you said my body has no cultivation bottleneck. Once I reach Stellar Level Nine, how long will it take me to advance to the Universe Level?"

Bulieni answered nonchalantly, "With your talent and all the treasures your teacher prepared for you, reaching the Universe Level won't be difficult. At most, it'll take you three to five years to break through. Why?"

Three to five years? That wasn't long at all. But the Universe Genius Competition had a restriction: if he accidentally advanced beyond the Stellar Level, he would miss his chance. Luo Zhiyuan told Bulieni, "Then you'll have to keep a careful eye on the timing. Otherwise, I should stop at Stellar Level Eight. It'd be a problem if I missed the Peak Genius Competition.

"I need this opportunity to enter the Core Layer of the Virtual Universe Company. Then I'll have a powerful faction backing me and can grow in relative safety. I won't have to worry about Earth's safety like last time. After all, Earth is my home, and my family is there.

"So I can't break through to the Universe Level too quickly. At the very least, I can't advance before entering the Virtual Universe Company's Core Layer. How do you think we should arrange my training and schedule?"

After thinking it over, Bulieni said, "Then let's do this. Old Mystic also prepared a Time Chamber for you. It can accelerate the flow of time to a certain degree. Start by cultivating in there for a while, at least long enough to learn some Combat Secret Techniques. Then I'll arrange some practical training for you.

"That practical training will be nothing like the Killing Field. It'll let you gain experience and broaden your horizons in the real universe.

"Going through life-or-death battles will help you grow, too. As you Earthlings say, great terror and great opportunities both lie between life and death.

"After you gain some practical experience, you can return to the Time Chamber to continue training, make up for your weaknesses, and improve your Law Comprehension.

"By alternating between the two, you'll improve your strength quickly."

Luo Zhiyuan thought it sounded like a pretty good plan. He could improve his strength and see more of the world at the same time.

He wondered how much the Time Chamber could accelerate the flow of time. His Flowing Time could now maintain a stable energy balance at five times the normal rate, so he asked Bulieni, "How much can the Time Chamber my teacher prepared accelerate time? Can it stack with my Flowing Time?"

Bulieni didn't know whether the effects could stack. But the Time Chamber prepared by the Light Beast God had to be far beyond what his Innate Secret Technique could achieve. He said, "It can accelerate the flow of time by up to a thousand times. What do you think? That should count as a pretty impressive treasure in the universe.

"That's only because Old Mystic is the embodiment of the Fusion Law of light and time that he could create one so easily. Otherwise, even an ordinary Universe Master would have to pay a huge price to make a Time Chamber that accelerated time a thousandfold!

"Even if it can't stack with your Flowing Time, it'll still be much more effective than using Flowing Time alone. Didn't you say your Flowing Time could only accelerate the flow of time by up to ten times?"

A thousand times! Luo Zhiyuan had started to get used to the idea of having a powerful backer, but he still hadn't expected his teacher to leave him such an extraordinary treasure.

Even now, Luo Zhiyuan didn't dare to activate Flowing Time while logging into the Virtual Universe. The difference in time flow made him feel extremely uncomfortable; his consciousness wasn't strong enough to withstand the negative effects.

So if he really cultivated inside this Time Chamber, a single year in the outside world would mean a thousand years for him. He would be alone, unable to contact the outside world, with only Bulieni for company.

Fortunately, Bulieni had said they would alternate between training and practical experience. Luo Zhiyuan sighed. He's not going to lock me away for a thousand years in one go, is he?

Bulieni continued, "An ordinary Stellar Level human can live for one era—that is, a thousand years in Earth time. Your body has the highest-grade bloodline, so your lifespan is at least ten times that of an ordinary life-form.

"I originally planned to have you spend these three years in the Time Chamber training in Combat Secret Techniques and comprehending the laws. Spending three thousand years of your lifespan wouldn't mean much to you.

"You already have good cultivation talent. After three years have passed outside, you'll have actually spent three thousand years cultivating and comprehending the laws. Then you can enter that Universe Genius Competition of yours...

"Heh, I wonder if the higher-ups of your human race will be scared to death by a 'monster' like you. Just thinking about it has me looking forward to it! Hahaha!

"But burying yourself in bitter training won't make you a true powerhouse. True powerhouses are forged in life-or-death battles. Don't worry, I'll give you time to get out and stretch your legs. Heh!"

Luo Zhiyuan felt as though the sky had suddenly turned dark. It looked like he was going to be shut inside the Time Chamber for a long time. Even with time to get out, he'd still have to spend at least a thousand years in there.

Honestly, Bulieni's training plan was simple and brutal: spend thousands of years comprehending the laws and learning Combat Secret Techniques. It would be incredibly difficult!

Luo Zhiyuan had lived only a little over thirty years across both his lives. Now he would have to endure at least a thousand years of tedious training. It would be a tremendous test of his will.

Without firm, powerful resolve, he wouldn't be able to persevere. But if he did, his will would grow immensely strong.

Of course, there were still a few things to take care of before he began training.

First, they had to leave the Ganwu Universe Kingdom and head to the Xuanyi Universe Kingdom. Using the privileges of his five-star account, Bulieni had already booked a spaceship to the Xuanyi Universe Kingdom's directly administered administrative planet. They would establish themselves there and start anew.

Luo Zhiyuan boarded a dark-red F5-class spaceship bearing the insignia of the Universe First Bank and began his journey to the Xuanyi Universe Kingdom.

The spaceship's top speed was thirty times the speed of light. The journey would take eleven days, and they would have to pass through several wormholes before finally reaching their destination—Qingyu Planet.

After the spaceship took off, Luo Zhiyuan logged into the Virtual Universe and contacted his family one by one. He told them he had set out on a long journey to another Universe Country and would be training for a while. He might be unable to log into the Virtual Universe Network for more than ten days, so they shouldn't worry.

Luo Zhiyuan glanced at the simulated starfield outside the passenger cabin, then entered the space inside his World Ring.

His body hadn't yet reached the Stellar Level, so he needed to soak in Evolution Fluid first and raise both his body and Spiritual Force to Stellar Level Eight. His body and Spiritual Force had to advance together for him to build a solid foundation.

So Luo Zhiyuan went to the Evolution Fluid lake, which was five hundred kilometers in diameter. He took off his clothes and his second-tier Force Battle Suit, then stepped into the lake. He discovered that the Evolution Fluid gave off an alluring fragrance that drew him in despite himself.

After lying flat and fully submerging himself in the Evolution Fluid, Luo Zhiyuan found that he could breathe just fine. Instead, drawn naturally to its fragrance, he opened his mouth and let the fluid enter his body.

He had only enough time for one thought—It actually tastes pretty good, kind of sweet, like fruit—before he sank into a state of bliss that enraptured even his soul.