Longshan Company

In a quiet room somewhere in the subterranean world of Yanhe Planet, a black, rectangular Nutrient Pod sat in the very center.

The Nutrient Pod wasn't large, measuring only five meters long and two meters wide.

The Lingtong Race were small in stature, averaging just over two meters tall, so they naturally didn't need very large Nutrient Pods. Smaller pods were also somewhat cheaper than the dozens-of-meters-long models that could accommodate most members of the Human Race.

Jiang Yao lay inside the Nutrient Pod, which was worth tens of billions of Universe Coins, but he wasn't particularly excited. After all, the Lingtong Race provided free early-stage training for its geniuses. They competed for better treatment through their examination results, and Jiang Yao hadn't spent a single coin. In fact, he didn't even have any money in his account.

He could honestly say he had no concept of money.

That was one of the things the indolent Taihuan Token Envoy often complained about. Most games in the Virtual Universe charged a fee, and that pig had to deal with a payment screen halfway through every game. It was extremely displeased.

After all, the clan covered cultivation resources and the necessities of life, but not entertainment in the Virtual Universe.

Jiang Yao lay naked in the Nutrient Solution, never once considering how expensive the solution he absorbed every moment was.

He only felt waves of life-filled energy seep into his body through every pore. Its life energy was purer than that of Muya Crystals.

His body grew stronger by the moment, his bones becoming denser, but he could still sense that the damage to his body's origin showed no signs of being repaired.

Jiang Yao had a feeling that, under normal circumstances, the damage to his origin couldn't be repaired.

As the Messenger ate some unknown food conjured inside the Taihuan Token's space, he reassured Jiang Yao:

"Relax. Think about it: a quick-training secret method that lets someone like you, at the Planetary Level, reach ten times your Soul Amplitude in half a year, and all it costs is this? That's a good deal. The Xu Yuan Opening really did consume your potential. The superficial damage can be healed with this D-grade Nutrient Solution, but the damage to your origin can't be fixed.

"But once you reach the Stellar Level and cultivate the technique I taught you, none of this will be a problem."

Jiang Yao felt a little regret, but he didn't actually regret his decision. To trade some potential and lifespan for the profound divine ability known as the Xu Yuan Opening seemed well worth it.

The more he practiced the Control Chapter, the more he felt that this divine ability held profound mysteries. If it had a flaw, it was that the Virtual Universe couldn't reproduce it.

According to the Messenger, Xu Yuan Space couldn't be considered something that truly existed.

When Jiang Yao came out of his meditation, he realized the time was up—and that he had reached the ninth rank of the Planetary Level.

The feeling of going from the first rank to the ninth overnight left him able only to sigh silently. "Being a genius in this world is great!"

Anyone who had experienced this wouldn't want to go back to the slow grind of absorbing cosmic energy and cultivating Origin Energy, climbing rank by rank.

It wasn't that he couldn't endure hardship. After all, he had suffered terribly while inscribing Yan Script to create his Opening Treasure. Rather, he would constantly feel that he was wasting precious time and energy.

When he climbed out of the Nutrient Pod, he discovered he had an audience.

Prose and Kuman stared straight at him, leaving Jiang Yao a little embarrassed.

He hurriedly put on his black Alloy Battle Suit and greeted them awkwardly. "Lord Prose, Lord Kuman..."

The blond Kuman cut him off. "No need to call us 'Lord.' You'll be at the Stellar Level soon yourself."

The young man's stern, proud face was now brimming with fighting spirit. "Break through to the Stellar Level as soon as possible. Once you do, I want to challenge you and see whether your will can break my illusions!"

Prose gave Jiang Yao a helpless smile. "Kuman has a Domain, and he's an Illusionist. Last year, you broke free of his illusion in three seconds, and he's been brooding over it ever since. It was only an illusion meant to test Planetary-Level cultivators, and you were just a new Planetary-Level cultivator at the time, so of course he couldn't hold it against you. Now he's finally found his chance."

Though Prose spoke of how Kuman had been brooding over it, he himself was filled with emotion.

A year ago, he had been one of the clan's top Stellar-Level geniuses, while the boy before him had merely been a first-rank Planetary-Level cultivator with mediocre telekinetic talent.

The gap between them might have been so great that, after twenty years, they would probably never have crossed paths again. Given Jiang Yao's telekinetic talent, his chances of reaching the Stellar Level were slim. Even if he somehow managed it, it would take at least several hundred years.

But in just one year, Prose was still the same as ever, while the boy he had escorted here had undergone a complete transformation. Soon, he would stand alongside him.

Jiang Yao could only agree to Kuman's challenge, though he felt a little uneasy. A challenge between Stellar-Level members of the clan would surely take place in the Virtual Universe, where he couldn't use his Xu Yuan Space. He would definitely be exposed.

He could only hope the "technique that can only be cultivated at the Stellar Level" the Messenger had mentioned was quick to master—at least enough for him to grasp the basics fast.

After teasing them, Prose turned serious. "Jiang Yao, the Patriarch has already told the Old Patriarch in the Main Sect about your situation. The Main Sect knows as well, and they think highly of you. They agree with the Patriarch's decision to have you cultivate in peace on Yanhe Planet, awaken your Bloodline Divine Ability, and break through to the Stellar Level. Once you break through and awaken your divine ability, the Main Sect will arrange for experts to come escort you."

At this point, Prose gave a bitter smile. "The Main Sect originally demanded that you be sent to Jiuyuan Holy Land immediately, but the Patriarch argued that the Longshan Company would certainly intercept the ship carrying you.

"But the Main Sect kept saying the Longshan Company wouldn't dare go that far. With the Peak Genius Tournament approaching, the Main Sect has to bring in geniuses from its various branches to prepare for the tournament. That's why they reached an agreement with Yinhu Island well in advance: for the next three hundred years, neither side would make trouble for the other or ambush the other's people.

Yinhu Island would certainly keep its subordinate forces in line, too. If it broke the agreement, it would be starting a war between Sacred Lands. Yinhu Island would never dare do that before the Genius Tournament.

"But the Patriarch kept arguing that we couldn't take even the slightest risk. Only then did the Main Sect back down and agree not to send you to the Sacred Land right away. They'll even dispatch experts to escort you.

"Jiang Yao, the Patriarch is only looking out for your safety!"

Following the Patriarch's instructions, Prose did his best to convey through his words just how much the Yanhe Lineage cherished Jiang Yao.

That way, the Main Sect would come off as the villain, while the Patriarch would appear noble—standing up to the stronger side and arguing fiercely for Jiang Yao's safety.

Well... what the Main Sect said was true, of course. Prose believed that if they said there was no problem, then there probably wasn't. Yinhu Island had subordinate forces of its own and geniuses to nurture. Would it really start a war between Sacred Lands, sacrificing thousands upon thousands of its own experts and geniuses, just to kill Jiang Yao? It made no sense.

Jiang Yao's Domain at the Planetary Level was indeed a big talking point, but he'd soon reach the Stellar Level. There might not be enough time for his Domain to advance further. At the Stellar Level, he wouldn't even be as strong as Prose and Kuman. No one knew how far he could go; his potential was merely exciting to imagine.

Still, the Patriarch insisted that Jiang Yao remain on Yanhe Planet until he reached the Stellar Level and refined his Bloodline Divine Ability. He wanted to show him more kindness and strengthen his sense of belonging to the Yanhe Lineage.

That would benefit the future of the Yanhe Branch, too. Prose was older and felt more deeply attached to the Yanhe Star System where he had been born and raised, so he agreed with the Patriarch's idea.

Thinking this over, Prose decided to fan the flames and exaggerate the danger, making the Patriarch's insistence on having Jiang Yao break through to the Stellar Level on Yanhe Planet seem more reasonable.

"Jiang Yao, the Longshan Company has been our enemy for hundreds of eras. There's a lot of bad blood between us."

Since this concerned his life and safety, Jiang Yao didn't dare take it lightly. He listened intently as Prose explained.

"The Longshan Company is essentially the nominal ruler of the Yanhe Star System: the Longshan Federation. It governs more than two hundred star systems, but it has a terrible reputation because its core business is the slave trade."

Jiang Yao raised an eyebrow. Good grief, was this a slave-trading company disguised as a low-level civilization?

At this, a trace of disgust showed on Prose's face. "A slave-trading company became the ruler of more than two hundred star systems. I don't know what the Kasolo Empire was thinking.

"The Longshan Company doesn't just capture slaves; it also breeds them. It has set aside more than a hundred star systems as 'slave breeding grounds,' where slaves can multiply and live.

"After hundreds of eras of operation, the Longshan Federation has become the most notorious center for slave production and trade in this star region. It's known throughout the universe."

Jiang Yao could hear the sarcasm in Prose's voice.

"But the Longshan Company really does have the power to act so arrogantly. Its highest authority is the board of directors, which has eleven members, all of them Domain Lords!"