Who Said We Were Going to Kill Him?

"This Lingtong Race Spirit Reader's bloodline barrier really is no ordinary obstacle!"

Jiang Yao felt the nine Miniature Planets in his sea of consciousness stirring restlessly, swelling and contracting as they tried to complete a transformation, only to fail time and again. The vast amount of refined Mental Power needed for the transformation was being blocked by something inexplicable.

It was like a dam holding back the water, leaving the downstream in desperate need and parched with thirst.

Back when he had been in the Nutrient Pod, as one Miniature Planet after another took shape, Jiang Yao had gradually sensed the dam's presence, first vaguely, then clearly.

It seemed to originate from his bloodline, situated upstream within it. He could sense it, but he couldn't reach it.

Yet the dam was constantly affecting him.

Even though he had reached the peak of Planetary Level in the precious Nutrient Solution of a D-Grade Nutrient Pod, he couldn't advance any further.

"No wonder the Lingtong Race values Mental Power talent and Mental Power Amplitude so highly." Jiang Yao couldn't help complaining. "This isn't just a little difficult. It's incredibly difficult."

With a higher Mental Power Amplitude, he could cultivate the Wall-Breaking Method in the gray metal plate more effectively and unleash greater power to destroy the bloodline barrier.

From what he could sense, the bloodline dam was so sturdy that even the eighteenfold amplitude of the Seven Turns of Heaven's End seemed far too weak.

It was just that Mental Power Amplitude techniques were generally only cultivated at Stellar Level and above. It wasn't easy for the Lingtong Race to find a low-level technique like the Seven Turns of Heaven's End, one suited to Planetary Level, easy to grasp, and capable of reaching an eighteenfold amplitude within decades.

Even with an eighteenfold Mental Power Amplitude, using the Wall-Breaking Method would probably take eighty or a hundred impacts to break through the bloodline barrier. Each impact would produce a backlash against his Mental Power, and breaking through the barrier would be no less painful than enduring torture.

No wonder the Lingtong Race favored Spirit Readers so much, even though warriors still made up most of the Stellar Level members in the race.

Of course, Jiang Yao possessed the "Xu Yuan Space," which surpassed the Domain. With his consciousness anchored in Xu Yuan Space, he could wield control like a god. The power he unleashed by commanding his Mental Power would be more than enough to shatter the so-called bloodline barrier.

The only problem was that he couldn't find the barrier. He could sense it, but couldn't get near it. No matter how much power he had, it was useless.

That was why the first secret technique in the gray metal plate was the Forging the Boat of Guidance.

It involved forging a Boat of Guidance with Mental Power, then traveling upstream against the flow of the bloodline to reach the barrier and destroy it. The energy dammed up behind it would pour downstream, allowing the nine Miniature Planets to collapse and merge into a single Miniature Planet, advancing him to Stellar Level.

Without the bloodline barrier in the way, he could also ride the Boat of Guidance upstream to the source of his bloodline and awaken his Bloodline Divine Ability. But to awaken it, he would need to go to Elder Luo.

Perhaps because his soul had transformed when he opened Xu Yuan Space, or perhaps because of his exceptional will, Jiang Yao could not only clearly sense the dam upstream in his bloodline, but also faintly sense the source of his bloodline beyond the barrier.

It seemed to be teeming with savage consciousnesses, their auras powerful and chaotic.

After Jiang Yao described what he sensed to the Messenger, the Messenger thought for a moment. Then his piglike face took on an intrigued expression.

"Brilliant! Brilliant! Your Lingtong Race ancestors were quite the geniuses. Extracting the bloodlines of so many alien beasts and refining them into Bloodline Divine Abilities is understandable. But they even managed to 'plant' those abilities into their own bloodlines and pass them down to their descendants—that's no small feat. They were real geniuses."

After spending so much time together, Jiang Yao could tell that the Messenger was no ordinary figure, certainly not just some tool for passing on Divine Lord Taihuan's legacy. Jiang Yao tended to trust his judgment.

If that was true, then the so-called Bloodline Divine Abilities of the Lingtong Race were actually innate abilities extracted from alien beasts or Special Lifeforms by some ancestor, then transplanted into his own bloodline. They could be inherited by his descendants, allowing those with powerful Spiritual Force to awaken the so-called "innate ability" at Stellar Level.

That reminded him of what Prose had said earlier: "Some people in the race worry that Longshan Company is secretly raising Lingtong Race slaves to extract their innate abilities, then refining them into treasures or secret techniques like Eternal Love."

If the Messenger's guess was right, it was no wonder some members of the Lingtong Race were so sensitive about the matter. Their own ancestors had done the same thing.

That made Jiang Yao even more interested in his own Bloodline Divine Ability. He skipped straight over the Wall-Breaking Method and began cultivating the Boat of Guidance.

Prose had said that the technique for forging the Boat of Guidance was extremely difficult, far more complicated than the Seven Turns of Heaven's End. Even the shortest recorded time in history had been ninety-six years.

Jiang Yao knew that his soul had died and been reborn when he opened Xu Yuan Space, undergoing a tremendous transformation. He had even mastered the fifth turn of the Seven Turns of Heaven's End in three days, sweeping through it with unstoppable momentum. But he had no point of comparison for how much his comprehension had improved. The Seven Turns of Heaven's End was, after all, a unique case.

Among the top geniuses in the universe, who grasped laws as easily as eating or drinking, where did he rank?

Because he had no idea, he wasn't entirely confident that he could accomplish in nineteen years what the past geniuses in his race had needed over a century to achieve.

So Jiang Yao steeled himself as if facing a great enemy and devoted himself completely to cultivation.

A compact B9 Grade spacecraft sat docked in the B-class area of the Yanhe Planet spaceport.

The hatch opened, and several Stellar Level individuals stepped out. After passing through security and registering their identities, they took transport to the Longshan Building.

A short while later, in the representative's office, Jiernuo, the Longshan Company representative stationed in the Yanhe Star System, stood before one of the men in black, looking somewhat startled.

"My lord, I didn't expect you to arrive so quickly. May I ask your name..."

Jiernuo had previously reported to headquarters that a Planetary Level member of the Yanhe Lingtong Race had appeared who possessed a Domain. He had assumed headquarters might refuse to act, or, if it did, would send a Universe Level powerhouse to Yanhe Planet.

As someone who had fortuitously reached Universe Level, Jiernuo knew better than anyone that the disparity between Universe Level powerhouses was even greater than that between Stellar Level ones.

The true Universe Level powerhouses in the company could kill him in an instant. They would have no trouble intercepting a Lingtong Race genius.

He hadn't expected headquarters to send anyone after more than twenty days of waiting. But Jiernuo was disappointed to see that the newcomers were only Stellar Level.

Then, as soon as they entered the office, one of the Stellar Level newcomers let a trace of his aura slip, terrifying Jiernuo.

It was an aura far beyond Universe Level.

Domain Lord!

A Domain Lord could condense his soul into a crystal sphere and store it in his Life Core, completely concealing his aura so outsiders couldn't detect his strength—unless he chose to release it.

A Domain Lord disguised as a Stellar Level, "sneaking" into Yanhe Planet among several Stellar Level individuals... The implications left Jiernuo deeply unsettled.

Jiernuo had met several of the current directors of Longshan Company. This mysterious Domain Lord wasn't one of them. Could he be another nominal director?

The mysterious Domain Lord's voice seemed to have been disguised too. "Yinhu Island has reached an agreement with the Jiuyuan Holy Land. Neither side may act against the other's members below Universe Level, and they must also restrain their subordinate forces from doing so. Otherwise, they'll spark a war between the Sacred Lands."

"Ah?" Jiernuo was startled, then confused.

If they weren't allowed to act, couldn't headquarters simply issue an order? Was the Virtual Universe just for show? Why send a Domain Lord all this way to explain the matter?

The mysterious Domain Lord fixed his gaze on Jiernuo. "So you don't know me, and you don't need to know who I am. Understand?"

Jiernuo was greatly alarmed. He understood what the man meant, of course. Was he planning to act despite the risk of sparking a war between the Sacred Lands, all for the sake of a Planetary Level genius?

In truth, after calming down over the past few days, Jiernuo's desire to wipe out that Planetary Level brat had faded. If anything happened to such a genius, the Lingtong Race would surely not let it go. Whether or not there was evidence, whether or not they caught anyone red-handed, they would blame Longshan Company.

Even if the Jiuyuan Holy Land didn't go to war with Yinhu Island over it or destroy Longshan Company, it could still apply pressure, make Yinhu Island pay a price, and hand over a few people responsible to appease the Lingtong Race.

In that case, his imposing status as a Universe Level powerhouse would amount to nothing more than a pawn they could sacrifice at will.

Besides, relations between the company and the Yanhe Branch of the Lingtong Race had been peaceful for the past several eras. They had mostly kept to their own sides. Perhaps the company no longer considered the Yanhe Lingtong Race an enemy and wanted to improve relations. In that case, headquarters would almost certainly reject his proposal.

And yet, just as he was about to give up on taking action, headquarters had gotten fired up.

"Tell me what you know about the target's movements."

Jiernuo reined in his unease and replied respectfully, "According to the information we've gathered, the Yanhe Branch doesn't seem to plan to send him to the Jiuyuan Holy Land right away. Our intelligence department suspects that the branch's higher-ups want him to break through to Stellar Level and awaken his ability before going to the Sacred Land."

"How long will that take?"

Jiernuo wasn't sure. "Based on past experience, at least a hundred years. But... this person not only possesses a Domain, he also has exceptional comprehension, at least when it comes to Mental Power techniques. There's no way to estimate how long someone like him will take based on past experience."

The mysterious Domain Lord showed no disappointment. His expression remained calm. "Ten years, a hundred years—it doesn't matter. We'll wait."

Jiernuo gritted his teeth. He didn't dare look at the mysterious Domain Lord's face, so he lowered his head and ventured, "Is the company... is the company really determined to risk starting a war between the Sacred Lands just to kill this Lingtong Race genius before he can mature?"

It wasn't that he was a coward. The "agreement between the Yinhu Island Sacred Land and the Jiuyuan Holy Land" the man had mentioned had truly shaken him. Surely a dignified Domain Lord wouldn't lie to him.

So Jiernuo had to summon the courage to probe again. This decision to defy the agreement between the two Sacred Lands and act anyway—was it Longshan Company's own decision, driven by an inability to let go of their long-standing feud, or was it... the will of the Yinhu Island Sacred Land?

The mysterious Domain Lord smiled meaningfully. "Who said we were going to kill him?"