The Golden Leaf of the Kras Ancient Tree

[Claim the Golden Leaf of the Kras Ancient Tree? If you choose not to claim it, the prize will be stored in System Space. Note: System Space can only store rewards obtained from the roulette; rewards from other sources cannot be placed inside.]

GOOGLE SEARCH TWKAN

"Don't claim it."

In his current state, there was no way he could claim such a treasure.

In fact, Lin Yuan didn't dare claim any physical reward he drew.

As a slave, Lin Yuan was under constant, all-seeing surveillance.

Lin Yuan didn't have a Space Ring, so if something suddenly appeared out of nowhere, it would likely cause him a lot of trouble.

"The Golden Leaf of the Kras Ancient Tree?"

Lin Yuan was delighted. He thought it over. Luo Feng seemed to have seen this treasure at an auction, where it had sold for nearly 9,000 Hunyuan Units—almost the entire fortune of an Ordinary Immortal God.

But he couldn't remember what the leaf was used for.

Speaking of Luo Feng, Lin Yuan had been a slave ever since crossing into this world. Even though he could enter the Virtual Universe, he could only access the separate Cultivation Space prepared by the slave trader, so he had no way of getting information from the outside world. Naturally, he didn't know what point in time it was...

Lin Yuan didn't even know whether Luo Feng had already risen to prominence.

Lin Yuan focused and realized he could sense the system's storage space. His consciousness could enter it and examine the items inside.

A golden-yellow leaf lay in the storage space. Law Secret Patterns flowed along its veins, but Lin Yuan couldn't make any sense of them.

Lin Yuan focused his consciousness on the leaf, and a stream of information automatically entered his mind. Its general contents were:

The Golden Leaf of the Kras Ancient Tree originated from the plant life-form known as the Kras Ancient Tree. The Kras Ancient Tree was favored by the Law of Space Origin. Even after reaching immortality, its speed of comprehending the Law of Space Origin remained the same as it had been at the World Lord level, without the slightest decrease.

The Golden Leaf bore Secret Patterns containing fragments of the Law of Space Origin.

When Immortal Gods cultivated with Golden Leaves shed by the Kras Ancient Tree, they could increase their speed of comprehending the Law of Space Origin.

Lin Yuan understood.

Babata had mentioned that these Golden Leaves were extremely precious and highly appealing to Immortal Gods.

Judging by the price, they probably weren't some heaven-defying treasure.

But Lin Yuan had nothing to his name.

The only things he had, the Giant Axe and Battle Armor, didn't belong to him.

Oh, right, he also had an Optical Computer, but connecting to the Virtual Universe only let him enter a private space.

Lin Yuan was quite taken with the Golden Leaf.

He wondered whether studying the Secret Patterns on it might help him gain a trace of insight into the Law of Space Origin.

If he really managed to win 1,000 matches and gain his freedom, selling the Golden Leaf would bring him a considerable sum.

Lin Yuan withdrew his consciousness from the storage space and turned his attention to the roulette beside him.

The numbers 28 and 17 on the roulette had dimmed.

Lin Yuan recalled how he could earn more lottery draws: by making a breakthrough in his comprehension of an Origin Law, advancing in cultivation, or breaking through in willpower.

How much did his comprehension of an Origin Law have to improve before he earned a draw? Ten percent? Recognition by an Origin Law? Lin Yuan felt that was still a long way off.

Lin Yuan had no suitable Secret Techniques, no teacher of his own, and no guidance or examples to follow on his path of cultivation. The slave trader spent very little on training slaves.

As for willpower, Lin Yuan thought his was stronger than that of others at the same level, but he had no idea how to break through.

It was more realistic to advance from Universe Level 8 to Universe Level 9. Lin Yuan had already been at Universe Level 8 when he first joined the Great Axe Life-Death Battle, and he wasn't far from reaching Universe Level 9 now.

...

Ten days later.

Lin Yuan had recovered from his injuries and emerged from the Nutrient Pod.

While he was in the Nutrient Pod, the spaceship had taken him to the Great Axe Arena's branch in the Flame Dragon Star Sector of the Nine Flames Universe Kingdom, where he would wait for his next life-and-death battle.

The wait could be as short as a month or two, or as long as more than a year.

This was precious cultivation time for Lin Yuan. He didn't dare slack off for a moment. Every bit of progress put him a little farther from death and gave him a slightly better chance of gaining his freedom.

Lin Yuan connected his consciousness to the Virtual Universe and entered his training space. He began reflecting on his last life-and-death battle.

This was something Lin Yuan did after every life-and-death battle.

That battle had been truly perilous. Kailan had comprehended a trace of the Law of Fire Origin in the face of death, and Lin Yuan had nearly been taken out with a single blow.

Lin Yuan had also gained some insights in the struggle between life and death, but if he hadn't awakened his Golden Finger—or if bad luck had made him draw something useless—he might already have lost the battle and died.

"My weakness is that I'm too clumsy. I'm all right against Warriors, but when I face a Spirit Reader Controller of similar strength, I struggle to get close, even though my defense and strength are formidable. I'll be at a disadvantage against Spirit Reader Controllers with deep foundations."

Lin Yuan had hidden his strength at the sixth level of the Domain of Metal before. As a result, his opponents hadn't been particularly strong.

"I need to work on my footwork. If only I could comprehend even a trace of the Law of Space Origin."

"I can't make heads or tails of the Secret Patterns of the Law of Space Origin on the Golden Leaf. Looks like I should start with the Law of Earth, then use it to understand the Law of Space Origin..."

Lin Yuan pondered.

He began to revisit the mysteries of the Law of Earth Origin. After all, these insights had been poured directly into his mind and imprinted into his consciousness. He understood them, but he was still far from being able to apply them.

The axe technique Lin Yuan practiced was the Army-Breaking Seven Axes provided by the slave trader. It sounded impressive, but even after mastering all seven forms, its force amplification was only 63 times. Lin Yuan had now fully grasped six of them.

With the few resources he had, Lin Yuan didn't dare relax for a moment. He felt his next opponent might be even stronger.

...

Five months later.

"Come out. Get on the spaceship. It's time to take you to the location of your next life-and-death battle."

A staff member in charge of transporting the Great Axe Arena's slave combatants urged Lin Yuan on.

The D6-Grade Spaceship accelerated to three times the speed of light in the Dark Universe. Lin Yuan's next life-and-death battle would take place roughly two million light-years from their departure point, requiring more than 24 days of travel.

Twenty-four days later, the D6-Grade Spaceship returned from the Dark Universe to the Original Universe in front of an abandoned mining planet. The spaceship's hatch opened.

"Go on. Your opponent's already there."

...

Virtual Universe, Great Axe Arena Life-Death Battle Plane. In the spectator stands for this life-and-death battle:

"Lin Yuan was incredible in his last life-and-death battle. The news covered it across our Universe Country. He's definitely got what it takes to become a Giant Axe Warrior!"

"Yeah, the odds this time are completely one-sided. I bet on Lin Yuan, so I probably won't make much money."

"His opponent is Light, a Universe Level 9 Warrior with 899 victories, at the ninth level of the Domain of Lightning and the second level of the Domain of Wind. He's skilled with the blade, but he hasn't comprehended any Universe Origin Law. The only people betting on him are either rich enough not to care and just playing around, or they've got rocks for brains."

There were more spectators today than at the previous match. Many had seen the news about Lin Yuan's last life-and-death battle and come to watch this freak who had crossed the threshold of an Origin Law in the midst of a crisis.

...

On the abandoned mining planet.

"The life-and-death battle begins!"

A deep voice rang out from the starry sky. The supervisor was the same Domain Lord-level official from the previous match.

The man wielding a Battle Blade unleashed his full Domain, accelerated to top speed, and charged at Lin Yuan with a single slash.