Thunder God and Hong appeared in the Killing Field. They seemed to be visiting for the first time.
It looked like the crisis surrounding the arrival of Universe Adventurers on Earth had more or less passed. Unless something unexpected happened, Earth was already under Luo Feng's name.
If he remembered the timeline correctly, it should be the year 2063 on the Huaxia Calendar.
In the original story, the Genius Tournament would arrive in 2066 on the Huaxia Calendar. That meant it was only three years away—almost exactly when he would give birth to his Clone.
Li Yilin counted on his fingers, surprised by the coincidence.
He remembered that shortly before the Genius Tournament began, the Ganwu Universe Kingdom would hold a medium-sized auction. Among the items for sale would be a World Lord Level Enlightenment Quota for the Initial Universe. He would have to check it out then.
He told Liu Qing to keep an eye on the auction date and remind him when the time came, then turned and headed into the passage—
The appearance of Thunder God and Hong had still left Li Yilin unsettled.
He was desperate to go to Earth and see that familiar place. Even if it lay in an unfamiliar world, he still wanted to see it.
Unfortunately, he wasn't strong enough yet to break through Hu Yanbo's Space Secret Technique.
If he entered the Solar System through a wormhole, he might draw the attention of Luo Feng, who had long since set up all kinds of monitoring measures around the wormhole. That might end up backfiring.
After thinking it over, Li Yilin decided it would be better to befriend Thunder God and Hong. Or perhaps he could spend a fortune to buy the Solar System, or even the entire Milky Way, from the emperor of the Silver Blue Empire?
The emperor of the Silver Blue Empire was only a lowly Domain Lord, while Li Yilin's strength had long since become comparable to a World Lord's. If he asked to buy it, the emperor definitely wouldn't refuse.
Just imagining Thunder God, Hong, and even Luo Feng learning that the entire Milky Way was his territory made him wonder how spectacular their expressions would be.
The more Li Yilin thought about it, the more amusing it seemed. He wasted no time and sent Liu Qing to discuss buying the emperor's star systems with him.
There was no point in buying just one star system. He might as well buy all eight systems in the Silver Blue Empire.
That was what he thought.
A star system cost between 1,000 and 10,000 billion Universe Coins. The Silver Blue Empire had eight star systems. He didn't care about the small difference in price, so he calculated them all at the maximum price. The total came to only eight Hunyuan Units.
Less than three hours passed from the moment he decided to buy the star systems to the moment they became his.
Looking at the newly acquired assets—the eight star systems now under his name—Li Yilin narrowed his eyes.
"Strength really is a wonderful thing!" he exclaimed.
Just then, a streak of blue light floated in from outside the palace, circled around Li Yilin, and finally stopped in the open space beside his throne.
"Teacher!" Si Yao stepped out of the blue light and rushed toward Li Yilin with a beaming smile.
Li Yilin raised a hand and easily stopped her by pressing it against her forehead.
"You're a grown woman now. Don't just throw yourself into your teacher's arms whenever you feel like it."
Five years had passed. The little girl who had once been barely over one and a half meters tall and cried at the drop of a hat had grown into a graceful young woman.
She stood nearly two meters tall. Nurtured by Universe Origin Energy, her fair skin glowed with a healthy rosy hue. A pair of white wings spread behind her, almost five meters long, making her look all the more divine and pure.
In front of outsiders, Si Yao was so sacred that no one dared profane her. But now, the tip of her delicate nose wrinkled slightly, and her red lips pouted enough to hold a little oil pot. Still, she obediently stood where she was.
"Well, what is it?" Li Yilin asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Teacher, I want to take the Mercenary Trial." Si Yao clasped her hands behind her back and swayed from side to side, gazing at Li Yilin with her brilliant, starry-blue eyes.
Two years ago, she had successfully advanced to Star Level. Not long after breaking through, she had even comprehended the Wind Law and smoothly crossed its threshold.
A Star Level Fighter who had comprehended a Law at twenty-three would be an undisputed genius even in the Ganwu Universe Kingdom.
Unfortunately, this genius most loved earning her teacher's approval—and most loved staying by her teacher's side.
So when she suddenly came to say she wanted to go out and gain experience, Li Yilin was astonished. He looked her up and down with exaggerated surprise. "Well, well. The little princess is willing to go out and gain experience?" He studied her, unable to help wondering if someone had possessed her.
"Teacher—" Si Yao stamped her foot.
"All right, all right. I was wrong." Afraid of truly offending the fussy little princess and having to spend a fortune repairing their precarious teacher-student relationship, Li Yilin hurriedly relented. "Go if you want. Remember to bring two Universe Level Fighters to protect you."
"Only Star Level Fighters can take the Mercenary Trial, so for safety, bring two more Star Level slaves to protect you." After joking around, he gave her careful instructions.
"I knew you were the best, Teacher." Si Yao giggled, her eyes twinkling, but she remained standing right where she was.
Li Yilin: —
He casually had Liu Qing transfer five Hunyuan Units to her. Si Yao soon received the notification that the funds had arrived, and her smile grew even brighter. Her blue eyes curved into little crescents as she sweetly said, "Thank you, Teacher~
"I knew you were the best to A-Yao, Teacher. A-Yao likes you best." As she spoke, she fished two flowers out of her ring.
The larger one was blue, its petals edged with a faint purple, like a blooming peony. The smaller flower was only about the size of a baby's fist. Its layered petals were purple, with a blue stamen at the very center, like a rose—
Holding the two flowers, she placed the larger one in Li Yilin's hand and said with a beaming smile, "I picked these from the flower bed outside the palace before I left. The moment I saw them, I thought they'd be perfect for you, Teacher."
As she spoke, Si Yao tucked the little purple flower behind Li Yilin's ear, then took three steps back and nodded with great seriousness.
"Purple really does suit you best, Teacher."
Li Yilin: —
He helplessly removed the flower from behind his ear and placed it beside the one in his hand. "You've grown up. From now on, you don't have to come ask your teacher about everything." This visit had cost him a pretty penny.
"All right, then I won't bother you any longer, Teacher." After speaking, Si Yao turned into a streak of blue light and disappeared from the palace.
Looking at the palace, quiet once again, Li Yilin lowered his gaze to the two flowers in his hand. Faint glimmers of light drifted around them, making the already extraordinary blossoms seem even less like ordinary flowers.
He smiled. "This girl does have good taste."
Still smiling, he put the two flowers into his World Ring.
The ring was empty, except for a platform he had cleared out. Various odds and ends, which appeared to have been tossed there haphazardly, were piled on top.
If Si Yao had been there, she would have recognized that every one of those things was a gift she had given Li Yilin over the years.
Beyond the platform stretched a vast expanse of land, planted with all kinds of rare flowers and unusual plants.
The two flowers dropped precisely from above into an open patch of ground. Three drops of clear liquid followed close behind, landing where the flowers had taken root—
In barely two breaths, the flowers rapidly grew lush, sturdy roots and stems, anchoring themselves in the soil and blending in with the vast array of rare plants around them.
With deliberate intent, Li Yilin had run into the two brothers, Thunder God and Hong, several times in the Virtual Universe. Before long, they had become casual acquaintances.
Then, one time when Thunder God and Hong were discussing their progress in strength, he offered a few words of guidance—
And just like that, the three of them naturally got to know one another.
Li Yilin never revealed his exact strength level. But he had spent several years in the Killing Field, liked ordering drinks in the hall that clearly weren't cheap, and occasionally treated Man Luo to a meal. His extravagant displays of strength and wealth had made him well known to many of the people who frequented the Killing Field.
Thunder God and Hong soon learned that he was a Domain Lord Level powerhouse. Thunder God in particular, upon learning that Li Yilin had comprehended the Law of Thunder and Lightning, had his eyes light up in an instant.
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