Stolen Treats

Waking from his cultivation, Bai Muye slowly opened his eyes. He looked at the empty bottle beside him, confusion flashing in his eyes.

"Samao's judgment can't have been that far off. He said fifty kilograms of Yulang Liquid would get me to the peak of Universe Rank, ninth stage. He shouldn't have been far off, but I've used it all up and only just broken through to the ninth stage..."

He pondered for a while, recalling that the Yulang Liquid had seemed much more effective when he first started using it, and that each time he absorbed it, the process took far less time than before. He had assumed it was because his strength kept increasing, making him absorb it faster each time, but now he suddenly realized something was wrong.

He sank his consciousness into his Consciousness Sea and glanced at Xiao Si. He could clearly feel that it had grown a little since twenty years ago. Case closed!

"How much of the Yulang Liquid that was supposed to get me to the peak of Universe Rank, ninth stage, did you steal?"

"Uh, you... found out?" Xiao Si smiled apologetically, careful and wary. "Not much. I held back—I ate less than half... All right, at most half..."

"Cut the crap," Bai Muye interrupted without an ounce of politeness. "The energy needed to go from the beginning of the ninth stage to its peak is far greater than what it takes to go from the seventh stage to the peak of the eighth. I was at the seventh stage before, and now I've only just reached the beginning of the ninth. You stole at least sixty percent!"

"Don't be mad," Xiao Si said plaintively. "I didn't want to, but that Yulang Liquid tasted so good, I couldn't help myself. Hehe... Besides, you haven't fought any life-or-death battles in the past twenty years, so I haven't been able to devour any souls. I had to eat something else. I'm not picky, hehe..."

"If you wanted some, you could've just asked openly. Why sneak around?" Bai Muye said irritably.

"I did eat it openly. You just didn't notice," Xiao Si replied with a grin. "We're almost at the Outer Battlefield, anyway. Don't worry. I'll soon grow another tendril, and then it'll be even more effective than Yulang Liquid..."

Bai Muye stood up and shook his head helplessly. Xiao Si had already eaten it, and there was no way to make it spit it back out. Besides, even if it could, Bai Muye wouldn't dare use it.

"All passengers, please be advised: the Yiwei Ship is about to begin its Cosmic Shuttle. We will arrive at our destination, Gu Ge Planet, in half a day."

The ship's gentle, intelligent voice came from above the cabin.

"We're finally almost there..."

For the past century, they had fought every year or so, and Bai Muye had grown somewhat accustomed to that rhythm. After an abrupt twenty-year break, the prospect of entering the battlefield again stirred a trace of excitement in him.

After twenty years of cultivation, his genetic Origin Energy had reached Universe Rank, ninth stage. He had cultivated every one of his domains to the peak of the ninth level, and had successfully merged six of them. Only the water and fire domains remained unmerged.

The resulting Mixed Domain was incredibly powerful.

During fights against other Universe Rank warriors on the forty-ninth level, he had once tried using nothing but his Mixed Domain to crush a Universe Rank warrior at the ninth stage to the ground. Then his Mixed Domain had turned into a grinding stone and literally ground the man to death. Afterward, that opponent had avoided him whenever they crossed paths. It had left him with a truly terrible psychological scar.

According to rumors circulating in the common areas, these fights were actually a kind of test. Anyone who stood out among the Universe Rank warriors on the same level might be assigned to fight under the command of a stronger Army Lord.

Many people scoffed at the idea, but Bai Muye thought it was quite possible. After all, he knew that once they arrived at Gu Ge Planet, they would first be granted military authority.

That authority would be assigned based on the Virtual Universe's perfect analysis of their performance. It was impossible to hide who was strong and who was weak from the Virtual Universe.

The Army Lords in the Outer Battlefield varied in strength, too. On that brutal battlefield, a meat grinder, the stronger you were, the more say you had. That was only natural.

This batch numbered over ten million Universe Rank warriors. They would be assigned to at least ten thousand Immortal Army Lords, and the stronger Army Lords would naturally get first pick.

Of course, Universe Rank was still a long way from immortality, and it was unlikely that the Immortals themselves would handle such a minor matter. Still, it was quite possible they would send one of their World Lords to do it.

Based on that guess, Bai Muye had spared no effort in accepting challenges from other Universe Rank warriors on the forty-ninth level.

Half a day later.

The Yiwei Ship docked at the port on Gu Ge Planet. All the Universe Rank warriors flew off the ship and lined up in the plaza.

Once off the ship, Bai Muye took a look at the planet and couldn't help but gape. Gu Ge Planet was an artificial superplanet, over a million kilometers in diameter and one of the eight major logistics bases in Human Territory.

Over ten million people stood in formation across the vast plaza. A line of World Lords hovered in the air in front of them.

Each World Lord bore a different mark between their brows, proof that they had been acknowledged by the laws. They stood in midair, releasing their pressure and leaving nearly ten million Universe Rank warriors too intimidated to make a sound.

"Beep, beep!"

The personal Optical Computers of every Universe Rank warrior in the plaza sounded, alerting their owners to new messages.

Bai Muye looked down. The message was from the Virtual Universe System, specifying which battlefield and Barracks Base each of them had been assigned to.

A World Lord near the center floated a hundred meters forward and spoke in a cold, detached voice:

"All Universe Rank warriors assigned to the 7th Battlefield Barracks 049, assemble below me."

The Universe Rank warriors from the Yiwei Ship recognized that voice. It belonged to the ship's acting captain, Zhu Ang!

Nearly ten thousand people immediately flew out of the crowd, Bai Muye among them.

Those who had left the main group gathered beneath Zhu Ang.

"Come with me."

Zhu Ang unfurled his World Force, enveloped the nearly ten thousand warriors, and swiftly flew into an extremely spacious passageway.

The Universe Rank warriors on the plaza who knew what was going on watched with envy. They all knew the first World Lord to step forward must belong to the strongest Army Lord.

And the Universe Rank warriors selected would naturally be assigned to that lord's legion.

Wrapped in Zhu Ang's World Force, Bai Muye and the nearly ten thousand other Universe Rank warriors moved forward. They soon arrived in a huge hall.

Zhu Ang flew into the air and looked down at everyone with detached indifference.

"You're about to enter the most glorious and most brutal Outer Battlefield. But you must understand that the military has its rules. You can't live as freely as you used to. Before you depart, you'll undergo the traditional ceremony for granting military authority!"

"Military authority?"

"What does that mean?"

Most of the ten thousand or so Universe Rank warriors knew little about the details of the Outer Battlefield. Those who knew one another quietly discussed it through voice transmission.

A murderous glint appeared in Zhu Ang's cold eyes, making every Universe Rank warrior focus on him again.

"Granting military authority means establishing your rank in the army. In the military, subordinates must obey their superiors. So your authority has to be established first."

"My lord, how will you establish it? Are we going to fight each other here?" one bold Universe Rank warrior called out.

Zhu Ang looked at him impassively and raised a finger. A powerful force abruptly appeared above the man's head and slammed him to the ground.

"Good question. But who gave you permission to speak?" Zhu Ang stared at him, his eyes brimming with murderous intent. The Universe Rank warrior felt as if a venomous snake had fixed its gaze on him. He lay on the ground, afraid to move.

"You've all reached Universe Rank, so I assume each of you has shown your abilities in the Virtual Universe. The Virtual Universe System will assess you based on your performance, and that rating will determine your initial rank in the army."

"There are only two ratings for Universe Rank warriors like you: elite and regular. Regular Universe Rank warriors are at the very bottom of the army. Elite Universe Rank warriors can command regular Universe Rank warriors when no Domain Lord Rank captain is present."

After seeing what had happened to the first Universe Rank warrior to speak, everyone listened obediently. No one dared to ask another question.

Zhu Ang nodded in satisfaction, pointed to a portal of light, and continued:

"Normally, the ratio of elite to regular warriors is one to a hundred. But you were all selected by me, so I hope the proportion of elites among you will meet my expectations. Now, line up and walk through that portal. The Virtual Universe System will grant you your authority."