Breaking Through to the Planetary Stage

Most mysterious things were caused by a lack of information. Once you had the facts and a few clever people to analyze them, finding the truth was hardly difficult.

"Hmph, they really are investigating me. I knew taming monsters would cause a stir!"

Deep inside the Mechanical Base, Liu Yun sat before a console built from an unknown metal. A massive holographic screen in front of him displayed live surveillance data from the outside world, including the HR Alliance's covert investigation into him.

People rushed about for profit, coming and going for gain. He hadn't even trusted Glinda completely. At most, her kindness toward him was just a green tea's way of working an angle.

"Let's see just how much the HR Alliance can learn about me from the answer you happened to guess correctly." Liu Yun considered this silently, then flicked his fingers, activating the base's concealed defense system. He had designed it specifically to counter potential threats, combining Machine Race technology with his own understanding of science and engineering.

Before long, the screen showed Glinda and the others trying to track him down with technology, along with their various guesses about the Crystal Ball.

Some guessed that Liu Yun had made such rapid progress with the help of an old Chinese doctor and traditional martial arts. His foreign female teammates even speculated that his success came from a kind of magic, like the magic that had helped Cinderella.

The idea was absurd. Liu Yun gave a quiet laugh, already knowing what to do. He understood that the Crystal Ball was key to his strength, but it was no simple magic trinket. The Machine Race core technology inside it was enough to shake the entire Earth.

He needed to act with urgency now. The news would spread faster and faster. Though these people had only guessed correctly by chance, others would soon get involved too.

The Limit Dojo, the Thor Dojo, the Military—who wouldn't want to tame Beast Generals quickly? That would let them use beasts to fight beasts and claim new territory.

Liu Yun could only pin his hopes on the Cell Evolution Fluid. Before the Planetary Stage, manufacturing it at the Mechanical Base was no trouble at all. Things would only get difficult once he passed the Planetary Stage.

In a corner of the base, a massive transparent container stood in stillness. Inside, two Dragon Teeth shimmered with a pale blue glow. After being refined with Liu Yun's help and Machine Race technology, they had become an indispensable ingredient in the evolution fluid, capable of greatly enhancing an organism's cellular activity and evolutionary potential.

Liu Yun expertly started a series of complex pretreatment procedures. The Biochemical Synthesizer's mechanical arms began their precise work, slowly feeding Dragon Tooth powder into a specially made reaction vessel. At the same time, a microelement injection system, precisely controlled through the holographic screen, began operating. It slowly added various rare elements, enzymes, and unknown energy particles collected from space into the mixture. Each drop was accompanied by a faint hum and flicker of light, as if a ritual were taking place in a microscopic world.

As the reaction proceeded, the liquid in the vessel gradually shifted from transparent to pale green, giving off a fresh yet slightly pungent scent. Liu Yun watched the data on the screen intently, adjusting the temperature and pressure from time to time to keep every parameter precise. He knew that even the slightest deviation could greatly reduce the fluid's effectiveness—or produce unpredictable consequences.

Time passed. When the chemical reactions finally reached a perfect balance, the liquid in the vessel suddenly burst into dazzling light, then quickly dimmed, settling into a deep, tranquil emerald green.

Liu Yun gazed at the bottle of evolution fluid, the result of countless hours of effort and ingenuity. A hint of determination and anticipation flashed in his eyes.

He knew this would be the key to breaking through to the Planetary Stage and entering a higher realm. Taking a deep breath, he picked up a specially made syringe and carefully inserted it into the bottle of emerald fluid. Then he slowly drew up a dose of the life-filled liquid.

"Everything comes down to this." Liu Yun murmured, then rose and headed toward an Evolution Chamber prepared especially for him inside the Mechanical Base. It too incorporated advanced Machine Race technology, ensuring that the evolution process would be safe and stable. At this stage, using the evolution fluid required an Evolution Chamber to guarantee safety.

Inside the Evolution Chamber, Liu Yun lay on a comfortable bed made from an unusual synthetic material. He steadied his breathing and aimed the syringe at a vein in his left arm. Without hesitation, he gently pressed the plunger. The emerald fluid surged into his body, bringing an unprecedented coolness and a surging sense of power.

Almost at once, Liu Yun's body began to change violently. First, the cells in his body seemed to awaken a sleeping giant. They frantically absorbed the energy and information in the evolution fluid, undergoing rapid division and reorganization on a scale he had never experienced. His muscles grew tighter and stronger, and a faint blue light shimmered beneath his skin, as if electricity were coursing through him.

Then an even more astonishing sight appeared. His hair seemed to come alive, growing at a visible speed until it spilled down to his waist. Every strand gleamed silver, like stars in the Galaxy. At the same time, dense lightning coiled around him. It didn't come from outside; it was the uncontrolled leakage of energy from within him, a sign of the violent, unstable power surging through his body.

Pain and something else intertwined. Liu Yun clenched his teeth, enduring this trial of both body and soul with astonishing willpower. He knew this transformation was necessary. Only by making it through could he truly cross the threshold into the Planetary Stage.

As time passed, the lightning around Liu Yun softened and settled into order, as if he had brought it completely under control. His gaze grew deeper, revealing a quality that seemed to transcend the mundane. When the last trace of lightning vanished into the air, Liu Yun slowly opened his eyes. Before this, through his own strength, he had broken through to the initial War God level as a Martial Artist!

Now, propelled by the evolution fluid, his physical strength had reached the intermediate War God level, while his Psychic Power had leapt into the Planetary Stage. It was a whole new world. His body continued to evolve under the baptism of his Psychic Power. Liu Yun had now reached the point where he could survive without breathing and fly freely through the air.

This was the mark of being able to get by independently in space. From this moment on, Liu Yun would truly be capable of stepping into the world of interstellar civilization.

"I've finally broken through," he murmured, feeling the unprecedented power within him. He knew that from now on, he would no longer be an ordinary nobody, but a strong man capable of leaving his mark on the universe.

However, from this moment on, the Cell Evolution Fluid would no longer have any effect. If Liu Yun wanted to keep advancing, he would need cosmic materials such as Cloud-Touching Vine and Spirit of Vegetation. This brought new goals—and new conflicts.

It was worth noting that Liu Yun's strength had risen far faster through taking drugs than that of anyone his age. But he still had a problem: his martial arts realm hadn't kept up with his strength. Now that his Psychic Power had leapt to the Planetary Stage, the problem had grown even worse.

After all, this breakthrough was greater than all his previous improvements combined, so the gap it created was terrifying too. Liu Yun had no way to solve the problem in the short term.