Thousand Years

Chaos City Lord smiled. Under his command, he now had a total of thirty-two personal disciples. Twenty-seven were still alive.

Of those, twenty-five were Universe Venerables, one was a Sealed King pinnacle Immortal, and the last was the young man before him, who had just broken through to Realm Lord not long ago.

On the surface, he seemed the weakest.

But Chaos City Lord knew that if one factored in his Special Life Clone with a Gene Level of five thousand five hundred times, Qian Yu's true combat strength was likely already enough to rival a Sealed King.

Perhaps even stronger.

He looked at Qian Yu, yet another figure involuntarily surfaced in his mind.

Cody.

That disciple who had once made him immensely proud.

Back then, due to the meticulous schemes of the Zerg strong, he had watched helplessly as Cody fell, powerless to do anything.

Even he, Chaos City Lord, even with his ability to reverse time and space, could not pull Cody back from death.

That sense of powerlessness, that rage, still burned within him to this day.

"Rise."

Chaos City Lord reined in his thoughts and said calmly.

Qian Yu stood up and respectfully stood to the side.

"Including you, I have a total of thirty-two disciples under me," Chaos City Lord began slowly.

"Five of them have already fallen. Among your twenty-six senior brothers, twenty-five are Universe Venerables, and one is a Sealed King pinnacle Immortal."

He paused, looking at Qian Yu.

"You are still young, but your strength is not weak."

Qian Yu nodded.

He had lived for several hundred years now.

But by the measure of his lifespan, he was indeed still young.

A Realm Lord a few hundred years old was no different from an infant in the eyes of those ancient monsters who had lived for tens of millions of years, hundreds of millions of years, countless eras.

"From now on, you may directly teleport into my palace on Thunder Island," Chaos City Lord continued.

"If you have any doubts in your cultivation, you can come to me directly in my palace on Thunder Island in the Virtual Universe."

"Yes, Teacher."

Qian Yu felt a secret joy.

Chaos City Lord looked at him, fell silent for a moment, then suddenly spoke.

"That heaven-defying clone of yours—can you release it for me, your teacher, to see?"

Qian Yu was slightly startled, then understood.

Since Chaos City Lord had been able to detect the issue with his Gene Level, he had naturally long known about his clone. There was no harm in showing it now.

"Of course."

With a thought, he opened his Inner World.

The next instant, a massive figure appeared behind him out of thin air!

The Wild Beast Clone manifested!

Though the clone's aura was extremely intimidating, before Chaos City Lord, it was as docile as a tiny shrimp.

Chaos City Lord carefully examined this clone, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.

"This clone..."

"It bears some resemblance to a natural Beast God."

He mused inwardly.

Beast Gods were powerful lifeforms born at the dawn of the universe. This clone before him, though far inferior to a Beast God, had a certain aura and form that indeed carried a shadow of the Beast God.

Could it be related to a Beast God somehow?

Chaos City Lord did not probe further, merely nodding slightly.

"Not bad. With this clone, you are destined to become one of the top powerhouses of our human race in the future."

He looked at Qian Yu, his gaze turning serious.

"But even so, you must not slacken in your cultivation. Talent is talent, achievement is achievement—the two must not be conflated."

Qian Yu nodded solemnly.

"Thank you for your guidance, Teacher."

Chaos City Lord pondered for a moment, then suddenly raised his hand.

Light flickered in his palm, and a golden thin plate appeared in his hand.

That golden plate was as thin as a cicada's wing, its surface flowing with complex secret patterns, faintly radiating a law fluctuation that made one's heart tremble.

"Since I accept you as a disciple today, your master shall grant you a gift."

He handed the golden plate to Qian Yu.

"On this is recorded a secret technique, named the 'Beast God Transformation'."

Qian Yu received it with both hands, listening respectfully.

"This is a body-enhancement type secret technique, extremely compatible with the Beast God Path."

Chaos City Lord explained.

"I observe that your cultivation aligns quite well with the Beast God Path. Next, you may cultivate this secret technique. If you can achieve entry, it will greatly aid your combat power."

Qian Yu's heart surged with joy, and he quickly bowed.

"Thank you, Teacher!"

Chaos City Lord waved his hand.

"Alright, you may return."

He paused, then continued.

"You are now a Realm Lord and also my disciple. It is inevitable that you will set out for training in the future. However, given your age, I grant you a thousand years to cultivate."

"After a thousand years, I will conduct an assessment. At that time, you will need to go to the Outer Domain Battlefield or a universe secret realm for training."

Qian Yu nodded solemnly.

"Yes, Teacher."

He understood that true experts were never produced by mere hard training in isolation, but were honed through battle, growing stronger step by step. Chaos City Lord giving him a thousand years to cultivate was already great leniency.

"I will not directly grant you secret techniques, but I can provide you with many for reference."

Chaos City Lord said finally.

"If there is anything you don't understand, come ask me."

Qian Yu bowed, then slowly withdrew from the Chaos Ruins.

The moment he stepped out of the City Lord's Mansion, Qian Yu was still somewhat dazed.

Chaos City Lord's thirty-two personal disciples.

He was the thirty-second.

In a thousand years, he would set out for training.

But for now, he only wanted to return and carefully examine the 'Beast God Transformation' his teacher had bestowed.

A thousand years. During this thousand-year period, Qian Yu could remain in Chaos City without leaving, continuing his cultivation here.

He sat down in his residence and took out the golden thin plate.

The plate felt warm to the touch, its material neither metal nor jade. The complex secret patterns on its surface seemed alive, slowly shifting as he gazed at them.

Qian Yu extended a thread of his consciousness into it, and instantly, a flood of information surged into his mind.

'Beast God Transformation'.

The content of this secret technique unfolded slowly in his consciousness, crystal clear.

A flicker of shock passed through Qian Yu's eyes.

This secret technique was actually a complete Beast God Path!

The universe had ten fundamental laws, divided into two major systems.

Space and Time, these two high-level laws, each governed five lower-level laws. In the Space system, Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, and Earth were the lower-level laws; in the Time system, Thunder, Lightning, Wind, and Light were the lower-level laws.

Normally, fully comprehending any single high-level law would allow one to become a Universe Venerable.

Comprehending both high-level laws would enable one to achieve the status of a Cosmic Lord.

But there was another path.

Perfectly fusing one high-level law with one lower-level law to form a fused law could also break through to Cosmic Lord.

This was the Beast God Path.

And the 'Beast God Transformation' before him followed precisely the path of fusing Fire and Space.

The first layer was a partial fusion of the Law of Space and the Law of Fire.

Layer by layer, it progressed until the sixth layer, which was the complete fusion of the entire Law of Space and the entire Law of Fire, forming a complete fused law.

At the seventh layer, the complete Beast God Path transformed into the Beast God itself, with combat power comparable to a Cosmic Lord.

"This is practically a complete inheritance leading straight to Cosmic Lord!"