Apprentice Mercenary Assessment

Yin Congyang placed first in the ten-year competition, earning a batch of points. He then spent another year at the Training Camp, completing the remaining steps of the Clone Secret Technique.

It wasn't entirely accurate to say he had completed everything. Separating his soul had gone smoothly, and the separated soul had also fused smoothly with the Soul Container he had cultivated from one-third of his liver. But he didn't have enough Universe Crystals. The thousand cubic meters Aulis had left behind weren't even a tenth of what he needed, so his clone hadn't fully taken shape.

Another pleasant surprise was that his earlier guess had been right. After he separated about one-tenth of his soul, his soul power became much weaker than before.

To his delight, however, not only did the mysterious fluctuations in his Dantian immediately accelerate their flow toward his soul, but the mysterious seed also directed most of its fluctuations there. In less than a year, Yin Congyang's soul had not only recovered completely but grown even stronger than before.

And when he had used one-third of his liver to cultivate the Soul Container, the mysterious seed had likewise directed its fluctuations toward his liver after it was removed. His liver recovered in a very short time and even seemed faintly healthier than before. Yin Congyang couldn't help but marvel. Aulis had been a good man—not only had he left behind the Clone Secret Technique, but he'd also had this miraculous treasure.

It would take quite a while to advance from Star Level Seven to Star Level Eight, so Yin Congyang decided to take a mission and travel around the universe. Staying in one place all the time did little to help with Law Comprehension or axe cultivation. Traveling around and taking in the universe's many wonders might be better for his cultivation. After all, reading ten thousand books was no substitute for traveling ten thousand miles.

So Yin Congyang applied to the Training Camp's intelligent system for a mission to take the Apprentice Mercenary Assessment. Once approved, he went alone to the Spaceport, boarded a spaceship, and set off.

Many Training Camp missions could be completed in teams, but the Apprentice Mercenary Assessment had to be done alone. After all, a few people from the Elite Training Camp could probably sweep aside any Star Level adventurers they came across. The assessment would be no real test for them otherwise.

He took a Training Camp spaceship to Fengning Planet, the capital planet of the nearest medium-level civilization to the Training Camp.

Fengning Planet was the capital planet of the Fengying Empire. It was incredibly prosperous, with a population of tens of billions.

Walking down the crowded main street in the center of Fengning City, where pedestrians streamed past shoulder to shoulder, Yin Congyang felt as though a lifetime had passed. Since arriving in this world, he had spent most of his time alone. For one thing, he was naturally aloof and not good at socializing; it was hard for anyone to get close to him. If he hadn't already had a good impression of Hong, Thunder God, Luo Feng, and Luo Hua from the original story, and spent a long time with them on Earth, he might not have taken much notice of them.

For another, when he had first arrived in this world, he had always felt out of place. It was only after seeing the moon in the sky above Earth and realizing it was exactly like the moon buried in his memories that he felt something stir within him. Only then did he open his heart and let his soul fully merge with this world.

Even so, apart from a handful of friends like Hong, he didn't pay much attention to the other Earthlings, let alone the aliens who weren't from Earth.

That was why, even now, stories of the three heroes—Hong, Thunder God, and Luo Feng—still circulated on Earth, while few people knew the name Yin Congyang. The main reason was that he had done little to protect Earth. By the time he arrived in this world, Luo Feng had already dealt with the greatest disaster. Even if he'd wanted to help, there had been nowhere for him to do so.

The lesser reason was that he'd asked for it himself. Hong and Thunder God were grateful that he had awakened them and kept wanting to publicize his contributions, but he always refused.

This was what he'd told them: "It's good that people on Earth now celebrate the achievements of the three of you. Earth needs spiritual leaders, and everything you've done for Earth makes you worthy of that role. But we can't put all our strength out in the open. We need hidden reserves. At least until we're strong enough to deter everyone coveting Earth, it's necessary to keep some things concealed. And aren't I suited to staying in the shadows?"

He hadn't even asked Babata for a quick way back to Earth. He'd made himself a little promise: the next time he returned to Earth, he would use his own abilities to unravel the Space Secret Technique Hu Yanbo had left behind!

After arriving at the Universe Mercenary Alliance's headquarters on Fengning Planet, he queued to register as an adventurer, then went to another counter to apply for the Universe Trainee Mercenary Assessment.

After paying the fee, he received his assessment mission. The assessment for the Fengying Empire was held on Jiaoshi Planet.

The World Lord World on Jiaoshi Planet was called Jianmu World. It had been created by a World Lord who had nearly mastered the Law of Wood. In the end, the World Lord failed to fully comprehend the entire Law of Wood before his lifespan ran out. Before he died, he gave the world he had created to the Universe Mercenary Alliance in exchange for the Alliance's protection for his family. Thousands of eras had passed since then.

To pass the assessment, he had to obtain a Jianmu Heart, found only in Jianmu World, as well as three horns from the heads of Jiaoshi Horses, and hand them over to the examiners at the exit. That would qualify him as an official Universe Trainee Mercenary.

Yin Congyang then flew into the space above Fengning Planet, took out the D-Grade Spaceship he had seized earlier, and headed for Jiaoshi Planet.

After about a month, the spaceship approached the space above Jiaoshi Planet. Yin Congyang stepped out, stowed the ship in his storage space, and flew alone toward the assessment site.

Inside a vast palace, Yin Congyang stood before a door shimmering with dark green light. After checking his information, a staff member pointed to the door and told him that the assessment world lay beyond it.

He stepped through the dark green door. Space shifted, and Yin Congyang appeared in midair above a vast world. A tremendous gravitational force pulled him rapidly toward the ground. He gently adjusted the miniature star inside his body to counter the powerful gravity and descended slowly to the surface.

He took a moment to assess his surroundings. Gravity in Jianmu World was immense. Star Level warriors could still fly, but at an extremely slow pace. On the ground, they could move faster by unleashing their physical strength. His telekinetic range was also much shorter than it was outside.

Jianmu World had varied terrain, with many high mountains and vast lakes, as well as deserts and plains. But vegetation was abundant, and tall trees grew in many places.

There were also many kinds of ferocious beasts, all kept here by the Universe Mercenary Alliance. Jiaoshi Horses were among them. They usually roamed alone and weren't especially aggressive, but they were incredibly fast. In a world with such intense gravity, they were much faster than ordinary Star Level Nine warriors, making their three horns difficult to obtain.

As for the Jianmu Heart, it was found in the center of Jianmu World, where many towering trees known as Jianmu grew. Some especially enormous Jianmu trees had a jade-green Jianmu Heart growing inside their trunks. But Jianmu wood was exceptionally hard to cut, and he would also have to guard against other adventurer teams trying to snatch the prize, so obtaining one wouldn't be easy either.

Jianmu World had no sun, but the sky was always bathed in silvery-white light, so there was no night.

After figuring out which way to go, Yin Congyang set off at an unhurried pace toward the center of Jianmu World. He had plenty of time and was treating the journey like sightseeing, so there was no need to rush.

He was in a vast plain where ferocious beasts appeared one after another, usually in herds. Fortunately, the view was wide open, and his physical abilities were formidable. The strength he could unleash was close to Universe Level, and he was far faster than ordinary Star Level Nine warriors. He encountered no danger on the plain.

After walking for several days, he left the plains and entered a seemingly endless mountain range, where trees hundreds of meters tall were everywhere.

Here, Yin Congyang grew cautious. His view was obstructed, and his telekinetic range was far shorter than outside. If he ran into a large pack of beasts or a natural disaster, he might not notice in time.

Deep in the mountains, a black shadow flickered past the corner of his eye. He quickly turned to look and couldn't help exclaiming, "Ha!" He was in luck. He had just entered the forest and already found a Jiaoshi Horse.

Watching the Jiaoshi Horse race away, he kicked off the ground and chased after it like lightning. At his speed, a Jiaoshi Horse—said to be faster than even a Star Level Nine warrior—was no match for him. A few seconds later, once he was within five hundred meters, a blade shot from the Xinling Disk beneath his feet, following an intricate trajectory. In a flash, it reached the Jiaoshi Horse's head. The horse couldn't react in time. The blade pierced its skull, splattering its brains, and it fell dead.

He hurried over. The blade shot up and sliced off the horn on the Jiaoshi Horse's head. Just as he was about to put it in his storage space, a shout came from far away: "Put that down..."

He turned to look. Several kilometers away, a group of Star Level Nine warriors were rushing toward him, protecting a handsome young man.

A few seconds later, ten people had surrounded him. Yin Congyang weighed the horn in his hand, chuckled, and put it into his storage space.

The young man's face darkened. "You refuse to take the easy way out. I was going to let you live if you handed it over... Since you won't, kill him!"

He directed the last sentence at the other nine Star Level Nine warriors, then floated back with one of them.

"Yes!"

The remaining eight answered in unison. The telekinetic weapons of three Spiritual Masters shot toward Yin Congyang, while the other five warriors drew their weapons and charged at him.

The Heaven-Opening Axe appeared in Yin Congyang's hand, and his Domain spread out, enveloping everyone. Under the pressure of his Domain, the telekinetic weapons and the warriors all seemed to be mired in mud, their speed slowing to a crawl.

He knocked aside the incoming telekinetic weapons with several clangs, then darted toward them like a phantom. He cut them down one by one with his axe. Not a single person managed to dodge a blow; they were slaughtered as easily as chopping vegetables.

The young man and the lone Star Level Nine warrior beside him paled in terror and hurriedly tried to flee. But within Yin Congyang's Domain, they couldn't pick up any speed. Two seconds later, Yin Congyang caught up to them.

"Spare—"

The young man hadn't even finished shouting "Spare me" before Yin Congyang severed his neck. The head fell, its eyes still filled with resentment...