Arrival

"Good wine!" Yin Congyang let out a soft breath and couldn't help praising it. "Mr. Steven, this wine is something special. It must've cost a pretty penny, right?"

"Don't call me Mr. Steven. You've already broken through to Universe Level, and becoming a Domain Lord is only a matter of time. If you don't mind, how about we call each other brothers?"

Yin Congyang was slightly surprised. Steven had been rather cool toward him earlier, but now he seemed almost obsequious. He showed none of his surprise, though, and replied with a smile, "Of course! Who would mind having a Domain Lord-level Core Member like you as an older brother? I haven't officially reported to the End-of-the-World Region yet, and there's a lot I'd like to ask you about..."

"Haha... Excellent! No problem. I've been in the End-of-the-World Region for tens of thousands of years. I can't claim to know all the secrets of every region, but I can tell you about plenty of things you ought to know... Come on, let's keep drinking. We can talk as we drink!"

"Brother, you've only just broken through to Universe Level, but your foundation looks incredibly solid. Honestly, the commotion you made when you broke through a while back was even greater than what most people make when they advance from Universe Level to Domain Lord. That's quite remarkable..." Steven took a sip of wine and continued, "But cultivation is all about balancing work and rest. You can't spend all your time cultivating. It's easy to end up in a dead end without realizing it, and by the time you notice you've taken a wrong turn, you may have already missed the best opportunity to correct course... So you should still attend lectures from time to time, test yourself in the Virtual Universe, and temper yourself through life-and-death trials. That's the fastest way to improve..."

Steven had spoken from the heart. Only then did Yin Congyang understand: Steven had seen the commotion he'd made during his breakthrough and decided that he had great talent and a bright future. That was why he'd wanted to befriend him. Yin Congyang finally let down his guard a little.

"You're right, Brother Steven. I'm not even a hundred years old yet, and I've spent most of that time focused on cultivation. I really don't know much about these things, so I hope you'll teach me."

Steven stared at him, eyes wide. "You're not even a hundred? When I was a hundred, I was only... well, Stellar Level One. Your talent really is impressive. By the way, how did you get into Qingnang Training Camp?"

Yin Congyang shared what he could with Steven. He also learned many things about the End-of-the-World Region that he'd never known before. For example, among the tens of millions of people in the region, quite a few worked in the Commerce Department. And if someone showed enough talent for business, they might even be assigned a protective escort.

They drank and chatted about everything under the sun. Steven was a Domain Lord who had lived for tens of thousands of years, and he had plenty of experience. Eager to win Yin Congyang over, he shared many of his experiences exploring the universe.

"By the way, Brother Steven, how far are we from the End-of-the-World Secret Realm?"

"My F-Grade Spaceship is pretty fast. We'll reach the End-of-the-World Secret Realm in a little over two years."

"All right. I'll get back to cultivating, then. Let me know when we reach the End-of-the-World Secret Realm."

They'd nearly finished their wine, so Yin Congyang got up to take his leave and returned to his cabin to continue cultivating.

Steven watched Yin Congyang walk away, then shook his head. He downed the rest of his wine, stood up, and headed to his private cultivation room.

In the boundless starry sky, colorful nebulae and countless asteroids surrounded an immense floating continent. Three stars, each with several planets orbiting it, revolved around the continent. Together, they formed an extraordinarily beautiful world.

In a clear corner of the starry sky, a spaceship abruptly appeared and hung motionless in the void.

"Brother Congyang, come out! We've reached the End-of-the-World Secret Realm."

Steven's voice sounded in Yin Congyang's ear. He stopped cultivating, packed up the warning measures he'd set in place, opened his cabin door, and headed to the control room.

Steven had been waiting for him in the control room. He gave Yin Congyang a helpless look. "I told you that cultivation needs to be balanced with rest. Why won't you listen? You've been cultivating for more than two years since we last drank together. I didn't want to disturb you, so I didn't even dare invite you for a drink..."

"Sorry about that, Brother Steven," Yin Congyang replied with a smile. "I got carried away. Once we reach the End-of-the-World Secret Realm, the drinks are on me."

"That's more like it... We've completed our Cosmic Shuttle. Since this is my own spaceship, we have to wait for verification before we can proceed." Steven nodded. "You've never been to the End-of-the-World Secret Realm, so I'll show you what it looks like..."

"Exterior view, full virtual," Steven ordered the ship's intelligence.

The view outside the spaceship appeared before Yin Congyang's eyes. He gazed at the magnificent scenery, his eyes widening slightly in amazement.

"Wait, did we shuttle directly into the secret realm?"

"That's right. Only a few places in the secret realm let you accelerate to the speed of light. In most places, you have to travel by ordinary flight. It would take an extremely long time to fly in from outside the realm. After all, the End-of-the-World Secret Realm is at least five million light-years across..."

Yin Congyang nodded slightly and looked at the continent floating in the void. "Is that the Main Continent of the End-of-the-World Secret Realm?"

"Yes." Steven couldn't help admiring Yin Congyang's calm. He himself had been utterly shocked the first time he saw the End-of-the-World Secret Realm. "Besides this Main Continent, the End-of-the-World Secret Realm has other places that serve as mission sites. Once you use an Evolution Chamber to raise your body to Universe Level Nine, you can take on cultivation missions. Of course, at first, you should stick to Safe Level missions. Make sure you remember that. You've never been to Chaos City or spent a hundred years laying your foundation there, and you haven't received systematic guidance in laws or secret techniques. Difficult missions might be too much for you..."

Yin Congyang couldn't help feeling a little touched. Steven had a clear motive, but his concern for Yin Congyang was sincere. What mattered was what a person did, not what they thought. If he had the ability and the chance in the future, Yin Congyang could return the favor.

"Understood, Brother Steven. I'll choose cultivation missions according to my ability. By the way, how long will you be staying in the End-of-the-World Secret Realm this time?"

"I've finished the series of Domain Lord-level missions. I'll stay for a while this time and see if I can break through to World Lord. After all, World Lord is the fastest stage for comprehending laws. If I can break through, I should be able to comprehend them much faster... But there are more World Lords in the End-of-the-World Region than anywhere else, and the competition is fierce. There are just so many people here..."

"Then I hope you break through to World Lord soon, Brother Steven..."

"Beep~~~ Verification complete. Flight may continue!" the spaceship's intelligence announced.

"Fly to the Main Continent Spaceport."

The spaceship gave a barely perceptible shudder and quickly flew toward the continent floating in the void.

The closer they got, the more they could sense the continent's immense scale and bustling prosperity. Countless lights darted back and forth, transforming the silent Cosmic Secret Realm into a lively, bustling place that was chaotic yet orderly.

Before long, the spaceship reached the Spaceport. Steven waved his hand and put it away, then took Yin Congyang to have his identity verified.

Afterward, he led him to Moore, the administrator of the End-of-the-World Secret Realm, who granted Yin Congyang the right to live there.

The Main Continent was enormous. Although the End-of-the-World Region had tens of millions of residents, it still seemed vast and sparsely populated. There were several commercial districts in different parts of the continent. After leaving Moore, Steven took Yin Congyang to one of them, where Yin Congyang deliberately chose a seemingly upscale restaurant and treated Steven to a meal.

They both enjoyed the meal, though the bill of more than ten million Universe Coins made Yin Congyang wince a little. Steven, however, was clearly very satisfied.

He'd wanted to befriend Yin Congyang, but Yin Congyang was only at Universe Level, and Steven couldn't bring himself to lower his status. Yin Congyang's thoughtfulness earned him considerable goodwill. They exchanged their Virtual Universe IDs and agreed to get in touch if anything came up. Then Yin Congyang said goodbye and flew to his residence in the real world.

Before long, he found the building containing the suite assigned to him. Countless skyscrapers rose from the ground, with ample space between them. The layout was complex but not disorderly, and the number of each building was displayed near its center, making them easy to find.

Every suite had its own Smart Butler. As he flew to his door, a hazy beam of light shot out from it and locked onto Yin Congyang. The door then opened automatically. "Identity confirmed. Welcome, Master."

When he entered, he saw that the real-world residence was just as good as the one in the Virtual Universe. It had all the basic facilities he could need: cultivation, entertainment, relaxation, lodging, dining, and bathing areas.

He stepped into the cultivation room and looked around at the vast space, smiling with satisfaction. He took a deep breath, drawing pure cosmic energy into his body.

Although the End-of-the-World Secret Realm was the outermost of the Four Great Secret Realms, its level was far higher than that of the Green Pouch Secret Realm. The cosmic energy it contained was also much purer.

He looked down and spoke to the Optical Computer. "Apply to the Virtual Universe System for a Nutrition Chamber, then check when the goods I ordered will be delivered."

A few seconds later, the Optical Computer replied, "Application approved. Starting tomorrow, Master may visit the C-Grade Nutrition Pod area in the administration district each day and enter Nutrition Pod C365. This will continue until your body reaches Universe Level Nine, which is expected to take nine months... Your order will be delivered to Area A289 in the administration district in three hours."

Yin Congyang couldn't help thinking that members of the End-of-the-World Region were like unwanted stepchildren. They even had to go soak in the Nutrition Chambers themselves, and the Nutrient Solution they used was rather low-grade. It wasn't a problem, exactly; it just took a long time to see results.

After breaking through to Universe Level, he hadn't spent much time cultivating his body, but the fluctuations from his Dantian and the seed had still brought it to the peak of Universe Level One. It wouldn't be long before he reached Level Two.

What made him happiest was the Drifting Blood manual. He'd mastered four sets of sword techniques, completing the fourth just before reaching the End-of-the-World Secret Realm. He'd fully grasped the profound essence of the Law of Space explained in it.

As for his clones, he'd only finished cultivating Soul Containers for the other two. He hadn't taken the next step yet. His points were insufficient, and he didn't have enough Universe Coins to buy any decent treasures. He decided to wait until his body reached Universe Level Nine and his soul power increased before separating his soul. For now, he'd use the treasures he'd redeemed with points earlier to finish cultivating his Second and Third Clones.