Lu Ming's pupils suddenly contracted. A thought so utterly insane it bordered on madness flashed through his mind like lightning, making his whole body shudder!
That was right!
External objects were just that—external objects!
What could possibly belong to him more than his own body, a peak Universe Level Ninth Stage body? What could be more closely connected to him, or... more valuable?!
He forced down his heart, which was practically leaping out of his chest, and sent a question to the system with a thought.
"System! Tell me, can I... sacrifice myself?! Sacrifice this body I'm in right now?!"
Even as he asked, he thought the idea was utterly absurd.
Sacrifice himself?
The system's response came swiftly.
[ Ding! Detected an item belonging to the host: one Universe Level Ninth Stage lifeform body. Meets the criteria for sacrifice. Sacrifice may proceed. ]
"!!!"
It really was possible!
"System, if I sacrifice my body, will I die immediately?"
He had to ask beforehand. Otherwise, if he kicked the bucket as soon as the sacrifice was complete, all this would have been for nothing.
[ Ding. No. ]
Good!
As long as he was sure he wouldn't die, then none of the rest mattered!
He'd take the gamble!
He had to take this chance!
Rather than cling to this withered shell, nearing the end of its lifespan with no hope of a breakthrough, and struggle on for another two hundred years, he'd use this final asset to gamble on a future that reached the heavens!
"Hahaha! Good! Good! Good!"
A trace of madness flashed through Lu Ming's eyes.
"I've lived for ninety thousand years. Today, I'm going all in!"
He didn't hesitate any longer. With a thought, he gave the system an order.
"System! Sacrifice it for me!!"
"Sacrifice the body I have right now, this Universe Level Ninth Stage body!!"
The instant the command went out, Lu Ming felt a lightness unlike anything he had ever experienced, as if his soul were about to break free of some heavy restraint.
[ Ding! Command received! Beginning sacrifice of an item belonging to the host: one Universe Level Ninth Stage lifeform body! ]
[ Sacrifice in progress... ]
An indescribable light, gentle yet supreme, instantly enveloped Lu Ming from head to toe.
He felt his consciousness being drawn out. From what seemed like a god's-eye view, he "saw" the body that had accompanied him for ninety thousand years, battled across the stars, forged countless legends, and borne countless wounds and regrets.
Within that light, it slowly broke apart and vanished, drawn into an unknowable dimensional passage...
There was no pain, only a strange sensation of being "separated" from it.
[ Sacrifice successful! ]
[ Calculating a random multiplier return based on the value of the sacrifice... ]
[ Ding! Congratulations, host. You have received a ten-thousandfold return! ]
A ten-thousandfold return?!
Lu Ming's spiritual form shuddered!
Had his luck just exploded?!
[ Generating reward... ]
[ Congratulations, host. You have obtained: one Domain Lord Ninth Stage body, Gene Level 100. Please claim your reward! ]
As soon as the system finished speaking, centered on his soul—
Bones, meridians, organs, skin... Every inch of him formed at a visible speed. His newly formed body glowed with a faint, radiant light.
Almost in an instant, a flawless new body had been fully reconstructed!
Lu Ming's soul returned to it, and an unprecedented feeling of strength, lightness, and clarity filled his entire being!
He instinctively raised his hand, gazing at the fair, slender palm, alive with youthful vigor yet infused with terrifying power. He felt the pure Origin Force surging endlessly through him, far beyond what he had possessed before, and sensed his clear, distinct resonance with the laws of the universe...
He was stunned.
Then an overwhelming joy, like a galaxy exploding, swept through his soul!
He'd done it! And... he'd received a ten-thousandfold return!
He'd gone straight from his old account to a top-tier one!!
"Haha... Hahahaha!!!"
Lu Ming's laughter, filled with exhilaration and disbelief, rang through the secret chamber—a laugh that sounded as if he had been reborn!
This power... It was too strong!
Was it more than a hundred or a thousand times stronger than when he had been at Universe Level Ninth Stage?!
Domain Lord Ninth Stage!
And a Domain Lord Ninth Stage with a hundredfold Gene Level!
What did that mean?
It meant that his base strength, speed, defense, Origin Force reserves, soul perception... Nearly every aspect of him was a hundred times greater than that of an ordinary Domain Lord Ninth Stage expert!
What an absurd disparity!
He was practically a human-shaped Starry Sky Behemoth!
No, he was even stronger than a Starry Sky Behemoth!!
The immense joy and sense of power coursing through him nearly made him throw back his head and roar!
Without thinking, he relaxed his control over his power just a little, wanting to experience the might of this new body more fully.
But the moment he relaxed that control—
BOOM!!!
A terrifying aura beyond description erupted from the secret chamber where he stood, like a sea beast that had slept for billions of years suddenly awakening!
The aura surged forth, vast and boundless, carrying the absolute pressure of a Domain Lord at the peak with a hundredfold Gene Level!
Crack! Crack! Crack!
The Black Jet Gold walls of the secret chamber, sturdy enough to withstand attacks below Domain Lord Level, groaned under the pressure of the aura he was merely radiating naturally. Cracks spread across them!
The aura swept through the chamber without hindrance, pierced the ten-thousand-year-old glaciers, and raced at the speed of light across the entire Azure Mist Planet!
In an instant!
Everywhere on Azure Mist Planet, no matter where they were or what they were doing—the workers busy at the spaceport, passersby in the streets, warriors cultivating in their training rooms, every living being!
From Stellar Level and Planetary Level experts down to Apprentice Level fighters and ordinary mortals!
At that moment, they all felt an irresistible, incomprehensible pressure crash down as though the entire sky were collapsing!
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Countless people instantly lost control of their bodies. They collapsed, fell to their knees, or sprawled face-down against their will!
Powerful warriors, frail women, even bewildered children—all could do only one thing: hit the ground!
Lord Mo had just led four geniuses into a side hall of the Lu Family ancestral shrine and was about to remind them of the rules when his expression changed dramatically!
He was a Universe Level Third Order expert, yet before this pressure, he felt as insignificant as an ant!
The Origin Force in his body froze instantly, and his soul trembled!
"This... This is... the Old Ancestor's aura?! But... how could it be so... so terrifying?!"
As the horrifying thought flashed through his mind, his body was forced down with a thud and pinned to the ground. He couldn't even move a finger!
The four geniuses behind him fared even worse. They were pressed flat against the ground.
Just then, a long laugh, brimming with unrestrained joy and delight, and with the domineering pride of one who looked down on the entire universe, rolled like thunder from the glaciers in the far north of the continent. It echoed across the skies of Azure Mist Planet!
"Hahahahahaha—!!!"
The laughter pierced the clouds, scattered them for thousands of miles, and reverberated through the planet's atmosphere!
All the living beings lying on the ground trembled even more at the sound, their hearts filled with boundless awe and fear!
They didn't understand what had happened. They only knew that the owner of that laughter had the power to decide the fate of the entire planet in an instant!
In the secret chamber, Lu Ming finally reined in the overwhelming aura he had released unconsciously. But the wild joy on his face and the bright gleam in his eyes hadn't dimmed in the slightest.
He clenched his fist, feeling the power within him that could destroy the heavens and earth.
"Domain Lord Ninth Stage... a hundredfold Gene Level..."
"Hahahaha! System, you're really... amazing!"
He had thought that breaking through to Domain Lord Level One and gaining a million years of life would be a stroke of incredible fortune.
He hadn't expected the system to take him straight to the peak of Domain Lord Level!
He was now just one step away from becoming a World Lord!
And it had also bestowed upon him the gift of a "hundredfold Gene Level," something considered top-tier among the countless races of the universe!
How was that merely soaring to the heavens?
It was practically a leap across the universe!
He had gone from a frail old Universe Level expert struggling to survive to a terrifying existence practically invincible among Domain Lords!
With his current strength, he could suppress a hundred versions of his former self with a mere flip of his hand!
He could probably even fight some weaker World Lords!
"The Black Dragon Mountain Star Sector, the Ganwu Universe Kingdom, and even the entire Primal Universe..."
Lu Ming's gaze seemed to pierce endless space and take in a far vaster stage.
"I, Lu Ming, have arrived!"