Change on Mist Island

Inside the Limit Dojo global headquarters, within the giant spaceship-shaped building.

In a spacious room on the top floor.

Li Qingxu and Hong were sipping tea, discussing the cultivation of the Secret of Movement, though most of the talking was done by him.

Hong listened from the side, verifying the insights against his own understanding.

"Bang, bang bang."

Suddenly, an anxious knocking sounded from outside.

"Hmm?"

Hong frowned slightly, "Come in."

The door opened automatically.

Three people walked in from outside: two personal guards wearing black robes and golden masks, and Inspector Wang.

"What is it?"

A flash of surprise crossed Hong's eyes; it was unexpected for the three of them to arrive together.

"Dojo Master, Councilor Li."

Inspector Wang's face held a hint of excitement as he hurriedly said, "Luo Feng has finally come out."

Beside him, the burly Beast said in a low voice, "Dojo Master, Luo Feng, who spent one year and three months inside Ancient Civilization Ruins No. 9, has come out alive."

"Not bad."

Hong revealed a smile of relief.

One year and three months—and in an ancient ruin that even he could not fully comprehend—having stayed for such a long time, Luo Feng must have gained some special harvest.

"No need to worry anymore, right?"

Li Qingxu picked up his teacup for a sip, teasing him.

Half a year ago, when Hong came out of seclusion and heard the news about Luo Feng, he had personally dealt with those who were making small moves against Luo Feng's family.

That had immediately sent those factions trembling in fear; if not for Thor's intervention, it wouldn't have just been three high-level War Gods who died.

"Haha."

Hong laughed helplessly, "Let's go, let's go welcome our Dojo's Inspector Luo."

"You all go ahead, I am going back into seclusion."

Li Qingxu waved his hand.

"Hmm, that is fine. Your realm is the most important; reaching the Star Level as soon as possible is more beneficial for our humanity."

Hong nodded, then left with the personal guards and Inspector Wang.

Li Qingxu returned to the martial arts hall and submerged himself in cultivation once again.

Since Luo Feng had emerged from that place, the time to enter the universe was drawing near; he had to improve his realm quickly.

At the same time, on Earth, deep within a three-thousand-meter-deep region of the Pacific Ocean.

That twelve-meter-wide black giant egg had been resting there for over a year, covered in mud and weeds, making it quite inconspicuous.

"Crack, crack~"

The mysterious black egg trembled slightly, causing some of the weeds and mud clinging to its surface to slide off.

"Crack~~"

As it trembled again, more weeds and mud fell away, gradually revealing the strange golden patterns on the surface of the black egg.

"Hum!"

The black egg began to vibrate violently, and a crack appeared on its surface.

'Pop!' Following several heavy, successive sounds.

The cracked area of the black egg shattered, and a pitch-black, slime-covered unknown object emerged from the shell.

This unknown object began to devour the eggshell, as if it hadn't eaten for years, consuming it ravenously.

In just over ten minutes, one-third of the twelve-meter-diameter black egg had been eaten, and the pitch-black creature was fully revealed.

It was a reptilian creature with a jet-black body covered in black scales and possessing strong limbs.

On its massive black torso, there was a pair of scaled wings and a tail that swayed slowly like a dragon's tail.

On its raised head stood a single horn pointing toward the sky.

As it devoured the eggshell, its body continued to grow, expanding from a length of about twelve meters to sixteen meters.

"Woo~"

A sharp, joyful sound emanated from its throat.

Its body possessed an inexplicable, suffocating pressure; whether it was the ferocious scaled wings, the strong limbs, the tail, or the single horn, everything was a cold, solid black.

On that sharp, black horn, mysterious golden markings were faintly visible; they were so inconspicuous that one had to get close and look carefully to notice them.

These mysterious golden markings trailed along the horn, head, neck, and the scales of its back, spreading out as if a layer of golden-patterned armor had been fused into its spine.

The dense golden markings even branched out from the back, with several lines extending to its wings and others to its sharp, four-limbed claws.

After devouring the black eggshell, the mysterious monster coiled on the seabed and surveyed its surroundings, as ancient memories contained within its bloodline gradually flooded into its mind.

The mysterious monster's pair of dark golden pupils suddenly flared, turning a dazzling, brilliant gold.

The mysterious golden markings on its horn, neck, and back scales also glowed faintly, revealing a visible shimmer of gold.

The surrounding water current actually stagnated for an instant, and the seabed rocks beneath the coiled monster began to tremble slightly.

Surges of energy poured into its body.

Yet, after only a moment, it stopped absorbing energy.

From that night on, a bloody hunt began in the surrounding sea!

The mysterious monster's stomach seemed to be a bottomless pit; it ate everywhere it went.

Along the way, it devoured a vast number of terrifying sea monsters, every one of them at the Lord Level; if these massive sea monsters were piled up, they would likely form a mountain.

However, in less than a day, despite consuming so many monsters, its body length had barely changed.

The birth of this mysterious monster sparked a bloody hunt in the Pacific Ocean, yet the humans on Earth remained completely unaware.

Time flowed on, and another three months passed.

At the Limit Dojo headquarters, on the top floor, inside the suite belonging exclusively to Li Qingxu.

"Too slow."

In the center of the martial arts hall, Li Qingxu opened his eyes and sighed.

Despite months of closed-door cultivation, he still hadn't broken through to the Fourth Heaven of the Dao Palace.

Given the energy required for his current realm, the cosmic energy on Earth was truly too thin.

According to his estimates, if he relied solely on absorbing the cosmic energy on Earth, it would take at least another year to reach the Fourth Heaven of the Dao Palace.

As for the Fifth Heaven of the Dao Palace, that would take even longer, not to mention breaking through the Dao Palace to ascend to the Four Extremes Realm.

"Hm? Why are there so many call notifications?"

Li Qingxu looked at his communication device; there was a string of missed calls, the most recent being from two days ago, from Hong.

He immediately dialed back.

Within two seconds, the video call connected.

"Hello, Hong, what is it?"

Looking at the man in black appearing on the screen, Li Qingxu poured himself a cup of tea and asked.

"You've finally come out of seclusion. A situation has arisen at Mist Island; a new Emperor Level monster has appeared. I suspect that this place doesn't just have Vegetation Spirit, but might also hide a great treasure."

As Hong spoke, the video feed suddenly changed.

Small fighter jets were scattered along the shores of the Baili Lake, some setting up laser cannons, others deploying special detection and monitoring equipment.

A large number of staff members, protected by a group of martial artists, were carrying out their work.

In addition to these small fighter jets, there were six ultra-large, disc-shaped passenger planes.

"I see."

Li Qingxu understood immediately.

That must be Babata tossing out more Wood Bud Crystals, wanting to gather all the Planetary Level martial artists on Earth to choose a successor for the Black Ink Star.

"Alright, I'll be there immediately."

With those words, Li Qingxu ended the video call, and his figure vanished from the room as if teleporting.

As he stepped through the sky, he disappeared into the horizon within a few breaths.

Although he wouldn't steal Luo Feng's opportunity, he would certainly make the trip if he could pick up some Wood Bud Crystals for free.

After all, these things were far faster than absorbing the cosmic energy of Earth.