"Put your hand on the Black Altar and sweep it with your spiritual force," Qishan said, fiddling with the object in his hand that looked like a Rubik's Cube.
Chen Beixun nodded, then placed his hand on the handprint slot on the Black Altar. Several beams of golden light immediately spread out like a spiderweb, covering the entire altar.
Beep, beep... The Black Altar projected an image.
(Class: Cosmic Level Third Order) (Mental Power Amplitude: 40)
"If you understand any laws, show me," Qishan said, his expression calm as he looked at the projection.
At his words, a chill spread from Chen Beixun. His body became like water, shifting into countless forms.
(Water Law Comprehension: Beginner)
Chen Beixun blinked. "Beginner?"
"I've been cultivating for so long." Chen Beixun's face fell, and his eyes darkened.
"Cultivate harder and try to cross the threshold before you become a domain lord." Qishan could naturally tell what Chen Beixun was thinking. After all those years of cultivation, he hadn't even reached the point of being called mediocre. But so what? Setbacks were common. He should recognize and accept his lack of talent, then keep cultivating as usual.
"Your brain's domain is very high, and you have a real talent for cultivating spiritual force. Besides, you've inherited your master's legacy," Qishan said.
Qishan turned his back to Chen Beixun and said calmly, "I'll plan out your cultivation schedule."
Qishan's gaze turned solemn. After thinking for a few seconds, he asked, "Has the Genius Tournament been held? Was it organized by the Virtual Universe Company or the Giant Axe Dojo?"
"It was held a hundred years ago, by the Giant Axe Dojo," Chen Beixun replied.
"Good, good." Qishan turned around and suddenly smiled, though there was something unnerving about his smile.
Chen Beixun felt a chill run down his back. Mustering his courage, he asked, "Is something wrong?"
With his hands behind his back, Qishan gazed at Chen Beixun and said, "The Genius Tournament is over, and the Warrior Tournament is coming soon. This is an opportunity! You have to seize it!"
"The Warrior Tournament?" Chen Beixun asked, puzzled.
"The Warrior Tournament is far more terrifying than the Genius Tournament's little games."
"The Warrior Tournament is far more terrifying than the Genius Tournament's little games." Qishan looked at Chen Beixun with a faint, knowing smile.
Chen Beixun shrugged and said solemnly, "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't afraid, but I want to give it a try."
"I don't want to be confined to a single Universe Country. My goal is to become the strongest!"
Chen Beixun's gaze was resolute. He'd had enough of hiding and watching others' faces, and of having to kneel and pay respects to people whose status was merely higher than his, even though their strength was far beneath his. He'd had enough of all of it!
Qishan studied the determination in Chen Beixun's eyes and said slowly, "Cultivate in peace. By the time the Warrior Tournament begins, you should at least be able to protect yourself."
In the universe, competition meant opportunity and qualification!
"Also, that Soul Secret Technique of yours is pretty good. What's it called?" Qishan suddenly asked.
"Uh... Twilight Art!" Chen Beixun replied.
"Twilight Art... the Twilight Art?!" A strange look passed through Qishan's eyes. He stared at Chen Beixun in disbelief, then laughed. "That's an incredible secret technique. It would fetch a sky-high price at an auction!"
"You're a lucky kid. You've had some fine opportunities!"
Chen Beixun gave a dry laugh. His gaze shifted, and then he said, "Let's get out of here first."
Qishan raised his brows, confused. "This place is extremely safe. Besides, there's a Starry Sky Behemoth here waiting for you to control it with your soul!"
Chen Beixun blinked and asked, "You know everything about this place?!"
They had locked down Tianwen Planet's technology to prevent anyone from escaping and revealing information about the place. They had also guided and secretly cultivated the powerful as candidates for the inheritance.
"Under normal circumstances, Luoduo, Emperor Mu, or Emperor Ta would have become the heir."
Qishan's gaze was distant and unguarded as he spoke frankly. "Your arrival disrupted my original plan."
"If you had landed on Tianwen Planet first and claimed the inheritance, I would have guided you to seek out Luoduo, then killed you in the end and made Luoduo the heir."
"Whatever else you might say, Luoduo's talent is obvious to both of us."
"You understand what I mean, right?" After saying this, Qishan looked at Chen Beixun.
Chen Beixun pondered for a moment, thinking, Whether or not I'd saved Luoduo back then, Qishan would have protected him.
If I hadn't transmigrated, Luoduo would have been the protagonist here.
The butterfly effect.
Chen Beixun thought through many things in a short time, then said, "I understand. The strong survive."
Qishan nodded slightly. The more he saw of this heir, the more satisfied he became.
The trial had already begun before Chen Beixun reached the F9-class spacecraft. He simply hadn't known it.
"This is an Ice Spirit Fruit. It'll greatly help you comprehend the Water Law." As he spoke, Qishan took a crystal-clear fruit wreathed in cold air from the cube in his hand and tossed it to Chen Beixun.
"There are Fire Spirit Fruits, Wood Spirit Fruits, and so on, too." After speaking, Qishan took out another fruit that looked like a lump of wood and tossed it to Chen Beixun.
"If the Demon Island Vine eats the Wood Spirit Fruit, it can reach the sixth or seventh level of the domain lord stage in less than a hundred years..."
"It might even cause the Demon Island Vine to mutate." As he spoke, Qishan headed toward the exit of the cultivation pod.
When he reached the door, he suddenly turned around and said, "There's an anonymous Virtual Universe helmet in the cultivation pod. Go to the Universe First Bank yourself and claim part of your master's inheritance."
"The account number is 7842-5874-LOAJ-5642-5642-034."
"The password is the account number reversed, combined with this location's coordinates and the spacecraft's unique signal wave, then calculated."
"And this is only one of your master's subaccounts. To inherit everything, you'll have to go to a Universe First Bank branch in person." Qishan narrowed his eyes as he added this.
Chen Beixun nodded slightly.
"Go cultivate," Qishan said, then left.
Chen Beixun thought it over. He decided to first visit the Universe First Bank in the Virtual Universe and claim part of his teacher's inheritance, then train in the Slaughter Arena.
The Slaughter Arena, in an endless red-and-yellow desert
Whoosh!
A flash of white light streaked past. Space rippled, and it slammed into a barrier made up of several hexagonal black mental weapons.
The white light faded. Twelve flying blades formed a chilling wheel that sliced at the barrier like a circular saw.
In an instant, the barrier split in two. The wheel slipped through the gap and cleaved the head of the man in green in half. Since the blades carried a hint of the Water Law, the blood froze and didn't spray everywhere.
Szz, szz, szz...
The endless red-and-yellow desert disappeared, replaced by a gigantic island.
(Ai Kun (Chen Beixun) won in 3 minutes and 7 seconds!)
"Someone named Ai Kun has won twenty-five consecutive wagered battles!" someone exclaimed.
Chen Beixun opened his eyes and gave the man in green he'd just fought an awkward smile. "Don't forget the hundred million Universe Coins."
The man in green glared at him, furious.
"I'm a second-tier elite of the Virtual Universe Company!"
Chen Beixun replied calmly.
"Are you trying to welch? I bet you just don't have the money."
The surrounding spectators heard him and started heckling the man in green.
"Your Highness Si Te, fight one more round! You might win it all back!"
"We haven't seen enough!"
Chen Beixun chuckled, then said, "With your family's wealth, Your Highness Si Te, a hundred million Universe Coins is just a drop in the bucket."
"I'm sure you'll keep your promise, right?" Chen Beixun said, raising his brows and drawing out the word "promise."
Si Te, the man in green, flushed red with anger.
At that moment, several people were watching from a nearby observation tower.
Three simple, antique chairs sat atop the tower, and each was occupied by an undying.
"Li Tong, what do you think of that guy named Ai Kun?" asked a tall, burly undying with a tiger's head and a human body.
"Not bad. He's close to crossing the threshold of the laws," replied the undying named Tong Li.
The two of them looked toward the short undying with red hair and red eyes.
"There's nothing to say. He hasn't crossed the threshold of the laws, so bringing him into the inner circle wouldn't be much use."
"I looked into him. He came from a slave planet, escaped during a planetary riot, and participated in the Genius Tournament. He didn't even make it through the first round." The short undying blinked, then added, "Let's keep an eye on him."
"Agreed."
Chen Beixun was still cultivating and knew nothing of these influential figures' conversation.
"A mission?" Chen Beixun asked, puzzled.
Chunqiu: "That's right. Qishan assigned you a mission, Master."
Chen Beixun nodded, then waved his hand, bringing up a projection panel. He said, "The first cultivation mission... movement technique."