The space fell silent once more as Huang Wuye and his father fell quiet.
Time did not stop, either. Only the Gluttonous Golden Ape's slowly fading soul consciousness recorded its passage.
More than a month passed in the blink of an eye. On this day, the Gluttonous Golden Ape's soul consciousness finally disappeared completely.
Only its enormous body remained as proof that it had ever existed. But now, Huang Wuye was the master of that body.
Thump! Thump! Thump! A heavy heartbeat rang out, rising from barely audible to earthshaking in an instant.
Feeling the immense power coursing through this body, Huang Wuye smiled.
It was a rather unnerving smile. One could imagine a ferocious giant beast wearing a lecherous grin.
Huang Wuye was almost intoxicated by the sound of blood flowing through this body.
This was what it felt like to wield power. Before long, his Desolate God Clan original body would be just as powerful.
He took a deep breath, and a gale instantly swept outward.
Feeling the Origin of Gold and Space Origin Law enveloping him, Huang Wuye couldn't help but marvel.
So this was how clearly one could perceive the laws.
With the Gluttonous Golden Ape's 8,100-fold genes, innate affinity for the laws, and the powerful consciousness his soul clone carried, the fluctuations of the laws were within reach.
"From this day forth, I am the Night Emperor." Huang Wuye rose abruptly, his massive body blotting out the sky as a thunderous voice rang out.
The Gluttonous Golden Ape clone proclaimed its existence to the world. Paired with his mountain-like frame, the sight seemed almost divine.
"Little Ye, who knew you were such a chuunibyou!"
A voice shattered the solemn atmosphere. It was Huang Tian, who had been standing guard nearby.
Huang Wuye was speechless. His bargain-bin father really did have a knack for butting in.
Still, thinking of how Huang Tian had watched over him for the past month, he felt touched. But what could he do? His bargain-bin dad from Earth had a few screws loose. He could only forgive him!
"Looks like your possession succeeded. Let's see what innate talents the Gluttonous Golden Ape has."
Huang Tian wasn't surprised by his son's reaction. He laughed, then asked about the Gluttonous Golden Ape.
At the mention of its innate secret techniques and inherited abilities, Huang Wuye immediately grew interested and made no attempt to hide anything.
He hadn't spent the past month merely possessing it. He had inherited everything the Gluttonous Golden Ape had.
That included all its innate secret techniques and inherited abilities. Aside from their souls, he and the Gluttonous Golden Ape were virtually indistinguishable. That was how powerful his possession technique was.
After sorting through the vast store of memories, Huang Wuye began explaining them to Huang Tian.
"First, the Gluttonous Golden Ape's innate secret techniques.
"There are five in total.
"The first is Ultimate Strength. It has three stages and grows with one's cultivation. At the Universe Level, I'm currently at the first stage.
"The first stage lets the body break through its strength limit, reaching four times the power of perfect force exertion.
"The second stage lets the body break through its force-exertion limit, reaching twenty times the power of perfect force exertion.
"The third stage lets the body's force output break through its strength limit, reaching a hundred times the power of perfect force exertion.
"This innate secret technique is practically heaven-defying. It can even be used on the divine body.
"In other words, before reaching the Immortal Level, I can possess strength comparable to an Immortal God.
"And after reaching the Immortal Level, I'll still have a huge advantage over those of the same level.
"Unfortunately, only the Gluttonous Golden Ape's body can use it, and it's incredibly difficult to master."
Huang Wuye swallowed hard. Only now had he learned the full details. The Gluttonous Golden Ape seemed to follow the path of overwhelming all techniques with sheer strength. He spoke in astonishment.
Huang Tian was stunned, too. He had never heard of anything like it. "As expected of the only Special Lifeform. What about the other innate talents?"
"The second innate secret technique is Space Walker. It also has three stages and grows with one's cultivation.
"The first stage is Space Scholar, which allows the user to merge with space.
"The second stage is Space Envoy, which allows the user to gain basic control over the surrounding space.
"The third stage is Space Walker. When the king emerges, space is mine.
"Once it reaches the third stage, with equal Space Origin Law comprehension, the user can completely seize control of space from their opponent.
"This innate secret technique is powerful.
"The third innate secret technique is Golden World. It also has three stages and grows with one's cultivation.
"The first stage is the Golden World, which can amplify World Power tenfold.
"The second stage is the Golden Kingdom, which can amplify World Power a hundredfold.
"The third stage is the Golden Divine Kingdom, which can amplify World Power a thousandfold.
"This technique seems tailor-made for the Gluttonous Golden Ape.
"After all, its inner world is already powerful. It's one of the few beings to possess a world before reaching the World Lord Level.
"Amplified like this, it could defy the odds and defeat an Immortal God with World Power alone.
"Moreover, World Power is tied to the foundation of immortality. Of course, breaking through to immortality this way is also much harder.
"The fourth innate secret technique is Soul Guard. It has five stages, and each one grows with the Gluttonous Golden Ape's cultivation.
"At the first stage, it can boost its soul defense by one cultivation level and strengthen its soul as well.
"That's why, if Huang Tian hadn't found the Gluttonous Golden Ape when it had just been born, it would have been completely impossible for Huang Wuye to possess it.
"The fifth innate secret technique is Companion Spirit Weapon. Used in conjunction with the Gluttonous Golden Ape itself, it can forge multiple protective treasures.
"The treasures made with this technique can grow alongside their owner."
After reading through the five innate secret techniques, Huang Wuye was stunned. Then he was overjoyed. This was a treasure trove.
"Besides those five innate secret techniques, there are twenty-four other secret techniques, more than five thousand ordinary techniques, and some knowledge inherited from the universe. They were all bestowed by the Primal Universe."
Huang Tian clicked his tongue. Even though he had seen many heaven-defying lifeforms, this still turned his understanding upside down.
He had three Special Life Clones of his own. Their life gene levels were only fiftyfold, but the difference was enormous. He couldn't help but marvel.
"Is this what it means to be the only Special Lifeform? The Primal Universe really does favor it! Too bad its gene level is too high for it to serve as a clone."
Hearing Huang Tian mutter to himself, Huang Wuye sighed as well. He really was lucky.
If he weren't a soul clone, he truly wouldn't have been able to do anything about the Gluttonous Golden Ape in the early stages.
And if Huang Tian hadn't happened to discover it just after it was born, he wouldn't have obtained this clone, either.
It was all a matter of timing and fate. The mysteries of destiny were beyond words.
"All right, Little Ye. Get used to the Gluttonous Golden Ape's body. Now that your possession is complete, I'm leaving."
As one who was about to advance to the Immortal Level, Huang Tian had an exceptional state of mind and quickly gathered himself.
He said his goodbyes to Huang Wuye, his eyes gleaming. It seemed he had long looked forward to becoming an Immortal God.
Huang Wuye looked at Huang Tian, his aura surging, and felt a little moved.
To prepare a clone for him, his bargain-bin father had suppressed his urge to break through and stood guard while he completed the possession. Only after everything was settled was he ready to leave.
That was rare in the universe. The strong could live for endless ages, and his bargain-bin father had done everything one could ask of him.
"Sorry for the trouble, old man. Thank you." Huang Wuye smiled faintly and watched Huang Tian's departing figure for a long time.
He vaguely remembered an essay, something called "The View from Behind." Perhaps all fathers were like that.
A smile flickered across Huang Tian's lips as he turned away. The next instant, he vanished, leaving only a few words behind.
"Email me if anything comes up!"
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