Divine Ability Seed

The words had barely left his mouth. Jiang Ran furrowed his brow. He had planned to smash the other party's head with a single punch, take the item, and leave. But now he had changed his mind. The moment the monster lunged at him again, Jiang Ran slipped to the side and precisely seized its swinging foreleg by the wrist with his right hand. Then he twisted his hips, sweeping his arm through a half circle. Whoosh! Jiang Ran swung the monster's over-six-foot frame up into the air and sent it crashing down onto the concrete. Bang!!! Dust billowed, and cracks spread across the ground. The monster seemed stunned by the impact. Even the black flames flickering in its eyes froze for an instant. It lay dazed in the crater, unable to react. Jiang Ran walked over unhurriedly and crouched down. His right hand clamped around the monster's neck like an iron vise as he watched its eyes slowly refocus and asked softly, "What language... were you speaking just now?" Though Jiang Ran couldn't understand it, the language sounded very similar to what the Ancestral Person had spoken. The monster gurgled a few times in its throat but didn't answer. It only bared its fangs at Jiang Ran, drool dripping from the corner of its mouth. Jiang Ran didn't waste any more words. He raised his left hand. The Dragon-Tiger Phantom appeared along his arm, a low dragon's roar rising as tiger stripes rippled beneath the surface. He punched the ground beside the monster's face. He didn't hit its head directly, but the force brushing past his fist still scraped away a patch of scales from its cheek, exposing the skin underneath. The monster's body stiffened. It seemed to finally realize its predicament. The ferocity in its eyes faded a little. It glared at Jiang Ran and forced out a halting sentence in a stiff voice: "Do... you know who my dad... is!?" Jiang Ran froze. Well, would you look at that—even Exotic Beasts were pulling the "my dad" card now? But he showed no sign of surprise. Instead, he followed up on its words: "Who's your dad? Where is he?" The monster opened its mouth as if to speak, then suddenly shut it again. It turned its head away, looking determined not to say a thing. Seeing this, Jiang Ran asked a different question: "How can you speak our language?" The monster fell silent for a few seconds before answering hesitantly. Its voice was still stiff, like a child who had only just learned to speak: "Eat... you... then can speak." A glimmer of understanding flashed in Jiang Ran's eyes. So that was it. That explained why the Hairy Person could speak modern Chinese, and why this Exotic Beast could at least communicate. They seemed able to acquire a person's language and even some of their memories by devouring them. That made his next question crucial. Jiang Ran stared into the monster's eyes, lowering his voice: "When you kill humans... do you also get a light orb? Or a Divine Ability?" The monster's body jolted. It immediately clamped its mouth shut and squeezed its eyes closed, giving up completely. But Jiang Ran already had his answer. Some things didn't need to be said. He asked nothing more and abruptly tightened his right hand. Crack... The faint snap of its neck breaking rang especially clearly on the silent street. The monster's body convulsed twice, then went limp. The black flames in its eyes died out completely. Jiang Ran released it and stood up. He drew the tactical knife from his waist and deftly split open the monster's skull. As expected, deep inside its cranium, a blue light orb floated quietly. Jiang Ran took it out and put it in the Heavenly Net Pouch. But he felt little joy. He had always thought the Abyssal Void's appearance was a supernatural opportunity created just for humanity. Kill monsters, claim treasures, grow stronger. Uncover the truth behind Myth Revival, step by step. But the Ancestral Person, the appearance of this Exotic Beast, and their conversation just now all pointed to another possibility. This wasn't a trial ground meant for humans alone. The Ancestral People and Exotic Beasts were just as intelligent as humans. In terms of individual combat strength, they might even far surpass ordinary humans. If he hadn't had a complete Divine Ability system, with the Blood Sensing Realm to back it up, that Hairy Person could have slaughtered him just now. And at this point, even setting aside whether anyone had been lucky enough to gather a complete set of Divine Abilities, those who had obtained even a few were probably very rare. Now, this didn't look like an opportunity. It seemed more like a... game of slaughter. And history seemed to suggest that humanity might never have won. Jiang Ran shook his head, temporarily pushing these thoughts aside. He raised his hand and checked the time. 3:07 a.m. Less than two hours remained until the agreed-upon five o'clock meeting. Cuiping Mountain lay in the northern outskirts of the city, about forty kilometers away. At his current pace, running at full speed, it would take him a little over an hour. He would make it just in time. Jiang Ran quickly stowed the dozen or so Exotic Beast corpses nearby in the Heavenly Net Pouch, then set off at a run toward the north of the city. Of course, Jiang Ran didn't waste time on the way. He took the newly acquired blue light orb from the Heavenly Net Pouch, held it in his palm, and focused his thoughts. "Open." The orb suddenly burst into light, dissolving into countless blue specks that streamed into his palm. At the same time, a pair of pitch-black gloves appeared out of thin air in Jiang Ran's hands. Calling them gloves wasn't quite right. They were more like a tightly wound roll of black bandages. The material felt cool and supple, its surface engraved with dark golden patterns. Jiang Ran unrolled them. Following his instincts, he wound the bandages around both hands, layer by layer. As he tied off the final layer around his wrists... Hum! The black bandages tightened abruptly, molding perfectly to every contour of his hands without restricting his fingers at all. At the same time, the dark golden patterns on their surface flared to life. Scorching black flames rose from the patterns, settling quietly over his knuckles. The black flames burned silently, giving off no heat. At the same time, information flowed into his mind.

[Nether Bind]
[Woven from the sinews of the ancient ferocious beast Dark Flame Ni, mixed with the essence of meteorite iron. Wrap your hands and bind souls; throw a punch and send your foe to the Netherworld.]
[Property One: Attacks are imbued with dark flames that can erode flesh and are especially effective against sinister beings.]
[Property Two: Slightly enhances the power of fist-based Divine Abilities.]

A good find. Jiang Ran clenched his fists. He felt the black flames flowing across his palms, and a note of satisfaction flashed in his eyes. It enhanced fist-based Divine Abilities. That was practically tailor-made for his current fighting style, which revolved around Dragon-Tiger Fist. Jiang Ran focused his thoughts and tried channeling his vital blood into the gloves. Hum... The black flames flared brighter. As the Dragon-Tiger Phantom appeared along his arms, the crimson flow of vital blood took on a faint tinge of black, and its power seemed to rise a notch. "About a ten percent increase." Jiang Ran made an estimate. "If I push it to the limit, maybe fifteen percent." Not bad. He drew back his vital blood, and the black flames dimmed with it. The patterns faded from view beneath the bandages. By then, the faint outline of Cuiping Mountain's ridges was visible ahead through the morning mist. Half past five in the morning, at the foot of Cuiping Mountain. Dawn had yet to break, and damp, chilly mist filled the mountain woods. Yet dozens of people had already gathered in a clearing at the foot of the mountain. The crowd was divided into roughly five groups. At that moment, the atmosphere in front of the Temporary Command Platform was less than cordial. A middle-aged man in a windbreaker impatiently checked the time again and frowned. "Captain Zhou, it's already half past five. We agreed to meet at five, and we're already half an hour late. The guys can't just stand around waiting. Who exactly are we still waiting for?" The speaker was the leader of the antique collectors' group. His surname was Qian, and people in the trade called him Qian Laojiu. He had a sharp eye and plenty of connections. He had made his fortune dealing in burial goods in his early years and was now quite wealthy. His group wasn't large, with only seven or eight people. But they were well equipped, clearly no strangers to venturing into dangerous places. The leader of the Deep Realm Inspection Team was Captain Zhou. He was the same middle-aged man who had negotiated with Wang Zhenguo earlier, Zhou Yuan. At Qian Laojiu's words, he simply replied, "Let's wait a little longer. One key person hasn't arrived yet." "A key person?" Beside him, a sharp-looking man smiled. He was the person in charge of Voyage Group's operation this time. His surname was Sun, and people called him Manager Sun. He picked up the conversation as if making casual conversation. "Captain Zhou thinks so highly of him. Have you managed to recruit some expert?" Qian Laojiu scoffed. "An expert? The Abyssal Void only opened a few days ago. What kind of experts could there be? "Nothing but someone who got lucky and picked up a few more Spirit Crystals, or happened to stumble across one or two Divine Abilities." Zhou Yuan glanced at Qian Laojiu, his tone unchanged. "You should all have met the person who's coming." They all knew him!? The others' eyes shifted slightly. They all moved in different circles. How could they possibly have someone in common? Just as the atmosphere was growing awkwardly tense, the first light of dawn appeared, and the horizon turned pale. The mist among the trees took on a faint golden hue. A figure walked slowly along a narrow forest path. The newcomer wore a black hooded robe, its hem spattered with blood. A mask covered his face, and dark glasses hid his eyes. He was wrapped up from head to toe, with no distinguishing features visible. The black-robed man stopped a short distance in front of the crowd. His voice came through the mask: "Sorry, I was held up on the way." Captain Zhou showed no displeasure. On the contrary, he smiled and stepped forward. "It's good that you made it. You're right on time. We were just about to start making plans." The others' expressions varied. Most looked merely surprised. They had clearly all seen the video of someone fighting the ancient Exotic Beast Zhi alone. Only Old Qian's group looked troubled. Qian Laojiu in particular stared at Jiang Ran and couldn't help asking: "Captain Zhou, now that you've invited him, how are we supposed to divide the Divine Ability Seeds inside!?" The question was blunt. But everyone present understood. No one was surprised. Resources in the Abyssal Void were claimed through naked competition. The division of spoils was always the first thing they needed to sort out.

Captain Zhou's expression remained calm. He didn't even glance at Qian Laojiu, only replying mildly:

"Everyone's on their own."

Four words, delivered offhandedly.

Yet they made Qian Laojiu's face darken even further.

Jiang Ran was slightly taken aback.

Divine Ability Seed?

This was the first time he'd heard the term.

Did it refer to the Seed of Return to Void?

But from Old Qian's tone, it didn't seem quite the same.

After answering Old Qian, Captain Zhou seemed to notice Jiang Ran's confusion and quietly explained.

"The divine ability gained from a Seed of Return to Void is completely random, and each person can only use it once.

"But Divine Ability Seeds are different. Based on our guesses, they should be legacies left behind by famous people throughout history, and they can be used in conjunction with a Seed of Return to Void."

Jiang Ran's gaze shifted.

No wonder he hadn't found another Seed of Return to Void, despite killing so many Exotic Beasts afterward.

Seeing Jiang Ran deep in thought, Captain Zhou said no more and turned back toward the Temporary Command Platform.

Meanwhile,

after hearing Captain Zhou say that everyone was on their own, Old Qian's face had turned completely dark.

Just then, Manager Sun of Voyage Group suddenly drawled, "Old Qian, if you're not confident, why not give up your chance? I've still got plenty of people waiting to go in."

Qian Laojiu abruptly looked up and glared at Manager Sun. His lips moved as if he wanted to curse him out, but in the end, he forced the words back down and gritted out, "You don't need to worry about me."

He fell silent and stood off to the side with his arms folded, his eyes darkly sweeping over Jiang Ran, then Captain Zhou. No one knew what he was thinking.

Seeing this, Captain Zhou paid Old Qian no further attention.

He clapped his hands to draw everyone's attention, his expression turning serious.

"Everyone's here. I'll share what we know so far."

"Based on our investigation, the owner of this Ancient Tomb... should be Qu Yuan, the Ancestor of Chu Ci."