Gene Theft

Chapter 20: Gene Theft

The tall, slender figure was naturally Chen Lin. He had successfully broken through to the Xiantian Realm and could finally transform into human form for short periods.

Suddenly, his tightly shut eyes snapped open. The pupils within them shimmered with an eerie, deep red light, sinister and uncanny. A moment later, they changed back to black and white.

Chen Lin exhaled slowly, releasing the violent spiritual energy within him. He lowered his head and slowly held out his hands, staring at the pair that had returned to human form. He fell silent.

Nearly half a year had passed since his rebirth in this world. He had finally evolved from the body of a weak ferocious beast into human form. The process left him sighing with emotion, but he had no time to dwell on it. As if suddenly remembering something, he hurried out of the house and into the courtyard.

There was a well in the courtyard. Chen Lin drew a basin of clear water and set it in front of him, then gazed down at his reflection.

Naked, his tall, lean body was tightly muscled. His features were sharply defined, deep and austere, and an air of wild arrogance and forbidding authority seemed to come naturally to him.

"This..."

Chen Lin froze. This appearance was exactly like the one he'd had in his previous life, as if they'd been carved from the same mold.

He was astonished, but more than anything, he felt a great weight lift from his heart. The Demon Race generally looked terrifying and strange; even after taking human form, most were crude and ugly. Being able to keep his previous appearance made Chen Lin feel incredibly lucky.

He returned inside and took out a small bag woven from gray silk. With a thought, he retrieved a set of green robes and put them on.

This was a Storage Bag. Every new disciple received one as a gift from the sect's welcoming disciple. It could store items, and the rewards and provisions for registered disciples were kept inside. Though it was only a low-grade Storage Bag with a capacity of five cubic meters, it was more than enough for Chen Lin at present.

He had just changed into his robes and had not yet had time to think about anything else when the Guide's numb, icy voice suddenly rang through his mind.

"Ding!"

"Contractor's main quest complete: Break through to the Xiantian Realm within three months. Current progress: Complete. The system has issued a reward. Would you like to receive it now? Yes/No."

"Yes."

Chen Lin was pleased and chose yes without hesitation.

A flash of light appeared before him, and two glass containers filled with emerald-green liquid materialized in front of him. Three ordinary-looking beans, each about the size of a broad bean, appeared alongside them.

Chen Lin knew these were mid-grade Gene Serum and Senzu Beans from the Dragon Ball world. Before he could examine them closely, the Guide's cold voice sounded again.

"Contractor has completed the first main quest. The system will issue a special reward. The contractor may randomly draw a set of Dharma Artifacts. Would you like to begin the draw now? Yes/No."

Dharma Artifacts could be operated simply with spiritual energy. Experts at the Xiantian stage possessed spiritual energy within their bodies but could not control it freely. It was like a child possessing spiritual energy: they could use brute force to knock an adult down, but had no idea how to wield that power skillfully. Dharma Artifacts used special formations carved into them to release spiritual energy, producing effects similar to spells and divine abilities.

Dharma Artifacts had all kinds of wondrous uses and astonishing power. They were suited to experts in the Xiantian and Sea-Opening Realms.

Above Dharma Artifacts were Spirit Artifacts, which possessed sentience and shared a connection with their owners. They could erase a living being's consciousness and seal it within the artifact, making them even more powerful. Above Spirit Artifacts were special Life-Bound Soul Artifacts, Treasure Artifacts, Spirit-Connecting Treasure Artifacts, and so on.

"Yes."

Chen Lin of course agreed without hesitation. Things that could increase his strength were always welcome.

"Drawing... Draw complete."

"Congratulations, host. You have obtained a Dharma Artifact: Void Spirit Mother-Son Sword."

"Void Spirit Mother-Son Sword. Grade: Supreme. Composed of five sword-artifacts, with the mother sword as the primary and the four child swords as support. With the aid of a formation and Spirit Stones, it can instantly set up a 'Void Formation' and trap enemies within. Under the formation's influence, the opponent will experience an illusion (the effect depends on the opponent's cultivation). It can also set up a 'Spirit Formation' around its owner to gather the spiritual energy of heaven and earth for cultivation or healing. The main god's evaluation: A support-type Dharma Artifact, even more valuable than an ordinary Spirit Artifact."

Chen Lin was delighted. He had completely overlooked that the Guide had said "a set" of Dharma Artifacts. Now he understood what "a set" meant. In other words, the five swords could be separated, and any single one of them was a supreme Dharma Artifact. Together, the five had two incredible divine abilities. They were no less powerful than Spirit Artifacts.

After happily placing the Dharma Artifacts in his Storage Bag, one unexpected event followed right on the heels of another.

A blood-red seed in Chen Lin's mind suddenly began to slowly turn. A blood-jade-colored aura spread out, quickly reaching his brow. From there, it rapidly devoured everything in its path, covering his entire body in an instant. The eerie, overwhelming aura coiled around him like the red flames of hell, as if it meant to burn everything to ashes. It seemed Chen Lin's body could be swallowed and obliterated at any moment!

Caught off guard, Chen Lin was horrified. Before he could think of a way to deal with it, the Guide's voice rang through his mind.

"Warning, warning. The contractor has advanced to the Xiantian Realm, and an irreversible change has occurred in his bloodline. The contractor is awakening a natural divine ability... The system will reevaluate the host..."

Awakening a natural divine ability?

Hearing this, Chen Lin slowly calmed down. The strange changes in his body were probably caused by the Source Blood seed in his mind.

The strange phenomenon lasted half a cup of tea before gradually fading away. At last, the Guide's voice rang out once more.

"Awakening complete. Contractor has awakened the natural divine ability: Gene Theft. The system will reevaluate the contractor..."

"Contractor's condition: Good."

"Race: Demon Race."

"Bloodline level: Earth Rank (mutated, capable of evolution)."

"Natural divine abilities: Blood Absorption Healing, Advanced Perception, Gene Theft."

"Growth stage: Early Xiantian."

"Cultivation techniques: Dao Heaven, Dragon-Elephant Nirvana Art, Shattering Nirvana Finger."

"Gene Theft?"

Chen Lin's eyes widened. He hurriedly checked his status panel and found the section on natural divine abilities.

"Gene Theft: (Passive) By absorbing an opponent's blood, you can obtain and integrate the opponent's superior gene fragments into yourself. There is a small chance of acquiring the opponent's natural divine ability. System evaluation: A plan to complete the genes of the world's most perfect creature. The direction of evolution is unpredictable."

Chen Lin was stunned for a moment, then overcome with joy. This natural divine ability... was practically heaven-defying!

"Bang!"

But before he could examine the ability's uses, the courtyard gate was suddenly kicked open with tremendous force, sending wooden splinters flying!

Chen Lin's gaze turned cold. He had sensed three powerful auras approaching earlier. At first, he had thought nothing of it, assuming they were merely passing by. Now, it was clear they had come for him.

He was puzzled. He had only just joined the Myriad Demon Sect and had offended no one. He couldn't understand how trouble had found him so quickly.

Chen Lin walked out of the house and sized up the newcomers.

"Are you the useless 'Parasitic Soul-Sharing Body' they were talking about?"

There were three of them. The leader was a tall, thin man with a horse-like face, dressed in sapphire-blue robes. His features were sinister and terrifying. He had kicked open the courtyard gate as if it were his own backyard, then strolled in without a care.

He stopped in front of Chen Lin and looked him over with an appraising gaze. A trace of surprise flickered in his tiny, venomous eyes. "Oh? You've already taken human form. You must have just broken through to the Xiantian stage. Heh, that's convenient. Now I don't have to talk to a beast that can't speak. This'll be much easier."

Chen Lin studied him in turn and quietly activated Advanced Perception. He sensed that all three were Xiantian experts. The horse-faced man had the highest cultivation, at the mid-Xiantian stage, while the two behind him were both early-Xiantian experts.

Judging by their tone, they had come looking for trouble.

"If you mean the so-called 'Parasitic Soul-Sharing Body'... then that would be me, Chen. May I ask what brings you three here to smash up my place of cultivation?"

He folded his arms across his chest, his thoughts racing, but his expression remained impassive as he replied coldly.

"Heh..."

The horse-faced man saw Chen Lin's cool, utterly unbothered expression and felt a surge of anger. He showed none of it, though, only giving a strange, sinister laugh as he fixed his eyes on Chen Lin. "I wouldn't call it advice. Since you admit you're that good-for-nothing, I won't waste time with unnecessary talk..."