Revelation

Inside the World Ring.

On the vast earth, a pitch-black beast was restrained by an invisible force field atop a circular platform thirty meters in diameter.

The Golden-Horned Behemoth.

"The Golden-Horned Behemoth really is a remarkable creature." Dongguan walked around the platform, studying the Golden-Horned Behemoth's body.

"Grr..." The Golden-Horned Behemoth stared at the human before it, its eyes filled with coldness and murderous intent.

It was only a little over sixteen meters long.

It had only recently hatched and had not even finished eating its eggshell before being captured.

Through its inherited memories, the Golden-Horned Behemoth knew how miserable its fate would be in human hands.

Enslavement, or even possession.

The Golden-Horned Behemoth looked to one side, where most of a shattered black eggshell lay. It was its own.

"Want it?" Dongguan tapped the eggshell.

The Golden-Horned Behemoth glanced at him and tried to turn its head away in disdain, but could not.

This force field kept it from moving at all.

Heaven have mercy, it was still a baby. Why did it have to suffer like this?

The vertical eye on Dongguan's forehead opened, and he studied the Golden-Horned Behemoth without restraint.

He had developed the Beast Taming Secret Art by studying the eyes of a rat monster that was only at Apprentice Level Seven. Naturally, he could discover other things from higher-level monsters as well.

He had tried, only to discover that those patterns were quite disorganized and took considerable effort to analyze.

Secret patterns and secret techniques were two different things.

The rat's eyes had been controlling monsters. Dongguan had developed his secret art by imitating their secret patterns, tracing them out and sending them into monsters' brains.

Luck had played a part in that. With other monsters, such as the Long-Armed Ape King, even after studying their secret patterns, he would still need further research-for instance, into engraving them on a body. He could hardly experiment directly on himself, so more tests would be necessary.

That process took a great deal of time. Thus, after obtaining the Qiongluo Ship and its inheritance, he had set aside his original plan.

But the Golden-Horned Behemoth was different. Its bloodline stood at the pinnacle of the universe, at least three tiers above the Qiong Luo race's bloodline. Dongguan was deeply interested.

Even setting aside the Inheritance Secret Techniques in the Golden-Horned Behemoth's mind, its three great Innate Secret Techniques—devouring, enhancement, and cloning—were all extraordinary.

Cloning in particular was almost the most practical Innate Secret Technique in the Devouring World's Primal Universe, more useful even than time stop or teleportation.

His spirit eye trembled, and secret patterns emerged one after another. Gold, more gold, black, and other colors...

Dimly, Dongguan even sensed a golden world.

"Too complicated." Dongguan shook his head.

This talent of his seemed somewhat different from the racial talent described in Qiong's records, as though it had surpassed certain limits. Perhaps he really could see the secret patterns of the Clone Secret Technique.

However, the Golden-Horned Behemoth's secret patterns were so complex that the Rat-Eye Secret Pattern could not begin to compare. Just looking at them made Dongguan's head swim.

His cultivation was insufficient, and so was his processing power.

He was only at Stellar Level One. With his current mental capacity, even exhausting his entire lifespan would not be enough to analyze those secret patterns.

Besides, not all those secret patterns were related to cloning. In fact, cloning accounted for only a small portion; devouring made up the bulk.

The Golden-Horned Behemoth was renowned for devouring metal. Its secret patterns primarily involved the laws of metal, which were not particularly compatible with him.

"If I comprehend the laws of metal to a certain extent, perhaps I can identify some of the secret patterns."

Dongguan was only at the first stage of the Light Domain, and his Origin Force had a light attribute. That meant he was most efficient at comprehending light, whether its domain or its laws. Studying the laws of metal, which belonged to the spatial branch, would be unwise.

"The question now is, what should I do with this Golden-Horned Behemoth?"

For a Planetary Level cub with the ability to create clones, possession was the best use. Even enslaving it would be a waste.

"Give it to Luo Feng?"

He considered it. His inheritance contained extensive information, but no possession secret technique.

Moreover, possession had a chance of failure. Luo Feng's success had also depended on Hu Yanbo's Inheritance Soul Seal.

Other people on Earth might not succeed.

Thinking of the Sky-Escaping Shuttle, his experiences on Fog Island, and the changes in Luo Feng, then looking at the Golden-Horned Behemoth before him, Dongguan felt a faint pang of guilt. It seemed he had stolen Luo Feng's opportunity.

"Young master, did you ask about possession secret techniques back then because you knew about this Golden-Horned Behemoth?" Qiong's voice rang out.

"More or less." Dongguan paused.

"It seems you truly are fortunate, master. The Golden-Horned Behemoth possesses one of the twelve pinnacle bloodlines among starry sky behemoths and reaches the World Lord Level at adulthood. I have no possession secret technique, but I do have an enslavement secret technique. Once you master it in the future, you can try enslaving the beast," Qiong suggested.

"The Golden-Horned Behemoth has the clone talent. Enslaving it would be too wasteful." Despite saying that, Dongguan was already considering whether to do exactly that.

In the original story, Luo Feng had possessed the Golden Horned Beast out of necessity. Had he truly been free to choose, he might not have been willing to abandon his own body.

If Dongguan enslaved it, he could continue studying its secret patterns in the future. Once he reached the World Lord Level, he might even be able to cultivate the laws of metal alongside his own.

"Actually, master, even if you had a possession secret technique, it would be best not to possess the Golden-Horned Behemoth," Qiong said.

"Why?"

"For a time, just after the Qiong Luo race rose from a fifth-tier bloodline to a fourth-tier bloodline, many people abducted members of the race to possess them. Lord Donghua resolved that crisis through his careful handling of the situation. Thus, although the race did not collect possession secret techniques, it did retain related information."

"What information?"

"Besides requiring your spiritual power to overpower the target and the difference in cultivation realms not to be too great, Possession also has a restriction involving Origin Force attributes. Your attribute is light, while its attribute is metal. They are incompatible. Thanks to the Golden-Horned Behemoth's pinnacle bloodline, this would not pose much of a problem before reaching the World Lord Level. But breaking through to immortality seems to encounter certain obstacles, as the compatibility between soul and body becomes misaligned. In any case, the records indicate that cultivators who possess bodies with different Origin Force attributes have more difficulty attaining immortality than those with matching attributes or those who have never possessed another body."

"For an ordinary person, this would not matter. Possession of a Golden-Horned Behemoth guarantees becoming a World Lord, enough to live freely for ten million years. But master, you are a genius who comprehended a domain immediately after reaching the Star Level. You have a strong chance of attaining immortality in the future. Compared with eternal life, Possession of a Golden-Horned Behemoth would not be worth the cost."

"If it were a Day-Yin Behemoth, which also possesses a pinnacle starry sky behemoth bloodline, I would suggest keeping it and deciding whether to possess it after obtaining a possession secret technique in the universe. But not a Golden-Horned Behemoth."

"So that's how it works?" Dongguan had previously considered letting Zhang Gui or Zhang Yu possess it. Now, it seemed better to abandon that idea.

First, their spiritual willpower would make successfully possessing the Golden Horned Beast difficult. Second, there were hidden risks.

Qiong's information said that soul-body compatibility could make attaining immortality difficult, but was cultivation before that point guaranteed to remain unaffected?

Moreover, in the original story, Luo Feng had needed to break open the Origin Core with an ultimate secret technique to attain immortality. Possession might well have played a part in that, with the effects merely reduced because their attributes matched.

Of course, becoming a supreme being of the universe would restore one's original form, naturally eliminating any such effects. But first, he would still have to overcome the great hurdle of immortality.

At last, Dongguan reluctantly abandoned the thought of possessing it himself.

He vaguely felt as though his mind had crossed a barrier.

"By the way, you had better pay attention to feeding this Golden-Horned Behemoth. Don't let it starve to death," Qiong reminded him.

Only then did Dongguan study the Golden-Horned Behemoth again.

Compared with when he had captured it, it seemed to have shrunk slightly, perhaps by a few millimeters in height. Had he not come to observe it whenever he had time these past few days, he would never have noticed.

"Eat." Dongguan broke off a small piece of eggshell and placed it inside the containment force field. At the same time, he loosened the field slightly, allowing the beast to move its head and open its mouth.

The eggshell floated to the Golden-Horned Behemoth's mouth, but it turned its head away and refused to eat.

"Grr."

The Golden-Horned Behemoth growled, seemingly saying: I am a Golden-Horned Behemoth cub, of the noblest bloodline in the universe. Humans may have captured me, but I will never be a slave. I'll starve myself to death.

"Damn it," Dongguan cursed aloud.

Yangzhou City, Jiangnan Base City.

Luo Feng and Xu Xin strolled along the street.

Most of the pedestrians around them wore smiles, radiant with hope.

"The monsters have been dealt with, and humanity's future is bright once more." Promotional videos played continuously on a huge screen, celebrating the rebirth of Earth's humans.

Luo Feng relished this feeling. Life was peaceful, humanity was safe, and he could cultivate without worry, spending his free time with his family.

"Luo Feng." Blushing, Xu Xin slipped into his arms. "I'm pregnant."

"What did you say?" Luo Feng was stunned and looked at Xu Xin's face again.

"I'm pregnant," Xu Xin repeated.

Inside the Virtual Space, Babata also said, "Xu Xin is pregnant. I detected two boys in her womb. Twins."

"I'm going to be a father." Luo Feng hugged Xu Xin, drawing the attention of pedestrians all along the street.

But he did not care. Holding Xu Xin, he rose into the air and headed home.

At that moment, he felt utterly content. The monsters were gone, his family was happy, and he now had children of his own.

Luo Feng felt like the happiest person in the world.

"A message?" Babata noticed that it had come from that young fellow.

After glancing at its contents, Babata could no longer worry about interrupting Luo Feng's happy moment. "Luo Feng, there's important news."

"What news?" Luo Feng frowned.

"Dongguan is coming to see you."

"Brother Guan wants to see me? What's wrong with that?" Luo Feng saw no problem. He was on good terms with both Dongguan and Zhang Gui.

"These are his exact words. Read them yourself."

Luo Feng swept his consciousness over the message and was momentarily stunned as well. Then he recovered, landed in the Mingyue Residential Area with Xu Xin, and settled her in before turning his attention back to it.

The message read: "Luo Feng, did you obtain the inheritance of the immortal Hu Yanbo beneath Fog Island? Wait for me at your home."

"He knows. He really does know." Babata was deeply anxious. "Back then, Dongguan's Brain Domain Width was actually greater than yours. The reason I didn't choose him was that I suspected something was wrong with his origins. Now it turns out I was right."

"Something wrong with his origins?" Luo Feng frowned.

Babata had told him long ago that Dongguan did not have an Earthling bloodline. But whether sharing the Beast Taming Secret Art and technology or eliminating the monsters, Dongguan's conduct had been beyond reproach.

"Yes. I told you that my master died at the hands of a powerful enemy. But even setting that enemy aside, countless people in the universe covet our Meteorite Star inheritance. He knows about it, and he's already at the Star Level. Unless you hide inside the Meteorite Star Ship, you can't resist him. And the Meteorite Star Ship is damaged now, so hiding inside would be a dead end too." Babata grew increasingly agitated, the words spilling out like machine-gun fire.

An immortal's inheritance was indeed enticing. Even if Luo Feng trusted Dongguan's character, character might not withstand the test of self-interest.

But after thinking it over, Luo Feng said, "You mentioned encountering an intelligent life, and running into her again when you investigated Zhang Gui's identity, right?"

"That's right. Why?" Babata was taken aback.

"In that case, considering this message he sent, doesn't that mean he knew long ago that I'd obtained Teacher Hu Yanbo's inheritance?"

"Yes."

"Then why didn't he say anything before? Why bring it up now? Besides, he wouldn't need to warn me first. He could simply rush over and capture me. Hiding inside the Yunmo Star Ship wouldn't even be an option."

"Right. If he discovered it long ago, why hasn't he acted?" Babata was puzzled.

"So he probably isn't after the inheritance. Perhaps it's something else," Luo Feng concluded.

"Then what could it be?"

"I don't know. We'll find out when he gets here. He's here."

A streak of white light appeared in his field of vision, moving faster than a fighter jet.

Once, Thunder God had been the fastest person on Earth. Now, that distinction belonged to Dongguan.

"Luo Feng, Babata is with you, right? I'd like to discuss a trade," Dongguan said as soon as they met.