A barrage of system notifications began to chi frantically within Lance’s mind.
Yet, staring out into the boundless darkness surrounding him, Lance felt no joy. He could only focus on circulating Frenzied Absorption with everything he had.
Because his Soul and physical body's recovery speed had increased a hundredfold, the absorption rate for his CON value had skyrocketed from 256 tis the base rate to a staggering 1,000 tis!
Compared to before, this was a fourfold increase.
His Soul value absorption had also reached 500 tis the base rate—likewise, a fourfold jump from its previous speed.
When combined with the fact that his base recovery speed was already a hundred tis faster, the net efficiency of both had effectively multiplied by four hundred!
Previously, Lance could gain 13 million CON points and a terrifying 8 million Soul points per minute.
But now, with his speed amplified four-hundred-fold, his CON gain rate surged to a mind-numbing 5 billion per minute.
His Soul gain rate followed suit, climbing to a horrifying 3.2 billion per minute.
And this was just the tally for a single minute. In an hour, he would amass 300 billion CON and 190 billion Soul points!
Given just one hour, his realm would undoubtedly skyrocket to the formidable Planetary Class (Rank 0) in an instant.
Unfortunately, looking at the situation before him, Lance didn’t have an hour. He didn’t even have a single minute.
"BOOM!!!!!"
At long last, following a tremor that shook the heavens and earth, the shroud of darkness instantly vanished, and the world regained its clarity.
Although his surroundings appeared much brighter, the stars remained hidden. Looking out into the distance, the sky was still an endless, pitch-black void.
Lance took a deep breath. He knew there was no more running. He could only wait for the visitor to arrive.
Thud! Thud! Thud!!!
Suddenly, the sound of footsteps echoed from the depths of the infinite void.
Each footfall resonated with the beating of Lance’s own heart.
Fortunately, the newcor clearly harbored no ill intent; otherwise, the re sound of a footstep would have been enough to turn Lance into ash.
Finally, under Lance’s heavy gaze, a valiant middle-aged man dressed in black imperial robes appeared. With every stride, he seed to cross hundreds of millions of light-years, arriving before Lance in the blink of an eye.
Although Lance couldn’t gauge the man's exact strength, he knew that anyone who could appear before him so effortlessly—all while leaving Blake completely powerless to react—was undoubtedly a supre Immortal Grade powerhouse.
"Lance greets you."
Lance didn't hesitate for a second, bowing respectfully to the man.
He wasn't about to play gas; his life was on the line.
At the sa ti, the gesture served as a probe to see if the man truly ant him harm.
"There is no need for such formalities."
God-Emperor Mortis spoke calmly, noting Lance’s polite deanor.
"May I ask why you have co to find ?"
Lance asked, letting out a small sigh of relief.
At least this wasn't so lunatic like the Black Dragon Lord.
The man’s attitude suggested he wasn't there for a fight. Even if he were, Lance was currently powerless to stop him. He only had one Repair attempt left, and while a high-potential item could spark a turnaround, he currently possessed nothing of the sort.
He truly had no cards left to play.
"You are a sharp one. In that case, I won't waste words. I am God-Emperor Mortis, and I have co for one purpose."
God-Emperor Mortis introduced himself without fanfare.
The mont the na "God-Emperor Mortis" was spoken, Lance realized who he was dealing with. This was the ruler of the Dark-Heaven Universal God-Realm. It made sense that he would know everything; as the sovereign of this domain, nothing within its borders could escape his notice.
"Please, Your Majesty, speak your mind," Lance replied imdiately.
"You are well aware of how monstrous your talent is," God-Emperor Mortis began slowly. "However, great talent often brings infinite peril. From this mont on, you will be hunted by countless experts from foreign races."
"After all, this is the fate of every top-tier genius within the borders of The Supre God-Realm of Destruction. Years ago, when I was only at the Universal Class, I was hunted by ten World Lord Class powerhouses."
"I only survived because I had protectors hidden in the shadows. Other geniuses are the sa; anyone who manages to climb to the top of the rankings usually has a powerful civilization or race backing them."
"Because of those backgrounds, many powerful races only dare to conduct their assassinations in secret, and they hesitate to deploy their strongest experts."
Lance’s brow furrowed. He hadn't expected his fate of being a hunted man to escalate from the Milky Way to the scale of the entire universe.
Being a genius was a real pain in the ass.
God-Emperor Mortis's point was clear: others might have less talent than Lance, but they had powerful clans protecting them.
Most races wouldn't dare move against those protected geniuses openly, but Lance was a different story.
While his identity wasn't widely known yet, if God-Emperor Mortis could find him, far more dangerous entities could too. Without a background, Lance would face an endless tide of assassins.
A single Blake was nowhere near enough to stop what was coming.
"Normally, a High Guardian like Blake would be more than sufficient to protect a rank-one genius," God-Emperor Mortis continued. "But you are different."
"Your true strength far exceeds that of a normal rank-one. If I am not mistaken, the Testing Star used to asure your Great Grandmaster strength in The Supre God-Realm of Destruction was shattered by you, wasn't it?"
"In the entire history of The Supre God-Realm of Destruction, fewer than ten people have possessed the power to shatter that planet. Of those ten, only one survived to adulthood. Today, he is one of the Supre Divinities of The Umbra Supre God-Realm."
Lance’s pupils constricted. He hadn't realized the weight of shattering the Testing Star was this imnse.
To think that the only survivor had beco a Supre Divinity...
Yet, Lance had done more than just shatter it; he had reached that planet-bursting level without even tapping into his most powerful Destruction Power.
If word of that got out, he suspected even the Supre Divinities themselves would co knocking.
"Ahem... I see. In that case, are you planning to take as your disciple?"
Knowing the severity of the situation, Lance felt a bit speechless. He had only been high-profile once—just once!—and it had almost ruined him.
To be honest, Blake’s arrival had made him drop his guard. He had forgotten that in the eyes of true powerhouses, even Blake was nothing more than an ant.
"No. To be blunt, while I have the qualifications to teach you, I do not have the power to protect you. Thus, I have co for only one reason: to give you a few things and tell you a few truths."
God-Emperor Mortis denied the suggestion, catching Lance off guard.
It was true; as a peak Immortal Realm expert, he was more than capable of teaching Lance. However, shielding Lance from the entire universe was a burden he couldn't carry alone.
"Give things?"
Lance was stunned.
A legendary Immortal Grade powerhouse had tracked him down just to hand out gifts and share so advice?
Before Lance could voice his confusion, God-Emperor Mortis simply flicked a finger.
Vrummmm!
Instantly, a torrent of data surged into Lance’s mind like a flash flood. Lance’s pupils constricted violently as he processed the content. Eight separate cultivation techniques, every single one of them at Rank 12 Peak Grade. It was the complete set: The Eight Sacred Canons.
“What... what is the aning of this?” Lance was reeling. This man was handing out world-class treasures like candy. He wouldn't mind eting more people like him.
“Consider it a greeting gift. What I have to tell you next is the real key to whether you survive the relentless pursuit heading your way.” Mortis’s expression turned solemn.
Lance listened with rapt attention. He vowed to keep a low profile as much as possible; otherwise, he might be wiped out by so powerhouse before he even knew what happened—unless, of course, he could push his Undying God-Body to its absolute limit. By his estimation, that milestone wasn't far off. Another three or four major realms should do it. By then, his personal power would have reached the Universal or even Domain Lord Class.
“In two days, the universe will comnce The Universal Genius Competition, an event that only occurs once every trillion years,” Mortis continued. “The singular purpose of these Genius Trials is to select potential disciples for the various Supre Divinities. With your talent, you’re bound to catch soone’s eye if you play your cards right. But you must only choose one: The Destroyer Supre.”
“He is the only one among the Supre Divinities who truly protects his disciples. Back then, Umbra only survived because he was his student. The other nine geniuses chose different masters and perished. It wasn't just them; many geniuses who chose other patrons died during their growth due to inadequate protection. However, as the strongest of The Desolates and the most powerful of all Supre Divinities, his standards for taking a disciple are astronomical. Simply taking the first rank on your current leaderboard won't be enough.”
“I had originally planned to tell you to skip the Great Grandmaster rankings and challenge the Planetary Class leaderboard directly. Since you’ve already broken through, go straight for the Planetary Class. If you succeed, your future potential will be at least that of an Immortal Class powerhouse. There’s no need to hide your talent. Once The Destroyer Supre claims you, no one in the universe—not even the other Supre Divinities—will dare lay a finger on you.”
Lance’s expression shifted. Without this warning, he definitely would have held back during the assessnt. He might have achieved a decent score, but it might not have been enough to catch the eye of soone like The Destroyer Supre. If he ended up under a different master, he’d have to spend his life looking over his shoulder, afraid to reveal his true strength.
Now, everything was different. If this man was truly that powerful, why hide? Besides, he was a natural fit for that lineage. He possessed Destruction Power himself.
According to what he’d gathered from The Virtual Universe, there were fewer than ten beings in the entire cosmos who had mastered Destruction Power. One was The Destroyer Supre, and the other eight were his disciples—every one of them an Immortal Class super-powerhouse. So could even survive an encounter with a Supre Divinity. They were widely considered the elite among the Immortal Class. Furthermore, the sect was famously tight-knit. If he could find a place among those heavyweights, anyone looking for a fight would have to consider if they could handle a beatdown from a pack of Immortal Class monsters.
Right, it's decided. If I’m going to find a backer, I might as well find the biggest one available.
Lance made his decision instantly. Over the next two days, he could significantly boost his strength and put all his primary techniques through Reconstruction. When the ti ca, he would suppress the entire Genius Trials battlefield single-handedly.
“Understood. I won't forget this help.” Lance spoke solemnly.
“No need for such formality,” Mortis chuckled. “Just make sure that once you’re strong enough, you give soone a proper thrashing for . His na is God-Emperor Umbra, the youngest son of The Destroyer Supre.”
Lance froze, completely blindsided. One second the man was telling him to seek refuge with The Destroyer Supre, and the next, he was ordering a hit on the man’s son?
“Wait... do you have a grudge against him?” Lance asked, bewildered. “Because if I’m strong enough, I’ll keep my word.” He was curious. Even if the target was the son of a Supre Divinity, there were plenty of ways to find an excuse for a fight.
Mortis didn't dodge the question. “It’s nothing major. I hate to admit it, but that old fossil is my father. It’s not a good look if I’m the one to hit him. Just... if that day ever cos, rember to give a call so I can watch.”
Without waiting for the stunned Lance to respond, Mortis stepped into the void and vanished.
Vroom!
The black mist suffocating the area dissipated instantly. He had given the gifts and the warnings; staying longer would only attract unwanted attention.
“Jesus,” Lance muttered. “What a filial son.”
He pushed the family drama aside. He had work to do. He needed to rge The Eight Sacred Canons and perform a full Reconstruction before the trials began. That was the only way to ensure he had the power to seize total victory. If he secured enough rewards, he could even repair his own protectors to the point where they could shield him regardless of whether he had a master or not.
Lance glanced toward the distance, where Sovereign Glacia and the others were still busy tornting the soul of The Black Dragon Lord, before flying back into his ship.
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