chsdbacks 1. A Fallen Genius
1. A Fallen Genius
Eternal Star Level, Tier 3!
Qiao Lin looked at the results of the virtual universe assessment with an extremely strange expression, a mixture of regret and relief, as if he had failed the college entrance examination in his previous life but was holding a 50 million lottery ticket in his hand.
The regret is that after Qiao Lin awakened his past life memories in Swallowing the Stars, he cultivated desperately for fifteen years without daring to slack off for a moment. However, he never expected that he would still fall before the final test of the Black Dragon Mountain Holy Land.
One hundred thousand geniuses from over eight thousand galaxies and 18 billion inhabited planets compete here for the top one hundred spots.
Qiao Lin ranked 112th in the assessment, which wasn't bad, but he still failed in the end.
Disappointment was inevitable, after all, this was the result of fifteen years of hard work.
But he was also relieved, because half a month ago, Qiao Lin awakened a cheat system. The cheat system was a door hidden in his mind that could take him to the world of another novel by Tomato, "Mang Huang Ji".
Although time was tight and he hadn't had time to explore more of the Desolate Era world, he had already benefited immensely from obtaining the Crimson Bright Nine Heavens Diagram from a peripheral force after completing the first six levels of cultivation.
At this moment, his physical body was incredibly powerful. Compared to other third or fourth-tier Eternal Stars, his physical defense was at least a hundred times stronger. At the same time, the Crimson Bright Nine Heavens Diagram amplified his pure physical strength, making his attacks more than twice as powerful.
In the world of Swallowed Star, the levels of power, from lowest to highest, are: Planetary, Eternal, Cosmic, Domain Lord, World Lord, and Immortal.
Before immortality, each major level is divided into nine tiers, with the attack power difference between each tier being about twice.
Although Qiao Lin is only at the third level of the Hengxing realm, once he puts on the third-level Origin Force Battle Suit, coupled with his powerful physical body, he is enough to fight against the eighth or ninth level of the Hengxing realm. He is two or three times stronger than the seventh-level Hengxing realm who ranked first in this assessment.
Unfortunately, this assessment takes place in a virtual universe, which connects to consciousness but cannot detect the physical body. His strength boost comes from his physical body and the divine power of the Desolate Era world. With the same physical body provided in the virtual universe, he simply cannot unleash his full potential.
Eliminated!
"Leaving the Holy Land is fine too. I can become a mercenary in the universe. Once I cultivate the Crimson Bright Nine Heavens Diagram to the seventh level, I can even achieve rebirth from a drop of blood! At that time, no matter how dangerous the universe becomes, I will have a trump card to protect myself!"
The ability to be reborn from a drop of blood also exists in the game "Swallowing the Stars," but one needs to become a powerful immortal to achieve it.
Qiao Lin is not far from this point. It could take him anywhere from ten years to a few months to break through and achieve a blood-regeneration ability similar to that of an immortal powerhouse.
This is the terrifying enhancement that the Crimson Bright Nine Heavens Diagram provides to the physical body.
Qiao Lin already had a good idea of the assessment results, so he made plans to become a cosmic mercenary, accumulate resources, and use the advantages he gained from the Desolate Era to quickly become stronger.
"Let's go, it's time to leave. Although I've spent half my life here and it's hard to part with me, this place doesn't belong to me!" Qiao Lin turned around, intending to leave this place of sorrow.
Just as Qiao Lin turned to leave the Black Dragon Mountain Holy Land, suddenly, a fierce roar rang out all around.
"I refuse to accept this! I refuse to accept this! How can a single test from this damn virtual universe decide my life? I refuse to accept this!"
Similar roars rang out one after another: "I, a warrior of the Kas hybrid race, am born to fight. I can't unleash my full potential in the virtual universe. I'm confident I can break into the top 100, or even the top 50, in real combat. Why shouldn't I have the opportunity to fight in real combat?!"
"I refuse to accept this either! I demand a real fight, a fight to the death! Only the survivor can step down from the arena! If you want to prove you're stronger than me, then kill me!" a werewolf woman roared, her sharp teeth bared, her mouth a bloody mess, filled with frothy blood, a truly horrifying sight.
"Shut up!"
"What are you doing!"
"Get down, all of you!"
The roar of the 100,000 eliminated geniuses did not last long. Soon, countless domains pressed down on them; it was the domain lord mentors who had made their move.
This domain is a signature feature of powerful domain lords.
"Hmph, a bunch of ignorant fools! The virtual universe test was decided by the Black Dragon Mountain God Lord, how dare you interfere!"
"Whether you submit or not, nobody cares. Now, all of you, get out of this sacred place! This place doesn't belong to you!"
"A bunch of losers, what right do they have to yell! They're asking for it!"
There was no explanation, no reassurance, only violent suppression.
Those geniuses who screamed the loudest exploded in an instant, turning into tiny blood mists. Their scalding blood splattered onto the surrounding geniuses, causing a chorus of screams.
Many more geniuses stood frozen in place, staring in disbelief at what was happening before their eyes. They never imagined that their kind and approachable mentor, who had been so friendly just a day before, would kill them.
The blood of their comrades told these geniuses that in the eyes of the powerful, they were nothing but ants, easily killed and no one cared about them at all.
Ahead of them were no longer their patient and persuasive mentors, but powerful domain lords, and they were no longer promising geniuses, but just lowly, insignificant figures at the Eternal Star level.
When Qiao Lin saw this scene, he took a deep breath. He knew that the rules of the universe were the rules of the strong, but he did not expect that the originally kind domain lord mentors would be so decisive. They really did not treat them as human beings.
It seems that losers have no value in living!
Anyone who dares to protest will be crushed to death.
"Heh, isn't this something I already knew? Otherwise, why would I need to become stronger? Isn't it all to take control of my own life?"
Qiao Lin couldn't help but laugh at himself, knowing full well that there was no logic in the universe, and that only fists could bring power.
Not only Qiao Lin knew, but all 100,000 geniuses in front of him knew as well. However, knowing did not mean they could take it lightly.
Seeing their former classmates being casually killed by their mentor, everyone present couldn't help but feel a deep sense of sorrow.
"Let's go, let's go. Adventures in space will only become more dangerous, and the strong will be even more unrestrained. What I need to do is become stronger, so strong that no one will dare to lay a hand on me..."
Qiao Lin has the qualifications. The fusion of the cultivation systems of the two worlds makes his strength far surpass that of his peers. As long as he is careful and buys himself more time to develop, he, Qiao Lin, will surely become one of the strongest in the universe in the future.
Qiao Lin carefully left, but unexpectedly, his former tutor, with whom he had a close relationship, walked towards him.
"Multidisciplinary Instructor." Qiao Lin bowed deeply, more respectful than ever before when meeting his multidisciplinary instructor, bending even lower...
"Well, Qiao Lin, I know your talent is actually in the top 30 or even the top 10, and I know you're unwilling to accept it, but the result is set, and none of us can change it!" The multi-subject instructor sighed. "You failed the promotion assessment, and according to the family's rules, you must repay the family for the support they previously provided to you."
Before Qiao Lin could speak, Duo Ke continued, "The family has already selected 30,000 wives for you from various races. Among them are many furry races that you like, such as fox women, rabbit women, and wolf women. Moreover, according to your preferences, they are all the type with big breasts and long legs."
"The family has also allocated fifty life-bearing planets as your territory to support your descendants. Your task from now on is to do your best to reproduce for the family and pass on your excellent genes. Once you have given birth to a million children, you will have repaid the family's contributions."
His family treated him very well and provided him with a lot of support in the early stages.
Even if he were sold as a slave, a third-tier Star Realm cultivator like him would only fetch 30 million Black Dragon Coins. However, the resources his family gave him were worth over 3000 trillion Black Dragon Coins, enough to buy 100 million of him.
Now, he has been given fifty inhabited planets as his territory, with a total value exceeding 50 trillion Black Dragon Coins.
If Qiao Lin hadn't awakened the ability to travel through the Desolate Era, perhaps he would have obediently become a breeding tool, propagating offspring for his family.
However, with this cheat code, Qiao Lin can only say, "My fate is in my own hands, not in the heavens. The future is uncertain, and we are both dark horses."
His future is the universe, he's a dark horse, not a stallion!
"Master of Multidisciplinary Sciences, I have decided to go into space and become a space mercenary. As long as I live, I will definitely repay the money I owe the family. However, please give me some time. I will also repay the principal and interest to the family!" Qiao Lin said.
"Becoming a cosmic mercenary? That's too dangerous. In the universe, 90% of celestial mercenaries like you will die in their first hundred years, and less than one in ten thousand will survive a thousand years. You don't need to risk it so much. You can have children for your family while cultivating. With your talent, the probability of becoming a cosmic-level mercenary in a thousand years is over 80%. It will be much safer to become a cosmic mercenary after you've reached that level!"
"Multidisciplinary mentor, I've made up my mind. Only danger and death can constantly stimulate my talent and allow me to break through my limits. Otherwise, my upper limit in this life will only be the cosmic level!" Qiao Lin said again.
A cosmic-level being isn't weak, but in the Black Dragon Mountain Holy Land, any guard is a cosmic-level being, an absolute powerhouse in the eyes of surface life. In the universe, they would only be slightly stronger guards and henchmen.
Doko stared at Qiao Lin, seemingly scrutinizing Qiao Lin's abrupt decision.
"It seems you've really made up your mind!" Doko sighed. "Leave the Holy Land as soon as possible, or you'll be expelled."