Chisong King's final agreement took Lin Yuan slightly by surprise. That earlier lineââYou sure know how to askââhad already hinted at how difficult the request truly was.
Lin Yuan had already prepared himself to be rejected and switch to asking for something else.
Besides studying Alpha War Machines, there were countless treasures Lin Yuan desired.
âThank you, Your Highness.â
Lin Yuan responded promptly, without false modesty.
The chance to study a Alpha War Machine was exceedingly rare.
If not for wartime, Lin Yuan wouldnât even have the opportunity to see oneâlet alone study it.
âYou want to study the Chaos rune patterns contained in the war machines?â Chisong King asked with curiosity.
âYes.â
Lin Yuan nodded.
There was no need to hide that.
In fact, the most precious aspect of a war machine lay precisely in the Chaos rune patterns inscribed upon it.
It was through these Chaos rune patterns that the power of thousands of Dominance-stage experts could be perfectly fused, then massively amplified.
Without them, a war machineâs value would be little more than its rare materials.
âThe Chaos rune patterns were a gift from the Ancestor, and later replicated onto war machines by the strongest Heavenly Sovereigns of our ancient kingdom,â
Chisong King said with a touch of sentiment. âIf you can study them, itâs a good thing.â
âIâm just having a look,â Lin Yuan replied casually.
At the same time, he now understood the true origin of the Chaos rune patterns.
The Ancestor.
The Ancestor of the Liyang Ancient Kingdom.
To be able to casually craft rune patterns imbued with the essence of Chaos lawsâhis mastery mustâve surpassed even the limitations of the third stage.
Only a thirteenth-rank Ancestor, looking down on both ancient kingdoms and the Source World itself, could create such things.
âBut you can only study the war machines during this war,â Chisong King reminded him. âOnce the war endsâwin or loseâtheyâll all be recalled to the capital.â
Allowing Lin Yuan to study the machines was already bending the rules. Chisong King was willing to overlook it during wartime, but after the war, he wouldnât dare hold any back.
âOf course,â Lin Yuan nodded.
Chisong King then chatted with him for a bit longer.
Mostly to discuss Lin Yuanâs reassignment.
Now that he had displayed the strength of a veteran Great Sovereign, he needed to be stationed somewhere more important.
The Ding Frontline was too peripheralâhaving a veteran Great Sovereign there was a waste.
Lin Yuan had no objections. Given the strength he had revealed, Chisong King certainly wouldnât assign him to fight a peak Great Sovereign alone.
After a whileâ
Chisong King had said what he needed to.
Qingfen Marquis stood and led Lin Yuan away.
The pavilion was left with only Chisong King sitting inside.
âFather.â
A young man emerged from deep within the void.
He bore a strong resemblance to Chisong Kingâabout 60 to 70 percent. As he gazed toward the direction Lin Yuan and Qingfen Marquis had left, he couldn't help but speak.
âWar machines are national treasures of our ancient kingdom.â
âEven the lowest-tier Gamma machines bear crucial Chaos rune patterns.â
He seemed puzzled. âSuch important things, and Father, youâre just letting Milky Way study them? Just because he defeated Leige?â
Defeating Leige and holding the Ding Frontline was commendable, but did it really warrant this level of reward?
Chisong King looked at the young manâhis favorite child, which is why he kept him close even during wartime.
âWhat do you think of Milky Wayâs strength?â
After some thought, Chisong King asked.
âMilky Way Great Sovereignâs strength?â The youth paused. âA veteran? Seasoned Great Sovereign?â
âWrong.â
Chisong King shook his head. âFrom what I saw, Milky Way doesnât have deep mastery in Chaos evolution. During his battle with Leige, he barely used such power at all.â
âThatâs true,â the youth said, now thoughtful.
âMilky Way is only at the early Great Sovereign level. His explosive strength comes from his Blazing Sun Divine Body.â
âAn early-stage Great Sovereign, relying on the Blazing Sun Divine Body alone, can unleash power close to a peak Great Sovereign. That suggests his Blazing Sun Bloodline is highly concentrated.â
Chisong King explained.
While the Blazing Sun Divine Body was indeed the most powerful physique in the Liyang Ancient Kingdom, nearly all Great Sovereigns awakened itâyet none had shown such a staggering power increase.
âI see.â
The youth suddenly understood.
âIf he can reach such power with just the Blazing Sun Divine Body, then if he later masters Chaos evolution to the level of a seasoned Great Sovereign⊠wouldnât he be equivalent to a peak Great Sovereign?â
A smile spread across Chisong Kingâs face. Recruiting a peak Great Sovereign was no easy task.
Many refused to get involved in the two ancient kingdoms' war and outright rejected calls to arms.
Now, with just a bit of leniency, Chisong King could gain a peak-level assetâan incredible deal.
âFather, your foresight is truly impressive,â the youth said with admiration.
If letting Milky Way study war machines could secure another peak-level warrior for their side, then it was well worth it.
âAs for the risks?â
Chisong King chuckled. âThe Chaos rune patterns on war machines are top secret, but you canât leak them just by looking.â
âTo leak them, one must first comprehend them. Milky Way is a new Great Sovereignâhow could he possibly grasp the full extent of a machineâs Chaos rune patterns?â
Each war machine contained self-destruct runes to prevent capture and replication by enemies.
But âenemiesâ here referred to at least Heavenly Sovereign-level beings.
If an enemy captured a war machine and passed it on to a Heavenly Sovereign for study, that was when Chaos rune secrets could truly leak.
As for Lin Yuan?
He was barely a new Great Sovereign with little accomplishment in Chaos evolution. He sought to study the patterns precisely because he was far from understanding them.
Moreover, all his studying would be under Chisong Kingâs watchâthereâd be no chance of a leak.
And most importantly, Lin Yuan had awakened the Blazing Sun Divine Body, essentially aligning him with the Liyang Ancient Kingdom. He had no reason to betray them.
âFather, your insight is peerless.â
The youth was completely convinced. On the surface, it looked like Chisong King had rewarded Milky Way for defeating Leige.
In reality, it was a multi-layered plan, with almost no risk.
âWith Fatherâs planning, Lingwei is doomed to fail.â
The youth said confidently.
âItâs still too early to talk about victory.â
Chisong King shook his head, a hint of concern in his tone. âI canât shake the feeling that Lingwei is hiding a lot of cards.â
After leaving Chisong Kingâs floating city residenceâ
Qingfen Marquis looked at Lin Yuan and spoke in a more serious tone, âDisciple, the fact that His Highness agreed so readily probably means heâs seen that youâre not ordinary.â
Qingfen Marquis understood just how important war machines wereâespecially Alpha.
Chisong King wouldnât allow Lin Yuan to study one without expecting some kind of significant return.
And by âreturn,â he meant true gainsânot just the absence of risk.
âBut he probably only suspects you're extraordinary,â
Qingfen Marquis continued. âHe definitely wouldn't guess that your bloodline concentration is at the level of a core royal.â
He had only inferred this from Lin Yuanâs terrifying growth rate and his use of the Blazing Sun Divine Body.
Qingfen Marquis had no way of knowing the full truth. At most, he noticed some cluesâbut nothing that would lead him to guess Lin Yuan had a core royal bloodline.
If he had, their previous conversation wouldâve been completely different.
âYeah.â
Lin Yuan listened quietly.
âThere shouldnât be any problems.â
Qingfen Marquis mulled it over. âAt most, he probably just thinks your royal bloodline is a little thicker than normal. Given His Highnessâs personality, I doubt heâd even mention it.â
Among the royal family, Chisong King was one of the least ambitious. He had no interest in internal struggles and rarely involved himself in political scheming.
After parting ways with Qingfen Marquisâ
Lin Yuan was promptly reassigned from the Ding Frontline battlefield.
He was sent instead to a frontline closer to the core region.
Of course, Lin Yuan left behind an avatar at the original Ding Frontline to continue studying the war machines there.
Since Chisong King had allowed him to study Alpha war machines, it naturally meant that studying Beta and Gamma machines was also within his rights.
âSo this is the core frontline battlefield?â
One of Lin Yuanâs avatars arrived at the core frontline.
The entire area was cloaked in deadly formations. War machines were everywhere, and the aura of peak Great Sovereigns filled the air.
Lin Yuanâs avatar soon arrived in front of a Alpha War Machine.
Since it was currently a standoff, neither side was fighting, and most war machines remained stationary.
âGreat Sovereign Milky Way.â
The machineâs commander gave a slight bow as Lin Yuan approached. âHis Highness Chisong King has already given the order. You may study this machine at any time.â
Even though the commander only had peak Dominance strength, he answered directly to Chisong Kingâmost peak Great Sovereigns couldnât command him.
Without the kingâs order, no one could approach a war machine without cause.
âGood.â
Lin Yuan nodded and flew into the machine.
âThese Chaos rune patternsâŠâ
He was stunned the moment he stepped inside.
Compared to the Beta Intermediate machine he had previously studied, the Chaos rune patterns here were not only vaster in scaleâbut also far more complete.
âChaos is the source of all things, and also the beginning of all things.â
Lin Yuan became fully immersed as he observed the intricate Chaos rune patterns covering the war machineâs interior.
Chaos laws did not exist within any complete worldâthis was why they were so difficult to comprehend directly.
Chaos gives rise to all thingsâonly by studying all things can one indirectly comprehend Chaos.
But now, these rune patterns were the product of some supreme being forcibly tracing Chaos back to its source, extracting its essence from the myriad things it had birthed.
[Your Unrivaled Insight activates: observing unknown rune patterns, your comprehension of Chaos laws increasesâŠ]
As Lin Yuan absorbed the details of the Alpha War Machineâs rune patterns, his understanding of Chaos laws continuously improved.
He split himself into thirty-three avatars, each sent to different frontlines to study their respective war machines.
His true body remained stationed at the Frontline.
As for his two primal soulsâthey had long since left the battlefield and hidden in a place of absolute safety.
âHm?â
âAnother attack?â
Lin Yuanâs true body at Frontline had been studying a war machine when he noticed the shift in external energies and immediately flew out.
âGreat Sovereign Changfeng.â
Lin Yuan looked toward the opponent facing him.
Great Sovereign Changfengâan experienced and seasoned Great Sovereign, near the peak level. Thatâs why Chisong King had sent Lin Yuan here to stop him.
âGreat Sovereign Milky Way.â
Having seen what happened to Leige, Changfeng dared not underestimate Lin Yuan.
Rumbleâ
Very soonâ
The two clashed.
âThis Great Sovereign ChangfengâŠâ
Lin Yuan had expected a tough battle, but the moment they exchanged blows, he realized Changfeng was merely probingâno intention of going all-out.
Nothing like Leigeâs life-or-death frenzy.
âMakes sense.â
Lin Yuan quickly realized.
Anyone who had reached the Great Sovereign level, especially a veteran, wasnât stupid.
With rare exceptions like Leige, most Great Sovereigns had no desire to truly risk their lives on the battlefield.
If Changfeng held back, Lin Yuan was happy to play along.
After all, his task from Chisong King was simply to keep Changfeng in check.
In the Chaos Voidâ
âSeems like the only way is to fully comprehend the divine mark of Sunborn Genesis and imprint it here, then attempt to forge a Sunborn Core that can merge with my internal universeâŠâ
Lin Yuan thought to himself.
The seventh divine body techniqueâSunborn Genesisâcarried the meaning of opening the heavens and stabilizing creation. Lin Yuan wanted to test whether he could form a stable Sunborn Core in his internal universe.
âTime to continue training the second layer of Infinite Void.â
Lin Yuan resumed cultivating the thirteenth-rank inheritance Infinite Void.
This inheritance had the potential to elevate Lin Yuanâs foundation to an unbelievable level.
Deep within his internal universeâ
Next to the jade gourd, a little girl in red was sleeping soundly.
Just thenâ
One of Lin Yuanâs avatars appeared nearby.
âSenior.â
Lin Yuan called out.
âIâve told you already. Since you passed the trial, youâre my master. No need to call me âsenior.ââ
The red-clothed girl opened her eyes. Though she protested, her joy was plain on her face.
âAlright.â
âSo, what do you need from me?â
She asked.
âI wanted to ask if Iâve made any mistakes while training the second layer of Infinite VoidâŠâ
Despite his Unrivaled Insight, Infinite Void was a thirteenth-rank inheritanceâprofound and intricate.
Lin Yuan worried he might veer off course, so he regularly checked in with the girl in red.
âMistakes?â
The girl rolled her eyes. From the moment Lin Yuan began the second layer, she had been observing himâhoping to find any issues or hidden dangers in his training.
That way, she could prove how useful she was.
But in the end⊠she, the mighty spirit of the jade gourd, created by a great thirteenth-rank being of time to guide future generations in training Infinite Voidâhad not been able to give even a single suggestion.
...
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