Manu spoke calmly, "Based on our previous simulations, even the Undead Ancestor had to rely on Heisenberg and went to great lengths to foster a relationship. This shows that the Undead Ancestor wasn't omnipotent, and even cross-world operations had clear limitations. Therefore, building a soul passage would have been an enormous goal, and I doubt it could be accomplished alone. In my opinion, the only path that could have helped construct such a soul passage is through alchemical fusion... Other fields are far from meeting the requirements!"
The sound of heavy breathing echoed through the underwater chamber.
Standing within the dull yellow protective barrier, Rhett lowered his head, a flicker of understanding crossing his eyes. "No wonder such a great field like alchemical fusion has been buried in history. It all makes sense now—if the Undead Ancestor sabotaged things behind the scenes, it explains everything. He definitely wouldn't want to see the native world grow stronger. Alchemical fusion, being such a vital path, would certainly be something he'd seek to obstruct…"
"Yes, that's plausible. It reminds me of technological embargoes, a major strategy for suppressing rival forces," Manu chimed in. Then he asked, "What's the plan now? Should we destroy it? While I haven't completely figured out this alchemical formation, it's always easier to destroy than to create. Give me a few days, and I can come up with a method to dismantle it."
A flash of hesitation crossed Rhett's face. "Let's leave it for now... what if... Nicole can't return?"
Manu respected Rhett's decision and began modeling the diagrams of the formation in the simulation space for future analysis.
Rhett stomped heavily on the wide metal disk, his emotions churning, unable to settle.
If this truly was a soul passage, Rhett knew he could easily use his Homeland's power to destroy it without needing Manu's help. But as always, destruction was easy, while rebuilding it would be incredibly difficult.
"I'll need to return to the past in the next simulation and gather more detailed information…" Rhett murmured to himself, making a decision.
At the beginning of February.
In the real world, after concluding a Blood Source Crystal exchange meeting hosted by the Rem Kingdom, Rhett left the Rem Palace.
At Hypaste's invitation, he made his way to the Circle Tower.
Inside the top-floor laboratory.
Hypaste had prepared a selection of fine dishes and high-quality Blood Source Crystal-infused wine, juice, and tea.
To the outside world, it was common to infuse Blood Source Crystals into beverages. But as one of the world's top Saint-level alchemists, Hypaste had developed many other ways to utilize the crystals in various forms. However, outside of drinks, the cost-effectiveness was often low.
For someone like Hypaste, the extravagant costs weren't an issue, but these methods weren't feasible for widespread use.
Rhett took a sip of the fruit tea, which lacked its usual sweet aroma but had a richer, lingering aftertaste.
Smacking his lips in appreciation, Rhett remarked, "As expected of you, managing to take the use of Blood Source Crystals to such a level…"
Hypaste smiled and waved off the compliment. "It's just a minor trick. I believe that with your skill, if you chose to focus on this specific area, you could achieve similar results."
Talking about alchemy fit perfectly with Rhett's intentions.
Draining his cup, Rhett pondered for a moment before asking, "Hypaste, have you made any progress with the magical plant modifications?"
"That's not something easily accomplished. It took me a hundred years just to see initial results with the Dark Blade Grass. If I can stabilize this modified strain, I'll consider that a success." Hypaste sighed, his tone filled with the weight of his long years of work.
"That's understandable, but I doubt it'll take much longer. I've already pushed the modification of Dark Blade Grass to its limit. With current methods, there's no way to further enhance its effects. When used in Blood Source Crystals, it should improve the potency by around twenty to thirty percent."
Rhett stroked his chin and revealed some of the information he had held back during the four-nation summit.
The moment his words left his mouth, Hypaste nearly dropped his cup in shock. His face paled as he exclaimed, "That much improvement already? You must be joking!"
Rhett chuckled and shook his head. "I wouldn't joke about something like this."
Inwardly, Rhett was amused. If Hypaste was stunned by this, how would he react if he knew about the progress with the Frost Sunflower modifications?
Hypaste's face lit up with excitement as he eagerly asked to exchange notes on their respective advancements.
Naturally, Rhett wasn't one to hoard knowledge. Without Hypaste's previous assistance, his own progress wouldn't have been so smooth. Besides, Hypaste wasn't just any alchemist; he had his own unique talents.
Sharing knowledge could only lead to greater discoveries.
However, Rhett mostly played the role of a messenger, with Manu and Hypaste handling the detailed discussions while he enabled the listening feature through his Homeland system.
That didn't mean Rhett was idle. Although he wasn't particularly passionate about alchemy and lacked natural talent, as the king and supreme ruler, he realized he couldn't remain as detached from this vital field as he once had. To continue playing the role of a laid-back, uninvolved leader would be a failure in his current position.
He didn't expect to become a top-tier Saint-level alchemist—he didn't have the talent or the time for that—but at the very least, he needed to understand the basics and hold his own in theoretical discussions.
Rhett set this as his new goal.
With Manu's expertise as a Saint-level alchemist at his disposal, he knew he had an extraordinary advantage. It would be a waste not to take full advantage of it.
After half an hour of discussion,
Hypaste looked at Rhett with a newfound sense of admiration, his expression filled with awe. He couldn't help but give Rhett a thumbs-up and exclaim, "I was right to share my magical plant modifications with you back then. You haven't let me down—such incredible results in such a short time…"
Rhett gave a knowing smile, his eyes gleaming playfully. "Since you've seen my talent firsthand, do you have any secret projects currently stuck at a bottleneck? Maybe I could help you with those too."
Hypaste froze for a moment before waving his hand dismissively, laughing. "Get out of here. With your talent, you won't need anyone else's help. In fact, I hope you'll soon be giving me new, groundbreaking ideas that open up entirely new alchemical fields."
"Haha, I'll do my best!" Rhett laughed, taking another sip of tea. As if something had crossed his mind, he suddenly asked, "How's Blackstar doing these days?"
Hypaste's smile faded as his expression grew serious. "That's actually something I wanted to discuss with you. What exactly happened that day?"
"Didn't Blackstar tell you?" Rhett asked, surprised.
"He told me his version of events, and I trust he wasn't lying, but his strength and experience might not allow him to fully understand what actually happened."
"Hmm…" Rhett pondered for a moment before recounting the events of that day in detail.
After finishing his retelling, he added, "Honestly, my knowledge of the Netherworld is also limited to historical records and the final words of the Blood God Sect's leader. It seems like there are Soul Demons, Blood Demons, Shadow Demons, and other powerful factions. From what I've gathered, they are much stronger than we are. If we were to clash with them directly, it would be like smashing an egg against a rock. We wouldn't stand a chance."
Hypaste's expression grew darker. "Terrifying… To think such a dreadful world exists beyond ours. But why would they covet our weaker world so persistently?"
This was a question that Rhett was also curious about. He remembered that the Blood Demon had once mentioned harvesting the world's essence.
Had they truly become so powerful?
And what was the method of harvesting? What were their intentions?
These were mysteries Rhett couldn't yet unravel, so he chose not to share them with Hypaste.
Instead, he shook his head and mused, "I think… the stronger you are, the less likely you are to face war. But the weaker you are, the more likely it will come knocking on your door. It's not always about wanting something from you—being weak is reason enough."
Hypaste clenched his fists. "How outrageous. We need to rally the upper echelons of power and prepare ourselves. If more of their pawns show up, we must destroy them immediately and deny them any chance of gathering intelligence!"
Though such efforts might not achieve much, joining forces would still be better than nothing.
Rhett agreed with this strategy.
However, after further discussion, the two concluded that this information should remain confined to the upper ranks of leadership. Spreading it too widely would only cause panic and confusion, offering no real help but rather adding unnecessary stress.
"How is Blackstar's training going?" Rhett asked, shifting the topic. Hypaste seemed slightly taken aback but responded:
"Other than consuming Bloodstones every day, he's been engaging in extensive physical training. Since he can't use meditation or breathing techniques, he's resorting to brute-force methods. But from what I've observed, it's working quite well. Blackstar has an exceptional healing ability and recovery rate, even surpassing Sky Knights in this regard. This allows him to train like an unstoppable machine, provided he has enough food."
"So, I've been steadily increasing his training regimen. An unexpected benefit of his high consumption is that the natural intake of food, untainted by impurities, further enhances his progress."
Rhett looked slightly envious. "With such changes, Blackstar is quite the treasure you've stumbled upon…"
"Heh, it's not about me finding a treasure. The real fortune is that Blackstar himself has become a treasure," Hypaste chuckled. "And I owe it all to you for saving him. Otherwise, I would never have had the chance to meet him!"
"It was nothing, really." Rhett waved off the compliment. "Besides what you've mentioned, have there been any… 'unusual occurrences' during Blackstar's training?"
"Unusual occurrences?" Hypaste thought carefully before replying. "Well, aside from his intense physical training, I've noticed him sitting quietly from time to time, seemingly deep in thought. But beyond that, there's been nothing particularly out of the ordinary."
Rhett nodded thoughtfully. It seemed Blackstar hadn't yet discovered the mysterious 'combat technique' from the simulation. This kind of powerful skill likely required a certain level of difficulty to master.
Reflecting on his previous text-based simulation, Rhett said, "I just remembered something. When Blackstar was unconscious, I sensed a strong pulse in his heart, as though it was hiding a unique power. It vanished quickly, and I didn't have time to examine it. Can you let him know and have him check himself?"
"Is that so? I'll inform him immediately and also conduct a thorough examination myself." Hypaste frowned slightly, clearly concerned. He even seemed eager to rush off and check on Blackstar, but with Rhett still present, he held back.
Fortunately, aside from the alchemy discussion and inquiries about Blackstar, Rhett had no other pressing matters. After a few more words of conversation, he made an excuse to leave.
Once Rhett had departed, Hypaste stood in the doorway for a while, frowning in thought.
After some contemplation, he rushed to the nearby laboratory, retrieved hundreds of Bloodstones, and stored them in his space ring. Then, in an instant, he transformed into a mist and disappeared.
On the border of the Rem Kingdom.
In a barren wasteland littered with stones, a short, bald man, shirtless and muscular, was doing push-ups using only one finger.
On his back, he carried a hundred tons of refined metal, compressed into an even iron block that moved up and down as the bald man pushed himself to his limits.
If one looked closely, they'd see sweat flowing down his body in thin streams, tracing along his skin and outlining his figure on the ground.
The sun gradually shifted from overhead to the horizon.
The bald man's movements slowed, and his body trembled with exhaustion. His finger, arms, and waist shuddered from the strain, clearly reaching both physical and mental limits.
But he still had a few more reps to go before reaching his goal of ten thousand for the day.
"Ten… huff… huff… Nine… huff… huff…"
At that moment, a mysterious energy surged within his body.
For most, this kind of training would primarily cause physical fatigue. But for the bald man, it also drained his spiritual energy. His Qi and spirit were being consumed together.
"Just one more… The last one!"
"Ah…"
With a beast-like growl, the bald man unleashed a surge of brute force.
It was as if a slumbering beast had awakened inside him.
His small frame slowly lowered itself once more.
Moments later, like an ant rising from the ground, he painstakingly pushed himself back up.
Boom!
A mysterious force caused the heavy iron block on his back to float to a nearby patch of ground and crash down with a deafening thud.
But the bald man ignored the noise. Utterly exhausted, both physically and mentally, he lay there, staring blankly at the sky, yet feeling an overwhelming sense of satisfaction and joy.
After a long pause, he slowly sat up, his body aching, and reached for his space ring. With a thought, a mountain of pre-cooked meat appeared before him, sending out wafts of delicious aroma.