Chapter 96 – Thirty Years Gone By!
"I named it the Core of the Great Void. It's a byproduct of a rare treasure, possessing a faint trace of life. After proper nurturing, it can be used as a high-level flying psychic weapon."
"I've only ever seen seven of these 'fruit cores' in the entire Original Universe. Each one has a different attribute combination, like 'Thunder-Time + Wood-Space', 'Light-Time + Wood-Space', and 'Wind-Time + Earth-Space'..."
"The one I used before had the 'Thunder-Time + Earth-Space' combination, which aligns perfectly with your path."
"If I didn't already have a better flying weapon, I'd honestly be reluctant to part with it."
Oriana couldn't find any record of the Core of the Great Void in the Virtual Universe Company's treasury. But seeing how highly a pinnacle King-level being regarded it, Jiang Zhe estimated its value to be on par with Marquis-level treasures—perhaps between 1 to 2 million Hunyuan units.
And that's not even considering the mystery behind these "fruit cores"—what kinds of extraordinary abilities might fruits born from such cores possess?
Suppressing his thoughts, Jiang Zhe declined, "Teacher, this is too valuable. I can't accept it."
"These two items are gifts for accepting me as your teacher. If you truly regard me as your master, then take them."
"Besides, you need them, don't you?"
"I can assure you—unless you're using weapons crafted for top-tier Kings or Venerables—nothing else in the entire universe would suit you better than these."
"Take them. Once I give something, I don't take it back."
"...Thank you, Teacher. I am deeply honored." Jiang Zhe bowed gratefully and accepted the gifts.
The Saint Spirit King smiled. "You'll also need a compatible flying technique. I've prepared one for you—created by a top Venerable from the 'Cosmic School' faction. It's profound in concept and aids in comprehending the laws of time and space."
"I've sent you the detailed information by mail. You'll need to purchase it yourself, though—the early parts are affordable, so I won't assist with that."
"I'll handle the purchase. You've already done more than enough," Jiang Zhe said quickly.
"Alright, now that we've covered the recent lessons, do you have any questions? I can go over them again if needed."
"Yes, Teacher. I have some doubts about the first two diagrams…"
And so the regular master-disciple teaching resumed.
A week later, Jiang Zhe returned from the Saint Spirit King's residence, brimming with knowledge.
Inside his private cultivation chamber, he opened the two emails from his teacher.
The first was on how to use the Hand of Time-Space, a powerful psychic weapon technique.
To Jiang Zhe, it felt like a spiritual successor to Beast God's Hand, which itself was a more advanced version of the Hand of Destruction.
Originally, he had planned to use Beast God's Hand once Hand of Destruction became insufficient. But after choosing the Chaos Monument of the Universe, both techniques were rendered unusable due to elemental incompatibility.
The Hand of Time-Space featured nine levels:
Spear of Judgment
Thunder Pillar of Sealing
Field of Annihilation
Void Grinder
World's End
Thunder Forged Stars
Wandering Stars
Descent of the Demon Dragon
Heaven-Slaying Divine Light
His teacher had added two notes:
At the Domain Lord level, reaching the seventh tier could challenge a basic Immortal. The eighth and ninth tiers could even shatter an Immortal's divine body.
However, without special means, it's still difficult to kill an Immortal Marquis, as they possess regenerative abilities.
With the weapon wrapped around his left arm, Jiang Zhe softly murmured, "If this weapon were simplified—removing spatial components and focusing only on lightning and time—it could probably rival the nine God Weapons of the Control Tower."
Then he opened the second email and logged into the Virtual Universe.
He had a feeling the recommended body technique would be extremely expensive.
In his residence within the Primal Zone, he searched for "Time-Space Body Technique Mastery".
Soon, the screen displayed:
"Time-Space Body Technique Mastery – 20 million points required.
30% discount for those in the 'Cosmic School' (Primal Secret Realm)
20% discount for those in the 'Cosmic School' (Initial Secret Realm)
No discount elsewhere."
Jiang Zhe: ???
What the hell?
Even secret techniques created by Universe Lords only cost around 1 million points!
Techniques from Immortal Kings like the True Yan King cost about 800,000.
So why was this one 20 million?
"Can it be purchased in parts?" Jiang Zhe wondered.
Clicking further, the screen showed something akin to online shopping filters—not by size or color, but by law attributes:
Time Acceleration
Time Stop
Spatial Crush
Spatial Seal
Teleportation
These represented six profound concepts under the Time and Space laws—typically only mastered by high-level Kings.
He discovered that the technique was customizable.
Selecting all five attributes set the cost at 10 million points.
Selecting only Time Acceleration renamed the technique to Shadow of Interlace, and the price dropped to 250,000 points.
Jiang Zhe was impressed. "I see—it's a build-your-own technique! This Venerable was really creative."
After some thought, Jiang Zhe selected Time Acceleration and Spatial Seal.
These two best matched his current path:
His previous skill Shadow Domain culminated in Time Acceleration.
In the Genius Battle, his spatial techniques were geared toward pinning down enemies—matching Spatial Seal.
This new technique would become his core close-combat body movement technique.
As for Teleportation and Time Stop? Better to keep those as separate utility skills.
Selecting the two options changed the technique's name to Shadowlock Domain priced at 1 million points, with discounts similar to before.
Unfortunately, Jiang Zhe's remaining points were still insufficient.
Luckily, the technique could be purchased in five tiers:
Hundred Shadows – 100 points
Thousand Shadows – 1,000 points
Ten Thousand Shadows – 10,000 points
Shadow of the Domain – 100,000 points
Extinction Domain – 1 million points
"Just buying the first three tiers should be enough for now."
He paid 7,000 points, leaving him with 64,500.
Soon, the delivery bot Eitor arrived. Jiang Zhe immediately began studying the technique.
For over a month, Jiang Zhe practiced with Time-Space Hand and the Core of the Great Void in the Virtual Universe.
In reality, he bonded with the Core via blood and nurtured both artifacts with psychic energy.
Two months later, he began real combat—hunting Chaos Beasts, the third treasure of Chaos City.
These beasts released Chaos Essence upon death, which slowly evolved the soul and improved one's resonance with the universe, making law comprehension slightly easier.
Jiang Zhe also hoped to "double-dip" by using the Conqueror's Secret Technique to collect Source Essence for enhancing his life gene level.
Unfortunately, he found that Chaos Beasts were too primitive to provide useful Source Essence.
Sigh… To truly improve my life genes, I'll have to leave the Initial Universe and start hunting natives…
Ten years passed like water in Chaos City.
King Longyu, a subordinate of Nine-Sword Venerable, came to check on the progress of this generation's genius contestants.
Bolan had passed the fourth floor. Seven others passed the second.
Luo Feng had just awakened and stormed through the second and third floors—his talent blossoming at last.
Jiang Zhe, on the other hand, hadn't made a move. For ten years, he trained quietly between four locations: his residence, City Lord's Mansion, Saint Spirit King's manor, and the outskirts of Chaos City.
No new breakthroughs at the Bridge of Trials. No one knew how far he had advanced.
But no one dared to underestimate him—after all, he had passed six floors straight at the beginning.
Even Longyu King, though curious, had been told by Nine-Sword Venerable not to worry about Jiang Zhe. He was already part of another faction.
"Master, it's time to visit your family."
On the rooftop, Jiang Zhe, deeply immersed in the laws of time and space, was awoken by Oriana.
Rubbing his chin, he felt his long beard and disheveled hair. Displeased, he shaved and gave himself a clean buzz cut.
"Anna, what time is it now?"
"Master, it's been ten years and three months in Chaos City. On Earth, it's April 4th, 2105—Qingming Festival. Your grandfather is asking you to join... the cyber ancestral rites."
"Cyber… really?" Jiang Zhe chuckled, "Alright, I'll be there soon."
He ran his hand over carvings he had etched on the floor—reminders of the last decade of training.
"44 time-based mysteries and 38 space-based ones… The last 72 are brutally difficult!"
"No wonder even Luo Feng needed over a hundred years in Chaos City to master them."
"With 20 years left and the help of my Silver-Clad Clone and Luminous Avatar, let's see how far I can go."
The deeper his understanding of laws grew, the more Jiang Zhe appreciated his powerful alternate selves:
The Luminous Avatar had incredible clarity in perceiving time and space laws—likely even more so than the famed World Tree.
The Second Mind, a fully independent consciousness, allowed for doubled efficiency when working in tandem.
After composing himself, Jiang Zhe logged into the Virtual Universe and teleported to Black Dragon Mountain Island.
He spent three days with his family, had a meal with Hong and Thunder God, asked about their lives, then returned to Chaos City to continue his training.
In the Saint Spirit King's cathedral-like classroom:
"You've comprehended 94 fundamental time mysteries and 90 spatial ones. I've never seen a genius like you," the Saint Spirit King said, eyes glowing with approval.
"You're truly my heir."
"And your progress with the Thunder and Earth laws?"
Jiang Zhe hesitated slightly. "The Thunder Law is nearly ready to acknowledge me. The Earth Law… still a long way to go."
After all, his Silver-Clad Clone had spent 100 years focusing entirely on space laws, neglecting earth completely.
Thunder, on the other hand, advanced thanks to the Thunder God Codex.
"Did Mo Bosen warn you not to gain acknowledgment from lower laws too quickly?" the King asked with a frown.
"Yes, he feared I'd be targeted by alien assassins if I appeared on the bounty list."
"Hmph. Once you climb the Bridge again, you'll appear on those bounty lists anyway. Holding back now is meaningless."
"So, are you going to hide your strength and leave Chaos City with a six-floor record?"
"No, Teacher. I will give it my all on the Bridge."
Assassins? Jiang Zhe no longer feared them.
"Good. Do as you wish. While you soar into the sky, I and my family will shield you from the arrows in the dark."
"I've already sent a female King-level servant to your solar system to begin planetary defense upgrades."
"We won't repeat the mistakes of the past."
Leaving the teacher's residence, Jiang Zhe returned home, logged into the Virtual Universe, and teleported to the Bridge of Trials dimension.
It was time for his final performance in Chaos City.