Chapter 128: Bai Ze, [Apocalypse]!
Primal Secret Realm, Manor No. 114
In the study of the stilted bamboo tower, Jiang Zhe lay fast asleep on a tatami mat. This time, he'd hit the jackpot again—The Slumbering Dragon Method had created a vivid, immersive dream world.
As usual, he expected this to be another long slumber, potentially lasting years.
Although dream scenarios were uncontrollable, there's a saying: "No child cries every night; no gambler loses every game."
Sometimes, he encountered truly "premium" dreams—ones perfectly aligned with his nature.
After all, Jiang Zhe's core essence was based on the dual elements of lightning and time. So it would never make sense for the dream world to place him in the role of someone attuned to, say, metal or space laws.
Instead, he found himself repeatedly embodying characters aligned with lightning or time, such as Tiger Yao, Thunder Dragon, or Yaolong.
Every time he woke, he gained immense insight.
Of course, that was just for now.
At this stage of his cultivation, Jiang Zhe still focused primarily on the paths of lightning and time. Later, once he reached the Universe Master level and needed broader comprehension, the dream scenarios would evolve accordingly.
It had been mentioned before that The Slumbering Dragon Method was influenced—at least partially—by the cultivator's subconscious mind.
In this dream, Jiang Zhe once again became a universe-favored special lifeform:
—Zhenyu Spirit: A being with natural affinity for the lightning and time origin laws, and a 1000x life gene ratio.
Born in the core of a desolate planet, it emerged at the Undying level, accompanied by countless F- and G-class lightning-based ores and treasures.
Upon birth, it possessed lightning and time law comprehension equal to Jiang Zhe's—roughly equivalent to the 12th level of the Skybridge.
With that level of insight, its divine power strength was equal to 500 times that of an ordinary World Lord. Coupled with the 1000x life gene ratio, its raw base combat power reached 500,000 World Lord levels.
This was the kind of power a universe-favored being was born with—nearly equivalent to an invincible Marquis.
Zhenyu Spirit loved exploring cosmic secret realms.
With a beak like a spear and wings like blades, it was both peerless in offense and astonishing in agility. Like thunder tearing across the sky, it earned the title—Thunder Caller King.
Unfortunately, Thunder Caller King's life ended like a shooting star—brilliant but brief.
At just several tens of thousands of years old, despite law comprehension comparable to a Marquis Undying, with true combat power rivaling a basic Universe Venerable, it ultimately fell within a secret realm.
Back in the Real World…
Jiang Zhe gradually awoke in the study of the bamboo tower.
Suddenly, he sensed a strange aura surrounding him, as if enveloped in a haze of black mist. His spirit slumped, listless and lethargic, nearly dragging him back into sleep.
Damn! What is this?!
A side effect of cultivating the Slumbering Dragon Method? Why am I still so sleepy?
"Master, don't—!"
Oriana's warning came too late.
Jiang Zhe shook his head, using his powerful will to resist the pull of sleep. He pushed himself up from the tatami and opened his eyes—
Only to find, three meters away on the floor, a black-robed, bald man sitting cross-legged. His gaze carried a prison-like majesty, and he gave Jiang Zhe a satisfied smile.
Jiang Zhe: ???
He turned to Oriana, who stood silently nearby, questioning her with his eyes.
At that moment, a message flowed into his consciousness—a conversation that had taken place while he slept, between Oriana and the stranger.
A Universe Master?!
So this was… the Lord of Darkness!
Jiang Zhe recognized him instantly.
This legendary figure had returned from the Cosmic Sea to the Primal Universe—and had been watching Jiang Zhe sleep for fifteen years!
Clearly, he was Jiang Zhe's new teacher.
A fifth-tier Universe Master. Junior brother to Chaos City Lord. Humanity's shadowy protector. A master of illusionary domains and unparalleled at teaching disciples.
Among the six core leaders of Virtual Universe Company, he was the only one to have trained a Universe Master-level disciple.
In the original timeline, Chaos City Lord only regained face because of Luo Feng's cheat-like progress.
"Jiang Zhe greets the Master."
With that thought flashing through his mind, Jiang Zhe respectfully knelt on the tatami.
"Rise. Come sit here so we can talk."
Jiang Zhe stood and moved to sit cross-legged on a nearby cushion, assuming a posture ready for instruction.
"Your teacher, the Holy Spirit King, likely mentioned me. I'm the one intending to take you as a disciple—one of the higher-ups of the Virtual Universe Company."
"The Holy Spirit King is my grand-disciple, so technically, your seniority has just increased."
The black-robed, bald man chuckled as he introduced himself.
"I am known as the Lord of Darkness, younger brother to the Chaos City Lord. I specialize in illusion-type techniques. As a Universe Master, I've also conducted deep research into both time and space laws."
"Will you accept me as your teacher?"
Huh?
No trial period or registered disciple phase?
"I am honored to become your disciple," Jiang Zhe replied with utmost respect.
His treatment was far better than Luo Feng's back then.
The Lord of Darkness nodded, then instructed:
"Keep my existence to yourself. If leaked, it could bring immense danger to our race."
"To outsiders, you'll be declared as my elder brother Chaos City Lord's disciple."
"Later, I'll introduce you to your senior sister. If you encounter problems in the real world that she can't handle, go directly to the Primal Secret Realm or Chaos City to find your martial uncle. He'll handle them at his discretion… though I doubt you'll ever need to."
"For any cultivation-related issues, visit me in the Virtual Universe. I've granted you access to my private space—the Dark Divine Realm, where a part of my consciousness is always present."
"Have you remembered all three things?"
Jiang Zhe nodded repeatedly.
Despite his cold appearance, this master was actually quite easy to get along with.
"Now let's talk about you. Jiang Zhe, do you know when we first started paying attention to you?"
Jiang Zhe thought for a moment and said tentatively,
"During the Genius Battle? When I used the Beast God's Hand with Destruction Shattering?"
The Lord of Darkness nodded—then shook his head.
"Your senior sister, the Dream Sovereign, and the Holy Spirit King noticed you during the Genius Battle."
"But I first heard about you when you passed the sixth level of the Skybridge. That's when my elder brother mentioned you, and I began considering you as a disciple."
"However… truthfully, we've known of your existence since shortly after your birth."
Jiang Zhe: ???
Shocked, he instinctively wanted to protest. How could that be possible?!
But the Lord of Darkness didn't explain.
Instead, he raised his hand, and six stone slabs appeared in midair—three dark green, three deep purple—etched with deer and dragon-man figures radiating powerful law intent.
Jiang Zhe's pupils shrank.
Of course he recognized them—Beast God Stone Slabs of Thunder and Wood!
All six were in his teacher's hands?!
So the Immortal Leader of Origin Star, who inherited the relics of Shanhai World's leader, just handed them over to this guy's clan?!
Unbelievable!
"Do you also have some?" asked the Lord of Darkness.
Jiang Zhe silently took out two slabs from his world ring and laid them on the floor.
"Yes, Teacher. These were passed down in my family. The other six should also have been mine."
He then asked, confused,
"Teacher, are the stone slabs somehow linked? Otherwise, how did you find me? I never showed any particular talent in lightning-time fusion laws."
Which was true. He'd always presented himself as gifted in time and space—not lightning or wood.
The Lord of Darkness dispersed the image and conjured a different one—this time, a white beast.
It had a pair of jade-like horns, a lion-like form, and silver-white fur.
Oriana scanned it against the Virtual Universe database, but found no match.
"Master, nothing found… but it looks similar to the Bai Ze from Earth mythology."
After receiving Oriana's message, Jiang Zhe looked to his teacher for confirmation.
"It is called Bai Ze. A special lifeform with a 100x life gene ratio and a unique innate technique—[Apocalypse]!"
"That's how we located you."
He then explained the secret technique:
"[Apocalypse] can be used once per year. It allows the user to query the Primal Universe's Source Will for a piece of information related to themselves. It may be useful or not, beneficial or harmful, clear or vague, grand or trivial…"
"As for what the Primal Universe Source Will is…"
Jiang Zhe's eyes widened in shock, barely hearing the rest.
If each annual message could hint at a fortuitous opportunity, wasn't that just divine plot armor? Like heaven force-feeding someone good luck!
Also—damn, old bro, did you just backstab me?!
To be continued…
---
[A/N: Want to read more chapters in advance?
Check out my P@treon at "DigitalToons" for early access and exclusive content!
You can read 100+ chapters there in advance.
```And free members can read 2 chapters ahead of WN.
``` ]