Swallowed Star: Lord of the Wolf

Blood Shadow stopped keeping her in suspense and slowly raised her hand, pressing it against the pure white mask on her face.

The mask melted and faded away like ripples on water, revealing a familiar face beneath it that Zuo Shanjin had never seen before, yet could vaguely sense the imprint of its life essence carrying the aura of the primordial universe—a phantom image of the primordial universe demon race "Tianlang" flashed by, then transformed into a deep chaos.

This is precisely the true appearance of Blood Shadow.

At the same time, the deliberately simulated cold and obscure aura on his body quietly faded away, and the unique charm of Gu You, which was calm, reserved, yet contained a powerful vitality, naturally flowed out.

The realm only revealed the first level of the God King realm, but the profoundness of its essence made even Zuo Shanjin, the reincarnated God King, secretly tremble with fear.

He looked at Zuo Shanjin, a smile of equality and composure playing on his lips, his voice regaining its original clarity: "Commander Zuo Shan, or, should I address you... 'God King of Jin,' or 'Guest of the Mountain'?"

"Do you recognize who I am?"

"This aura..." Zuo Shanjin—or rather, Zuo Shanke—sensed it, his pupils slightly contracting.

The floodgates of memory were violently slammed open by this aura, and some extremely crucial images and causal connections surged forth: the primordial universe, Sirius, which he had only glimpsed a few times but which was rising rapidly beyond his expectations...

"The demon race... the ancient... Gu You?" The voice of the Mountain-Sitting Guest was filled with disbelief and caution. With a wave of his hand, he set up several more ingenious and concealed isolation barriers, his eyes sharp as knives. "You actually reached the God-King level so quickly?"

He did not immediately lower his guard; the lessons of reincarnation made him instinctively wary of anyone who suddenly approached him.

Moreover, only a few hundred epochs have passed since his reincarnation, and Sirius from the primordial universe arrived on the Origin Continent around the same time... Does this mean that he went from being a native of the primordial universe to reaching the level of his previous incarnation in just two or three hundred epochs?

incredible!

Because he had reached that level, he knew how great it was!
For countless eons, powerful beings from the three thousand-dimensional universe have continuously crossed the reincarnation channel to reach the Origin Continent. However, those geniuses who reign supreme in their respective dimensions and possess extraordinary talent are extremely rare, even those who reach the Chaos Realm are few and far between, let alone the God-King level.

And now, in the chaos of his escape into a cosmic sea, a powerful being who had become a god-king in just a few hundred epochs has appeared.
This speed is unbelievable, not even the royal families of the two ancient kingdoms have ever seen it... I've never even heard of it before!

Blood Shadow remained calm and composed, lightly tapping his fingertips to add several layers of restrictions.

“The primordial universe has undergone tremendous changes. Now, the ‘Demon Court’ rules over all races, and the landscape is vastly different from when you left. The Puti lineage still exists and has been integrated into it…” Xueyin recounted in detail, and as he spoke more and more, the doubt in the eyes of the Mountain-Sitting Guest diminished.

The wariness in the eyes of the mountain dweller melted away like ice and snow, replaced by a complex emotion of seeing a fellow countryman across endless time and space. There was excitement, emotion, sadness from the recollection of painful memories, and also relief.

"That's enough!" The Mountain Guest let out a long sigh of relief, as if a heavy burden had been lifted. He sat down again, picked up the wine pot, poured two full cups of strong liquor, and pushed one of them towards Blood Shadow. "Fellow Daoist Ancient Nether, please sit down!"

He emphasized the words "fellow Daoist".

Now that the other party is already at the first level of the God King realm, and can find his reincarnated self, his methods are terrifying, no less than when he was the God King of Jin. Of course, he can't treat the other party as a junior.

Xueyin sat down calmly and raised his glass: "To our homeland, and to you and me... for our reunion in this foreign land."

"Respectfully meeting you!" The guest raised his cup and drank it all in one gulp. The fiery liquor went down his throat, but it couldn't suppress the surging emotions in his heart.

Setting down his wine cup, the Mountain Hermit's expression turned serious: "Gu You, how did you find me? Even if you cultivate the Great Dao of Cause and Effect, you shouldn't be able to find me after my reincarnation..."

This is what the mountain dwellers urgently need to know; they can't wait a moment longer!
This is a matter of life and death for him. If Gu You can find him through the connection of cause and effect, there are many powerful people on the Origin Continent who cultivate the Great Dao of Cause and Effect, and some of them are even stronger than the first level. Then he will not be safe.

He is currently just an ordinary Chaos Realm cultivator. If the Heavenly Kun Kingdom Lord were to find him, he could very well face annihilation if he is not careful!
Hearing the Mountain Guest's urgent question, Xue Yin remained calm, poured himself another cup of wine, and then slowly said, "There's no need to worry too much. I was able to find you not because of my cultivation of the Great Dao of Cause and Effect."

He paused, seemingly considering his words: "I was able to find you because of an unrepeatable opportunity..." Xueyin didn't know if he was the only transmigrator with a cheat ability, but at least on this timeline, he had never encountered anyone suspicious.

The man sitting on the mountain frowned slightly: "Unreplicable?"

Xueyin nodded slightly, then shook his head: "I'm not sure if it's directly related to some great being, but I was able to find you because of that chance encounter."

He still can't understand the origins of the Golden Finger Panel, nor does he know if it's a product created by a Primordial Lord like 'Yuan'... or something even stronger?
I have absolutely no clue.

He looked at the mountain dweller with an open and honest gaze: "Through that chance, I vaguely sensed you, and then at a considerable cost, combined with a special medium, I barely managed to vaguely locate your current life fluctuations and approximate location by following this feeling."

Xueyin frankly stated, "This method relies on an unrepeatable opportunity and a connection to my own origins, making the conditions extremely demanding. Not to mention the Heavenly Kun Kingdom Lord, even an ultimate realm emperor who cultivates the Great Dao of Cause and Effect would find it extremely difficult to achieve without that specific 'medium'."

His tone was calm, but his words conveyed a wealth of information. He explained the uniqueness and limitations of his methods, hinted at the extraordinary opportunity he had obtained, but did not reveal the core secret of the cheat code panel.

The mountain dweller listened intently, the "Secret Technique of Sensing Fortune and Misfortune" within his body, inherited from an ancient lineage and once helping him escape death, constantly operating. The technique was silent, without any warning of danger; instead, it faintly gave off a peaceful omen of "meeting a benefactor" and "seeing the light at the end of the tunnel."

This finally eased his tense nerves a little.

He was well aware of the reliability of this secret technique.

When the Jin Kingdom was destroyed, the Heavenly Kun Kingdom's ruler personally pursued and killed him. It was this secret technique's ominous warning that allowed him to prepare for the worst and ultimately find a glimmer of hope to escape to the Cosmic Sea in his desperate situation. Now, the secret technique shows no hostility towards Gu You, but rather auspicious signs, indicating that the other party truly has no ill intentions towards him at this moment, and may even bring a turning point.

As for the "opportunity" and "method of tracing back" mentioned by Gu You, although he couldn't fully verify them, considering the terrifying speed at which the other party had become a God-King in hundreds of epochs, and his ability to accurately reveal his identity... the credibility was very high. The Origin Continent was vast and endless, hiding countless strange places that had seeped in from the Chaos Origin Space, as well as secret places left behind by powerful figures like Yuan Na. Any kind of opportunity was possible there.

Didn't he himself receive such an incredible inheritance as the "Art of Rank"?

"If the Lord of Tiankun Kingdom is truly willing to pay a tremendous price to persuade a certain Emperor to use forbidden methods to deduce my reincarnation..." Thinking of this, the Mountain-Sitting Guest felt relieved and gave a self-deprecating smile, "Then I'll accept it. An Emperor's will combined with ultimate-level methods would crush someone like me, a first-level reincarnation cultivator, more easily than crushing an ant. I wouldn't even have a chance to reincarnate again. If it really comes to that, revenge... would become a joke."

He looked at Xueyin, his wariness completely transformed into an equal inquiry and solemnity: "Fellow Daoist Guyou, thank you for your explanation. So, for the time being, I am still safe."

Xueyin nodded: "At least until an Emperor-level being actively and recklessly targets you, that should be the case. And an Emperor... I doubt he would easily go that far for the Lord of Tiankun Kingdom."

The mountain dweller deeply agreed.

Emperor-level beings are already at the pinnacle in the Origin Continent, holding a transcendent status. They are more concerned with their own cultivation and the ultimate transcendence after the Great Destruction of the Origin World. How could they easily resort to forbidden methods for their cook's personal vendetta?

The cost is too high; it's not worth the effort.

With his inner turmoil resolved, Zuo Shan Ke's expression was noticeably more relaxed. He looked at Xue Yin, his curiosity and anticipation rising again: "Fellow Daoist Gu You, you went to great lengths to find me, surely not just to confirm the safety of this old friend? We both come from that cosmic sea, and in this foreign land, we are natural allies. If there is anything I can do to help, as long as it is within my power, I, Zuo Shan Jin... no, I, Zuo Shan Ke, will never refuse."

He proactively expressed his willingness to cooperate.

A fellow countryman god-king with unlimited potential, mysterious methods, and who knows you inside and out is of immense value.

Xueyin had been waiting for these words. He put down his wine cup, leaned forward slightly, and spoke seriously: "Fellow Daoist Sitting Mountain Guest, I have indeed come here with two matters to inquire about."

"The first thing is to verify the reliability of that opportunity. Now it seems that it led me to you, and you are safe and sound. There is no doubt about the authenticity and value of this opportunity." Xueyin first reassured the other party, indicating that he was not speaking without reason.

The mountain dweller's heart stirred, and he became even more curious about the "opportunity" that Xueyin had mentioned, but he wisely refrained from asking for details.

Everyone has their own secrets.

"The second thing," Blood Shadow looked directly into the eyes of Sitting Mountain Guest and asked slowly, "is about... 'Yuan'."

The man sitting on the mountain stiffened slightly, and countless complex emotions flashed through his eyes in an instant—shock, reminiscence, awe, and a deep sense of regret.

"Fellow Daoist, you mean... the 'Lieyuan Technique'?" The Mountain Guest's voice was low, as if the name itself carried an invisible weight.

“Indeed.” Xueyin nodded. “I know that you once received the inheritance of the ‘Lieyuan Technique’. Although you failed to master it, being able to come into contact with such an inheritance is already a great opportunity. What I would like to ask is… where did you receive the inheritance of the ‘Lieyuan Technique’? Besides the ‘Lieyuan Technique’, do you know of any other opportunities or clues related to ‘Yuan’?”

Xueyin's gaze was frank and direct: "What we cultivators seek is nothing more than to climb higher peaks and see broader landscapes. 'Yuan' is one of the most supreme and great beings known. The opportunities he left behind may contain the key to transcending the shackles and even glimpsing a higher realm. I am very interested in this."

The mountain dweller remained silent for a moment, seemingly recalling the distant past.

After a long silence, he finally sighed.
"The Art of Countless Origins... I obtained it when my Jin Kingdom was still at its peak, as its ruler, while exploring a forbidden land called the Abyss of Myriad Realms, in a hidden 'Hall of Inheritance'. That Hall of Inheritance was unimaginably ancient, and its style was completely different from that of the Origin Continent. The hall was empty except for a stone carving. When I gazed at the stone carving, my will was pulled into an illusionary space, where I received the basic inheritance information of the Art of Countless Origins."

His eyes revealed a mixture of reminiscence and emotion: "Although the inheritance was not explicitly stated, I have studied it for countless years. To master the 'Art of Dimensions,' three conditions are indispensable—a chaotic-level will at the True God level, a pure and powerful soul, and a suitable cultivation stage. People like us God-Kings have long since missed the suitable cultivation stage and cannot even begin to learn it... As for a pure and powerful soul, I tried to cultivate one when I was still in the Primordial Universe, but I don't think I succeeded..."

As he recalled, Zuo Shan Ke said, "The 'Lie Yuan Technique,' a secret art of will originating from Yuan, is widely circulated on the Origin Continent, with many copies... This opportunity is unique. Once someone masters it, all other copies will collapse... This also means that no one has ever mastered it yet."

This is why, despite the fierce competition among various parties, a first-level God King from a small, peripheral country was able to obtain the opportunity of Yuan.

Even the founders of the two ancient kingdoms failed to master it. The Mountain Hermit couldn't help but laugh at how naive he had been to think he could master the "Art of the Ranks".

"As for other opportunities related to 'Yuan'..." The Mountain Guest pondered, carefully sorting through his long-forgotten memories, "When I obtained the 'Art of the Elemental', there seemed to be some blurry mural fragments in the inheritance hall besides the stone carvings, depicting some incomprehensible scenes... One of them seemed to vaguely point to 'an isolated island at the end of time and space' and 'the echo of the river of fate'—such ethereal images. But it was too incomplete, and at the time, my entire mind was focused on the 'Art of the Elemental', so I didn't delve into it."

He looked at Xueyin and said frankly, "Aside from that, I haven't had any direct contact with any other opportunities or locations that are clearly related to 'Yuan'. However..."

The Mountain Guest changed the subject: "There are some widely circulated but difficult-to-verify legends on the Origin Continent. One of them is that a great being like 'Yuan' will watch over countless Origin Worlds and occasionally leave behind some tests or inheritances for those with the right destiny. In the legends, such opportunities are often related to ethereal aspects such as 'cause and effect,' 'fate,' and 'will,' and their locations are completely random. They may appear in an inconspicuous corner or in the core of a forbidden zone."

“Since you, Fellow Daoist Gu You, have such extraordinary opportunities, perhaps… you could pay more attention to ancient ruins or strange places related to the ‘Cyclical Network,’ ‘Threads of Fate,’ and ‘Trials of Will,’” suggested the Mountain-Sitting Guest. “Of course, these are just rumors and my speculations.”

Xueyin listened attentively and carefully wrote down all the information.

Although the clues provided by the Mountain Guest are vague, combining them with the information he knows about the "original work" and the detection functions that the Golden Finger Panel may have, we might be able to piece together some directions.

"Thank you for your frankness, fellow Daoist." Blood Shadow raised his cup in a toast. "This information has been very helpful to me."

“We are from the same hometown, so it should be like this.” The Mountain Guest also raised his cup, and then asked, “Fellow Daoist Gu You, what is your current status in the Thunder Kingdom? If there are any important matters in the future, what is the most reliable way to contact you? As for the matter of the Food Kingdom… what are your thoughts on it?”

He clearly wanted to further clarify the basis for cooperation and the methods of communication between the two parties. (End of Chapter)