Swallowing the Stars: Heart of the Martial God

Chapter 11 When you're out in the game, you need a background.

Ling Xuan knew this was the decisive blow. He poured the last bit of his primal force into the blade, and the flame domain solidified as he unleashed a powerful killing move he had learned from 'Infernal Hell'.

"The Fiery Demon Burns the Heavens".

Two devastating forces collided, instantly carving countless terrifying ravines into the entire Gobi Desert battlefield. Half of the surrounding sand was crystalline by the intense heat of the flames, while the other half transformed into towering mountains.

The aftershocks caused the newly formed mountain range to collapse with a roar, turning into a cloud of dust, while the crystalline half shattered into countless tiny fragments.

The intense energy fluctuations lasted for a full minute before gradually subsiding.

As the dust settled, Ling Xuan knelt on one knee, his three-pointed, double-edged sword deeply embedded in the ground.

Rock-cracked armor was also covered in cracks, yet it remained as sturdy as a mountain: "Your potential far surpasses mine. I am already the number one genius of the Yanshan Legion. Our Yanshan Legion possesses three great immortal gods. Once you join, you can become an immortal god's disciple and obtain incomparably precious cultivation techniques and resources. Think it over again and join us."

Ling Xuan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, shook his head, and said that not only had the Zhulong lineage treated him well, but it was also his own bloodline, and he could not betray his ancestors.

The strength of the Zhulong lineage is far beyond what the Yanshan Legion can match. Why would I be foolish enough to join an unfamiliar force?
"I will walk my own path!"

Rock Crack sighed softly, tapping the ground lightly with his battle blade: "You don't need to rush to reject me. Think it over. This universe is far more vast than you think. In this world, you need not only talent and strength, but also background and connections. Without these, you will find it difficult to move an inch."

The gates of my Yanshan Legion are always open to you. This is my virtual universe ID; email me if you've thought it through.

As soon as he finished speaking, a yellowish-brown blade of light pierced through the air. Ling Xuan swung his blade to block, but due to exhaustion, his defense was pierced.

"Ding! Battle lost. Current record: 1999 wins, 1 loss."

As the system notification sounded and Ling Xuan vanished into specks of light, Yan Lie's whisper still echoed in his ears: "I hope you'll be even stronger when we meet again."

Exiting the virtual universe, Ling Xuan couldn't wait to bring up the battle replay.

Such a life-or-death struggle, where the odds were evenly matched, has a retrospective value far exceeding expectations.

During the battle, he poured out all the essence he had learned from his past studies. Only at the very last moment did Ling Xuan suffer a narrow defeat at the hands of Yan Lie due to a slight flaw. Undoubtedly, all of his strengths and weaknesses were exposed.

Ling Xuan compared the secret techniques of the ancient book "Infernal Prison" with every frame and second of the battle.

“Here, the point where the Force was injected was at least 0.3 seconds too slow!” He suddenly slammed his hand on the table and stood up, pointing to the moment a secret technique was executed on the screen, his voice filled with regret. “If the Force flow trajectory could have been adjusted in advance, the explosive power of this attack would have been enough to tear open a gap in his defense.”

Furthermore, when faced with the suppression of the rock fissure domain, he should have compressed the flame domain in time to counterattack, but he missed the opportunity because he was too focused on the attack range.

And so, he immersed himself in the review, not closing his eyes for three days and three nights. The battle video was played hundreds of times, and the virtual screen was covered with his annotations for improvement, densely packed like a spider web.

Three days later, Ling Xuan stepped into the virtual universe again and headed straight for the killing field.

"Set the opponent to Iwa-riki, a planetary-level warrior I fought three days ago, and keep him in his strongest combat condition."

In an instant, space distorted, and the imposing figure of Yan Lie descended, carrying the oppressive aura of the Earth Domain.

The giant battle blade in the opponent's hand trembled slightly, and the earthy yellow halo flowing on the blade was exactly the same as in his memory, as if silently mocking Ling Xuan's overestimation of his abilities.

At the start of the battle, he employed his improved tactics, his three-pointed double-edged sword transforming into a fiery red streak, aiming straight for the rock's vital points at a tricky angle. However, each clash of blades against the battle sword, the heavy feedback from the weapon served as a reminder of the vast difference in genetic energy between him and his opponent.

Although his attacks were more ferocious than before, and his use of the fire domain was more exquisite, each swing of Rock Crack carried overwhelming power, easily dismantling his offensive.

Time and again, Ling Xuan was repelled, knocked down, and killed, only to re-enter the killing arena to continue the challenge.

Gradually increase the level of rock fissures from planetary level one upwards.

After the 703rd battle, Ling Xuan was certain that if the difference in their genetic energy could be reduced to within 3 levels, he would be absolutely confident of turning the tide. He was 70% confident at level 4, 50% at level 5, and would be completely outmatched at level 6.

When he exited the virtual universe, Ling Xuan's expression had returned to calm.

During this period, he cultivated diligently day and night, and with the help of the precious treasures he obtained from the coming-of-age ceremony trial, he finally succeeded in breaking through to the third level of the planetary stage.

More importantly, he thoroughly integrated his previous insights into the divine bird runes, reaching a completely new level of understanding of the fire domain.

"It's time to go to the temple's secret chamber again to comprehend the fire domain." Ling Xuan straightened his clothes and strode towards the temple.

Upon entering the temple, a man in blue armor respectfully presented a token to the temple messenger with both hands.

The temple messenger casually took the token, examined it, and then returned it to the other party.

"Remember, the time required for a World Lord to comprehend this is two thousand years. Go in."

The man in blue armor nodded respectfully and then entered the secret chamber of the Water Law.

The temple envoy then turned to look at Ling Xuan, his deep gaze seemingly able to see through all his growth: "This time, you've made great progress, haven't you?"

Ling Xuan bowed respectfully, his voice filled with barely concealed excitement: "Thank you, senior! This trip has been very fruitful."

As he spoke, he sent the battle videos from the Duel Space and the Killing Arena one by one via his personal computer.

"Go in, and I look forward to your further advancement." The temple messenger waved his hand, and the door to the secret chamber, engraved with runes of the laws of fire, slowly opened, releasing a wave of intense heat.

Ling Xuan took a deep breath and entered the secret room.

Meanwhile, the temple messenger sat on an ancient stone chair, pulled up the video sent by Ling Xuan, and, with his consciousness far exceeding that of ordinary people, directly set the video to the highest playback speed.

The intense battle scenes flashed by rapidly, and Ling Xuan took in every clash and collision of their domains with Yan Lie.

When the video froze on the scene of Ling Xuan and Yan Lie's last conversation, the temple envoy's lips curled into a meaningful smile, and he murmured, "Does being in this world require power and connections? Interesting."

He opened the virtual universe communication list, found the contact named "Third Elder", and sent the video of the final battle verbatim, without any text description or editing, simply presenting the battle process in its original form.

Not long after, the other party replied, equally brief, with only four words: "I understand."

Upon seeing these four words, the temple messenger understood immediately, smiled slightly, and then exited the virtual universe network.

Rock Crack: Damn it, I'm really cracked!
(End of this chapter)