The Nine Secrets of Swallowing the Stars Combined

On the rooftop of the small building.

A figure appeared in front of him at some unknown time. The space-time within hundreds of meters around him had been distorted and isolated, forming an independent space from which no movement from the outside world could be heard.

Ba Qi stared in shock at the person before him—a young man with a long sword on his back, silver hair reaching his waist, wearing an ancient battle armor stained with faint blood, with a cold face and eyes as deep as a cold pool. Just by standing there quietly, he released a terrifying aura that was enough to freeze time and space.

At this moment, in Ba Qi's perception, the flow of time around him seemed to have frozen, and even breathing became extremely difficult.

"This look and aura... could it be...?" Ba Qi's heart jolted, and an unbelievable thought instantly surfaced in his mind.

"It seems you've already guessed my identity." The silver-haired youth spoke slowly, his gaze fixed on Ba Qi. His face remained cold and stern, his eyes as deep as black holes, as if they could devour all light in the world. Every word he uttered carried immense pressure, causing the surrounding space and time to tremble slightly.

"Yes, Blood Domain and the others should have already told you quite a bit of information," he added, his tone calm yet carrying an undeniable authority.

Upon hearing this, Ba Qi had no further hesitation. He immediately knelt on one knee, his posture upright, his face showing utmost reverence, and his voice was respectful and steady: "Ba Qi greets the Lord of Ice Peak!"

"Little fellow, you are very clever and cautious." The Lord of Ice Peak looked at Ba Qi, a rare hint of mockery flashing in his cold eyes. His tone was playful. "You clearly fused a hundred Blood Crystals, but only claimed to have fused ten. You know how to hide your strength."

Upon hearing this, Ba Qi's soul trembled instantly, his body stiffened, his eyes widened suddenly, and his face showed an expression of extreme shock. His lips moved slightly, but for a moment he did not know how to respond.

He never expected that the secret he had deliberately hidden would be discovered by the Lord of the Ice Peak.

"Could it be... time reversal?"

At this moment, Ba Qi instantly realized that the Lord of Ice Peak must have gone to the Blood Luo Continent and, through the Universe Lord's ability to reverse time and space, seen his past experiences.

In an instant, Ba Qi felt his soul turn ice-cold.

Seemingly having discerned Ba Qi's thoughts, the Lord of Ice Peaks now had a slight, mocking smile on his lips.

"What, do you think that I, a high-ranking human being, would covet your special privileges and use them against you?"

The chilling words instantly filled Ba Qi with panic. He immediately spoke up nervously, "Of course not! Lord Ice Peak, please see the truth! How dare I, Ba Qi, make such malicious assumptions about a human powerhouse!"

Upon hearing this, the Lord of Ice Peak did not respond, but instead quietly looked at Ba Qi.

Being stared at silently by a cosmic ruler, Ba Qi broke out in a cold sweat, his soul trembling wildly.

At this point, he had not yet conceived the Beast God's Egg again, nor could he create a clone to save his life; his life was entirely in the hands of the Ice Peak Lord.

"Okay, don't be so nervous."

The next moment, the Lord of the Ice Peak finally spoke again.

"You've already met Blood Domain and the others, so you should know that you will be becoming my disciple."

Upon hearing this, Ba Qi's heart stirred, and without the slightest hesitation, he immediately said, "Disciple Ba Qi greets Master!"

"You're quite adept at taking advantage of situations." Upon hearing this, the Lord of Ice Peak nodded slightly.

"I'm investigating your past for no other reason than..."

"I was curious when I heard that you had only been at the World Lord level for a little over a thousand years, yet you fused five Blood Crystals in one go to become a Black Warrior."

"That's why I made a special trip to your hometown to travel back in time and take a look."

"But what I saw surprised me even more."

Upon hearing this, Ba Qi quickly explained, "It wasn't that I deliberately concealed it, but..."

He was frantically searching for an excuse in his mind.

Back then, when he fused with the Blood Luo Crystal in the Blood Luo World, he did it directly in his palace without any concealment or awareness of reversing time and space.

After all, he had no idea about the actual situation of Blood Luo World and Virtual Universe Company back then.

He never imagined that he would be recruited into the Virtual Universe Company because of his identity as a Black Warrior, and would have the opportunity to become a personal disciple of the Lord of the Universe.

If he could have foreseen all of this, Ba Qi would definitely have entered his inner world to fuse with the Blood Crystal.

Thus, even if the Lord of the Universe reverses time and space, he can only see the World Lord's original core in the void, but cannot see the scene of the world inside the original core.

"Alright, no need to explain." The Lord of Ice Peak frowned slightly, interrupting Ba Qi's words directly. "To survive in the universe, it is essential to be cautious at all times, and you have done a good job in that regard."

"But I hope that we can have more trust when dealing with ethnic groups."

"Within the tribe, the higher your talent level, the better treatment you will receive."

"As for coveting treasures or harming our own kind, our human superiors not only disdain such things, but also abhor them. Once discovered, every single one of them will be severely punished."

Upon hearing this, Ba Qi looked embarrassed and said, "This disciple understands. Thank you for your guidance, teacher."

The Lord of the Ice Peaks nodded.

"Of course, even if I reversed time, I would only see that you fused the Blood Crystal to its limit in a short period of time."

"As for what special circumstances led you to this point, I don't know, and I don't want to know."

"Which genius hasn't had a special opportunity?"

"If even the highest echelons of humanity have stooped to scheming against the fate of their descendants, then the human race is unworthy of being a top race."

The words of the Lord of Ice Peak filled Ba Qi with admiration.

"Since you have already addressed me as your teacher, I will now formally accept you as my disciple." The Lord of Ice Peak looked at Ba Qi. "I originally had 22 disciples, and from now on, you will be the 23rd."

"Teacher!" Ba Qi said respectfully.

"Although you are my disciple, I am not proficient in the Path of the Beast God." The Lord of Ice Peak looked at Ba Qi and continued, "Fortunately, the Black Warrior lineage has ready-made unique techniques for you to study. If you encounter anything you don't understand, Blood Domain and the others will be happy to teach you."

"So I don't need to worry too much about cultivation."

Ba Qi nodded respectfully. He naturally understood what the Lord of Ice Peak meant. He only needed to focus on comprehending the "Seven Kills of the Beast God" in the future, and there would be no problem for him to enter the realm of the Universe Venerable.

"Shagu is both your hometown elder and your senior brother. You can visit him more often in the future. If you have any problems in cultivation or in life, just go to him immediately," said the Lord of Ice Peak.

"Disciple understands." Ba Qi nodded.