Chapter 454 – Red Talent Thousand Illusions, A Future Changed Once More! (5k)
by spirapira“Hm? Another red talent!”
Su Xing’s heart skipped a beat as he hurriedly looked at the new talent.
【Thousand Illusions】: Red mythical-grade talent. You gain the ability to transform into another person’s appearance. From aura to appearance, you completely transform into another person, and you automatically master their supernatural arts and techniques. Indistinguishable by anyone below Saint level. Can only be used once per simulation. You may revert to your original form. (Note: After transforming into another person with this talent, your actual strength remains unchanged.)
Su Xing gazed at the newly drawn talent, lost in thought.
Clearly, this new talent Thousand Illusions bore some similarities to the red talent Xenomorph that Su Xing had drawn before.
The difference was that Xenomorph transformed you into a foreign race, while Thousand Illusions could only transform you into a human.
The Xenomorph talent was indistinguishable even by Saints, but Thousand Illusions was only indistinguishable by those below Saint level.
Xenomorph could only be used once per simulation, with no way to revert to your original form.
But Thousand Illusions allowed you to revert to your original form after transforming into someone else.
“Overall, neither talent is strictly superior to the other… but each has its own uses!”
Su Xing’s mind raced, quickly deducing several scenarios where the Thousand Illusions talent would be suitable.
“I could give it a brief try… but the next simulation should still focus on increasing my cultivation!”
Su Xing had made his decision, and his gaze turned to the simulation panel.
【Please select the target for the Plus One talent enhancement…】
“I choose to enhance the Late Bloomer talent…”
【In the spirit field grotto-heaven, you become aware that you are in a simulation.】
【You travel to the Star Assembly venue and acquire a large quantity of Star Stones.】
【Without anyone noticing, you track down the Advent Cult traitors who had infiltrated the Star Realm and capture them all in one sweep.】
【Departing from the Star Realm, you travel to the Thousand Isles Realm, taking only one month.】
【You engage Blood Four in a great battle. This fight erupts in the void, producing tremendous shockwaves, and lasts a full two years!】
【In the end, you completely drain Blood Four’s lifespan… A dignified Supreme Unity Golden Immortal, dead from exhaustion of life force!】
【You become one of the exceedingly rare prodigies in history to slay a Supreme Unity Golden Immortal while still at the Golden Immortal realm!】
【Even Fairy Ziling, at Peak Golden Immortal, could only fight a Supreme Unity Golden Immortal to a standstill without losing — she could not achieve a kill.】
【This battle quickly becomes known to all the major powers in the Azure Origin Domain… You ascend the Prodigy List, ranked first on the Earth Ranking…】
In the Real World, Su Xing felt no great joy at seeing this. Instead, he furrowed his brows slightly.
“The plan failed… Blood Four is a Supreme Unity Golden Immortal after all. With my current strength, killing him is quite feasible… but the commotion it caused was simply too great!”
“Trying to kill Blood Four without anyone noticing and then take his place… is practically impossible…”
Su Xing’s original plan had been to kill Blood Four and find a way to assume his identity.
But now it seemed truly unachievable.
Because the disturbance was far too great!
As long as the Advent Cult wasn’t foolish… they would be highly guarded against the Su Xing who had become Blood Four, and the plan would fall apart from the start.
“My original idea was to use Blood Four’s identity to infiltrate the upper echelons of the Advent Cult…”
“Then find a way to learn the Advent Cult’s internal secrets… like the whereabouts of Blood Three and Blood Two… or even the location of the Blood Immortal!”
“But now, it seems that’s not possible…”
After pondering for a while, Su Xing thought to himself:
“Blood Four can’t be killed quietly… but what about other cadres within the Advent Cult? Like Blood Five, Blood Six, and the like?”
“As long as they haven’t reached the Supreme Unity realm, I should be able to kill them easily…”
But just as this thought crossed Su Xing’s mind, he shook his head slightly.
While killing weaker cadres would indeed be easier and wouldn’t cause much of a stir —
After killing them, how much could Su Xing actually gain?
Even if he assumed their identity, how many secrets could he extract from the Advent Cult?
Thinking this through, Su Xing shook his head slightly.
“But jumping straight to first on the Earth Ranking is a pleasant surprise!”
“With my current strength, taking two years to kill Blood Four is actually a bit inflated!”
“After all, I understand many of Blood Four’s supernatural arts and techniques, and the Blackice sword counters him significantly. Purely through attrition, I can naturally wear him down to death!”
“But against other Supreme Unity Golden Immortals, it wouldn’t be so easy…”
Su Xing murmured to himself. After several consecutive simulations, his strength had grown enormously.
But he still hadn’t reached the point where he could slay a Supreme Unity Golden Immortal outright.
Currently, against a Supreme Unity Golden Immortal who hadn’t cultivated the Blood Immortal Scripture and thus had a normal lifespan — even one who had just entered the Supreme Unity realm — Su Xing would likely face a fifty-fifty situation.
Only against cadres of the Advent Cult did he have some advantage.
“So be it. I should focus on improving my strength first… As for the infiltration plan… I’ll revisit it once I can easily kill Blood Four!”
Su Xing had made his decision, and his gaze turned to the simulation panel.
【After killing Blood Four, you carry out your plans as usual.】
【You go to the Celestial Secrets Pavilion to sell intelligence, trade at the Azure Cloud Sect, help Fairy Ziling study the art of spirit cultivation, and collect the Luotian Sect legacy.】
【Time quickly reaches the thirtieth year. You leave the Azure Origin Domain and head to the Heavenly Secrets Domain!】
【From the thirtieth to the three hundredth year of the simulation, you continue cultivating the Celestial Primordial Tree and training diligently as always…】
【In the three hundredth year, the Celestial Secrets Pavilion’s Celestial Vessel descends.】
【In the three hundred and twentieth year, during the Celestial Vessel defense battle, your performance is astonishingly impressive.】
【In addition to single-handedly defending the Celestial Vessel, you cooperate with Supreme Unity Golden Immortal Xiao Zhanlong, and together the two of you slay a foreign race’s first-tier deity!】
【Everyone aboard the Celestial Vessel learns of your identity — first on the Earth Ranking, Spirit Dragon Golden Immortal Su Ye!】
【After this battle, the White Emperor extends an invitation, hoping you will join the Celestial Secrets Pavilion as a Heaven-tier Elder.】
【You accept the invitation and make a request to the White Emperor — you wish to receive one opportunity to use the Mirror of The Void!】
【This request is clearly somewhat excessive.】
【An ordinary Golden Immortal who painstakingly accumulates contributions for ten thousand years might still find it difficult to earn even one chance to use the Mirror of The Void.】
【And you, having only just joined, already hope for this opportunity…】
【Yet faced with a cultivator ranked first on the Earth Ranking, a sword cultivator of such potential, the White Emperor ultimately agrees to your request.】
【He allocates a portion of his own contribution points to exchange for one entry into the Mirror of The Void on your behalf.】
【In return, your merit from assisting Xiao Zhanlong in slaying the first-tier deity is zeroed out, and you also offer a large quantity of rare treasures.】
【Time quickly reaches the three hundred and thirtieth year. You arrive safely at the Celestial Secrets Realm.】
【Over the following decades, you continue to cultivate diligently.】
【Until the four hundredth year, when one day inspiration strikes and your cultivation naturally advances from Peak Golden Immortal Seventh Stage to Golden Immortal Eighth Stage!】
In the Real World, Su Xing’s lips curled upward at the sight of this.
“Indeed, strength is the foundation of everything!”
“First on the Earth Ranking — whether in strength, potential, or renown, it’s more than sufficient!”
“Combined with assisting Xiao Zhanlong in slaying a first-tier deity, that counts as a tremendous contribution… and the White Emperor thinks very highly of me on top of that.”
“With all of these factors stacked together, I was able to earn an early opportunity to enter the Mirror of The Void…”
“This way, I can save myself several hundred years and advance my journey to the Celestial Demon Domain ahead of schedule!”
Su Xing nodded with satisfaction.
Since his objective had been achieved, all that remained was to enter an immersive simulation, comprehend the Great Dao, and after receiving the enhancement from the Mirror of The Void, he could head to the Celestial Demon Domain!
“I’ll cultivate the Great Dao of Speed as always… With the enhancement from the Mirror of The Void, I should be able to break through to the sixth realm quickly, right?”
A thought stirred in Su Xing’s mind, and he silently intoned:
“Use immersive simulation, duration one hundred years…”
【Ding… Remaining origin energy: 15,060,975 points…】
…
The immersive simulation soon concluded, and Su Xing’s consciousness returned.
Opening his eyes, a flash of piercing light passed through them as Su Xing said with satisfaction:
“The Great Dao of Speed has already reached fifth realm Major Mastery… and it’s not far from Peak either!”
“It seems the next simulation will give me the opportunity to fully step into the sixth realm of the Dao of Speed!”
Su Xing ran some calculations.
With spatial Dao at the sixth realm and the Dao of Speed at fifth realm Major Mastery, Su Xing’s movement speed was now no longer weak even among Supreme Unity Golden Immortals.
Unless they were Supreme Unity Golden Immortals who had been famous for a very long time, Su Xing should have the ability to preserve his life.
“Moreover, beyond the progress in the Dao of Speed… the most critical thing is the Grand Cosmic Visualization Method!”
Su Xing could hardly conceal the joy in his heart. With a thought, a complete divination cultivation method flooded into his memory.
This was none other than the Celestial Secrets Pavilion Master’s signature supernatural art—the Greater Celestial Cycle Star Observation Method!
This technique was absolutely a closely guarded secret never shared with outsiders, yet Su Xing, by virtue of his status as first on the Earth Ranking, managed to obtain it without difficulty.
“With the Greater Celestial Cycle Star Observation Method in hand, my cultivation in the Dao of Destiny and Karma will finally stop stagnating…”
“As long as I invest the time, reaching the sixth realm is only a matter of when, not if!”
Su Xing studied the Greater Celestial Cycle Star Observation Method within his mind.
But this technique was at least ten times more abstruse than the Lesser Celestial Cycle Star Observation Method. Su Xing estimated that reaching the sixth realm would still require considerable time.
“Phew, but the Greater Celestial Cycle Star Observation Method is already in my hands. There’s no rush for what comes next—I’ll just accumulate understanding gradually!”
“What matters most right now is getting to the Celestial Demon Domain as quickly as possible!”
“The sooner I meet the Celestial Demon General and present the Rebirth Pill formula, the sooner things should change!”
With that thought, Su Xing turned his gaze toward the simulation panel.
【Year 500: Your comprehension of the Great Dao of Speed reached fifth realm Major Mastery. At the same time, you received the Greater Celestial Cycle Star Observation Method as a gift from the Celestial Secrets Pavilion Master!】
【Based on your experience from previous simulations, you refined your navigation charts for crossing the Endless Sea and prepared resources for the voyage in advance.】
【Boarding the supreme post-celestial treasure-grade Star-Moon Shuttle, you set off toward the Celestial Demon Domain…】
【Compared to your previous simulation, your knowledge of the Endless Sea’s routes was vastly superior this time.】
【It took merely fifty years…】
【Year 550: You arrived at the Celestial Demon Domain!】
【Arriving at the familiar Stone Realm, you found a branch of the Celestial Demon Prison, activated the Celestial Demon General’s token, and waited quietly.】
【After roughly a quarter of an hour, a figure clad in black armor appeared behind you.】
【The Celestial Demon General had arrived!】
【He was quite puzzled as to how you possessed his token…】
【But you offered no lengthy explanation, merely informing him of your identity as the successor of Luo Tian… At the same time, you presented the Rebirth Pill formula to the Celestial Demon General.】
【The Celestial Demon General then recounted the events of that year and bestowed the Luo Tian legacy upon you.】
【With the Celestial Demon General’s endorsement, the Rebirth Pill was swiftly promoted throughout the entire Celestial Demon Domain.】
【Thanks to this great contribution, you were directly promoted to Heaven Ten in the Celestial Demon Prison’s authority hierarchy, earning the right to enter the core region.】
【Everything unfolded just as it had in the previous simulation, except that retracing your steps meant progress was more than two hundred years faster…】
【And so, within the Celestial Demon Domain’s core region, you continued searching for traces of Celestial Sun Grass.】
In the real world, Su Xing gave a slight nod upon seeing this.
“Not bad. This simulation’s progress is considerably faster than before… I’ll have much more time to search for traces of Celestial Sun Grass!”
“Beyond that, the longer preparation time should also give me a better chance of dealing with the alien Seventh Legion’s reinforcements later on…”
“For now, the priority remains raising my cultivation!”
With that thought, Su Xing turned his gaze back to the simulation panel.
【In the Celestial Demon Domain, you cultivated, hunted alien creatures, and searched for traces of Celestial Sun Grass.】
【In the blink of an eye, several hundred years passed.】
【Year 1000 of the simulation: You finished exploring the entirety of the first section of the core region where Celestial Sun Grass might exist, but found no trace of it.】
【Undiscouraged, you began exploring the second area.】
【Year 1100: The Primordial Energy Tree within your body grew to six zhang (19.98 m) and three chi (99.9 cm).】
【Year 1200: Your Qi Refinement cultivation finally advanced to Golden Immortal Eighth Stage mid-level.】
【That same year, dire news arrived from the Azure Origin Domain.】
【Year 1400: The Southern Barbarian Domain was completely overrun. Alien forces from the Seventh Legion began pouring into the other four domains.】
【The Celestial Demon Domain also saw a surge in alien incursions, and the situation grew dangerous.】
【Fortunately, the Celestial Demon Domain had rapidly grown in strength over the years thanks to the Rebirth Pill.】
【The number of immortals had nearly doubled compared to nine hundred years ago!】
【Thus, the Celestial Demon Domain’s situation had not yet reached its most critical point.】
【Even so, the Celestial Demon General conceived the idea of going to the Southern Barbarian Domain to assault the Six-Winged Chief God.】
【Upon hearing the Celestial Demon General’s decision, none among the Celestial Demon Domain’s leadership opposed it.】
【Only you knew that once the Celestial Demon General departed, the Celestial Demon Domain would inevitably face crisis again.】
【And so you advised the Celestial Demon General that defending the Celestial Demon Domain should remain the priority for now.】
【Once the sealed alien legion broke free, that would be the true crisis for the entire Three Thousand Worlds…】
【After hearing your counsel, the Celestial Demon General temporarily abandoned the idea of going to the Celestial Demon Domain alone.】
【Over the next hundred years, although the number of aliens in the Celestial Demon Domain increased, the overall situation remained manageable.】
【Until Year 1600… a new crisis was born!】
【That year, you received word that the Azure Cloud Sect in the Azure Origin Domain had been breached. Fairy Ziling and a host of second-generation disciples had fallen in battle.】
【The vast Azure Origin Domain itself teetered on the brink of destruction…】
【Upon learning this, the Celestial Demon General was silent for a long time. Though he harbored hatred for the Azure Origin Domain, in such dire circumstances—with two realms falling in succession—the human race could hardly sustain itself!】
【Yet before the Celestial Demon General could even consider the way forward, the next wave of crisis had already swept into the Celestial Demon Domain.】
【Led by the Six-Winged Chief God, half of the Seventh Legion amassed its fighting force and invaded the Celestial Demon Domain in full!】
【At this point, the Celestial Demon Domain was beset by threats both within and without… The sealed Fourth Legion lay within, while the Seventh Legion attacked from outside. The situation had become perilous beyond measure…】
【In the end, the sealed aliens of the Fourth Legion sacrificed half of their alien deities, successfully broke through the seal, and merged forces with the Seventh Legion.】
【Under the joint assault of two chief gods, the Celestial Demon General could not free himself to provide support in time…】
【Ultimately, you perished at the hands of a Peak first-tier deity alien…】
【Ding! This simulation has ended!】
After the simulation ended, Su Xing was silent for a long time.
“The situation… has already deteriorated to this extent?”
“Year 1400, the Southern Barbarian Domain completely overrun… Year 1600, the Azure Origin Domain on the verge of collapse…”
“Compared to the previous simulations, the situation seems to have grown even more unpredictable…”
Su Xing furrowed his brow slightly. He couldn’t quite understand why the future in his simulations was changing so drastically…
“Is it because I escaped from Red Moon’s grasp, drawing Red Moon’s attention?”
“I’m afraid… it’s not just that, is it?”
Su Xing pondered carefully and realized that ever since he had claimed first place on the Earth Ranking and entered the Celestial Demon Domain, the situation had begun to deteriorate…
“The only explanation… is that the alien side has detected something unusual?”
“Could it be that among the aliens, there exists a being like the Celestial Secrets Pavilion Master—one capable of perceiving the river of time?”
“And in the future… that being glimpsed a thread of threat, which is why the invasion of the Three Thousand Worlds has been accelerated?”
At this thought, Su Xing’s expression grew grave.
“If that’s truly the case… the most likely candidate would be that existence among the alien races whose power rivals a Saint!”
“Could it be that… that one can truly perceive changes in the river of time?”
Su Xing’s mind raced with speculation.
The Celestial Secrets Pavilion Master—a half-saint who excelled in the Dao of Divination—yet possessed the ability to perceive time!
This was something Su Xing had already confirmed beyond doubt!
Then what about an even more powerful Saint-level existence?
That deity among the alien races whose power rivaled a Saint… perhaps had already peered through the river of time and caught traces of Su Xing’s activities?
“This… is the worst-case scenario!”
“I can’t confirm it yet…”
Su Xing shook his head. If such a being truly existed and had perceived danger through the river of time—
Even if that being hadn’t sensed Su Xing as a specific individual… it was enough to warrant his utmost caution!
After all, Su Xing’s greatest advantage lay in using the simulator to hide himself while growing stronger continuously!
If some being among the alien races discovered him… it would be an absolute catastrophe!
“No… I must find a way to test this theory…”
Su Xing took a deep breath and considered possible methods of probing.
“In the next simulation, I’ll conceal myself as thoroughly as possible… completely avoid exposure and refrain from interfering with the trajectory of the Three Thousand Worlds!”
“If the future still changes under those conditions… then it means that in reality, some being has already noticed the anomaly!”
Su Xing thought quickly and soon devised his method of testing.
With that thought, Su Xing couldn’t help but raise his head toward the sky.
Through the space of the spirit field grotto-heaven… through that endless void, Su Xing seemed to glimpse a pair of invisible hands… subtly and silently reshaping the future…
“If that’s truly the case… then this is a race against time,” Su Xing murmured soundlessly.