Chapter 34: One Thousand vs. Four Thousand? The Advantage is Mine!

Chapter 34: One Thousand vs. Four Thousand? The Advantage is Mine!

Damn!

Jiang Zhe had fought tooth and nail to obtain two Innate Secret Techniques—

One was common stock;

The other was a refurbished relic.

A string of expletives thundered through Jiang Zhe’s mind.

He’d known from the start: anyone bold enough to claim the title "Special Life" must possess formidable abilities.

Moments later, Orianna transmitted detailed information about her three Innate Secret Techniques.

Jiang Zhe reviewed them one by one.

First, [Proxy]!

—As a fully subservient mechanical special lifeform, Orianna was restricted by the Primordial Universe’s fundamental will from independently increasing her comprehension of Cosmic Source Laws!

However, she could perfectly channel and utilize all her master’s insights, including but not limited to experience in realm advancements, Law Comprehension, physical amplification techniques, and offensive techniques—and even fuse these abilities to create entirely new combined techniques.

—When facing fatal calamities, her master could merge his soul into Orianna’s body to be reborn, evolving from a subservient mechanical special lifeform into a true Universe-special lifeform.

—After master-servant fusion, the [Proxy] talent would vanish, lifting all Law Comprehension restrictions.

Four consecutive revelations struck Jiang Zhe like a bombardment. He sat stunned for a long moment before regaining his composure.

"Terrifying!"

"Could the Primordial Universe actually birth such a completely self-sacrificing talent?!"

"It’s like carrying a resurrection coin—so long as the soul remains intact, one could undergo soul transference to achieve rebirth, continuing one’s martial cultivation path with a new special life identity!"

Wait? Soul transference?

Jiang Zhe suddenly froze.

Mechanical lifeforms shouldn’t have souls, right? They wouldn’t suffer soul damage… Could this even count as soul transference?

He didn’t dwell, attributing it to the [Proxy] technique’s uniqueness.

"A perfect backup!"

"After transference, Law Comprehension, combat techniques… everything would seamlessly continue without adaptation."

Suddenly realizing something, Jiang Zhe shook his head violently.

"No, using this Innate Secret Technique merely for soul transference completely misses its true purpose."

"Proxy—executing the Dao of Heaven, manifesting the will of gods!"

"Orianna can borrow my 'Dao' to gain immense combat power, slay enemies, proclaim my will, and display my authority!"

"Other cultivators might envy Orianna’s racial talent, rushing to perform soul transference after forming a contract. Like how humans covet the Goldhorned Beast—a Domain Lord with a hundredfold genetic tier boost, tempting even Cosmic Sovereigns to capture them for their prodigies’ soul transference."

"But I’m different. I have a clear path for advancement. Unlike Luo Feng, whose initial talent was weak, I don’t need to rely on a Goldhorned Beast for rapid growth."

"Transferring into Orianna would severely weaken me!"

"Letting Orianna exist as a subservient lifeform instead—when I grow stronger, Orianna uses [Proxy] to copy my key techniques, becoming nearly an identical mirror of me!"

"Two 'me’s,' supporting each other, climbing step by step to supremacy… Hypothetically, if I truly become a Huan Yuan Lord, there would be two Huan Yuan Lords with identical abilities!"

"Imagine two blade-adept Hunyuan Lords like Luo Feng—this would be a nightmare for native Hunyuan lifeforms."

Jiang Zhe suddenly chuckled, shaking his head. "Still, this depends on [Proxy]’s upper limits."

"If affected by the 'Ancient Tree' within me, the ceiling naturally won’t disappoint."

"But if [Proxy] was entirely shaped by the Primordial Universe’s fundamental will, its potential effectiveness is uncertain."

"At minimum, it should reach Cosmic Sovereign or Universe-special peak levels."

"The ultimate subservient lifeform!"

"Even the Star-Eating Grass becomes irrelevant after Luo Feng’s Immortal breakthrough."

"Yet Orianna can keep pace with me indefinitely, at worst reaching Cosmic Sovereign or Universe-special tiers."

Jiang Zhe took several deep breaths, calming his excitement.

This was only the first Innate Secret Technique—unimaginable surprises awaited in the others.

Continuing his review.

Second, [Mechanical Forerunner]!

—A sage of mechanical creation, capable of fully deciphering the technological mysteries of any target and perfectly replicating them, even evolving higher-tier technologies from these foundations.

Jiang Zhe scratched his head, making a joke: "Should I send you to Virtual Cosmos Corporation’s tech department to develop new tech for humanity?"

"If that is my master’s will, Orianna obeys!" the doll-like lady bowed slightly.

"Haha, just kidding. Benefiting the race can wait until I ascend to Sovereign. The weak exist only to pay tribute, like…"

He trailed off, the latter half unspoken.

"Like future Earth, nominally under Luo Feng’s control, yet who truly respects him?"

"Or certain Cosmic Sovereign lineages at the Axe-Bearing Arena, plotting to kill Luo Feng and seize Earth."

"Who knows if some obscure Universe secret technique exists to forcibly sever a subservient lifeform’s bond?"

With this thought, he mentally instructed: "Anna, you may decipher and replicate technology, but never reveal your ability to evolve higher-tier tech."

"As you command!"

Jiang Zhe was thoroughly satisfied.

Compared to Babata—a sentient AI, mentor, and friend—Orianna felt far more comfortable to be around.

He turned to the final Innate Secret Technique.

Third, [Material Sovereign]!

—A growth Secret Technique that allows the user to consume natural materials to enhance their power level, advancing one tier at a time.

—It could analyze the particle structure of consumed materials, recreating same-tier natural substances at the cost of energy.

"Alchemy? Turning lead to gold?"

After reading the technique, this thought surfaced.

Initially shocking—creating matter from nothing!

But upon reflection, not so implausible.

The Nine You Overlord could create life via secret techniques; Orianna replicating existing universe substances seemed comparable.

[Material Sovereign] and [Mechanical Forerunner] complemented each other, forming core foundational abilities racing down the "mechanical ascension" path.

Example:

—Left hand analyzing a spaceship’s structure, right hand manifesting a new vessel from nothing.

"This can be consumed too?" Jiang Zhe handed Orianna an SS-Rank Flying Dagger.

"Indeed."

Orianna accepted the Annihilation Throwing Dagger, holding it to her chest. A gem embedded in her brass core emitted red light, drawing the weapon into a fist-sized brass sphere.

"Anna, do you have an Internal World too?" Jiang Zhe asked, surprised.

"Yes, Master. [Material Sovereign] requires an Internal World to store and digest vast natural materials."

Similar to the Goldhorned Beast’s [Consumption Secret Technique]… Jiang Zhe mused.

Orianna continued: "My Internal World resides in this core. Of the three new cores recently formed, two are secondary cores. Even if destroyed, they can regenerate."

Jiang Zhe nodded—understandable.

In the Universe, all life possessed a single Internal World, housed within their Primordial Core/Life Core/Crystal Core.

Even if someone possessed a Doppelgänger like Luo Feng, neither the human’s original body, the Demoncore Race, nor the Nine You Blood Sea had an Internal World formed within their Life Core.

Only the Primordial Core of the Goldhorned Beast contained an Internal World.

Orianna naturally followed this rule as well. Except for her main body that carried the core, all other humanoid forms she created were considered Doppelgängers.

Her technique resembled the Doppelgänger secrets of the Chaos Monument guardian Kandili, but was far more refined.

“Master, analysis complete. The Annihilation Throwing Dagger was forged by smelting Stellar-Level Beast Body Tissues, A3-grade Gold, A6-grade Blue Gold… The materials required are—”

Jiang Zhe raised his hand, halting her report. “No need. That’s enough!”

He warned her, “Anna, on Earth, only display your ability to devour substances. Don’t reveal your power to create matter from nothing.”

Orianna had just attempted to fabricate an A6-grade Blue Gold fragment for him out of thin air.

There were reasons to feel fortunate.

Even the strongest beings in the Universe couldn’t hear the private mental conversations between master and servant. They couldn’t instantly determine a new species’ Genetic Tier, only roughly estimate it. Nor could they discern its potential Innate Secret Arts.

This allowed Jiang Zhe and Orianna to retain significant privacy during any potential temporal retrospection.

That said, Luo Feng’s cultivation of the Nine Calamities Secret Manual had still been observed through the Chaos Creator’s retrospection.

“Anna, return.”

Jiang Zhe willed it.

Orianna’s form dissolved into mist, her figure disintegrating until only a fist-sized brass core remained.

It floated toward him, merging into his body with a cool sensation against his skin.

He felt as if wearing an invisible, refreshing garment—comfortable and soothing.

Yet he could clearly sense Orianna’s intense willpower: absolutely obedient inwardly, but cold, domineering, and ruthless toward outsiders.

Perfect for her role as a Proxy.

“Master, would you like me to take control of your Communication Watch to monitor the human network?”

“Also, I can sense a vast virtual world above us. Shall I log us into it?”

Orianna resumed her role as a Sentient AI.

Jiang Zhe quickly replied, “First option yes. Second—don’t even try. Ignore it!”

“As you command.”

Without questioning, she began infiltrating Earth’s network.

Jiang Zhe mentally explained, “Anna, I’m a native. My consciousness is an unauthorized ‘blacklisted’ entity in the Virtual Universe network. If you log me in, they’ll kick me out.”

Orianna countered, “Master, I have strong suppression over Sentient Ais. This is just a virtual world—I should be able to hack us in.”

“No, no, Anna. That’s not just a virtual world. It’s called the Virtual Universe, created through secret arts by a human Sovereign.”

“The AI overseeing its operations is a Mechanical Race expert mentioned earlier. Though one tier below the creator, both are beings we can only look up to. We’re no match for them.”

Jiang Zhe sighed, “You and I still understand only fragments of this Universe. We must tread carefully!”

Orianna fell silent for a moment. “As you say, Master. I’ve traced two ‘Universe visitors’ in Earth’s network. Through them, I glimpsed the Universe’s vastness.”

Jiang Zhe frowned. “Two? Where?”

“One lies deep in the Amazon jungle, in an area your kind calls Site 9 Ruins.”

“The other is aboard a crimson spacecraft, 926.8 kilometers west-northwest from here, buried 10.6 kilometers underground.”

The precise data made Jiang Zhe twitch his lips.

Well now!

The bald crystal humanoid at Site 9 and Babata had already been located.

“Anna, did you communicate with them?”

“Without your permission, I wouldn’t reveal myself,” Orianna explained. “My suppression over Sentient Ais allows direct intrusion into their shallow memories without detection. But deeper memories are protected—I can’t probe them without risking exposure.”

“That’s already impressive enough!” Jiang Zhe marveled.

He now saw Orianna’s true potential—on par with the Mechanical Race, perhaps even their superior.

To name her ability Innate Secret Art wasn’t an exaggeration.

Mechanical Forerunner indeed lived up to her title.

Orianna suggested, “Master, both originate from a faction called ‘Yunmo Star,’ now destroyed. They seek an exceptional Mentalist heir. You could claim their legacy.”

Jiang Zhe paused, then asked, “Anna, can you control them securely?”

“Easily—but only face-to-face.” Orianna’s confidence was unwavering.

A smile curved his lips. “Good. Let’s visit the closer one first. Let’s see what Universe legacy they hold.”

He had no aversion to inheriting Yunmo Star’s path. Even the karmic ties between past and future didn’t concern him. He simply didn’t want Babata or the legacy’s Soul Mark.

His secrets couldn’t be shared with Babata.

The Soul Mark was crucial for the Goldhorned Beast’s soul replacement—it shouldn’t be wasted on himself.

Channeling Mental Energy into the Annihilation Throwing Dagger, he prepared to tunnel back to land, following Orianna’s coordinates to Mist Island.

“Wait, Master. Another situation.”

“What now?” Jiang Zhe paused.

“A Legislator at nearly full Stellar-Level 1 cultivation is hunting you 140 kilometers away, 300 meters high. He wants the Eight-Treasure Alligator Dragon Lance.”

“Who?”

“Li Nansheng.” Orianna added, “Earth’s strongest warrior, Hong, follows him—he’s here to protect you.”

Li Nansheng?

Jiang Zhe’s buried memories resurfaced, his lips twitching.

The play of “the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind”—you still can’t escape your fate from the original timeline, huh?

“Master, shall I intervene?”

“Not yet. First, measure my current Mental Energy Intensity. You can do that, right?”

Jiang Zhe recalled Luo Feng’s auxiliary AI from Site 9 could do it. Orianna should handle it easily.

“Your current Mental Energy Intensity allows the Annihilation Throwing Dagger to unleash up to 1062 tons of force!”

“Over 1000 tons?” A grin spread across his face.

“You said he’s nearly full Stellar-Level 1? That’s about 2000 tons of physical strength, plus another 2000 tons from Genetic Primordial Energy bursts. Total around 4000 tons?”

“Haha! 1000 versus 4000—advantage, me!”

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end