Chapter 843 - 471: The Eve of the Venerable King’s Birth (Part 2)

At the same time, he was secretly consuming the inheritances of others bit by bit, transforming their legacies into powers he could wield.

Suddenly turning back, Xue Dili abruptly realized that he was truly an "evil cultivator." He virtually possessed no power of his own; all along, he had fought by mastering the forces of others.

He was like a Gundam pilot; power was not within himself, but in the Treasure, rituals, and authority he controlled.

He had never felt anything wrong before, as if it was always proper to take without concern over whether this power was external or truly his own.

Perhaps it was because he previously never had time to fuss over such matters, when hesitating for even a second could mean someone dying right before him. All he could do was exploit every ounce of power, regardless of its origin, as long as it didn’t distort him.

Until now, the only thing he loathed might just be the power of the Divine Tree.

Therefore, when Xue Dili was fusing the power of the Lord of Mist, he had a thought of "let’s start quickly."

The Mimic Venerable King seemed to have no words left, placing a hand on Xue Dili’s shoulder and saying: "Feel carefully, I will allow you to retrace the path of the Venerable King in this absorption."

"After this is completed, you’ll be forcibly elevated to ’Tier Six,’ equal in status to the Lord of Mist. But this is merely the rank in position, the true mastery of power depends on you."

"Trial, begin!"

In the next moment, a surging sensation exploded within Xue Dili.

The forcibly integrated flesh of the Lord of Mist suddenly seemed uncontrollable; Xue Dili felt as if countless branches were bursting forth from his body. That flesh of the Lord of Mist violently unleashed the hidden power within his cells, twisting Xue Dili’s form.

Xue Dili quickly began to operate something within himself... Wait, what could he operate within himself? Ultimately, all he could do was force the Cursed Blood to suppress the blood of the Lord of Mist, but even this was too much for the Cursed Blood. For the current Xue Dili, the Cursed Blood had aided him greatly, yet seemed unable to support him any longer.

The power of the Cursed Blood was completely suppressed and even resolved, thoroughly merging into Xue Dili, no longer acting as a separate "Treasure," but truly becoming one with him.

Xue Dili’s power suddenly surged, soared; the flesh of the Lord of Mist was like a great furnace, completely fusing all those miscellaneous forces within Xue Dili, intending to refine them into the purest pill.

And Xue Dili merged entirely with it, feeling the process of this power gradually becoming as if directed by his own hand.

...

Externally, Captain Xing Jia’er stated that Xue Dili had inherited the power of the Mimic Venerable King, connecting with the entire Interstellar Corps to achieve communication link.

Many also noticed that although all the devices of the Mimic Venerable King were restored, they could no longer truly feel the Mimic Venerable King, leading to a gradual disillusionment, followed by calm.

Perhaps, with the Mimic Venerable King sheltering them all along, many people were unable to progress beyond Tier Five.

Now, many recognized the problem.

More teams held off attacks, allowing them to allocate power to assist other squads, stabilizing the lines of the entire Interstellar Corps and beginning to counterattack.

To the extent that they could send troops out, lending aid to the planets previously sheltered by the Interstellar Corps, now suffering the Lord of Mist’s assault.

Similarly, a large number of logistical and clerical staff of the Interstellar Corps stabilized, rapidly rotating to maintain the current situation.

Even if the Mimic Venerable King departed, the sky did not fall! They must continue moving forward.

During the rotation, a nun hung one of her arms, injured. But now, with so many wounded, she could only grit her teeth to endure, or fix it herself, waiting for medical resources to come.

Perhaps she wouldn’t need to wait, maybe it would just heal.

She thought this, having fought intensely and worked until her rotation ended. Now, she could rest briefly before rejoining the Interstellar Corps’ rescue and reconstruction.

She might have various ailments but would still advance according to the Corps’ objectives.

After all, when her hometown faced destruction, the Interstellar Corps pulled her up; she would reciprocate, dedicating her life to the Corps.

Unfortunately, she had a belief before joining the Interstellar Corps, otherwise she might have believed in the Venerable King.

She thought in her heart.

Returning to her world, with a full day of rest, the nun immediately went to an altar, which was her faith, her "Lord."

Not a True God, just an imagined native deity from her hometown; even an illusory god without form, yet that was her belief.

A nebulous faith in the "Lord."

"Omniscient, Almighty Lord, Your follower prays to You, we resisted the attack of traitors and began to counterattack, even a friend named ’Xue Dili’ borrowed our leader’s strength, restoring my communication."

"Today I must confess, as the enemy attacked, I felt fear initially and did not immediately fight them... I am guilty!"

"Almighty Lord, I must confess!"

The nun’s voice echoed within her small room.

She set up a Sound Insulation Barrier so no one could know what she said, and even this prayer was merely a habit before she stepped into the extraordinary.

However, she didn’t notice that within the shrine, the eyes on the wooden statue seemed to move.

Now, deep within Subspace, in a space no one could find, transformed into a monster with six arms—the "Lord of Mist," silently heard this prayer.

Not just this voice, myriad sounds from the Interstellar Corps streamed to it; some danced to gods while chanting, others like the nun prayed penitent, as well as many, simply generating thoughts before various idols.

These beliefs and voices were all transmitted to it.

Whether "Almighty Lord," or "Goddess of Night," "God of Fate," "Supreme God," etc., all sources of unclaimed faith were intercepted by it, becoming its eyes and ears, the ultimate gathering point for faith.

Silently extracting information on the Interstellar Corps and the Mimic Venerable King, the Lord of Mist’s mouth curled in a smile, revealing a demonically enchanting expression under the bark veil.

"The last step to becoming a god, the final Apostle, is you, corresponding to the last member of the Old Expeditionary Force..."

"The Lone Walker—Xue Dili."

The Lord of Mist quietly murmured within this Subspace, massive streams of unclaimed faith that should reach the end of Subspace, becoming snacks for the Venerable King or other Evil Gods.

But these were intercepted by it, allowing it to monitor the entire cosmos.

This enabled it to understand all moves of the Interstellar Corps without needing any insider.

Those who perhaps would never know that the ethereal god they believed in was truly the guise of the Lord of Mist.

...

Xue Dili seemed to fall into a spiritual vision again, entering the memory vision of the Lord of Mist.

He seemed to arrive at an earlier time; people had just discovered the terrifying Cosmic Void.

Initially, no one would take it seriously, thinking it was just like a black hole, another normal cosmic phenomenon.

Astronomers named it the "Great Silence Zone," an anomalous area where even cosmic background radiation disappeared.

But soon, people realized it wasn’t "silence," but "void." A place where physical laws gradually failed, a perpetually expanding "Cosmic Void."

Its rate of expansion exceeded anyone’s wildest imagination.