Swallowing the Stars: The cheat system only comes when I'm almost a god?

Deep within the Crimson Flame Secret Realm.

King Chifeng had not yet returned to the Chifeng Palace, which floated above the Blazing Cloud Continent. His gaze was filled with anticipation as he looked toward the entrance to the secret realm.

He was waiting.

Time passed quietly, and about half a year later, a strange ripple suddenly appeared in the space around King Chifeng, and then a figure stepped out from it.

The newcomer was not a human king, but a powerful alien being nearly five meters tall and resembling a giant, upright ant.

His head was triangular, his compound eyes gleamed with wisdom, and the three pairs of transparent crystal wings on his back were slightly folded, emitting powerful fluctuations of the laws of fire.

As soon as he appeared, he looked at King Chifeng, a hint of apology in his eyes.

"Captain!" He smiled sheepishly, "I hope I didn't take too long."

A smile appeared on Crimson Beacon King's face, tinged with the teasing of an old friend reuniting: "Lava, you've gotten quite arrogant over the millions of years! The inheritance has been open for two years before you finally arrive, aren't you afraid some little brat will take your spot?"

The Lava King opened and closed its mouth slightly, emitting a low laugh: "Captain is joking. With you personally guarding this place of inheritance of the Blazing Cloud God General, do you think you can let someone steal my spot?"

"Back in the Molten Abyss, if it weren't for you shielding me from that deadly attack by the mechanical race expert, my armor would have turned to ash long ago."

He was referring to the time when the two fought side by side in a dangerous place on a foreign battlefield.

Lava King was born into a weak race within the Hong Alliance. He had a life-or-death bond with Crimson Beacon King, who was at the peak of his Marquis status at the time, on the battlefield outside the domain. Crimson Beacon King was once his captain.

King Chifeng laughed and patted the other man's shoulder forcefully: "Alright, stop flattering me and hurry up and go in."

"I hope that the legacy of the Blazing Cloud General will help you take another step forward and reach the threshold of becoming an invincible king soon."

The Lava King's compound eyes flashed, and he solemnly said, "Thank you for your kind words, Captain! I will certainly do my best."

Without further delay, he nodded to King Chifeng, then transformed into a streak of crimson light, shooting straight towards the only remaining palace in the Misty Basin that was not shrouded in light.

As Crimson Beacon King watched Lava King's figure being swallowed by the crimson-gold light shield, the smile on his face faded, and he regained his composure.

He took one last deep look at the thirty-two temples below, especially the two where Lin Yuan and the Lava King were located, before turning and disappearing.

……

In another temple not far from Lin Yuan's, the Lava King's path to inheritance unfolded at an astonishing speed.

As soon as he entered the temple, he felt an amazing compatibility between himself and the heritage here. The laws flowing on the inheritance staircase seemed to be tailor-made for him, and he understood them without any difficulty.

Just over a month!

While Lin Yuan was still steadily advancing on the more than 7000 steps, the Lava King had already stepped onto the 3333rd step with unstoppable momentum—the end of the first stage of the Blazing Cloud God General's inheritance!

Om-!

The moment he stepped onto the stairs, the entire temple trembled slightly.

Ahead stood a magnificent hall, a thousand meters high, its outer walls inscribed with countless mysterious flames and spatial runes.

The two enormous golden doors were tightly shut, exuding an ancient and majestic aura.

The Lava King walked to the door, and the heavy golden door opened silently inward.

The interior of the hall was shrouded in mist, and above the mist floated an ancient stone tablet.

The surface of the stone tablet shimmered with light, revealing characters in a universal language:

"You are the 9527th successor to arrive here. You are qualified to receive the title of 'Selector' and the rewards that belong to Selectors."

The Lava King scanned the words with his compound eyes and understood immediately.

He looked around and saw two streams of air automatically floating in the endless clouds: one crimson like blood, and the other as white as jade.

boom!

A burst of crimson energy revealed a fist-sized, crystal-clear crimson fruit.

The surface of the fruit is surrounded by fine flame patterns—Fire Source Fruit!

A precious spiritual fruit that can subtly change one's constitution, making the body more compatible with the divine general's inheritance, is almost never seen in the treasure vault of the Hong Alliance that can be exchanged by alien races.

boom!

The burst of shimmering white air revealed a white crystal the size of a pigeon egg, inside which was a cluster of dancing golden flames—a molten core crystal!

It is a treasure that can slightly enhance the power of divine power bursts. It is worth about five million Chaos Units. It is not particularly precious to a King-level expert, but it is better than nothing.

"These are all good things!" A hint of joy flashed in the Lava King's eyes, and he swallowed the crimson fruit without hesitation.

A surge of immense energy instantly coursed through his body, making him feel even closer to the surrounding inherited laws. As for the molten core crystal, he casually stored it in his world ring.

"The first stage went so smoothly, it seems I am truly destined for this inheritance!" The Lava King felt the power surging within him, his confidence soaring, and he stepped into the second stage of the inheritance without hesitation.

……

Time flew by as I focused on my practice.

With his solid foundation and the support of his enlightenment abilities, Lin Yuan steadily climbed the ranks.

When he finally broke through the bottleneck of the 9967th floor and his body amplitude increased to 99.67 times, about three years had passed.

Inside another temple, the Lava King's speed, though slower than in the first phase, was still astonishing.

When Lin Yuan was standing on the 9968th floor, the Lava King also appeared on the 9915th floor. He almost caught up with Lin Yuan's progress in just about a year!

If this scene were to be witnessed by other powerful figures from the Inheritance Temples, it would surely make them question the meaning of life.

It's important to know that the inheritance ladder becomes increasingly difficult as you progress. It's already outrageous that Lin Yuan was able to quickly reach over nine thousand levels using his comprehension ability. Who would have thought that there was another expert who could surpass him in comprehension speed using only his own abilities!

The Lava King stood on the 9915th floor, surrounded by crimson-gold light, his aura several times stronger than when he first entered the Land of Inheritance.

He gazed at the final hall on the 9999th floor, his eyes filled with longing and determination.

Such progress in less than a year—even a fool would know that his compatibility with the Blazing Cloud God General's legacy is ridiculously high.

"It'll be soon... Once I receive the complete inheritance of the Blazing Cloud God General, I will possess the strength of a Seven-Star Overlord, and my clan's status within the Hong Alliance will also rise significantly." He murmured to himself, then immersed himself in cultivation once more.

……

Several more months passed.

Lin Yuan finally finished receiving the inheritance of the 9998th level, and his body's amplitude had reached an astonishing 99.98 times, just a hair's breadth away from the legendary limit of 100 times.

"The compatibility between the Flame God Clan avatar and the Blazing Cloud God General's inheritance is truly terrifying," he thought to himself. "If it were my true self or Azure Dragon form, even with the aid of enlightenment abilities, I probably wouldn't have reached more than eight thousand levels by now."

He took a deep breath, looked at the last step, and took a step.

Before them lay a strange space shrouded in crimson-gold mist. In the center of the space floated a sculpture of a strange beast, a giant creature resembling a Qilin with wings on its back.

It was nearly a thousand meters long and exuded a vast pressure that was far more terrifying than that of its teacher, Venerable Yan Yue.

"Inheritor, congratulations on reaching the end of the Blazing Cloud God General's inheritance." A calm voice rang out directly in Lin Yuan's consciousness, originating from the giant beast sculpture.

The next moment, the crimson-gold light surrounding the Qilin beast converged and condensed in the void into the silhouette of a middle-aged man wearing a crimson-gold robe.

A clearly visible Qilin mark burning with flames was visible between his eyebrows.

"The forbidden land of the Blazing Cloud God General's inheritance has existed for countless years, and I have been guarding it for billions of epochs." The light and shadow spoke, its voice carrying a trace of the vicissitudes of time, "After a long period of time, we have finally waited for an inheritor who can set foot in this place. Your talent and perseverance are admirable."

Lin Yuan's heart tightened, and he bowed respectfully: "This junior greets the Guardian."

The gaze of light and shadow seemed to penetrate his soul: "You have reached the threshold of a hundredfold amplitude and are qualified to receive the final inheritance of the Blazing Cloud God General - the Blazing Cloud Secret Technique."

This secret technique is the ultimate manifestation of the fusion of fire and space, possessing earth-shattering power. Once mastered, it grants the user the combat strength of a seven-star overlord, placing them among the super-strongest beings in the vast universe!

Seven-Star Overlord! Surpassing ordinary Universe Venerables! This temptation is enough to drive any King-level powerhouse mad.

But the voice of the light and shadow did not end there: "However, fortune and misfortune are intertwined. While accepting the complete inheritance can help you reach the pinnacle, inheriting the position of a divine general also means that your path will be deeply bound to this secret method. It will be like an invisible shackle, forever imprisoning you in this realm."

"Now, the choice is yours." The light and shadow gazed at Lin Yuan. "Will you accept the pinnacle power before you, or retain the uncertain possibility of the future?"

Lin Yuan was not surprised by what the guardian said. He already knew the drawbacks of inheriting the position of God General, so he never thought of taking the final step.

With the help of chat groups, he believed that one day he would be able to glimpse the mysteries of the Lord of the Universe, and even go further.

Moreover, he has only cultivated for a little over six million years. Compared to veteran king-level powerhouses who have lived for hundreds of millions or even billions of years, he still has plenty of drive.

Furthermore, his understanding of the laws is not far from breaking through to the level of a Cosmic Venerable. Even if he does not accept the final inheritance, he can still reach the level of a Cosmic Overlord. It is not a bad thing to take the path of cultivation a little slower and more steadily.

Conversely, if Lin Yuan takes a shortcut now and is restricted to the realm of the universe overlord after his breakthrough, his mentality will inevitably become unbalanced.

"I don't want to repeat the mistakes of some powerful figures!" he thought to himself. "The examples of those fallen quasi-immortal emperors in the Perfect World, driven mad by despair at the sight of no future, are right before my eyes. Do I even need to ask what choice they should make?"

He entered the temple not to truly receive the complete inheritance, but to see if his body's amplitude could be increased further. Now it seems that if he doesn't accept the final inheritance, 99.98 times is his limit.

"Thank you for your clarification, senior." Lin Yuan bowed again, his voice steady and powerful: "This junior chooses to give up accepting the inheritance of the Blazing Cloud Secret Technique."

A hint of disappointment flashed in Guangying's eyes, but he didn't say anything. Informing the inheritor of the drawbacks of accepting the final inheritance was the very reason for his existence.

"Alright!" He nodded. "If you don't wish to continue receiving the final inheritance, you can remain here for a year of quiet cultivation, after which you may leave."

The light and shadow slowly dissipated after they finished speaking.

……

On the third day after Lin Yuan sat cross-legged on the last step, quietly contemplating the gains of this trip, in another inheritance temple, the Lava King also slowly stepped onto the 9999th step.

He also saw the giant Qilin sculpture, witnessed the guardian's light and shadow coalescing, and heard the admonition about power and confinement.

"Seven Star Overlord... Eternal Imprisonment..." The Lava King's compound eyes flashed violently.

Born into a weak race, he has cultivated for over three billion years, and at the peak of his kingship, he is the strongest being in the history of his race.

He also knew that his potential had long been exhausted, and that the hope of comprehending the complete superior laws and becoming a cosmic sage was slim, while becoming the legendary cosmic master was an unattainable dream.

The readily available power of the Seven Star Overlord, surpassing the status and power of ordinary Universe Venerables, is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for him and his race.

"I choose to accept the legacy!"