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

Chapter 188, a high-energy chapter, has been updated! Read it now!

Virtual Universe, a special plane composed of endless nebulae.

Two towering figures sat facing each other, their auras vast and powerful, stirring the surrounding laws of space and time.

A figure clad in dragon-patterned armor, with a majestic face, was none other than the renowned Lord of the Universe—the Lord of Dragons.

The other was clad in a crimson robe, exuding a domineering and intense aura; he was none other than the top cosmic overlord—Venerable Yan Cang.

"Yan Cang!"

The Lord of Dragons spoke first, his voice steady: "I have something to discuss with you regarding that little fellow Lin Yuan."

Venerable Yan Cang picked up his wine cup and took a small sip, his crimson eyes glancing at the other man: "Oh? What brings you here, Lord Long Xing? Perhaps you're trying to poach my grand-disciple because he's been gaining too much attention lately?"

A hint of wariness flashed in his eyes. Lin Yuan's feat of defeating two alien venerables had already shaken the clan's higher-ups, and Venerable Yan Cang naturally knew its value.

Hearing his words, the Lord of Dragons was not angry. He simply said calmly, "I would not call it instruction, but I do want to take Lin Yuan as my personal disciple. This is also for his future."

Although he is currently only a King, his combat strength is already comparable to that of a mid-level Universe Venerable. Once he successfully breaks through to the Venerable level, with his accumulated power, he will likely immediately reach the threshold of becoming a Universe Overlord. At that time, what can Yan Yue still teach him?

He looked directly at Venerable Yan Cang: "Although Yan Yue is your beloved disciple and Lin Yuan's teacher, she has only recently broken through to the Universe Venerable realm and is still in the process of consolidating and improving herself. She can no longer provide Lin Yuan with much guidance."

The Lord of Dragons had a clear plan in mind.

Firstly, Lin Yuan's potential was too astonishing; his ability to be crowned a king and slay a venerable being was extremely rare in the entire history of the primordial universe.

If they can be taken under their wing and carefully nurtured, they will most likely become top-tier cosmic overlords in the future, and may even have the potential to become the master of the universe.

At that time, my lineage will have another pillar of strength, and many troublesome matters, such as the fall of the Dragon Sword Venerable, which required top combat power to solve, will no longer need to be handled personally, as my disciple will take care of them.

Secondly, he already has Lawrence, a disciple with equally exceptional talent. If he were to acquire Lin Yuan as well, it would be very likely that a sect would have two top-tier overlords.

This would not only give him a lot of face in front of his peers, but also mean that the next new universe master of his clan is very likely to be born from his two disciples. All these benefits made it impossible for him not to be tempted.

Therefore, he spoke up for Lin Yuan on several occasions at the highest meeting more than 300 years ago, helping him to obtain many privileges and benefits, and the groundwork had already been laid.

"Oh!"

Upon hearing this, Venerable Yan Cang sneered, put down his wine cup, and his fiery aura surged: "Long Xing, you've certainly got a good plan!"

But so what if Yan Yue can't teach her? If she can't teach her, can't I, as her grandmaster, teach her myself?

What, you think I'd just hand over this sure-fire top-tier hegemon to you? Dream on!

Top overlords hold extremely high status within their clans. Although they are not as powerful as the Dragon Lord, they are comparable to newly promoted universe lords like the Lord of Youhou. The two can be considered to be at the same level of power, so Venerable Yancang naturally dared to refuse them.

The Lord of Dragons had anticipated the possible reaction of Venerable Yan Cang, and maintained a faint smile on his face, showing no anger at the other party's tone.

"Yan Cang, calm down." He continued to patiently persuade him, "I'm not trying to take it by force, I'm just stating the facts. What I can teach Lin Yuan is exactly what he urgently needs."

Firstly, the combat style of large divine bodies.

We all know that Lin Yuan's Azure Dragon Avatar Divine Body is incredibly vast and possesses astonishing potential, but how to transform this advantage into world-destroying combat power? The mystery behind this is something that only the one who possesses it can truly understand.

"My lineage has the deepest expertise in this field, so I am the most suitable person to personally teach him. I'm afraid you are not up to the task," he pointed out his key advantage.

Secondly, resources.

The Lord of Dragons continued, "As the Lord of the Universe, my accumulated knowledge far surpasses that of you."

More importantly, for billions of epochs, apart from Lawrence, I have not taken on any other disciples.

Although the resources required to cultivate Lawrence were enormous, they were still sufficient for my overall accumulation.

If Lin Yuan becomes my disciple, when he breaks through to the Universe Venerable Realm, I can at least prepare two supreme treasures as a congratulatory gift for him to help him establish himself in the Venerable Realm.

Can you do that?

"Moreover, I heard that Yan Yue 'extorted' two of your treasures not long after her breakthrough, and you paid the price of two more treasures in exchange for the complete Yan Luo Locking Heaven Ring."

His gaze was intense, and his words went straight to Venerable Yan Cang's weakness: "Now, how many decent treasures can you still offer Lin Yuan?"

If he really becomes your disciple and then breaks through to the level of a cosmic overlord, but the treasures he obtains are not as good as those Yan Yue had before, what do you think he will think?

I think even the most magnanimous person would inevitably harbor some resentment, right?

Venerable Yan Cang frowned; the other party's intelligence was indeed accurate.

He was silent for a moment, then a glint flashed in his eyes, and he sneered again: "Hmph! Long Xing, you underestimate me, Yan Cang. You've probably forgotten what I did on the Primal Star a while ago, haven't you?"

I just slaughtered a bunch of demon clan venerables and seized three supreme treasures and more than twenty important treasures from them. Combined with my recent gains on the Primordial Star, it's more than enough to equip my newly taken-over disciple with one or two high-grade supreme treasures.

Trying to outdo me in wealth? Don't forget, I possess a supreme treasure of the pinnacle realm—something even you don't have!

"As for the combat methods of large divine bodies?" Venerable Yan Cang smiled and said, "You probably forgot that the most suitable person to teach Lin Yuan the way of large divine bodies is not you, Long Xing, but the Lord of the Nine Netherworlds who sits in the Nine Netherworlds Sea."

Unfortunately, I am an old friend of the Lord of the Nine Netherworlds. As long as I pay a certain price, it shouldn't be too difficult for him to give my grand-disciple some guidance.

What you, Long Xing, can give, I, Yan Cang, can give as well, and perhaps even better!

This counterattack silenced the Lord of Dragons.

Venerable Yan Cang is right. The resources and support that the other party can provide are indeed no less than his own, and in some aspects, they are even more advantageous.

Lin Yuan was originally a core disciple of the Yan Cang lineage. From Venerable Yan Yue to Venerable Yan Cang, the lineage was orderly and the relationship was deep.

On my side, apart from the old friendship between Lawrence and Lin Yuan, there is indeed a lack of deeper bonds.

All things considered, it seems I don't really have an overwhelming advantage.

But the Lord of Dragons had finally decided to take on a disciple, so how could he give up so easily?

He took a deep breath, his tone even carrying a rare hint of earnestness: "Yan Cang, what do you think of this? Let Lin Yuan become the master of both of us at the same time. You provide the most precious treasure, and I will teach him fighting techniques. We will nurture him together; this boy has a bright future and is worth our joint efforts."

Venerable Yan Cang stared intently at Lord Long Xing for a long time, then sneered, "Long Xing, do you take me for a fool or a sucker? You teach him fighting techniques, then wouldn't I become an outsider with only the title of master and disciple? You get all the benefits, dream on!"

He suddenly stood up, flames surging around him. "Screw you! I'm not going to waste my breath on you. I need to hurry up and formally take my little grand-disciple under my wing, lest he become a target for certain people."

After saying that, Venerable Yan Cang's figure instantly transformed into a streak of crimson light and disappeared.

The Lord of Dragons shook his head helplessly as he watched the other's figure disappear; he knew he had no chance.

……

On the other side, Venerable Yan Cang quickly located Lin Yuan's coordinates in the virtual universe.

The next moment, his figure appeared in a cultivation room. Lin Yuan was deducing something with his eyes closed when he sensed the spatial fluctuations and immediately got up.

"Grandmaster!" Lin Yuan bowed respectfully.

"Hmm." Venerable Yan Cang waved his hand and casually sat on the fiery throne that had been conjured to the side.

He scrutinized Lin Yuan with keen eyes: "Little fellow, how's your cultivation going lately?"

Lin Yuan's mind raced, and he cautiously replied, "Reporting to Grandmaster, this disciple dares not be negligent."

The avatar of the Flame God Clan has reached its current limit, and its potential seems to have been exhausted.

Thanks to the Blood Crystal and abundant resources, the Azure Dragon clone's genetic level has stabilized at the 100-fold limit.

"However..." He paused slightly, "I have recently felt that my combat techniques are still insufficient. Although the third form of my self-created Flame Dragon Break has been completed, it is still a bit short of the true peak level of techniques."

Therefore, this disciple intends to remain at the King-level for a while longer, devoting himself to refining and perfecting it, striving to push its third form to the peak level of secret techniques, thus laying a more solid foundation for breaking through to the Venerable realm in the future.

This was the excuse he had prepared.

In reality, his true self is fully focused on integrating the newly acquired Blood Crystal to further enhance his genetic level.

He was initially worried that his special nature would be exposed and he dared not consume large amounts of Blood Crystals, but after becoming a Black Warrior, he found that the clan's higher-ups were unusually lenient about this.

As long as he can continue to improve his genetic level, the clan doesn't care how much Blood Crystal he consumes. As long as he doesn't give it away to others without permission, no one will investigate even if he keeps it all.

This "only ask about the result, not the process" approach allowed him to completely unleash his potential, and he then used his authority to exchange for more than a hundred Blood Crystals, which he estimated would take several more decades to complete the fusion.

Upon hearing this, Venerable Yan Cang's eyes showed even greater admiration. He was very satisfied with the fact that the Venerable Yan Cang could remain humble and composed despite his fame throughout the universe, and knew how to cultivate his character.

"Very good, you know how to solidify your foundation; this is the way of the strong. However..."

He suddenly changed the subject: "Lin Yuan, I've come to see you today for something else."

Lin Yuan's expression hardened: "Grandmaster, please give your orders."

Venerable Yan Cang looked at him intently: "I wish to formally accept you as my disciple. Are you willing?"

"Huh?" Lin Yuan was taken aback.

He knew that after he defeated the alien venerable, a being at the level of a universe lord might want to take him as a disciple, but he never expected it to be his grandmaster.

However, he quickly thought of another problem, so he asked directly, "Master wants to take me as a disciple, and Lin Yuan is naturally willing, but what about Teacher Yan Yue?"

However, he quickly thought of another problem, so he asked directly, "Master wants to take me as a disciple, and Lin Yuan is naturally willing, but what about Teacher Yan Yue?"

Venerable Yan Yue was his teacher, and Venerable Yan Cang was Venerable Yan Yue's teacher. If Lin Yuan were to actually become the disciple of his grandmaster, wouldn't that embarrass the other party?

Venerable Yan Cang seemed to have anticipated his reaction and laughed heartily: "We each talk our own thing; this is quite common in the primordial universe."

The universe is vast, and the master-disciple relationship is not static. Some powerful individuals even surpass their teachers in strength and then take those teachers as their disciples.

Lin Yuan instantly recalled a similar situation on Earth before his transmigration—some of his high school or university teachers later became doctoral students under their students.

In a universe where strength reigns supreme, this shift in the power dynamic is not exactly heretical.

Perhaps because he had been silent for a while, and seeing that he hadn't reacted for a long time, Venerable Yan Cang assumed that he still had concerns, so he proposed a compromise:

"However, if you really feel awkward, I can have Yan Yue sever her relationship with you first, and then accept you as my disciple. From now on, you and she will address each other as senior and junior brothers."

Anyway, she's only about 20 million years older than you, so being on equal footing is perfect!

Seeing the expectant look in Venerable Yan Cang's eyes, and remembering how the other party had stood up for him on the Primordial Star, Lin Yuan was moved.

Without further hesitation, he solemnly performed the formal apprenticeship ceremony to Venerable Yan Cang: "Disciple Lin Yuan greets Master!"

"Good! Good! Good!" Venerable Yan Cang laughed heartily, personally helping Lin Yuan up. "From this day forward, you are my sixth personal disciple!"

He originally planned to formally accept Lin Yuan as his disciple and hold a grand ceremony after Lin Yuan broke through to the Venerable Realm and returned from the Primordial Star.

But the Dragon Lord's inquiry served as a wake-up call for him. Other universe lords were probably also eyeing this rough gem. The longer he waited, the more things could go wrong. He had to secure it as soon as possible, and now he could finally relax.

"I am still on the Primordial Star," Venerable Yan Cang said, his smile fading and his expression turning serious. "The situation here is complex, with frequent battles, so I cannot always log in to teach you. However..."

With a wave of his hand, a fiery token appeared before Lin Yuan: "This is my token. Once you successfully break through to the Universe Venerable realm, you can use this token to exchange for two high-grade treasures in the clan's treasury. All the treasure points will be provided by me."

Lin Yuan was startled.

This is a treasure of the highest quality; the scale of this undertaking is truly remarkable.

It should be noted that even the most common high-grade treasure weapon in the clan's treasury costs more than ten treasure points, and palace-type and soul-type treasures are even more expensive. This is definitely a very valuable gift.

"I originally intended to choose for you directly," Venerable Yan Cang explained, "but upon further reflection, it might not be what you desire. In the end, I decided to let you choose from the treasure vault yourself, and then I will pay for it. This should be more appropriate."

"This disciple thanks the teacher for his generous gift!" Lin Yuan bowed again.