Starting with being handed over to the Imperial Concubine, building a family with a thousand-year hi

He secretly planned to feign agreement for now, and then privately inquire with Song Pingchao about the reasons later. If the other party couldn't provide a reasonable explanation, he would quietly slip away to protect himself.

Having made up his mind, Zhao Lei nodded in agreement. Su Mu's divided soul said no more, its form quietly dissipating and returning to its original form.

Only Song Pingchao and Zhao Lei remained in the room.

Zhao Lei could no longer suppress his doubts and hurriedly asked, "Song Tianshen, Su Mu's cultivation is only at the Great God Realm, not even as good as mine, yet he dares to attempt to contend with a God King. It's clearly like throwing an egg against a rock. Why are you still risking your life with him?"

Song Pingchao shook his head slightly, his expression solemn: "Young friend Zhao, in the path of cultivation, one must never judge a person's depth solely based on their superficial cultivation level."

He then slowly recounted Song Qingmei's incredible journey of continuous opportunities and rapid breakthroughs after following Su Mu. In just half a year, she broke through two major realms; such a speed of transformation was unparalleled in the entire star sea.

Of course, Song Pingchao deliberately concealed the fact that Su Mu possessed the core trump card of the God King Puppet. With Zhao Lei's apprenticeship not yet finalized, Su Mu's core strength could not be easily revealed.

Even with some reservations, this account was enough to deeply shake Zhao Lei and leave him utterly shocked.

Upon hearing that Song Qingmei had broken through two realms in half a year, Zhao Lei's eyes instantly ignited with intense fervor and longing, and his breathing became rapid.

He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the turmoil in his heart, and solemnly looked at Song Pingchao, asking word by word, "Song Tianshen, I only ask you for one truth: what you said before, that Fellow Daoist Su Mu promised to help Song Qingmei break through to the God King Realm within ten thousand years, is that really reliable?"

Song Pingchao smiled calmly and said firmly, "My friend Su made a solemn vow regarding this matter, which is absolutely true."

Without needing further explanation, a soul oath is the most rigorous and unforgivable promise a cultivator can make, surpassing a thousand words.

All of Zhao Lei's doubts vanished instantly. He immediately bowed and clasped his hands, his tone extremely earnest: "Song Tianshen, when Fellow Daoist Su Mu emerges from seclusion, please introduce me! If Fellow Daoist Su is willing to accept me as his adopted son, even if he promises to help me break through to the God King Realm within 100,000 years, I, Zhao Lei, will be willing, and I will follow him to the death for the rest of my life, without any second thoughts!"

A smile flashed in Song Pingchao's eyes as he readily agreed. He knew Su Mu was a generous and magnanimous person, and he was certain that he would reap rich rewards by recruiting a top genius like Zhao Lei for him.

Outside, the two, each with their own expectations, quietly made their plans.

Inside the Pagoda of Creation within the Time Mirror, Su Mu devoted himself to enlightenment. After several days of contemplation, he finally achieved a new breakthrough in his understanding of the laws of space, grasping the core essence of the laws and principles.

It was still this illusory ocean, and Su Mu stood silently in mid-air. He had been concentrating with his eyes closed, trying to comprehend the various spatial laws demonstrated by his illusory body. Suddenly, he opened his eyes, his gaze locking onto the illusory body in front of him, and the entire space in front of him rippled with subtle waves.

The phantom seemed to sense the spatial anomaly and immediately leaped forward, trying to retreat. However, just as it took half a step forward, a muffled explosion was heard, and a powerful, invisible spatial barrier blasted it away.

The illusory body was knocked back several feet. After regaining its footing, it slowly returned to the position where it had been blocked and tentatively reached out to touch the void. What appeared to be empty to the naked eye felt like hitting a thick, solid wall in its palm. The illusory body's expression changed drastically, and it stared at Su Mu with eyes full of horror.

"How is this possible?" "The spatial cage, even a God-King realm cultivator might not be able to comprehend and master the application of its laws, yet you, merely a Great God realm cultivator, have directly grasped and formed it?"

The power of laws is divided into two categories. One category follows the inherent and established laws of heaven and earth, and can only be activated when it corresponds to a fixed realm. The other category is created and new rules are established on their own. Only the person who creates the rules can use them. The spatial cage belongs to the latter.

The vast universe, with its billions of stars, is never short of exceptionally talented geniuses. Yet, the vast majority of these prodigies are destined to follow the established rules and laws of the universe. Only a select few are able to break free from these shackles and create their own unique set of rules.

The illusory body stared at Su Mu, and had to admit in its heart that the person before it was indeed a one-in-a-million genius who could create his own rules. Throughout history, only two people have been able to cultivate a spatial cage: the first was the creator who opened up the entire universe, and the second was Su Mu.

Looking into Su Mu's eyes, the illusionary figure secretly speculated that this person might be able to transcend the current constraints of the universe and create a completely new world in the future.

Su Mu was completely unaware of the ultimate secrets of the universe, and at present, he had never entertained such a grand and ethereal thought as creating a new universe. However, seeing the fear on the illusory body's face, he couldn't help but ask, "You just said that my move is called Spatial Cage? Is this a law power that only a Celestial God Realm or God King Realm can control?"

The illusory body's lips twitched slightly, momentarily at a loss for words. Let alone gods or god-kings, even a Saint-level powerhouse might not be able to comprehend the Spatial Cage.

After a moment of contemplation, the illusionary body could only tell him in a different way: "You only need to understand that with the Spatial Cage technique in hand, and with your current cultivation level as a Great God, you are invincible even when facing a God King."

He did not explicitly state that Su Mu could kill the God King, simply because he knew that Su Mu's current physical body and attack power were still insufficient to tear through the God King's fundamental defense.

As soon as he finished speaking, the illusory body continued, "You no longer need my guidance on the laws of space. In less than a hundred years, you will be able to master all the great principles of space. My mission is now complete, and I will withdraw."

As the voice faded, the illusory body rapidly became transparent and ethereal, completely disappearing into this illusory ocean in just two or three breaths.

After his illusory form departed, Su Mu repeatedly honed his skills in activating the spatial cage before leaving the Creation Pagoda and returning to reality.

Su Mu reappeared in Song Pingchao's room in the library. As soon as he stepped into the room, a figure rushed in front of him and knelt down heavily.

"Zhao Lei of Xinggong, I humbly request that my godfather accept me as his adopted son! I am willing to serve him faithfully for life, without any disloyalty!"

Su Mu stood there stunned, utterly astonished. He had known of Zhao Lei through his split soul, but the two had never formally met or spoken. He never expected that the other party would kneel down and become his disciple the moment he saw him.

At this moment, Song Pingchao, who was behind Zhao Lei, stepped forward and recounted the whole story. After listening to Song Pingchao's explanation, Su Mu understood. He naturally had no reason to refuse a late-stage Great God Realm warrior who had offered himself up.

There is one thing I must make clear beforehand: "I understand your thoughts. I previously promised to help Song Qingmei break through to the God King realm within ten thousand years, and that promise applies to you as well. To help you improve quickly, I will invest a massive amount of resources. To ensure your unwavering loyalty for life, I need to imprint a blood soul mark deep within your soul. Please consider this carefully before giving me your answer."

Zhao Lei had already heard about this from Song Pingchao, and since even Song Qingmei had accepted it so readily, he naturally had no reservations. "Godfather, I'm willing!"

Without the slightest hesitation, Zhao Lei immediately agreed. Su Mu condensed a wisp of his life essence blood at his fingertips, imprinting a unique blood soul mark deep within Zhao Lei's soul, officially taking him as his adopted son.

[Congratulations, host, on adopting Zhao Lei, a late-stage Great God Realm cultivator, as your godson. The system reward has been stored in your inventory. Please check it yourself.]

Su Mu didn't immediately open the warehouse to check the rewards. The system rewards for adopting a godson were always ordinary and had long been the norm, so he simply put them aside for the time being.

Zhao Lei respectfully kowtowed three times, formally acknowledging Su Mu as his godfather. Su Mu was generous, directly gifting him a large number of cultivation treasures: mid-grade divine weapons and matching armor, plus several high-grade divine cultivation pills.

The journey to Taidou Star was fraught with danger, so Su Mu did not allow Zhao Lei to immediately enter the Time Mirror for arduous cultivation. Instead, he instructed him to apply to the Human God King for permanent residency around Tianyuan Star after arriving at the Star Palace, so that he could provide guidance and training at any time.

Holding the generous reward in his hands, Zhao Lei was overjoyed. With the resources he received this time, he was absolutely confident that he could break through to the Heavenly God Realm within ten years. He also completely believed in Su Mu's promise to help him ascend to the God King Realm within ten thousand years. A deep sense of loyalty arose in his heart, and he dared not disobey in the slightest.

"Thank you, Godfather! Upon arriving at the Star Palace, I will immediately submit my application to the Human God King."

Zhao Lei knelt down and kowtowed three times again. Su Mu raised his hand and gently lifted him up with a stream of spiritual energy.

With the matter of accepting disciples settled, Su Mu spoke of the subsequent itinerary: "Today I have arranged everything on Tianyuan Star. Tomorrow morning I will send a message to the Three-Eyed Clan outside the city to set off for Taidou Star."

Song Pingchao and Zhao Lei both nodded, offering no objection whatsoever.

Su Mu instructed Zhao Lei to go into seclusion and recuperate. After Zhao Lei left, he looked at Song Pingchao and secretly offered him a reward. Even with Song Qingmei's connection, a tangible benefit would make Song Pingchao more willing to recommend more promising disciples.

Night fell. Su Mu coaxed Su Song and Su Changsheng to sleep, and Xiao Yunshang slowly walked to his side, nestling obediently in his arms. His wife remained silent, but her erratic heartbeat betrayed the deep-seated worries hidden within her.

Su Mu tightened his arms, holding Xiao Yunshang firmly in his embrace, and gently comforted her: "Madam, there is no need to worry. Now I have you, I have Changsheng, and I have a large family to protect me. I will never let myself be in danger."