Swallowing the Stars: Starting with the Battle of Geniuses

Chapter 115 Possession Attempt, Origin of the Abyss Royal Family

It won't be Hunzhen's turn for another match for the next day or two.

He naturally returned to the accommodations provided by Milirat to rest.

He had foreseen today's events in his simulations, so he was not surprised.

He was thinking more about something else that he hadn't paid attention to for a long time.

The progress in spatial perception is too slow.

He came to the Abyss of Purgatory specifically to solve this problem.

But before a complete solution is found, Hunzhen did consider a "mitigation" approach.

It's still about possession, but it's not the ultimate goal of possession.

Instead, he possessed the body of a member of the Abyss royal family, who was revered as the Silver God and belonged to the Silver Demon King.

Before attempting the ultimate goal, he naturally needs to assess the difficulty of achieving it by trying to overcome the weaker "difficulties".

During the decades of warfare, the closest second-class nobleman, Nofigales, who had reached the ninth level of the Domain Lord rank, was naturally the best experimental target.

In conclusion, the simulated human successfully underwent possession.

In this process, many of Hunzhen's previous speculations were also proven, such as the fact that it is much more difficult to possess a member of the Abyss Royal Family than to possess a life of the same level.

But given the disparity in capabilities, the simulant ultimately succeeded.

The result, however, was a "wide announcement" from the will of the abyss.

Both the Silver Demon Clan and the Black Demon Clan sent large numbers of their strongest members out from the depths to relentlessly hunt down the simulated humans.

Among them is royal blood.

Each simulated human possesses only one Life Source Fruit, and the new physical body requires re-infecting with malevolent energy before it can re-integrate with the Blood Crystal.

Therefore, after possessing the body of a second-class nobleman, their strength decreased rather than increased.

In addition, my understanding of the laws of time was not fully digested at that time, so it was far inferior to my current understanding of the laws.

Their overall strength suddenly dropped to the top level of the seventh tier.

The Abyss Will locked onto Hunzhen's location in real time and broadcast it. Within a few years, Hunzhen was besieged and caught up by armies led by several nobles. Hunzhen had no time to escape the Abyss and died.

Knowing the danger of death, it became impossible to have the Sim possess Noficales after that.

However, that simulation was not without its benefits.

Firstly, the amplification brought by the laws of spacetime can be superimposed on the spatial talent of the Abyss Royal Family without reduction, similar to the "final addition" amplitude in the game.

If one could possess a noble with first-class bloodline, or even directly possess a king's bloodline, Hunzhen's spatial law talent alone would probably reach a level above the king's bloodline and below the Silver Ghost King.

It was after that simulation that Hunzhen's understanding of spatial laws successfully broke through to the level of the seventh floor of the Tongtian Bridge.

Secondly, the shallower the layer, the weaker the abyssal power that the abyssal royal family can borrow, even with armies and formations. Conversely, it's reasonable to deduce that the deeper the layer, the stronger the power they can borrow.

Thirdly, during the pursuit, the simulated humans did not encounter the King's Blood. It is unclear whether the King's Blood was able to resist the will of the abyss or if there were other limitations. In any case, those who could have completed the pursuit the fastest did not appear.

Theoretically speaking, Hunzhen's true purpose is not to seize the body of a special life form, but to enhance his own spatial attributes.

Even if a royal bloodline member is slightly inferior to a genius like Bolan in terms of spatial talent, he won't be far behind.

With the enhancement of the Hunzhen Simulation ability three thousand times, it can far surpass Berlan.

It can be said that it has already met the requirements of being truly authentic.

However, the mysteries of the abyss have not yet been fully explored, and not even a glimpse of the Silver Demon King has been seen. Hunzhen is not willing to give up.

In short—greed is the culprit.

If it weren't for greed, with his current strength, he could have chosen a royal bloodline and begun to formally carry out his plan to possess another body.

However, for simulated humans, the danger of possessing a special life is far greater than the temptation.

Hunzhen could improve his spatial perception efficiency by having a simulated human possess a royal bloodline. Compared to possessing an ordinary noble, possessing a royal bloodline would result in the least loss of strength and the highest probability of survival.

In reality, right before Hunzhen's eyes was the perfect target for possession.

"Congratulations on passing the fourth round... or rather, your actual first round. Heh, though you probably don't really need this kind of celebration, do you?"

Inside this elegant tea room, a graceful, silver-haired woman sat before Hunzhen, smiling and greeting him.

It seemed that because Hunzhen had previously rejected Laujars's offer of recruitment, the princess was in a very good mood.

He even specially opened his favorite tea room and invited Hunzhen to drink with him.

"It's just a minor skirmish."

Hunzhen looked at Milirat, took a sip of green tea, and made a pointed remark.

I don't know what kind of tea leaves or how they were brewed, but this tea is as refreshing and sweet as a celestial brew from myths and legends. One sip and it feels as if your soul is elevated, giving you many insights.

This tea, like the fine wines in the original work that cost tens or hundreds of units of Hunyuan, is already considered a treasure even in the vast universe.

Upon hearing this, Milirat glanced at Hunzhen with a helpless expression and said, "Those great nobles might not be able to see it, but I know you well enough. Ninth-level combat power isn't necessarily your strongest strength. I'm afraid even the strongest great nobles wouldn't be worthy of your attention, would they?"

"Hmph, I bet with your personality, you're probably thinking about how much of a gap there is between you and Wang Xue right now, aren't you?"

Seemingly realizing that she herself had become a target of Hunzhen's imagination, Milila snorted softly, her voice tinged with dissatisfaction.

Instead, she lost her saintly and noble temperament, and appeared somewhat naive and innocent.

Unfortunately, Hunzhen seemed to be someone who didn't know how to appreciate beauty. With a fiercely warlike expression, she asked, "Please, Your Highness, speak frankly."

Millira rolled her eyes, but didn't bother beating around the bush, saying, "It's probably not much different from what you expected. Those of us with royal blood who have lived for a period of time can generally reach level ten combat power, with very few reaching level eleven. As for the higher level, level twelve combat power, even for us with royal blood, it's legendary, appearing only once every tens of millions of epochs. However…"

"but?"

Millira glared at Hunzhen: "But that's only in the shallow layers! I know you served in the military and are aware of the power of the Abyss. The deeper you go, the stronger the Abyss's power! In the deeper layers, without an army, the Abyss royal family's strength can directly transcend combat power levels! In layers eleven to thirteen, the Abyss's power can raise a royal family's combat power by one level; in layers fourteen to sixteen, it becomes an additional two levels; in layer seventeen, an additional three levels; and in layer eighteen, an additional four levels!"

"Mr. Hunzhen, I know you are extremely talented, probably the most talented in the entire Abyss across countless eras, surpassing even the Abyss royal family. However, don't think you already have the ability to challenge royal blood. To become a royal guard, to become a knight, you are destined to enter the Abyss. I will handle things like refusing Laujars today. You stood up for yourself and incurred his wrath. Once you enter the Abyss, he has plenty of ways to destroy you!"

Hunzhen looked at Milirat, who had an educating tone, nodded, and said with a look of acceptance, "So, you were concerned about me after all?"

"——"

Whether out of embarrassment or anger, Milirat's face flushed red, and she was no longer the elegant and composed person she had been at first sight.

She stared wide-eyed at Hunzhen's face, which was deliberately showing a "tears of gratitude" expression, her body trembling slightly with excitement, unable to speak for a long time.

Hunzhen blinked and asked, "Speaking of which, including what you said a long time ago about 'true form,' shouldn't that be classified information of the Abyss Royal Family? Is it really okay for you to reveal your Abyss Royal Family's secrets like this? Aren't you afraid of being held accountable?"

call--.

Milirat, having recovered her composure, took a sip of tea and regained her calm and elegant demeanor. She said lightly, "Even if you knew this information, it wouldn't change anything. As for pursuing it? Aside from the Great God, the Royal Blood already represents the highest power class in this world. Who else has the right to hold us accountable for our mistakes?"

"Such rhetoric is completely unrelated to your previously expressed will for 'equality'," Hunzhen said, feigning surprise.

Millirat calmly replied, "The facts are there, and they won't change whether I say them or not. Isn't it precisely by recognizing the objective reality of inequality that we can better pursue the ideals of equality and freedom?"

Hunzhen applauded enthusiastically, praising, "Exquisite, truly exquisite! Her Highness the Princess's demeanor is truly captivating."

Millila looked at Hunzhen with a resentful expression and said, "Don't say that. If you really were 'smitten,' after all these years, would you still just be a figurehead?"

Mililat's sabotage left Hunzhen with no choice but to smile awkwardly and sip his tea.

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"However... I am certainly far from being noble, and do not deserve your praise."

A hint of weariness flashed in Milirat's eyes as she said, "The reason I established the Humanity Council and stayed on this ninth level is simply because I am different from other Abyss royals; I possess the irrational emotion of 'fear of death.' Yes, it's only because I'm afraid of death, and only to stay away from war, that I'm like this."

Whether it was the extraordinary strength and talent of the Hunzhen that surpassed the limits of lower races that made Milila look at them with such high regard, or it was their unyielding pride that set them apart from the sycophants and made them feel true equality.

Milirat actually revealed this secret that was buried deep in her heart and should not have been spoken.

Silence fell over the tea room for a moment.

pat.

Hunzhen put down his teacup and asked, "What is the connection between this and 'staying away from war'?"

"This all begins with the birth of the Abyss royal family."

"Looks like this is going to be a long story?"

"It's not too long, but... Mr. Hunzhen, you should know about the Abyss Beast, right?"

"I not only know about them, but I've killed more than one on the tenth floor."

"If that's the case, then it's easy to explain."

Milirat nodded slightly and began to talk about the origin of the Abyss Royal Family, starting with the birth of the Abyss Beast from the Demon Fruit.

"In fact, the Abyss royal family also hatched from the Mara Fruit on the Abyss Mother Wall."

"However, the Abyss Beasts originate from the first ten layers of what is known as the Shallow Zone. The Abyss Royal Family can only hatch from the Demon Fruits of the Deep Layer."

"The eleventh to thirteenth layers are known as the deep outer perimeter. The mother wall has a relatively high probability of giving birth to third-class nobles and a very low probability of giving birth to second-class nobles."

"The fourteenth to sixteenth layers are known as the deep inner domain. The mother wall has a relatively high probability of giving birth to second-class nobles and a very low probability of giving birth to first-class nobles."

"The seventeenth layer, known as the deep core area, has a high probability of giving birth to first-class nobles and an extremely low probability of giving birth to royal blood."

Milirat didn't mention the eighteenth floor, but with a little thought, one could guess that it was most likely the birthplace of the two gods.

Since Milila deliberately avoided the topic, Hunzhen naturally wouldn't bring it up with low emotional intelligence. Instead, he asked a question that arose naturally.

"If that's the case... how do we distinguish which of the two royal families a single Demon Fruit was born from? Is it determined by its color? If so, the rival royal family could destroy the unborn fruit prematurely. So, is it divided by region? One royal family per region?"

Milirat nodded and replied, "This is the origin of the war. Take our Silver Demon race as an example. As long as we use our spatial power to invade the Abyss, the corresponding Mother Wall will always produce our Silver Demon race's Demon Fruits. Thus, the struggle for territory naturally arises. The battlefield of the tenth layer of the Abyss is merely a rehearsal for this war. The existence of the lower races' armies is only to allow the royal family to familiarize themselves with the consumables used to forge the use of Abyss power."

"Once we enter the depths, even without diving, the pressure of deep-sea exploration is constant, making it impossible for ordinary inferior races to survive. This deep region is the true battlefield for our Abyss Royal Family. As a member of the royal bloodline, I have a duty to lead my people in conquering cities and expanding our territory to increase our population advantage. But... I fear death, and using my dissatisfaction with treating inferior races as tools and resources as an excuse, I raised the banner of equality for intelligent life and withdrew from the front lines."

Hunzhen remained silent for a long time before slowly saying, "I believe in a saying: 'Judging by intention, not by actions.' If you've been pretending your whole life, then what you've pretended is undeniably real. Whatever your initial purpose was, when you've managed to communicate openly and equally with me, someone of inferior birth... Milirat, you are undoubtedly someone who practices the will of equality and freedom."

Honestly, I think that most likely, this princess was just using an excuse to leave the front lines at the beginning.

But perhaps the truth about her "fear of death" is not what she thought.

She is not "afraid of death" but rather an anomaly. It is because she is a genetically mutated anomaly, fundamentally different from other Abyss royals, that she can experience the "fear of death" that normal living beings should have.

Those who revere death cannot regard other lives as mayflies; this is the condition for the birth of empathy.

Milirat got the cause and effect wrong, which is why she attributed her actions to "hypocrisy" and "excuses," and felt guilty and remorseful for taking advantage of others.

In reality, given Milirat's personality, it was quite possible that she would develop sympathy for the lower races who died unjustly, eventually leaving the front lines to establish an organization similar to the Humanity Council, created to improve the rights of the lower races.

Millila paused for a moment, then smiled brightly: "Whether this is your way of comforting me or not, at least... hearing these words makes me happy and makes me feel much more relaxed."

"You're welcome."

Hunzhen waved his hand and smiled faintly: "You told me so much valuable information today, this little bit of comfort is nothing to mention."

"Ha, not worth mentioning, so you mean it's not even worth as much? You said it yourself."

With a snap, Millila revealed her true intentions, slamming a document down in front of Hunzhen.

Looking at the dumbfounded Hunzhen, Millila smiled slyly and said, "You're currently the most popular star among the lower races, my ambassador! It's not too much to ask you to help promote our Humanity Council, is it?"

Every gift of fate comes with a hidden price.

Even though Milirat initially said that Hunjin didn't need to do anything.

But now that he has been living on someone else's territory for so many years and has obtained so much information for free, coupled with this in-depth exchange, the relationship is no longer what it used to be. Naturally, he cannot refuse such a harmless "small request".

Hunzhen shook his head and chuckled, showing no dissatisfaction, and signed the document.

It must be said that Milirat's candid tea party this time was indeed very effective.

However, even without this tea party, he could not have regarded Milirat, who had never shown him any hostility and had always been kind to him, as a target for possession.

Even if she is very likely the royal bloodline that he can most easily possess.

As the tea party drew to a close, Hunzhen put down her documents and suddenly asked, "By the way, Your Highness, do you know Xingluo? He's my best friend, and my only friend in this world. If it weren't for him, I might not have even been able to get my name on your Humanity Committee."

(End of this chapter)