Chapter 2080: Star Radiance Ranking

It seemed she never considered whether Lin An would refuse; Ka Lian gave a slight nod, signaling Lin An to directly absorb the imprint and place her mark upon it.

For any member of the Creator Alliance, although this is a slave imprint, bearing this mark actually places one no lower than ordinary nobility; for a weak civilization, it is akin to ascending to heaven in a single step.

"A slave? An imprint?"

To Ka Lian's surprise, Lin An lifted his head, showing none of the agitation she had imagined.

Even after making eye contact with Lin An, seeing those calm eyes beneath his mask, Ka Lian felt a sudden flicker that something was off.

It was as if she had said something wrong.

Without further thought, mistakenly assuming Lin An came from a lowly civilization and had no idea what she was offering, Ka Lian chuckled lightly and spoke calmly:

"Yes, a spiritual imprint."

"Accept this spiritual imprint, and within the Alliance you will be mine. Of course, after accepting this honor, your spirit will be under my control."

"Those ragtag folks behind you are your clansmen, right? It seems this is the condition you reached with Qing Kai."

Tilting her head slightly, Ka Lian glanced at Gao Tian and the others as if looking through air. Not knowing what Gao Tian and the others were nervous about, the girl merely thought these monkeys were afraid of her.

"You brought them here, isn't it just so you can follow me together?"

"Your strength is not bad; considering you are a Body System cultivator, I can fulfill your dream."

Having said that, Ka Lian, somewhat impatient, waved her arm at Lin An. The Fifth Stage cultivator beside her even coldly rebuked Lin An, telling him not to be ungrateful.

"Princess Ka Lian is willing to let you join the Alliance—why don't you hurry up and kneel to accept, thanking Her Highness?!"

Unaware that he was walking on the edge of death, seeing Lin An show no reaction, Qing Kai instantly grew anxious and urgently used his spiritual power to dissuade Lin An:

"Lord Lin An, agree quickly! I want to arrange for you to enter, and our excuse to the Alliance will be that you are special—you wish to use yourself as a condition to exchange for your civilization's protection by the Alliance."

"Accepting the imprint is fine! I know your spiritual power is not weak; this thing won't exert much control over you. If it really comes to that, once we're out I'll personally help you break it."

Ignoring Qing Kai's anxiety, Lin An gave a slight nod and straightforwardly absorbed the imprint, merely skipping the manual ritual.

His hesitation wasn't due to fear that the imprint threatened him—it was simply the most basic spiritual seed; if he wished, he could even use the imprint to attack Ka Lian.

What made him hesitate was Mo Ling.

Unnoticed by anyone, Mo Ling, the most inconspicuous member of the squad, was now staring at Ka Lian with eyes full of icy coldness.

("Lin An, I hate her!")

("How dare she… how is she worthy to touch you!")

Three minutes later.

Seeing Lin An absorb the imprint with no further mishap, Qing Kai's heart suddenly relaxed.

Although I don't know where Lin An's innate arrogance comes from, or what gives this monkey his confidence, frankly I truly fear that Lin An will refuse to bow his head and instead seek death.

"Lord Lin An, the Star Radiance War will begin soon. When we enter the transmission zone later, I won't be going with you."

"If that's the case, I'll take my leave now. To be frank, there's really no grudge between us; perhaps joining the Alliance would also be a good choice for you."

"Behind Princess Ka Lian stands the Crimson Armor Committee, which is none other than an immensely powerful Star Destroyer."

As Ka Lian prepared to lead Lin An and his party to the Star Radiance Transmission Point, Qing Kai subtly sent a spiritual message to Lin An, offering "kind" advice.

He actually couldn't quite grasp what Lin An intended to do; in his view, Lin An might possess decent talent, qualifying as a rare Body System cultivator. But no matter how outstanding, facing the Creator Alliance—a top-tier existence—would inevitably spark a desire to join.

He even doubted that Lin An still didn't grasp just how powerful the Creator Alliance truly is!

"How many ranks is your Alliance's strongest? I've heard before that it seems to be only the Fifth Stage Peak."

Ignoring Qing Kai's advice, Lin An abruptly asked.

Although he had previously learned the situation through the first batch of Creator squads, upon entering here Lin An keenly sensed that the Creator Alliance seemed somewhat off.

Perhaps behind these questions lies something hidden...

Faced with Lin An's question, Qing Kai startled, hearing only two words from Lin An, he almost couldn't help but sneer.

"Yes, the Alliance's strongest is indeed Fifth Stage, and also our supreme leader. Of course, perhaps there is even greater power within the Alliance, but such secrets I am not qualified to know."

"You should know well that, under the Apocalypse, the foolishest thing is to reveal all of one's hidden cards."

"However, allow me to be frank: the might of a Fifth Stage Peak cultivator far exceeds your imagination!"

Having said that, Qing Kai coldly snorted in his heart, regarding Lin An as nothing more than a frog in a well. Disdaining Fifth Stage Peak? How laughable! Know that each step beyond Fifth Stage brings an exponential gap in power!

Lin An, lost in thought, nodded slightly and then went on to ask his final question:

"I'm curious—why is your Creator Alliance called the Creator? Is it because your strongest's title is Creator?"

"Moreover, your strength divisions seem to be based on color—clothes, robes, armor: red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, purple. Following that order, shouldn't you be an Orange Armor? Or perhaps the rank of Crimson Armor shouldn't merely be Star Shatter."

Lin An asked casually; he had noticed this issue long ago.

However, as soon as he finished asking, Qing Kai's eyes flashed with an unusual hue, as if reluctant to answer.

"I cannot disclose that."

"Lord Lin An, I will not be accompanying you further on the journey; I shall take my leave now."

Having said that, Qing Kai respectfully saluted Ka Lian, then turned and departed.

No one paid attention to Qing Kai's departure; watching his retreating back, Lin An's eyes flickered, as if he had thought of something.

It seems his question touched upon a secret of the Creator Alliance...

"Creator?... heh..."

"Lin Dui, what's wrong with you?"

The group followed behind Ka Lian toward the transmission point; beside Lin An, Gao Tian looked at him puzzled. He had noticed that since Lin An arrived, he had been continually observing this place—not marveling at its prosperity like they did, but as if searching for something.

"Nothing."

"I'm just wondering… how long has the Apocalypse actually been going on…"

"An Apocalypse that lasts so long it allows some individuals to literally die of old age—can that truly be called an Apocalypse? Clearly, something is off."

Lin An shook his head, also ignoring Gao Tian's bewildered expression, completely failing to understand what he was saying.

In fact, Lin An himself didn't know what he was doubting, or whether he had guessed at something.

He just inexplicably thought of some things.

For example, instances, like time, like his rebirth.

Those were some unimaginable, even crazy guesses.

(Lin An, there are some things I cannot tell you. You need to rely on yourself to find the answer...)

"Star Glory Battle will begin in ten minutes! Please all participating civilizations get ready!"

"Star Glory rankings have been opened, temporary exchange has been opened!"

"Current number of entered civilizations:"

"178211!"