Chapter 863: Aunt Arrives! Lady Iva Contacts!

In Magu City, on the second floor of an upscale villa.

Inside a training room over two hundred square meters in size, thunder roared as a towering figure was wreathed in black lightning.

With a long spear in hand, he swung it forward in thrusts or swept sideways with lateral steps, his entire form appearing like a phantom—elusive and unpredictable.

After several minutes, the figure finally halted, the black lightning receding into his body, revealing the handsome, youthful face of a young man.

"Master-level spear technique, combined with SSS-grade Chaotic Divine Thunder, is indeed powerful—but it hasn't yet reached its ultimate output."

Xu Jingming stood in place, pondering the training he had just completed.

Close-quarters combat was absolutely a vital component of his strength.

In this regard, beyond his ability, physique, and battle techniques, the most crucial factor was combat skill.

Previously, his Master-level spear technique had been an overwhelming force among peers.

But now that he had officially reached ninth-rank combat power, the Master-level spear technique was no longer sufficient—it was even holding him back.

Thus, for most of the time, he relied on the ranged devastation of an elemental mage.

"I remember the plus sign appearing after the spear technique when my ability points exceeded one million."

That means I need at least one million ability points to upgrade the spear technique to Perfect level..."

Xu Jingming felt a touch of helplessness.

Once a battle technique reaches Perfect level, it undergoes a qualitative transformation.

A Perfect-level battle technique can even grant an ability user the power to fight across ranks!

It's foreseeable that upgrading the spear technique to Perfect level will bring a massive boost.

The only pity is that his system panel currently lacks sufficient ability points.

"But it's not too bad—tonight is the induction welcome banquet; once it ends, tomorrow I can head to Dayangzhou to hunt ferocious beasts."

Xu Jingming exhaled lightly, flipped his right hand, and stored the Ink Shadow Thunder Spear in his space ring.

He then left the training room and entered another chamber.

This room had originally been a bedroom, but now it resembled a primeval forest, filled with vines and branches everywhere.

Hanging from these vines and branches were leaf blades shaped like swords.

The edges of these leaves were razor-sharp, and under the sunlight streaming through the window, they reflected a metallic, icy sheen.

The entire room's vines and branches emitted a terrifying aura comparable to that of a peak eighth-rank ability user.

Moreover, the vines pulsed rhythmically, as if breathing.

"Iva, how long until Xiao Jian breaks through to ninth rank?"

Xu Jingming asked.

"Almost there—its aura has reached its peak; it will break through within twenty-four hours at most."

A holographic projection of Iva, a green-haired girl with twin pigtails, appeared, floating midair as if seated.

Her white, slender feet dangled lazily, looking utterly relaxed.

"Within a day?" Xu Jingming's eyes flickered.

Ninth-rank Thorn Sword Grass!

Perfect—I'll see what kind of indestructible material it gathers upon breakthrough.

Also, leaving it in Magu City to protect Song Qiuyun and Jiang Chuxuan will let me rest easy while heading to Dayangzhou.

"Thorn Sword Grass is nearly ready to break through, but these other two are still far behind."

Xu Jingming turned his gaze to another corner of the bedroom, where two small flowerpots sat.

Inside the pots were two plants, just sprouting tender shoots—these were the two top-tier plant lifeforms: "Ironwire Lotus" and "Purple Blood Vine."

Both grew in soil soaked in Plant Holy Water, though they had only just sprouted.

Yet they already showed clear differences from ordinary plants, appearing remarkably resilient.

Xu Jingming still had many rare-grade plant life seeds, but he had no intention of cultivating more.

The remaining Plant Holy Water could be kept for emergencies—sometime, perhaps, it might be needed for some rare flower, exotic herb, or miraculous fruit tree.

"Ding ling ling~~~"

Suddenly, his phone rang—it was his aunt, Xu Qingwan.

He answered the call, and Xu Qingwan's crisp voice came through:

"Xiaoming, we've arrived at the entrance of the Yuehu Community you mentioned."

"Good, find a place to rest there—I'll be right over."

Xu Jingming replied.

His aunt's family had originally operated their rare plants and herbs in Jiangcheng; this time, relocating the entire household to Magu City required numerous handovers.

They only finished all the paperwork yesterday and arrived in Magu City by high-speed rail this morning.

"Now that my aunt's family has arrived, I can also move over simultaneously."

With a wave of his hand, Xu Jingming stored all three plant lifeforms in his space ring.

The villa in Yuehu Community was already fully prepared—he only needed to show up to move in.

Just as he was about to call upon Ling Shuang, Song Qiuyun, and Jiang Chuxuan to leave together, Iva, floating midair, suddenly cried out in delight:

"S-class! Mother has sent me a contact signal—should I connect now?"

"Mother?"

Xu Jingming paused, then remembered that Iva's "mother" referred to the mature woman form of Iva from the Hope.

Since receiving the remaining legacy of Lei Shen from her a year ago, he had not contacted her again.

"I wonder what she wants this time."

Xu Jingming mused, then said, "Connect."

"Got it!" Eva nodded heavily.

Then with a wave of her small hand, a flood of virtual light projected down from the ceiling, quickly forming the figure of a tall, slender woman.

This woman's looks were seventy to eighty percent similar to Eva's, but far more mature.

A head of green hair cascaded naturally down her back to the level of her perky buttocks.

The whole person looked beautiful and charming.

"Inheritor, let me tell you some news — our Nation Jin's Fire Seed Plan has succeeded.

"Although I don't know how they survived, I have now received their signal."

Mature-sister Eva got straight to the point the moment she appeared; her tone no longer carried its usual cool detachment, but instead held a faint trace of excitement.

Having stayed aboard the Hope spacecraft for a long time in prolonged solitude, she seemed to have recovered some of her emotions.

"The Fire Seed Plan?"

Xu Jingming raised an eyebrow. "The plan to preserve the elite powerhouses of the Second Era and let them survive to the point in time after the Molten Beasts' rampage?"

"That's right."

Mature-sister Eva nodded and smiled:

"Back then my core was damaged by the Molten Beasts, and I fell into hibernation, so I never knew the plan's final outcome.

"Now it seems it must have been carried out smoothly.

"Humanity's elite fire seeds all took shelter in another spatial realm and survived until now."

"Elites who survived from the Second Civilization Era..."

Xu Jingming narrowed his eyes.

If the number of people preserved by the Fire Seed Plan wasn't large, that would be fine.

But if a great many had been preserved, it would likely cause an upheaval to the entire human world.