Chapter 203: Nine Star Civilization

Mars.

Beneath the gray, hazy sky, a wild wind swept across a vast expanse of sand and gravel, brushing over a huge meteor crater.

Massive starships stood majestically here, and a space fortress resembling a giant rotating wheel hovered in midair, turning slowly.

Whether on the fortress or the starships, a special pattern formed by nine stars could be seen on the outer hulls.

Inside the fortress that resembled a giant rotating wheel.

A middle-aged man with red hair was leading more than a dozen people in an elevator, rising rapidly toward the depths of the fortress.

Most of the dozen or so people in the elevator were Zhi Xing people; only two of them were the leaders of the Black Tower Civilization and the Shen Nuxi Civilization respectively.

On the Yuan Chen Civilization side, the Zhi Xing people were led by the Archon, Lei Si.

Among the Zhi Xing people, a silver-haired old man stood silently behind Lei Si; it was none other than Kaduan.

"Archon Lei Si, my lord," a female Zhi Xing person beside him transmitted mentally: "This Imperial Prince of the Nine Star Civilization actually dares to invite us into the deepest part of this Tier Seven fortress? Is he going to negotiate with us?"

"Why wouldn't he dare?"

The red-haired middle-aged man transmitted mentally in a low voice: "This Imperial Prince must be the Seventh Imperial Prince of the Nine Star Imperial Clan. When he came to Earth back then, he was merely a Primal Divine Servant. His personal strength is certainly inferior to mine, but he must have a Yu Xingyuan Ninth Layer expert as his personal guard. Plus, the Second Emperor of the Nine Star Civilization gave him a life-saving treasure. How could he possibly fear us?"

The silver-haired old man behind him could not help but shift his gaze.

Lin Qing immediately transmitted mentally: "Lei Si, the Nine Star Civilization has a history of nearly ten million years, yet the throne has only passed to the Second Emperor?"

"This is also a secret of the Nine Star Civilization; it is normal that Mr. Kaduan does not know it," the red-haired middle-aged man transmitted mentally. "The Nine Star Civilization has a rule: only Void Beings are qualified to inherit the throne."

Lin Qing's heart stirred.

It seems the Nine Star Civilization has more than one Void Being?

Lin Qing transmitted mentally again: "Then what if no Void Being is ever born?"

"Then naturally, he would remain seated on the throne forever. Void Beings can replenish their vitality endlessly through spatial energy; they are practically immortal and do not mind waiting," the red-haired middle-aged man transmitted mentally. "The Second Emperor of the Nine Star Civilization has reigned for hundreds of thousands of years, and the Seventh Imperial Prince is the youngest in the line of succession."

Lin Qing vaguely felt something was strange and asked via mental transmission: "This Emperor of the Nine Star Civilization has reigned for hundreds of thousands of years, yet he has only seven children?"

The higher the life level of an expert, the more difficult it is to reproduce.

However, there are also secret techniques or treasures that allow experts to pay a price to ensure they can definitely produce offspring.

Although reproduction with a price means the number of offspring is destined not to be large, it should not be that after hundreds of thousands of years there are only seven children, right?

"That is not the case."

The red-haired middle-aged man transmitted mentally: "The current Emperor of the Nine Star Civilization has hundreds of children, but the Nine Star Civilization has a rule: one must possess a Ninth Level talent to be qualified to become an Imperial Prince or Imperial Princess and hold the right of succession to the throne."

"Seven with Ninth Level talents?" Lin Qing was also somewhat surprised.

"This is very normal."

The red-haired middle-aged man transmitted mentally: "The offspring of Void Beings are naturally not ordinary. Furthermore, the planetary environment modified by Void Beings is special; there is already a slight possibility of a Ninth Level genius being born. If a Void Being is willing to pay a huge price to nurture offspring, there is a small possibility that a Ninth Level genius will appear among the descendants. Having seven Ninth Level talents among hundreds of children is, therefore, quite normal."

"Being able to produce so many Ninth Level geniuses, a Level 1.9 Civilization is indeed remarkable," Lin Qing transmitted mentally.

"These are only seven Imperial Princes," the red-haired middle-aged man transmitted mentally. "The previous Nine Star Emperor conferred titles upon over a hundred Imperial Princes, but only one successfully transformed into a Void Being; the other Imperial Princes have long since died of old age."

Lin Qing pondered thoughtfully.

It seems that even with Ninth Level talent and the guidance of a Void Being, it is still very difficult to transform into a Void Being?

After all, personal comprehension, luck, and state of mind also determine future achievements.

"The most difficult part... is ultimately the appearance of the first Ninth Level genius."

The red-haired middle-aged man sighed: "If I can obtain Lin Qing's Third Eye, I may also be able to make the Yuan Chen Civilization comparable to the Nine Star Civilization in the future. I entrust this matter to you, Mr. Kaduan."

This was also the important reason why he respected this elder statesman so much.

The silver-haired old man transmitted mentally: "I understand."

In his heart, Lin Qing muttered to himself: Indeed, everything is hardest at the beginning.

A Level 1.9 Civilization is indeed far more powerful than a Level 1.8 Civilization. The Ninth Level geniuses that the Yuan Chen Civilization desperately sought but could not obtain can be born for the Nine Star Civilization as long as there is enough time.

It is just that they lack Authority and have not opened a Void Secret Realm, so they cannot become a Level Two Civilization.

During his visit to the Cosmic Wonder Museum in the Vacuum Great Tomb this time, he had witnessed the process of a life planet evolving from a Perfect Level planet to a High-Dimensional planet of the Semi-Void level, and then evolving from a High-Dimensional planet into a Void Secret Realm; he had already seen it.

One must possess Authority and have enough Star Origin Stones to open and expand a Void Secret Realm.

For a Level Two Civilization, expanding the Void Secret Realm that serves as their homeland requires more Star Origin Stones than can ever be enough, and it also involves certain cosmic rules; thus, this has made Star Origin Stones a completely monopolized resource.

However, the Nine Star Civilization can be considered a powerful civilization capable of roaming the universe. Since Void Beings are immortal, as long as they are not destroyed by a powerful enemy, there is no need to worry about the civilization naturally perishing.

"Please enter."

Soon, the group traveled along the corridor for a while and entered a magnificent and grand hall.

The walls of the hall were covered everywhere with mysterious and ancient relief patterns; exquisite sculptures could be seen everywhere, and the special atmosphere created by light and shadow made the entire hall exude solemnity and seriousness.

Lin Qing had seen some cultural customs of the Nine Star Civilization in Kaduan's memories and understood that this was the retro-style decoration of the Nine Star Civilization.

Inside the hall, a youth with a single horn on his head and mysterious patterns on his forehead sat on a hexagonal platform, smiling as he looked at the crowd entering the hall.

Behind him stood a mysterious person wearing a black mask; their gender and appearance were indistinguishable, and even their eyes were not revealed.

But one could perceive their strength just from that terrifying aura; they were definitely a Star-Level Rare Divine Servant!

In addition, twenty guards were distributed near the youth, each possessing the strength of a Yu Xingyuan Eighth Layer Star Divine Servant, and the armor on these guards was obviously not ordinary.

Such a display immediately caused the crowd entering the hall to feel secretly shocked.

A Level 1.9 Civilization is indeed too powerful; the guards around a single Imperial Prince are almost more numerous than the total number of experts in the entire Yuan Chen Civilization!

"Lei Si."

The youth casually glanced at the red-haired middle-aged man below. "I heard that the forces of your Yuan Chen Civilization stationed on Earth have been completely destroyed?"

"Seventh Imperial Prince," the red-haired middle-aged man said slowly, "the Earth Civilization has also produced an expert of the Yu Xingyuan Ninth Layer; the forces we cultivated on Earth indeed could not hold them back."

"Truly useless."

The Seventh Imperial Prince shook his head. "You could not suppress a mere small planet civilization, a group of natives, and were even counterattacked by these natives. It is too ridiculous."

The Zhi Xing people below felt somewhat aggrieved upon hearing this, but they had nothing to say and dared not show any disrespect.

"Your Highness speaks truly," the red-haired middle-aged man replied, still calm. "We underestimated the Earthlings and were too careless."

"You were once a nominal disciple of the Emperor; this is truly shameful."

The Seventh Imperial Prince glanced at him and asked, "Didn't you send the Lone Star Fortress to Earth after purchasing two Level-7 fortresses from my royal clan? Even that couldn't suppress those natives? Where is the fortress?"

"It was taken," the red-haired middle-aged man shook his head and said. "A peerless genius appeared among those Earth natives. Not only did he possess extraordinary talent, but he also seized a Three-Eyed Clan genius we Zhixing people had been raising, obtained a Level-9 ability, and thus ignored the fortress's defenses, breaking directly into its interior. That is how this happened." "Ignored the fortress's defenses?"

The Seventh Imperial Prince nodded lightly, speaking with interest, "Interesting. It seems his ability is quite special?"

He asked again, "What is that genius's cultivation level?"

"He should be a Star Being now, with the divine office of War Lord," the red-haired middle-aged man said. "Moreover, he has mastered a powerful divine technique with extremely strong defense."

The Seventh Imperial Prince remained expressionless, speaking casually, "Hmm, he counts as a genius, but that's all. He isn't even as good as me, so he hardly qualifies as a peerless genius. At this level, you could find a handful in a Level-2 civilization."

The red-haired middle-aged man slowly said, "Your Highness speaks truly."

Yet in his heart, he disagreed.

He knew the ancestor of the Nine-Star Civilization once led a group of Imperial Princes to a void secret realm in a Level-2 civilization, so every Imperial Prince of the Nine-Star Civilization measures geniuses by Level-2 standards; their vision is extremely high.

However, although he despised those Earth natives, he understood in his heart that geniuses like Qi Lingxiao and Lin Qing, despite their poor origins and lack of guidance, had reached this level; their innate talent must be far higher than that of the Nine-Star Civilization's geniuses.

This Seventh Imperial Prince was born on a semi-void high-dimensional planet and, with guidance from a void being like the Nine-Star Emperor, had only mastered a few divine techniques.

No mistakes, one sentence, one release, one content, one look!

Nevertheless, he also understood clearly.

No matter how talented that Earth native Lin Qing was, his strength could not possibly compare to this Seventh Imperial Prince.

Setting aside the gap in divine techniques, the key difference lies in their genes. As the bloodline closest to a void being, and currently at the Ultimate Star Being life tier, his gene index is at least over 10,000%.

No wonder this Seventh Imperial Prince has such a strong sense of superiority.

"I have summoned you today merely to inform you."

The Seventh Imperial Prince's gaze swept over the crowd below, and he spoke in a calm voice, "After Earth opens, do not enter it."

Everyone below turned pale.

Lin Qing secretly sneered.

"Seventh Imperial Prince, is this not inappropriate?" the Black Tower Civilization leader spoke with a grim face.

"Dare!"

Before the Seventh Imperial Prince could speak, the mysterious figure in a black mask behind him coldly shouted, "Your Black Tower Civilization is merely a Level-1.5 civilization, so weak. To be granted an audience with Your Highness is already your honor; how dare you disobey and contradict?"

As he spoke, a terrifying aura instantly spread out, and an overwhelming powerful pressure completely suppressed the Black Tower Civilization leader.

Although the Black Tower Civilization's leader was a Star Divine Office holder, he was only an ordinary divine office holder, barely at the Yu Xingyuan Eighth Layer level; at this moment, his face instantly turned pale, and he stepped back.

"Enough."

The Seventh Imperial Prince raised his hand slightly, and only then did the guard behind him suppress his aura.

He looked at the Black Tower Civilization leader and said calmly, "If I insist on this, you intend to spread the secrets of Earth, correct?"

The Black Tower Civilization leader spoke somewhat stiffly, "Your Highness, my Black Tower Civilization dares not ask for too much; we only wish for our civilization to go further. Please forgive us."

"I understand," the Seventh Imperial Prince said indifferently. "A flat price: five hundred billion Star Coins. That should be enough for your Black Tower Civilization's development, right?"

The Black Tower Civilization leader was momentarily stunned, then immediately nodded hurriedly, "Enough, enough. Your Highness is generous."

The Seventh Imperial Prince then looked at the leader of the Goddess Stream Civilization and said, "The Goddess Stream Civilization is the same. Five hundred billion Star Coins. Any objections?"

The Goddess Stream Civilization leader also took a deep breath and bowed his head, "Yes."

Lin Qing, listening from the side, felt somewhat surprised as well.

In the universe, the most universally used currencies are the Primitive Coin and the Star Coin, minted from Primitive Energy and Star Origin Energy respectively.

Star Coins are more precious and high-end; five hundred billion is already an outrageous figure.

Kaduan lived for over a hundred thousand years and did not even possess assets worth one hundred million Star Coins, let alone five hundred billion.

An Imperial Prince of a Level-1.9 civilization is indeed wealthy and bold.

"Since you agree, sign this non-disclosure agreement." The Seventh Imperial Prince casually produced a stack of contracts and said, "You need not pay the price for a Four-Star contract."

"A Four-Star contract?"

The leaders of the Black Tower Civilization and the Goddess Stream Civilization both looked on in shock.

Star Divine Office holders are Three-Star universe citizens; a Three-Star contract can no longer restrict them, yet this Seventh Imperial Prince actually produced a Four-Star contract?

This must be a contract formulated by a Four-Star citizen with the authority of the Second Universe Network. Once signed, it cannot be violated.

The two dared not speak further; they immediately obediently accepted the contracts and, using the unique aura of the contracts, signed them via consciousness on the Second Universe Network.

"You may leave."

The Seventh Imperial Prince said calmly, "Restrain your civilizations well. If even a sliver of information leaks out, do not blame me for ordering the destruction of your civilizations."

"Yes."

The two respectfully replied and then carefully departed.

Inside the hall, only the Yuan Chen Civilization side remained.

"Karl Lei Si," the Seventh Imperial Prince looked at the red-haired middle-aged man, "Your Yuan Chen Civilization does possess some strength and qualifies to ally with me. I can promise you: after Earth opens, if any treasures I do not need are found, you may have priority access. Furthermore, that Earth genius Lin Qing, I can also give to you. How about that?"

The red-haired middle-aged man took a deep breath and immediately said, "Then I thank Your Highness."

Hearing words like "treasures I do not need" being given to him, he knew immediately that he would inevitably receive very few treasures.

However, what he valued most was originally that vertical eye of Lin Qing, so he naturally had no objections.

"Hmm, sign this contract as well."

The Seventh Imperial Prince nodded slightly and produced another Four-Star contract, saying, "Once you sign, I will order the delegation to go to Earth and resolve this matter."

The red-haired middle-aged man asked, "Does Your Highness not wait until Earth opens to launch a military campaign against Earth?"

"If there were any other choice, I would not like to resolve this with violence; it is too crude and too backward," the Seventh Imperial Prince said calmly. "A high civilization should possess the magnanimity and breadth of a high civilization, is that not so?"

Lin Qing, listening from below, glanced at this Seventh Imperial Prince with a thoughtful expression.

The ninth-level talent... and its attribute matches Qi Lingxiao's exactly; if this Seventh Imperial Prince could be captured alive, it would be entirely possible to manipulate the situation so that Qi Lingxiao gains the ninth-level power!

(End of Chapter)