Chapter 179: Star‑Eating Herb

A brief moment.

Ai Tuo Er lifted two suitcases and arrived at the gate of Villa No. 114, "His Highness Xiao Yu, these are the secret cultivation texts we just received, the ones you purchased."

"Thank you," Xiao Yu took the silver suitcase.

Returning to the villa, he sat at the desk, held his breath and opened the suitcases; in each suitcase lay a thick metal volume, each about 50 cm long, 40 cm wide, and an astonishing 80 cm thick.

After obtaining the fifth volume, Xiao Yu was exceptionally delighted; within his inner world he had been contemplating the Hun Dun Stele for 20 years, and now possessing the fifth volume of "Universe True Explanation" meant his progress was lightning fast. Moreover, his main soul now possessed a high‑grade auxiliary artifact that could continuously simulate and verify, further accelerating his cultivation speed.

In addition, his primary attack technique, Phantom Slash Technique, involves further applications of the Space‑Time Origin Law, even encompassing Instant Teleport and time‑stop, two profound mysteries.

A few days later.

Xiao Yu, with his soul split, sat at the desk and thought of his plant life, Mo Yun Vine, while the palm‑sized Mist stood on his shoulder.

"Mist, first cultivate the Mo Yun Vine to Realm Lord Level nine, and once you have enough points, use the optimal method to raise it to Immortal Level," Xiao Yu said with a smile.

Gui Yi Zunzhe arrived again, offering guidance on Xiao Yu's cultivation.

"Oh?" Xiao Yu, a bit startled, asked puzzledly, "Senior brother, some Time Crystals have merged into my body, but aside from enhancing perception of temporal origin fluctuations, I haven't noticed any special effects!"

The next day, Xiao Yu received a large shipment of supplies outside Villa No. 114 on the Wuchen Continent.

"From Realm Lord Level 1 to Level 9 requires 600,000 points," Mist opened the Primordial Zone treasury and examined the various treasures visible within Xiao Yu's Permission.

Half a month later.

"To be honest, second senior brother, my luck was better; I found a vein rich in Time Crystals and Void Crystals and mined some. Later the natives surrounded and blocked me, so I had to leave Viskar Star," Xiao Yu said with a smile.

During the ten‑year intervals, Gui Yi Zunzhe would also find time to visit Xiao Yu's villa in the Primordial Zone, communicating and chatting about matters beyond cultivation.

After forty years on Viskar Star, the Mo Yun Vine finally advanced to Realm Lord Level, main vine 216 vines.

Gui Yi Zunzhe, smiling broadly, sat opposite Xiao Yu, his grin highly contagious, "Junior brother, I heard you obtained many Divine Crystals on Viskar Star."

During the first thirty years of the Primordial Universe, Gui Yi Zunzhe guided Xiao Yu three times; after returning to the Primordial Universe for the subsequent fifty‑plus years, he guided him five more times.

"Your luck is truly good! Viskar Star, as a Dangerous‑Level cultivation task, is among the toughest; its death rate rivals that of the Extreme‑Level, and many core members were killed by native forces upon entry," Gui Yi Zunzhe laughed, "Junior brother, if you have surplus Time Crystals, you may share some with me."

He listed an order.

"Alright, then let's purchase the items listed on this order first!" Xiao Yu decided with a smile; now he was a big spender, with points to spend freely.

The Chaos City Lord assigns Gui Yi Zunzhe a guidance task once every ten years, but it does not restrict their private interactions.

All supplies were absorbed into the inner world, with a fragment of consciousness from the World Tree tasked with overseeing them.

"Indeed, the most special aspect of Divine Crystals is their ability to enhance perception of the Universe Origin," Gui Yi Zunzhe said, glancing at Xiao Yu, and continued, "To us cultivators, we are different in the Primordial Universe."

"Hmm, I do know a bit about that," Xiao Yu took a sip of his drink and said, "Among all cultivation realms, the Realm Lord Level is the most favored!"

"Indeed, Realm Lord Level possesses the World Force, allowing entry into the Universe Origin realm; it is the phase where one comprehends the laws and advances most rapidly. Upon reaching Immortal Stage, that special privilege disappears. At that point, Immortal elites and those of Venerable Rank must rely on their own talent, insight, and various auxiliary tools to continue comprehending the Universe Origin Law, which is why many Seal Kings stall at the threshold of becoming Venerable for tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of epochs."

"Moreover, Divine Crystals affect not only those below Immortal Level but also those at Immortal and Venerable Rank."

"What?" Xiao Yu was astonished; he hadn't expected Divine Crystals to be so powerful.

Did he lose out by selling 30,000 Void Crystals for 4,500 points?

"You needn't feel you sold at a loss! The entire Viskar Star belongs to the Virtual Universe Company," Gui Yi Zunzhe laughed, "And the current controller of the Virtual Universe Company is our teacher."

Indeed, the Virtual Universe Company is owned by the teacher, the Chaos City Lord; although I am only a named disciple now, I believe I will soon become a full member.

"Moreover, for those above Immortal Level, the boost from Divine Crystals diminishes greatly, and even more so for Venerable Rank," Gui Yi Zunzhe added.

"Senior brother, how many Divine Crystals do you need?" Xiao Yu asked.

"Ten thousand isn't too many, a hundred isn't too few," Gui Yi Zunzhe gulped down his drink, "It's not that I need them; it's just that some of your underperforming junior disciples and a few apprentices have mediocre talent."

At Gui Yi Zunzhe's level, such items are truly unnecessary.

"Then I'll share ten thousand with you, fifty thousand Time Crystals and fifty thousand Void Crystals each," Xiao Yu thought briefly and asked curiously, "But senior brother, doesn't the Virtual Universe Company forbid private trades?"

"Yes! Private trades are prohibited, but these Divine Crystals were gifted by you, and I'm merely returning some items in kind!" Gui Yi Zunzhe blinked, delighted, "Since junior brother is so generous, I'll be generous too, pricing them at ten thousand points each."

"However, I can't give you those ten billion points directly; I can only purchase the items you need."

"Senior brother, I need five Star‑Eating Herbs, each cultivated to Realm Level nine using the Er Vine method, plus 20,000 Realm Lord Peak Insect Race corpse units; the rest, give me Universe Crystals," Xiao Yu thought for a moment and listed his most needed items.

Twenty thousand Realm Lord Peak Insect Race corpse units, originally 200 million points, at a 40% discount cost 120 million points.

"Alright, go apply for the Divine Crystal grant!" Gui Yi Zunzhe smiled, then resumed guiding Xiao Yu's cultivation.

After Gui Yi Zunzhe left, Xiao Yu returned to his desk and, following the prompts, advanced his Divine Crystal grant application.

On the application form, he entered Gui Yi Zunzhe as the recipient, set the quantity to 20,000, and clicked 'Submit Application'.

After closing the application page, he clicked 'Backend Management' and selected the Extreme‑Level cultivation tasks.

A list appeared.

1. Infernal Abyss (Virtual Universe Company Primordial Secret Realm)

2. Cloud Palace (Great Axe Battle Arena Divine Origin Secret Realm)

…

6. Labyrinth Star System (Virtual Universe Company Primordial Secret Realm)

…

18. Blood Demon Continent (Universe First Bank Blood‑dripping Secret Realm).

There are only 18 Extreme‑Level cultivation tasks in total, a pitifully small number compared to the 186 Dangerous‑Level tasks.

(End of Chapter)