Begging for monthly tickets and recommendation votes …… Passing the corner, what unfolded before Ye Chen was a grand hall, steeped in absolute darkness. At its very center hovered a crystal orb, emitting a faint, struggling light against the surrounding void.

Ye Chen slowly approached the orb, arriving beside it. He peered inside, and saw a single black speck sealed within the crystal’s core.

"Is this the Divine Blood?" Ye Chen murmured, slightly taken aback. With a flicker in his gaze, he stepped back a few paces, picked up a shard of shattered mechanical debris from the floor, and tossed it toward the crystal sphere. The metal fragment struck the orb with a peng sound, only to be sharply repelled. It turned out the crystal sphere was protected by an enigmatic aura; any uninformed person who dared to reach out and grab it would instantly have their arm shattered by the rebound force.

Watching the ricocheting metal shard, Ye Chen frowned, falling into deep contemplation. Just then, the crystal orb seemed startled by the disturbance. Its light flared dramatically, transforming the sphere into a blinding white orb, so intense that the black Divine Blood within became entirely invisible.

A jolt went through Ye Chen, and he quickly retreated several steps. At that moment, an ancient voice echoed from the orb: "Fear not, I shall not harm you." As the words faded, the orb brightened further, its light gathering upward until it coalesced into the form of a long-bearded, white-haired man clad in a robe embroidered with ancient secret runes. Though his hair and beard were snow-white, his skin was fair and smooth, making him appear only about thirty years old.

Ye Chen’s fingers moved instantly, drawing his crimson Battle Blade and gripping it with one arm, holding it defensively before him as he warily regarded the white-haired man. His eyes flashed. "Who are you?"

The white-haired man’s expression was serene, his eyes clear as water, yet imbued with a trace of ancient sorrow. He gazed at Ye Chen for a long moment, then sighed softly. "A descendant from a later age. Have you come here for the Divine Blood? I never expected the situation on Earth to devolve into this. If you all perish, this planet will become the sovereign domain of the Dark Creatures."

Ye Chen was astonished. "How do you know?"

The white-haired man smiled gently. "I am the guardian of the Divine Blood. You may call me Qilun. I see your state of mind is strong, reaching about the seventh layer of the Mortal realm. You must know that when the state of mind reaches the Saint realm, one can comprehend the essence of heaven and earth, see through the dust of the mortal world, steal the secrets of the heavens, and perceive life and death?"

"Qilun." A tremor of surprise ran through Ye Chen. While he knew this white-haired man was extraordinary to be concealed within the orb, he hadn't anticipated that he was Qilun himself.

In the civilization of Atlantis, which prioritized the cultivation of the state of mind, seven Saints had been born. Qilun was one of them—a legendary figure who achieved sainthood through mental cultivation, much like the ancient Chinese Sages Confucius, Laozi, and Sakyamuni, whose names echoed through the ages and received boundless praise.

The cultivation of the state of mind was divided into three major realms: Mortal, Sage (Wise Man), and Saint. Each realm contained nine layers.

Reaching the Sage (Wise Man) level allowed one to foresee celestial events and observe the overarching situation of the world. China had produced many such Sages throughout history, such as Zhuge Liang, Jiang Ziya, and the Poet Immortal Li Bai—all remarkable figures who embraced the world's fate and saw through the mortal haze, earning lasting veneration even after death. Those who reached the level of Laozi and Confucius—whose minds were devoid of distracting thoughts, clear as a mirror—could perceive the true nature of good and evil, establish codes of conduct and morality, turning their words into law that the world obeyed; this was the Saint realm.

The cultivation of the state of mind offered no direct enhancement to physical strength, but its auxiliary support was immense. Take Ye Chen, for instance; his past life was filled with slaughter, accumulating boundless killing intent (Sha Qi). Without the suppression of his state of mind, he would have surely descended into madness.

Under Qilun’s calm, water-like gaze, Ye Chen swiftly contained his spirit, his joy and anger frozen like a steady stone. He ceased all mental activity, preventing his brain from broadcasting any signals, achieving a state of pure "stillness." In this state, others could not discern his thoughts.

Saints could perceive the depths of the mind. While this seemed miraculous, it was actually the result of highly developed brains whose harmony with the principles governing the universe allowed them to sense the signals emitted by others' brains, enabling communication even with animals. This is why the progenitor of Buddhism, Shakyamuni, sat undisturbed among wolf packs for three days and three nights, the wolves not only sparing him but being spiritually converted by him.

The supposed ability of "mind-reading" persisting to this day is not mere rumor, but a phenomenon scientifically validated to exist. Furthermore, precise instruments can detect information emanating from the brain. This is why high-level spies, dedicated to stealing state secrets between nations, undergo inhuman training, capable of enduring any pain and programmed to commit instant suicide upon discovery to prevent their brains from being exploited for information extraction.

In Ye Chen’s state of "inward restraint" and "serenity," Qilun found himself unable to penetrate his thoughts. To forcibly seize the man's mind would require using his own "thought power" to assault the opponent's sea of memory, a process highly susceptible to backlash and likely to render Ye Chen an imbecile.

Qilun studied Ye Chen deeply, refraining from forcibly invading his sea of consciousness. In that brief moment of probing, he had gleaned significant information: Ye Chen's name, identity, the structure of the outside world, and his purpose for being there. However, he missed the crucial fact of Ye Chen's reincarnation, as this secret was buried deep within Ye Chen's heart, guarded with intense vigilance, and not constantly broadcast as a conscious thought, thus failing to emit a detectable signal.

Qilun stared at Ye Chen for a long time, then sighed. "I can give you the Divine Blood. By the standards of your current world, you are among the apex predators. Moreover, though your heart is heavy with killing intent, you possess emotional anchors. Without those anchors, no matter how powerful you became, I would not entrust this to you."

Through the detected information, Qilun had gleaned Ye Chen's character—a man who still held attachments, someone willing to fight to protect those he cared for. Such a person, even if flawed, could not be utterly evil, for he had not yet become a true 'zombie' of the soul.

Ye Chen met his gaze, his expression unchanging, devoid of joy or sorrow, revealing nothing of his inner thoughts.

With a casual gesture, Qilun summoned the orb into his hand. He floated toward Ye Chen, holding the orb. "This Divine Blood was discovered by one of our exploration teams caught in a temporal storm. Amidst that spatial reverse flow, it remained utterly undamaged. It was retrieved, and a portion was set aside for testing. We allowed a Bi [a type of fierce beast] with a combat power of only 6,200 to consume one percent of the Divine Blood. The result stunned everyone: the Bi mutated and evolved into a terrifying behemoth, its combat power soaring nearly tenfold to 57,304 points."

Ye Chen was momentarily stunned. Though he knew the Divine Blood was formidable, he hadn't realized the extent was so exaggerated. In Atlantean civilization, one person equaled 5 combat power points, meaning Level 1 was 50 points. A monster at Level 120 consuming just one percent of the Divine Blood had achieved an equivalent of over Level 1000.

What a terrifying leap.

Sensing the shock reverberating in his mind, Qilun smiled slightly. "Later, after extensive testing by many 'Sages,' intelligent systems, and scientists, it was confirmed that this blood was the essence of a true God. So, we extracted a sample and broke it down. The result left all scientists dumbfounded: the essence contained no components like RBCs, platelets, or monocytes, but rather many unknown cell structures. After years of analysis, our scientists managed to fabricate a Pseudo-Divine Blood."

"Pseudo-Divine Blood?" Ye Chen paused.

Qilun smiled again. "The Pseudo-Divine Blood was synthesized by refining the genes and cells of various animals, blending the strengths of many species, and adding a stabilizer to prevent the recipient from exploding due to overwhelming energy upon ingestion. It incorporated the eyesight of an eagle, the leaping ability of a flea, and so forth."

A wave of shock washed over Ye Chen. He had always heard that the Atlantean civilization was a mad one. They were considered mad because their scientists had developed creatures like mermaids—half-human, half-fish—a violation of morality, and even created artificial humans, like Elvi.

But the maddest pursuit of all was the civilization's ambition to engineer a 'God.'

Qilun sensed his thoughts and sighed softly. "After obtaining the Divine Blood, many scientists fell into a frenzy for a time, vigorously promoting the 'God-Making Project.' However, not long after, under pressure from the Dark Creatures, we were forced to abandon Earth and migrate to another planet. That project continues there."

"The so-called 'God' is merely a designation for a biological entity that has achieved a certain level of ultimate power."

Ye Chen glanced at the Divine Blood in Qilun's hand. "Is this the Pseudo-Divine Blood that was engineered? If it has such potent effects, why don't you use it yourselves?"

Qilun shook his head. "We are inherently beings of light, descendants of the Goddess of Light. We cannot integrate true Divine Blood. The energies within it clash directly with the nature of Atlanteans; merging with it results in immediate catastrophic rupture and death. Therefore, that true Divine Blood was preserved, while the Pseudo-Divine Blood, forged from the superior genes of many animals, is something we can use, but its efficacy is far inferior to the real thing."

Ye Chen’s eyes lit up. "You mean this portion of Divine Blood is true Divine Blood?"

Qilun nodded. "This sample is only half of the true Divine Blood; the other half is still preserved as a research specimen. Into this true Divine Blood, we incorporated many superior animal cells. These premium cells serve as a catalyst, allowing the recipient to eventually integrate the genes of many other creatures after ingestion."

A thought sparked in Ye Chen's mind, but he immediately suppressed it, fearful that Qilun might detect it. He considered his next words carefully. "If I consume this, will I explode and die?"

Qilun smiled faintly. "No, you will not. This Divine Blood contains many stabilizers and has been specially treated. Once you ingest it, it will lie dormant throughout your body, being slowly digested as your strength grows."