Chapter 227: Deep into the Core Area! Reaching 40 Construction Degree! Encountering Caesar

Chapter 227: Deep into the Core! Reaching 40% Construction! Encountering Caesar! The Same Kind of People!

Three gazes, crossing hundreds of thousands of miles of blazing light and chaotic force fields, collided in the void with a thunderous impact!

In a flash of lightning, countless streams of information and possibilities flashed, collided, analyzed, and deduced within Qin Feng's mind.

His own Indestructible Projection had been constructed to 10%, while that of the powerhouse from Galaxy No. 99 had reached 12%, surpassing him slightly in cultivation.

Though the gap was merely two percent, at the realm of the "Boundless Sea," every single percentage point of difference in constructing the Indestructible Projection represented an insurmountable chasm.

Just like his own [Indestructible Tower], each layer built upward required tens of millions of "bricks and stones."

And a full percentage point demanded the completion of at least ten layers of the tower!

Behind that lay a terrifying gap of hundreds of millions of "bricks and stones"!

A 2% difference in cultivation might seem trivial, but in truth, it was a world apart.

Based on what Qin Feng had just observed, the opponent had likely cultivated his own king-sealing inheritance killing technique to the realm of 'Great Accomplishment.'

Meanwhile, Qin Feng's "Heaven-Swallowing Fist" had reached 'Perfection.'

The advantage in killing techniques was where Qin Feng held a commanding lead; he estimated that Caesar had not even achieved Perfection.

"'Perfection' against 'Great Accomplishment' is enough to bridge that 2% gap in cultivation, and even, in terms of pure lethality, slightly surpass him."

"But..."

Qin Feng's thoughts did not pause for an instant; they plunged into a deeper level of battle deduction.

"If a deathmatch erupts, though I have a chance of winning, I absolutely cannot take him down in a short time."

"Once he clings to me tightly, I will be completely exposed in this region.

With the efficient intelligence transmission and support system of Galaxy No. 99, it won't be long before more and more top-tier powerhouses rush in from all directions to encircle me completely."

"By then, what awaits me is a certain death scenario."

"So..."

"I must flee."

This conclusion formed in Qin Feng's mind almost simultaneously with his analysis.

He did not hesitate in the slightest.

In the next instant after his gaze clashed with that of Cang and the powerhouse from Galaxy No. 99, Qin Feng's figure transformed into a streak of light, instantly reversing direction and madly fleeing deeper into the star!

...

On the battlefield.

Cang, Yanwu, and all the struggling powerhouses from the Five Galaxies clearly saw that streak of light that had just appeared and then vanished into the distance.

A flicker of stunned bewilderment crossed their faces.

Then, that bewilderment gave way to calm acceptance.

"It's Qin Feng."

Yanwu, having parried an enemy's flank attack with his spear, spoke through the group's mental communication network.

"He ran."

"His escape is wise."

Cang's face showed no disappointment or anger, only a serene calm.

"Given his nature, since he chose to flee, it proves he has no confidence in winning.

I estimate that in these eleven years, he has at most constructed his 'Indestructible Projection' to two or three percent.

Facing a powerhouse who has reached 12%, forcing a confrontation would only cost another life."

"It seems we are all destined to remain here this time."

Mobi, his axe barely blocking a terrifying blow from the enemy, spat blood from his mouth.

"We have no chance left."

Cang's gaze swept over the companions who were falling one by one, his voice tinged with an indescribable weariness and desolation.

"Having missed the great opportunity of the 'Beast Graveyard,' the overall gap between us and Galaxy No. 99 will widen to an unimaginable extent.

Everything now depends on the remaining 'Boundless Sea' powerhouses who have yet to be found."

No need to think—outside this giant star, the forces of Galaxy No. 99 had surely sealed it off.

Once they were slain here, after rebirth, it would be extremely difficult for them to re-enter the "Beast Graveyard," the most supreme opportunity in the current war zone.

One step slow, every step slow.

What awaited them was a vast chasm.

"Qin Feng has gone; consider it a spark left behind."

After a moment of silence, Cang's cold voice rang out again.

His gaze followed the direction where Qin Feng had vanished, a complex glimmer of hope in his eyes.

"Stop him."

"Don't let him pursue Qin Feng."

This proposal needed no further explanation.

Everyone present instantly understood Cang's intent.

They were destined to fall here.

So, before falling, preserve the last spark for their own camp!

One fewer death was better than one more!

"Good!"

"Fight!"

Without a shred of hesitation, without a moment's delay.

At that instant, these top-tier prodigies, who had competed and schemed against each other for centuries, erupted with an unprecedented unity and resolve!

They burned their lives, burned their mental energy, transforming into desperate human barriers, charging forward like moths to a flame, stubbornly and madly dragging that terrifying powerhouse from Galaxy No. 99 to a standstill!

...

About a day later.

Several more formidable auras descended from afar.

Reinforcements had arrived.

In a one-sided siege, Cang, Yanwu, Mobi, Lengyu... and over a dozen "Boundless Sea" powerhouses from the Five Galaxies who had been trapped there were all slain, dissolving into specks of light that scattered into the depths of the star.

At that moment, Qin Feng was still racing without pause, deeper into the star's interior.

He felt no relief from his decisive escape.

Instead, a profound weight settled heavily upon his soul.

"The disparity in collective strength is simply too vast."

"The reason sectors 115 through 119 suffered such an utter defeat boils down to one thing: endless infighting, which squandered far too much time and energy."

"And this internal strife didn't just begin in the two years leading up to the opening of the Beast Graveyard."

"It has been a bloody, exhausting war of attrition that never ceased for over three hundred years, raging over every single scrap of resources since the very dawn of the Prodigy War."

Qin Feng analyzed the situation with cold detachment, even as he fled at breakneck speed.

"I estimate that in Sector 99, the man known as Caesar took perhaps less than two hundred years—maybe even fewer—to establish absolute personal authority."

"Then, he unified, streamlined, and rationally allocated all available resources."

"Otherwise, Sector 99 could never have achieved such a terrifying, crushing advantage in overall might."

Memories of his own past flashed through Qin Feng's mind.

"Just like before, in the Corrupted Heart, Cang and I, along with the others, plotted and fought bitterly against each other for nearly forty years just to contest that single Stellar-grade Broodmind Core."

"And the final outcome? I was the only one who obtained it."

"For Cang, Mobi, Yanwu... those forty years of their lives were completely wasted."

"But if that had happened in Sector 99..."

"Caesar would likely have issued a direct command, assigning that resource to the single person best suited for it.

Then, he would have ordered the others to immediately conquer the next resource node, and the one after that."

"In doing so, while individual interests would be sacrificed, from a macro-perspective of the entire sector, the rate of overall growth would undoubtedly be several times faster—perhaps even dozens of times faster!"

"But..."

Qin Feng's brow furrowed tightly into a deep frown.

"To achieve that level of centralized allocation requires a leader possessed of absolute authority, someone capable of completely taming and commanding the respect of every wild, untamed genius."

"How on earth did Caesar pull it off?"

Qin Feng could clearly deduce the root cause behind the generally superior strength of the Sector 99 warriors.

Yet he could not fathom what methods Caesar had employed to integrate countless proud geniuses to the point of absolute obedience.

The sheer audacity, shrewdness, charisma, and raw power required behind such a feat stirred a faint, instinctual awe within Qin Feng's heart.

"Cang's squad alone had roughly fifteen Boundless Sea experts."

"Yet across all five sectors combined, right before the Beast Graveyard opened, the total number of Boundless Sea experts was only about a hundred, give or take."

Qin Feng's mental fortitude operated like a super-photonic computer, rapidly processing known intelligence and calculating combat casualties.

"Cang's squad was the absolute core vanguard, comprised entirely of Boundless Sea powerhouses. Their total annihilation on the frontline means our faction has directly lost fifteen percent of its peak strength."

"Furthermore, before they were besieged, and during the scattered skirmishes along the perimeter, heavy casualties must have already been sustained."

Qin Feng arrived at a grim conclusion.

"By my estimates, in the ten years since the wager edict was issued, it is highly probable that half of the Boundless Sea warriors in the five-sector alliance have already perished."

This figure was nothing short of catastrophic.

With half of their top-tier combatants lost in a mere decade, how many of the far more numerous River Realm warriors—the very bedrock of their forces—had fallen?

Qin Feng dared not imagine.

It was a staggering, astronomical number that would leave anyone suffocating with dread.

"Still, perhaps this works to my advantage."

In an instant, his mind detached itself from the emotional weight, reverting to a state of absolute strategic rationality.

"Once high-level combatants fall, they do not truly die; rather, they respawn within the arena. To catch up with the pace, they will immediately have to head toward other top-tier resource nodes to harvest materials and rebuild their strength."

"And Caesar, in order to thoroughly win this wager edict, will definitely devise every possible means to stop them."

"He will inevitably dispatch a vast number of masters to leave the Beast Graveyard, hunting down and targeting those Boundless Sea experts who have just respawned and are at their lowest ebbs of strength."

A sharp gleam flashed across Qin Feng's eyes.

"His core strategy must be to firmly suppress all Boundless Sea level warriors on our side, preventing us from forming an effective counter-offensive force.

As long as he manages that, the probability of winning the wager edict is extremely high."

"Consequently, the forces he deploys inside the Beast Graveyard to hunt me down will be stretched thin."

"The pressure on me will be significantly reduced."

With his thoughts settled, Qin Feng's heart regained its perfect stillness.

He severed all stray thoughts, leaving only the purest, most central objective—to survive, and then to plunge deep into the core of this star!

Spurring the power output of his kinetic armor to its absolute limit, Qin Feng transformed into an imperceptible streak of light, continuing his rapid advance into the depths of that ocean of light and heat.

However, he had ultimately underestimated Caesar's resolve, as well as the terrifying execution efficiency of Sector 99.

The time Cang and the others had bought for him at the cost of their lives amounted to a single day.

One day later, an invisible, inescapable dragnet had already quietly unfurled within the interior of this star.

The deeper he ventured into the stellar core, the more hostile and brutal the surrounding environment became.

Flames of light, as viscous as magma, formed countless massive, slowly churning vortices, the center of any single vortex capable of easily tearing planet-grade kinetic armor to shreds.

Raging tides of psionic energy, resembling roars from antiquity, washed over the space wave after wave in complete chaos.

Furthermore, invisible blades, twisted out of ultra-high-intensity gravitational and spiritual fields, sheared silently through everything under the cover of the brilliant glare.

Qin Feng was forced to slow his pace.

He had to expend a vast amount of mental energy to perceive, predict, and evade these omnipresent, lethal traps.

At this moment, he was like a tightrope walker, with a bottomless abyss yawning beneath his feet.

The slightest misstep, even without the arrival of pursuers, would result in him being crushed into the most fundamental particles of the universe by the raw majesty of the star itself.

Thus, amidst intense tension and vigilance, another month slipped away.

A month later, just as he had bypassed a chaotic force field stretching tens of thousands of kilometers and was preparing to enter a relatively stable zone, three cold, domineering wills locked onto him from three different directions!

They were here!

Qin Feng's heart sank violently, yet his movements betrayed not a single hint of panic.

Almost at the exact millisecond he was locked down, his silhouette executed an unreasonably sharp pivot. Instead of advancing, he retreated, diving headfirst right back into the turbulent, chaotic force field he had just traversed!

Boom—!

Three terrifying strikes capable of obliterating stars missed his afterimage by a hair's breadth, slamming into the empty space and blasting a massive, warped void out of the vacuum zone.

"Fast reflexes."

"As expected of the Heaven-Devouring King's successor."

"Close in, do not let him escape!"

Three icy ripples of spiritual intent communicated with flawless precision amidst the chaotic force field.

They formed a perfect triangle, charging into the chaotic force field together, launching a desperate pursuit of Qin Feng.

The battle erupted in an instant!

It was a chase of extreme brutality.

Qin Feng was like a small boat struggling to survive amidst towering waves, while the three behind him were primordial beasts stirring up monstrous surges.

The leading powerhouse had constructed his [Undying Projection] to a full 15%, and every move he made carried an overwhelming momentum, each strike forcing Qin Feng into perilous situations.

The other two had reached 14% and 12% respectively, working in perfect harmony, constantly compressing Qin Feng's evasive space from the flanks.

"[Devour Heaven]!"

Qin Feng roared, facing an unavoidable axe strike, neither dodging nor retreating, clenching his right fist and smashing it out fiercely!

A miniature black hole seemed to appear above his fist.

The raging light and heat around him were wildly swallowed and compressed by his fist intent!

That axe strike, capable of splitting mountains and severing peaks, had nearly thirty percent of its energy devoured upon contact with his fist!

"Boom!"

Even so, the residual energy still blasted Qin Feng away, leaving a terrifying wound deep enough to expose bone on the chest of his power armor.

But he used the impact to widen the distance from the trio once more, converting the absorbed energy into his own momentum, his speed undiminished and even increasing as he fled deeper into the star.

This chase lasted a full three months.

Over those three months, Qin Feng pushed his combat instincts and environmental exploitation to the absolute limit.

He repeatedly lured his pursuers into the most chaotic "Psychic Storm Eyes" of the force field, using the star's immense power to counter their attacks.

He also used a [Beast Fragment] the size of a small planet as cover, launching several breathtaking counterattacks, though he never had the chance to absorb it.

His [Devour Heaven Fist], under this extreme life-or-death pressure, grew ever more refined and fluid, its proficiency steadily rising, yet still far from mastery.

Finally, on the last day of the third month.

In a chaotic zone filled with countless meteorites and giant beast skeletons, Qin Feng found a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

At the cost of taking a heavy blow from the 15% powerhouse head-on, he used the explosion's shockwave to hurl the weakest pursuer—the one with only 12% construction—into a highly unstable spatial rift he had already marked.

"Now!"

Qin Feng's eyes blazed with unprecedented killing intent!

He poured every ounce of power within him into his right fist!

In that moment, he seemed to transform into a demon god that devoured heaven and earth!

[Devour Heaven]!

One punch struck out, and all fell silent!

That spatial rift, along with the 12% powerhouse, was annihilated, vaporized, leaving not a trace!

"Yan Hu!"

The remaining two let out roars of fury and grief.

But Qin Feng gave them no chance. After delivering that punch, his figure vanished instantly into the deeper chaos, completely disappearing.

...

Behind a massive, blazing sphere of light, Qin Feng's figure stumbled into view.

He gasped for breath, his power armor already tattered, revealing a flesh-and-blood body covered in cracks.

"Three... is already the limit."

Qin Feng felt the searing pain within him, activating his Tenfold Hand to heal his wounds, but his eyes held a trace of relief at having escaped death.

"If one more had come, I would have been truly surrounded, forced to watch as more and more enemy reinforcements arrived."

"This time, I snatched a thread of life from the brink."

Qin Feng sighed, not pausing for a moment.

He forced his grievously wounded body onward, swallowing a few fist-sized [Beast Fragments] he had collected earlier, healing as he flew unsteadily deeper into the star.

The reason he kept moving inward was twofold: first, the closer to the core, the more chaotic the star's psychic and psionic force fields became, and the more terrifying the pressure.

Only in such high-pressure environments could larger, more intact [Beast Fragments] be born.

The second, more important reason was that the star's core region was so hostile it could pose a lethal threat even to powerhouses with highly constructed [Undying Projections].

Even Caesar would not dare to pursue him recklessly at supersonic speeds in such chaotic, high-pressure fields.

That was his only path to survival.

...

Meanwhile.

In the subspace private forum of Galaxy No. 99.

A thread, pinned high with a blood-red title, was being refreshed with replies at a rate of tens of thousands per minute.

[Topic: Beast Graveyard - Hunt for the Boundless Sea Experts of Five Galaxies (Real-Time Battle Report)]

Beneath the thread, a torrent of comments rolled.

"Breaking news: A powerhouse with a 10% Undying Projection has appeared among the Five Galaxies."

"What? Their Boundless Sea average is around 3% construction. How did a 10% suddenly pop up?"

"Identity confirmed: Qin Feng, ranked first on both the combat and points leaderboards of Galaxy No. 117, inheritor of the Devour Heaven King."

"Killing method perfected? That's terrifying combat power."

"Yeah, he already killed Yan Hu. A 10% construction killed Yan Hu at 12%, and under a three-on-one siege. His strength is monstrous."

This reply plunged the entire thread into a brief silence. Then came an even more explosive eruption!

"Are you kidding me! Yan Hu is one of the top ten fighters in our galaxy! Losing one-on-one is one thing, but three ganging up on one and getting one killed?"

"This Qin Feng... is he a monster?"

"The Devour Heaven King's inheritance, the 'Perfection' realm... that does justify a cross-level kill."

As the crowd buzzed, a golden-glowing ID with the highest authority appeared beneath the thread.

It was Caesar.

His post instantly silenced all discussion.

"Qin Feng is the one most likely to cause trouble among the Five Galaxies. He must be killed quickly and expelled from the Beast Graveyard."

"He's smart, pushing deep into the core zone, hoping the high-pressure field will hinder our attacks. Everyone, penetrate the core zone and find his trail within a year."

"I'm already in the core zone. If you spot him, I'll be there immediately. As long as he dares to covet fragments, I can cut him down."

...

The following year was the most perilous and the longest Qin Feng had faced since entering the "Universal Genius Battle."

The net cast by Caesar's orders, spreading throughout the entire star, was far tighter and deadlier than he had imagined.

He was like a solitary skiff upon raging, tempestuous seas, struggling desperately to survive amidst endless, incandescent brilliance and a relentless hunt.

Qin Feng was surrounded and cornered by more than five "Undying Projection" powerhouses, pushed to the absolute brink of death several times.

Each time, at the harrowing cost of compounding his already severe wounds, he utilized the chaotic stellar force fields to tear open a minuscule rift, narrowly escaping with his life against all odds.

He had also been locked onto by a distant attack from the outer fringes of the core zone, suspected to have been unleashed by Caesar himself.

The mere aura of that single strike caused every bone in his body to wail in agony; had he not made a split-second decision to dive into a massive, collapsing energy vortex, he would have likely been completely vaporized on the spot.

Yet the price paid was severe: his physical body was nearly shattered, and both his legs were completely incinerated by the force field.

Fortunately, with the Perfect Hand technique at his disposal, Qin Feng's recovery speed was astonishingly fast, and his severed limbs regenerated with equal celerity.

Peril lurked at every turn.

Every single escape felt like slipping through the very fingers of the Grim Reaper.

But in the end, he endured.

On the final day of this one-year limit, bathed in blood and with his power armor almost entirely dismantled, he dragged his broken body and plunged headlong into the barrier of the coremost region—a force field resembling a natural chasm that completely isolated the interior from the exterior!

"Hum—!"

The moment he crossed the barrier, Qin Feng felt the entire world plunge into absolute silence.

The violent, murderous aura of the pursuit behind him was completely cut off.

Before his eyes lay a deeper, more viscous world of dark crimson.

The psionic energy and spiritual force here were so dense they had nearly liquefied, forming countless slowly flowing, magnificent yet lethal undercurrents.

He was safe, for now.

Qin Feng's nerves, taut for an entire year, finally received a moment of relaxation.

He was acutely aware that in a place like the core zone, any large-scale mobilization of energy would trigger a catastrophic chain reaction.

Those pursuers would absolutely not dare to use powerful offensive methods here as recklessly as they did outside.

To do so would only cause the already fragile balance of the surrounding force field to collapse instantly, becoming more terrifying than any enemy and ultimately bringing about their own demise.

Qin Feng did not rush to heal his wounds; instead, he immediately spread out his remaining spiritual force like a fine, dense spiderweb, warily scouting the surrounding environment.

He soon made a discovery.

Floating within this viscous undercurrent of incandescent flame were crystal shards, each the size of a fist, radiating a brilliant golden light.

They were higher-quality "Beast Shards."

As expected, the density of shards here was several times higher than outside. Furthermore, their quality had undergone an earth-shattering transformation.

The closer to the core of a star, the greater the pressure of its internal spiritual and psionic fields, which naturally allowed the carcasses of the astral behemoths to be compressed and refined into even more advanced shards.

The joy of harvest did not cause Qin Feng to lower his guard.

While carefully gathering these golden shards, he conducted an absolutely cold-blooded sandbox deduction in his mind from the primary perspective of his enemy.

"If I were Caesar..."

"First, my ultimate goal on this trip is to use the resources of the 'Beast Graveyard' to advance to a true Stellar-level as quickly as possible. Therefore, penetrating deep into the core zone to obtain these highest-quality shards is my inevitable choice."

"Second, I must already know that a fellow named Qin Feng not only slew Yan Hu but also possesses the 'Consummate' realm inheritance of a Crowned King, and that his ultimate destination is also the core zone."

"Then, there is a high probability I would make a precise prediction based on his escape route over the past year and the final position where he breached the force field barrier..."

"If the position he entered happens to be very close, it will be an ambush; if it is very far, it will be a pursuit."

The conclusion of this deduction caused a layer of cold sweat to break out across Qin Feng's back.

He had no doubt regarding Caesar's wisdom and decisiveness.

Looking at the Beast Shards in his hands, Qin Feng did not choose to digest and absorb them on the spot.

He did not linger at all on the periphery of the core zone, even abandoning the golden shards that were within easy reach along the way. Instead, he gritted his teeth and continued to forge ahead with great difficulty toward the interior of this spherical core zone.

Another month passed.

Only when the surrounding chaotic force fields had reached an extremely terrifying degree—one that made even his own heart leap in fear—did Qin Feng finally bring himself to a halt.

The energy undercurrents here were like petrified amber; every movement required an immense expenditure of strength.

The slightest superfluous fluctuation of energy could trigger a small-scale force field storm.

"This should mean I have completely evaded Caesar."

Qin Feng let out a long, deep breath, and the heavy stone that had been weighing on his heart for so long finally dropped.

Facts proved that his judgment was entirely correct.

Almost at the exact same time.

Within the pinned thread regarding the "Beast Graveyard" on the hyperspace private forum of Sector 99, Caesar's golden ID spoke once more.

"Qin Feng is very cunning; he did not covet the Beast Shards on the periphery of the core zone."

This message instantly caused countless martial artists of Sector 99 who were following the battle to feel a wave of regret and frustration.

Immediately following this, Caesar's second command was issued.

"Now, everyone carry out the final, thorough purging of the remaining 'Boundless Sea' level martial artists of the five major sectors. Once the purge is complete, shift your focus immediately to the 'River' realm martial artists."

"This mission has a duration of five years. Within five years, regardless of how many you have cleared out, you must leave the 'Beast Graveyard' and head to the other Stellar-level resource sites of the five major sectors to conduct comprehensive interference and suppression against them."

Caesar's command was clear, decisive, and brooked no argument.

...

In the core zone, at the center of a massive and terrifying energy vortex.

A figure sat quietly cross-legged.

He wore a suit of streamlined, dark-gold power armor adorned with dark crimson embellishments that resembled burning blood.

A head of magnificent golden hair, even under the restraint of the power armor, remained wild and untamed. His face was as handsome as the Sun God of mythology, yet it was filled with a masculine, domineering aura that made others dare not look directly at him.

It was none other than Caesar.

Seemingly entirely unaffected by this horrific environment capable of crushing stars, he was leisurely absorbing a brilliantly radiant golden shard the size of a human head before him.

Floating in front of his eyes was a light screen.

Upon the screen was all of Qin Feng's data, along with several video clips of Qin Feng captured from the battlefield.

"Oh?"

Suddenly, Caesar's gaze froze slightly.

His eyes rapidly locked onto one of the images—specifically, onto the blood-jade skull composed of red and white colors hanging from Qin Feng's waist.

"Are we the same kind of person?"

The corners of Caesar's mouth curled into a deeply meaningful arc.

"There is a high probability of that."

"No wonder it's so troublesome."

"But no matter how vast the star, its core region is only so large. Sooner or later, we will meet..."

He sighed, casually switched off the light screen, half-closed his eyes, and continued to immerse himself in cultivation.

...

On the other side, Qin Feng, having completely shaken off his pursuers, finally began his own cultivation in this blessed land.

Cautiously, he extracted a golden beast fragment from a dark energy current.

The fragment felt warm and smooth in his hand, containing life essence and spiritual imprints of a magnitude so vast it defied belief.

"Though these fragments here are small in size, their quality is truly high."

Qin Feng activated the *Tenfold Hand* and began to refine it.

In just a few moments, he reached a startling conclusion.

"Absorbing only four or five pieces gives me roughly the same energy as absorbing a planet-sized fragment outside before."

"Moreover, the density here is high; with some effort, finding four or five pieces isn't hard."

This was an efficiency of improvement beyond terrifying!

In the days that followed, Qin Feng transformed into a tireless cultivation machine.

In his spare moments, he would also open the subspace forum to keep an eye on developments in the private domain of galaxies 115-119.

On the forum, discussions were still ablaze.

Countless posts analyzed the battle situation, cursed the treachery of Galaxy 99, and called for unity among all.

Among them, some "Boundless Sea" level martial artists who had been reborn, like Cang and Yanwu, were striving to voice their opinions, trying to forge a massive, unified command force.

But with little effect.

The five galaxies remained a scattered mess.

"Difficult. This 'Duel Decree' will be hard to win."

Qin Feng sighed, closed the forum interface, and poured all his focus back into cultivation.

Time passed slowly in the monotonous, day-after-day process of refining.

In the blink of an eye, five years had gone by.

Qin Feng was still cultivating in the deepest part of the core region.

He multitasked, efficiently refining fragments with the *Tenfold Hand* while always keeping a portion of his mental energy alert, sensing the area tens of thousands of kilometers around him to guard against any unexpected pursuers.

It was also in this year, as Caesar had arranged, that a large number of martial artists from Galaxy 99 began to withdraw from the "Beast Graveyard" in an orderly fashion.

Their mission objective had shifted to comprehensively suppressing all reborn "Boundless Sea" level martial artists across the entire five-galaxy domain.

Another thirty years slipped away unnoticed.

One day, as Qin Feng sat cross-legged atop the blazing flames, his body suddenly trembled violently!

Boom—!

An indescribably vast and majestic aura erupted from within him!

Behind him, a towering, three-hundred-layer silver-white grand tower phantom, constructed entirely of endless runes, rose imposingly!

It seemed not to stand within this star but to be rooted directly in the foundation of the universe, suppressing the ages of time and space!

[Undying Projection], the three-hundred-layer tower, was complete!

30% construction progress achieved!

Shua—

Qin Feng's eyes snapped open, two beams of solid light piercing through the thick, blazing flames.

The towering tower phantom shimmered behind him.

In an instant, his entire demeanor underwent a earth-shattering transformation.

Qin Feng was still Qin Feng, but now every move he made carried a majesty that suppressed the cosmos.

Especially with the ancient tower standing and floating behind him, it added an extra layer of imposing dignity.

Qin Feng briefly sensed the power within him.

"Compared to myself thirty-five years ago, when I had just built 10% of the [Undying Tower], I am now tens of thousands of times stronger!"

"The core region is truly a good place."

The magnificent phenomenon of the [Undying Tower] reaching three hundred layers did not stir much emotion in Qin Feng's heart.

He merely felt the vast power within him, multiplied tens of thousands of times, and then calmed his mind again.

30% construction progress was just a new starting point.

In this core region, which gathered the most supreme opportunities, the man named Caesar was bound to be even stronger and faster in his improvement.

Qin Feng had no time to celebrate, nor the right to slack off.

The only way out was to continue exploring, continue cultivating, seize every moment to absorb more [Beast Fragments], and strive to bridge the invisible chasm between himself and Caesar.

The cultivation that followed became even more monotonous and focused.

Qin Feng completely cut off all external information, severing any connection with the subspace forum.

His world now consisted of only three things—searching for fragments, refining fragments, and staying alert to his surroundings.

Time, in this eternal dark-red blaze, lost all meaning.

Another ten years passed in the blink of an eye.

One day, as Qin Feng finished refining the last golden fragment, the towering silver-white tower behind him had quietly grown to four hundred layers!

40% [Undying Projection] construction progress!

His strength had undergone another astonishing leap.

Now, even a wisp of his aura could cause violent ripples in the chaotic force field of the core region.

Yet this time, there was no joy of breakthrough on Qin Feng's face.

He slowly opened his eyes, his brows tightly furrowed.

Because he noticed that the density of [Beast Fragments] around him had begun to drop significantly.

In the early years, he could find a small cluster of four or five golden fragments every few thousand miles.

But now, he often had to spend several times the effort and travel tens of thousands of miles just to find one or two scattered fragments.

This vast treasure trove was visibly becoming "barren."

The answer was obvious.

In another corner of this core region, there must be another person, absorbing these top-tier resources at the same or even faster rate.

That person, without a doubt, was Caesar.

A silent struggle for resources, one that would determine the course of the future, had long since unfolded between the two of them.

"I cannot leave."

Qin Feng's gaze became utterly resolute.

To leave now might preserve his life, allowing him to slowly scheme at other resource points.

But the consequence of doing so would be to hand over the supreme opportunity of this entire star to Caesar.

Once Caesar absorbed all the fragments, to what terrifying heights would his power swell?

By then, not only would he lose this "Betting Decree," but all the geniuses of the five great star systems would become lambs for Caesar to slaughter at will.

"For every fragment I absorb, Caesar absorbs one less."

Qin Feng murmured to himself, all thoughts of retreat now gone.

He concealed all his aura and continued gathering savage beast fragments in this resource point that was turning barren.

However, this time, luck no longer seemed to be on his side.

Nearly a year later.

As Qin Feng carefully traversed a stream of viscous, blazing magma, his figure suddenly halted.

Almost at the same moment, at the other end of the magma stream, an equally formidable will also came to an abrupt stop.

Time seemed to freeze in that instant.

Space seemed to stand still in that moment.

The two of them, within this endless dark-red blazing magma, separated by a vast distance of a hundred thousand li, finally met face to face.

No words were spoken.

No probing was made.

In the very first instant they sensed each other's presence, two terrifying spiritual wills, powerful enough to distort time and space, collided like two supernovae, crossing a hundred thousand li, and crashed together at the core of this star!

Boom—!!!

The entire blazing magma stream instantly erupted into a boil!

Countless enormous fireballs, each over a thousand li in diameter, were detonated by the shockwaves of their wills' collision, unleashing towering waves of flame!

At the center of this apocalyptic scene, two figures stood in distant confrontation.

One of them was Qin Feng.

His power armor, already battered to the extreme, now had several more huge cracks splitting open.

In his hand, he held the Star-Swallowing Spear, its tip angled downward, exuding a fierce and domineering aura of one who would press forward even against ten thousand foes.

Behind him, the silver-white ancient tower, four hundred stories high, hung in the air, radiating an eternal, indestructible light—heavy and ancient.

And opposite him.

Caesar's figure was the complete opposite extreme.

He wore a set of elegant, noble dark-gold power armor, each joint adorned with pigeon-blood-red brilliant gems—more a perfect work of art than a weapon.

In his hand, he calmly held a gracefully styled golden knight's sword, its blade flowing with sacred radiance.

Behind him, a pair of enormous wings, formed from the purest, most holy white light, slowly unfurled, blotting out the sky and covering the sun.

Those wings were his [Undying Projection].

Unlike Qin Feng's somewhat illusory ancient tower, Caesar's wings had solidified to an extremely terrifying degree!

The texture of every single feather was clearly visible.

Their visibility and solidity far surpassed Qin Feng's tower projection by a huge margin!

Clearly, Caesar's strength had already far exceeded Qin Feng's.

(End of this chapter)