Chapter 509: Challenge (1/2)

Zac had just lamented that him using the Bloodline Marrow by itself would be a bit wasteful, and now this opportunity presented itself? What if he could find something to bring out the most of the marrow and guarantee that his bloodline could awaken?

“Perhaps we can find things to strengthen the people of Port Atwood,” Kenzie exclaimed, echoing Zac's thoughts. “There might be bloodline manuals or elixirs stashed inside the Mystic Realm. Perhaps even things to open Hidden nodes.”

“There are also werewolves and god knows what else in there according to Ogras,” Zac said to calm his sister down before he turned to Triv. ”Do you have any proof of this theory?”

“Young master, I don't. But we are quite good judges of the quality of bodies, and as far as we can tell, the inhabitants of this planet aren’t natural,” Triv said.

“That’s impossible though. We have mapped our evolution for millions of years,” Zac countered, though the words of his mother's projection echoed in the back of his head.

According to her, she was surprised to find Earth inhabited at all when she arrived.

“Yes, this planet has a natural seed of life, but many heritages do not belong here,” Triv conceded. “I personally believe that some accident happened inside that Mystic Realm a few thousand years ago. The owners left, and a group of test subjects managed to break free and ended up on this planet.”

Zac quickly understood what would happen next if what the ghost said was true. Those escapees would find themselves on an unintegrated planet utterly devoid of cosmic energy. They would be like castaways, unable to become stronger, and unable to leave. Their children wouldn’t have any chance to become cultivators, but their bloodlines would still be passed on.

Was this the source of Billy’s golden blood? And was it perhaps even the source of his own bloodline? He had figured that it came from his mother, but perhaps that was completely wrong. Perhaps his [Void Heart] came from someone who had fled the Mystic Realm thousands of years ago.

“What kind of experiments do you think would take place in such a hidden base?” Zac asked.

“We believed it was related to some boundless faction, they’re always up to something. Perhaps they wanted to create a new bloodline suited to their needs, using other bloodlines as a base. Perhaps they wanted to evolve bloodlines and sell the results to wealthy families. It is impossible to tell without gaining access to the research data,” the ghost said.

“The Undead Incursion was after the Mystic Realm as well, and so are the cultists,” Kenzie added.

“I know,” Zac nodded.

Void’s Disciple had said as much when they met, and the invaders had pretty much confirmed it by sailing toward his Mystic Realm entrance even after failing their attack on Port Atwood. He still didn’t know what was so alluring about that place, but it might contain some treasure valuable enough to cause waves in the whole Zecia sector.

“Well, did you know that the Church of Everlasting Dao already controls three different portals that all lead to our Mystic Realm,” Kenzie said. ”According to Triv, at least.”

“How come you’re so talkative all of a sudden?” Zac asked skeptically. “You almost exploded last time I tried to have you divulge some minor secrets.”

“This matter regarding bloodlines was a welcome surprise, but it's not related to the goal of the Undead Empire,” Triv explained, this time taking a spiritual hit.

“So you were after something else,” Zac said.

“Yes,” the ghost croaked, further wounding himself.

“What was it?” Zac muttered curiously, but he hurriedly corrected himself when he saw that Triv was starting to shake and expand. ”Wait, don't answer that!”

But he was still extremely curious about what could elicit such a response. Two major factions and the Dominators were all gunning toward that item, yet he was somehow still kept out of the loop.

“Julia might be able to find out more,” Kenzie said, seemingly reading his thoughts.

“What? Julia?” Zac repeated with confusion ”How would that be possible?”

The former government official had simply stayed on the island since jumping onto the teleporter with him, sometimes assisting with diplomatic issues with the Marshall Clan. How would she know something that he didn’t about the mystic realm?

“The New World Government actually performed an all-out assault on one of the cultists’ bases and killed one of their Generals. That’s how they got access to the mystic realm and started the ‘Ark World’ project,” Kenzie explained. “They should have found out a few things if they're taking such drastic measures.”

“The one time that little faction showed some spine,” the ghost muttered from the side. “The humans of this planet are wholly unimpressive. If it wasn’t for young master and the many bloodlines running around, then this world would be completely worthless.”

”So you’re saying I should send out Julia as a spy? I doubt she will be able to return to her position after these months,” Zac said, ignoring the ghost.

“She should still have some contacts who would want to make a connection with you, especially now that the Undead Incursion is dealt with,” Kenzie explained.

“I’ll talk with her when we get back,” Zac nodded before he turned to the ghost.

However, Zac couldn’t help but feel himself being dragged against his will once more as he thought about the Mystic Realm, just like when the System had placed him in front of the two remnants. It seemed like he really didn’t have a choice but to explore its depths this time either. All his enemies would be there, and it was related to his family to do with his family. The mystic realm was his best bet at figuring out whether Leandra was a friend or a foe.

And now it might even help him with his constitution?

Him having some sort of bloodline was pretty much confirmed from getting the odd Hidden Node [Void Heart]. If it was based on some previous captive, then there might actually be more information and even a manual waiting for him inside the Mystic Realm. After all, he wanted to maintain his above-average power, and opening additional Hidden Nodes was one of the best available methods in the E-Grade.

Just like the F-grade was the best opportunity to farm Titles, the E-Grade was the best opportunity to open up nodes that might benefit him for the rest of his life. Every grade was like that as far as Zac understood. He wasn’t sure about how the higher grades worked, but it seemed like D-Grade was the only rank where you could perfect your Cultivator Core.