Eternal Tower Master's eyes were filled with gratitude as he looked at Xu Jingming. "It was a shocker for me, Xu Jingming. This Eight Directions Map legacy is the most precious legacy I've received since I became a high-dimensional lifeform! It might be icing on the cake for the dean and the others, but it provides me timely help. The deeper I go into the Abyss lineage, the more I'm worried about my consciousness being completely corrupted by the Abyss."
"The Eight Directions Map is a supreme mental tempering legacy. It guides the mind step by step until one reaches the Great Freedom realm. Once one succeeds, no temptation or corruption can shake the mind," Eternal Tower Master continued, a smile spreading across his face. "High-dimensional lifeforms of the Abyss lineage will yearn for it."
Spacetime Island Lord chimed in, "It's also very important to me. I originally thought that the half-step third realm was out of reach, but now… I see a glimmer of hope."
The dean nodded in agreement. "I also see a glimmer of hope. Jingming, you might not be able to understand it. Do you know what's most important to high-dimensional lifeforms?"
Xu Jingming was taken aback.
What was most important to high-dimensional lifeforms?
"Legacies?" Xu Jingming hesitated.
"Yes, legacies." The dean nodded. "Legacies contain the knowledge and experience gained on the evolutionary path. Our earliest batch of high-dimensional lifeforms in the human race were all at the Firstborn realm because we lacked legacies. Without them, we didn't know how to establish our inner universe. It's naturally impossible to rely on ourselves to figure it out. Back then, we fought tooth and nail for a legacy."
"It's said that Firstborn realm lifeforms should hide in a safe place to cultivate, but if they keep hiding, where will the legacy come from? We low-dimensional lifeforms are much better than those natural high-dimensional lifeforms. Even if we lack legacies and many die, on average, one in a few Firstborn realm lifeforms can reach the Eternal realm. It's obvious how talented we are," the dean said confidently.
Xu Jingming nodded in agreement.
Those who grew strong as low-dimensional lifeforms were indeed far more talented than natural high-dimensional lifeforms. But as the dean said, there were too many of the latter, and there would eventually be some elites. At the Eternal realm and the half-step third realm, natural high-dimensional lifeforms had the advantage.
"We humans have accumulated quite a bit of knowledge," the dean said with confidence. "We've obtained a few half-step third-realm legacies and the ruins of the scientific lineage. But to rely on a half-step third-realm legacy to reach the half-step third realm? It's too difficult."
Xu Jingming nodded in agreement.
He had obtained Red Lotus Fire, but the difficulty of cultivating it to its limits was unimaginable. Even with the Eight Directions Map, it only gave him some hope.
"If we get our hands on a complete third-realm legacy, it will be a game-changer for humans. Even if we can only acquire a portion of it, we might just reach the half-step third realm," the dean explained.
"Jingming, the Eight Directions Map you offered is a legacy that targets the mind. With a strong mental foundation, the path to evolution becomes much smoother." The dean turned his gaze toward Xu Jingming. "Thanks to you, our chances of breaking through have increased. This is the power of a potent legacy."
"We humans crave a complete third-realm legacy the most, and we are relying on you to accomplish this mission." The dean fixed his gaze on Xu Jingming.
"Leave it to me?" Xu Jingming was taken aback. "I'm not confident."
"Hahaha…"
The dean, Eternal Tower Master, and Spacetime Island Lord chuckled.
"Calm down," the dean reassured him. "You have just broken through to the Eternal Realm and haven't yet adjusted to the uniqueness of the Heart Realm lineage."
Xu Jingming's heart stirred as he grasped the dean's underlying message. "Dean, are you suggesting trading?"
"Exactly." The dean and the others nodded in agreement.
"When it comes to traversing dominions, the Heart Realm lineage is unparalleled." Eternal Tower Master sighed. "They possess countless clones and can easily journey across thousands of dominions, engaging in trade with each one."
"Perhaps there is a dominion where powerful individuals are willing to sell the opportunity to learn third-realm legacies," the dean suggested.
Xu Jingming nodded solemnly in agreement.
Yes, it was feasible for the other party to learn the original and then sell lessons in varying quantities!
"The Heart Realm lineage has the capacity to visit many dominions, making it easy to locate such an opportunity," the dean added. "The three of us will most likely have to rely on you to learn a third-realm legacy."
"Not all Heart Realm lineage powerhouses are adept at trading," Eternal Tower Master interjected with a chuckle. "However, more than 90% of the leading merchants in high-dimensional space are high-dimensional life forms of the Heart Realm lineage."
Xu Jingming nodded.
Indeed.
The Heart Realm lineage's expertise in having clones and traveling vast distances across dominions made them ideal merchants.
"I'll make a note of that. Once I come across an opportunity to learn a third-realm legacy, I'll inform you." Xu Jingming spoke confidently.
The more places he visited, the more chances he would have. It was even possible for him to become a third-realm entity's disciple.
Of course… there were also many dangers!
"Follow me," the dean said. "I'll show you the scientific ruins."
Xu Jingming promptly rose to his feet and followed the dean.
…
Myriad Star Island sprawled out before Xu Jingming in all its vastness. The dean led him toward a towering and colossal spherical building, its surface riddled with cracks.
"This spherical building is the scientific ruin itself," the dean said, pointing to the structure. "When we discovered it, we meticulously explored it before finally transporting the entire thing to Myriad Star Island."
Xu Jingming nodded before following the dean through a damaged gap into the building's interior.
The sight that greeted him was one of utter dilapidation.
The dean gestured around them. "This should be a special ship. It's incredibly sturdy, so much so that I couldn't even put a dent in it. However, it was breached and torn from the outside. Take this corridor for example—it was clearly a victim of aftershocks and suffered extensive damage."
"We've explored these scientific ruins many times before. Some of the high-dimensional weapons here were affected by an invisible force, resulting in their destruction due to the high levels of precision involved."
"The three of us, and some of the most brilliant scholars in human history, studied it together and managed to repair some of the weapons. We integrated and simplified their usage, creating a few forbidden weapons," the dean explained.
"Brilliant scholars?" Xu Jingming asked, nodding slightly.
Low-dimensional lifeforms didn't necessarily have low intelligence; it was just that their brains worked much slower.
Some of the most outstanding scholars in the history of the human race had been exceptionally talented in science.
"Unfortunately, we didn't acquire the complete legacy of the scientific lineage. All we managed to obtain was a manual with experimental records." The dean sighed as he led Xu Jingming toward a dark and desolate hall.
A crystal jade floated in the middle of the hall, covered in dense words.
"This is the manual," the dean said, pointing to the crystal.
Xu Jingming walked over and seeped in his Heart Realm Force.
Buzz!
A sudden surge of information hit him like a bolt of lightning. It was a scattered collection of scientific experiments, evolutionary insights, and high-dimensional traveling experiences.
"According to the experimental manual, the owner of this ship should be a half-step third-realm high-dimensional scholar. This mainly records the experimental data, sporadic insights into evolution, and some high-dimensional traveling experiences," Xu Jingming muttered.
As a high-dimensional scholar, the owner was meticulous in recording all kinds of data, including information on his adversaries.
"He's faced numerous enemies while traversing the dominion with this ship, even engaging in battles with Abyss Sovereigns?" Xu Jingming exclaimed, his eyes widening in surprise.
Abyss Overlords were already formidable with half-step third realm strength, but Abyss Sovereigns represented the most terrifying level of augmentation that the Abyss could offer. They were invincible below the third realm.
"There were also some experimental creatures imprisoned on this ship?" Xu Jingming was perplexed.
"Yes," the dean confirmed, "When we found it, some of the cells were damaged, and only three remained intact. Two of them were empty, and one of the cells contained a test creature. Tower Master identified it as a deeply corrupted Abyssal creature. It's so strong that it's suspected to be a half-step third realm."
Xu Jingming was taken aback. "Suspected to be a half-step third-realm Abyssal creature?!"
"We didn't dare to release it, and we're not entirely sure of its strength. All we know is that it's likely a half-step third-realm Abyssal creature," the dean revealed, "We've placed heavy seals on that prison cell, so you can't enter it. You're free to explore the other areas of the scientific ruins and study them closely."
"There are many damaged high-dimensional weapons in this ruin. Perhaps you can repair one or two," the dean reminded. "I'm aware that the Heart Realm Force is unique. Use it to explore this ruin carefully and see if you can uncover any new discoveries. We've never allowed non-humans to enter this ruin before."
Xu Jingming nodded.
"I'm leaving. Take your time studying it." The dean smiled and left.
Xu Jingming then investigated the ancient and dilapidated scientific ruins. As he explored, he stumbled upon a detention chamber that contained the dean, Tower Master, and Island Lord's sealing powers.
Xu Jingming couldn't help but sense an alarming aura emanating from the chamber, despite the heavy seals keeping it contained.
"What a terrifying aura. Despite being imprisoned and being heavily sealed, its aura still seeps into the outside world," Xu Jingming murmured. "It's no wonder the dean and the others believe that it's suspected of being at the half-step third realm."
Xu Jingming turned and left. There was nothing to study about an Abyssal monster.
All kinds of high-dimensional weapons were destroyed in an unknown manner. Xu Jingming tried to probe with his Heart Realm Force but ultimately shook his head in defeat. The dean and the others have studied the scientific lineage for a long time, and they had the help of some great scholars. My scientific foundation is relatively weak in comparison.
At the very least, he couldn't figure it out in the short term.
Xu Jingming looked around and arrived in front of a multifaceted high-dimensional weapon that had a total of 352 faces.
Buzz.
Xu Jingming habitually used his Heart Realm Force to infiltrate and investigate the weapon, but when he touched it… he sensed a vast piece of information.
In an instant, Xu Jingming found himself transported to a huge illusory realm. Small components were quickly condensed, and countless components rapidly formed and combined to create the multifaceted high-dimensional weapon in front of him.
"The Heart Realm's illusory realm is indeed very suitable for the construction of weapons for my scientific lineage. It's just that there are too many limitations to turning illusions into reality." A sigh echoed.
Xu Jingming was stunned.
He looked at the multifaceted high-dimensional weapon in front of him and realized that it was built directly from the Heart Realm's illusory realm.
I can see the construction process from the remaining mental imprints on the weapon. In other words, I can also try building it? Xu Jingming thought to himself, feeling a sense of excitement. At the very least, it shouldn't be difficult to repair it.
