Chapter 141: 135, War God Alliance Sister Long (Please subscribe for monthly tickets)
Lu Lin’s body stiffened as the cyan light approached.
He had wanted to use Stone Skin to block it, but he knew Stone Skin could only deflect physical attacks; it offered little resistance against this kind of magical Star Skill.
A cyan light suddenly entered Lu Lin’s forehead. It transformed into a cyan light cluster, completely enveloping him. As the light spread, Lu Lin felt no discomfort. On the contrary, it was incredibly comfortable.
It seemed as if he was wandering through a green wheat field, surrounded by fluttering butterflies, the sounds of cicadas and frogs filling the air.Then, he seemed to float up to the clouds, a gust of wind blowing a flock of south-flying geese toward him.Or perhaps he was immersed in crystal-clear seawater, surrounded by strange, peculiar corals and schools of colorful fish.
Lu Lin’s mind had never been so peaceful.
After what felt like an eternity, Lu Lin slowly opened his eyes. He looked at Gao Feng in front of him. Gao Feng looked unwell, his face deathly pale.
"Little friend Lu Lin, how does it feel to have your destiny altered? COUGH, COUGH..." As he spoke, Gao Feng couldn’t help but cough.
Although he had paid the price of permanently losing an Avatar to alter Lu Lin’s destiny, the toll on Gao Feng himself was also considerable.
Lu Lin had just emerged from that state of extreme comfort and elation. Seeing Gao Feng in this condition, his heart ached.
"Mister Gao, was this really necessary?"
Gao Feng wasn’t just coughing; Lu Lin clearly saw that the wrinkles on his face seemed to have deepened considerably.
"It’s nothing," Gao Feng said. "The ways of heaven are cyclical; for every sacrifice, there is a reward."
"Little Friend, we’ve troubled you today. If you ever need anything, feel free to contact our Three Talents Wilderness Team."
"Big Brother, Third Brother, let’s go."
After Gao Feng finished speaking, Gao Shan supported him as they walked out. Lu Lin sensed a majestic Life Energy being transferred from Gao Shan to Gao Feng.
Gao Ling saluted Lu Lin and then turned to follow them. At this point, he wasn’t concerned about whether he had advanced to the Golden Body Realm. His Big Brother needed to transfer Life Energy to their Second Brother, and only Gao Ling could complete the final procedures for Lu Lin’s Second Certification.
Long Qiansu was still on the first floor, anticipating some drama involving Lu Lin. But when she turned her head, she saw Gao Shan and Gao Feng slowly descending the stairs.
"Well? Did that little fellow manage to guide any Star Skills for you?"
Gao Feng forced a smile at Long Qiansu. Just as he was about to speak, he coughed up a mouthful of blood.
"You! What happened to you?" Long Qiansu was aghast.
Weren’t these three supposed to be conducting Lu Lin’s Second Certification? How did they end up like this?Did Lu Lin beat them up?No way.
Gao Shan steadied Gao Feng with a firm arm, then pointed to Gao Ling who was following behind, gesturing for Long Qiansu to get the details from him. He then resumed helping Gao Feng down the stairs.
"Little Gao, what happened?" Long Qiansu asked, frowning.
Gao Ling quickly explained what the three brothers had gained, and how, in the end, their Second Brother had sacrificed an Avatar solely to repay Lu Lin’s help, leaving him incapacitated as a result.
"What?!" Long Qiansu exclaimed in disbelief.
Lu Lin had actually managed to guide each of these three brothers to awaken a Star Skill! She knew these three were notoriously difficult cases within the War God Alliance. In all their years since joining the War God Alliance, they had only comprehended a handful of Star Skills. Yet, when Lu Lin arrived, it was like he was handing out Star Skills like candy—one for each of them! Was Lu Lin really just a young man fresh out of high school? Could he be some Federal-level Star-guiding Master playing a prank on them?
Gao Ling shrugged with a ’take it or leave it’ expression. Then, right in front of Long Qiansu, he finished writing the certification reports for the three of them and clicked submit.
"Sister Long, we three brothers will take our leave then. If you need anything, just send us a communication."
"Mm-hm." Long Qiansu nodded, then suddenly registered how Gao Ling had addressed her.
"Third Brother Gao, what did you just call me?!" Long Qiansu’s voice shot up as she glared at Gao Ling. Sister Long?!
She was extremely conscious of her age, using all sorts of cosmetics and skincare products, even hiring a Star Pharmacist to concoct anti-aging elixirs specifically for her. All because she detested anyone bringing up her age. Now, Gao Ling, a man in his seventies or eighties, had dared to call her ’Sister Long.’ Wasn’t that practically announcing her age to the world? How could she ever pretend to be younger in front of others now?
Gao Ling instantly realized his blunder and hurriedly apologized. "Sister Long, I’m sorry! Uh, no, Younger Sister Long—no, Qiansu—no, Little Su..." He stammered, words tumbling out haphazardly, completely flustered about how to address Long Qiansu.
Just as Long Qiansu’s glare intensified and her expression grew more ferocious...
A golden light suddenly erupted from Gao Ling’s body. It began around his mouth, first covering his entire head, then spreading down his neck, over his arms, wrists, and fingers, down his torso, legs, and finally to both his feet. In an instant, Gao Ling was transformed into a shimmering golden figure. The multitude of scars covering his body vanished within the golden light, slowly fading away.
Gao Ling had no time to mourn the Star Skill he had painstakingly accumulated. A smile spread across his face.
"Sister Long, I’ve advanced!"
"I’m Level 7 now!"
"SOB... I’m finally Level 7! I’ve achieved the Golden Body!"
And so, this imposing, burly man, over two meters tall, simply stood there and wept in front of Long Qiansu.
This left Lu Lin, who had just come down the stairs, utterly puzzled. Gao Ling advanced to Level 7; shouldn’t that be a cause for great celebration? Why was he crying his eyes out here?
Long Qiansu, for the moment, paid no mind to how Gao Ling had addressed her. She watched him with softened eyes.
Ever since the three Gao brothers were just lads, she was the one who had guided them into the War God Alliance. She had witnessed all the hardship and effort the three brothers had poured in over the years to raise their Star Power Levels. To Long Qiansu, every member of the War God Alliance was like her own child. Especially Gao Ling. Because his Innate Attributes were so unique, every major battle in his youth left him covered in wounds, depleting immense amounts of his vital energy and blood essence. That was why he had been unable to advance all these years. For over a decade, every time the Gao Family’s Three Brothers entered the Exotic Battlefield, they would search for herbs that could replenish human vital energy. They had scoured for Star Power Grass Medicine, Exotic Beast Bones, and blood, and had even raided the treasure vaults of Alien Races three times. Yet, they had found no solution. Now, Long Qiansu never imagined that by simply picking up Lu Lin randomly at Boppu Air Cargo Airport, she would receive such a wonderful surprise.
"Lu Lin, you’ve done exceptionally well," Long Qiansu said, her thoughts returning to the present. "For this assessment, I will propose to the higher-ups that your level be increased by an additional step on top of what you’ve earned, and there will be other rewards as well..."
"That... really isn’t necessary," Lu Lin said, feeling undeserving. After all, Gao Feng had already repaid him.
Gao Feng had helped him enter a wondrous state at the cost of permanently losing one of his Avatars. It wasn’t altering fate, but Lu Lin didn’t know exactly what its purpose was. He only knew that after being enveloped by that cyan light, his perception of the world had changed. Hearing Long Qiansu still wanting to raise his level, Lu Lin felt genuinely embarrassed.
The members of the War God Alliance, like Star Core Warriors, were ranked across nine levels. The higher the level, the greater the monthly stipend. Normally, just by participating in the Second Certification, even if he failed, he would become a First Level member. This time, by helping the Gao Family’s Three Brothers comprehend Star Skills and advance in level, his own level would be directly raised to Third Level because it was an unconventional mission. He had already received an exceptional promotion of one level, yet Long Qiansu wanted to raise it even further. This felt a bit improper. It was as if the War God Alliance was her family’s business.
"Don’t be so quick to refuse," Long Qiansu said. She glanced at Gao Ling, whose golden light was gradually dissipating, and waved him away before turning back to Lu Lin.
"Advancing in level within the War God Alliance is very difficult. There are plenty of Level 2 and Third Level members in the Alliance."
"You’ve encountered such a great opportunity; you should seize it, not push it away."
"Secondly, when a War God Alliance member’s level increases, the authority, resources, and support they gain are vastly different."
"Take you, for example. You should be close to Third Level now and will soon have to undergo the Transformation of the Five Evils. Without a sufficiently good cultivation environment, you’ll be in grave danger during that process."
"Hold on." Lu Lin suddenly raised his hand, interrupting Long Qiansu.
He possessed the Perceive Star Skill, a passive ability that allowed him to check the concentration of Star Power within others at any time and from anywhere, thereby deducing their Star Power Level. Simultaneously, the Perceive Star Skill had another effect: Lu Lin’s own Star Power state could not be sensed by others. One had to understand that typically, when a Star Core Warrior cultivated to Level 8 and entered the Breaking Delusion Realm, they would gain abilities similar to Perception. Yet, back on Saturn, even the Ninth Level Zhao Lei couldn’t sense Lu Lin’s cultivation level before advancing to Titled King. And when registering with the War God Alliance, Lu Lin hadn’t registered his Star Power Level either.
Then, the question arose: how did Long Qiansu know he was currently a Level 2 Star Core Warrior?