306: The Mystery of the Missing Black Hole

One hundred years later.

“Haven’t you noticed? The black hole disappearance cases are becoming more and more perplexing.”

“Exactly, exactly. Not only the black holes we occupy, but even the black holes occupied by the opposing side, frequently go missing.”

“This is truly strange.”

Within these hundred years, the map was largely completed.

Initially, most of the targets Lin Ye sought were his own people, which led the God Race camp to suspect that the War God Clan was secretly causing trouble.

But when the black holes occupied by the War God Clan camp were marked, it was they who frequently lost black holes.

According to forum information, the earliest recorded black hole disappearance case was a Level 3 black hole that went missing.

At first, everyone mocked the original poster for not understanding the rules, calling him a crybaby. But as black hole disappearances became more frequent, the value of the post continuously increased.

Based on the clues revealed in the post, some believed it was the work of a strange beast. However, there were no strange beasts in the Star River Hunting Ground, leading to the final conclusion that it was someone’s Contract partner.

“That person is truly despicable. I had already refined half of it, and then he suddenly made a move.”

“Exactly, how can there be such a hateful person? That Level 4 black hole was only ten months away from being refined, but he appeared and disappeared like a ghost and snatched it from me.”

Some were also curious: who exactly was it? Who committed such a heinous act?

.........

“Jingshan, look at this.” An Qi shared the post with Jingshan.

“Oh? Is this?” Jingshan looked at the dragon tail in the photo and thought of a person.

After parting ways with Lin Ye, the two found several familiar companions and jointly occupied a Level 4 black hole.

Due to the high defensive pressure, they didn't pay much attention to online news.

Later, for the sake of others, they occupied several more black holes, becoming even busier.

Now that the matter had escalated, the two finally realized what was happening.

“It couldn’t be him, could it?” Jingshan looked at An Qi in shock.

“It is him. All these characteristics are too consistent,” An Qi affirmed.

“He’s truly impressive. According to this post, at least a hundred Level 4 black holes have fallen into his hands, right?” Jingshan gasped.

“A hundred Level 4 black holes! We’re working ourselves to death for just one Level 4 black hole,” An Qi said dejectedly.

She and Jingshan were assigned a Level 4 black hole, which was given to Jingshan to absorb.

Black hole vessels can grow. If it starts as a Level 1 black hole, it can slowly refine higher-level black holes or absorb same-level black holes for strengthening.

However, that method is very inefficient. The best way is to start by refining a very strong black hole.

For example, Jingshan, his vessel was a Level 3 black hole. To digest this Level 4 black hole, he spent thirty years.

A Level 3 black hole’s appetite is too small; it takes a lot of time to evolve into a Level 4.

If one starts by refining a Level 4 black hole, then absorbing a same-level Level 4 black hole only takes a little over ten years.

Compared to the cost of defending for over ten years versus over thirty years, it goes without saying which is lighter and which is heavier.

“We must not reveal his information. For such a destined-to-be-famous Heaven’s Chosen, it’s best to befriend him,” Jingshan warned.

“Do I need you to tell me?” An Qi rolled her eyes at him.

........

“Ah, ah, ah, what’s going on? Why have there been so many theft incidents in our War God Clan recently? Could it be the God Race making a move?” In the War God Clan’s gathering place, their leader Anthony was furious.

“I don’t think it’s them, after all, they’ve also suffered losses,” his strategist Charles said.

“Damn it, we’ve lost over thirty black holes in these ten years,” Anthony gnashed his teeth in anger.

He looked at Charles and noticed that he wasn't paying attention to his words, but was constantly staring at the light screen projection.

“Charles, what are you doing?” Anthony asked curiously.

“Look at this map,” Charles pointed at the light screen.

“Is there anything?” Anthony was puzzled; Charles’s map was simply too complex.

“Let me translate it for you. From this map, we can see the direction of this little thief’s stealing. As long as we predict his direction, we can set a trap,” Charles said.

“Well done, Charles!” Anthony exclaimed excitedly.

“This little thief, relying on a Contract beast that can travel through the void and his method of taking black holes, acts tyrannically. It’s time to teach him a lesson. That kind of spatial ability can be sealed by spatial lockdown. Without a means of escape, he’ll be like a fish on a chopping board,” Charles said confidently.

“Good, worthy of being my strategist,” Anthony praised without stingy.

........

Lin Ye was tallying his gains; he had just acquired another Level 4 black hole.

After all, methods of spatial lockdown are relatively rare, and no one paid attention. What if he infiltrated? Refining takes a lot of time.

But they didn’t expect that someone didn’t need to refine them to take them into their possession.

This is why Lin Ye’s every move was successful.

“Within a hundred years, I’ve acquired six hundred seventy-two Level 4 black holes, three hundred twenty Level 3 black holes, and several Level 1 and 2 black holes picked up along the way. A great harvest!” Lin Ye’s eyes were bright.

With the help of these black holes, the Original Universe’s speed of extracting void energy showed an astonishing growth trend.

However, after Lin Ye incorporated the black holes into the Original Universe, he couldn't immediately make them fully effective. This was because without a certain period of refinement, the black holes could only exhibit a partial promotional function.

Fortunately, the refining process did not require Lin Ye to personally intervene. The Original Universe would automatically complete this step.

Once the black holes were successfully refined, their true impact on the Original Universe began to manifest.

As the refining was completed, the laws within the Original Universe became more perfect, and the Star Power concentration also increased by several times compared to before. This greatly enhanced Lin Ye; his already powerful physical body and Soul were strengthened once again.

The most significant improvement, of course, was his level. He had long since filled the Original Universe with enough spiritual materials to advance to Star River Peak. As long as the Original Universe’s refining kept up, he could rapidly upgrade.

With such assistance, he reached Star River Stage Six Peak in just a hundred years.

One must know, according to his previous estimates, reaching Star River Level 5 within ten thousand years would have been considered good.

“I still need to work harder. Now the Level 5 black holes have basically been marked, so I can take action,” Lin Ye thought to himself.

A Level 5 black hole is a hundred times more powerful than a Level 4.

One Level 5 black hole is enough to equal more than ten years of his efforts in free acquisition.

“There are a total of seventy-six Level 5 black holes: 37 for the God Race and 39 for the War God Clan.” Lin Ye paid close attention to this.

The gravitational pull of Level 5 black holes is very strong, making them easy to discover. It took nearly a hundred years for both factions to locate all the Level 5 black holes in the Star River Hunting Ground.

According to the usual process, they would be absorbed by the victorious side after a tough battle and fierce slaughter.

But now, someone who doesn't play by the rules has arrived.