268: Chapter 269 Preparations for Breakthrough to Level 100

The next day, at noon.

Xu Ruohan and Feng Ling sent in their mission completion reports almost simultaneously. The Two-Headed Sky-Burning Bird flock and the Six-Eyed Witches, under their respective commands, had successfully eliminated all twenty-nine core members of the former American Empire's Sun-Extinguishing Council assigned to them globally.

Following the operation, the two Mythical-grade Demonic Creature groups returned to their original habitats as instructed: the Two-Headed Sky-Burning Birds flew back to the distant volcanic belts, while the Six God Clan retreated back into the valleys shrouded in sorcerous mist along the southeast coast. However, regardless of where they were, the leaders and elites of these two major groups now felt a profound, prostrate admiration for Lin Muyang, the human sovereign they had never even met.

The reason was simple: during the execution of this global hunting mission, they had personally experienced the heaven-defying amplification effects of the God-Tier Aura bestowed by Lin Muyang.

When that god-like Aura power enveloped their groups, all participating demonic creatures felt an unprecedented surge of power. Their bones, scales, and feathers seemed to be infused with an immortal essence, and the energy cores within their bodies throbbed frantically. Powerful skills that usually required long periods of charging could now be unleashed at will, and with explosive power!

That all-around attribute boost and the sense of control that could crush mountains and seas with a mere gesture left even these mythical creatures, who already stood at the top of the food chain, deeply shaken. Their combat power had increased by dozens or even hundreds of times; this wasn't an illusion, but a reality confirmed with every pounce and every spell. They had never imagined their power could reach such an inconceivable height.

Thus, these highly intelligent leaders of the mythical groups finally gained a clearer understanding of Lin Muyang's true nature. He was not just a Class Transferee relying on special talents or powerful summons, but a higher existence who wielded power they could not fathom and could easily rewrite the rules of their destiny.

The Two-Headed Sky-Burning Bird flock, in particular, felt a complexity beyond words. They had initially submitted to Feng Ling out of the natural awe and longing for the Phoenix Sovereign embedded deep within their bloodline. They never expected that behind the Phoenix Heavenly Maiden stood an even more terrifying figure who could command the Phoenix herself and possessed such miraculous methods of empowerment!

This left many mythical creatures who had lived for hundreds or thousands of years feeling somewhat numb—when did such a monster appear among the humans of this world?

Of course, after the shock and bewilderment came incredibly clear realization and resolve. After this event, the two major groups would no longer harbor the slightest doubt; following Lin Muyang was the most correct, and perhaps the only correct, choice they had made in their long lives.

To be his enemy? Just look at the fate of those individuals who once held sway over the human world, only to be easily crushed by them; there was only the path of destruction.

And the benefits of choosing to follow him were obvious. Not to mention the future development opportunities they might gain under Lin Muyang's command, even their basic survival security had undergone a world-shaking change. With the blessing of Lin Muyang's God-Tier Aura, what power on the entire Blue Planet could still threaten them? Whether it was other mythic grade groups or the peak experts of human nations, they no longer posed a lethal threat to those who had received the amplification.

This meant that from now on, they could thrive in their own territories in peace, no longer needing to constantly worry about being devoured or driven out by more powerful existences. They only needed to answer the call and serve whenever Lin Muyang had a need. This stable life of leaning against a great tree for shade was a heavenly transformation compared to their previous state of struggling to survive in a perilous world of demonic creatures, constantly facing competition and challenges.

In a sense, while receiving the blessing of Lin Muyang's Aura, they had become temporarily invincible beings on this planet. Such an experience was enough to make any intelligent creature make the wisest choice.

At the same time, Hansa Bami and Marianne, far away in the American Empire, also sent back reports on the latest progress.

The New Federal Council, led by them, had initially stabilized the situation and gained control over more than ninety percent of the American Empire's official forces and core resources. The new administrative machinery began to restart slowly and effectively, and the chaos was initially brought under control.

Of course, within any massive state machine, there are bound to be some stubborn discordant voices. Even though Lin Muyang did not exert any direct pressure on the general public or the social operations of the American Empire, there was still a portion of remnants from the old regime or ideological extremists who were unwilling to accept the reality that the core of national power had changed hands and that they needed to bow to a foreign powerhouse. They resisted either openly or covertly, attempting to stir up trouble.

Lin Muyang had no intention of personally intervening in these insignificant noises. Since he had already entrusted the affairs of the American Empire to Hansa and Marianne, he chose to fully trust the abilities and tactics of these two capable subordinates. Cleaning up internally and consolidating power were tasks they needed to face and resolve themselves.

Hansa and Marianne certainly did not disappoint him. While initially taking control of the situation, they efficiently selected a batch of precious resources from the American Empire's national reserves and secret warehouses, rushing them back to the Eternal Garden via secure channels as a tribute.

This batch of resources was diverse, including high-purity psionic crystals, rare materials, and some well-sealed mythical-rank secret realm and dungeon scrolls.

One item in particular brought a look of surprise to Lin Muyang's eyes—it was a scroll shimmering with an ominous dark red light. It felt warm to the touch, and he could faintly hear auditory hallucinations of churning lava and demonic whispers.

【legendary-grade dungeon scroll: Hellfire Prison】

【Entry Level: Level 95 and above】

【Suggested Number of People: 4】

【Introduction: A fiery purgatory leading to a rift in the elemental plane, where an ancient Fire Element Lord and its minions are suppressed. An extreme test of fire, and also a path of sublimation for those who master the flames.】

“Little Feng Ling, it looks like the materials for your next Nirvana evolution have been found.” Lin Muyang smiled and rubbed the soft, smooth long hair of the blonde girl beside him.

“Master~ Feng Ling isn't little anymore.” The girl wrinkled her nose coquettishly, yet she very much enjoyed rubbing her head against Lin Muyang's palm, her eyes flowing with dependence and joy.

“Mm, you’re right.” Lin Muyang naturally put his arm around her shoulder while stroking the scroll in his other hand, analyzing, “Four-person difficulty, three gatekeeper BOSSes... with our current strength, clearing it shouldn't be hard. The key is to ensure a sufficient amount of fire-attribute mythic grade equipment materials suitable for you are dropped.”

He quickly made an estimate in his mind. This batch of resources from the American Empire, combined with the expected gains from the 'Hellfire Prison' Dungeon, would be enough to push his level experience to the maximum value of Level 99.

The real challenge lay in the breakthrough from Level 99 to Level 100.

This was a crucial watershed for all Class Transferees.

“The conventional way to break through is to absorb the pure origin energy contained within elemental essences to pry open one's own bottleneck and complete the initial leap in life tier,” Lin Muyang organized the relevant knowledge in his mind. “The grade of the Fire Element Essence directly determines the base attribute bonus gained after the breakthrough, the magnitude of the class trait enhancement, and the degree of affinity and control over the corresponding elemental power.”

Simply put, the higher the grade of the elemental essence absorbed, the higher the starting point of one's comprehensive strength after the breakthrough, and the greater the future potential tended to be.

For instance, Shen Muyao's father, Shen Yanshan, had completed his breakthrough years ago using an epic-grade Fire Element Essence, which gave him a significant advantage among fire-type Class Transferees of the same level.

However, looking at human Class Transferees globally, the vast majority used nothing more than rare-grade or superior-grade essences when breaking through Level 100. Those who could use epic-grade were already as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns, considered local powerhouses. As for legendary-grade elemental essences, those were goals that national-level powerhouses like the Sword Saint would only strive for when breaking through Level 200 or even higher levels.

And mythic grade elemental essences? Those were mostly things that existed in theory. They were extremely difficult to obtain, usually requiring the dismantling of mythic grade equipment or incredibly rare natural treasures. For the vast majority of experts, the strategic value of a complete piece of mythic grade equipment far exceeded the portion of the bonus gained by dismantling it for essence to use in a breakthrough. Therefore, almost no one would choose such a luxurious breakthrough method. Even in the occasional historical records of such cases, their final achievements weren't necessarily stronger than people like the Sword Saint, who were armed with multiple pieces of mythic grade equipment.

“But for me, the situation is completely different.” A light of contemplation flickered in Lin Muyang's eyes.

While mythic grade equipment wasn't exactly easy for him to come by, the difficulty of obtaining it had been greatly reduced. Preparing the most suitable mythic grade essences for the young ladies under his command to use for their breakthroughs was a natural part of his plan.

However, an even bolder and more advanced idea was brewing in his heart.

“Above the mythic grade, there is the heaven-opening grade.” This information came from the Virgos Protection skill that Lilia had learned previously. While active, that skill could temporarily increase the grade of all the target's skills by one level. This meant that above mythic grade skills, there clearly existed a higher level called heaven-opening grade.

So, was it the same for equipment? If he could obtain heaven-opening grade equipment and dismantle it, wouldn't he be able to get heaven-opening grade elemental essence? If he used this kind of essence that surpassed the mythic level to complete the Level 100 breakthrough... what kind of appalling attribute and trait bonuses would he obtain?

The thought made Lin Muyang's heart race slightly.

“However, the source of heaven-opening grade equipment...” He quickly calmed down to analyze. “The greatest possibility is that they exist within a mythical-rank secret realm.”

A mythical-rank secret realm was the highest level of secret realm on the Blue Planet. The number of times they appeared naturally worldwide each year could be counted on one hand, usually only two or three. They were fraught with danger, yet they also contained opportunities that surpassed regular imagination.

“If I just wait for a chance for the next mythical-rank secret realm to appear naturally, there is a lot of uncertainty in the timing; it could be months, or even longer.”

Lin Muyang didn't like waiting passively. He immediately used his communicator to contact Xu Ruohan, who was assisting in handling the follow-up matters.

“Senior Xu, please collect and organize the times, locations, durations, main characteristics, and research reports from various countries on the patterns of all mythical-rank secret realms that have appeared globally in the last twenty years. The more detailed, the better.”

He needed to use this historical data to try and deduce and estimate the timing and location of the next mythical-rank secret realm's descent.