Chapter 624: Chapter 624

[Name: Seed of Transformation]

[Description: A Cosmic-grade resource that is the most powerful naturally occurring resource to exist. Allows any being below the Primary Divine rank to flawlessly ascend to the Primary Divine rank. Using this resource will also provide a solid foundation that gives the user the potential to evolve to the Cosmic rank in the future.]

[Quantity available: 8]

The value of such an item was indisputable. The Cosmic Will said that the current Primary Divine rank was imperfect, likely due to the lack of Seeds of Transformation.

After becoming the Keeper, Lu Ran discovered that there was enough energy for him to create eight seeds. Counting through his familiars, Lu Ran realized he only needed seven. Even though his familiars were already Primary Divines, the seeds would fix the issues with their foundations. Chapters fırst released on novelFɪre.net

With one seed left, Lu Ran originally planned to give it to the Black Tortoise, but considering its decision to retire, Manager Ying would be the better candidate if it was willing to explore other universes with him.

As for the Divine Tree, Lu Ran had already cut off its contract and set it free as promised. It helped him considerably this time, but the number of Seeds was limited. Lu Ran needed to wait for the universe to recover more energy before he could try making more.

Six months later, Lu Ran was enjoying a little rest and recovery, but the Cosmic Will was starting to nag him about getting back to work.

"Lu Ran, get off your butt! It doesn’t look like things are going that great at home anyway, so you might as well set out," the Cosmic Will whispered in Lu Ran’s ear.

Lu Ran was in the middle of gaming on his computer. He had evolved from a beastmaster into a gamer now that he had a chance to live a peaceful life. It was everything he had hoped for in his past life.

"Every day at home, your parents keep harping about wanting a cute grandson. They especially have their eyes on Five Poisons Saintess. They’re even open to considering Gu Qingyi. Aren’t you getting tired of it?"

"Yeah, it really is a little annoying," Lu Ran replied without turning away from the video game #18 created for him.

What the Cosmic Will said wasn’t something he could deny.

"The main thing is, while we were training Six Path Flower and I got repeatedly reincarnated, I got married so many times that I’m kind of over it. It's all Six Paths Flower’s fault."

Even though Lu Ran became the Keeper of the Universe, he was still afraid of his parents.

"It can't be helped. Its reincarnation talent wasn’t up to par back then, so it couldn’t reincarnate you completely. Have you thought about running away? I can help you leave this universe entirely!"

"Something's wrong. I think there's another reason why you're so eager to get me to go to another universe," Lu Ran said suspiciously.

He felt that there was something else beyond it wanting to reshape the universe. A few years were nothing to the Cosmic Will. Six months and six years were all the same to it. The Cosmic Will must have had some ulterior motive.

Lu Ran believed that it likely had something to do with Captain Doofus. While he was on vacation, he naturally gave his familiars some time off as well.

The Black Tortoise, for example, retired altogether. Although Lu Ran had asked it to adventure with him through the myriad universes, it refused without a second thought. Lu Ran didn't hold it against its will and let it retire.

His other familiars each had their own things going on.

#18 used a warship from the Cosmic Overlord Legion to study the technology of another universe to fulfill its love for research. It even studied the wisp of Black Mist Lu Ran managed to collect so that it could get a better understanding of what it was.

Six Path Flower was reminiscing with the Divine Tree and Void Grass on Stellar Moon. Together, they worked to start a new Plant Era, fulfilling a dream from its previous life.

Dark Crow continued to gouge out its eyes to strengthen its legion in preparation for exploring new universes.

Sudden Death King dragged Baby Cloud along to further raise its defenses. Baby Cloud originally wanted to sleep in during its time off, but that dream kind of went up in smoke.

Sudden Death King was greatly frightened by Captain Doofus’ feat of slashing the four Divine Dragons dead. The Cosmic Will even mentioned that there were dozens of individuals on the same level as that husky across the numerous universes. Sudden Death King felt like dying just thinking about it.

After thinking it through, Lu Ran deduced that Captain Doofus was the most likely reason behind the Cosmic Will’s rush to leave. After mastering the Limitless Sword, Captain Doofus spent all of its time training in Limitless City.

It was trying to use the Cosmic Will as its new sword. In other words, it was trying to tear apart the entire universe!

The Cosmic Will simply couldn’t stand it anymore, but at the end of the day, Captain Doofus was still Lu Ran’s familiar, so the Cosmic Will couldn’t do anything to it. The only solution it came up with was to let the dog travel across to other universes and burn off some energy by meeting powerful opponents.

Lu Ran wasn't entirely sure about his theory, but it was the most plausible one he could think of.

"You should start preparing to leave as soon as possible," the Cosmic Will pestered.

"If we leave, will Limitless City still exist here in this universe?" Lu Ran asked.

"I can set up an autopilot system to keep it running for ten years. The core and the Divine Dragons, its batteries, will have to come with us. We’ll encounter many powerful beings, and we’ll have a target on our backs since we will be intruders.

"Without the core and the Divine Dragons to protect you, you won’t even be able to beat some of the top-tier Primary Divines we encounter, not to mention Cosmic-rank beings. Just for reference, I’m talking about Primary-Divine creatures on the level of the Divine Dragon simulations you fought in the final secret realm."

"I see, but after we use the Seeds of Transformation, won’t the team be on that level as well?"

Even though the Black Mist was gone, the Cosmic Will had still recommended that he give his familiar the Seeds of Transformation in a different universe so that they could absorb more cosmic energy in preparation for reaching the Cosmic rank.

"Yes, if we factor in your strength as well."

Lu Ran stood up and shut down his computer before contacting his familiars. He planned to leave the Black Tortoise in Green Sea City to help him monitor the area. All of his familiars’ kin would similarly be left behind to protect Blue Planet, Stellar Moon, and Limitless City.

He had certain responsibilities as the Keeper of the Universe, so they would have to carry them out in his stead.

He wasn’t sure how long he would be gone, so Lu Ran needed to leave behind even more manpower to hold down the fort. He didn’t expect anything to happen during his absence, but he still wasn’t planning on taking everyone with him.

His primary team was still going to be Captain Doofus, Sudden Death King, Dark Crow, Baby Cloud, and #18.

Half a day later, everyone was fully gathered.

"Are we finally leaving?" #18 excitedly asked. "There must be a Cosmic-ranked Mechanical creature out there in the multiverse. I wonder if we will be able to communicate with them."

"Let’s go take over the Cosmic Overlord Legion, my King!" Dark Crow cried.

Sudden Death King tightly hugged Baby Cloud and begged everyone to just relax. Six months wasn’t enough time for it to prepare!

Captain Doofus was the most eager to head out. It wanted to test out its new sword techniques on powerful beings from other universes. That fella, Sybas, from before seemed quite strong.

Six-Path Flower, in contrast, was the calmest of the lot.

"Didn’t you all hear what the Cosmic Will said? The other universe will be dangerous. Once we start traveling, all of you need to behave yourselves like Sudden Death King."

Lu Ran smiled as the final member of the expedition team showed up: Manager Ying. It was carrying a backpack with its real body, and only left behind a single clone.

"You want to head out now? I thought you said you were going to wait three years? It also doesn’t look like you’ve told anyone about you leaving yet."

"Yeah, I didn’t. I left a letter for my parents, but they won’t receive it until I’m gone. If I tell them ahead of time, then they’ll insist that Fang Lan come with me. This journey will be dangerous, so it wouldn’t be a good idea for her to tag along."

"Aren't you afraid I'll be in danger?"

"You’re the one who volunteered. It won't be my fault if you die."

"Hmph! I’m not going to die! In fact, I’m sure I’ll have an amazing adventure. Maybe I’ll even become strong enough to surpass the Time Dragon!"

"You’re very optimistic."

Over his palace in the Amazon, the night sky was dimly lit. Once Lu Ran’s team gathered there in the darkness, the Cosmic Will appeared as well.

"Are you ready? If so, I will pierce the barrier between universes and we’ll be able to set off. It’ll be a bumpy ride, and to avoid attracting unwanted attention, I will conceal our presence as much as possible. The other Cosmic Wills shouldn’t be able to detect us. The only thing I need to tell you is that no matter what happens during the transmission, don’t resist."

"Understood," Lu Ran and the others affirmed.

Some time later, in another universe, a crack suddenly spread across the emerald sky that canopied over a green planet. The next moment, a figure plummeted out of it. It flailed through the air before finally making impact with the ground and creating a huge crater.

The commotion quickly attracted the attention of the natives. They were humanoid in appearance but were shrouded in a white aura and stood about ten meters tall. They flew over, and their expressions shifted when they spotted Lu Ran.

One of them immediately raised his hand and aimed a bolt of energy at Lu Ran. Lu Ran was about to make a move of his own when a female giant grabbed the other one’s wrist.

"Stop," the female giant said with fearful eyes.

"What are you doing?" The male giant glared at her. "Why are you stopping me from killing this invader?"

"You’re an idiot. If you had dared to attack just now, you would be dead. My instincts tell me this guy is very powerful. Besides, he doesn’t look like he’s from the Cosmic Overlord Legion."

As they talked to each other, Lu Ran pulled himself up in spite of aching all over. His mind was still hazy, and he muttered something about Limitless City. The teleportation experience was atrocious. He wasn’t even this miserable when he was fighting in the final secret realm.

As he got up, Lu Ran noticed that he was surrounded. There were five giants—two women and three men—dressed in animal skins and watching him with vigilance.

The strongest among them was a female giant. She had a sturdy figure with long powerful legs, bronze skin, long flowing hair, and bright eyes. Her strength seemed quite impressive.

"Aliens, huh," Lu Ran muttered.

Despite the size difference, they looked very much like humans.

"Who are you?" questioned the male giant that tried to attack him earlier.

Lu Ran surprisingly understood their language.

"Did you harbor murderous intent towards me just now?"

Lu Ran's simple question made the color drain from the giant's face as if he were staring at the Grim Reaper himself. It felt like he stood amongst a sea of ​​blood and corpses.

Thankfully, the female giant stepped forward to get between them

"Please allow me to apologize on his behalf, great one. Our planet is currently being invaded by the Cosmic Overlord Legion. We're currently in an active war, so we’re all a bit tense. He was so nervous that he mistook you for a mercenary from the Legion. Please forgive him."

"The Cosmic Overlord Legion?" Lu Ran was surprised to hear a familiar name the second he arrived in a new universe. "I have nothing to do with them. I fell into a cosmic rift and got transported here. Can you tell me more about the situation here?"

The five individuals all looked nervous, but were incredibly powerful. Lu Ran sensed that the leading female giant was at least on the level of a Superior Legendary, and the other four were of the Legendary rank as well.

"Of course," the female giant answered as she signaled the others to remain calm.

"This planet is called Colossal Planet. We giants are the natives of this planet. The local environment is suitable for growing a new plant species cultivated by the Cosmic Overlord Legion, so they wish to claim the planet for themselves.

"To be fair, calling these mercenaries the Cosmic Overlord Legion isn't quite accurate anymore. The Legion is a massive mercenary group named after their former leader, Sybas, the former Cosmic Overlord. After Sybas was defeated by the current Cosmic Overlord, Panda King, they were renamed the Sybas Legion.

However, due to the Cosmic Overlord's prestige, the name Cosmic Overlord Legion stuck, and many people still use it. Despite their name change, their behavior remains egregious."

When she got to this point, her face quickly filled with anger.

"They invade planets and either kill or expel all the natives before seizing their possessions to either sell or use for themselves. Countless civilizations have already been destroyed.

"We've only been able to hold out for so long because the ones targeting us are an ordinary unit."

The story made Lu Ran even more sure that the Cosmic Overlord and Sybas were scumbags who were even worse than him. As the former Cosmic Overlord, Sybas was undeniably powerful since these atrocities were obviously met with heavy resistance.

Could this guy be this universe's God of Destruction, the one responsible for maintaining the balance between civilizations? Lu Ran pondered.

But, ultimately, Sybas was only the previous Cosmic Overlord, making him previously the strongest being in the universe. This made Lu Ran think about Panda King, who was strong enough to defeat him.

"You just mentioned the current Overlord is Panda King?" Lu Ran asked.

"I come from an isolated planet and have only recently ascended following my tribulation. I'm not very well-traveled, so can you tell me more about this Panda King?"

Could this be the same panda that he was thinking about? As in Xia’s national treasure? How could a panda become the ruler of the universe? Panda King didn’t sound like an unremarkable name. What was going on in this universe?