Super Gene Optimization Fluid

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After circling the training grounds twice and studying his surroundings, Traveling Buddha made his approach to the man who was currently weight-training with curls, nonchalantly taking a seat near him.

The man quickly stopped his curls, looking like he was taking a rest. He sat together with Traveling Buddha and used a white towel that the camp had provided to wipe the sweat off his body.

This man looked like he was a native from the Outer Frontier, his skin dark and with a relatively flat nose bridge and broad chin. He looked like a mixed-blood descendant between the many races found in the Outer Frontier.

Placing the towel over his head, he very quietly whispered, "Little Old Buddha. To think we would meet again."

Traveling Buddha replied surreptitiously, "Tsk, you still owe me a set of Innocent Maidens figurines from all those years back when you lost after challenging me to a swimming race."

That man was somewhat sheepish as he replied, "That was more than a decade ago, you still remember that?"

"But of course! This Old Buddha has a memory like a steel trap!"

That man chuckled bitterly, "Alright. If we somehow survive this, I'll personally hand over that set to you. But you'll have to treat me to some tea when that time comes."

Traveling Buddha's temple twitched slightly. Perhaps it was because the man made him feel somewhat touched.

Traveling Buddha's expression quickly returned back to neutral as he said in a serious voice, "Ink. Honestly speaking, where are we right now?"

Traveling Buddha called the man Ink, someone from the founding clans in Starcloud Union. Thousand Ink of the Thousand Soldiers Clan! It was no wonder Traveling Buddha asked for his figurines, since they had been good friends and playmates when younger.

Thousand Ink said, "I have good news and bad news. Which would you like first?"

"Anything goes. Your choice."

Thousand Ink shook his head slightly. Sure enough, Traveling Buddha was still the same with his casual personality.

After a pause to think, Thousand Ink answered, "The good news is that I've already established contact with the other teams. Though everyone has lost the protection of the headquarters, we at least still have each other."

"Who are they?"

"Besides myself, you should also recognize Jin Yu and Luo Jiuyi. You haven't met any of the others, so there's no point in me telling you about them. In any case, the Union sent four infiltration teams, and right now there are eight of us in the encampment. You should be the one with the greatest combat strength out of everyone."

Traveling Buddha shook his head. "I'm not the strongest. The person whom I'm partnered with is even more powerful than me!"

Thousand Ink was shocked. "How rare for me to hear such words coming from the Little Old Buddha's lips! Had I not heard this myself, I would definitely not believe that Little Old Buddha would personally admit he isn't a match for someone else."

Traveling Buddha did not deny that. "It's up to you if you want to believe me or not, but the person I'm partnered with is able to beat you up in one second to the point even your mother would not recognize you. I can't do that, as I'd need at least two seconds to deal with you."

Thousand Ink nearly wanted to break out into laughter after hearing Traveling Buddha's boastful words, but he controlled himself. Looking around once more, he lowered his head and said in a quiet whisper, "I'll tell you the bad news now. First, we've lost contact with the headquarters. Second, we are in big trouble."

"Oh? How so?"

"I sent my little guys around to investigate yesterday, and guess what I found?"

"What did you find?"

"A dark hole that is at least fifteen kilometers wide. It's so deep that you can't see the bottom. You should be able to guess what hole it is, right?"

Thousand Ink did not look at Traveling Buddha's expression after he was done, but he knew that it had to look terrible right now. The night before, when Thousand Ink secretly conducted his investigations, the reaction he had at the moment he discovered that dark hole should be the same one that Traveling Buddha was having right now.

After some time, Traveling Buddha opened his mouth again. Even the voice of this person who usually did not give a damn about anything around him had gone soft.

"Are you positive?"

"Of course. You know my little guys. They are not the sort that would make a mistake."

Traveling Buddha was quiet.

'A recitation of Holy Buddha, a brush with Thousand Soldiers.' The Thousand Soldiers Clan and the Holy Buddha Clan were both founding clans of the Starcloud Union, so Traveling Buddha was very familiar with what they were capable of.

Drawing tigers that stalked the mountains and forest, Drawing dragons that surged into the stars! Thousand Ink could Draw whatever came into his mind, and the creature would be able to rise to life and become a beast of war under his command. At its highest rank, his special ability could Draw and raise an army numbering in the tens of thousands! It was why Thousand Ink's clan was called the Thousand Soldiers Clan: any member of that clan might have the ability to Draw an entire army out of nothing!

Traveling Buddha could easily imagine Thousand Ink quietly Drawing up a swarm of flying insects last night, or small creatures like rats and mice, and then sending them running out everywhere to investigate without anyone realizing it. It had to be how he had found that dark hole in the end.

Traveling Buddha believed Thousand Ink. Even though he was someone who would cheat when playing, and was hardly a good playmate, he was definitely not going to make any mistakes in something as major as their operation.

Traveling Buddha forced himself to calm down. "So, what you mean to say is that you believe the dark hole is the rumored Demon Chasm?"

Thousand Ink chuckled bitterly, "It doesn't matter what I think. What matters is that we are unable to take the risk of a Demon Chasm reappearing!

"It's understandable if others don't know, but you ought to be aware right, Little Old Buddha? What it would mean if the Demon Chasm were to open again after forty thousand years?

"Honestly, though the Murder Shrine is detestable, I never thought they would be capable of shaking the very foundation of the three great Federations. After all, the three Federations not only have the hard power that is obvious for all to see, they also have the soft power hidden in the shadows. Take for example that person from your clan who is living in the Holy Buddha Cliff, as well as the one from my clan who wanders about endlessly. Their existence ensures that the three Federations will not easily collapse.

"Still, we know the most basic of principles: that no matter how powerful those two from our clans are, they are only human. In this world, only a demon can kill another demon! That isn't something I say, but what the Demon-Sealing Fiendish Blade said when they eradicated Ashen Dragon and Hidden Moon 40,000 years ago.

"I don't like the Skywings because they destroyed the Ashen Dragon and Hidden Moon factions, something that our ancestors had worked hard to establish, but I have to admit that those madmen are more than capable of facing up against the Demon Chasm. Remember what the Skywings said before they departed?"

Traveling Buddha slightly nodded, "'We've Sealed the Demon Chasm, but there's no guarantee that it will hold forever. From here on, you're on your own!'"

"That's the line," Thousand Ink sighed. "The Skywings sure are a bunch of inscrutable people. On the one hand, they eradicated Ashen Dragon and Hidden Moon and are our mortal enemies. But on the other hand, it seems we were saved by the Skywings!

"Little Old Buddha, I know you've never enjoyed troublesome things, but right now, only you can make this decision. If you decide to send the news about the reappearance of the Demon Chasm back to the headquarters, we brothers will put our lives on the line for your sake, hijack a ship, charge through the spatial shielding, and risk it all just so we can report this to the Headquarters. But if you decide to not make a move, everyone will continue to bide our time."

Traveling Buddha felt that he was in an awkward position. He did not enjoy being a decision maker, but right now, Traveling Buddha felt what it was like to not have Xia Fan by his side. Though Xia Fan was from some unremarkable background, it had been him who had been making all the decisions during the time they spent as partners, and those decisions had all been correct.

Furthermore, Xia Fan was good at decision-making and thinking things through, and he never hesitated, even once!

Just what exactly should I do?

Traveling Buddha painfully slipped into deep thought. Murder Shrine's forces were everywhere, and their enemy's strength was so much greater. Furthermore, the entire star system had spatial shielding, meaning that they first had to hijack a ship and then escape the shielded region before they could even send a message out!

Traveling Buddha believed that with experts like Thousand Ink, Jin Yu, and Luo Jiuyi, they would not have much difficulty getting a hold of a spaceship, but the key was that they still had to fly their way out of the star system. This process would surely alert the warships that were patrolling out there, and the moment the ship was destroyed after sending out the message, then everything would be for naught!

Nevertheless, sitting around and waiting for things to happen was not the solution, either. Who knew whether the so-called special ability Tyrant Battle was real or not? What if the battle was not a thing, and that Murder Shrine had gathered all the experts of the Outer Frontier just to activate the Demon Chasm?

Traveling Buddha could not make up his mind. He grit his teeth and said to Thousand Ink, "I'll try and look for Xia Fan tomorrow, and hear his thoughts on the matter. But no matter what we end up doing, we must look out for each other, so we can all gather together even in the event of an emergency. We'll need your power to achieve that."

Thousand Ink thought about it and said, "No problem. Managing the big picture is my speciality."

Traveling Buddha nodded, "Tonight, send your little guys out to meet Xia Fan, and remember his features."

"Got it. Where is this Xia Fan right now?"

Traveling Buddha scratched his head and replied helplessly, "He got locked up, and is even wearing a pair of disruptor handcuffs!"