Soon, Lin Mo was ready to settle a long-overdue personal matter.
It wasn't something particularly grand—not a war or political mission. It was just vengeance. Simple, personal vengeance. He was going to kill the man who had murdered his mother.
Fifteen years ago, when LongChen had descended upon the raiders that destroyed Lin Mo's village, he had intentionally spared one man—the killer of his mother. He left that man alive, beaten and broken, not out of mercy, but so Lin Mo could take justice into his own hands when the time was right.
Over the years, Lin Mo had confronted him six times. Each time, he inflicted unimaginable damage, leaving the man teetering between life and death. If Lin Mo had truly wanted to end it, he could have done it very easily. But he didn't. It was a cruel game of cat and mouse—a slow, calculated torment.
But now the game has lost its thrill.
Now, it will end. Lin Mo had no patience left for mercy or hesitation.
At the central train station of the city, Gu Jun arrived. Here he will board a train for Tianhai.
To the average onlooker, he was alone, just another well-dressed youth preparing for a journey. But appearances were deceptive. Four people accompanied him, though almost no one would be able to spot them if they did not want to be exposed.
The first was An Jing, who had arrived separately to rendezvous. The other two were Yingchen and Yinglan, his shadows. And then there was the last, a masked woman, around twenty-four years old.
She was Di Yan, the personal bodyguard sent by Gu Jun's mother.
Zi Feng believed her son was living a normal life, preparing for university. She had no idea about his current complicated situation. Six years ago, during the assassination attempt, all of the Zi family's elite guards were slaughtered. Unaware of the true events, Zi Feng assumed the guards had protected her son successfully. So she also concentrates on taking revenge. And she was successful in taking control of the family.
Following that incident, Di Yan had been assigned to watch over Gu Jun. Once a junior apprentice within the Zi family's inner guard, she was now his designated protector.
Though she lived in close proximity to him, she knew little about his true situation. Gu Jun didn't worry about her discovering anything. LongChen had arranged things carefully, ensuring her loyalty, even from his own mother.
Despite her limited understanding of the situation, Di Yan was no ordinary guard. Her cultivation had reached the peak of the Dark Energy stage. Though Gu Jun considered it weak compared to his other companions, her strength was formidable by ordinary standards.
In an open field, she was nearly untouchable. Her agility and stealth made her almost impossible to catch. In a confined space, it would take a platoon—at least twenty well-armed soldiers with automatic rifles—to bring her down. Even then, it wouldn't be easy. In the open, one would need machine guns just to slow her.
Earth's cultivation stages were structured, but unforgiving.
The first stage was Vitality Sensation—the gateway to cultivation. It enhanced physical ability 5 to 10 times—strength, speed, reflexes—just enough to outperform normal humans.
Next came Bright Energy, where one could channel vitality outward. Practitioners could leap from five-story buildings, bend metal with their bare hands, and dodge bullets.
Dark Strength followed. Di Yan was currently at its peak. Here, practitioners could move with blinding speed, coat weapons in energy, and unleash ranged attacks of pure vitality. Telekinesis, enhanced senses, and energy projection became possible. Lifespan extended to roughly 150 years. In the peak of this stage, they also gain a rudimentary divine sense.
Then came HuaJin, a stage few reached. To kill a HuaJin-level warrior required a company of at least two hundred elite soldiers with advanced weaponry. A single one could level a city block if provoked. The most powerful families might possess only a handful. For instance, the Xiao family had just seven HuaJin warriors. Their patriarch stood at the peak of this realm, with a lifespan nearing 225 years. In this stage, divine sense is matured.
Above that loomed Innate—a realm where cultivators transcended the limits of the body and became forces of nature. Even the prestigious Zi family had only three Innate-level warriors, including their ancient patriarch, who was said to have reached the late stage.
In Country X, reaching the peak of Innate carried a heavy consequence: banishment from the mundane realm. Anyone breaking through was sent to the Sacred Garden, a hidden place where the nation's most powerful beings—the Supreme Protectors—resided in silence. They were barred from interfering in mortal affairs. They are too dangerous, too powerful. They can also be called Humanoid calamities.
The country is very careful about them. Those people are humanoid disasters, only the nuclear weapon is effective against them, but it is not a complete sure kill as they can hide themselves in the dipper dimension.
There were four known Peak Innates in Country X.
In the Gu Empire, there were three: the Right Protector, the Left Protector, and the Grand Elder.
It has a lifespan of 400 years, and most of Country X's peak innate are old monsters.
Their only job is to provide the country with stability and try to break through the divine stage that has not appeared in thousands of years. It is said that divine stage warriors can leave Earth and travel to other planets in the solar system, but it is not certain, as nobody has seen them. They are a mystery, but obviously not to Gu Jun.
Gu Jun boarded the train.
He stepped into a first-class compartment, noting that there were only ten passengers inside. Quiet. Perfect.
As he sat by the window, his thoughts turned inward, toward his own cultivation. Currently, he lingered at the bottom: Vitality Sensation. It was pitifully weak compared to what he needed to become.
He longed to improve. But his path wasn't like others. His breakthrough was harsh, nearly impossible without meeting certain conditions.
And those conditions, unfortunately, were beyond his control, at least for now.