The heights a lifeform can reach depend on two main factors.
First, one's innate talent.
Second, the influence of external forces.
Both are indispensable.
In fact, the latter is often even more important.
Without external aid and resources, even with great talent, one will take many detours.
Conversely, as long as there are enough external resources, even average talent can achieve high accomplishments in the end.
Talent determines the upper limit.
External forces determine the lower limit.
In Chibao King's view, Lin Yuan was a bloodline regressor.
As for talent, there was no question—it was absolutely top-tier.
But to grow to the limit alone, without access to the Liyang Ancient Kingdom’s royal resources or inherited guidance—
And even manage to defeat and kill another extreme core royal like Ling Shen King—
That was truly unheard of. At least, in all the endless ages, the Liyang Ancient Kingdom had never produced such a monster.
There had been cases where a native’s bloodline regressed and eventually rose to prominence.
But “rising to prominence” there referred to receiving focused cultivation from the ancient kingdom before rising up.
Lin Yuan, on the other hand—
Before today, Chibao King had never even heard the name "Milky Way."
Lin Yuan hadn’t had any contact with the royal clan, and yet he had already risen.
To reach the level of an extreme core royal, what else was that but a rise to prominence? And not only did Lin Yuan reach the extreme, he had just slain another extreme royal.
"Brother Milky Way, you possess the Blazing Sun Divine Body and are a descendant of the Ancestor. Here and now, I officially invite you to join our Liyang royal lineage."
Chibao King composed himself and extended the invitation at once.
Now that he was certain Lin Yuan was a true descendant of Liyang, his first instinct was to recruit him.
He wanted to bring Lin Yuan fully into the royal fold.
What a joke! With a monster like this, what are you waiting for? If he let him slip away, Chibao King would regret it for billions upon billions of years.
As for whether there might be any issue with Lin Yuan's identity... Chibao King never gave it a thought.
First, the dense Sunborn aura Lin Yuan gave off could not be faked.
Second—what issue could there possibly be? The Liyang Ancient Kingdom was one of the greatest powers in this world. Whatever karma Lin Yuan carried, they could handle it.
That was more than enough.
"Join the Liyang royal lineage?"
Lin Yuan looked at Chibao King.
In truth, even without this invitation, he’d already planned to visit the Liyang capital before long.
The Liyang Ancestor was a thirteenth-rank temporal lifeform, and so far, the only such thirteenth-rank power Lin Yuan had confirmed.
Other ancient kingdoms didn't count here.
In the Chaos Void, even Chaos Great Saints and Supreme Saints searched in vain for thirteenth-rank temporal beings.
Yet here in this source world, he might get a real chance to make contact?
Lin Yuan wasn't about to miss it.
For a twelfth-rank being to break through to thirteenth rank, the hardest hurdle was surviving a temporal cycle.
And as for how to cross a time cycle, whether there was any auxiliary method... the Eye of Ten Thousand Laws frankly said there wasn’t.
Spreading one's own evolutionary path and strengthening one’s anchor points didn’t really count as assistance.
But the Eye of Ten Thousand Laws was only a relic left by a thirteenth-rank temporal being—naturally not comparable to a real thirteenth-rank lifeform.
Just because the Eye said there was no way, didn’t mean a true thirteenth-rank being didn’t have a way.
In any case, for Lin Yuan, passing a time cycle was a problem for the distant future—his true realm was still only at Dominance.
That aside—
There were plenty of immediate, visible benefits—such as access to immense resources and inheritances.
The importance of resources was obvious; inheritances, even more so.
"Infinite Void" itself was a thirteenth-rank inheritance, giving Lin Yuan a truly terrifying foundation.
As the Liyang Ancestor was a thirteenth-rank temporal being, he’d surely left a thirteenth-rank inheritance as well.
If Lin Yuan could obtain it, it would vastly strengthen his foundation—even if reaching thirteenth rank was still far off, enhancing his strength was always valuable.
"Brother Milky Way, most of the top powerhouses in this world—especially the Heavenly Sovereigns—choose to join one of the six great kingdoms. There’s no shame in it."
Chibao King continued, "Let’s not mention the other five, but our Liyang Ancient Kingdom has countless inheritances and treasures granted by the Ancestor. Those Heavenly Sovereigns—relying on their own cultivation to advance? How long would that take? And even if they could, would they ever succeed?"
"But by joining our kingdom, with clear inheritance and guidance, it’s much easier."
Chibao King looked at Lin Yuan, and added, "Some Great Sovereigns refuse to be bound, so they don’t join any kingdom. But Heavenly Sovereigns? There are basically no neutral Heavenly Sovereigns; they all belong to some kingdom."
"I know," Lin Yuan nodded.
Great Sovereigns like Hongye and Huofu weren’t ennobled by the Liyang Kingdom.
And that was basically as far as a neutral powerhouse could go. Without joining a kingdom, a Great Sovereign’s chance of advancing to Heavenly Sovereign was minuscule.
Even if they somehow succeeded, once they realized how much harder it was to cultivate as a Heavenly Sovereign, they would end up joining a kingdom anyway, hoping for more guidance.
"If you’re willing to join our royal lineage, Brother Milky Way, I’ll personally report it to His Majesty. You’ll receive only the finest cultivation and treatment," Chibao King promised.
Unlike those Heavenly Sovereigns who joined later, Lin Yuan had pure ancestor blood, at the core royal level, and was bound to Liyang by birth.
For other Heavenly Sovereigns who joined, the royal clan would always hold something back, never giving their deepest inheritances.
But Lin Yuan was different.
As a fellow royal—especially a core royal—if Lin Yuan joined, his status and treatment would far exceed those who’d joined later.
"Alright, I’m willing to join."
Lin Yuan agreed without hesitation.
From what he could see, the benefits of joining far outweighed any drawbacks.
The only real issue was that he wasn’t a true core royal by blood.
But ever since his inner universe had fused with and devoured the Sunborn Genesis, the light of the sun had spread throughout his entire body, constantly absorbing the radiance from the true eternal sun above this world.
His Sunborn bloodline was rapidly becoming purer—by now, it was about equal to a normal royal bloodline.
In time, evolving to the full core royal standard shouldn’t be a problem.
The "Sunborn Genesis" divine power itself was the Liyang Ancestor’s own talent—by always running this power, he could continuously refine and purify his Sunborn bloodline.
Of course, this kind of bloodline transformation only worked in this source world.
As for his main body and true soul back in the Chaos Void—it did nothing.
First, his Chaos Void main body didn’t even have a Sunborn bloodline.
To refine a bloodline, you had to have it first.
Second, the Chaos Void had no eternal sun above the heavens to draw from.
Lin Yuan could feel that his own bloodline refinement was mostly thanks to the eternal sun’s radiance enveloping him from above.
"Good! Excellent!"
Chibao King couldn’t help but beam with joy. "With Brother Milky Way joining us, our royal clan can finally show its true strength."
"Show its strength?"
Lin Yuan looked at Chibao King.
"You wouldn’t know if you haven’t mixed with the royals," Chibao King explained. "Within the Liyang Kingdom, competition is fierce—even among the royals and the Heavenly Sovereigns."
"The rarest resources are limited. Royals want them, Heavenly Sovereigns want them too."
"Heavenly Sovereigns might not have strong ancestor bloodlines, but their strength is immense—they have plenty of sway at the capital."
"If it weren’t for the rule that each emperor must have royal blood, the Heavenly Sovereigns might have suppressed us royals entirely."
Chibao King sighed.
It wasn’t something easy to change—it was domestic politics, after all. Most Heavenly Sovereigns, even with diluted ancestor blood, were still technically descendants.
If there was an outside invasion, they could call on the Ancestor to crush the enemy, but when it was just internal competition between the same bloodline, the Ancestor wouldn’t bother to get involved.
"I see."
Lin Yuan nodded, understanding.
He’d heard long ago that Heavenly Sovereigns looked down on the royals.
That wasn’t just pride, but a real conflict of interests.
The kingdom’s power always rested in the emperor’s hands, and while emperors favored their kin, they couldn’t go too far, or risk angering the Heavenly Sovereigns.
If all the Heavenly Sovereigns in a kingdom stopped caring, that would be a disaster.
So each emperor tried to maintain a balance between royal and Heavenly Sovereign factions.
Still, the most core inheritances and resources were only open to royals—that was their greatest advantage.
Which was why the Heavenly Sovereigns looked down on them.
"But with your talent, Brother Milky Way, once you join our royal clan and access our true inheritance and resources, your progress will soar. Maybe you really will be the one to break the Heavenly Sovereign barrier," Chibao King said with hope.
The so-called Heavenly Sovereign barrier was the iron rule that no royal had ever crossed into the Heavenly Sovereign realm.
To this day, not a single royal had ever become a Heavenly Sovereign.
That was the root of the conflict between royal and Heavenly Sovereign factions.
In terms of power, aside from the emperor and a handful of royals with the deepest heritage, the Heavenly Sovereigns held the upper hand.
But if even one royal broke through to become a Heavenly Sovereign, everything would change.
"I’ll do my best."
Lin Yuan nodded.
"That’s all anyone can ask."
Chibao King grinned, clearly holding high hopes for Lin Yuan.
Someone who'd never been cultivated by the royals, but could grow to this point—what would happen after he got their full support? Every powerhouse—royal or late-joining Heavenly Sovereign—experienced explosive growth after first accessing royal inheritance and resources.
Chibao King introduced Lin Yuan to the details of the royal clan’s internal affairs, then asked with some curiosity, "Chijue showed me the footage of your fight with Ling Shen King."
"If you could kill Ling Shen King, you must have gone far down the path of breaking the Heavenly Sovereign barrier."
"Would you mind sparring with me, so I can see for myself?"
He looked at Lin Yuan expectantly.
It wasn’t that he doubted Lin Yuan’s power—many had witnessed him kill Ling Shen King. It couldn’t have been faked.
Ling Shen King, as a core royal of the Grand Ling Ancient Kingdom, wouldn’t have played along, either.
Chibao King was simply curious about Lin Yuan’s strength. As an extreme core royal himself, he knew how difficult it was to go even a step further at that level.
"No problem."
Lin Yuan agreed.
He also wanted to see what a Liyang Ancient Kingdom extreme core royal could do.
Ling Shen King was extreme, but from the Grand Ling Ancient Kingdom—each kingdom’s core royals might be different.
"Great, let’s head to a higher plane."
Chibao King stood up at once.
Soon enough, they both arrived at a higher level of space-time.
Here, the area was vast—even if two Heavenly Sovereigns battled, the shockwaves would be much diminished by the time they reached the ground.
"Brother Milky Way, I’m making my move."
Chibao King's form blurred, and in a flash, a great sun condensed before him.
Lin Yuan’s mind moved. His Blazing Sun Divine Body activated on its own, and a vast Sunborn Genesis world formed.
Boom—
Chibao King also activated his Blazing Sun Divine Body, forming his own Sunborn Genesis world, and the two worlds collided again and again.
The Blazing Sun Divine Body was the strongest physique of the Liyang Ancient Kingdom. Every powerhouse who awakened it was unique, but the main traits were similar.
For example, the self-operating Sunborn Genesis world—it was something every Blazing Sun Divine Body powerhouse could do.
The strength of a Sunborn Genesis world depended on the foundation of the Blazing Sun Divine Body.
Boom! Boom! Boom! The two vast Sunborn Genesis worlds kept colliding, but it was clear Lin Yuan’s world was the stronger.
"Hm?"
Lin Yuan noticed Chibao King’s serious look and further increased the intensity of his world.
The strength of the Sunborn Genesis world depended not just on the Blazing Sun Divine Body, but on the foundation of the powerhouse.
Foundation was everything. Lin Yuan’s inner universe had fused with and devoured the Sunborn Genesis—his foundation was unprecedentedly strong. Even a simple punch would unleash earth-shattering power.
"Infinite Void" boosted every aspect of Lin Yuan’s strength, not just one area.
"Not good."
Chibao King’s expression shifted—he could clearly feel the pressure of Lin Yuan’s Sunborn Genesis world increasing, and his own world was starting to twist and deform under it.
"What kind of foundation does it take for a Sunborn Genesis world to be this strong?" Chibao King was shocked.
Before, he’d wondered if Lin Yuan had used some one-off trump card to kill Ling Shen King.
But now, after clashing Sunborn Genesis worlds, that thought was gone.
The clash of these worlds was pure contest of foundation—no tricks at all.
Sunborn Genesis comes from the Blazing Sun Divine Body, and the Blazing Sun Divine Body comes from oneself. External forces might boost attack or defense, but they couldn't directly strengthen the core Blazing Sun Divine Body itself.
"I concede, Brother Milky Way."
Chibao King held out as long as he could, but any longer and he’d have to use lethal force—which would go against the spirit of a friendly spar.
So he didn’t hesitate:
"I concede."
...
20 chapters ahead on patreon: patreon.com/David_Lord
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