Age of Evolution

Chapter 367: 367: 3 Years Later

It had been some days since Lin Zhen entered the Heavenly Star List. The members from other countries merely glanced at him before focusing their attention back on the sea’s surface.

Lin Zhen had a particularly deep impression of one person.

That man, clad in white robes, had sharp blue eyes. He floated in the air as if he was merging with heaven and earth.

Moreover, he stared at Lin Zhen for an especially long time, and even said, “Young people from Hua Xia are truly extraordinary – to destroy the Star Sky Divine Teaching. They are destined for great things.”

An Bihuai looked at the man in white with caution, “Kate, you’re a grown man, you can’t possibly want to become an enemy with a young man because of the Gods Clan issue, right?”

Lin Zhen’s heart became alert upon hearing the name. This man was the first Holy Son of the Gods Clan. Judging from his words, he seemed dissatisfied with Lin Zhen’s destruction of the divine sect perhaps.

Kate snorted coldly, “I left the Gods Clan hundreds of years ago, and everything within the mundane world has nothing to do with me. I won’t actively seek trouble with him over this.”

Just as An Bihuai sighed in relief, Kate continued, “However, that doesn’t mean I can’t dislike him. Lin Zhen, my impression of you is not good.”

Chen Fenglie pulled Lin Zhen aside, “Lin Zhen, be careful with this man. His strength is second only to Mr. Yan Qiyue. You should know that in the past, Master Qing Xu was ranked second in the Heavenly Star List, but was challenged by him and dropped to fifth. Master Qing Xu never challenged anyone again and has since stayed in the fifth place.”

“Did he reach the Satellite Stage?” Lin Zhen asked.

“Yes, he is the first divine disciple of the Gods Clan, and their first Holy Son. Although he won’t actively seek you out, you should still be careful during the time with the Cloud-climbing Vine.”

Lin Zhen nodded. A master at the Satellite Stage was undoubtedly a top existence on Earth. He also didn’t want to provoke such a person unless necessary.

“Furthermore, you should take note of others like the Ice Snow Emperor of Sand Russia, the Black-robed Tyrant of the United States, and the Ancient Barter of India. Our relationship with these people is not particularly good.”

“When the Cloud-climbing Vine appears, we can dive into the sea and collect the fruits that we need. Don’t collect too many, just absorb them one by one. There is no way to store them. Avoid provoking others. The three of us will stay together. When one person is absorbing the fruit, the other two will guard them from other people and mutated beasts.”

“Does this process take a long time?” Lin Zhen asked.

An Bihuai replied, “Indeed, it takes quite a while. We have to dive deep into the sea as much as possible. The Cloud-climbing Vine is rooted in the deep sea. The deeper we go, the harder it is to collect the fruits because martial artists have to withstand the immense pressure from the water.”

Chen Fenglie continued, “According to legend, the deepest part of the ocean is the Mariana Trench in the Pacific Ocean, reaching a depth of over 11,000 meters. However, that’s only where humans have explored. Actually, the deepest place is in Bermuda, where the Cloud-climbing Vine grows in the deep-sea trenches. There are the most elemental fruits there, but unfortunately, no one can pick them.”

“How deep have you dived before?”

Chen Fenglie shook his head, “I’m not very old and this is my first time here. Older brother An has come before, and he can explain it to you.”

An Bihuai pondered for a moment, “I’ve been to Bermuda four times already. The first time I dived a little over 2000 meters, the second time I went deeper, up to 3000 meters, and the third time I reached 4000 meters. This time, I hope to reach 4500 meters, which I estimate to be my current limit.”

Chen Fenglie said, “Lin Zhen and I are here for the first time. My goal for this time is 3500 meters; any more than that might exceed my limit.”

“Does the process of diving take a long time?”

“Yes, we need to adapt to the water pressure, fight against mutated beasts, and absorb the fruits. It may take as long as one and a half years or even two years, but it won’t exceed one thousand days. These fruits can only survive for one thousand days in the ocean. They cannot be absorbed if they come into contact with the atmosphere outside of Bermuda midway and then return. Therefore, we must stay here during this time until we have absorbed enough Elemental Fruits.”

Lin Zhen nodded; it turned out that collecting the fruits required diving deep into the sea, and the deeper you go, the greater the harvest. He didn’t know what range he could reach, but he would certainly do his best.

After waiting for a while, a flicker of green emerged on the turbulent sea surface!

The Cloud-climbing Vine rose from the sea! The fruit had matured!

The fruit’s maturity not only attracted the experts from the Heavenly Star List but also enormous sea monsters hidden among the waves. These Beast Kings were also attracted by the mature fruits of the Cloud-climbing Vine.

When the flicker of green appeared, Chen Fenglie immediately pulled Lin Zhen, “The time has come! We can go down now!”

The three people immediately dived and rushed straight into the sea!

Two years passed in a blink of an eye.

Nobody knew where Lin Zhen and the others from the Heavenly Star List had gone, but people knew that the Beast King-level sea monsters had disappeared.

As time went by, significant changes occurred on Earth.

Six months later, the European Union announced the successful development and test flight of a new type of spaceship.

One year later, the Hua Xia government developed a new type of orbital cannon that could be used for space warfare.

Apart from technological advancements, martial artists on Earth also made great strides in these two years.

In Hua Xia, many experts had made breakthroughs during this time.

First, Gongsun Du had reached the top of the Dark Star List and achieved the Comet Stage.

Jin Qichao, Shang Jin, Luo Yun, and Dongfang Jun were all in the top ranks of the Dark Star List.

Among the younger generation, Feng Ni, Tang Wenbo, Duo Long, Xin Rughai, and others had entered the Star Realm one after another.

Su Mingyue and An Ning, the two girls, joined forces to kill an SSS-level Mutated Beast during the defense battle in Demon Capital, becoming the idols of Hua Xia’s female Martial Artists.

Meanwhile, Martial Artists in other countries of the world made breakthroughs, marking a golden age of cultivation.

After a year and a half, people from the Heavenly Star List finally appeared.

Chen Fenglie returned to Hua Xia.

Upon his return, he brought news of the Bermuda region.

People from the Heavenly Star List were at the bottom of the Bermuda Sea, fighting against high-level Mutated Beasts and harvesting fruits from the Cloud-climbing Vine.

Initially, everyone could harvest the fruits, but as their deep-sea diving continued, some people gradually couldn’t hold on any longer.

When Chen Fenglie left, he successfully dived to a depth of 4,800 meters, leaving ten people at the bottom of the sea, with An Bihuai and Lin Zhen still in Bermuda.

After one year and eight months, An Bihuai returned, leaving only six people at the bottom of the sea.

An Bihuai’s achievement was also impressive as he dove down to 5,600 meters and successfully resonated all his elemental powers.

The main reason for his return was to try to break through to the Comet Stage all at once.

After that, the experts from the Heavenly Star List left the Bermuda one after another. Those who left had harvested the fruits of the Cloud-climbing Vine and absorbed elemental energy to saturation.

Sixteen experts from the Heavenly Star List entered the Bermuda, and only four people were left after one year and ten months.

By one year and nine months, the Black-robed Tyrant from the United States left Bermuda, angrily proclaiming, “At this point, those who can stay inside are all madmen, especially Hua Xia’s Lin Zhen, that kid is simply a monster!”

He had dived down to 5,500 meters before finally giving up due to the immense pressure of the deep sea. However, three people still remained there.

Above 5,500 meters, there were no more fruits, and to obtain more, one had to continue diving into the deeper sea. Gathering these fruits and absorbing them on the spot wasn’t easy because the pressure was unbearable for humans.

After one year and ten months, the Ice Snow Emperor from Sand Russia emerged from the deep sea. He had reached a depth of 6,000 meters but couldn’t hold on any longer.

Upon his return, he informed everyone that Lin Zhen and Kate were still in the deep sea.

People speculated about who could last longer in Bermuda, Lin Zhen or Kate.

Most believed that Kate would last longer since he was a Satellite Stage expert.

Satellite Stage belonged to the Constant Realm Third Level. This was a different concept from the Star Realm’s Third Level, indicating that the person had stable planets within their bodies and even stronger power.

Lin Zhen’s realm had always been a mystery, and no matter his age, it was impossible for him to be compared to Kate.

During their cultivation, people often brought up this matter over tea and meals, looking forward to seeing the outcome.

After one year and eleven months, Kate finally left Bermuda.

His diving achievement was 7,500 meters and he couldn’t continue any further.

According to the news he brought, Lin Zhen was unbelievably still attempting to dive further. As much as he didn’t want to admit it, he recognized that Lin Zhen was a genius.

However, he asserted that Lin Zhen would definitely leave Bermuda within a month, and his diving depth wouldn’t exceed 8,500 meters. This was because when Yan Qiyue had previously dived, the deepest point he reached was also 8,500 meters, and he had only persisted for two years, just over 700 days.

No matter how talented Lin Zhen was, it was impossible for him to surpass Yan Qiyue’s achievements, in his opinion.

People awaited the day when Lin Zhen would emerge from the water, and some even planned to interview him when he did.

However, another month passed, and Lin Zhen still hadn’t appeared.

It was worth noting that even Yan Qiyue had only stayed in the Bermuda region for two years, and now Lin Zhen’s achievement was already on par with him.

After two years and one month, Lin Zhen still hadn’t appeared.

After two years and three months, Lin Zhen’s shadow was still nowhere to be seen. At this point, more than 800 days had passed since he entered the Bermuda region.

By the two-and-a-half-year mark, after more than 900 days, there was still no trace of Lin Zhen.

By then, people were doubting whether Lin Zhen had already left and gone somewhere else to cultivate.

Some even suspected that Lin Zhen was dead, but this argument didn’t hold up, for Lin Zhen was still ranked 18th on the Heavenly Star List, proving that he was alive and well.

After two years and seven months, people stopped discussing whether Lin Zhen was still in Bermuda. They were sure he wasn’t there anymore and must be in an unknown location.

What the people didn’t know was that an enormous alien fleet from the outer spaces had already approached the Solar System.