“The slaves are all gathered in the second lower deck hall. Mr Luo, please follow me.”
The green haired man led the way.
This spacecraft was much larger than Luo Feng’s Black Dragon spacecraft.
Of course, its materials were considerably inferior. It was only a B Grade spacecraft.
On the second lower deck was a vast hall over a hundred metres in diameter. Standing there were large numbers of slaves, some imposing, some cold and stern, some charming and beautiful.
Without being told, it would have been impossible to recognise them as slaves from their appearance alone.
After all, the weakest among them were ninth level Planetary Grade spiritual masters, stronger than Luo Feng himself. How could their bearing be ordinary?
“Mr Luo, please stand at the front,” the green haired man said. “The entire process will take a little while.”
“Fine.”
Luo Feng walked to the front of the hall and looked at the rows of slaves standing perfectly upright.
The one thousand ninth level Planetary Grade slaves stood together.
The sixteen Star Grade slaves stood closest to Luo Feng.
“Beep!”
A strange sound rang out.
Instantly, all the slaves’ eyes became somewhat vacant.
In a corner of the hall, the green haired man directed his subordinates as they operated instruments.
One device was aimed directly at Luo Feng, apparently collecting his information.
Time passed minute by minute.
Gradually, the slaves’ eyes regained their focus and intelligence.
After approximately twelve minutes…
“Master!”
More than a thousand slaves, male and female, from many different races, bowed in perfect unison and spoke with utmost respect.
“Mr Luo.”
The green haired man approached carrying a silver case, his face full of smiles.
“Everything has been completed. Inside are the 1,016 control terminal microchips corresponding to the 1,016 slaves. One control chip corresponds to one slave. These microchips can be operated through an auxiliary optical computer.”
“The operating instructions are stored on an information card included inside.”
Luo Feng nodded.
Babata had already explained all of this to him in detail.
“Mr Wula, then I’ll transfer the remaining payment.”
Luo Feng smiled.
After transferring the balance into the slave merchant’s account, the transaction was officially complete.
“Haha!”
After receiving confirmation that the funds had arrived, the green haired man beamed.
“Mr Luo, doing business with you has truly been a pleasure. This is my Virtual Universe Network number. If you ever wish to purchase slaves again, contact me directly. Whatever requirements you have, just tell me. I’ll definitely offer you the best discounts.”
He handed over a business card.
“Certainly.”
Luo Feng accepted it before turning to face the 1,016 slaves.
“Follow me.”
“Yes, Master.”
The three seventh level Star Grade Black Mong spiritual masters immediately followed behind him.
Behind them came the other thirteen Star Grade slaves.
Finally came the one thousand Planetary Grade slaves.
Some of the slaves quietly whispered among themselves.
“The ownership transfer was agony.”
“It looks like our new master has tremendous status and influence.”
“Hopefully we’ll have a good life from now on.”
Although biological chips were inexpensive to manufacture, the technology involved was extraordinarily advanced.
According to legend, humanity had obtained the technology during wars against the Mechanical Race.
Once a biological chip was implanted, the individual became completely controlled.
The slave retained all previous memories, yet became absolutely loyal to the master from the depths of their soul.
Even the slightest disrespectful thought would trigger a countermeasure from the biological chip.
Therefore…
Throughout countless years across the universe, not a single slave controlled by a biological chip had ever rebelled against their master.
Only upon becoming a Domain Lord could one resist the chip’s countermeasures.
The strongest countermeasure available to the chip was to detonate the head.
Domain Lords, however, could survive even after losing their heads.
Dragon Horn Star, planetary docking port.
“Honoured sir, we look forward to welcoming you back to Dragon Horn Star in the future.”
A green skinned giant in a grey uniform, standing nearly 2.8 metres tall with two curved horns on his head, respectfully accepted the docking card from Luo Feng.
He watched as the mighty group, led by three seventh level Star Grade experts, boarded the Black Dragon spacecraft.
The Black Dragon spacecraft lifted off and departed from the docking port.
“Phew.”
Only then did the green skinned giant relax.
“They stayed less than a day and left with an entire army.”
“And there were three seventh level Star Grade spiritual masters among them!”
Looking at the strength readings displayed on his auxiliary optical computer, he still felt his blood boiling.
Sixteen Star Grade experts.
One thousand ninth level Planetary Grade experts.
Such an elite force could easily sweep across ordinary planets.
…
Outer space beyond Dragon Horn Star.
Inside the Black Dragon spacecraft control room.
The three fifth level Star Grade experts and three seventh level Star Grade experts stood respectfully behind Luo Feng.
The ten first level Star Grade slaves had temporarily gone to manage the one thousand Planetary Grade slaves.
Those 1,010 individuals occupied the lower and middle levels of the spacecraft.
“The spacecraft has left Dragon Horn Star.”
Babata’s adorable little devil face appeared on the control screen.
“We are currently accelerating.”
A moment later.
“The spacecraft will reach light speed in ten seconds and begin universal traversal.”
“8… 7… 6… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1!”
The spacecraft vibrated slightly.
The vibration continued for ten seconds.
“Traversal successful. We have entered the Dark Universe.”
Only then did Luo Feng turn and look at the six Black Mong Star Grade slaves behind him.
Among the 1,016 slaves he had purchased, the strongest six were all Black Mongs.
The remaining 1,010 slaves were selected from the thirteen races Luo Feng had previously chosen.
The common characteristic of those races was that their appearance and physique closely resembled Earth humans.
“Black Mongs.”
Luo Feng looked at the six of them.
Four men and two women.
The Black Mong men were extremely handsome.
The women were equally beautiful.
They looked very similar to Earth humans.
The only obvious differences were the fangs visible when they opened their mouths and their dark red eyes.
“What are your names?” Luo Feng asked.
“Master.”
One of the seventh level Black Mong women smiled slightly.
“My name, translated into Universal Language, is Ebola Shadniennitasna.”
“Master, my name is Weitianla Kedenisentulade.”
The larger and more muscular seventh level Black Mong man answered.
“Master, my name is…”
All six reported their names in turn.
“Good heavens.”
Luo Feng felt speechless.
Black Mong names were truly long.
“From today onwards, I don’t care what you call one another.”
He pointed at the muscular seventh level man.
“I’ll call you Meng One. You are Meng Two. You are Meng Three.”
In one breath, he assigned names from Meng One through Meng Six.
Meng Three and Meng Six were the two women.
“Yes, Master.”
The six Black Mongs accepted the names happily, although they exchanged somewhat helpless looks.
“You may all return to your quarters and rest.”
“Yes.”
The six withdrew.
The control room was left with only Luo Feng.
The door automatically closed.
“Babata, connect me to the Virtual Universe Network.”
…
Virtual Universe, Black Dragon Mountain Island.
Crowds flowed endlessly through the bustling streets.
People occasionally appeared out of thin air.
Luo Feng materialised just as suddenly.
The fist sized little devil sat on his shoulder.
“Mr Luo Feng, your Universe Galaxy Bank account has been detected. Would you like to bind it?”
A gentle and pleasant voice appeared directly in his mind.
“Bind it.”
The Universe Galaxy Bank account was linked to his spiritual imprint.
The Virtual Universe was connected directly to consciousness and therefore recognised spiritual imprints as well.
“Babata, proceed according to the plan.”
Luo Feng casually entered an old bar by the roadside, ordered a fruit juice, and sat in a corner.
“Luo Feng, I’ve gathered information. Within thirty thousand light years of Earth there are many planets meeting your requirements for a second base.”
“Oh?”
Luo Feng frowned slightly.
Earth was his home.
He was determined to become Earth’s planetary lord.
Naturally, Earth would be his primary base.
However…
When the Master of Yun Mo Planet had entered the Dark Universe, he had used spatial techniques to conceal the coordinates corresponding to nearly a thousand light years surrounding Earth.
Finding those hidden coordinates was extraordinarily difficult.
Even among Immortal experts, very few could accomplish it.
Apart from Babata, who could easily locate the concealed coordinates, other spacecraft simply could not travel directly to Earth.
They would have to travel slowly through normal space.
In the future, Luo Feng intended to purchase large quantities of metals and other resources.
Having suppliers deliver directly to Earth would be impossible.
Therefore, he absolutely needed a second base.
This second base would become the receiving point for massive shipments and an important location for dealing with people throughout the universe.
“As close to Earth as possible.”
“As cheap as possible.”
“The population should be as small as possible.”
“And the warehouse should be as large as possible.”
Luo Feng listed his requirements.
What he needed was a massive warehouse.
Throughout the universe, warehouse operations supporting interstellar transport were quite common.
Many regions unsuitable for agriculture or habitation had been developed into enormous storage facilities.
“Luo Feng, I found a suitable one.”
Babata continued.
“White Orchid Star, a planet within the Milky Way. It is 11,800 light years from Earth.”
“The planet remains extremely cold year round. Some regions reach temperatures around minus 120 degrees Celsius. Even the warmest areas are usually around minus 10 degrees.”
“The entire population is 2.1 billion. Due to the climate, almost everyone lives within cities.”
“In the extreme cold region, there is a large warehouse complex measuring 98 kilometres long and 61 kilometres wide.”
“It is currently for sale.”
“The permanent ownership rights are priced at 800 million Silver Blue Coins.”
“After purchase, annual planetary management taxes would be only 600,000 Silver Blue Coins.”
Luo Feng’s eyes lit up.
Ninety eight kilometres long.
Sixty one kilometres wide.
As expected of a warehouse built for interstellar transport.
It was enormous.
Such warehouses were usually constructed from spacecraft wreckage, warship debris, and other recycled materials.
Despite their immense size, construction costs would certainly not exceed 100 million Silver Blue Coins.
The high price came primarily from the land.
Of course, transforming such a frozen wasteland into a residential area would be prohibitively expensive and largely pointless.
The asking price was actually reasonable.
“Good.”
Luo Feng nodded.
“Babata, contact White Orchid Star and finalise the deal.”
The negotiations lasted more than three hours.
In the end, they reached an agreement with White Orchid Star’s administration.
For 800,000 Black Dragon Coins, with the official exchange rate being one Black Dragon Coin to one thousand Silver Blue Coins, though Black Dragon Coins were actually worth more, Luo Feng obtained permanent ownership of the warehouse complex.
Additionally, he was exempted from management taxes for five hundred years.
Black Dragon Coins were extremely valuable.
Many residents of ordinary planets would not earn even a single Black Dragon Coin in an entire year.
…
Days passed one after another.
Nine days later.
“We are approaching the universal coordinates of the White Orchid Star region. Universal traversal will begin in 320 seconds.”
Babata’s voice echoed from the control screen aboard the Black Dragon spacecraft.
Luo Feng smiled.
White Orchid Star was very close to Earth, only a little over ten thousand light years away.
With the speed of the Black Dragon spacecraft, a round trip between Earth and White Orchid Star could be completed within a single day.