Inside the magnificent semicircular hall, the black robed child pointed a pale finger towards the centre of the floor.
A hissing sound rang out as the metal floor split apart, revealing a passage below.
“Follow me.”
The black robed child led the way, with Luo Feng following behind.
“He’s asking me to pay respects to some master who died fifty thousand years ago?”
Luo Feng was filled with questions.
However, judging by everything the ruins had revealed so far, if they truly intended to kill him, there would be no need for such elaborate methods.
Suppressing his doubts, he followed step by step.
When they reached the passage, the black robed child leapt down.
Luo Feng followed.
The passage was around thirty metres deep.
As both of them landed below, lights illuminated the previously dark chamber.
With a single glance, Luo Feng saw that it was completely empty.
The walls formed an octagonal shape, and there was not a single object inside.
“Open.”
The black robed child pointed towards the floor.
Clack. Clack. Clack.
The ground trembled gently as it slowly split apart.
“My master’s body has been sealed away with great care. You’ll see it in a moment.”
The black robed child looked at Luo Feng, his crimson eyes unsettling to behold.
“Luo Feng, you must be full of questions.”
“Yes.”
Luo Feng did not deny it.
“First, let me introduce myself. My name is Babata. You may call me Demon Babata. Of course, that’s simply the translation into Earth’s Chinese language. In the universal language of the universe, it would be pronounced as ‘xxxx’.”
The final string of words was perfectly audible to Luo Feng, yet completely incomprehensible.
Luo Feng blinked.
Demon Babata?
“The word ‘Demon’ is a title I gave myself.”
The black robed child continued.
“In essence, I am an intelligence.”
“An intelligence?”
Luo Feng frowned.
Something similar to the bald crystal man that served as the intelligence in Ancient Civilisation Ruin No. 9?
“However, intelligence cores are divided into different levels.”
“The simple logical processing programs on your Earth aren’t even qualified to be called intelligent.”
“To truly qualify as an intelligence, it must at the very least possess reasoning ability equal to that of a human.”
“The intelligence core inside Ancient Civilisation Ruin No. 9 that you know of can barely be considered genuine intelligence.”
“As for me…”
“Although I am fundamentally an intelligence, after spending countless years alongside my master, I have transcended ordinary intelligence.”
“I am what is known as an intelligent lifeform.”
“I am a true form of life, just like humans, animals, and plants.”
His voice became noticeably more passionate.
“I possess joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness.”
“I can cultivate and evolve.”
“My master even prepared a physical body for me.”
“Using that body, I spread the name Demon Babata throughout countless star systems across the vast universe.”
A trace of pride appeared on his face.
Luo Feng listened in silent astonishment.
Emotions.
Cultivation.
Evolution.
This was no longer merely an intelligent system.
It truly deserved to be called intelligent life.
According to Babata’s explanation, intelligence could be divided into four levels.
Logical processing programs.
Intelligence capable of reasoning like a real human.
Intelligence possessing emotions.
Intelligent life.
“During the earth shattering battle fifty thousand years ago that swept across countless star systems, my body was destroyed, forcing me to return to being nothing more than a virtual intelligent existence.”
A trace of sadness crossed Babata’s face.
“At least I was able to continue existing as a virtual intelligence.”
“But my master…”
He turned towards the crystal coffin that was slowly rising from beneath the floor.
The transparent crystal coffin gradually emerged.
Luo Feng watched closely.
It measured six metres long, four metres wide, and two metres high.
The completely transparent coffin radiated an astonishing chill.
Even wearing the Black God Set, and as a first level Planetary Spirit Reader, Luo Feng shivered.
It was unbelievably cold.
Something capable of producing such freezing temperatures was probably not ordinary crystal at all.
Still, Luo Feng had no idea what material it really was.
For now, he simply regarded it as a crystal coffin.
Inside lay a body.
The corpse stood around three metres tall.
Two flexible antennae extended from its forehead.
Apart from those antennae and its larger size, it looked almost identical to a human from Earth.
It wore a black robe that shimmered with countless tiny points of light.
Its long hair spread loosely behind it as it rested peacefully inside the crystal coffin, appearing almost asleep.
Its features were extraordinarily handsome.
Its long, narrow eyes gave it an elegant, almost feminine appearance.
Although it was only a corpse now, it still possessed an indescribable charm capable of stirring one’s very soul.
“Master.”
Babata grasped the crystal coffin tightly with his pale hands.
His expression twisted with grief.
Drip.
Drip.
Two tears fell.
Luo Feng stared blankly.
“A virtual intelligent lifeform can cry?”
“Get on your knees.”
Babata suddenly turned towards Luo Feng.
Luo Feng hesitated.
“I said kneel.”
“You are a member of Yun Mo Planet.”
“My master was the Master of Yun Mo Planet.”
“You should kneel before him.”
Babata roared.
Madness briefly flashed within his crimson eyes.
Moments later, he closed them.
When he opened them again, he had calmed considerably.
Smiling bitterly, he said,
“I haven’t spoken to anyone for fifty thousand years.”
“My emotions have become unstable.”
“If I had remained nothing more than an ordinary intelligence without feelings, fifty thousand years of solitude wouldn’t have mattered.”
“But after gaining emotions, those fifty thousand years became almost unbearable.”
“Actually… I used to have a very good temper.”
Luo Feng could not help feeling both amused and sympathetic.
“Babata.”
“You said this body belongs to the Master of Yun Mo Planet.”
“Does that mean he’s Hu Yanbo?”
Luo Feng asked nervously.
“That’s right.”
“Translated into your Earth’s Chinese language, his name would indeed be Hu Yanbo.”
Babata seemed much calmer now.
“Hu Yanbo… the Master of Yun Mo Planet.”
Luo Feng took a deep breath.
“Simply because I’ve inherited even a small part of his teachings, I should pay my respects.”
With a loud thud, Luo Feng knelt before the crystal coffin.
He kowtowed three times.
Although he had never met Hu Yanbo, ever since beginning the cultivation method Soaring Heavens and hearing his name, Luo Feng had admired him deeply.
Someone capable of creating so many spiritual force weapons, with the Soaring Shuttle being only one of them, was truly extraordinary.
Now that he used the Soaring Shuttle and cultivated Soaring Heavens, paying his respects to such a senior was only proper.
“Luo Feng.”
Babata looked at him.
“I have a question.”
“Are you willing to acknowledge my master as your teacher and become the future Master of Yun Mo Planet?”
“Of course…”
“Yun Mo Planet has already been destroyed.”
“That organisation no longer exists.”
“Become his disciple?”
Luo Feng paused.
Become the disciple of someone already dead?
Could it be…
Had this supreme expert left behind an inheritance?
Seeing Luo Feng hesitate, Babata became visibly anxious.
After waiting fifty thousand years, he had finally found a suitable candidate.
“Luo Feng.”
“My master, Hu Yanbo, was an eternal existence.”
“During the more than six thousand epochs between his birth and death, he travelled throughout the vast universe as one of its greatest experts.”
“More than six thousand epochs?”
Luo Feng quickly asked.
“One epoch is equal to 10,081 Earth years.”
Babata replied.
“So Senior Hu Yanbo lived for over sixty million years?”
Luo Feng’s eyes widened.
“Is sixty million years supposed to be impressive?”
Babata glared.
“My master was an immortal being.”
“An eternal existence.”
“If not for that final battle, he could have lived forever.”
“In the endless universe, there are many who have lived for over one hundred million years.”
“Some immortals have existed even longer than your Earth itself.”
Luo Feng blinked.
Longer than Earth?
Longer than an entire planet’s history?
“Luo Feng, using one of your Earth’s sayings, you’re like a frog living at the bottom of a well.”
Babata’s little face looked rather adorable despite his anger.
“You’ve visited Ancient Civilisation Ruin No. 9.”
“But what you call Ruin No. 9 was merely one of the many surveillance bases belonging to Yun Mo Planet.”
“It contains only an extremely tiny amount of information.”
“Today I’ll give you a proper lesson.”
“I’ll show you just how mysterious and vast the universe truly is.”
Babata proudly raised his head.
“According to your Earth’s terminology, the star system you inhabit is called the Milky Way.”
“Do you know how many star systems exist throughout the universe?”
“Er…”
Luo Feng remembered learning at school that humanity had already discovered more than ten billion star systems.
The universe truly was boundless.
A single star system was unimaginably vast.
Ten billion of them represented numbers beyond comprehension.
And even that accounted for only the tiny portion humanity had observed.
“Several tens of billions?”
Luo Feng answered uncertainly.
“Hm.”
Babata raised an eyebrow.
“That answer isn’t bad.”
“The endless universe nurtures countless races and countless forms of life.”
“Among them, the human race stands as one of the most powerful races in existence.”
“And when I say the human race, I don’t mean your Earth’s narrow definition.”
“The so called beastmen and elves that appear in your Earth’s games and novels are, in fact, simply branches of humanity.”
Luo Feng listened attentively.
“Within your Milky Way alone, there are more than two hundred billion stars.”
“The number of planets is even more astonishing.”
“Among those countless planets, over two hundred and ten thousand support large human populations.”
Babata continued.
“The Milky Way, together with seven neighbouring star systems such as the Beta Star System, forms the Silver Blue Empire, a lower level civilisation of the universe.”
“Eight star systems make up one empire?”
Luo Feng found it hard to believe.
“And you said there are more than two hundred and ten thousand inhabited planets within the Milky Way?”
Good heavens.
Earth had not even discovered one.
“Does that surprise you?”
“The Silver Blue Empire may only be a lower level civilisation, but it is still a civilisation of the universe.”
“Its technological development surpasses yours by an unimaginable margin.”
“If they sent an interstellar fleet into your Solar System, your civilisation probably wouldn’t even detect it.”
Babata said dismissively.
“Under normal circumstances, a star system as large as the Milky Way will naturally produce one Universe level expert.”
“Of course, with guidance from a powerful teacher, the process can be accelerated.”
“As for the Silver Blue Empire, which rules eight star systems, I estimate it possesses more than ten Universe level experts. That’s already considered quite respectable.”
“Even so…”
“In my master’s eyes, a mere lower level universal civilisation was no different from ants.”
Babata spoke with complete confidence.