The Strongest Talent Tree

Chapter 270: Chapter 267: Dao Vein Bloodline

The black shadow looked melancholic, his mismatched black and blue eyes filled with sorrow. Faced with the Thief Master’s questioning, the shadow showed no hint of panic. A smile graced his resolute face—one that seemed bitter and forlorn, yet also held a touch of relief.

"Little one, what year is it now?" the black shadow asked, ignoring the question.

The Thief Master paused for a moment, then responded with a furrowed brow, "The Late Ninth-Stack Era of the Mortal Epoch."

"’The Late Ninth-Stack Era...’" the black shadow murmured softly. ’Are we still in the Mortal Epoch?’

"Senior, you still haven’t answered my question," the Thief Master said gravely.

The black shadow seemed to snap out of a daze. He looked around Feng Hao’s sea of consciousness and let out a dry laugh. "There’s no need to worry, little one. I am merely a fragmented wisp of a splinter soul."

Hearing this, the Thief Master finally breathed a sigh of relief. To be honest, if it were a remnant soul, Feng Hao would indeed be in some danger. But if it was just the remnant of a splinter soul, there was nothing to worry about.

’But then again,’ he thought, ’for the remnant of a splinter soul to be this powerful, just how terrifying must this person have been when he was alive?’

"May I ask why you have appeared in my disciple’s sea of consciousness, Senior?" the Thief Master asked, his tone now slightly more respectful.

The black shadow smiled faintly. "This young one is a descendant of my Dao lineage. Why do you think I’ve appeared?"

"’A descendant of your Dao lineage? You mean...?’" the Thief Master gasped in shock.

"’That’s right.’ The black shadow nodded melancholically, then asked with a smile, ’This should be the Ancient Cang Fortress, correct?’"

The Thief Master seemed to understand something, and his gaze toward the black shadow filled with reverence. "You are correct, Senior. This is indeed the Ancient Cang Fortress."

"’Good, that’s good.’ The black shadow nodded in relief. ’The bloodline of this descendant of mine is rather special. I hope you will look after him from now on. At least until he has grown strong, don’t let those people from ’Blood Origin’ find out about him.’"

"’Rest assured, Senior,’ the Thief Master said with a nod. ’Xiaofeng is my disciple. Even if you hadn’t asked, I would have protected him.’"

"’Your words put my mind at ease.’ The black shadow smiled with satisfaction, and his black and blue eyes suddenly locked onto the Thief Master, glowing with an eerie light. ’Before my consciousness fades completely, allow me to grant you a great fortune.’"

The Thief Master was startled, but he understood in a flash. He floated into a cross-legged position within Feng Hao’s sea of consciousness, closed his eyes, and began to absorb the insight.

Sensing everything that was happening in his sea of consciousness, Feng Hao’s mind filled with countless questions. Yet for some reason, he was unable to communicate with the black shadow using his Divine Sense. It was as if they existed on different planes.

An unknown amount of time passed before the Thief Master slowly opened his eyes. He performed a deep, formal bow toward the now-fading black shadow and said, "Thank you for your guidance, Senior."

"’Heh, it’s about time this wisp of my will faded away,’ the black shadow said with a faint smile. His black and blue eyes gradually dimmed, and he transformed into a streak of ethereal light that merged into Feng Hao’s Genetic Tree."

The Thief Master sighed, bowed once more to the Genetic Tree, and then withdrew from Feng Hao’s sea of consciousness.

「In the training grounds.」

Feng Hao opened his eyes, startled and confused. "Master, what happened?" he asked urgently.

The Thief Master let out a wistful sigh and slowly said, "He was a senior from the Ancient Era. If I’m not mistaken, the ’Ancient Restriction’ of the Ancient Cang Realm was his handiwork."

"HISS!" Feng Hao sucked in a sharp breath, utterly bewildered. "Then why was he in my sea of consciousness?"

"That has to do with your home world," the Thief Master said, his eyes glinting.

"What do you mean?"

The Thief Master paused to think, then explained, "Because you are a descendant of his Dao lineage."

"And what exactly is a Dao lineage?" Feng Hao pressed.

"A so-called Dao lineage is... Hmm, how should I put this?" The Thief Master furrowed his brow, struggling to find the right words. "Planets in the universe are divided into Innate Planets and Acquired Planets. Innate Planets are celestial bodies generated by the Cosmic Origin itself. Acquired Planets, on the other hand, are formed from the Dao Foundation left behind when a great cosmic power perishes. Your home world happens to be a planet formed from that senior’s Dao Foundation. Generally speaking, life that evolves on an Acquired Planet will, to some extent, carry a trace of its creator’s bloodline. This method of bloodline inheritance is what we call a Dao lineage."

"Uh, I... I still don’t get it," Feng Hao said, completely lost and scratching his head in confusion.

"’These concepts are still too advanced for you, so it’s normal not to understand,’ the Thief Master chuckled. ’To put it simply, your home world was once that senior’s Dao Foundation. In other words, your home world was created by him.’"

"Create a planet? Isn’t that something only a god can do?" Feng Hao asked in disbelief.

"’No, no, no,’ the Thief Master said, shaking his head with a smile. ’After a Mage reaches level 100 and attains enlightenment, they all gain the ability to create a world within their sea of consciousness. This created world *is* the Dao Foundation.’"

Seeing Feng Hao’s lingering confusion, the Thief Master simply waved his sleeve and pulled him into his own Dao Foundation.

Feng Hao’s vision blurred, and in the next moment, he found himself standing on a vast expanse of land. In the center of this land, a Genetic Tree was quietly rooted, with two translucent, crystalline fruits hanging from its branches.

"This is...?" Feng Hao instinctively looked toward the Thief Master, his eyes wide with disbelief.

"’This is my Dao Foundation,’ the Thief Master nodded and chuckled lightly. ’And that is my Genetic Tree. After a Mage reaches level 100 and attains enlightenment, they begin to cultivate a patch of fertile soil starting from the roots of their Genetic Tree. As their strength and realm increase, this fertile land expands, eventually capable of reaching the size of an entire planet.’"

"’When a Mage perishes, their Dao Foundation is cast off into some corner of the universe, where it evolves into an Acquired Celestial Body.’ The Thief Master smiled. ’Do you understand now?’"

Feng Hao nodded numbly, staring blankly at the scenery around him. His mind was in turmoil, rocked by colossal waves of shock.

’He had never imagined that a Mage could cultivate to such a level. It was practically godlike.’

’In other words, the black shadow in my sea of consciousness was the creator of Earth. In a way, he was the ancestor of everyone from Earth.’

’The black shadow’s eyes were one black and one blue,’ Feng Hao mused, piecing things together. ’It seems my ’Black Eye’ bloodline must have come from him.’ With this realization, many of his previous questions were answered.

’If I’m not mistaken, Solos must have inherited the ’Blue Eye’ bloodline. Heh, Asians get black eyes, Caucasians get blue eyes... it all makes perfect sense. I just wonder what bloodline black people inherited?’

Chuckling to himself, Feng Hao snapped out of his thoughts and asked, "Did the senior mention his name?"

"’He didn’t,’ the Thief Master said meaningfully. ’For a great power like him, a name is utterly unimportant.’"

Feng Hao nodded in surprise, though he felt a pang of regret. ’He’s the ancestor of everyone from Earth, after all,’ he thought, ’yet he didn’t even leave behind a name.’

"So, is he still in my sea of consciousness?" Feng Hao asked, looking up.

"’The remnant soul is likely still there, but his final wisp of will has dissipated,’ the Thief Master sighed regretfully."

Feng Hao nodded thoughtfully. He gazed out at the vast land before them, a sharp glint in his eyes. "I wonder when I’ll be able to reach such a realm?"

"That day will come," the Thief Master said, chuckling as he patted Feng Hao’s shoulder.

...

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!