The Era of Gods

Chapter 358: Chapter 358 First Contact with Superhuman Power

“On the other side is the Soul Race’s Void Fortress. Though the Soul Race isn’t an arch-enemy of humans like the residents of the Nightmare World, they are still enemies. After your arrival, whether it’s Children of Nightmare or Children of the Spirit Realm, show no mercy should you encounter them.”

As the Void Battleship slowly docked, she explained the situation here to him one by one.

Lin Xiao, holding the rank of Elite Second Lieutenant, still commanded a certain status here. Upon exiting the Void Ship, he directly followed the military group into the interior of the Fortress. Within the barracks belonging to Yan Huang War Zone No. 5, he received an independent room, and Jin Sisi’s room was right next door.

Afterward, he directly applied for descent to the Fortress and waited in line. He then stayed in his room without stepping outside.

This was following the instructions of Xie Yufei; when in this place, the less trouble, the better.

With the new school term starting, the peers had consecutively advanced to the senior year of high school. The previous seniors had successively gotten into university. The new batch of elite high school seniors were starting to prepare to ascend to Demigod status. To many who regarded themselves as elite, this world had certainly caught their attention.

Though this world was dangerous, there were always those bold enough to take a gamble.

At the same time, because of the danger in the world and the slow progress, the military had gradually relaxed restrictions, allowing more people to enter and explore this world. With a higher influx of people came natural competition.

The competition in Lin Xiao’s War Zone No. 5 was still relatively contained within certain limits, but it couldn’t be said the same for other War Zones, not to mention other powers in the Main World.

After all, competition among powers was much more intense than ordinary people could imagine. Given the Gaia Will’s great interest in this world, should any power take the lead and achieve meritorious deeds, the attention received from the will of the world and the shifting of world fortunes would hugely impact the balance between powers.

According to the documents Xie Yufei provided, it’s best to keep a low profile within the Fortress and avoid conflicts with the elites from other powers.

However, she noted at the end of the documents that if a conflict were unavoidable, then it was imperative not to show weakness and to win.

The military and its youth are spirited, after all; how can one show weakness when provoked?

To this, Lin Xiao thought he should still keep a low profile. Not because he feared trouble, but because most battles were meaningless to him, and he had little interest in participating.

Without any compliments, his strength had long surpassed that of a high school student. He believed that no one at the high school stage could be a match for him, not even if the Dragon Emperor Wu Zhonglin himself challenged him; he had enough confidence to defeat him.

In such a situation, he naturally had little interest.

But not looking for trouble didn’t mean trouble wouldn’t come looking for him.

That day, as he chatted with Jin Sisi about the world’s circumstances in his room, he occasionally glanced at her strikingly beautiful face and her alluringly curvaceous figure—he noticed she was not wearing her usual full-body armor but was dressed casually instead.

Just as they were discussing how to deal with different situations upon successful awakening, someone suddenly knocked on the door. Puzzled, he went over. Behind the door was a LCD screen that showed three young, smartly dressed Caucasian men in military uniforms standing outside.

Opening the door, the lead young Caucasian man’s gaze fell on the golden eagle insignia on Lin Xiao’s shoulder, denoting his elite military rank. The man snapped his legs together and saluted him.

Lin Xiao returned the salute and asked with curiosity,

“Do you need something?”

The lead man solemnly handed over an exquisitely designed invitation and said with a grave voice,

“Second Regiment of the First Expeditionary Army from Eagle Two Fortress, Brilliant Battle Regiment, Alec, specially invites Elite Lin Xiao to a gathering hosted by Lord Uther!”

“Lord Uther?”

Lin Xiao seemed to remember the name as if he had heard it before.

At that moment, the voice of his homeroom teacher came from behind:

“Uther was the former president of the students’ counsel on Heaven Mountain, one of the secondary elites on the Heaven List. He now ranks thirty-third on the potential list of the official Heaven List.”

Jin Sisi walked over elegantly and said to an Alec with a look of admiration,

“Please tell Uther that Lin Xiao will attend.”

After taking the invitation and shutting the door on Alec and his companions’ awestruck stares, Lin Xiao turned around as Jin Sisi said,

“Uther hails from the Holy Light Clan, one of the three glorious noble families of the Aristocracy Council, and the Holy Light Clan leads the neutral faction within the Aristocracy Council. Being part of the elite upper class of human civilization is inevitable for you, so it’s necessary to establish good relationships with other upper-class elites early on.”

“This…”

“Moreover, it also serves as preparation for your early admission to university.”

As Jin Sisi’s delicate fingers lifted a strand of her hair, she glared at him for not looking at her properly and huffed,

“You might not yet know, but once you become Demigods, the school’s restrictions will be further lifted. From that point on, you will no longer be restricted by your family backgrounds or social connections; you could directly receive any resources from your clan as long as it doesn’t exceed your current level. The competition will be far more fierce than it is now. You will contend not just with individual competitors but also against the support of their clans.”

Pausing briefly for Lin Xiao to digest this information, she continued,

“Your Talent is excellent, but your Clan is too weak. Your parents are merely Demigods, and the help they can offer you is close to nil. If you wish to maintain your current lead during the college Demigod Stage, you must have support, and it must be from a powerful backer,”

Lin Xiao remained silent, and Jin Sisi continued to speak:

“Although you have a good girlfriend, she is only your girlfriend, not your wife. Besides, the gap between you and her Clan is too wide. Perhaps that person doesn’t mind their daughter marrying down, but if you want that person to ultimately agree, you have to prove by yourself that you are worthy of her, which means you can’t rely too much on her resources. I believe you understand this.”

“As for my support, it has its limitations. It’s not that I’m unwilling to fully support you, but the resources I currently control are mainly linked to my current position. Most of my personal resources are useful at the high school level, and I don’t have many resources for the college Demigod Stage and moreover…”

She suddenly paused here as if she thought of something, and a hint of shyness appeared in her eyes, but it quickly vanished as she said:

“You might know that I also come from a powerful Clan, but many years ago, my Clan underwent a change, and our influence greatly diminished. Most of the Clan’s power was invested elsewhere; therefore, what I can give you is limited to my personal support — I cannot use the Clan’s strength.”

“Of course, you can rest assured that although the resources I have in the Demigod Stage of college are few, they are top-notch resources, which are of great use to you. Moreover, if your performance exceeds my expectations, the teacher might even use the dowry my father prepared for me to go all out for you.”

She seemed to be half-joking, half-serious with her last sentence.

Lin Xiao touched his nose and joked:

“Then I must strive to earn that dowry from the teacher!”

Although it sounded like a joke, his face did not show any signs of frivolity, instead, he seriously pondered Jin Sisi’s words.

Her words were indeed unexpected, not just because of the school lifting restrictions on Demigods, but also because of the heartfelt words of the class teacher.

From what she said just now and from her previous statements, one could deduce that her Clan had undergone a significant change and weakened. She had no choice but to return from the Outland to the Main World and become a teacher, aiming to cultivate a super Elite who could not only rank on the List of Heaven’s Pride but also aim for the list’s Higher Ranks in order to gain the All-Powerful Wish from the Will of Gaia granted to such Elites.

Lin Xiao had not yet used the All-Powerful Wish granted for being listed in the List of Heaven’s Pride, but he had previously encountered a diluted version in the Nightmare World, which was truly miraculous.

After reflecting for a while, he suddenly asked:

“Can you tell me what you plan to do with this authority?”

Jin Sisi looked up at him, surprised, her gaze flickering slightly as she said:

“There’s no harm in telling you, as it’s not really a secret. I need it to save my father.”

???

“My father is trapped in a forbidden area within the Chaotic Void Sea and cannot escape. It is a place that poses some risk even to those with great divine power, and I need this authority to request the assistance of a great divine power in the name of the Will of the Gaia World.”

“This…”

Lin Xiao was at a loss for words, for a place that was risky even for great divine powers was understandably daunting for would-be rescuers.

Great divine powers would certainly not venture there lightly; only through the impetus of a mission by the Will of the Gaia World could one persuade a great divine power to act.

“Enough about this, you can’t help here. Just focus on your efforts to widen the gap with other Elites within this year, so the pressure will be a bit less during the college Demigod Stage.”

“Mhm!”

He responded softly.

Jin Sisi reached out and gently patted his head, speaking softly in a rare tender tone:

“Go on then, take it as a chance to relax and meet some new friends.”

“Alright then!”

With that said, what else could Lin Xiao say? He simply shrugged his shoulders and agreed.

At that moment, Jin Sisi reminded him:

“Remember, there will likely be Elites from other forces attending the meeting, mostly college-stage Elites or top-tier high school third-years. Some might challenge you; don’t be polite, defeat them.”

“OK!”

He was already psychologically prepared for this.

Half an hour later, as indicated on the invitation, Lin Xiao got dressed in his Elite Second Lieutenant uniform and set out alone for the banquet location.

The venue was in another area of the War Fortress. When the aircraft traversed different areas, it went through another check.

The Aristocracy Council implemented an ancient aristocratic system. The entire force consisted of three grand Radiance Aristocrats as well as a multitude of nobles at various levels. Every officially recognized aristocrat had the qualifications to join the Aristocracy Council and become part of the ruling class, with specific powers determined by one’s strength. However, the three grand Radiance Aristocrats held absolute power within the Aristocracy Council.

Just like in the olden days of aristocracy, the nobles of the Aristocracy Council are called God’s Nobles, starting from the lowest level of God’s Knights, with the lowest being of True God Level.