There were many experts next to the tree-shaped sourcebox, including almost a dozen Explorers. There were even some Cruisers floating in the sky while the Hunter powerhouses remained on the ground.
Unfortunately, apart from a Lockbreaker, no one else could do anything to the sourcebox no matter how powerful they were. The Hunter powerhouses could approach the tree-shaped sourcebox without fear, but if they were to do so, the sourcebox might be destroyed. This was the reason why Lockbreakers enjoyed such a high status; they could do what others couldn’t, and it was completely unrelated to cultivation.
“Brother Nan, as a three star Discerning Elementary Lockbreaker, aren’t you going to make an attempt?” a young man in the crowd asked.
A man standing on the opposite side snorted. “Ryan, you should know that three star Discerning Elementary Lockbreakers are among those who have died.”
“There are differences among people within the same level as well, and how could anyone ever compare to Brother Nan? Everyone knows that Brother Nan is a genius lockbreaker from the Outerverse, so please let us witness your ability,” Ryan loudly replied. The other Lockbreakers around him started clamoring as well.
People of the same profession would naturally be rivals, and nobody present wanted to give up on such a rare sourcebox. Thus, all of them naturally wanted someone else to go and test out the sourcebox first.
“Brother Ryan, since you want to witness my abilities so badly, then why don’t you come along with me?” Brother Nan retorted.
The man called Ryan was slightly tempted by his offer. It was definitely impossible for a single person to unlock this sourcebox by themselves, but there might be a chance if two or three of them made an attempt together. “Fine, if Brother Nan agrees, then I’m fine with cooperating. Is there anyone else who wants to join us?”
“I’ll try.” A middle aged man appeared and offered to join them.
However, this man was immediately pushed back by an invisible wave. He spat out a mouthful of blood, and his face turned pale.
“This event is only open to the younger generation. Go back.” The middle aged man in the sky who had recently eliminated the Cruiser-level Savage Ape coldly rebuffed him.
But the middle aged man on the ground remained unconvinced. “No one owns this sourcebox. Why can’t I join in?”
“No means no. If you say anything else, I will remove your name from the Society.”
The man below didn’t dare to argue any further, and he just stood to the side while gnashing his teeth.
The man in the sky swept his gaze across all the people standing below before shifting to the tree-shaped sourcebox with a face full of regret. He also wanted to try his hand at unlocking it, but this was an ironclad rule. He had enjoyed the society’s protection when he was younger, since the society tried to give the younger generation more opportunities. It was precisely those such opportunities that had allowed him to reach his current heights, and now, it was his turn to create such opportunities for the younger generation.
The inheritance had to be continuous, and the society treated this philosophy very seriously.
The younger generation had their opportunities, and the older generation had their own as well. This had nothing to do with fairness, as everything was dependent on one’s luck and ability.
It wasn’t just Lockbreakers of the younger generation that had come to Nine Peaks Mountain; there were some members of the older generation there as well. There were even some Perceptive Intermediate Lockbreakers within the crowd, but they hadn’t made themselves known just yet.
After some discussion, Brother Nan and Ryan stepped within a thousand meters of the tree-shaped sourcebox and attempted to unlock it.
At the same time, Dao Bo arrived with Liu Ji, where both of them looked at the tree-shaped sourcebox.
Every sourcebox was unique, and each one carried unique risks as well.
Dao Bo coldly looked at a few of the corpses scattered around the tree-shaped sourcebox. These corpses were completely desiccated and looked miserable. It was no wonder why not many else dared to attempt unlocking this sourcebox.
Brother Nan and Ryan started approaching the tree, but they could not feel anything wrong. Since they had already walked past a corpse, they should have entered the danger zone, but they still weren’t able to feel anything abnormal.
Both of them were three star Discerning Elementary Lockbreakers with contributions who had survived numerous dangerous situations, but despite their acute senses and keen star energy perception, they felt nothing at all at this moment.
The middle aged man in the sky carefully watched the two young Lockbreakers walk forward. He could also sense that there was nothing abnormal about the star energy around the tree-shaped sourcebox. But if that were the case, then what had left those corpses behind?
The two moved closer to the tree-shaped sourcebox until they were only about a hundred meters away. Excitement was clearly shown on their faces; they were almost close enough to touch the tree, which meant that they would be able to start their lockbreaking attempt soon.
Then, Dao Bo suddenly shouted, “RUN!”
His shout surprised the crowd, and in the very next moment, two screams could be heard from Brothers Nan and Ryan. The two of them turned pale and then grey. Their hair started falling out of their scalps, and their skin dried before flaking off like ash. The entire transformation was terrifying.
The middle aged man in the air tried to pull the two of them away from the tree, but he was too late. In less than three seconds, two new corpses had appeared as their bodies collapsed to the ground.
It was a horrifying scene.
Liu Ji’s eyes flashed. This was what it meant to be a Lockbreaker; one had great power, but one also ran great risks. Sometimes, a Lockbreaker might even die without knowing the cause of their death.
Dao Bo was the only one present who had detected anything since he was the only one with a domain. Even the Perceptive Intermediate Lockbreaker in the sky hadn’t developed a domain yet.
Quite a number of people looked at Dao Bo with strange gazes since he had been the only who had detected any sort of abnormality and reacted.
“It’s Dao Bo, Astral-6’s student leader.”
“I remember that he participated in the Astral Combat Tournament but lost to Grandini Mavis.”
“Actually, Dao Bo didn’t really lose that match. Grandini was just too powerful.”
“No wonder he was able to detect a problem—he’s a top student of the Astral Combat Academy.”
…
The middle aged man in the sky appeared and looked at Dao Bo.
The people in the crowd looked up and exclaimed, “It’s Master Jun!”
“Master Jun is here as well. It seems that the society is treating this sourcebox very seriously.”
“Master Jun is a three star Perceptive Intermediate Lockbreaker and also a Hunter.”
…
“You felt it?” Master Jun asked Dao Bo.
Dao Bo nodded and respectfully answered, “It’s an indescribable feeling, and I could only feel it vaguely. And when I did, it was too late.”
Master Jun complimented, “You’re truly a genius as far as your domain is concerned. Dao Bo, you’ll soon be able to join the ranks of the Distinguished Five within the society. Keep it up and become an Explorer soon. Then, we’ll have the Distinguished Six of the society.”
Dao Bo bowed and gratefully thanked Master Jun.
The people around them looked at Dao Bo in envy. Not everyone was able to comprehend a domain, and even Master Jun hadn’t managed to achieve such a thing yet. The best time for one to comprehend a domain was while they were young, which was another reason why the younger generation was so important in the universe.
Although there were many geniuses in the Astral Combat Academy, which was the top institute in the Human Domain, not many of the students there were able to comprehend a domain, which went to show how rare this ability was.
Even though Master Jun hadn’t comprehended a domain, Dao Bo didn’t dare to underestimate him. The older man was still a Perceptive Intermediate Lockbreaker, and he definitely had a Lockbreaking tool that was comparable to possessing a domain.
“Are you going to try?” Master Jun asked Dao Bo.
Everyone turned to look at him.
Dao Bo shook his head. “Master Jun, you think of me too highly. Only a Perceptive Intermediate Lockbreaker would be able to unlock this tree-shaped sourcebox on their own. I won’t be able to succeed with my current abilities.”
Master Jun nodded happily. “Dao Bo, it’s good that you know your own limits.”
“Brother Dao Bo, if even you can’t do it, who can?” Liu Ji asked unwillingly.
Dao Bo smiled. “I only said that I can’t do it alone. It should be possible if I cooperate with someone else. Let’s wait and see. I’m sure that more experts will join us soon.”
Liu Ji curiously took in her surroundings, and her attention was drawn to someone who was oddly dressed. She stared at the person; it was a wretched old man dressed all in grey and carrying a wooden flag pole. There was a starry sky pattern printed on the back of his robes, and his flag carried the words “Starsibyl’s Ninth Grandfather” on one side and “Fortune Telling—Believe It If You Will” on the other side.
Liu Ji tugged on Dao Bo’s sleeve. “That, that person is weird.”
Dao Bo looked over in surprise. There were a lot of people staring at the old man, and the words on his flag had grabbed everyone’s attention. Everyone knew about Starsibyl, and this man actually dared to call himself Starsibyl’s Ninth Grandfather. At this moment, even Master Jun was looking at the old man in shock.
“Young man, you look energetic and outstanding! You will definitely have a bright future ahead of you! This moment is your opportunity to shine! Don’t be scared! Go ahead! I’ll protect you.” The miserable looking old man proudly patted a young Lockbreaker’s shoulder.
The people in the crowd stared at the interaction in surprise.
“Actually, I still haven’t made any contributions,” the young lockbreaker mumbled shyly.
The old man laughed and casually put his hand on a nearby person before everyone’s eyes. “Young man, I was actually talking about you.”
The young man’s face twitched. “Old man, I’m not a Lockbreaker.”
The old man chuckled and pointed at Master Jun who was in the sky. “Young man, I was talking about you.”
Everyone was struck speechless.
Master Jun was furious, and his gaze turned cold. The air around his body started warping as if he was about to erupt.
At that moment, someone yelled, “I remember now! This old guy is Xuan Jiu! He’s a piece of trash who was thrown out of the Starsibyl Sect.”
The old man immediately became furious. “Who- who dares to slander me? I’m not useless! I managed to learn the Xuantian Art! Who dares to challenge me!?”
After the person called the old man out, more people in the crowd remembered that there had indeed once been a person who resembled this old man. He had become quite famous a few hundred years ago.
Master Jun recalled this person as well, and he suppressed his anger since the old man was still quite close to the Starsibyl Sect despite being chased out. This elder called himself the Ninth Grandfather of all of the Starsibyls, but he still hadn’t been punished by the Starsibyl Sect. This alone showed that this old man wasn’t someone who Master Jun could casually offend.
“What Xuantian Art? Rumor has it that your fortune tellings are always wrong and that anyone who believes you will die!” someone sneered.
Xuan Jiu grew livid, and he wildly waved his flag about. “Who- who dares to insult me?! Come and fight me! You trash! All of you are nothing but trash!”
The people around him just rolled their eyes and ignored him.
“Hey, fortune teller gramps! It’s you! I finally found you!” Lu Yin’s trio arrived at that moment, and Zhao Ran was happily looking at Xuan Jiu. She waved her arm fervently. “Gramps, I’m Rotten Trash! It’s me, it’s me!”
Most of the people present were stunned. Just what was going on?
