Swallowed Star: The Zerg Overlord

Chapter 72: Breakthrough

When Qin Mu dragged the mangled body of the Azure Dragon to a hidden nest located thousands of meters beneath the sea, ten high Horde Leader level Hydra Dragons emerged to greet him around the nest.

This nest was well-concealed, situated within an underwater cave carved out by the Zerg in a submarine mountain range. Deep beneath the surface, the area was dark and murky; without a deliberate search, it would be nearly impossible to locate this nest.

The submarine mountain range was covered with a thick layer of Fungus Carpet, teeming with various peculiar underwater plants. Some injured Zerg units were receiving treatment from the nest on the Fungus Carpet.

The body of the Azure Dragon was placed on a relatively flat area of the submarine mountain by the Hydra Dragons, and the surrounding Fungus Carpet began to spread, gradually enveloping the entire dragon.

"This Azure Dragon is really difficult to subdue."

Looking at the nearly lifeless form of the Azure Dragon, Qin Mu's gaze was sharp, able to see clearly even in the pitch-black depths. This was the most challenging creature Qin Mu had ever tamed, far more difficult than the Flame Giant Lizard.

Initially, Qin Mu relied solely on his spirit powers, but as a planetary stage four beast, the Azure Dragon possessed formidable spirit strength and continuously resisted his attempts to tame it. After gathering the collective spirit energies of five hundred thousand Zerg, Qin Mu finally managed to break through the dragon's consciousness multiple times, successfully transforming it into a Zerg.

The last time he had summoned the spirit energies of a million Zerg, he had suffered from severe headaches for several days afterward before recovering. Now that he had broken through to the planetary level, he could effortlessly coordinate the spirit energies of a million Zerg without significant impact on himself.

However, dealing with the Azure Dragon did not require the spirit energies of a million Zerg.

If it weren't for the fear of attracting the attention of other ocean monsters by taking too long, Qin Mu could have forcibly tamed it using only his own spirit powers, though it would have taken considerable time. After summoning the spirit energies of five hundred thousand Zerg, he easily shattered the will of the Azure Dragon.

Unfortunately, the Azure Dragon resisted fiercely; even with its soul fractured, its will remained tenacious. But no matter how strong its resolve, it could not escape its fate. Once the Azure Dragon was successfully transformed into a Zerg, its injuries were severe, and it was barely clinging to life when it was dragged back to the nest.

Suspended above the nest, Qin Mu felt a surge of joy. As long as it was still alive, the nest would be able to save it. Once this planetary stage four Azure Dragon recovered from its injuries, the expansion of the Zerg would surely reach new heights.

Just as he was feeling delighted, Qin Mu suddenly sensed a wave of heat surging through his body, as the genetic energy within him began to whirl rapidly.

"I'm about to break through."

After this period of expansion and reproduction, the Zerg's numbers had surpassed fifty million. With this continuous feedback, Qin Mu's physical attributes had already reached the pinnacle of high-level Wargods.

With excitement coursing through him, he naturally achieved his breakthrough. He quickly descended to the ocean floor, entering the underwater cave where the nest was located, and sat cross-legged.

As his consciousness immersed into his body, the genetic energy within all his cells began to converge. Initially, they appeared like small droplets, which then coalesced into streams, and the streams merged into brooks and rivers.

All around him, waves of genetic energy gathered at the Dantian in his abdomen. This genetic energy spun rapidly, expanding and contracting as if it were the eggs of Zerg units hatching. Each cycle of expansion and contraction grew more powerful.

Eventually, Qin Mu heard a thunderous sound in his mind. Within the Dantian, a miniature star burning with black flames was born, similar to the breakthrough experienced by spirit warriors. This star was also formed from the aggregation of numerous six-sided crystals into a unified whole.

The difference was that the source of a spirit master was in their head's consciousness sea, while that of a warrior was in their abdomen's Dantian.

Once this miniature star of black flames formed, it began to rotate continuously, emitting strange waves. As these unusual waves spread, strands of black flame primal energy flowed throughout his body. An even more ferocious transformation than that experienced during the awakening of a spirit master began.

In an instant, every single cell in Qin Mu's body underwent a profound transformation, including his organs, muscles, skin, and even his blood and hair. Qin Mu felt as if his body was shattering and constantly being reassembled. The broken tissues were expelled from his skin, and through this process of continuous shattering and reformation, his body grew even stronger.

This transformation was far more powerful than the breakthrough of his spirit powers. In terms of bodily enhancement, the genetic energy was far more suitable, making it much more dramatic than spirit energy transformation. As the miniature star burning with black flames in his Dantian continuously emitted genetic energy, Qin Mu felt an increasing heat within his body, as if he were about to ignite.

No! Not just a sensation; Qin Mu's body was truly burning.

A blazing inferno erupted from within Qin Mu, engulfing him from the inside out. Even in the depths of the ocean, the black flames continued to burn fiercely without any hindrance. As the black flames burned, Qin Mu felt as if his entire being was being tempered and continuously strengthened.

"Is my attribute fire?" He spread his palm, and a three-foot-high black flame blazed in his hand.

"In the process of achieving Planetary level, when warriors break through, they awaken various attributes. These attributes can be classified into eight major categories—gold, wood, water, fire, earth, wind, lightning, and light."

Each warrior's attribute varies according to different things, and even the same attribute can be subdivided into many classifications. The eight major categories are equal; there is no hierarchy among them. For example, Hong is associated with light, Lei Shen with lightning, and Luo Feng with gold.

In any category, there are both powerful and weak abilities, and through self-development by the warriors, the final manifestations can vary greatly. When Luo Feng awakened, his ability was the Diamond Body, which allowed his bones and muscles to be stronger than those of other warriors at the same level. The strength of the physical body for a warrior means greater attack power and stronger defense.

"This black flame can burn itself to enhance my body."

Qin Mu twirled the spear in his hand, and the black flames clung to the weapon, burning fiercely in the dark, cold seawater. This spear was custom-made for Qin Mu by the military, crafted from special materials obtained from some ancient ruins. While it did not have any special abilities, it was extremely hard and sharp.

"It can also attach to weapons; I wonder how much damage it can inflict?" Qin Mu felt a surge of excitement, eager to find an opponent to test his newly acquired powers. Unfortunately, there were no other ocean creatures around except for the Zerg.

"Hm?" Qin Mu exhaled lightly. As the genetic energy transformed and his physical attributes strengthened, his spirit power also broke through. "My spirit power has reached planetary stage two."

The limitation on Qin Mu's spirit power enhancement had always been his physical condition. Once his body reached a certain threshold, the feedback from the Zerg easily allowed his spirit power to break through. Not only did he break through, but the feedback kept coming, and at this rate, it wouldn't take long to reach planetary stage three.

"Let's go." Qin Mu was overjoyed; the increase in strength always uplifted his spirits.

Deep in the ocean, Qin Mu stood on the Crescent Moon Disk and shot out of the water almost instantaneously, transforming into a streak of light.

"My speed has surpassed twenty times the speed of sound! I can go even faster." Qin Mu laughed heartily. Above the ocean, a terrifying black streak flitted through the air, diving into the sea and then soaring back into the sky.

"Even in the water, my speed easily exceeds eighteen times the speed of sound. In terms of speed, I have far surpassed Lei Shen; no one on Earth can match me."

Through continuous testing, Qin Mu gained a deeper understanding of his own strength. At this speed, even Hong would find it impossible to defeat Qin Mu.

In a battle between warriors and spirit masters, even at the planetary level, spirit masters still held an advantage due to their long attack range. Qin Mu's control over the crescent blades of the Crescent Moon Disk had now reached a maximum range exceeding ten kilometers, and his speed far surpassed that of any human. As long as it wasn't in a confined arena or other special terrain, any warrior slower than Qin Mu would only be able to passively endure his assaults.

What good is a domain if the control range is too small? Qin Mu didn't need to engage in close combat at all.

"Let's see what this black flame can do; it can actually leave my body and attach to the crescent blades."

The Crescent Moon Disk was enveloped in black flames, and the burning crescent blades shot out in a flurry. On the surface of the ocean, a fish-like monster over ten meters long was struck by the crescent blades. Qin Mu intentionally controlled the strike to avoid a lethal hit.

"Zzzz…" The black flames on the fish monster ignited fiercely, instantly engulfing its massive body.

"What a ferocious and domineering flame." Qin Mu observed closely as the flames ignited the moment they made contact with the fish monster, consuming it from the outside in.

"This flame isn't just for burning the body; it also has the ability to burn the soul."

The earth and heavens united in strength, and the consecutive breakthroughs elevated Qin Mu's power to another level.

"Unfortunately, I'm not Luo Feng; no one has told me the specific capabilities of this flame. I'll have to explore it slowly later."

Floating above the ocean, Qin Mu contemplated.

"It's about time. The rapid expansion of the Zerg on land has already attracted the attention of several king-level monsters, and there have even been battles with a few king-level monsters." Once the Zerg's numbers reached fifty million, their territory had expanded too much to avoid drawing the attention of king-level monsters.

"The new Zerg units have exceeded expectations, performing well in battles against the monsters."

Not only was Qin Mu prepared, but the military was also nearly ready. Various weapons and equipment had been put in place, and the military factories were frantically producing orders. In recent days, even Uncle Qing had been too busy to find Qin Mu, as he had become the director of a military factory. Not the original one, but a new factory opened to increase production capacity; the old factory manager that was supposed to retire could not do so anymore.

After the Great Nirvana, although large-scale wars had ended, small-scale conflicts continued, and the military was always preparing for an all-out war that could erupt at any moment. Therefore, the preparation time would not take long. Once Qin Mu was ready, the military would announce the transition to a state of war.

"It's time to pay a visit to Misty Island. On Misty Island, we will gather global forces and declare the start of the war."

***

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