Silence. An eerie, death-like silence.

Nell reached for his beard again, his eyes widening. He stared at Bruno intently, asking,

"Is that correct?"

"Yep, my The Ten Thousand Hells is perfected now. It can even bring down the God Realm," Bruno scratched his head and replied.

Perfected!

In an instant, Tursos and Elena exchanged looks, both stunned and unable to believe what they were hearing. They had only guessed, but Bruno had not only perfected the Thunderclap Breathing Method—The Ten Thousand Hells was perfected as well!

Is this even human?

Tursos, who prided himself on his own talent, had become a 12th-stage Warlock-Warrior in his twenties. He just needed The Ten Thousand Hells to reach High Rank to become a more powerful Arcane Power Master.

But now, a 3rd-stage Warlock-Warrior like Bruno had perfected both the breathing technique and the Meditation Technique!

"Master, doesn't the Meditation Technique take a lot of time and effort to perfect, constantly accumulating practice over time?"

"Junior Brother's talent... it's almost monstrous," Tursos muttered, his mind still reeling.

Nell Gaston didn't answer Tursos's question, because he himself hadn't recovered from the shock. He had originally planned to make Bruno focus on his Meditation Technique training and not get too proud.

But now, he suddenly realized that his young disciple's future achievements were beyond imagination.

He had never encountered a talent this extraordinary—such brilliance probably only existed among the high-ranking members of The Infernal Cult.

Nell Gaston took a deep breath, trying to calm his expression. He finally spoke,

"Let me see your God Realm."

Bruno nodded. His spiritual energy exploded, and a massive sun appeared in the room. Along with it, came the image of seventy-two snow-capped mountains in the distance, as well as endless fields of corpses and white bones.

"The God Realm... it really is the perfected The Ten Thousand Hells!"

"A genius... a true genius!" Nell gasped, feeling his beard thinning. He looked down and saw several more whiskers had been pulled out and were now in his palm.

Bruno casually waved his hand, and the God Realm slowly faded away. Only the rising temperature in the room and the gently falling snowflakes proved that everything had really happened, and it wasn't just a hallucination.

"Master, didn't you say that only someone more powerful than an Arcane Power Master, like an Elder, could bring forth the God Realm?" Tursos asked again.

Any Warlock-Warrior who reached High Rank in the Meditation Technique and High Rank in the breathing method, combined with some other key items, could break through the 12th stage to become a powerful Arcane Power Master.

Above the Arcane Power Master, there are the even more powerful Elders, who can use a perfected Meditation Technique to create a God Realm that appears in the real world.

The Elder rank is divided into Great Elder and Junior Elder. It is the Junior Elder who can use a perfected Meditation Technique to make the God Realm manifest in reality.

A Great Elder has a Meditation Technique that breaks the limits, allowing the God Realm to truly merge with reality.

But here's the thing—Bruno was only a 3rd-stage Warlock-Warrior, and he had already shown the God Realm.

This completely shattered Tursos's understanding.

Nell Gaston took a deep breath, slowly answering, "That's right. Normally, that's how it is. But for true geniuses, common sense is meant to be broken."

"Did I not tell you about the special geniuses in the clergy of The Infernal Cult? They have spiritual powers that are naturally different from others. They can reach High Rank in the Meditation Technique as soon as they start."

"Clearly, your Junior Brother is one of those."

As he spoke, Nell couldn't help but smile.

He truly hadn't expected to find such a talent in a small city like Sunset City.

It was like striking gold!

Bruno listened to their conversation. He wasn't really a genius. The Meditation Technique and Breathing Method were just something he'd slowly improved over time.

The real abnormal power he had was the Book of All Things!

That's why, even when facing Fabian or Nell, Bruno had never mentioned the Book of All Things.

It was his real trump card.

"Alright, your speed in improving the Meditation Technique is too fast. Normally, after reaching High Rank in Hell Forest Vision, you would gradually develop the Bone of the Dead," Nell started explaining to Bruno.

For Bruno, whose Meditation Technique was perfected, the Bone of the Dead was no challenge. All he needed to do was focus on integrating the death energy from the God Realm into his body during his meditation, and the Bone of the Dead would naturally catalyze itself.

The Bone of the Dead could speed up the cultivation of a Warlock-Warrior and also conceal one's aura, making them seem like a corpse.

"Training the Bone of the Dead will help you avoid many dangers. Afterward, you can go to Tursos to receive ten Living Deadwood," Nell said.

Then, he suddenly seemed to remember something else and added, "By the way, after perfection comes the limit-breaking process. It's extremely dangerous. If you're not careful, your mind could collapse. Don't rush it—take it step by step."

Bruno nodded and followed Tursos out of the room.

Only Britney and Elena remained in the room, both silent. They hadn't said anything earlier—not because they didn't want to, but because they were stunned by Bruno's talent.

"Master, I'll head to the Heavenly Gang. Tarnison might try to make a move on Junior Brother. It's better to deal with him quickly," Elena suddenly spoke up.

Nell shook his head and replied, "Not yet. I've received word that the Federal Bureau of Investigation has appeared in Sunset City. Also, the Celestial Beast materials transported from the kingdom have been stolen."

"If we act recklessly now, it will draw too much attention."

The tallest tree in the forest is always the first to be struck by the wind. The simplest way to deal with a genius is to eliminate them before they've fully matured.

Fallen geniuses were never just one or two.

The situation in Sunset City was getting more complicated. That guy Stanford would soon be promoted from Count to Marquis, and he certainly wouldn't want anything unexpected to happen.

So now, we need to bait the Heavenly Gang into making a move, and then, with lightning speed, crush them.

Once the Heavenly Gang is completely absorbed by the martial arts hall, Stanford won't be able to stop us. At that point, we'll only need to give up a small portion of the profits to keep the peace.

...

Underground at the martial arts hall.

Bruno looked curiously at the deep, dark passage in front of him. He hadn't known such a place existed beneath the martial arts hall.

"By the way, Senior Brother, what's Living Deadwood?" Bruno asked.

Tursos slowly pushed open a large metal door and answered, "Living Deadwood, also known as Half-Human, or Human Material, is a highly valuable substance."

As the door creaked open, Bruno's pupils immediately contracted.

Behind the metal door, in a small room, were tall cultivation tanks, each one holding a naked human being.

"These are Living Deadwood cultivated using special methods. They breathe, they have souls, and their bodies are filled with massive amounts of Arcane Power and death energy. For us at The Infernal Cult, they are incredibly precious materials."

"Just this 4th-stage Living Deadwood, if sold outside, could easily fetch one to two thousand gold coins," Tursos explained slowly.

Bruno took a deep breath, forcing himself to stay calm. He licked his lips and asked,

"Aren't these... just humans?"

Tursos shook his head and replied, "No, these Living Deadwood are the product of a combination of Arcane Power alchemy and the divine power of the Earth Mother Church."

"Master once said that after perfecting the Meditation Technique, continuing to push beyond the limits or becoming stronger would be extremely dangerous. The souls of these Living Deadwood can help share that burden."

"The souls of these Living Deadwood have already been absorbed by Master's God Realm. They can be used to cultivate your Bone of the Dead."

Earth Mother Church's divine power? Arcane Power alchemy?

Bruno suddenly recalled that in this world, the God King Zeus was referred to as an evil god. So what were the so-called "righteous gods" here?

With good and evil gods turned upside down, the existence of Living Deadwood seemed almost normal.

It was clear now—he had simply never seen enough of the world.

No wonder Elise had said that if one couldn't pay back their debts, their soul would be taken.

How many souls had Master Nell absorbed, exactly?

Bruno didn't dare to think about it. He took a deep breath, trying to calm his racing thoughts, and asked, "Earth Mother?"

Tursos's face grew serious as he nodded. "It's just a title. The god's power is immense. If we spoke about it directly, it could attract attention, and that would bring terrifying consequences."

"Junior Brother, when your strength grows stronger, you'll naturally come into contact with more of this. For now, knowing too much will only bring you danger."

Was it really that terrifying?

Just talking about it could attract the attention of a god?

Bruno had no choice but to suppress the confusion in his heart. At least now he knew that there was a god in this world, known by the title of Earth Mother.

"Here are the ten Living Deadwood. Once you absorb the death energy from them, your Bone of the Dead should manifest," Tursos said, bringing over ten cultivation tanks.

Bruno nodded and slowly extended his spiritual energy, calling upon his God Realm.

He began to rapidly absorb the death energy from the Living Deadwood in the tanks, drawing it into his own body.

Soon, Bruno's body began to react in a strange way.

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