Life-Binding Thread

“In the system description, what exactly does ‘certain intelligent lifeforms’ refer to?”

Lin Miao tried his best to remain calm as he sent a query to the Divine Net.

The more critical the moment, the more crucial it was to obtain precise information. He had to understand the exact definition of “intelligent lifeforms.”

Until recently, Lin Miao's understanding of intelligent life was limited to humans.

But while observing the Great Devourer during this period, he had witnessed many non-human intelligent lifeforms. They were not merely slightly smarter beasts, but races that were even superior to humans in certain aspects.

Therefore, the phrasing of “certain intelligent lifeforms” made Lin Miao somewhat concerned. If this category did not include humans, it would be troublesome.

Although there were many non-human intelligent lifeforms in that otherworld, currently around Lin Miao, there were no other intelligent races besides humans.

Before the rifts opened, the Outer God's creations invaded, and the system established by the deities created the “Awakened” as a new form of humanity, elves, beastkin, and dwarves had only existed as fantasy creatures.

【Intelligent Lifeforms: Defined by the Primordial Council that constructed the Divine Net, referring to entities possessing intelligence above a certain threshold, with humanity as their representative】

“...Humanity is the representative.”

Although the answer was somewhat vague, it at least resolved Lin Miao's primary concern. He felt a spark of curiosity about what the “Primordial Council” was, but now was not the time to pry into it.

Lin Miao stared intently at the terrarium.

While the Great Devourer was fighting on the other side, the goblin deity Venerable Night Moon, on the verge of defeat in the competition, had bestowed a portion of his Divine Status upon his vassals. That power ultimately remained within the bodies of the few surviving vassals.

The elves had defeated them and sought to seize that portion of the Divine Status, which was the holy relic.

Even an extremely minute amount of a deity's Divine Status could be converted into immense interference force, and it was also one of the highest achievements a vassal could attain.

Lin Miao had seen all too often how other deities meticulously calculated their use of interference force to create powerful heroes and accelerate the development of their civilizations. Thus, he could not simply turn a blind eye to this power.

In the end, Elise and the Great Devourer had obeyed Lin Miao's command and snatched it away. They had then devoured it completely, using it to achieve yet another leap forward.

It seemed an experiment was in order. If Elise could not accept human genes, she would likely spit them right out.

Lin Miao felt no real aversion to the idea of using humans for experiments. Furthermore, previous experiments had already proven that as long as the biological tissue maintained a certain level of freshness, Elise could perform genetic devouring.

Besides, he did not even need to look for anyone else.

Lin Miao picked up a sharp pocketknife and sliced his finger.

【The current Divine Status and interference force are insufficient to bear the Divine Status of divine blood】

The moment Lin Miao's blood dripped into the terrarium, accompanied by a sharp crackle of electricity, the droplet of blood instantly evaporated.

Startled, Lin Miao felt his heart sink as he watched the Divine Net reject his blood.

Although Lin Miao was born human, because he had become the master of the Great Devourer, he had already awakened as a deity. His blood contained a Transcendent Divine Status—the very divine blood capable of creating holy relics.

Thus, with his current Divine Status and interference force, he could not yet bestow his blood upon Elise.

“Fine, my blood... I'll give it to you in the future.”

Lin Miao chuckled self-deprecatingly, though he had a strong premonition. In the near future, when he was no longer a half-baked deity, his blood would eventually flow into Elise's body.

“Bai Zhantang, are you free right now?”

Lin Miao put on his coat, preparing to head out, and made a phone call to Bai Zhantang, who had been managing the company for him and constantly providing magic stones and funds.

Since his own blood was a no-go, he could just use someone else's. And to be safe, it would be best to use the blood of a vassal—preferably someone who had already successfully integrated a portion of Elise's abilities.

While waiting at the designated meeting spot, Lin Miao browsed the news.

The news was reporting on the deeds of Ye Yunshang, who had recently awakened a hive mind and gained a new lease on life thanks to Lin Miao.

In the video attached to the news, Ye Yunshang controlled dozens of swords hovering around her, slicing the Void Hounds—vassals of the Outer God Abhoth classified as Tier 4 monsters—into pieces.

Ye Yunshang's combat power had long since surpassed the boundaries of a Tier 4 Awakened. Currently, she was leading the company's Awakened squad to sweep through various rifts, and her popularity and fame were skyrocketing.

Watching Ye Yunshang's active performance, Lin Miao saw new possibilities.

His goal was to expel from this land all the vassals of the Outer Gods who wanted to devour Earth, as well as the deities who wanted to colonize Earth to secure a source of soldiers for future wars.

But merely relying on cultivating the Great Devourer to attack the territories of other deities might not be enough. If he could possess his own faction on Earth as well, he might be able to resolve this issue much more effectively.

Had there been no feasible path, Lin Miao would have given up long ago.

But now, with Ye Yunshang having awakened the hive mind and become the queen of the human colony, if she could continue to grow, what she could do would be far more than just providing Lin Miao with magic stones.

“Proxy.”

Just then, she arrived.

Lin Miao cleared his throat and closed the screen that only he could see.

“Proxy, is there a reason you summoned me so suddenly?”

Ye Yunshang was not wearing her everyday clothes; instead, she wore a black Awakened combat suit. Just as Bai Zhantang had mentioned, she had rushed over straight from a mission site.

Yet, there was not a hint of complaint in her eyes; instead, they were filled with anticipation.

Knowing what she was anticipating, Lin Miao could not help but smile wryly.

“I'm not giving you anything today. On the contrary, I need to take something from you.”

“Ah?”

“That Great One needs your blood. Not too much, just a little bit will do.”

Lin Miao figured she must have thought he was about to bestow another miracle upon her. Regrettably, however, this time Lin Miao needed to acquire human genes from her.

“If it is that Great One's command, I am willing.”

But she showed no disappointment or refusal whatsoever; instead, she readily offered her arm.

“Ye Yunshang, thanks to you, the company's performance has grown rapidly and its scale has expanded. If there's ever anything you need from me, don't hesitate to speak up.”

Feeling a bit awkward, Lin Miao took the initiative to strike up a conversation.

Thinking about it, as deity and vassal, being able to converse freely like this and exchange thoughts was actually quite incredible. Lin Miao did not even need to expend interference force to hand down an oracle.

Of course, the deities who possessed their own home planets had always been like this.

“Speaking of needs, Proxy, I actually have something to report to you. I originally planned to tell President Bai first and have him contact you, but since I'm seeing you now, I'll just tell you directly.”

However, Ye Yunshang's next words caught Lin Miao off guard. With a grave expression, she informed Lin Miao that she had discovered something anomalous.

Hearing this, Lin Miao spoke in a low, surprised tone, “A watcher?”

“I sensed a faint presence a short while ago. But it wasn't until today that I clearly felt that gaze. It's definitely not an ordinary gaze; it's certainly some kind of monitoring ability.”

Ye Yunshang nodded, stating that someone had been monitoring her, whether she was performing official duties or living her private life at home.

“Even when I was coming here, that gaze followed me. I intentionally took many detours to shake off the stalker.”

“Though stalking crimes targeting famous Awakened are indeed quite common...”

“Proxy, do you really think it's just an ordinary stalker?”

“It's hard to say.”

Lin Miao could not easily provide an answer.

In this era, the Awakened were public figures much like celebrities, and being harassed by stalkers was not uncommon. But Lin Miao could not rule out the possibility that this was the work of another deity's vassal.

After all, deities were constantly engaged in overt and covert struggles, and attacking an opponent's vassals was a common competitive tactic.

“If you permit it, I would like to investigate this personally.”

Ye Yunshang requested Lin Miao's permission to take action herself to investigate the watcher. This matter could very well trigger a conflict with the vassals of other deities.

But Lin Miao no longer wanted to blindly avoid conflicts with other deities.

Clenching the small vial containing the warm blood in his hand, Lin Miao ordered Ye Yunshang that she could proceed with her investigation into the enemy who dared to monitor them.

The top priority was to ascertain the other party's identity first. If the opponent was a formidable enemy they could not match, they would remain cautious.

But if they were just some small-fry, then he would have Ye Yunshang capture them, which would serve perfectly for experiments.

“Alright, here is what you wanted.”

After leaving the matter to Ye Yunshang, Lin Miao returned home and immediately poured her blood into the terrarium.

【Elise has reacted. Smelling the scent of blood, she instantly understands what it is and orders the worker ants to bring it to her immediately】

Seeing Elise's instantaneous reaction, the corners of Lin Miao's mouth curled upward.

What would the outcome be? Could Elise truly turn into a human?

Lin Miao firmly believed that Elise, who had devoured countless lives and possessed the ability to maximize and regulate all kinds of genes, had long since surpassed human intelligence.

However, merely having high intelligence did not mean she was close to being human. No matter how far her intellect developed, her fundamental way of thinking and bodily structure were completely different from those of humans.

To achieve true communication with Lin Miao, who was human, and to think in the same manner as him, she ultimately needed to embrace a portion of human traits.

Elise drank the blood brought by the worker ants, completing the devouring of humanity.

Though she coughed up blood midway, spitting some of it out, she immediately reclaimed the regurgitated blood and forcefully swallowed it back down. Her appearance seemed to say that, no matter what, she would make this power her own.

And the effect manifested instantly.

【Elise has gained a partial realization】

Under Elise's command, her body began to be enveloped in a massive cocoon.

The moment that massive cocoon began to throb, Lin Miao felt a strong sense of dissonance, and his body could not help but stagger.

A sensation he had never experienced before flooded Lin Miao's mind.

This was the Life-Binding Thread connected between a deity and a special vassal who had been bestowed a True Name. It was the bridge that linked them together.

Prior to this, because Elise's self-awareness was still weak, this bridge had only been a one-way path.

But now, for the first time, Lin Miao received a signal from the other end. That one-way bridge had finally become two-way.

This meant that Elise's self-awareness had already grown to a point where it could rival Lin Miao's. At the same time, she also became increasingly comprehensible to Lin Miao.