Hijacking the Timeline

Qin Shikong’s explanation gave Feng Qi a deeper understanding of the power of miracle items.

As far as he knew, there were currently four miracle items.

The first, without a doubt, was the miracle material used to create Little Black.

It granted Little Black an almost indestructible body, immunity to energy attacks, and the terrifying ability to absorb vast amounts of energy.

The second was the Spirit Energy Clan’s ”holy spirit,” essentially a consciousness database.

This granted the Spirit Energy Clan an infinitely accumulating knowledge base. Any newly born clansman could simply ”download” the contents of the Holy Spirit Consciousness Repository to gain all the knowledge of their ancestors.

To acquire additional knowledge, one only needed to access the Holy Spirit Consciousness Repository.

As long as this race continued to propagate, the exponential growth of their knowledge would ensure that each generation surpassed the last, making it a godsend for nurturing future generations.

The third was the ”bloodstone” being escorted on this mission.

It was clear that the bloodstone was merely a fragmented piece, not a complete miracle item.

In terms of its effects, it was also the weakest among the miracle items he knew of.

But ”weak” was only relative to the other miracle items he had encountered.

The small bloodstone, which can enhance the upper limit of bloodline strength, is a miracle item that offers immense benefits to the development of any race.

If the Holy Spirit Consciousness Repository grants a race boundless knowledge,

then the bloodstone grants a race the potential for bloodline growth.

For example, even a pig that consumes enough bloodstones could achieve a terrifying physical growth limit, and its descendants might possess growth potential and physical strength comparable to dragons.

The bloodstone fundamentally strengthens a race’s bloodline potential. From a scientific perspective, it enhances the organism’s genes, granting the consumer a higher growth ceiling and giving their descendants a better starting point.

The fourth miracle item is Qin Shikong’s ability, which he tentatively calls ”deduction.”

According to Qin Shikong’s description, he consumed fragments of this item.

This implies that he obtained an incomplete miracle item.

Yet even in its incomplete state, the ability to deduce the future and glimpse the secrets of heaven is truly godlike.

If not for the fact that Qin Shikong’s deduction ability remains in a random mode, difficult to activate at will, he could have altered the course of countless lives and even guided Human Civilization to ultimate victory.

For example, Qin Shikong only needs to continuously deduce his future path and observe which actions can alter it. He can stand on the Reality Line, constantly experimenting with different futures.

However, the imperfect nature of his ”miracle-deduction” ability means it can only serve as an auxiliary tool, incapable of truly changing the future.

Beyond the four known miracle items, Feng Qi suspects he possesses two more.

The first is the Narrator—a bodiless entity that has parasitized him, capable of perceiving the outside world beyond barriers and communicating with him on a conscious level.

The second is his ability to extract innate abilities and bloodline evolution points from domain creatures he kills.

This ability is nothing short of heaven-defying, perfectly aligning with the special powers that miracle items can create.

Yet he also entertains a suspicion: perhaps he only possesses one miracle item—the Narrator.

The ability to extract innate abilities and bloodline evolution points might also originate from the Narrator. After all, when the Narrator left this timeline, his talent extraction ability vanished.

Regardless of the truth, Feng Qi is certain he possesses at least one miracle item.

Perhaps it was the residual aura of miracle items that drew the attention of the blue-skinned domain creatures, who were also collecting them, and led to their relentless pursuit of him.

This was further confirmed by Qin Shikong’s experience.

Like him, Qin Shikong was constantly being hunted by Blue-skinned Assassins.

Now, a question lingered in his mind:

Which Domain Force did the Blue-skinned Assassins belong to, and how could they craft those magical orbs capable of locating miracle items?

The fact that they had dispersed their clansmen across various locations to search for miracles proved the power of this racial force.

He even speculated that a super domain creature might be behind the Blue-skinned Assassins, strategically collecting miracles to shape the future.

But the answers to these questions would have to wait.

Perhaps he would never uncover the truth within this timeline. Only another version of himself, through relentless intelligence gathering, might ever learn the answer.

Watching Feng Qi lost in thought, Qin Shikong suddenly asked with curiosity:

”The battle in the canyon is so fierce. Why is Liu Yue risking his life to go there?”

Feng Qi immediately replied:

”To save someone.”

”Who?”

”Wang Yi.”

”Why save her? She’s almost certainly a domain creature, and you’ve already sensed it,” Qin Shikong said, his face filled with astonishment.

”She is a domain creature, but she still has value to me. I must ensure she survives for my subsequent plans to unfold.”

”Plans? What plans?”

He didn’t hide anything from Qin Shikong’s inquiry, briefly explaining his situation.

Qin Shikong’s eyes widened as he listened:

”Is that true? Having the ability to deduce was already incredible enough, but you’re saying you can traverse timelines?”

”At this point, why would I lie to you? Besides, my ability might also stem from a miracle, similar to your deduction.”

Qin Shikong took a long moment to recover his composure before murmuring:

”Having the deduction ability since childhood, I always thought I was the protagonist of this world. Now, compared to you, I realize your ability is far more fitting for a protagonist.”

”Your future superior is the true protagonist of this era. From a historical perspective, she is undeniably the strongest protagonist of this age.”

”Who?”

”Mu Qing!”

The name Mu Qing made Qin Shikong’s eyes widen.

”I’ve indeed been considering joining her. Her actions recently have been nothing short of miraculous. After deducing her future, I can say with certainty: she will be the greatest variable of this era.”

Hearing this, he immediately thought of the formation of the Dawn Army.

In this era, the most impactful and historically significant event would undoubtedly be the emergence of the Dawn Army and their subsequent battles against all of humanity.

From a historical viewpoint, Qin Shikong’s claim that Mu Qing is the greatest variable makes perfect sense.

Turning his gaze toward the canyon, Liu Yue stood suspended in the air above it, sword in hand, surveying the scene below.

His focus was on Wang Yi, the Lord of the Mist.

Strong gusts of wind whipped through the air, making Liu Yue’s long hair dance around him. He truly cut an ethereal figure, like a peerless sword immortal.

Feng Qi turned to Qin Shikong. ”I’ll go check things out first. If anything unexpected happens, I’ll be in a position to help him.”

With that, he strode toward the canyon.

The battle was fierce, so he naturally kept his distance, planning to observe from a closer vantage point. This would keep him out of the line of fire while allowing him to easily support Liu Yue when he arrived.

Just then, Qin Shikong reappeared beside him, a smile on his face. ”Brother Feng Qi, I’ll accompany you.”

”Aren’t you going to look after your battle group?”

”Just a moment.” Qin Shikong pulled a communicator from somewhere, pressed the talk button, and spoke in a deep voice. ”Old Fatty, get all the brothers back to the supply zone.”

After a brief pause, an aged voice responded over the communicator. ”What about you?”

”I have more important matters to attend to. Get the brothers back safely first.”

”Understood!”

After hanging up, Qin Shikong turned to Feng Qi and smiled. ”Alright, now I can accompany you.”

”Thank you,” Feng Qi nodded immediately.

After a moment, they arrived at the edge of the canyon battle zone and began observing from a closer distance.

Their focus remained on the Lord of the Mist.

In this timeline, Lin Ran was highly likely to backstab the Lord of the Mist in the Dream Realm. Therefore, he needed the Lord of the Mist to survive.

This would allow his other self’s power to surge dramatically in a short period.

Moreover, his other self urgently needed to solve one problem:

How to mitigate the cumulative effects of his negative emotions.

Even with his enhanced power and the ”Blood Source Form,” which could significantly amplify his strength, capturing the agile Three-Tailed would be difficult.

But if he could get help from Lin Ran, who had backstabbed the Lord of the Mist,

capturing the Three-Tailed alive would no longer be a problem.

The Lord of the Mist was too valuable to lose. He absolutely had to keep him alive.

If the day came when everything in the future was under his control,

his other self could still kill the Lord of the Mist in the Reality Line at any time.

With this thought, he turned his gaze back to Liu Yue, who was hovering in the sky.

Liu Yue’s personal strength was formidable, but he held no advantage against the even more powerful domain creatures.

If the Lord of the Mist were to suddenly intervene at this moment, saving him would mean risking his own life.

But this was a risk he had to take.

Everything was for the sake of ensuring the other him could continue his journey more successfully.

”Keep watching the battle and report any developments. I’ll set up a formation beforehand to prepare,” Qin Shikong said, turning to him.

As he spoke, he unfastened his robe.

Inside, his daoist robe was completely covered in talismans, each one traced with golden lines of high-purity spiritual energy.

Qin Shikong’s body trembled, and the golden talismans automatically detached from the robe, hovering in the air.

At that moment, Feng Qi sensed a powerful fluctuation of mental energy.

Guided by this mental energy, the talismans began to orbit Qin Shikong in a rotating pattern.

Feng Qi had never delved deeply into formation studies, but he understood the basics.

Formation studies were a major branch of cultivation studies, emerging later than cultivation techniques and art magic. Nevertheless, formation masters were indispensable members of any battle group.

They used tools like talismans and formation flags, pre-inscribed with patterns of spiritual energy, to create domains under their control. These domains could simultaneously attack and defend, granting exceptional range combat capabilities.

Formations are broadly divided into two types: mobile formations and static formations.

Mobile formations, as their name suggests, can move with the formation master. They commonly utilize ”formation flags” as their tools.

For example, the small formation Jia Yi set up using formation flags.

Static formations, on the other hand, are fixed in a specific area and cannot move. Large-scale formations are typically static, characterized by their vast coverage and immense power.

Despite their strength, formations have a weakness: they require time to set up.

Without teammates to protect them, formation masters are vulnerable to death before the formation can fully materialize.

This is especially true for large-scale formations, which cannot be condensed in a short time and require extensive preparation in advance.

Qin Shikong, however, was exceptionally swift at setting up formations.

Periodically, he would reach out and make a patting motion in a specific direction. A talisman spiraling around his body would then fly out and freeze in place at the corresponding position.

As time passed, more and more talismans settled into their positions.

Golden lines of spiritual energy connected each talisman, gradually revealing the formation’s effects.

The circular formation spanned over a hundred meters in radius. At its center, one could faintly see a translucent, pale-gold energy membrane forming the outer boundary.

As time passed, a golden sphere of light materialized at the center of the formation, connected to the talismans.

This sphere was the formation eye, also known as the formation’s core. Through it, formation masters could monitor and manipulate the formation in real-time.

However, the formation eye was also its most vulnerable point.

If shattered, the energy pathways connecting the formation flags, talismans, and other nodes would instantly sever, causing the entire formation to collapse.

Standing at the formation’s center for the first time, watching it take shape, felt truly wondrous. It was like witnessing an architect construct a magnificent building.

After a long time, seeing that Qin Shikong showed no signs of stopping, he turned his gaze back to the battle zone.

The fighting continued, its intensity escalating once more.

The Lord of the Mist, whom he was closely watching, had nearly all his subordinate battle group members killed. Forced out of the core circle, he dared not re-enter to seize bloodstones.

The competition was brutal.

Life within the core circle was as cheap as grass, extinguished by sudden attacks at any moment. Those without sufficient strength couldn’t even withstand the shockwaves generated by the core battle.

For some reason, he couldn’t shake the feeling that the Lord of the Mist had a hidden plan.

Though not particularly prominent in this era, the Lord of the Mist would become one of the undisputed overlords 1,500 years later. By then, many Domain Powerhouses had already fallen, including the one behind the Technology Research Institute. Yet the Lord of the Mist remained alive and well, having spent over a millennium devising a plan to annihilate all of humanity while also destroying numerous domain races.

Now clearly at a disadvantage, unable to even penetrate the core circle of the conflict, the Lord of the Mist showed no signs of retreat. This defied all logic. Based on his understanding of the man, the Lord of the Mist was no reckless fool. He vividly remembered the time the Lord of the Mist had decisively fled upon discovering that little black was too formidable to handle.

He refused to believe that the Lord of the Mist, without any contingency plans, would foolishly risk his life to continue competing for the bloodstone against a host of Domain Powerhouses. The only explanation for his continued presence was that he still had confidence in his chances of securing the bloodstone.

With this thought, he began to await the Lord of the Mist’s final move. His only concern was that his own intervention might have altered history, thereby changing the Lord of the Mist’s destined trajectory.

If this were the case, his final gambit would not only fail to secure the bloodstone, but would also lead to his death here.

If that happened, the Anti-Parasitic Plan on this timeline would be completely doomed.

The other him would never have the chance to meet Lin Ran 1,500 years later and become his companion.

Thinking about this, he felt ashamed.

He never imagined he would one day risk his life for a domain creature.

But what choice did he have? The Lord of the Mist was too valuable to ignore.

(End of the Chapter)

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