I Will Teach You How to Hunt Gods

Chapter 737 - 29: Alef (2)

"Between tier seven and tier eight, strictly speaking, the distinction isn’t made by ’strength’ or ’destructive power’."

"Just like how you are a Tier Seven True God now, you can easily destroy a planet or even a star region, but..."

Deng raised her hand, pointing towards the depths of the library in a particular direction, and Yun You’s perception followed, instantly ’seeing’ a vision.

A vast and boundless and strange space constructed of countless duel arenas and coliseums stacked layer upon layer.

In the center of the space, a figure emanating terrifying battle intent, as if capable of tearing apart the entire cosmos, was roaring, his aura was also that of a Tier Seven True God!

"Such as the ’War Master’."

Deng introduced, "He controls the ’Supreme Heaven Duel Arena’, which is also connected to countless battle planes, and his power spans the multiverse. In terms of pure destructive power and scope of coverage in battle, he far exceeds what you currently can compare to, but he is still a tier seven."

Yun You’s perception was vaguely stung by that battle intent, causing a slight tremor in her heart.

Indeed, that War Master’s aura was overwhelmingly violent, and although the scale of the Supreme Heaven Duel Arena he controlled wasn’t comparable to the library, it was undoubtedly at a multiverse level.

Yet, Yun You could indeed sense that the War Master was still just a tier seven.

"Then... what is the difference between tier seven and tier eight?"

Yun You instinctively inquired further.

Deng was silent for a moment.

This time, the laziness and playfulness on her face gradually faded, replaced by a kind of solemnity.

The wind inside the library seemed to slow down with her silence.

After a long while, Deng finally spoke slowly.

"Soul."

She paused, her gaze falling on Yun You as if it were corporeal.

"Accurately speaking, it is humankind’s development and utilization rate of one’s own soul."

"The First Generation King... his strength was not overwhelming. His mortal body couldn’t even bear the power you currently possess."

Deng’s voice carried a subtle, almost imperceptible admiration.

"His strength lay in doing what was theoretically impossible for the human soul to achieve in those brief three minutes—he instantly mobilized and commanded the entirety of the soul energy that could be contributed at that moment by every individual in the human race."

"It wasn’t an accumulation, it was a fusion. He forcibly forged numerous scattered, weak, and even conflicting soul flames into a divine axe that cleaved the heavens and earth. The ’weight’ of this divine axe was not about how many ’materials’ it was made of, but about the extent to which it was forged to the utmost purity and unity, and about the hundred percent, lossless utilization efficiency of soul energy."

"And we..."

Deng’s gaze swept over herself and Yun You.

"Even with my current mastery over the endless cosmos of this library, with power vast and boundless, in essence, it is still utilizing just my own soul, without the ability to call upon the soul of all humankind."

"A simple analogy is that—my power is an accumulation of ’quantity’, the pinnacle of skill. While the First Generation King demonstrated in that moment was a leap in ’quality’, the ultimate utilization of the soul’s essence."

"That is the true tier eight, the ultimate realm of the soul."

"And what I need is an existence capable of reaching, or even surpassing that realm."

Deng’s gaze refocused on Yun You, her eyes somewhat fervent.

"A possibility to perfectly fuse human genes with the power of the Death Domain, only then is it the complete power of the First Generation King."

"And you..."

Deng said with a smile, "are the chosen one, the most likely existence to open that door."

Speaking, Deng suddenly lowered her head slightly, her gaze fell on the inconspicuous red scale on the back of Yun You’s right hand.

"Zero."

Deng’s voice carried a tone of teasing familiarity.

"Seeing me for so long, how can you not even say hello? Isn’t that too cold?"

Hearing this, Yun You was suddenly taken aback, instinctively looking down at the back of her hand.

Zero? Is it referring to Master Zero? How does Deng know about Master Zero’s existence?

It was as if the disguise had been pierced... The surface of the red scale subtly rippled, and a thick, irritable, and cautious intention directly rang in Yun You’s mind, it was precisely Master Zero’s familiar, raspy voice.

[Hmph! Why say hello?]

[What is there to say with this playful old hag! Yun little one, take my advice, stay away from her! The farther the better! On the outside, she’s all gloss, but inside she’s all dark, not a word of truth!]

Master Zero’s tone was full of undisguised disdain, with a hint of imperceptible apprehension.

However, just as Master Zero’s intention finished, Deng’s all-seeing eyes narrowed, and the smile on her face turned dangerous.

"Hey! You little thing, feeling itchy, eh?"

"So many years since we last met, and you dare to chirp about me behind my back right on our first meeting? Do you really think I won’t handle you?"

[...]

The moment before still chattering in Yun You’s mind, Master Zero instantly became like a duck being choked, his thoughts coming to an abrupt stop, even the luster of the red scale seemed to dim a bit, obediently sticking to the back of Yun You’s hand without the slightest sound.

The speed at which he cowered left Yun You momentarily baffled.

In her impression, Master Zero was never the kind to fear anyone, even daring to bear his teeth against Quasi-Gods and True Gods alike, so how could he be so... docile in front of Deng?

Yun You couldn’t help but look at Deng, her eyes filled with questions.

"You two... know each other?"

Seeing Yun You speak, the dangerous smile on Deng’s face disappeared without a trace, switching back to her lazy and casual demeanor.

"Know each other? More than just knowing each other."

Deng’s tone carried a hint of nostalgia, she casually said, "This guy was one of my earliest ’experimental subjects’. Much earlier than you, earlier than those Calamity Demons, by far."

She paused, her gaze once again sweeping over the red scale, as if looking at a once-proud creation covered in dust.

"As for what it is... of course it’s not human, nor is it a conventional life form."

Deng’s voice took on a slight educational tone.

"It belongs to an extremely rare class of special existences, typically only found in theoretical extrapolations—’Alef Creatures’."

"For example, the Karma Remnant Buddha you saw before, Zero is of the same kind."

Yun You was slightly startled.

She certainly knew what Alef Creatures were.

Strictly speaking, Alef Creatures are not actual life forms, but conceptual representations. They aren’t composed of matter or conventional energy, more akin to certain underlying universal rules, catalyzed into existence under specific conditions.

Previously, Yun You had speculated whether Master Zero could be an Alef Creature.

And now, Deng’s explanation confirmed it for her.

"Back then, while I was researching the deep connection between the void and Death Domain power, I accidentally caught a trace of its existence in a universe remnant about to be completely devoured by the Death Domain."

Deng explained with a chuckle, "Its state at the time was extremely weak, nearly dissipating. I exerted great effort to stabilize that faint ’essence of existence’ and guided it to attach to a piece of... a ’red star crystal’ I was studying, enriched with a high concentration of soul energy."

"That was the predecessor of the scale on your hand."

"It is my first successful experiment, to some extent also my ’first disciple’, though it will certainly never acknowledge that, constantly thinking about fleeing."

On hearing this, Master Zero’s intention weakly fluctuated, as if expressing a silent protest, yet still dared not emerge.

"And the properties of Alef Creatures also grant it some incredible abilities, such as disregarding certain physical rules, transitioning between reality and illusion, even briefly distorting localized reality logic."

"Zero’s abilities are particularly adept at altering forms and manipulating energy."

"When I later created Calamity Demons, much of the technology regarding how ’energy’ can stably embed within biological vessels was inspired by studying it."

Yun You listened, feeling slightly dazed, as she looked down at the warm red scale on the back of her hand, the complexity in her heart was immense.

So Master Zero was neither an ancient dragon soul nor an artifact spirit but an Alef Creature, the first experimental sample Deng had captured and ’stabilized’... No wonder he held such apprehension towards Deng.

"Therefore."

Deng concluded, her gaze shifting from the red scale back to Yun You’s face.

"Though its mouth is foul, its abilities can be somewhat useful at times. It likely chose to attach to you seeing your potential, or perhaps, simply wishing to stay away from me?"

She shrugged nonchalantly.

"Let it be. After all, it can no longer make any waves now."

The red scale faintly flashed with red light again, as if expressing dissatisfaction...