Temporary Charm Skill: The host can charm a person in the 6th step for 5 minutes. During this time, the target perceives the host as a close friend. Requests made cannot harm the target in any way, and the charm can be resisted or broken earlier if the target perceives the host as hostile. This skill can be used once every 1 billion years. (Reality Points: -699)
Hao Gongming first went and enslaved a 5th step mage, then asked for Gray's location. After obtaining the coordinates, she specifically crafted the skill, weakening it to its limit to reduce the cost of reality points.
Hao Gongming smiled as she saw Gray successfully charmed, but time was limited. She asked, "What is in your left hand?" It was a bright red object with a peculiar aura.
"It's a drop of blood from the creature," Gray replied.
"Can you lend it to me for a few minutes?"
"Sure," Gray said, handing it to Hao Gongming with a smile.
"What kind of creature is it?"
"It's an eight-step worm intentionally released into the soil by forces from the real world."
Hao Gongming quickly thought and asked important questions.
"Are 'The Great' and 'The Dragon Eye' in the 7th step?"
Gray answered, "Yes, they are in the 7th step. However, they are currently confused due to absorbing the creature's blood, so they are trapped in the soil."
"How does one find a way out of the soil?"
"The way is apparent. Once someone reaches the peak of the root realm, they can instinctively find the way up. 'The Great' and others are simply too confused to get out, or perhaps they don't want to get out!"
"Are you planning to leave the soil soon?"
"I plan to invade the Abyss and use that world to purify the creature's source power, reaching the peak of the 6th step, and then I will escape."
"Are you not already at the peak of the 6th step?"
"No, not yet! Resources here are so scarce that reaching the peak of the 6th step without the creature's source power is nearly impossible."
"Now, can you show me some items that you truly cherish?"
"Sure," Gray replied and began taking out six items.
"This is a root. I plan to sell it later. Roots, even in reality, are rare."
"This is a soul egg. It's dead, but it can be fed to an eight-step demon. It has many uses in the real world for demons."
"What exactly is a soul egg?"
"It can be used to greatly enhance soul power. I found this one on the creature's body, but it's only useful for demons because its dead."
"Next is a 1 billion-year-old ginseng. They say it can heal any injury below the 10th step and prolong life. Honestly, I don't know why such a precious thing is found here in the soil."
"This shield can defend against 7th step attacks for a while. Again, it was on the worm's body."
"This arrowhead is the most valuable item. It was shot by a 10th step or above powerhouse. It's not useful on its own, but its materials are extremely expensive."
"This is the monster core of the worm creature! It was tightly sealed when I picked it up. It's very chaotic, so I don't have many uses for it. I plan to sell it later!"
"Wait, can't you use it to obtain source power?"
"Absolutely not! This thing is way too powerful. If the seal breaks, a lot of the areas and worlds in the soil will become corrupted. Even a drop of blood is hardly tolerable for these bubble worlds," Gray explained.
"And next is this map of reality," she added.
Hao Gongming smiled and noticed that time was running out. She then said, "Can I take a quick look at them?"
"Of course," Gray replied, handing them all to Hao Gongming.
She realized that only a few seconds remained, so she smiled and said, "Do you have a map of the soil?"
"I have one, but it's incomplete. The soil is so vast for people like me who are in the 6th step. If I were still in the 9th step, I would have known everywhere, but now I don't know many places," Gray explained.
Hao Gongming smiled brightly and said, "Thank you," and with all the items in her possession, she opened a portal and disappeared.
Gray said, "You're welcome, my friend," with a smile and sat back down in his seat. However, a few seconds later, he suddenly stood up and screamed, "WHAT THE FREAK?!"
...
Hao Gongming took many detours and arrived in a desolate world. She excitedly took out her loot: the drop of blood, the root, the dead egg, the shield, the arrowhead, the monster core, and the map. She examined them with great excitement.
"The system detects significant reality power near the host. Does the host want the system to absorb it?" the system asked.
"What? Which one?" she inquired.
The system remained silent.
She clenched her teeth and accepted. After all, none of the items were as useful as reality points. However, only one item, the arrowhead, reacted. It shone brightly and then lost much of its luster.
"The system absorbed (1,916,774) reality points from the 'Steel of Truth,'" the system announced.
"No way! So many? Just from one arrowhead?" Hao Gongming exclaimed. But after some thought, she understood that it was logical. After all, it was a 10th step or above item.
She attempted to feed the other items to the system, but none of them worked at all.
She examined her stats:
Reality Points: (1,916,801/1,917,843) Physical Power: 1 Magical Power: 1 Soul Power: 1
System skills:
Outsider: This skill allows the host to create her own skills with Reality Points. All previous skills have been removed, and the host has the freedom to remove any self-created skill, returning all Reality Points associated with it.
Lord of Harem: The number and cultivation base of harem members directly affect the amount of Reality Points the host possesses. The host also has the ability to accept women into her harem, and with each new member, the upper limit of reality points increases. Other methods of acquiring reality points, such as absorbing source energy from killing creatures or devouring bloodstones, remain unaffected.
Indestructible: The host can never be killed. The worst that can happen is being sealed.
Reality Body: The host possesses a foundational strength that will never weaken. Each point is now equated to 1 billion stat points in the previous version of the system. The reality body can be further enhanced through the permanent consumption of reality points at a ratio of 10 to 1.
With a huge amount of reality points in her possession, along with the root, Hao Gongming thought to herself, "I will soon escape from the soil." Initially, the number of harem members was reaching a 50-digit figure, and she was acquiring 100 reality points per day. But now, she suddenly obtained so much more, and she couldn't be happier.
Crafting a skill, she created "Enslave Three 6th Step Beings" (-302655). Hao Gongming laughed aloud and exclaimed, "Yes, I have conquered the entire soil!" Without hesitation, she teleported back to Gray.
Meanwhile, Gray was still sitting in his chair, angrily contemplating what to do. "That woman is supported by a powerhouse in the 10th step or higher. Originally, I didn't want to harm her and let her run wild, but now it seems like a mistake. But what should I do? First, I can't reach her due to the portals. Second, even if I capture her, I dare not kill her because of her backer."
His heart ached as he thought about all the treasures she had stolen. "It's truly infuriating, especially that arrowhead, which belonged to an individual in the 10th step or above."
Unbeknownst to him, a slavery mark fell upon him. Hao Gongming appeared, wearing a smile on her face. Gray immediately got up from his chair and said, "Master." It seemed completely natural to him, as if it were logical for him to be a slave to Hao Gongming.
Hao Gongming said, "Great! From today onwards, you are in my harem and the harem guardian. Now, tell me the location of the Original Sin and Shang Lu!" Gray, as the ruler of the entire mage world, naturally had that information. Even if he didn't, it wouldn't be a problem. Hao Gongming could simply find a 5th step demon and ask.
Hao Gongming continued, "Okay, Gray, you stay here and act like everything is normal," and then she disappeared.
When she reappeared, Hao Gongming found herself in a desolate world all by herself. "First, let's create a skill to make things easier," she thought. She crafted the skill "6th Step Detector: If there is a 6th step individual in the same world, you can detect their exact information and location" (Reality Points: -10366). "Great, now it will be much faster," she said with satisfaction. Then she summoned a clone and opened a portal to where Shang Lu was located.
Meanwhile, Shang Lu was engaged in discussions with a group of Emperor Golden Immortals and Golden Immortals regarding the affairs of the mage world and the abyss. One Emperor Golden Immortal mentioned, "Our spies have informed us that mages might attack the abyss." Another asked, "That should work in our favor, right? If the two factions fight, we will benefit."
Shang Lu responded, "I'm not so sure about that. I have a feeling that Gray has some plans. We might have to aid the abyss." One of the Golden Immortals expressed disbelief, saying, "Help those disgusting demons? Is that really the only option?"
As they were engrossed in the discussion, a slavery mark suddenly appeared on Shang Lu. Hao Gongming then materialized before them. Everyone in the room was alarmed, and the Emperor Golden Immortals, with their terrifying auras, began questioning her. One asked, "Who are you?" Another said, "Are you that woman who opens portals? We collaborate, but how dare you just appear here?"
But instead of Hao Gongming answering, it was Shang Lu who spoke up. "I summoned her. I want to talk to her about some strategies. You are dismissed." Despite having numerous questions, the Emperor Golden Immortals and the rest obeyed their boss and left the room. Hao Gongming smiled and said, "Welcome to my harem! Act like nothing happened." Then she opened a portal and left. Now that Shang Lu was permanently her slave, there was no need to rush and question him. Shang Lu calmly continued sipping his tea as if nothing had happened.
Meanwhile, the Original Sin resided in a palace within a cave world. High-level individuals chose to live in the cave world because it was safer and harder to infiltrate. The key difference between the cave world and the real world was that the cave world required maintenance, or it would be destroyed, while the real world did not. For example, Original Sin would need to periodically replenish the source energy in the cave world. The larger and more advanced the cave world, the more source energy it would require.
At that moment, Original Sin was in her palace, engaged in intimate activities with a partner when suddenly a slave mark appeared. Initially, she thought to stop and greet her new master, but she was instructed otherwise. "You may continue what you're doing and act like nothing happened," her new master commanded. With that, Original Sin resumed her activities with her partner, who was visibly confused but refrained from asking any questions. Hao Gongming, observing the situation, thought to herself, "This woman should serve as the guardian of the women's harem and should not be allowed in the men's harem under any circumstances."
To proceed with her plans, Hao Gongming summoned a clone to open a portal and teleported to the Hao Harem Sect. While she was capable of opening portals herself, she preferred using clones for such tasks as locating and dealing with the complexities associated with portal creation. After all, it was their duty to handle the more challenging aspects. Returning to the Hao Harem Sect, she called for Su, who arrived promptly. Su had already reached the peak of the 2nd step in his cultivation.
"What is it, Gongming?" Su asked seriously. "The food situation has slightly improved, but with the recent influx of people, we are running out again. There are still individuals resorting to cannibalism. It seems they have become accustomed to it and prefer human flesh over other food options now."
Hao Gongming pondered for a moment and then stated, "Kill all the cannibals. End of story. Now, prepare the sect for another final transition."
Curious, Su inquired, "Transition to where?"
Hao Gongming replied with determination, "To the real world!"