On the other side, Huan Cai was equally astonished; setting aside whether Ji Xing was indeed the Demon Lord himself, even if he was an unknown powerhouse from another universe, his strength was at least at the Upper Transcendent Level; otherwise, how could he have easily suppressed both her and Ora just now? Even the Observer mentioned that he could mobilize the Supreme God’s Domain, so what else could he be if not an Upper God?
Taking a step back, even if those purple lightning might have been due to the sword’s power, he might possess a High Order Divine Artifact, but the suppression was definitely not an external force; Huan Cai clearly saw it was truly his own power.
This is also why she suspected he was the Demon Lord, as everything seemed too coincidental. A strength from the Demon Realm at the Upper Transcendent Level wanted to sneak into the Divine Domain; such coincidences simply do not happen in this world.
Now, after some communication between the two, Huan Cai no longer firmly believed Zhang Xiaoman was the Demon Lord, but the doubt in her heart was undeniable.
"If he truly were the Demon Lord, coming here to find me for the imprinting of the fifth star pattern would not be impossible. At present, in the Aigus Star Domain, I’m the only one who can achieve this. Perhaps his true goal is not to destroy the Divine Domain, but to acquire the means to enhance his powers from me..."
In her heart, Huan Cai quickly pieced together the sequence of events and seemed to find a relatively reasonable explanation.
The Great Fusion arrived, and the Demon Lord must be considerate. It was time to enhance his power, since perhaps similar level beings existed in that universe, compelling him to find any means possible to strengthen himself.
Drawing the fifth star pattern was one of the best methods for those who hadn’t imprinted a five-star pattern; the initial imprinting significantly enhanced strength with no side effects, making it an unparalleled choice for rapid power enhancement compared to other methods.
Yet it remains speculation; matters might not be as complex as she imagined. Ji Xing could simply be a traveler mistakenly entering the Demon Realm and happened to meet Yao Wu and others, coincidentally knowing their universe had the power of imprinting star patterns, and just so heard she was the only living person capable of imprinting a five-star pattern.
At this thought, Huan Cai couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.
Now, it was the knife and she the fish; whether that person was who she suspected or not, she seemed to have no other choice.
"What do I get for imprinting the fifth star pattern for you?"
Huan Cai voiced her demands, forced by circumstances, but she naturally wouldn’t relinquish any benefits she could gain, knowing the difficulty of imprinting the fifth star pattern was far from comparable to the former four, consuming even her, at the Middle-level Transcendent, greatly.
"I will provide all the materials myself, in addition, as compensation for imprinting the star pattern, I shall grant you two Life Seeds, which should significantly aid your cultivation."
Zhang Xiaoman spoke and directly retrieved a small green seed from his Storage Space; it was what he referred to as the Life Seed, actually a World Tree Seed.
Huan Cai jumped up upon seeing the World Tree Seed, her eyes gleaming uncontrollably.
She felt a strong life aura within the seed that highly aligned with her cultivation attribute; she believed that with the help of this seed, her strength would exponentially grow in a short span.
Moreover, according to him, there wasn’t just one seed but two, which further delighted her.
Zhang Xiaoman saw her reaction and knew the deal was likely secure.
In truth, it wasn’t Huan Cai’s lack of composure; the World Tree Seed’s allure was too strong. Remembering Ni Yang’s reaction upon seeing the seed, and considering Huan Cai’s power still lagged behind Ni Yang, alongside her life attribute training, the seed benefited her more than Ni Yang, explaining her intense response.
Huan Cai soon realized her loss of composure and resumed her seat, but a decision had formed in her heart.
These two treasures were hers to claim.
As for his true identity, it mattered not, as long as he posed no harm to her, what could be more important than power enhancement?
Even if he didn’t imprint the fifth star pattern, she couldn’t match him anyway; what difference did it make to her?
In a brief moment, Huan Cai made her decision; the sole issue now was preparing the materials for the fifth star pattern.
Imprinting the fifth star pattern differed greatly from the fourth not only in difficulty but mainly in the challenge of acquiring materials.
Often, even if she offered help, many couldn’t gather the necessary materials.
Nevertheless...
Huan Cai glanced at Yan Qianzhi and mused; given his power and resources, gathering these materials shouldn’t be hard.
Zhang Xiaoman received a list containing all major High Order materials needed for the imprinting. Huan Cai omitted low-level ones, as listing such items for someone of his caliber would only insult him and herself.
Although Zhang Xiaoman was prepared mentally, he couldn’t help but twitch upon seeing the materials list.
Goodness, 38 materials in total, the lowest of Treasure Level, with a top-notch Unlimited Level one called the Chaos Spirit Flower. Zhang Xiaoman had heard about it.
Rumor has it the flower only emerges at the dawn of cosmic chaos or during the merger of two universes. Zhang Xiaoman was uncertain if the two universes ever merged with others, but given the harsh conditions for its creation, seeing it might be even more difficult than buying it.
Yet, challenges mean little to the wealthy; Zhang Xiaoman couldn’t find the Chaos Spirit Flower, but star dust could be crafted. Remember, there exists a profession called Dream Master in this world.
For the fourth star pattern, Zhang Xiaoman relied on Dream Masters to acquire several materials, one being a valuable Treasure Level.
Giving Huan Cai a Life Seed as down payment, Zhang Xiaoman left the planet directly to prepare materials, no longer needing Dream Masters for assistance given his level would suffice for the Dream operation on rare materials independently.
This isn’t due to extensive Dream Master experience, but rather the principle of mastering one skill to master all. At the Middle-level Transcendent, Zhang Xiaoman’s spiritual power and learning capability far surpassed ordinary mortals.
If he wished, he could swiftly achieve master-level in any technical profession in this world.
Meanwhile, Huan Cai stayed on the planet named Phantom Realm Forest, awaiting Zhang Xiaoman’s return.
She harbored no thoughts of fleeing nor intended to return to the Divine Domain and meet Ora and the others.
On one hand, Huan Cai knew well that someone daring enough to entrust her with the Life Seed had some means to track her, and returning to the Divine Domain now would only serve as a beacon for him.
On the other hand, she truly didn’t want to forgo this golden opportunity; two Life Seeds represented a rare chance she couldn’t miss. Even knowing he might be the Demon Realm’s existence, she was willing to make this transaction.