Chapter 58: You Are a Genius

Chapter 58: Chapter 58: You Are a Genius

Perhaps it was because he was back in a familiar environment, or perhaps it was the simple joy of tasting delicious food again after so long.

After returning to the Demon Hunting Bureau, Li Ye truly relaxed. He ate and drank his fill, then slept soundly for what felt like an eternity.

By the time he woke up again, two days had already passed.

When Li Ye came out of his bedroom, he was greeted by the sight of a table laden with steaming hot dishes.

Yang Feng sat at the table, watching him with a wide grin, as if looking at a priceless treasure. "You’re awake, my great hero. Eat first. After you’ve finished, you can tell me all about the world you traveled to."

’They’re deliberately trying to make me feel like I belong here, aren’t they!’

After a perilous journey through another world where he had also spent a year as a man above others, Li Ye’s mindset was completely different from before he left.

He simply acknowledged him and sat down, calmly and deliberately starting on his breakfast.

Yang Feng didn’t rush him, waiting quietly by his side.

Only when Li Ye had finished eating did Yang Feng lead him to an adjacent room. After personally brewing a pot of tea for Li Ye, Yang Feng asked, "So, what kind of world was it over there?"

"A Middle Martial world, at best," Li Ye said after a moment of thought.

"Middle Martial?" Yang Feng was taken aback, clearly not expecting that Li Ye would have traveled to such a world.

"What’s wrong?" Li Ye asked.

"You’re the first Time Traveler to return from a Middle Martial world." Yang Feng shook his head and voluntarily explained, "In High Martial worlds, worlds with cultivation civilizations, or even worlds with modern technology, they have a fighting chance against demons. Therefore, the probability of a Time Traveler returning alive is much higher.

"Mid-Low Martial worlds focus on developing personal strength, but that strength is relatively low-level and can’t provide effective assistance to a Time Traveler. That’s why, to date, not a single Time Traveler has ever returned from a Mid-Low Martial world. You’re the first."

"If no one has ever returned, how do you know what those worlds are like?" Li Ye asked.

"Speculation. Our scientists make projections and analyses about worlds in the other universe based on data from the worlds other Time Travelers have visited," Yang Feng said with a smile. "Of course, these projections aren’t always accurate. Your safe return provides us with a rich data point, allowing us to make a more accurate assessment of Mid-Low Martial worlds."

"The other universe?" Li Ye froze. "So all Time Travelers go to the same universe?"

"That’s also speculation, but it’s highly probable that it is the same one," Yang Feng said. "Some scientists even suspect you aren’t traveling to another universe at all. They think you’re just traversing an unknown number of light-years to reach other civilizations within our own cosmos.

"After all, you know as well as I do how little Earth’s civilization understands about the cosmos. Anything is possible."

"What makes you think all Time Travelers are going to the same universe?" Li Ye asked.

He subconsciously thought about the world he had transformed, the one whose civilization now revolved around soccer.

He had asked the Team Emblem if the Demon Qi dispersed among the league’s players would dissipate after his departure.

The Team Emblem said it wouldn’t. It was a unique function of team-type demons, similar to the progeny of the Black Dragon; they wouldn’t lose their draconic Attributes just because the Black Dragon died.

In other words, as long as those clubs continued to develop the league, then someday in the future, a true superstar might be born. Or perhaps they would develop space-faring technology and actually venture into the cosmos in search of higher civilizations...

The thought of a civilization in another universe that treated playing soccer as a form of cultivation gave Li Ye a massive headache. It seemed he had created a truly bizarre civilization.

"The languages are similar, Cultivation Techniques are universally applicable, and some Time Travelers have even found traces of other Time Travelers in the worlds they’ve visited. That many coincidences are enough to support the theory that you’re all entering the same universe."

Yang Feng glanced at Li Ye, gestured for him to drink his tea, and continued, "Of course, it could also be a multiverse. Until we investigate thoroughly, it’s all just speculation. The truth still needs to be uncovered by you Time Travelers. After all, you’re the ones experiencing it firsthand and gathering all the primary data."

Li Ye could tell that Yang Feng was doing his best to keep the conversation casual, to eliminate any feeling of it being an interrogation.

Furthermore, because he had returned safely, Yang Feng seemed willing to reveal more inside information to him.

This was a good thing.

He hated the feeling of being kept in the dark; it made him feel powerless.

Most importantly, Li Ye could discern the Demon Hunting Bureau’s attitude toward Time Travelers like him: they were both wary of them and eager to make use of them.

’Just think about my terrifying growth in that Martial World, and the vast reserves of Demon Qi inside my body...’

’It seemed perfectly normal!’

’Time Travelers are in an uncontrollable state every time they go on a mission. Anything could happen during that one year.’

’Once a Demon Hunter acquires immense power and ambition in another world, it would be incredibly easy for them to stir up a storm within the Demon Hunting Bureau upon their return...’

’In the Otherworld, I reached the pinnacle of combat strength in less than a year—in just a few months, to be precise—and became a Super Grandmaster.’

’Suppose I had traveled to a Xianxia World and, by some stroke of luck, became an Immortal within a year, mastering apocalyptic power. Would I really be content to take orders, hand over everything I gained, and continue being a dutiful, uncomplaining Time Traveler?’

’So, was that the real reason for the supposed three-month training, and for the incredibly high mortality rate where only eight out of more than two hundred and thirty people survived?’

Li Ye couldn’t help but dig deeper into that train of thought.

"Li Ye, what was the demon you encountered in that world?" Yang Feng’s voice cut through Li Ye’s thoughts. "How did you survive?"

"It wasn’t one instance of Demon Qi, but two." Li Ye shook his head and took a sip of his tea.

"Two?" Yang Feng’s face was a mask of shock, his usual calm expression completely gone.

"That’s right, two." Li Ye smiled. "Right after I crossed over, I was unfortunate enough to run into a group of Knights having a gathering in a cave..."

In order to get more useful information out of the Demon Hunting Bureau, Li Ye recounted his experiences in the Otherworld in full detail.

’Actually, there wasn’t much to hide anyway...’

Yang Feng was completely captivated by the story. At the most exciting parts, he would jump in with an excited, "You can do that?"

At the most suspenseful moments, he would clench his fists in tension.

When something was unclear, he would stop Li Ye to ask for more details...

Before they knew it, two hours had passed.

Yang Feng looked at Li Ye with a complicated expression, his gaze tinged with admiration. "Two instances of Demon Qi, encountered back-to-back within four months. It’s incredible that you managed to survive."

"Just a stroke of luck," Li Ye said, shaking his head. "I was fortunate that two Derived Skills awakened at critical moments. Plus, the Black Dragon had just finished transforming and was at its weakest. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have made it."

Of course, he wasn’t foolish enough to reveal all of his trump cards.

He altered his description of the Pulling People Down skill, claiming it merely influenced targets with his words, compelling them to join a soccer match.

As for the "Smack My Teammate" skill, he changed its effect, claiming that when he struck a teammate, their power would double, and he would receive a certain portion of their Attributes as feedback.

He had significantly nerfed the descriptions of both skills, and he didn’t even mention his third skill at all.

In reality, after losing the Team Emblem, the Demon Qi in his body had diminished, and Li Ye felt as though the skills’ effects really had been weakened. But that was just a feeling; it still needed to be tested.

Furthermore, Li Ye had also altered the story of the battle with the Black Dragon. He downplayed the dragon’s strength, exaggerated the contributions of Liu Guangsheng and the others, and emphasized that he only won because of teamwork—which was the very strategy the experts had suggested based on the Team Emblem’s Attributes.

Since no other Demon Hunter would ever enter that world, and dead dragons tell no tales, as long as the Team Emblem kept its mouth shut, no one would ever know what truly happened.

"Two Derived Skills, two instances of Demon Qi eliminated in four months, and you weren’t even corrupted by the Demon Qi or lost your sense of self. You even brought back all the Martial Arts Secret Manuals from that world. Li Ye, that’s not luck. That’s pure skill."

Yang Feng looked at Li Ye, his admiration plain to see. He even had to take a sip of tea to conceal his excitement. "You’re a natural-born Time Traveler. I’ll report your accomplishments and request a formal commendation for you.

"Li Ye, no Time Traveler has ever been able to basically package up and bring back all of another world’s high-end resources. You’re the first. You’re a true genius.

"I never imagined someone could get so much out of a soccer Team Emblem. When you chose it, had you already planned to do all this? Incredible. This gives us a whole new line of thinking..."